Rescued

[Appy Trails]

My daughter, a friend of hers and her friends mom went to a sale Saturday night mainly because her friend and her mom was looking for some tack, mainly grooming items, and figured this might be a good time to pick up some cheap. They decided to stick around for the horse sale as her friend's dad was watching the kids so they weren't in any hurry.

Her friend ended buying this mare for $165 (hadn't planned on buying any more horses, has 4 already) but just couldn't leave her there to maybe go to kill. Apparently, the mare (and several others) had just been turned out in a pasture and absolutely NOTHING has been done with them. Supposely she got her injuries in the trailer on the way to the sale. Courtney says her mane and forelock are so packed with burrs that she's afraid she's going to have to cut them completely off. The tail isn't much better. Has never had any feet work done. The mare is supposely between 2-3 years old. Poor girl :(
Needless to say, she's scared to death. Courtney spent most of yesterday just getting her so she could pet her a little. Why do people have horses if they are going to neglect them. Obviously the person who owned this mare and the others that were sold at the sale decided to get rid of them as they didn't want to feed them this winter (not that they appear to be overly fed anyway.) Just PO's me to no end. :mad:

Courtney's looking for a name for her so any ideas are welcome :) Will keep everyone advised on her progress.

[(un)stablemom]

It breaks my heart to hear of this. God bless this family for taking this horse in. You can see her beauty through all of this. Poor baby! I will be looking forward to posts on the progress of her.

[Cassie1]

OMG!!!!! That poor baby!!!! Looks horrible and those injuries.....8&$3^ that person who took her to sale!!!!! Man! Grab a rope!

Bless the lady who took this poor horse.....she has a special star in heaven with her name on it!!!
Ginger ;)

[Mary~F]

I love the name Hope.
Yes, bless this family for having the heart to give this horse a chance.
I can also see her beauty thru those burrs and dried blood.
Please keep us up on her accomplishments/recovery.
If I had more horse knowledge and the room I would love to rescue more horses.
The one we have been fortunate enough to rescue has truly been a blessing for US.

[cols]

Oh, sweetie. :(
Poor little darlin'.
I bet she's going to be a lovely little horse.
Actually, 'untouched' may not be as bad as 'abused'.
At least she hasn't been betrayed by the human in her mind until she was forced into the trailer and sold off in a scary place.
I wish the family who adopted her all the best and look forward to 'happy' stories and pictures !

[Houdini]

How wonderful that she was bought by a caring/loving family instead of going to the canners. She is so pretty (underneath all the burs and blood). One more horse saved!!! Yay!!!

[Paintfancy]

Wow AT, she's probably going to be a gorgeous mare when she's healed. This wasn't at the DeWitt auction barn, was it?

I like Mary's suggestion of the name "Hope." Along those terms, I've also always liked the name "Faith." I wanted to name our puppy Faith, but I got out voted, LOL.

Please be sure to post pics of her progress. I'd love to see how she comes along. Is the gash in her chest deep?

[cols]

For a name, how about "Liberty" because that is what they gave her ... her freedom.

[Cassie1]

Now that's cool! I like that one too! :)

[Penny]

They could call her "Tempest" - she looks as wild as one.

She's so beautiful, even under all the neglect.

I can't wait to see new pics when they have her all cleaned up and started on JL training!

[Appy Trails]

PF- No it wasn't the DeWitt sale. It was at a small town west of Des Moines called Stuart.

Looks like they may be going with Hope for the mare's name. That's what Courtney's dad has been calling her. Her husband was really po'd when he got a good look at the mare this morning. Ready to pop someone. He's a big guy too 'bout 6'3, 250 lbs. (tee hee) Probably good thing they're not exactly sure where the guy lives that sold her. Got Hope on antibotics and using Underwood and baking powder on the wounds. Vet is coming to give a tetanus shot tonight and is going to tranquilize her so they can clean up the wounds and get the burrs out of her mane, forelock and tail without causing her a lot of pain. Courtney says she seems really smart and willing.

[Devo]

Some people make me soooo angry . . . and then others come along and restore faith in mankind. I think all the names mentioned are fitting for her.

that poor baby! I am so glad she found a better home! If she got those injuries in the trailer, how in the world did your friend ever get her back in?


D.

[cols]

If she got those injuries in the trailer, how in the world did your friend ever get her back in?


D.
I was wondering the same thing. It couldn't have been easy on anyone. Human or horse. :(

[Appy Trails]

Courtney says that they used a stock trailer and she hopped right in and then hopped right out when they got home. Maybe because she was all by herself and who knows, maybe she knew she was going to a better place but anyway, surprisingly enough they had no problems bringing her home. :p

[cols]

Oh, isn't that good news !
Well, so all of her experiences with her new family will have been good ones !
I am so happy that this little horse has found this wonderful family !

[Phorselover]

A couple of things. So glad the friend was able to take her. If and when she is able to get ahold of this mare, if she sprays WD40 on the mane (any oil will do but because you can really spray WD40 it penatrates the knots or stickers) and a slick dog brush. You know the kind you find in a pet store. It has a bunch of stiff wires standing out of the handle and slightly bent. This kind of brush works out those kind of stickers relatively easy. Usually with out taking any or little mane hair with them. Her mane looks so matted and frayed that she may loose some, but maybe not all. Usually when these stickers show up I am able to not even get poked by them, but with her mess you may get a prick or ten. I am choosing to focus on the wonderful people who took her in and not the ones who let her get in this condition!

Happy Horsing,
Laura

[Mary R]

What a lucky horse! And what great people to save her. She's going to be beautiful! And I won't waste anger on how she got in that shape. Some people are not fit to be responsible for another life! I hopw we'll see pictures of how she progresses.

Mary R

[Rockies4me]

Oh what a lucky girl, she's with a special family now. I can't wait to see the progress she makes.

[BEARCAT]

Driving home from work last night, I thought about the perfect name....

Daisy-Ray!
For the french Desiree, meaning "wanted, desired"
Daisy for short
.... plus she's same color as a daisy, and daisies have a yellow center, or "heart of gold..."

:)

[cols]

Bearcat, that is a perfect name !!!!!! And a little more "criptic" that some of the others we came up with !
I love it ! :D

[Many bucks]

i to hate people who don't care for their animals but it was good that they decided to sell her before something worse happen like starve to death. I know she could have bee sold for meat but it is time to focus on her and the new great life she will have not the what if's. she looks like she is going to be a very nice looking mare when all cleaned up. I hope the head injuries aren't to deep and cause a brain injury. please keep us post and lots of pic's. I bought my paint mare from a sale barn but I was lucky she was in good health and was not in the kill pen. of course I paid a bit more too. I'm so glad someone was able to save this one from anymore harm or death.

[TwoMedicineKody]

Courtney I must say is truly a Angel for rescueing this horse. Tell her that with time and patience that her and this horse will have a extra special relationship with each other. Even though the pictures of her are a bit rough to look at you can truly see the beauty of this horse through all that. As far as her name goes, I like the idea of Hope, or Faith, Chance. As far as the cockleburrs the suggestion of WD-40 really works and cowboy magic.

[Appy Trails]

UPDATE - Courtney and her husband have decided to call the mare Rain, after the mare in the movie Spirit, Stallion of the Cimarron because they think she looks like her. They have gotten all the burrs out of her mane, forelock and tail by using WD-40. Courtney is treating her wounds on a daily basis and Rain is still on antibiotics but it looks like everything is healing nicely. Courtney is working with her a little every day, just getting her used to being around people, etc. and says she's still a little skittish but is responding nicely. Getting better every day. Will send pictures as soon as I get some more.

[Cassie1]

Oh, that's great news! Please keep us posted on recovery and some pics as she is healing so we can see the progress.....

Glad she has a good home....all God's creatures deserve that....

Ginger

[Many bucks]

hip hip hurray. sounds great. can't wait for pic's

[Green Pastures]

I like the name Rain. :p Cleansing the old, encourageing new growth and beginnings, calming and peaceful.

[vsolubo]

She looks beautiful, even in her poor shape! Can't wait to see her with some more weight and with the cuts all healed up.

[ciscoandme]

How about Hope"s Faithful Prayer? Then you could call her hope or Faith? She is going to be beautiful with some TLC.

[Appy Trails]

Got this from Courtney via my daughter....

"We got all of the burs out of her mane and her forelock without having to tranquilize her. We even trimmed a bridle path (with scissors). I was able to save most of her mane and forelock. She has a small area close to her withers that I had to cut shorter but it is still long. She is letting me treat her wound on her shoulder very well. The one on her head is a different story. She is not bad though. She is no worse than any of the others I have out there would be. She is starting to lead much better as I have been taking her in and out of the barn for exercise since she is stall bound for now. After looking at her teeth we have determined that she is only 3-4 years old. She is starting to become friendly very quickly as she nickers in the morning when I go out to feed her. She is still very scared of ropes but we are working on that. Once I have her haltered she isn’t so bad it is just getting her to calm down so I can halter her. Although it only took 5 minutes last night. It is going to take some time to her completely cleaned up as I have to wait for her to heal first. I will probably take updated photos this weekend."
Will post the pictures when I get them.

[Mary~F]

THanks for the update.
It seems as though things are really looking up for her.
Can't wait for those new pics. :D

[cols]

How nice to hear that things are looking up for this little mare !
I am so happy for her !
Rain is a wonderful name for her !

[dueces_r_wild2002]

Rain is a beautiful name..I can't wait for more updates and pics...this girl is on my mind alot.. :)

[shrek1530]

:) Thank you for your kind words and support , when my wife first sent me pics of this mare I thought I was in trouble but she is doing well and is actually very sweet but a tad shy and I'll try to keep new pics and a log of how she does as we start her she has made a tremendous change already. It kinda funny what a litttle TLC and love will due for a critter thanks again

[shrek1530]

:D Rain is doing well and will try to keep you informed as we start her and get her going she is gaining weight and getting better everyday thank you for your support and keep her in your prayers

[TwoMedicineKody]

COOL NAME :) , I think my daughter has about 10 breyer models of Rain so we are big Rain and Spirit fans here!!

[(un)stablemom]

Glad she is doing better. I hope things get better with each and every day.
And by the way, WELCOME TO THE BOARD! Great way to get started here I would say!

[RavenToy]

Just thought I'd toss in my heartfelt welcomes - anyone willing to bring in a rescue is very cool in my book.

I'm so glad your girl is doing well!

[shrek1530]

I'm not really the chat room/discussion board type of person and I want to let you all know that this was not my intention when we bought Rain. I don't buy a lot of horses from the sale barn however I do beleive that there are a lot of good horses out there that are passed up on because of what they look like. I have always beleived that is is not what a horse looks like but what one can see in them that makes them such beautiful animals. It is amazing what a brush and a pair of clippers can do for a horse. As Appy Trails stated, I did not go to the sale looking to buy a horse. That really was the last thing on my mind as I had just bought myself a new horse at the sale about 2 months ago. I don't go out looking for abused or rescue horses or however you want to call it, they just seem to find me. When I saw Rain, it was after we had watched almost 40 other horses go through (she was actaully the 2nd to last to sell) and we hadn't gotten a chance to look at the horses prior to them coming in. For the most part, the horses were not starving. You can see her ribs but it could be MUCH worse. There were only 3-4 horses that actually had noticale injuries. There was a weanling that had a back leg swelled about 4 times the normal size and then there was another mare with a diamond sized cut on her back leg. Rain just had the "bloodiest" injuries. I know there were several people that thought I was crazy for buying her (including my husband). And I want to let you all know that I am not a "saint" like some have quoted. I do plan on selling her. I can't afford to keep anymore horses than what we already have nor do I need anymore because there is only so much time in the day to work with them and I don't want to negelect the ones I have. I plan on keeping Rain through the winter and getting her healthy. Once she is healthy and safe to be around I will more than likely sell her privately. I am trying to keep track of exactly how much it cost us to get her to that point. I don't plan on making a huge profit however it will be nice if I can at least get out of her what I have in her. It was nearly $100.00 just for the vet bills so far and I haven't even had the vet out. I just really don't like seeing good horses go to waste and that's what I think she was, a good horse going to waste, it just happend that yes, she was destine to go to the killers and unfortuantly, I think the ones that weren't buckskins or greys or roans did go to the killers. I won't keep going on however I am updating with some pictures. We got the burs our of her mane and forelock without having to tranquelize her. Unfortuanltely, we just pulled them out because I didn't want any WD-40 to get into her wounds. She stood so well. I do think that sometimes horses do know when you are trying to help. She is still skiddish when I try to catch her -she is more afraid of the halter and rope than me - but she is getting better. We are moving her to the ouside pen during the day to help get her outside a little bit and to help get her used to the other horses although she will probably become good friends with the pony for the winter. I have started to lounge her as it doesn't seem to bother her chest wound and I want to make sure that she doesn't get stiff from being stalled all of the time. We have only been working on it for 5-10 minutes. Just enought to get her loosened up but not enought to really "work" her. She is letting me brush her and is starting to trust me to pick up her feet. My husband has found that she has a spot right behind her ear that she loves to have rubbed! He has really fallen for her! She does trust him as equally as she does me and I think that is great. I have attached some pictures. The first one is an up close shot of her head - open with caution if you have a week stomache. I just want people to realize how severe this injury is. I have also enlose some other pictuers of her with her long pretty, bur fee mane. As you can see from the pictures, she is not fat but she is not overly thin either. We really appreciate everyones support. Just in case anyone is wondering, we are Underwood horse medicine on her wounds. If you have never heard of it go to there website: www.underwoodhorsemedicine.com I have seen this product work before as they claim on the site so we are going to see if it works as well for her as it did some of these other horses as I don't think stitching up her wounds are an option at this point in time. Again, thanks. It is nice to see that there are so many people out there rooting for Rain to get healty.

[Mary~F]

Shrek1530, don't be so modest. What you are doing is very wonderful. Sure, you may not plan on keeping this horse for yourself or your own personal gain, but you are giving her a chance. A chance to live. And in doing so you may also end up helping a person that also needs a chance. A chance with this horse. Sometimes things happen for a reason. Right now it seems you were at that sale for a reason. In time we may find out what other reasons there were for saving this horse. And sometimes we never know the "why" of things that happen.
Good luck with her recovery and training. Thanks for the updated pics! She is already looking so much better ;) . Can't wait to hear how things go. :)

[shrek1530]

Thanks for the word of encouragement. I am sure she will make someone a nice 4-H, saddle club or trail horse someday. She seems very sure footed and she is soooo eager to please! I can't wait to be able to give her a bath and get all of the dried blood off of her. We haven't tried to clean the burs out of her tail yet. Not a place that I am ready to travel quite yet and I don't think they are quite as much of an issue as the ones in her forelock were. I was afraid they would get into her head wound an cause more problems. We were going to tranquelize her just to get her cleaned up but she let me clean them all out with out any hassles at all. I gave her a Tetnus shot last night because I am pretty sure she's not up to date on her shots yet and she stood perfectly still. She is very good girl!

[RavenToy]

I agree completely with Mary - the whole point of a rescue is to give a horse a fighting chance. That's usually all they need. Saint, maybe not. But though you just did what anyone should do, most people can't, or won't. Some may even want to, but lack the facilities or money. You took a chance, and that is a beautiful thing.

All of my horses are, in one form or another, rescues. One pretty much out of the slaughterhouse doors, one from just a bad situation, one from a rescue center here in GA, and our newest one - though not technically a "rescue" is definitely a rehab. Will we keep him? I dunno... we might. We might rehab him and find the right home for him. But it doesn't matter. What matters is that he's getting a chance. Just like Rain. :)

[cols]

She looks so much better already.
Thank you so much for doing this for her.

[Randi]

Shrek1530,

Thanks for saving this mare. As RT said,the point is to save them and offer a good home. In the long run, whether the home is yours or someone else, she is alive and will be loved and taken care of.

I found myself in the same position recently. If not for some friends and members of the rescue I work with, she probably would not be alive today. After four weeks of housing her for me, my friends are bringing her to our place on Saturday. I have gone over to take care of her twice a day for the past month, they have taken care of her in the early morning hours and in the evenings. She weighed in at about 642 lbs when I got her. BAD shape - maybe even less than a 1 for her body score. She is very fearful, strikes with the front feet, cow kicks and goes trotting off, if you move too quickly, has scars everywhere from who knows what, but has a sweet spirit and still wants to trust people.

Will I keep her? I don't know. For our third horse, I wanted a gelding. Time will tell. Like you, the most important thing is to get her healthy, safe and go from there.

I didn't realize RT had a few rescues herself. That's great! We try to make people aware that rescues are and can make great horses too. There was a time when getting a dog or cat from a rescue was embarrassing for people to say. With the pr that the aspca and spca folks have done, it now seems to be the norm. Something to be proud of. I wish it would be that way for horses some day too.

Thanks again for saving her. It takes a lot of time and money to rehab an injured or starving horse. Still, it's one less gone to slaughter. That's important.

Randi

[shrek1530]

I will probably try to update everyone weekly on Rain's progress. She is still doing well. We are going to try to turn her out in the dry lot this weekend so she can get out and stretch her legs a little as catching her has become a much easier task now. She is now to the point of almost running over you when you come into the stall. We need to get her to a happy medium as I like my space.

Thanks again.
Courtney

[shrek1530]

Well,
We have had Rain for 1 week now and she is officially 100% bur free. :) Her tail was a nightmare to do. It was so matted underneath all of the burs that it took me almost 3 hours to get it completely cleaned out. I turned her out in the drylot this weekend for the first time and she managed to get into the other pasture (my fault, I thought the gate was locked and it was just shut.) :rolleyes: Needless to say, she did come back up to the barn for supper time. At least she has learned where she eats. I am starting to turn her out during the day now (with the gate locked) so she can get used to the other horses without being in with them and get out of the stall. Her head wound is healing very well and even her chest wound is looking better. We still have a ways to go with it though. I will update everyone next week if there are many changes. With the daylight savings it will make it more difficult to actually work with her as I do not have a set up that allows me to work when it is dark. If anyone has any ideas as to how I can get the dried blood off of her head it would be a great help. I tried soap and water last night and it didn't do anything. It is so dried and matted on her face that it is actually starting to almost kill the hair underneath it. I am not worried about getting her 100% cleaned up at this time but I would like to get the large chunks off of her face. Any help in this area would be appreciated.

Thanks again :p

[dueces_r_wild2002]

I don't have advise on how to clean her up a bit but I wanted to say I love reading your updates on her progress. :)

[proudtobespotted]

Try hydrogen peroxide. Just moisten an old towel and dab at it. Works great on all fabrics including silk.
Susan

[TwoMedicineKody]

Yea try what Susan says the hydrogen peroxide does work well for removing it off fabric. Just try a little of that and see if it helps cause it might sting her a little bit to though.
Excited to hear more about how the beautiful Rain is doing.

[shrek1530]

:p I know I said I would probably only update weekly if there had been any changes in Rain &/or her behavior but I just had to gloat a little bit. I went out to the barn last night and decided that it was time to start working Rain. She is getting a little pushy and I like my space. I started working on lounging her and she did very well. I have a tendancy to push things just to see how far I can go when things are working in my favor so I decided just for giggles to see if I could get her to load in the trailer. Now I am sure you all know that I was pushing things at this point as I am very sure that this is where she got her wounds from and had you seen her when we loaded her at the sale barn to bring her home, she was scared to death. Needless to say, I was determinded to see what she would do and 30 minutes later she wanted to be in the trailer and was very, very, calm about the matter. Actually, she really didn't want to come out to awful bad once I let her go in all of the way. Yes, I did use the stock trailer but hey, you have to start somewhere right? It went much better than what I had expected so I decided hey, while I have her out, why not try to pick up her feet. The farrier is coming in 1 1/2 weeks so I had better start working on it now. She was very good. It took a little while and then she decided that it was no big deal. There are days when I am working with horses that I buy and know nothing about that I wish they came with a mini recorder or something to tell us about their past. I have had Rain for almost 2 weeks now and when I purchased her I would have sworn that no one had ever touched her in her lifetime. Now I am beginning to wonder. Was she imprinted as a foal and then turned out to pasture? Am I just doing that good of a job that she is responding to me this well? I wish I knew more about her and her past. Part of the dried on blood rubbed off last night while I was working her and the skin was so irritated and red underneath that I decided it was time to do something about it. I decided not to try the hydrogen peroxide as my husband and a few other people that that it might "sting" her a little if it got into a wound. Since we are trying to be very careful about what we do with her head (she has started to get a little PO'd :mad: with all of the medicating we have been doing to her wound) that I would try something that I wasn't worried about even the slightest possibility of stinging. Appy Trails recommended that I try sheath cleaner. I decided to try that. I figured since it could be put in places that you wouldn't choose to put most meds and it gets off nasty smegma I would try that. Great idea Appy! I put it on last night (you don't have to rinse the kind I use) and when I went out this a.m. I could peel off the dried blood with my fingers and the areas underneath were pink instead of red. Her face is sticky now but but I can tell she enjoyed getting the dried blood off. She almost had that "oh that feels so good" look on her face that is if you could read a horses facial expressions. :o I have added a few more pics (notice the nice long, clean mane & tail)

[Mary~F]

It is great to hear how well she is coming along!
Her mane and tail look sooo much better. ;)
And hey, whatever cleaner gets the job done, why not? I just wouldn't mention it to Rain :p
You deserve to gloat a little, you have earned it :cool:

[Cassie1]

I was wondering about after a thorough cleaning, about putting some Vaseline on the dried blood spots and seeing if that would "loosen' it up some and make it easier to remove...I wouldn't put on deep wounds, but if it's crusty blood patches, it might help....let it sit overnight and try to remove next day....just a thought..


She looks great! Thanks for saving her - I'm betting you wont' be sorry! :)
Ginger

[Tuff e Nuff]

I just wanted to let you all know that I will be signing on as Tuff e Nuff now. My husband is using the log on as Shrek1530 and I don't want people thinking it is me saying/writting stuff if it is actually him. Confusing I know. We both have differences in opinions and ideas so I felt getting a new log in for me would be a good idea. Rain is still doing well and I will try the vasoline. I hadn't thought about that but I do think it will work.

[Mary~F]

Not confusing at all, and a good idea to have seperate names. ;)

[Tuff e Nuff]

I said that I would update weekly and I am not sure if anyone is still interested or not but I am going to post anyways. We have offically had Rain two weeks now and she I feel that she has had significant improvement in that time frame. This week I decided that she had to have a bath. She smelled so bath that I couldn't stand it anymore and it wasn't covering up well with the spray on conditioners so Saturday I gave her a bath. It was a brisk day and normally I wouldn't have even attempted it but like I said. She smelled awful! Surprisingly, she stood very well. I used a foam on sprayer and it still took me a while to get the dirt out. You could watch the black layers just wash out of her and then there would be anther and another. It took a while and I didn't get it all out but she looked better and it was cold so I quite. I put her in her stall to dry and after she was cleaned up we decided to finish the clean up process and clip her. Not that she really needs to be clipped right now but hey, she is going to have to get used to a set of clippers sooner or later right? I like to have my horses clipped. What can I say? She stood very well again! Imagine that. Everytime I think she is going to be a pain, she proves to me how willing she is to learn and accept new things. The only place she didn't care for was her muzzle (only cause it tickled :rolleyes: ). She even let me get the little wiskers underneather her eyes with no problems. We learned how to go into the 2 horse trailer. No problems there. It only took about 10 minutes for her to decide it was an ok place to be. We did a LOT of spooknig in place on Saturday. This has help significantly. The only problem that I had was when my husband innocently tied her up to a post (I haven't tied her yet, only to a tie ring) and my son came running down to the barn and startled her. She pulled back and the halter caught her head and just kind of caught her off guard. She quickly calmed down though and resumed standing quietly. Needless to say, my husband felt bad. She is getting turned out with Buddy (my other sale barn baby) during the day now and they have become quite the pair. She walks down to the far end of the pasture and waits for me to catch her there. She doesn't run. It is like she thinks that is where she is supposed to go in order to get into the barn. I'm ok with it for now. At least I can catch her in an open field. I let the kids pet her for the first time this weekend. I have tried to shelter her from them for the time being. I have 1 but the horses are out at my parents house and my sister has 3 that are usually out there too. Needless to say, a quiet day at the farm rarely happens :). I was shocked. I made them stay in the back of the pickup in case she decided to get stupid because I didn't want any of them getting hurt. I told my husband, it was almost like a button clicked with her and she was a completely different horse. She immediately lowered her head and allowed all of the children to maul her. They even accidentally touched her wound and she stood just as calm as can be. I truly beleive that some horses act differently around children but I didn't expect her to. I even took her over to the swing set to watch the kids swing and she still stood calm and still with her head down. She is going to make someone a nice horse someday. I have enlosed some more pictures but they don't do her much justice. I will quite now as I know that even when I type I can be winded :p

[Tuff e Nuff]

The first one is Rain with the kids. The little girl is Shari my niece and she loves horses. Not ponies, horses. And usually the ones that she can't ride. The other one is Rain and Buddy hanging out in her corner of the pasture.

[Cassie1]

wow, she's getting better fast! See what just a little love and care can do? And People throw horses away all the time! Geez! Rain has a good home and another chance at life!

I along I'm sure with everyone here loves updates, so please don't stop and pics,,,,always pics.... :D
Ginger

[Penny]

She's so beautiful!!!!!!!

Sounds like she will be an amazing horse fro someone....I'm so glad you came along to give her a chance!!

[Tuff e Nuff]

Ok so things are going well and Rain is really starting to turn around but now I am faced with a new prolem that I need help with. Her head wound is starting to scab and healing very nicely now and I have started leaving her outside 24-7. We put a big bale of hay out for her and Buddy yesterday and when I went out this a.m. to to put her medication on her and she had hay in her wound. I don't really want to pick the hay particles out and the medication states not to clean the wound however I have a feeling they are implying this for the initial treatment. It has been warmer here and the flies have been out and I was going to put a fly mask on her and I think that might help during the day but I won't leave it on her at night. I am also a little worried that she might try to rub the mask off and do more damage to her head. I can easily stall her and give her flakes of hay however I would rather leave her out to get as much exercise as possible. Otherwise there is no way she can be outside without having access to a round bale at this current time. Can anyone tell me if they think I am just making a bigger deal out of this than it is? She doesn't act like her head is bothering her much anymore and like I said, it is scabbing over but it is still oozing a little too. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Also just an FYI - we found that leaving sheath cleaner on overnight and wiping it off with a cloth the next day helped loosen up the dried blood off of her face.

[Cassie1]

I'd clean the wound and put some type of ointment on it - even some neosporin - Corona ointment or SWAT and then cover with the fly mask - I think if the wound isn't too dry and scaly, she won't rub, but then again....she might....
Just my thoughts on what I would try and that didn't work....I'd try something else.... :rolleyes:
ginger

[Tuff e Nuff]

Cassie thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, I don't want to put any other type of medication on her head except for what I am already using. It kind of acts like "new skin" so I am afraid that if I put anything else on it it will reverse what I have done. The separation on her head is almost completely sealed now and it has only been 2 1/2 weeks. I actually found out how she got her head wound. The sale barn owner said that as the truck driver was running them off of the trailer she turned and looked up and ran smack dab into the second deck of the semi. You could actually look "up" into her wound when we first got her and one section was raised so far above the rest I didn't know if they would join back up or if the area would "die" and fall off. Right now it looks like they are going to join and she is almost flat all of the way across her head again. On another note, her chest is healing very well also. Even with me working her I doesn't seem to be re-opening. I might just have to put her back in for another week until she is healed a little better. She just looks so much happier being outside. :(

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well, I don't need to worry about the hay. It is a minute matter. When I went out last night to put her medication on I tried cleaning some more of the dead stuff off. When I did, I accidentally got a piece that wasn't dead and when it came off there was a pocket of ooze behind it. It smelled so rotten that I called the vet this a.m. to see if I needed to be doing more than what I was doing. She told me only to worry about the hay if it was getting inside of the wound and to start flushing out her head wound twice a day. I am sure Rain is just going to love that. :o By the time I get done medicating her she should be one of the calmest horses around - she's getting pretty close to it already actually. :rolleyes:

On a side note - wish us luck. Tonight she gets her feet trimmed for the first time. I have no idea if she has ever seen a farrier before or when the last time she had her feet trimmed even if she has. I have been working with her on giving her feet and she has been doing well so hopefully it all goes well tonight.

[Paintfancy]

Good luck! You are so awesome for taking care of Rain. Please be sure to post how it goes tonite.

[vsolubo]

Good luck with the farrier tonight. Rain is lucky to have found you.

[cols]

Well, I guess it is better to get that nasty "ooze" out, anyway. It will probably heal better now and she will most likely feel better, too.
How did it go with the farrier ?

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well, we didn't end up trimming her. My farrier didn't think her feet were that bad (the fronts are worse than the back but really they aren't that bad). We decided to wait and see what she looks like next time she is out. She did however pick up her feet and she was just fine. I think she would have stood fine. We ened up peeling the scab off of her head and flushing out all of the ooze Friday night. Since we did this we have left her in at night to keep the hay and dust out of her head. We have been turning her out during the day with a fly mask and it seems to be helping keep the hay off of her head (I'll bet some of the people who drive by think I am crazy for putting a fly mask on a horse in Nov. :rolleyes: ). She doesn't seem to mind the fly mask and the area seems to be healing much faster now with no ooze at all. Her chest is almost 100% closed up and looking great.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Wow - I couldn't believe it. I went out last night to feed the horses and when I got Rain in I noticed that her chest wound is almost 100% healed. It is sealed up all of the way and has a very small scab that needs to come off (and yes I am going to leave it alone.) The hair has started growing back on the outside of the wound and it looks so much better. Her head also looks 100% better. The outside of it is healing so well. The inside still has a good sized scab but she is no longer bleeding or oozing. I don't know why it took me buy surprise last night I guess I just haven't paid much attention as to how much it really is healing. She is becoming more and more of a sweetie pie every day.

[vsolubo]

I am so happy for Rain! You must be taking really good care of her. Please post some current pics.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well here is my weekly update a little early. I decided to put her pictures side by side and really compare her progress. My guess is that if she went through the sale barn today she would have a totally different outcome. She is still doing very well and I only expect she will get better. It has only been 1 month and I have seen great changes in her (just ask those who saw her the night I bought her). RT one thing I did notice is that she has a roll on all of her hoofs. Mainly on the back ones but you can see it on the fronts too. I thought this was interesting since I haven't had her trimmed yet and I am sure she wasn't trimmed where she came from. I am going to see if we can help her stay barefoot. Well, attached are some new pics for you to view. I am sure you will be able to see the differences in her. Just a side note: These pictures were taken before I put her medication on so you can see the new "pink" skin that is appearing. The one of her chest isn't very good but the camera had a hard time focusing in on it.

[RavenToy]

Wow.. she's coming along so well!! She looks great!! What a sweet looking little girl she is.

[vsolubo]

She looks great! You should be proud of yourself.

[Appy Trails]

Looks great Courtney :D

[Penny]

She really looks great! Good job!

[cols]

Ahhhhh...that's so sweet ! This story makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside !

[Cassie1]

Oh....what a change....now why can't people treat animals nice....maybe because the ones of us who do love them need them to come into our lives for our love and help?

God Bless you!!!!!

Ginger :D

[Tuff e Nuff]

I really wish all of you could see her in person. I told my husband last night that pictures really don't do this horse any justice. You can see the calm in her eye and the willingness to please. Just being around her puts you at ease. I put the saddle on her for the first time the other night and she never once made any attempt to buck – not that they all do. She moved around a little faster than normal but I don’t know how to explain it. She was kind of like “ok, if you say it’s supposed to be up there then I will trust you”. I haven’t really been in the horse world since before my son was born (over 5 years ago) and in the last month Rain & Buddy (my little bucker, but that is an entirely different story) have given me the drive to jump back in. They were both horses that other people threw out as “trash” and neither one are. Both have taught me so much about patients and show me how much love a horse has to offer. Buddy has stolen my heart and has secured himself a place in my life (which is very hard to do) and Rain never ceases to amaze me. I am not the crying type but there have been a few nights that I sit down in the barn and look at her and wonder how people can do these things to such loving creatures. I know she wasn’t in that bad of shape when I got her but the fear that ran threw her eyes told me enough about her. :eek: I am on now on the quest to find her the perfect home. :) I told the sale barn owner that he could tell the owners of Buddy and Rain that I would see them in the show pen next year and they would know who I was because I would be the one kicking their butts on the very horses they threw out. :D He giggled but I’m not kidding.

[Waiting on Rain]

I am the daughter of Appy Trails and the friend of Tuff e Nuff who was there when Rain was purchased. Because I am a single mom, I don't usually think about purchasing a horse due to the fact that at this point in time I can't afford it. My mom has two horses of her own and she is always willing to let my daughter and I ride them and I have been content with that up until now. While I love my mom's Appys, they have never been my first choice in horses. I love Paints and Palominos and because of that, my dream horse has been a Palomino Paint. When Rain came into the pen at the sale barn that day, my heart skipped a beat. When my friend bought her, I couldn't explain the feelings that rushed through me.
To me, Rain is the most beautiful horse around. I fell in love with her the first time I saw her and the feeling has grown since then. I never knew I could feel this way about a horse. I haven't felt this much love for anything since my daughter was born. Through my friend, I have watched this horse grow from a frightened mare to a sweet and gentle horse. Every time I visit her, I can't believe the changes that have taken place. And, of course, every time I come away wanting her more and more. I know that my friend will find the perfect place for her, but it kills me that it can't be me. I have no way to take care of Rain right now and it could be a long while before I can. I know that Rain will make some person a wonderful friend and horse and she will be loving and kind and she deserves it after all she's been through. My wish for her is that she will find a home with someone who will love her as much as I do.

[RavenToy]

Sounds like Appy Trails needs to move Rain to her place. :D

[Appy Trails]

Appy Trails probably would if she didn't have to pay board :p Maybe if I win the lottery this weekend and can afford to buy my own place (and then dynomite hubby out of town.) *sigh and wishful thinking* :rolleyes:

[Tuff e Nuff]

Oh Waiting you know it kills me that you two can't be together. :( I know how much Rain means to you and that makes trying to sell her even harder. I can't believe what a good horse she is turning out to be. She has so much love to give.

Appy, have you been playing the lotto? Can't win if you don't play. :p

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well, Thursday after Thanksgiving dinner I loaded Rain and Buddy up and haulded them the 45 minutes over to my mother-in-law's house. I was a little nervous with Rain in the trailer since the last time I hauled her was in the stock trailer on the way home from the sale. She has been in my two horse several times but not on the road. She rode very well. When we got to Janet's (my mother-in-law) I found a little hole in my training. Rain didn't want to come out of the trailer. See when I loaded her up before I just left the rope hanging out of the back end of the trailer and then I would pick it up and pull to get her to back out. This time, I had the rope in the front of the trailer since I had her tied and couldn't use it to back her out. Needless to say, I still think this is a good problem to have (better than having her blow out of the trailer right?). We got her out and put her in the stall for the night. She was very quiet and calm around the other horses. Friday was kind of one of those cold days and I really didn't have the desire to work them as much as I had wished to but I did work them a little. Rain is a pretty quick learner and that comes out more and more each time I work her. I worked her by herself in the RP for the first time (I have a square pen at home w/1 end missing right now so she has been on a line and not really working at liberty). This gave me a good chance to see where we needed to improve. She did very well. Saturday we worked in the RP again. I put Buddy in and worked them together. She picked up quickly when he was in trouble (which was most of the time since he likes to hide behind her) and when I would send him, she would just walk up and stand behind me while he worked. She almost had that "HA HA Stupid" look on her face. Once Buddy was finally listening I put him up and saddled Rain. I worked her in the RP by herself and was wanting to try to ride her. I pulled myself up on both sides and rubbed the opposite side and she was a little nerous but calmed down quickly. Needless to say I decided that I had better wait. I have come this far with her and another good week or two of ground work will help. Today I didn't get a chance to work her because we had a Christmas party (I know, it's only November) so when we got back I loaded them back up and came home. She unloaded a little bit better and it was pouring down rain. I am hoping if the weather turns better tomorrow to get some updated photos.

[cols]

Wow ! That sounds awesome. From all you say, it sure seems like she is going to be a great horse .... for someone ....

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thought I would add some pictures that I took last night.

The first one is of her head. Wow is it healing or what?

[Tuff e Nuff]

The second one is of her chest. If I hadn’t shaved the hair around it you probably wouldn’t notice it – I shaved off all of the old bloody hair because it was matted and water wasn’t cutting it. It was so red and irritated underneath that I think it is a good thing it is gone. Shaved her head too! But hey, all of the dried blood is gone and she’ll only look goofy for a little while. :D

[Tuff e Nuff]

Look! I can actually put her forelock back over her head without worrying that it is going to heal into the wound. She looks so different with a forelock again. :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

Just a few more pics. This one really shows her dapples in her palomino color. Oh isn’t that pretty? I can’t wait to see her all slicked out in the spring.

[Tuff e Nuff]

And last but not least. Here is my little piggy. It has been so muddy here since Sunday and she is just covered. Her nose is so black that it looks like she has been rooting around in the ground like a pig. This helps remind me why I don’t like paints. Not to say I don’t like paints, I just hate trying to keep them clean!

[RavenToy]

Oh geez she looks SO much better! What a lovely little girl she is!! And hey... try keeping a cremello clean. :(

[spotteddrafter]

OMG! A completely different horse! Way to go!!! :)

[barngirl]

She is such a pretty girl, it's amazing what a lot of love and care can do for a horse, she looks 100% better than when you first got her :)

[vsolubo]

She looks great!

[cols]

Awesome ! Good for you (and her) ! :D

[(un)stablemom]

Tuff e Nuff-Wow, just looked back at the pictures you took when you first brought her home. That poor baby! Look what you have done with her! What a sense of pride you must have knowing what you have done with Rain. I am sure the feeling is indescribable (sp?) knowing that you have helped this horse become trusting and healthy again. What a great thing you have done, that takes a lot of courage! I wish I had the capabilities to do that!

Waiting on Rain- your name says it all. My heart ached when I read your post. Hopefully some day Rain will be yours. You just never know what the future holds. I wish you the best.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thanks guys for all of your kind words. Now comes the hard part. Waiting – Don’t read this… I listed her for sale. Figured if I could sell her before winter then obviously I would have one less mouth to feed. This is one less mouth that I hadn’t counted on in the first place when I bought my hay. I have had a ton of inquiries but when people find out about her they act like she is diseased or something. I don’t think it is right to not tell them what happened when they ask about her. I don’t think that I am asking an ungodly amount of money for her or else people wouldn’t be calling in the first place. I just want to find her a good home and I don’t want her to go back to the sale barn or a trader. Any suggestions here? Anyone on the board interested in her? I will bet money that she came out of registered stock and if I had the papers and no one knew about her accident I could get 3 times what I am asking for her. But I don’t have the papers and I am an honest person. I hate buying horses and not knowing their history so I wouldn’t want to do that to anyone either. Sorry for ranting so much. It is just very frustrating that people get this preconceived misconception about her because of something she had no control over. :mad:

[Green Pastures]

Oh I wish I was closer, I really do :( . My daughter looked at the pictures last night and just loved her. She has a thing for black and white paints but when she saw Rain I think her favourite just changed :p . I truly hope that you can find the right person for her. You have done a great thing by this little horse. She was lucky to find you. :D

[Tuff e Nuff]

Oh come on Green Pastures, BC can't be that far away and with the gas prices going down....what more do you need. :D

[barngirl]

If I lived closer and if I could find a barn where I could work off the board, I would take her too. But, life just isn't working that way for me right now :( . Just keep being honest, the right person will come along.

[Green Pastures]

Oh come on Green Pastures, BC can't be that far away and with the gas prices going down....what more do you need. :D
Oh I wish I could But I need more time, more space, more money and a good mortician cause DH would kill me if I came home with a new horse. ;) :p :D LOL

[Tuff e Nuff]

That sounds like all of the things I was thinking about BEFORE I bought her. I thought my husband was going to KILL me. He was livid when he saw the pictures of her. He was on his 24 hr. shift the morning I brought her home so he had to wait until the next day to see her. He calmed down a little bit once he actually got a chance to see her. That is just it and I know this is going to sound stupid but - the weird thing about her is that there is some kind of "aura" around her that draws you to her. Just as Waiting, my husband, my farrier and everyone else that has seen her. Obviously you can't see this "aura" in the pictures but I can almost bet that the first person that actually comes out and looks at her will buy her. It is just a matter of getting them to her or getting her out to them and I don't want to take her back to the sale barn. That kind of defeats the purpose of buying her in the first place. Most of the sale barns around her are traders and killers. I just go to see what the market is doing and try to waste a Sat. night – extremely in the winter. The only time I have sold a horse at sale was when I went to college and needed the money fast and sold my western pleasure horse. He was the top seller so I kind of figured the people who just invested a lot of money into him were going to take care of him.

[Green Pastures]

It sounds like it is a good thing I am too far away or I would have a new horse ;) :(

I don't know but from reading her story I think you were meant to find her, heal her and unite her with the person who shares her aura (yes I believe in auras :o ). It will happen. Just a matter of when :rolleyes:

[vsolubo]

So, how much are you wanting for her?

[Tuff e Nuff]

$500.00 - Not a lot in my opinion. That is enough to cover what I paid for her + the price of the meds + a little for my time. I paid almost that much for my little bucker Buddy. Like I said, people act like she is diseased or something. Worst part about it is that the way her wounds have healed I could just tell them she got into the fence and no one would ever know the difference - except ME! I hate being lied to when I buy a horse and I won't lie to anyone about her. They will take her for what she is or I'll have to find a way to finance one more mouth. Arrrh. I'm frustrated.

[cols]

$500 ????????????????
That's it ????????????????
Well, this is just my opinion, but I would ask more.
People get suspicious when the price is so low. Sure, they want a horse cheap, but they don't trust it when they do. Around here, that's basically 'meat price'. I think if you raised your price, even given her history, you would have better luck.

That is, unless someone on the board wants her, then I would "cut them a deal" because the new home would be more accountable and you would know she went to a good home.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Cols, I agree to an extent. 2 weekends ago I watched a 5 yr. old, quiet, broke palomino go for $225 at the sale. Then watched a one eyed gelding for almost $600.00. I don't know if the market is just that bad here or what but I know from talking to everyone here that no one can seem to figure out what people are looking for. I’m at aww every sale I go to. That and it IS winter time and people are usually a little bit more hesitant to take a horse on and feed it through winter at the higher prices. Extremely w/o papers.

[barngirl]

Just remember when you get discouraged, that if someone doesn't want her just because you found her at a sale and she was hurt, then they dont deserve her. Who knows what has happened to her in the past, she is going to need someone who will understand what she's been through and help her work through any of her problems with lots of love and patience.

And if you bump the price up, that leaves room for people to barter you down. For some reason when people see a horse for sale cheap they automatically thing that the horse has something really wrong with it :confused: :rolleyes: . You could always try only giving the basic details (age, height, sex..) when you talk to the people on the phone, and wait to tell them everything until they see her. That way you would be honest, but the person would also get to see for themselves what Rain is really like. Without judging her before they see her

[Tuff e Nuff]

barngirl – I understand what you are saying except for the fact that most if the people that have called about her live over 2 hours away. I would be furious if I drove that far to look at a horse and arrived to get the “real” deal. As for her listing – I’m not sure that this is such a cheap price for the market here and I hate wheeling & dealing so I always mark my prices as firm. If I truly feel someone wanted her but needed to shave $50.00 off – I would probably end up doing that to get her a good home. I know I am high enough on my price that the traders and dealers probably won’t try to buy her and low enough that most people can afford her. I know this time of year doesn’t help much either but I would rather have someone buy her now with her wounds and know the story and love her even more for it than to have someone buy her in the spring because she is a “pretty horse”.

[vsolubo]

Tuff, does she have a negative coggins and current vacs? This is a bad time of the year to sell, prices are always low over the winter, be careful you don't get scammed by a fraudulant check/money order.

[Tuff e Nuff]

vsolubo - not stupid enough to get scammed. I have already had a few try. All I have given her is her tetnus and dewormed her. Figured for I would try to put her on the same schedule as the others. Haven't had her tested for coggins either but I do think the sale barn actually requires that. Why? Are you interested in her? :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

So just out of curiosity what do you guys think I should be asking for her? What would an unbroke, unregistered 3 year old be worth in your state?

[barngirl]

from what I've been seeing here it's anywhere from $700-$1000. Of course that all depends on color, height, breed, temperment, etc. Paints are really popular right now, I would say just the fact that she's a palamino paint should raise the price a little

[Tuff e Nuff]

Ok so I changed her listing to $700.00 w/"no reasonable offer refused". This will give someone a chance to dicker. I suppose what can it hurt? Should there be anyone on the board interested in her I will sell her at the $500 price point. I would love it if someone on the board wanted her so I could hear about her throughout the years. ***sigh*** So I guess I will just wait to see what happens now. :rolleyes:

[barngirl]

If you could find me a place to keep her that is reasonably priced, and figure out how to get her here, I would buy her in a heartbeat :) ,,,,,but I just can't seem to find answers to those questions :(

[Tuff e Nuff]

Rain just wanted to say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" whichever your prefer. I had fun taking pictures of the horses last night trying to get ready for our Christmas pictures so I thought I would share the ones of Rain.

[vsolubo]

She is sure pretty! Let me talk to Dennis (since I keep my horses at his place). But don't hold her, if someone wants her and you think she'll have a good home. I should see Dennis either tonight or Sunday night.

[Mary R]

Tuff, I paid $1200 for a papered Paint yearling stud in January, that I propmtly gelded. I thought I got a deal with the prices here. Rain is a beautiful horse, I think you should up her price. I agree if the price is too low, people think there is a problem. She had a problem when you got her, but it sounds like she is a really good horse now. Her wounds have healed greatly because of your care. And her beauty should sell her to the right home. And her temperament should make her loved. Don't sell her short on the price tag :) Anyone that wants a good horse should be wiling to pay what they are worth! And you've put in the time that she is what you should be asking! I say $2000 as asking, and if you get a great home take less, MHO.

[unashamed]

I am having trouble with this post :o
Rain reminds me of my favorite horse on the planet, who was sold out from under me quite abruptly. He had suffered awful abuse and trusted nobody, and I worked with him for a year and helped him become an awesome all-around horse. She has that same, brilliant and skeptical expression on her face. I want to just take her in right now...
'if I had a million dollars.....'

[zar]

Bless the family that took her in. She is beautiful!!!!! I can't wait to see her after she has had some time to get healthy again. Best wishes and God Bless

Liz

[barngirl]

just out of curiosity, have you measured Rain to see how tall she is?? I dont remember you mentioning that in your other posts

[Tuff e Nuff]

I have a very old measuring stick and it measures her at 15 so I am guessing that since it has a little bow in it that she is actually 15.1. She was so funny today. I decided to go out and ride and since I knew I wasn’t going to be on long I decided to just ride in with the other horses. This was the first time Rain had seen me up on another horse and she kind of had that “what is she doing up there” look on her face. She wouldn’t let me get to close; she just wasn’t quite sure about things. Wasn’t spooked about it, just wasn’t fully comfortable with the situation either. I still have a hard time thinking about all of the transformations that she has gone through in little less than 2 months, both physically and mentally. I was talking to the sale barn owner last night and I think he would have bought her had it not been for her cuts. That’s just what kills me. No one wanted her because of her cuts and they healed so easily. I’m not afraid of the horses that have blood on them, I worry about the ones that don’t.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Rain is exactly the reason why I think we can learn a little something from each horse we meet. I went out to the barn to feed last night and it hit me. She is the fist one to walk up to me when I go into the lot, the first one in her stall, and the last one to go out of the barn. Actually she wants to come back into the barn once she has been sent out. I told my husband right now I think this is a good problem to have, especially with her. When I rubbed her face she had such a calm, peaceful look to her. So much better than those scared, nervous eyes she had when I bought her. It is hard seeing her like this when I still have the image of what she was in my head. Just the fear in her eyes alone was enough for me. What I guess I am getting at here is that I don’t think a lot of her progress has as much to do with me as it does with her and her willingness to let me help her. She could have been so much more of a handful but chose not to be.

Ok well enough of that now I need a new solution. Her chest has just a little area left to heal but it is hardly even noticeable. Her head still has a decent sized area exposed and I am worried about it getting frostbitten as I have noticed it had split open again last night. My husband thought I should try to put bag balm on it to help keep it from getting frostbitten and freezing. Have any of you used anything else that might work? I am having the vet out tomorrow so I thought I would ask him but wanted to try to put something on it tonight since it is awful cold here right now. Thanks guys. You have all been so much help with all of my questions. I appreciate it so much and I know Rain does too.

[Mary~F]

I like to use Bag Balm or just an antibiotic ointment cream. It seems to help keep wounds soft enough so they don't crack open again.
Can't wait to hear what the vet has to say about her. She is looking great ;)

[cols]

Any petroleum based product ... bag balm, also being anticeptic would be a good choice, I think. Petroleum has a much lower freezing level than water, so it would prob protect the wound.

I am looking forward to hearing what the vet had to say ~

[Cassie1]

She looks soooo good now....god bless you for what you done for her...Hoping for the right home to come along..

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well we had the vet out yesterday and he was amazed. He couldn’t believe how much better Rain looked. He looked her over and though she looked great. We had her palpated as I thought she might be pregnant. When I talked to the sale barn owner he said the whole herd had been running with the stallion(s) all year. :eek: The vet thought she was awful pear shaped but after furthering his examination informed me that she is not pregnant. :o I just wanted to be 100% sure so that I could let whomever buys her know if she was. To save money I had him give her the tranquilizer I purchased when I was going to do her mane for her palpation instead of paying for another one. He had mixed the one up for me for IM and forgot and gave it to her IV so needless to say not but 5 minutes after he left she fell and hit the wall so hard and fell to the ground that it scared the snot out of me. :eek: She was jarred in such a weird position that her neck was twisted back to her chest. I didn’t want to go in and try to move her because I know that their adrenaline can overcome the tranquilizer and that is how people get hurts. So I stayed with her for about 30 minutes until she was able to rock herself up onto her side and free her airway better. I can only imagine what was going through her mind. We had a Christmas at the Air Guard for my son so we had to leave. I checked her when we got back and she was up and in a good mood. I hate seeing horses go down. Anyways, I’ll wrap it up. I just wanted to let everyone know that the vet said she looked like she was in tip top shape. He was so excited about how she looked that he was going to take his new assistant back to see the pictures of her that I e-mailed him in the beginning. He didn’t even notice her chest until I mentioned it and was floored when he remembered what it had looked like. He told me to use bag balm on the rest of her head so we will be going to get some tonight. Again, thanks for all of your generous words. It’s nice to know that there are people out there that care. :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

I got a hit on Rain and the woman is from the Huston, TX area. She will be traveling up her for the holidays to see family. If any of you reading this are from the Huston are please PM me and I will tell you her name. I would like to know if she is really a nice person looking for a good horse or not.

Thanks.

[barngirl]

That's wonderfull that someone want's to see Rain!!!! Although, it would be really sad if we wouldn't get to hear how she's doing :( . I really hope everything works out for Rain though, she deserves it :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

I have had quite a few more people look at her add since I bumped the price but fewer have contacted me. I’m not too worried about it right now. It’s never really been a secret that most people don’t like to buy horses in the winter. I hope who ever ends up buying her will keeps me updated as to her progress. I sold a horse 6 years ago to a girl in MN and she keeps me updated on her and it is so great to hear about how she is doing. Right now Rain is getting so fat! They are enjoying their hay & I have been sick for the last couple of days so I haven’t been able to get out and do anything with them. I’m so sick of this weather that I can’t stand it & it is hard on her head wound. If I can get out of work yearly enough today I will try to get some updated pics. She is almost to the point that the only new pics I will need to take of her will be in the spring when she is all slicked up and cleaned up if I still have her. I still can’t believe how quickly she has healed up. It has not even been 2 months since I got her. It feels like it has been so much longer (for good reasons, not bad ones).

[barngirl]

Have you had any more people want too look at her?? You have that one lady from Texas looking at her around christmas right?? Just looking at the pics of when you first got her and the most recent ones you posted, WOW!!! I'm still amazed at how quickly she has healed.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I had another e-mail today from a girl that was interested in her when I originally listed her. It sounds like $ is part of the problem. She sounds young and has an older horse. She is looking for a trail horse that could have the capabilities of running barrels. It's really hard to tell about people from an e-mail. Heck, it's hard to tell about people when they are standing right in front of you. It's the holidays; people are broke as it is. Like I said, it doesn't bother me that people aren't looking at her because of the time of year what bothers me is the fact that the ones that are looking at her tuck tail and run the other direction as fast as they can when I tell them the truth about her. People irritate me some days.....most days. :mad: Anyways, I'll just be patient. The right person will come around and when they do we'll know it. :)

[Cassie1]

Hey...I'm from the Houston area - lived there all my life and just moved outside abit...I don't know if I would know this person, but you are welcome to give me a shot! :D
Ginger

[Tuff e Nuff]

Ginger - I'll PM you with her name. It's worth a shot right?

[Phorselover]

Rain,
Just wanted to say what a difference your love and attention makes for Rain. Keep up the good work and the right family will come along. What a wonderful horse story for all of us "living" through your posts. Thank you! Rain does not even look like the same horse!

Happy Horsing,
Laura

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thanks guys. I swear since I posted just the other day I have had about 10 e-mails on her. I’m not sure if they are serious or not but at least they are looking right. And thanks Phorselover. She is a completely different horse. She is such a sweet heart. If I don’t get her sold soon it is just going to make things harder because she is just such a sweetie pie. She loves attention and loves to be scratched behind her ear. I told Waiting on Rain that I would love to take her back to the sale barn and run her through just to see what she would bring looking this way and then no sale her – but I’m not going to do that. I’d just be curious to see what she’d bring all cleaned up.

[Tuff e Nuff]

OK, anyone from around here? There is a woman here that is VERY interested in Rain but I almost get the impression she is a trader. I also have a woman in CA that wants more pictures so I will be taking pics this weekend and updating them. You can't even tell that she ever had a chest wound. There is no scar, the hair is complelty grown back over the area and it looks great. Her head is having a harder time healing with the cold weather but it still looks a lot better. It hasn't even been 2 months yet.

[vsolubo]

Good luck finding her a new home!

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thanks pony. I wish you would have been able to take her but I fully understand. I have had a lot of interest in her lately and I'm sure that once the holidays are over I will see an increase in interest. I took some updated pictures so I thought I would share. The first one is of her chest. If you can still see where the wound was, you are doing better than me. She actually has a brown spot in that area but if you had never known about it you would never even know it had been there. She is healed 100% in this spot.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Here is a picture of her head. This is where we are still battling the wound a little bit. With the cold weather it has been harder to get this area completely healed. I have been putting Vaseline on it nightly and it is helping to keep it soft but I don’t think it is going to fully heal until the spring if it doesn’t end up becoming a scar. It still looks 120% better than what it did.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Here is a picture of her lounging. I had a woman request pictures of her moving. I think she is a pretty mover. It was hard to get good pictures as the ground is frozen and none of the horses want to go past a walk and I really don’t blame them for it. Rain was very good at honoring my request.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Last picture. I know this one is kind of hard to see but I just like it.

[barngirl]

Good pictures, she is a beautiful horse!!!! I can't believe that in less than 2 months you can't even tell that there was a wound on her chest :eek: , and her head wound is looking TONS better!!!!! You should be giving yourself a pat on the back for the wonderful care that you've given her :)

[Phorselover]

This can not be the same horse!! What a wonderful job on the rescue, rehab and training! Just a great story before Christmas!

Happy Horsing,
Laura

[Hrsecrzy1]

Being in rescue I can confidently say that you've done a bang-up job with Rain! Not just in wound care but in showing her a trusting, safe relationship. Good for you!!

Ack! I can't help but have a soft spot in my heart for rescues...I hope she finds the perfect home that will treasure her and bring out all of her abilities!

[Penny]

What a difference!!! Just makes me smile when I look at these new pics! Its amazing at what a little "care" can do.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thanks guys and thanks Hrsecrzy1. That means a lot to me coming from you. She is just such an amazing horse that it still floors me that someone could just throw her out. Haven't people heard of medicine? I don't know how you do it though Hrsecrzy1. It is hard enough seeing one horse go through this that I couldn't even begin to imagine having them come in daily looking worse than she did. I just don't understand why people don't take care of their animals. Even if they only have them for a profit there is no profit in a sick horse. I watched RFD TV last night and Chris Cox was on. He said something that will stick in my mind for a long time to come. He said, "Have we forgotten what these animals have done for us? They have delivered our mail, they have pulled logs out of the timbers to help us build our homes, and they have carried us to our new homes and our children to school. And now we have just forgotten about them and what they have done for us." That really made me think about what amazing creatures horses are and really how much they have done for us. My horses have done more for me emotionally than most people can for each other.

[vsolubo]

I sure wish I could have taken her too! She is looking great. I pretty mare like her should not be difficult to sale.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Cut? What Cut? Here is an updated picture of Rain's head that I snapped this morning. My dad still thinks her head looks bad. I think it looks like a million dollars. I never anticipated it healing this well and in such a short time frame.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I thought I would add this picture just because I love how it shows off her blue eye. Normally I’m not very fond of blue eyed horses but boy isn’t hers a really pretty blue?

[Tuff e Nuff]

She isn’t cleaned up at all here but you can see (or can’t see) her chest wound. I can’t even find where it was when I’m looking at her. Not the best picture I know. I will try to get some more this weekend.

[Mary~F]

Oh my gosh!!! She is looking just gorgeous! Oh please keep her long enough to finish off her training...I want to see the end results...I want to see the two of you all gussied up and ready for a show...I want to see the ribbons when you two kick butt! :D I want to see the people at the auction with their mouths hanging open and chins on the floor. :cool:

[Hrsecrzy1]

Isn't it amazing how horses heal? She's looking super, Tuff. Pretty soon you'll have to carry pictures in your purse as proof that she was ever that injured. Ah, the rewards of rescue!

Can you tell me again what product(s) you were using on her wounds? I've looked through the thread but can't seem to find it. Thanks.


Crzy

[Mary R]

Wow, she looks great! I can hardly believe those injuries healed so nicely. Tuff, you should be proud, all the dedication to getting Rain looking so healthy and pretty again. I never was a fan of blue eyes either, but now both of my horses have blue eyes :)

[barngirl]

She is looking good!!! I think her head looks great, and you can't even tell she ever had anything wrong on her chest :) . You are doing an awsome job with her Tuff, she's going to a gorgeous horse when she's all slicked out in the spring

[PaCe2WN]

That is one beautiful horse! I wish her previous owners could see her now! Amazing what a bit of TLC can do! :) :) :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

Can you tell me again what product(s) you were using on her wounds? I've looked through the thread but can't seem to find it. Thanks.

Crzy - it's called Underwood horse medicine. A friend of ours used it on her horse when he got a cut that was so severe the vet didn't think he would live. It ran from his girth area, inbetween his front legs and up his chest. The vet didn't want to stitch it because he thought the horse would just rip the stitches out (and he didn't think the horse would live) so he recommended to the owners that they try this. The horse was at our barn and I was amazed at how well he healed (he has no scar at all either.) I attributed it to the fact that he was young however now I am beginning to feel the medicine had more to do with it than I thought. The vet recommended for me to use it on Rain too and now it is a permanant product in my barn. You don't clean the wound and you spray it with this product and then lightly dust it with baking powder twice a day and that's it. Simple as can be. I really did think that she would scar. I never imagined it would heal this well. The website for the med is "www.underwoodhorsemedicine.com" it is kind of neat to see how it has helped others too.

[cols]

Look at that mane !
What a knock out !
The cut on her head looks great !
She's just a beauty !
I am so happy that you rescued her.
Thank you !

[barngirl]

I wonder if that medicine would work as well on humans :p .

[Tuff e Nuff]

:p I kinda wondered that too Barngirl :p

[Appy Trails]

Courtney,

She looks wonderful :) :) :) Wish I could afford another horse and I'd take her off your hands (sigh) Maybe I'll win the lottery tonight :D :rolleyes:

[Tuff e Nuff]

Wish I could afford another horse and I'd take her off your hands (sigh) Maybe I'll win the lottery tonight :D :rolleyes:

You keep saying that but have you bought your ticket yet? :rolleyes: Just think about it. You could have a horse for you, a horse for your granddaughter and a horse for your daughter. One big happy family riding together. :D

[Appy Trails]

Bought my ticket about 6:30 PM BUT whether the numbers are winners, now that's the question :p Let's put it this way, I'm still planning on going to work on Monday. :rolleyes:

[Green Pastures]

Oh Tuff!!!! I just HATE it when you post pictures of her :mad:

Just makes me feel so bad that I am so far away that I can't take her :( . She is beautiful and healed so well. I didn't know she had blue eyes. Definately can't show my daughter that one, I will never hear the end of it. Way to go Tuff!!! :( :p :) :D

[vsolubo]

She is gorgeous!

[debbie]

she looks like a luck lady,that she was rescued ,i have a pmu foal that hasn't had a good life either,the i bought her from left her go,she is a red and white pinto yearling filly called candy cane ,but the other people named her red headed step child.good luck,ladybird@jlink.net

[Tuff e Nuff]

I didn't know she had blue eyes.

She only has one blue eye and is it ever blue!

[Zpyder]

She is beautiful, it breaks my heart to see any animal treated that way.

[Navi]

That is amazing! What a great job you've done with her!! She's just beautiful! What a heartwarming sight. :)

[Cassie1]

That's not the same horse you brought home!!! Amazing!!! She looks so good and calm....what a great job you have done! Big hugs to you and Rain!!

Fabulous!!!

Ginger

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well since I haven’t updated this in a while :rolleyes: I figured I would let you all know what is going on. I have started my “60 days” of training with Rain. :) I want to try to put 60 “serious” :D days of training on her before I re-list her for sale. I just started last week and boy has she been on vacation to long. :eek: It hasn’t taken her long to come back around but we still have a long ways to go. I have been taking her up and down the gravel roads (at night of course because it is dark when I get home) and I have been sending her down into the ditches. Small ditches, big ditches, shallow ditches, deep ditches (don't worry, I know these ditches and they are safe.) She is doing much better with this and now I can even back her into the smaller and shallower ditches and she stays calm. Her feet are also starting to toughen up very well. She is becoming much more respectful about “my” space not that she was bad before she would just try to nudge in every once in a while. I have sacked her out with a plastic bag and an old feed sac again and she flinches when I first bring them out but her feet stay still. Once I take it across her she relaxes and waits for me to be done. She is becoming softer and more responsive each day. The only bad part about working with her is I haven’t had time to do anything with Buddy. :( The weather is supposed to be nice this weekend so I am hoping to get some more training time in on her (during daylight hours) and maybe actually ride Buddy. :) I might even try to update some pictures. ;) She is looking so normal that pretty soon all of her pictures are going to start looking the same.

[cols]

It's nice to have an update !
Pictures would be great !
It sounds like you are doing a great job with her !
Training in the dark. My, you ARE dedicated !

[Tuff e Nuff]

Dedicated isn't the correct word here. I don't have a choice. Between hubby's schedule, trying to spend "quality time" with the family and the horses I have one night every three days to work the horses and since it is dark when I get off of work I don't have a choice. However, this week I "let" :rolleyes: hubby go shoot his bow on my horse night (the weather was bad anyways ;) ) so now I get the whole weekend to play with ponies. :D

[barngirl]

Thanks for the update, it must be hard trying to fit in an extra horse into your schedule!!! I would love to see more pictures, even if they look the same as the others, I just love pics :o :) .

[Lani]

What a neat thread to find! From start to now... it was an amazing transformation. She's lucky to have found you. Absolutely stunning little mare. Boy, I wish I had a way to make her mine! :) Great story and keep the updates coming... and of course the photo's!

Thanks for sharing it.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Ok guys I’m freezing so I will apologize right now if this doesn’t make sense or if I have typos. I just got in from the barn and working Rain. It’s snowing out (not very much but it’s still snowing) and it’s cold. Brrrrrrrrr. I just can’t seem to warm up. Anyways – I got out to the barn prior to the sun going down so I was able to take a few pictures of her outside before we went in the barn. Here she is with Buddy. They were having a blast when I got out to the barn.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Here she is once I asked her to turn and face me so that I could catch her and take her into the barn.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Once we got into the barn I decided to clean her up a little with the clippers. She really didn’t have much of a winter coat and I only wanted to clean up her face a little and trim the bottom of her feet. The long hair interferes with her boots and it really hasn’t been all that cold here. She gets a little nervous when I first pull the clippers out but once I touch her neck with them she drops her head and is quite patient. This was the first time that I have clipped her legs and she stood like an old pro.

[dani]

They Look Like They're Having A Blast!!!!!!! :d

[Tuff e Nuff]

Ok – I’ll group some pictures together now. I sacked her out with a big garbage sack tonight and she did great. We moved on to the tarp and she was ok with it. The only thing she didn’t care for was having it around her back feet. We worked on that some but didn’t perfect it by any means. It was cold and I didn’t want her to get hot. She accepted it well touching her but she didn’t want it to stay on her for more than about 60 seconds. We will work on it some more tomorrow weather providing. All-in-all I thought she did very well. The first picture is of her in the barn and Buddy giving us his thought for the moment. The second one is just one that I like that shows her from the front. The third one is a close up of her head. It just needs the hair to grow a little more and you won’t be able to notice it.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I still can’t manage to thaw out and I still have to go down to the barn to let the horses out so I’m going home.

[(un)stablemom]

Wow, does she look great! What a lucky horse to have such a great life with you for the time being. She really looks happy.
:) :) :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

Thanks. It was pretty cold the rest of the weekend so I didn't get out to take any more pictures. They sure were having fun on Saturday though. I love watching her and Buddy run and play. They were having a ball playing together.

[dani]

Hey Tuff - all you need is a sign that says THE END. Nice pics!!!

[Tuff e Nuff]

I know you guys are probably getting tired of seeing pictures of her but I took these last night and I thought she looked really pretty in hubby’s saddle so I thought I would share.

[Tuff e Nuff]

And another one.

[Tuff e Nuff]

And one last one of just her. I love her face.

[cols]

Tired of pictures ? Yeah, right ! :p :rolleyes:
Like THAT would ever happen.
Wow ! The scar on her head just looks like how the hair is growing almost.
She looks GREAT !
Can I buy her, please ? ;)

[MysteryTheMorab]

You've done a great job! Thanks for sharing.

[barngirl]

Tuff, I dont know how your going to be able to sell her after all you've done for her, she always looks so calm and patient in the pictures. It would be sooo nice if someone from this board would give her a forever home :)

[Green Pastures]

OK how far is Iowa from BC???? Not that I am interested :o , I am just interested :p

[Bea's Friend]

I just sat and read thru all the posts on Rain - the transformation is amazing. You have done such a wonderful job with her, and all I could think of is "this horse had better go to a home as wonderful as yours has been for her"- she is so beautiful and has such a kind face - I think you are wonderful for what you have done for her. Did I say wonderful enough? :rolleyes:
It's just so great to see something like this - it just chokes me up - God Bless you for giving Rain a second chance.

[Navi]

She looks beautiful and healthy and restored. :) Her colour in your latest pictures reminds me of a shiny new penny....how fitting. I know you'll find her a wonderful forever home. :)

[(un)stablemom]

Ok ok Tuff- I think you have earned your wings!!!!!

She just looks so good, so calm, relaxed. Yep, you definitely earned your wings! :p

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well gang unless something really odd happens it looks like Rain is going to Allentown, PA. If all goes well she will be leaving the 15th of March. I agreed to the buyer that I would ride her three times prior to shipping her and I have to get her health papers and coggins fist. The lady seems very eager and happy so I’m excited. She knows her entire story and has said that she will keep in touch after she gets there. For those of you who don’t know me that well I’m not a very religious person but I do have faith that she is going to a good home. This was a really hard decision to make as I had hoped that I would be able to meet her new owners in person but it just doesn’t look like that is going to happen.

[cols]

Oh, :( that news makes me sad.
and :) happy that Rain will have a forever home.

All the best Rain, my dear, you deserve it !

[barngirl]

I sooo hope this home is awsome and Rain finally gets the forever home she deserves!!!!!!! What are the chances that you could get her new owner addicted to this board? ;) :p :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well if you couldn’t tell I’m going through old photos today. :rolleyes: I ran across this one of Rain’s head. I couldn’t believe it (and I was there :eek: ) and how bad it really was. It is kind of yucky (to say the least) so I’ve posted a pic of then (latter part of November) and now. The first picture shows you how big of an area was affected. What a wonderful improvement and in such a little amount of time.

View at your own risk

[Devo]

I'm so glad she found a home! She is so pretty in her saddle, and if you didn't know about her injuries, you wouldn't believe it.

D.

[Green Pastures]

So glad that you found a home for her :D . I hope she has a wonderful life there :D I am alittle sad you where just too far away for me to give her one :( Will you keep us updated if you hear things on her???? :rolleyes:

[vsolubo]

She is beautiful, she is 1 lucky horse!

[cols]

Those are quite the dramatic before and after pictures !!! :eek:
It's amazing, isn't it ?
Good for you.

[cowboys_mom]

I am tired of people neglecting horses, or any other animal as far as that goes. I think that what ever they do to an animal should also be done to them. I know the Bible was meant for humans, however, I don't believe hurting animals makes God happy.

As for a name for this beautiful girl, I think Blessing would work too. She needed a blessing and this great family gave her one by saving her life. Please keep us posted.

[nelson]

What a lucky horse to have you she looks so much better already. She will be beautiful.

God bless you and your horse.

Annie

[(un)stablemom]

Ohhhh, that is why you wanted to know if I was anywhere near Allentown. Glad you found her a new home, yet I know it will be so hard to say goodbye. You have done an amazing job with her. She is one lucky horse!

Allentown is at the opposite end of the state. Otherwise I would go and spy on the new owner for you!

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well I'm finally getting down to the wire. Rain will be shipped out tomorrow so tonight I will be trying to get her all cleaned up and ready to go for her new owner. They have narrowed the transportation company down to being here between 10:00 & 2:00 tomorrow so I guess that pretty much blows my entire day. I decided to go out to the website to see what kind of truck & trailer they would be brining to haul her in. The will be bringing a semi so I guess I’ll find out just how well I did on my trailer loading sessions tomorrow.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I’ve hauled horses in semis before but I’m hoping I’m not reading to much into these pictures. It looks like they are secured by chains and that there is not chest bar. Rain has never been tied. I’ve always used the tie ring plus she has only been in a flat halter once. I’m getting a little nervous that she isn’t prepared for this and hoping that they secure them differently. I know some of the horses we had on the semis were nasty horses but the semis that I went on had chest bars.

[cols]

I bet, if these guys are professional haules, it will be fine.
When I moved Belle to my place, I used a local professional hauler.
He brought this HUGE trailer for my one little girl. She had only had one trailering experience that I know of before that, when I bought her and that was a BAD DEAL ! I didn't have a trailer so I couldn't do much. Just put her through gates and what not.
John came, asked if she had a favourite treat, talked ever so nicely to her and she went right in with him. He put her in the big center stall and she was dry and calm when we unloaded her. :)
I hope your experience is a good as mine.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Cols – I realize they are professionals but I used to work with “professionals” on semis and you’d be surprised. :rolleyes: I just don’t like how these horses look like they are chained in with no chest bar. I guess I will find out for sure tomorrow and to be honest I think Rain will do just fine. :) She travels better than my husband’s horse does. I’m actually laughing :D wondering where there are going to park that big thing when they get here. I’m guessing I’ll be loading in the road. :p

[barngirl]

I can't believe that Rain is going to her new home, I really hope her new owner loves her for life!!!!!!! I"m sure she'll do great with the trailer, and I would assume that the haulers would have box stalls too. At least the haulers I've looked into offer both box stalls and straight stalls where the horse is tied. :)

[Navi]

Thinking of you and Rain tonight and hoping everything goes well tomorrow. PLEASE let us know when she gets there safe and sound....she deserves a rainbow and a happy ending. :)

[(un)stablemom]

. PLEASE let us know when she gets there safe and sound....she deserves a rainbow and a happy ending. :)

Boy does she ever. I am sure if she could talk she would thank you over and over again for all you have done for her. It really is amazing what you did for this sweet mare. I will be thinking about you both tomorrow.

[ShadowfaX]

Hmmm Unstable the other end of the state is only a 6 hour drive! We could do that! :D
I just read the whole thread and what a wonderful story. I sure hope the new owner joins the message board and keeps us up to date. Have you asked her to? She is such a prety girl and sounds like she will have a happy ending. Perhaps she should be called cinderella. But I love the name Rain.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I haven't given her the web-site yet as this thread has my purchase price and I made the mistake of giving it to a few people and then they thought they could ask less. Once Rain is out there if this woman keeps in contact with me like she says she will then I will direct her here. If she doesn't choose to come I'll post any information that I get.

Well the semi is on it's way. They should be here in about 1 hour so I'll let you all know how the loading goes. It is so amazing to me how one horse can change the lives of so many people in such a short amount of time. It's been less than 5 months but she's an amazing horse. I hope that she meets her new owners expectations.

[vsolubo]

Good luck! I hope she does keep in touch.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Well she’s off. It took longer for the semi to park, get the ramp out, adjust their stuff and get my paperwork than it did to load Rain. She actually started to load herself before they had the side boards on and I had to stop her from going up the ramp. She wasn’t very thrilled with her neighbor but I’m sure she will be fine. She should be in PA by tomorrow night.

[Tuff e Nuff]

She was such a good girl. :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

But she didn't like her neighbor stealing her hay. :D

[Tuff e Nuff]

The new owner is going to let me know how things go when she gets there tomorrow night.

[Twine]

Thanks for putting up the pictures! She is so sweet! I hope she gets there alright and everything! :)

[cols]

aaahhh..seeing her on that trailer....that gorgeous beauty .... GREAT ! Now I have tears in my eyes and I'm at work. THANKS ALOT ! :( :( :(
*sigh* ... and a lump in my throat.
How are you doing with all of this ?

[Tuff e Nuff]

How are you doing with all of this ?
Surprisingly not as well as I thought I would be doing. :( I was ready to have her gone (I know that sounds bad :rolleyes: ) so that I could start putting my time into Buddy as he has been kind of ignored since I got her. I was good until the semi left and then the reality of it kind of kicked in. :( She’s brought so much joy and hope to so many people that it’s sad to see her go. Plus she was Buddy’s first love. :)

[cols]

aaahhhh...now I'm all choked up again. :(
It was like that with Joey for me. I "wanted him gone" so to speak, and I was ok with the whole process. Until we put him in that trailer, then I was done for. It's still sad, even if that's what we wanted.
I just can't get over what a beauty she is.
You have a lot to be proud of.
Thank you for helping her.

[barngirl]

I hope she arrives safe and sound, it doesn't seem real that she finally has a new home, after all she's been through and all the time you've put into her, I hope her new owners appreciate that she's a miracle horse :) .

[justbcos]

I'm glad that she was such a good girl for you with the loading and everything. I don't blame her for being a little irritated with the neighbor stealing her food! I'd probably stab somebody with a fork if they tried to steal my food while I was on an airplane! (And that's probably how she feels!)

I'm sure you'll miss her dearly, but remember that you've given her the gift of health, courage, trust, love, and hope. There are no greater gifts than those. Now she is ready to embark on a new adventure with people who will dote on her and love her for who she is, not for what she's been through, and that will be a gift in itself. You will be able to provide more devotion to Buddy (which I'm sure he'll appreciate), and it sounds like Rain is going to good owners who will be devoted to her and not feeling guilty about leaving Buddy unattended. Have confidence in your decision! And remember, Buddy's shoulder will be a great one to cry on when you miss her!

[Bea's Friend]

I have been wondering how Rain was doing and I logged on today and see this thread right on top. Her transformation is amazing, and it makes me sad that she has to leave you.
Seeing her all loaded up and ready to go chokes me up too! What a sweet girl she is . I hope her new owner gives her extra love and care - she deserves it . I too am looking forward to hearing part 2 of her story. PLease keep us posted.

[(un)stablemom]

I have nothing else to add to what the others have said except now I am all choked up too!!!! You have done a great great thing!!!! We'll all miss you Rain!

[PaCe2WN]

HUGS! I can't really add anything else...but I will...WE MISS YOU ALREADY RAIN!!! :o

[cols]

We need a "Rain Calendar".
It could "chart" her course to wellness and we could all sell them and sent the proceeds to a rescue.

[Tuff e Nuff]

Cols - it would only be a 5 month calendar. :D

I just got the call that Rain has arrived safely. Stacy (her new owner) said that she is beautiful - but then we already knew that! :D She sounds so excited and said she will never be home now. :p

I'll keep you all posted if I hear anything new.

[Tuff e Nuff]

I just talked to Stacy and she said Rain got in around 1:00 this morning. She said she is already the talk of the barn. How calm she is, how sweet she is and how pretty she is. She said she didn’t even get a chance to see her before she know how wonderful she was. She said she is going to make sure that Rain is loved and cared for, for the next twenty years – or more. :) They will be starting her training next week after the trainer reviews the video I sent and she is hoping to be sending me pictures and video in the future. The next time I post about her it will be about her new start and it won’t be on this thread. ;)

[justbcos]

Well, this is about the first time I've been glad a thread was going to end - not because the content wasn't interesting, but because I'm so glad she has a new, wonderful home and that she's beginning her new life. But I'll be looking for that new thread :)

[barngirl]

Yayy for rain!!!!! I can't wait to hear updates once her and her new mommy have time to get to know each other :)

[Navi]

What great news!! You did a wonderful job saving her and finding her the forever home she deserves!! :)

[Tuff e Nuff]

I just wanted to let those of you who followed this thread know that Stacy has contacted me asking me if I know of anyone that might be interested in Rain.

Stacy was in a car accident and has been having problems w/her lungs and said she's "just in over her head" with things at the moment and that she really would like Rain to go to a good home where someone can do something with her.

If anyone is interested or knows anyone that might be interested PM me. I think Rain is 5 yrs. old now and I'm trying to get more info on her but I think Stacy was only able to get on her once prior to the accident.

[cols]

Oh, dear. :(
That's too bad.
I'm sorry to hear about the car accident.
Rain turned into such a lovely mare.
I hope someone can take her.
Good luck to all.