trueCOWBOYmagazine Alison Eastwood Aug_Sept 2015

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8/9 2015

Our Buckle Bunny

Alison Eastwood The Vanishing Jennifer Glassman iVIEW with Gina McKnight & Tim Hayes

Preparing for the End Allen Warren

Scapegoating An American Icon Craig C. Downer

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HavE App, Will Travel

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www.americasmustangs.com

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Heard round the waterin’ trough Howdy Partners, Another issue of trueCOWBOYmagazine rolls off the ether and into your lives. Our wild mustangs continue to suffer due to round-ups, herd separation and death as they are run down by helicopters and forced into holding pens.

Senseless...senseless...senseless. When you consider the millions of acres of pristine range out there that the wilds call home, that they have survive just fine for eons if for only one thing: human interference.

These horses have existed in health and happiness since the dawn of time. And, like most of the animals in the wild, are being managed into extinction for what? Money and greed by corporations, ranchers, hunters, and the list goes on...senseless waste of lives.

In this issue, read about the issues...decide for yourself. The truth is apparent. The government agencies tasked to “manage” the wilds continue to put forth propaganda based on their “ideas” of what is the correct number of horses that should be on the plains...its a bunch of BS...plain and simple.

Leave them alone...they will thrive. And I don’t mean overpopulate. We all know mares go in season in the spring, summer and fall...and their gestation is 11 months. Overpopulating? Really? PZP is just another word for “extinction”.

Once again, the brave folks who fight the good fight continue to do so because the alternative, annihilation, is not acceptable.

Gracias & besos, Calamity Cate Crismani

Publisher Equine Angle PR & Marketing

Editor Cate Crismani

Advertising & Editorial 818 642 4764 calamity@truecowboymagazine.com

Featured Wild Horse Fotographer Jennifer Glassman

Featured Buckle Bunny Fotographer Volker Fleck Make-up Artist Kate Chavez

Contributing Wriders Lorraine Alderette ~ Cate Crismani Craig Downer ~ Alison Eastwood Jennifer Glassman ~ Gina McKnight Allan Warren

Contributing Fotographers Craig C. Downer ~ Ian Elwood

Saddle up, Subscribe at www.truecowboymagazine.com

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Features 8 The Vanishing...Jennifer glassman 22 Race for the recues...Lorraine alderette 24 Scapegoating an American Icon...Craig c. downer

34 A rowdy girl...Renee King-Sonnen 41 Our Buckle Bunny, Alison Eastwood 54 Teacher’s PeT...american human associaTion

60 iVIEW with Gina McKnight & Tim Hayes

66 Preparing for the end...allen Warren 72 Horses & stars...bhalin 74 Who is Gentling who?...Monty Roberts 76 Whiskers ain’T jusT for caTs...emily macdonald

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www.reelcowboys.org

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The Vanishing…

Jennifer Glassman To capture the soul and fire of a wild horse on film, one must either be invisible in sight, sound and scent, or have permission and approval from the horse. The first is nearly impossible, particularly in the case of wild horses. The latter is a gift that precious few photographers can enjoy.

Jennifer Glassman’s photography captures rare glimpses, showing explosive power and peaceful tranquility of mustangs in the wild. Her artistry with motion, composition, depth of field and phenomenal patience, all contribute to this emotional photographic portrayal of beautiful sentient beings.

Glassman recently launched limited edition prints from the “Vanishing” Collection, the follow-up to her premiere photography collection, “Revolution,” where she continues her body of work centered largely on mustangs in motion.

Viewers of Glassman’s images could scarcely guess that until 2010, her lifelong passion for horses remained untapped. Her twenty-year career as a film and television executive, and full-time parent, left her precious little time to explore much else including her passion for horses.

One day early on in her hiatus, she joined a friend for a casual ride at Sunset Ranch in Hollywood; a ride that changed her life forever. Glassman immediately began to immerse herself in riding, caring for and ultimately photographing horses. “For the first six weeks I rode, photographed and had my hands on a horse every minute that my son was in school,” she says, “I cried each time I got on the horse and again each time I got off the horse. I was just overwhelmed by the profound emotional connection I felt with the horses.”

She views a particularly eventful ride as a turning point in her life. During this group outing through mountainous terrain, some of the horses were spooked by hapless hikers and one of them threw its rider. “Samson didn’t try to dump me off,” Glassman says of the mustang she was riding that day. “But I was afraid of him for a while after that. Looking back, though, I see how that experience was the beginning of a beautiful relationship. They say the horse picks the rider. Samson definitely picked me.” He became an official member of the Glassman family a few months later.

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During her initiation to the equestrian world Glassman became quickly educated by the Cowboys and Cowgirls at Sunset Ranch about the harsh realities facing our wild mustangs in America. Hearing for the first time how they are chased to exhaustion by helicopters, then rounded up and housed under inhumane conditions, she remembers being utterly horrified “The information I’d heard, and then researched, about these amazing animals, how the BLM was orchestrating these roundups, did not make sense to me.

Glassman avidly began educating herself with a goal to help.

This ugly discovery coincided roughly with her decision to leave the entertainment industry in favor of the more meaningful creative pursuit of photography, which she was studying at the time. Of course, going from high heels and the office to cowboy boots and the barn represented an almost unimaginable change for Glassman. “On reflection, she says, “it as one of the best career moves I’ve ever made.”

Glassman believe it is her ultimate objective to represent and convey an “authentic form of these magical creatures that harkens back to their heritage to show the magnificent and historic connection between man, horse and our world.”

Shortly after her decision to follow and support the plight of the mustangs and horses in need, Glassman and her family ventured up to the Wild Horse Sanctuary in Northern California. The Wild Horse Sanctuary is the first mustang sanctuary in the United States, begun and still operated by owner Diane Nelson. Jennifer’s first ride amongst the mustangs being cared for on the 5,000 acre facility was eye-opening. Glassman’s first opportunity to photograph the horses in motion while riding and capture them in their habitat was a breath-taking experience. Diane Nelson’s recall of the history of these amazing horses was overwhelming and what needed to be done to preserve them as a part of American History.

On that trip Glassman decided that she would be among the few to adopt a foal from Diane’s sanctuary. The adoption is a yearly ritual so that the WHS can maintain room for adult mustangs rescued from slaughter auctions and abusive situation. She very quickly spotted a 3-week old buckskin colt and named him Henry. She and her husband committed to adopting Henry upon the “round up” in the fall and take him home to their then son. “We put our house on the market to move thirty miles outside of Los Angeles and live in horse country,” says Glassman, “we had no idea what future awaited us.”

While the Glassman family moved from their urban lifestyle to their country one, they anxiously awaited Henry’s arrival. Carefully they planned for his integration and training.

Henry was to be a gift to their son Sam to help him learn the values of life with a horse and gain the confidence of forming a relationship with that horse. They were not prepared for the real life fact that adopting an animal who still lived in the ‘wild’, albeit a sanctuary, came with certain risks. Henry the baby buckskin did not make it to round-up. The family learned the harsh reality that many wild horse babies don’t make it due to natural predation. Devastated, the Glassman’s moved on.

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The Glassman family moved to horse country with their dogs, cats and two mustangs.

Yet the Wild Horse Sanctuary was calling. Glassman said no. They said come up for dinner, stay for the weekend.

Push came to shove and Jennifer thought, “Yeah, we need a weekend away. We will come for a visit, but we are not adopting a foal.”

Enter Leo (www.jenniferglassman.com/theone). “Please watch this so you get the story of Leo. Emotionally it’s too much for me to write,” says Glassman.

Leo came to live in the Glassman fold in April of 2011. A beautiful palomino who was having a rough start so the Wild Horse Sanctuary started his full time care at 4-months old. Sam fell in love with him on that visit.

After small trips seeing mustangs in the wild, and visiting local sanctuaries such as Lifesavers.org and working with organizations such as Heartofahorse.org, Glassman ventured to the McCullough Peaks Mountain Range in Wyoming, a mere 30 minutes outside of Cody and across the range from the famed Pryor Mountains.

Over two days with one guide Glassman had magical experiences to which her guide said he took lots of people to see the horses, but had rarely seen the kind of activity that Jennifer was able to witness and document.

Glassman remembers one mare on the Wyoming trip in particular. She appeared in four different locations over two days and came so close it took Jennifer’s breath away.

After the loss of Leo the baby Palomino, Jennifer swore that she would not adopt a baby mustang but did agree to attend the Wild Horse Sanctuary Open House. During her walk amongst the Mustangs, Glassman unknowingly photographed a pregnant mare.

When showing the photographs to a Sanctuary friend, Liz Juenke, Liz gasped “That’s Henry’s mom!” Henry’s mom, named by the volunteers at WHS had not been seen in close to a year. She was quite old and they thought she might have passed on. Once they all saw the photo, Diane Nelson immediately herded her into a protected pasture, ensured she was fed and watered and protected against the elements. In August of 2013 “Henry’s Mom” gave birth to a little colt who had a remarkable blaze on his muzzle that was the shape of a horse head.

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After little convincing, Glassman and her family agreed to adopt the colt, who they since named Jack (Baby Gee). After their son Sam saw him and his blaze for the first time he said, “Look mom, that’s baby Leo looking out at you.”

With her mustang-focused photography, she joins the ranks of many photographers who have put themselves in the line of publicity and danger to help our mustangs in the wild. She hopes to contribute to raising awareness of an injustice perpetrated against a symbol of American freedom in the name of the American people, whose tax dollars are perpetuating it largely without their knowledge. “At the turn of the 20th century there were two million horses roaming free in America; today, there are fewer than 30,000 on the range.”

“My job is to capture the moment,” she says. How does she know when she’s got it?

Like almost everything about her relationship with horses, it’s intuitive. “I can’t really explain it,” she confesses, “but I get a certain feeling when I’ve taken “the” shot. The shot that might inform one person about the mustangs. It’s a sensation of pure happiness.”

The kinetic energy Glassman conveys in her photos reflects the thrill she feels behind the lens. “The horse is running at you full speed,” she says, And you think, can you get the shot?” Some of the resulting images are so dynamic that they approach abstraction; others are rich in detail, one zeroing in on the star-like convergence of hair between a horse’s eyes.

Glassman says of her creative goals, “This isn’t just pretty pictures of horses; I want to convey something more authentic; horses fighting, a horse collapsed on the ground, horses with teeth bared who seem to be laughing or singing. I want to show the real, raw personality of my subject.”

And though she relishes photographing horses in the wild, she also enjoys shooting portraits of horses and their riders. “When you photograph people with their horses,” she explains, “you’re able to present a side of them that the world doesn’t generally get to see.”

This observation dovetails with Glassman’s desire to go beyond pretty pictures, to uncover something as yet unseen, and to expose the wrong currently being done to America’s wild horses.

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Jennifer Glassman lives in Southern California with her family and four beloved mustangs: Samson, Brodie, Blaze and Baby Jack (BB Gee).

Half of the proceeds generated from the sales of Glassman’s work will directly benefit various rescue organizations, including www.wildhorsesanctuary.org and www.eastwoodranchfoundation.org.

To view more wild horse photography or to purchase a wild horse image, please visit Jennifer Glassman’s work at www.jenniferglassman.com

Copyright 2015 Jennifer Glassman. All rights reserved.

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Ten years ago The Rescue Train created a small fundraiser called Race For The Rescues at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena…300 people showed up and we were thrilled! This year Race For The Rescues is not only an “official Rose Bowl event” but it is also our 10th Anniversary and we are celebr ating b making it the first Race For The Rescues Southern California to help more animals than ever before! We are also having our first themed event, Race For The Rescues “Goes Country” with Go Country 105FM as our official radio partner!

This event is a 10K, 5K, 1K Dog Walk and Kids Fun Run and is a “professionally timed” sporting event that you can run with your dogs and be timed. Those 300 people that came to the first race still come back every year but they are now joined by over 3,000 other runners plus countless animal lovers there to cheer them on. This year there will be over 70 vendor booths, Laker Girls & Kings Ic Crew cheerleaders, the crew from the Galaxy soccer team, line dancing, face painting for kids, music food trucks and for the first time a “beer garden” plus much, much more!

To date, Race For The Rescues has raised over $2.25 million dollars for over 50 animal non-profits!

The highlight of the race and the heart of the day is the “Rockin Adoption Show” in which dogs from city shelters that are in jeopardy of being euthanized are trucked to the race, dressed in cute costumes and walked down a fashion runway by celebrities so that the public can see these amazing homeless dogs. Because of The Rescue Train’s passion to save lives, for the past 9 year s not one of those shelter dogs has been returned to the city shelters to be euthanized… we expect the same results in 2015!

We are one of the only animal rescues that invites a “variety of grass-roots animal non-profits” to a race to help them raise much needed funds to keep their doors open. In 2014 we had dog, cat, horse, sea mammals, and even a guinea pig rescue participating in our race. Our event not only kept 40 animal rescues doors open, but also saved 73 dogs and cats, 4 horses, 1 seal and 1 guinea pig! In 2015 participating rescues consist of dog, cat, horse, farm animals and the guinea pigs are back again!

PLEASE join a team, start your own team and raise money for animals in need, they are counting on you! HELP us reach our goal of $500,000 to saves lives in 2015.

Thank you trueCOWBOYmagazine for stepping up to support rescues and animals everywhere! www.racefortherescues.org

For more information email: Lorraine@therescuetrain.org

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Scapegoating an American icon

By Craig C. Downer Today, and for many years, the political machine that operates on the public lands is an unwholesome marriage between vested livestock interest and their puppets in government, including the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), USFS, state departments of agriculture and wildlife, and local officials. The result has become a mockery of the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971. This is due to an insidious monopolization of our public lands by livestock interests who lack perspective on the issue.

To put it simply they are “possessed by their possessions.�

A truer perspective on this issue is not being revealed by a largely controlled and beholden media today whose values I suspect. If the real proportion of livestock grazing pressure being suffered by the public lands ecosystem in relation to wild horse grazing were known, a gross inequity would be revealed. It would then become plain that wild horses are being brought to cripplingly low, non-viable population levels even though they have the legal right to live in their designated areas throughout the West. These are in places they do not overgraze but which humanly imposed livestock too often do!

The livestock interests conveniently blame the wild horses for their own rancher-caused abuses, thus making of the horses convenient scapegoats. Due to this ongoing backstabbing, the public herd areas have been largely emptied of wild horses and burros, even though the vast majority of the U.S. public wants to see them occupied with viable and truly freeroaming herds. I am very disturbed by the recent wholesale roundups in Wyoming as well as in Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Arizona and other states. Thousands more are planned to be rounded up in the present fiscal year starting in July 1st, 2015.

Most of these herds are not even at genetically viable levels, so even if PZP’ed mares are released, their tailspin to dysfunction and demise are further assured by compromised reproduction. It takes real vitality to survive in the wild, not some overly compromised populations. Unfortunately most of the officials governing the wild horse and burro program are from livestock backgrounds and regard the wild horses and burros merely as escaped domestic equids, thus ignoring the overwhelming evidence that they are in fact returned North American native who fill a missing niche that is very important to restoring balance and health to so many North American ecosystems.

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The wild horses are not as stressed, as the PR machine would have us believe, as attests their healthy condition. And I have just been out to observe them both in various herds in Western Nevada as well as in the Onaqui herd of Utah and the Pryor Mountain herd in Montana and Wyoming (May and June, 2015). Last December I was out to observe the Marietta wild burros of western Nevada and the Montgomery Pass wild horses of eastern California, and they all looked great, but were very sparsely populated. The horses and burros could survive, if our public servants simply but firmly assured their legal rights to adequate habitat, including water, shelter, foraging areas for both hot and cold seasons, et al. if the governing agencies would just give them a chance to display their amazing survival instincts as well as wisdom and intelligence!

While the vested livestock establishment is perpetrating its stranglehold on the public lands and scapegoating and targeting the wild horses for practical elimination, I see people here in the West wasting water through the lavish and inefficient irrigation of alfalfa fields, golf courses, and lawned subdivisions, etc., as well as through the destruction of highland watersheds by livestock overgrazing and trampling, slob mining and totally out-of-control Off-Road Vehicle abuses! The latter I have just observed through the magnificent Pine Nut Mountains of western Nevada, a legal wild horse Herd Area and a Herd Management Area at its northern end.

Furthermore, a more than adequate supply of water should and easily could be shared with the wild horses if some modicum of good-willed conservation were employed.

Hard Figures: Hard mathematical analysis using BLM’s own figures reveals that in most of the legal Herd Areas, our public servants are planning to allow only one individual wild horse per one to two thousand or more acres of legal Herd Area, as per the Appropriate Management Levels that have been set! Nationwide, the federal Bureau of Land Management is planning to allow only one individual wild horse or burro per individual public lands grazing permittee, each of which has hundreds or thousands of livestock that strip the most nutritious vegetation. It bears mentioning that the livestock are not permitted to become integral components of the public lands ecosystem, since they are removed for human consumption and do not contribute their remains to the ecosystem that sustains them – as the wild horses and other wildlife species do, if so allowed. Such natural integration was and remains the original intention of the Wild Horse and Burro Act, but is not being followed.

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After each drastic herd reduction, the dominant, vested livestock grazing levels usually continue unabated or even increase. And far too many ranchers are unsatisfied with already possessing the monopoly, the hog’s share as it were, on 92% of BLM lands and on 69% of US Forest Service lands as well as on a substantial portion of our national wildlife refuges and state lands– for a total of roughly 300-milliion acres! They seek to impose yet more of their abusive will upon an ever-greater portion of the public lands and upon the public-at-large who derive immense ecological and spiritual benefits from these vast and wide-open places when they are left largely to God and Nature! The public lands livestock industry is economically non-viable and supplies only 2% of livestock feed nationwide, yet these operations cause enormous damage to wildlife, watersheds, water and air quality, soils, and ecological wellfunctioning. And it should also be mentioned that wild horses and burros are Nature’s perfect catastrophic wildfire preventers – very important in this age of Global Warming.

Our ecosystems are vitally needed to restore planetary health in this era of global climate change and ecological imbalance that we humans have blindly created. To support a relative handful of Western livestock operations, the public taxpayer delivers many millions of dollars each year in down-thedrain subsidies. Totaling both economic subsidy and ecological damage, the cost of maintaining this 19th century anachronism is around a billion dollars per year! In order to remedy this situation, we must first ascertain exactly where the wild horses and burros have a legal right to live. Factually, only 13% of federal lands are included as legal Herd Areas under the 1971 Wild Horses and Burros Act. Yet, 40% or more of these at least 53.5-million acres of public lands in at least 303 legal Herd Areas have been “zeroed out” and declared “horse free areas.” This has occurred in spite of their legal status and the legal requirement that they be “principally” managed for the wild horses and burros so as to preserve their free-roaming lifestyle and long-term viability and integration into the natural ecosystem (Section 2 c).

Consider: There are only around 22,000 public land livestock operators, the wealthiest small minority of whom control the great majority of grazing permits. Taken as a whole, these represent only one tenth of one percent of the U.S. population! If their stranglehold were released upon the public lands, a true implementation of the Wild Horse and Burro Act could be achieved. And wild horse and burro herds could be reinstated to truly viable population levels – and prove their ecological harmony as they did in centuries past. The public lands would again blossom and restore their vital ecological services.

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Reforms Needed: Concomitantly to this reform, new and ecologically benign occupations by people are called for.

We need to develop and support non-polluting alternative energy sources, such as wind and solar with which the West is abundantly endowed. In general, a diversified and soundly planned harvesting of natural goods that are taken in a way that does not overly alter the ecosystem, could solve the present predicament. In this restoration of ecological harmony, we could often emulate ancient and time-tested Native American traditions, complementing these with modern, particularly ecological and holistic knowledge. In this way we can learn to live with a fairer number of wild horses and burros – and the cruel and deadly roundups that are employed today will become a thing of the past! A moderate Pinyon Pine Nut Harvest is one such shining possibility! But BLM and USFS are mowing down thousands of these wonderful, venerable old trees, along with the equally venerable Junipers.

The “new, golden age” model for wild horse conservation will involved the establishment of Herd Areas (and Territories on USFS land) that, in terms of size and habitat composition, are adequate to the year-round needs of viable populations, each with at least one-thousand inter-breeding adults. (As pointed out in my book: The Wild Horse Conspiracy, world authorities on equid conservation recommend 2,500 individuals for a viable equid population in the wild.) In this new age, each individual wild equid herd will be allowed to stabilize its population level according to the natural carrying capacity of the Herd Area it inhabits, and this Herd Area will be a complete habitat!. And as key to this strategy’s success, each Herd Area will be limited by natural boundaries such as rivers, mountain ridges, and cliffs, wherever possible, and, where necessary, by artificial boundaries established to keep the horses from coming to harm outside their legal areas, i.e. farms, cities, etc.

Within each contained Herd Area, each given equid population will be allowed to stabilize through a process of natural adaptation and selection, involving biologically balanced age and sex -ratio stabilization and social accommodation, both within and among bands, among other factors, Incidentally, these worthy processes are precisely those that the drastic helicopter roundups by BLM contractors violently counteract and set back. These callous guttings of the populations condemn the gathered wild horses/burros to anguishing trauma, ill adjustment in a life of captivity, illness, pitiful decline and often death (though this is not brought to light).

Furthermore, roundups have also cost the taxpayer many millions of dollars over the years, though money should be the least of our concerns here.

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The new management strategy I propose will allow natural predators such as puma, bear, and, where present, wolf, and natural, intrinsic limiting factors such as winter and summer die-offs, old age attrition etc., to fully operate. Also, the natural spacing that wild horse and burro bands demonstrate when left for longer periods of time on their own, will serve to prevent the overcrowding of their habitat. After the horse population has reached its ecological carrying capacity within its Herd Area boundaries, reproductive self-limitation will be observed. This is to say that within each legal herd Area, the horses will be allowed to define their own carrying capacity, rather than having an artificial population limit imposed upon them by politically pressured and livestock-beholden land managers who too often have “no use” for the wild horses and burros. The wild horses and burros will naturally do this because they are “climax species” capable of limiting their population growth and belonging to and evolving out of a geologically “Recent” climax life community here in North America – where the horse species has evolved practically continuously for thousands of generations past. – All these and more are the sterling virtues of Reserve Design, which I have studied at some of the world’s greatest universities and had the honor of putting into practice both in North and South America for Perissodactyl species (the order to which the equid family belongs).

The Place of the Wild Horse As “returned natives” and as ecological and evolutionary “mutualists” in North America, wild horses and burros contribute to the plains, prairies, deserts, and even montane ecosystems they inhabit. As integral ecological components, they are excellent reducers of fire hazard and excellent seed dispersers of native plants through their feces, that also help to build a nutrient-rich humus in the soils. Additionally, these herbivores are prey species valuable to the food chain, as their mortal remains are re-cycled among puma, bear, coyote, wolf, and bird, rodent, reptile, and insect scavengers, as well as many minute decomposers.

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A Plea to Conscience

Let us respect these our precious wild horses and burros whose very presence contributes so much to our Quality of Life.

Let us respect and protect their right to live freely in truly viable numbers, in truly viable, wide-open spaces and habitats. In so doing, we will bless not only these wild horses and burros, but our very own lives and those of many other species as well. We will, thus, set ourselves free from petty, meanspiritedness and the tragedy of selfish, inconsiderate, and dis-attuned lifestyles. By learning to share with the wild horses, we will attain a greater fulfillment, both individually and as a species. We will cease acting as estranged invaders of Planet Earth. Instead of being a curse for the “Rest of Life,” we will become benign presences who enhance the lives of others and, thereby, derive life’s greater joy and meaning. Ceasing to focus exclusively upon human kind and our unlimited material self-aggrandizement, we shall refine our approach to living as we expand beyond those dark ways that are best left behind, rungs on the ladder of real progress, ascent. We shall perceive ourselves in the wild horses , as eventually in all diverse Creation and the free-living wild equids shall help to lead us along this blessed way.

auThor’s corner:

Descendent of early pioneers in Nevada and California, Craig Downer grew up, riding Poco, in the country and learned to observe the wild horses at an early age. Possessing numerous degrees and credentials, Downer, for the past several years, he has dedicated his work to restoring the wild horses and burros to their rightful land and freedom as per the WFHBA and has been a plaintiff in several cases as well as input to government agencies: BLM, USFS, and others. He presses for Reserve Design for truly viable and self-stabilizing populations restored throughout the West and has recently published a scientific article explaining this as well as other crucial positive points favoring the wild ones. He is a member of the IUCN Species Survival Commission and the American Society of Mammologists. Craig C. Downer is also a Wildlife Ecologist and President of the Andean Tapir Fund, www.andeantapirfund.com Downer has penned the book, “The Wild Horse Conspiracy” which can be purchased at www.thewildhorseconspiracy.org and www.amazon.com/dp/1461068983. Cr aig welcomes, and ur ges, all concerned citizens to contact him and get involved to save our American Icon, the Wild Mustang. He can be reached at ccdowner@yahoo.com, via telephone 775-901-2094 or snail mail: P.O. Box 456, Minden, NV. 89423 Copyright 2015 Craig C. Downer. All rights reserved. Photographs used with permission.

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www.trfinc.org

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A Rowdy Girl Transforms a cattle ranch to a Vegan Farm Sanctuary

By Renee King-Sonnen I’ve been told by Care 2 that our transformation from a Texas Beef Cattle Ranch to the first ever Vegan Farm Sanctuary in the state of Texas, is an “epic love story”.

Is it? Maybe. But regardless, it’s my story and it’s my mission and purpose to live the rest of my life being the voice for the voiceless farm animals that I once exploited for food, clothing and entertainment.

Tommy and I met in 1991 when I was singing in a nightclub in Lake Jackson, TX. I was an outgoing performer and a yogini that had a passion for chanting, guitar, art, metaphysics and spirituality. Tommy on the other hand had worked his entire life at Dow Chemical, was a 4th generation cattle rancher, a historian and an avid hunter.

Somehow his energy grounded my free spirit and my energy enlightened his.

To bring our relationship to the present day it is important to note that Tommy and I have been married twice – we divorced in 1998 and remarried in 2010. Tommy didn’t have the ranch during our first marriage, so when we remarried and I moved to the 96 acre ranch on Highway 35 in Angleton, TX, I had no idea that my life was about to be forever changed.

Born and raised in Houston, TX, I was a city girl through and through and loved it. At the onset, I balked when faced with the thought of living out in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of cows and chickens but the love I had for my husband was stronger.

At first, I was wary of the cattle but the more that I got to know them and their unique personalities, I began to distinguish them one from the other. In order to get in “their” space, I would do yoga in the middle of the field, sing and chant. Or, I would just sit silently while they grazed until their curiosity would get the best of them and they would come over to sniff and lick me. Then I started naming them, and they became my friends.

Tommy wanted me to have my own calf, so I bought Rowdy Girl for $300 – she was just a baby and I bottle fed her 2 times/day until she was grown. I was her mama! If not for Rowdy Girl, there would be no Rowdy Girl Sanctuary ~ it is because of her that I held the cows and her ransom in December 2014, and eventually succeeded in buying the herd from my husband on Indiegogo for $30,000 to create the first vegan farm sanctuary in the state. We are currently in process of obtaining our 501c3 Non-profit status. It is because of sanctuaries like Farm Sanctuary, the pioneer in our movement that I have had the courage and motivation to stay the course.

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But before the creation of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary, a succession of “red trailer” episodes caused me immense grief and suffering. Every time the calves were loaded to leave for the sale barn the mama’s would cry for days on end, and I too found myself crying and begging their forgiveness. This happened twice a year and I began to have a serious inner conflict because of my innate compassion and empathy.

Around August 2014, I started witnessing slaughterhouse videos and had a real problem internally every time I would eat an animal product. Distinctly, I recall eating a chicken sandwich with my beloved chickens at my feet following me to the coop. There was something wrong with that picture.

I am committed to telling my story wherever there is a need and welcome the invitation.

In October of 2014, I went vegan. I remember vividly the moment I knew I could no longer pick stew meat out of my soup and eat the broth tainted with the blood and life of a sentient being. It was like I had awakened in the Matrix and swallowed a different pill, and with that pill I was given a completely new set of ideas, attitudes and emotions that began to dominate my personality.

My dilemma grew more severe when Houdini, Rowdy Girl’s baby started getting out along the highway – we were going to start being fined by the state patrol if we weren’t able to contain her and she had a propensity for slipping through any fence. Tommy wanted to “send her up the road”, but I couldn’t bear the thought one bit so I went on a quest to find sanctuary for her and Rowdy Girl so that they would not be separated. There were no sanctuaries in TX that would take them – and there certainly were no vegan sanctuaries – mostly refuge for horses and small farm animals, but cows? Almost totally unheard of in this state as they are truly seen as a commodity not a friend.

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In December of 2014 things began to spiral out of control. My husband had not sent the red trailer to the sale barn since February and the calves were getting bigger by the day. He announced one evening late December that he was going to have to send the calves “up the road”, and I heard myself say out loud and with great passion: “If you take that trailer to the sale barn, I will follow it and I will meet their demise! I don’t care if I end up in jail or if I embarrass you, I’ve had it! No more red trailer is going to leave here on my watch ever again”. That comment was my line in the sand and he knew it. Our lives have forever changed since that day. It has not been easy, but we ourselves have become the sanctuary I was looking for.

I started Vegan Journal of a Ranchers Wife on Facebook in December 2014 shortly after talking to Howard Lyman, the other 4th generation cattle rancher that is known as the Mad Cowboy that exposed “mad cow” disease and was sued along with Oprah Winfrey in a battle against big agriculture. Mr. Lyman is very well known in our circles and he gave me hope. Most vegans have embraced our transformation but some have had issues with the fact that I had to buy the cows from my husband. What I have to say about that is: “until you’ve walked a mile in this “Rowdy Girl’s” shoes, you have no idea what it took to make this Texas break through.”

As a result, Tommy has now gone completely plant based, and we are slated to be in a Vegan Movie called VEGAN: Everyday Stories which will be released in 2016. Vegan Journal of a Ranchers Wife has almost 6000 organic followers and I am going to write a book with the same title.

For more info and to donate go to: www.rowdygirlsanctuary.org Contact me at: renee@rowdygirlsanctuary.org

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Our Buckle Bunny

Alison Eastwood I was born in L.A. and raised in beautiful Carmel, California. I feel really blessed my brother Kyle and I got to be raised in such a laid-back, picturesque place. It was the backdrop for my budding love of animals and nature. Both my parents are big animal lovers and I think our childhood helped create my passion for nature conservation and animal advocacy.

Both my Dad and Brother are allergic to cats and dogs so I always had lots of “different” pets. We had pet rats, birds, fish, bunnies and even hermit crabs! I brought home any creature I could get my hands on and sometimes wasn’t allowed to keep them. I actually brought home earth worms one time in a fish bowl of dirt. I think that’s when my mom knew my love for caring for critters was above and beyond!

I always wanted to help animals for as long as I can remember. I didn’t really start to become an activist until I sold a show to National Geographic Wild called “Animal Intervention” in 2012. We traveled around the country meeting with people who had exotic animals as pets and the situations weren’t good. I started to see what goes on in our country and became aware of the treatment of animals. I did a lot research for the show and starting really getting into the injustices of animal treatment, not just in the States but across the globe. I felt compelled to step up and become a voice for animals after that experience. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t know anymore.

I’ve had quite a life so far. I’ve been lucky enough to work in Film and TV for a lot of my life. I never felt like I was a very good actress but it’s what I grew up around and I made a good living for awhile. My passions though have always been in other areas like directing and producing. I love coming up with ideas and getting to develop them, seeing them from start to finish. Although many of them haven’t made it out to the public! I have really enjoyed being able to merge my love for animals and my upbringing in the business. I have several animal related projects in the works for TV and push everyday to create good content that is entertaining yet informative. Of course, I love directing too and just recently finished my second feature film called “Battlecreek”. I’d love to direct a documentary soon.

Something where I can really open some eyes and ears.

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I have two horses right now. I had three or quite awhile but my black and white paint mare, Midnight, passed away last year at the age of 32. We were together for 23 years and she was an amazing horse. I now have Concho and Blondie. Concho is a quarter horse / thoroughbred that I bought through my friend, Lisa Brown who is a movie wrangler.

Concho was one of the War Admirals in the “Seabiscuit” movie. He’s an awesome horse and still thinks he on the racetrack from time to time! Blondie is my sweet boy. He’s a pretty palomino and white paint that looks just like a Breyer horse I used to play with as a girl. He couldn’t be sweeter and I love my boys. Of course I miss my Midnight girl. She was sassy and complicated just like me.

In regard to the wild horses, I think that they should be left in the wild, period. I heard the BLM spends almost 80 million dollars a year with their round ups and maintenance in the holding pens. Wild horse advocates have proposed that it would take less than 40 million dollars to implement a birth control/conservation method. I’m not sure my info is right but the bottom-line is their heritage dates back farther than the white man in this country so they have just as much right to roam this land as anyone. They should be a national treasure and not treated like a pest that needs to be exterminated.

I’m not a vegan although I am very conscious of what I eat. My husband and I are mostly vegetarian but I still eat eggs from my friend Amy’s chicken coop and honey from our friend’s hives. I will have some fish when visiting my Mom in Hawaii too. I believe in balance and being very conscious about what I put into my body. I am all about being humane and natural when it comes to our world. I do believe that you can live in harmony with nature and that we can all sustain each other with respect and dignity.

We just had an amazing art show exhibit in June in West Hollywood to raise funds and we are planning to do another fund-raiser for the Eastwood Ranch Foundation in the fall. Do join our mailing list at Eastwoodranch.org to keep updated on our latest animal causes. and donations are always welcome! We rescue animals from high kill shelters around the Southern California area besides working on behalf of animal welfare across the country. I also suggest that folks get involved in their community. Call your local shelter or rescue groups.

Donate old towels, blankets or needed items. Or you can just post or share things on social media too. There are many ways to be proactive in helping animals. It isn’t always about money.

My personal philosophy is give more than you take. Leave this beautiful planet a better place than you found it. Strive to spread the word that we are ALL created equal. That goes for animals, nature, your fellow humans, the birds and bees, you name it!! Be a force for good.. PEACE!

Visit us at: www.eastwoodranch.org Email us at: info@eastwoodranch.org

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Shot on location at Romeo Ranch & Wet Paint Farms, LLC, Cornell, California. Photographer: Volker Fleck ake Up Artist: Kate Chavez Jewelry: NiNi Jewelry Styling & Creative Direction: Cate Crismani Uber-Horse: Blondie

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Teache

The American Humane Association’s report pro

www.americanhum

A class hamster, guinea pig, lizard, or even goldfish can be fun and

exciting for school children, but it also has real educational, leadership and

character-building value, ac-

cording to a new study published today

by

American

Humane

Association in collaboration with the Pet Care Trust. Phase I of the two-phase “Pets in the Classroom” study features surveys and interviews of nearly 1,200 teachers and reveals that having a class pet can teach children important values like compassion, empathy, respect,

and responsibility for other living things, as well as give them much-needed leadership skills and stress relief. Certain challenges still remain, according to the study’s findings, like teaching children to cope with pet loss, the cost of ownership for teachers, and responsibility for the animal when school is not in session. The study’s objective is to advance the research of Pet Care Trust’s Pets in the Classroom program, which provides grants to Pre-K through eighth grade educators to adopt and provide ongoing care for small animals in their classrooms.

Between November 2014 and February 2015, teachers who had received a Pet Care Trust grant and had cared for their classroom pet for at least three months were asked to participate in online surveys or phone interviews with American Humane Association researchers with the goal of learning about their experiences to date. The first phase of the study endeavored to find out how classroom pets are being utilized throughout the United States and Canada and what are the perceived benefits and challenges of keeping pets in today’s classroom environment.

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er’s Pet

roffers benefits to both children and pets in the classroom

mane.org/pets-in-classroom-study

By far, the most common classroom pets adopted by surveyed teachers were fish at 31 percent. The next most common type of classroom pet was the guinea pig (13.7%),

followed by the hamster (10.5%), the bearded dragon (7.8%), and the leopard gecko (7.3%).

Overall, findings indicate that teachers view both the uses and benefits of classroom pets as primarily centering around six objectives: 

To teach children responsibility and leadership via animal care.



To teach children compassion, empathy and respect for all living things, including animals, humans, nature, and the world we share.



To enhance and enrich a variety of traditional academic lessons, from science to language arts.



To provide an avenue for relaxation when children are stressed or when their behavior is unstable and/or challenging to manage (for both typically developing children and those with special needs).



To help students feel comfortable and engaged in the classroom and with their peers, so that the school environment is more conducive to quality learning, growth, and social connections.



To expose students to new experiences and opportunities (particularly for those who do not have pets of their own), which may translate to a decrease in unfounded fears and biases among children.

According to survey and interview participants, the primary challenges of having a classroom pet included: 

Spending out-of-pocket money to care for the pet, both on a daily and long-term basis.



Assuming responsibility of pet care and/or other accommodations when school is not in session.



Ensuring safe, productive, and educational interactions between the students and the pet(s)).

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The results from this phase not only provide important contributions to this exciting area of

human-animal interaction research, but they also highlight the welfare needs of classroom pets and will be used to design a rigorous study for Phase II that will measure the impact of classroom pets on children in select U.S. and Canadian elementary schools over a period of ten weeks.

Based on the findings from Phase I, American Humane Association researchers will examine and measure how children with a pet in the classroom benefit in the areas of increased social skills, decreased problem behaviors, and improved academic competence when compared to children who do not have a pet in the classroom.

“Phase I of this groundbreaking study confirms our long-held belief in the inherent value

of classrooms having a pet,” said Dr. Robin Ganzert, American Humane Association president and CEO. “We hope through this study to examine and measure the degree to which these animals can help develop young people’s academic growth and social and leadership skills, as well as instill in them the vital value of compassion, which will benefit them, the world’s animals, and all of us throughout their lives.”

“When the Pet Care Trust launched the Pets in the Classroom program nearly five years ago, we had high hopes that the program would have a positive impact on children in schools throughout North America,” commented Steve King, Pet Care Trust executive director. “The

Phase I study results confirm what we have been hearing from teachers since day one— classroom pets do make a difference. We are delighted that we have been able to award more than 56,000 grants, bringing a pet into the lives of more than two million children. And we are committed to doubling that number within the next few years.”

American Humane Association is the country’s first national humane organization and the only one dedicated to protecting both children and animals. Since 1877, American Humane Association has been at the forefront of virtually every major

advance in protecting our most vulnerable from cruelty, abuse and neglect. Today we’re also leading the way in understanding the human-animal bond and its role in therapy, medicine and

society. American Humane

Association reaches millions of people every day through groundbreaking research, education, training and services that span a wide network of organizations, agencies and businesses.

Incorporated in 1990, The Pet Care Trust is a non-profit, charitable, public foundation whose mission is to help promote public understanding of the joys and benefits of pets through education, support, and interaction, and to enhance knowledge about companion animals through

research and education. www.americanhumane.org/pets-in-classroom-study.

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iVI

with Gina McKn

Author Tim Hayes is a Natural Horsemanship instructor at The University of Ver internationally recognized Natural Horsemanship Clinician. His new book Riding Hom non-horse-lover alike. Riding Home reveals Tim’s dedication and passion to helping p through the powerful relationship between human and horse. Tim’s devotion, compass that will inspire.

"Tim Hayes [is] a great storyteller blessed with passion for his subjects, horse a love between man and nature will stay with you for a long time. Tim Hayes has mad Gina McKnight: When was your fir st encounter with hor se?

Tim Hayes: It was 1993 and I was 48 year s old. Some fr iends of mine from New Yor k City, where I was born and still living, had moved out to Idaho to a town called Ketchum. Nearby there was a family owned cattle ranch. They brought me over to meet them and we all hit it off. They said, “Come on, ride one of our horses.”

I said, “Okay, I’ll try it.” It was a Quarter Horse named Spot and the 1993 Idaho State Champion Roping Horse. The experience changed my life. I had grown up in the city and never been on a horse. This horse was able to do things that I simply thought about. If I thought “slow down” the horse would slow down. I had no idea that it could be like that. From that moment on, I wanted to learn everything I could about horses and have them in my life. For the next three to four years, I was taught to ride, rope, brand and fix fences. I loved every second of it. By the end of that time, of all the things that I was doing, I discovered I had an enormous passion for horses. I wanted to become a horse trainer and learn everything I could. I was about to start studying with the head of the ranch, when I read an article in the New York Times about a man named Tom Dorrance. It was all about what was called a gentler, softer way of horse training. They weren’t calling it “Natural Horsemanship” then. That was before that name came around. I picked up the phone and I called Tom Dorrance in California. I said, “Tom, I would love to learn from you.” He said, “Well, bring your horse and come to my clinic.” I said, “Not only do I not have a horse, but I live in New York City.” He repeated what I said and I could hear a lot of laughter in the background. He said, “Come on out, we’ll find you a horse.” So, I did. I did a clinic with Tom and my life changed again because Tom had taught me to relate and train a horse with compassion; to look at our relationship from the horse’s point of view, not just from my point of view. It was truly transformative. I started to learn Tom’s ways and then found every person that Tom had ever taught and to study with all of them. Over the next few of years, I studied with Ray Hunt, Pat Parelli, Buck Brannaman, and whole bunch of others.

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IEW

night & Tim Hayes

rmont and The University of Connecticut Departments of Animal Science and an me ~ The Power of Horses to Heal is recommended reading for horse-lover and people - including veterans with PTSD, Children with Autism and Youth at Risk - heal sion and life experience with horses is revealed in this wonderful collection of stories

and human. The lessons you’ll take away from this beautiful volume of healing and de this his life work and the world is a better place for it.” ~ Robert Redford GM: Do you consider your self a hor se whisperer ?

TH: Let me share what I’ve learned from doing a lot of research about the origin of the term horse whisperer. The term first came around in the late 1800’s in Ireland. Back then there were two types of horse trainers.

There was a horse trainer who would train a horse so you could ride it and then there was someone called a horse tamer. A horse tamer was hired to tame or gentle dangerous horses that had gotten out of hand with humans; horses so violent, that in some instances they had actually killed their owners. One hundred years ago horse whispering was nothing more than what we now call natural horsemanship. If you ask if I’m I a horse whisperer, I would simply say that I am a horse trainer who uses compassion and horse psychology as a gentle method of training horses, as opposed to force, fear and intimidation. Today this is referred to as natural horsemanship. I hope that one day in the future we will all just call it “good horsemanship.”

GM: Have you ever met a hor se that you couldn’t train?

TH: I became a specialist in tr aining people to tr ain their own horses. What I found in the world of horse owners was similar to that of car owners. If someone’s car needs fixing and they don’t know how to fix it (which is most people) they bring it to a mechanic. Most people who own horses know very little about horses. If there’s a problem, they will often take their horse to a horse trainer. But, unlike a car, a horse has thoughts, feelings, fears and needs. He wants a relationship with his human; mental, emotional as well as physical. When you give your horse to a horse trainer, the horse trainer is a professional and has lots of tools; techniques, knowledge and experience, and can cause a change in the behavior of the horse as long as he, the owner who has become the trainer, is with the horse.

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GM: What are your views on the hor se slaughter debates?

TH: Although there have been some long-standing problems with the conservation and management of America’s wild horses, under no circumstances do I believe the solution is containment through slaughter. I can see the point of view from cattle ranchers where, in some cases, grazing wild horses take food away from their the cows which impacts their livelihood. But I would like to believe that with all of today’s modern innovations there is some way to maintain and manage our wild horses that enables both the public and the ranchers to get their needs met. I just don’t know enough about all the available options to know what the right answer is.

GM: Your role in helping other s through Equine Ther apy is extraordinary. How do horses help people through therapy?

TH: Dur ing the many year s of teaching natur al hor semanship I became aware of how often people were attracted to and wanted to be with horses that had very similar personality characteristics to their own. Shy people often had timid horses, extroverted; risk-taking people had very challenging horses and so on. When I would point this out most people could immediately see some of themselves in their horse. The horse’s behavior was like a mirror that reflected back personality characteristics that were much like those of the person. Over time this dynamic in relationships between horse and human resulted in extending the benefits of Equine Therapy to include the healing of human mental and emotional wounds. The Equine Therapy that had originally utilized the therapeutic movements of a horse to help heal a patient with physical malady like cerebral palsy as they would ride on their back, was now providing mental and emotional healing by having the patient interact with a horse on the ground. Today, we have veterans in Equine Therapy who are experiencing powerful healing from their post-traumatic stress disorder. Children with autism are having amazing breakthroughs in their emotional health by simply receiving the unconditional acceptance from a horse. Horses are also helping Youth at Risk, teenagers who have gotten in trouble with drugs or have been kicked out of school and potentially starting down a road to crime. Equine Therapy has been dramatically healing for getting kids back on the right track and increasing their self-esteem.

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However I think the most profound development in today’s Equine Therapy has been its effectiveness in healing our veterans with PTSD. Today there are many equine programs available to the thousands of veterans who suffer from the devastating wounds of war and specifically PTSD. The Wounded Warrior Project, working in conjunction with PATH Intl.

Equine Services for Heroes as well as many other programs are all specifically set up to provide Equine Therapy for veterans.

Frequently this results in profound mental and emotional healing for these men and women simply by creating an interactive relationship on the ground with a horse. With Equine Therapy the horse doesn’t have any questions for them. The horse just wants to get along. It doesn’t matter if the veteran has seen or done horrible things in war. Horses do not judge other horses or humans, they only just their behavior that is happening at that moment. Often this can be the first time a veteran comes home and experiences unconditional acceptance. For some, the healing that has come from horses has been miraculous. I believe the biggest problem with Equine Therapy is that so few people know about it and so little is being done to support it.

GM: What does hor semanship mean to you?

TH: Hor semanship to me is a way to descr ibe a relationship between a human being and a horse, which I believe is identical to a relationship between two humans. What I’ve learned is that in a human relationship, whether it’s a husband/wife, parent/child, or best friends, there are three ingredients that have to be present for the relationship to work - love, trust and respect. In order to have a healthy, happy relationship you must have all three. Horsemanship is based upon love, trust and respect between a horse and a human.

In the end, the same golden rule that you and I were taught is exactly what is needed in horsemanship. We want to treat our horses the same way we want to be treated.

Thank you Gina. I hope people will take a look at my book.

You can easily see what it’s about at: http://www.ridinghome.com. And every book ordered will help to benefit veterans with PTSD, at Risk Youth, children with autism and children of families in need. Contact Tim Hayes at: http:// www.hayesisforhorses.com

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www.beckyshope.com

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www.horseplus.org

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Preparing

“The true mission of any animal welfare organ

By All On a long October weekend back in 2012 absolute panic reigned throughout the U.S. equine advocacy movement when a false alarm was spread that the European Union would no longer accept the meat of American horses and the borders were closed to their export. Although this was exactly what we had been fighting for, coming so unexpectedly it took us by surprise and the reality that there are 12,000 to 15,000 horses in the slaughter pipeline at any given time, both in the auctions, feedlots and kill buyer staging facilities here in the States and the quarantine holding areas in Canada, and which it appeared would have to be rescued immediately quickly set in.

Several of the national organizations sent out vague alerts that those of us operating the some 600 legitimate equine rescue organizations in the country would have to be prepared to take these in, and that’s when the insanity really started. We were just beginning to come out of the national recession that started in 2008 at the time, a period that had displaced many more horses than usual and severely reduced rehoming opportunities. We were already operating either at or beyond our capacities and this simply wasn’t going to happen. My good friend Jerry Finch of Habitat for Horses in Texas was asked to start contacting rescuers all over the country, and I’ll never forget the despair and frustration in his voice when we talked on the phone that Sunday night, saying that at most some could take in one or two additional horses, but in the large numbers necessary, never.

Here is a reality that many will still not want to hear. If that shutdown had really occurred and the KBs and Canadian slaughterhouses had started abandoning those horses as expected, most would have had to be euthanized and buried in mass graves near where they stood. There was no other alternative available except to let them starve to death.

As it turned out the whole scare was based on rumor being spread by a minor employee at the New Holland auction yards in Pennsylvania, who didn’t have a clue what he was talking about and should never had been listened to in the first place, and the temporary shutdown was actually caused by a paperwork glitch by an EU employee. It was back to business as usual the next Monday morning when this was straightened out.

Now comes the really sad part. That false alarm weekend, If nothing else, should have served as a wakeup call that despite our ongoing efforts to bring this evil trade to a halt, we also needed to start working immediately to prepare for the day in both the U.S. and Canada for when that actually does happen. We have not. I recently had a long telephone conversation about this with my friend Elaine Nash, one of the few who foresees this need and is doing something about it by diligently organizing her national Fleet of Angels horse transportation network for the day slaughter ends, and which is doing good work in the meantime making sure at-risk horses all over the country get to safe homes. Elaine said that thousands of people stepped up in the face of the perceived 2012 crisis offering to help, but most quickly disappeared when the threat was over, refusing to heed her plea that we need a real plan in place not a knee jerk reaction after the fact.

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g for the end

nization should be to eliminate the need for itself.�

len Warren The bottom line in all this was that it became glaringly clear we are woefully unprepared to save and care for horses destined for slaughter in the U.S. if a real crisis does occur, or even it is phased out over a period of time. The same is true in Canada, where horse lovers there are battling to shut down the slaughter plants in their country and huge herds of thousands more await their deaths in quarantine. These would all be at immediate risk if a real shutdown were to occur without warning, and even disbursing them safely over a period of time would be extremely difficult. Of equal or even more importance is a viable plan to deal with the thousands of displaced and excess horses each year that now supply the slaughter industry if it shuts down.

To be prepared, we must understand what is entailed. Although back in 2012 several of the equine advocacy organizations were making brave statements about how we could take horses out of the American slaughter pipeline that were awaiting shipment across the borders, there was no coherent plan to do so and little comprehension of the challenges such a massive undertaking would offer. The same will be true of the horses that are been destined for that fate today if we don’t start taking steps now to provide them with an alternative future.

Horse rescue and rehoming must appear to be easy to those who sit comfortably at their keyboards, but out here in the real world it's an entirely different matter. Sure, the equine rescue community will pitch in and do everything we humanly can to save as many of these horses as possible, but it will be a drop in the bucket if the numbers estimated are even close to being accurate.

There are only about 600 real nonprofit horse rescue facilities in the U.S., and far fewer in Canada. And many of these are tiny or not even actual rescue sanctuaries at all. Even if each of us can take in one or two additional horses, which is a stretch to say the least, we won’t make a dent in the estimated 100,000 plus that will need a new future. And to think that private owners would rush forward to adopt them in numbers that will make a real difference belies the fact that we are having trouble finding qualified adopters for the horses we already have on our sanctuaries.

Also, those of us who actually do equine rescue work, know that just getting the horses out of the kill pens and feedlots is the very easiest part of the problem to solve. If slaughter is halted, the kill buyers and auction and feedlot operators will dump their horses for a song or even relinquish them to those of us who refuse to support their ill begotten trade by buying them. Their interest in horses is purely financial and there is no way they will continue to feed them for an extended period of time with no expectation of return on their investment.

However, it's what happens next that counts. Even if we could take them in, who would pay for their care and keep long term is the real challenge. Sure donations would pour in at first, but with that many horses hitting us at once even if we had room for them, how long would this support last? Certainly not for the years we would have to provide sanctuary care for these young and relatively healthy horses preferred for their meat by the slaughterhouses.

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Another major factor is that these horses will have to go into quarantine first before placement could even be considered. Feedlots and auction yards are breeding grounds for strangles, equine infectious anemia and a myriad of other medical problems, not to mention that most if not all will need immediate basic veterinary and farrier care. This upfront expense alone, including the cost of transport, will be immense before we even get to the question of where they will end up.

Further, those of us who operate legitimate adoption sanctuaries are extremely careful about whom we place horses with, and the good ones have agreements that they must be returned to us if the new home doesn't work out. It will take time to move a large horses safely through the legitimate rescue sanctuary community in large numbers. Lots of time.

In the scenario envisioned by the sudden shutdown, no such controls would have been possible and far too many of those horses actually saved would have ended up in the hands of people not qualified to own them, or worse yet, actual hoarders. In other words they would have gone from the frying pan into the fire.

The simple fact is that although we have fought long and hard to bring an end to equine slaughter of our horses and will continue to do so, we are doing virtually nothing to prepare for the day when this long awaited goal becomes a reality. And we certainly are not prepared for a sudden halt to it that now appears possible someday.

To address this shortcoming, I offer here a plan that was born during another telephone conversation back in 2010 with Jerry Finch, almost exactly two years before the false alarm weekend. Us two old horse rescuers (both in terms of years on this earth and how long we've been doing this work) were talking theoretically about how despite what the pro-slaughter people say, we believe we can deal with what they call "unwanted" and we call homeless horses in America if given the resources to do so. We realized that by breaking the total number dying in the slaughterhouses annually down into just those going through the pipeline at any one time, it is feasible.

I subsequently wrote a guest editorial in a leading equine veterinary journal saying that if the commercial equine breeding industry and nonprofit horse rescue community would work together instead of battling over the fate of these horses, it was possible to provide second careers, re-homing and long term sanctuary care for every horse currently going to slaughter each year, and listed several ways this could be done. This was based on my long held belief that it is not enough to just be against equine slaughter, we must also be for something to replace it if we ever hope to see it end entirely.

Shortly after this, Dr. Temple Grandin asked me to innumerate and be more specific about these ideas prior to the now famous talk she gave to the first Slaughter Summit held in January, 2011, in which to the dismay of the horse killers, she offered these and other alternatives instead of endorsing their industry. I wrote a resource paper for Dr. Grandin, with input from several other leading horse rescue colleagues around the country, going into detail about this plan. Those interested can learn more about the actual plan than space allows here by reading this in its entirety. It was published in the last issue of True Cowboy magazine and is also in the Files section of the Washington Horse Defense Coalition Face Book group page, an organization founded by my partner Joe Tafoya and myself earlier this year.

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This document does not deal with long term solutions such as better selective breeding, low cost gelding clinics and education about the responsibilities of horse ownership, but only immediate and viable alternatives to equine slaughter that already exist and can be quickly expanded. Our argument was that if the breed registries would fund these programs with a onetime registration surcharge of just $25 per horse, all of these could be put in place on a national level relatively quickly and the perceived need for equine slaughter would no longer exist.

Needless to say, this paper got virtually no response from the commercial breeders, because they believe they can continue to rely on equine slaughter to deal with their excess horses, and so far they have been right. Now, with dramatic new events spurred by the European drug regulations on horse meat imports threatening to at least limit this avenue for them, we are hoping that they might finally be willing to consider these alternatives. Jerry wrote a column calling for negotiations with AQHA, by far the heaviest contributor to the slaughter pipeline which was never answered. In our proposal this one organization alone could contribute $3.75 million annually to these efforts with their stated goal of registering 150,000 horses each year. Throw in all the other breed registries and even with foal numbers down after the recession, the total would be well over $12 million per year.

This would cost the breeder organizations themselves absolutely nothing, because this miniscule surcharge is paid by their actual horse owners. Our thinking was that any owner who is concerned about adding $25 to the cost of a horse has no business registering it in the first place. The leadership of AQHA and the other registries contacted have refused to even acknowledge our inquiries, because as long as they what they so politely term their “terminal equine marketplace”, they don’t have to.

The six-point plan offered in the paper is as follows: 1) Expansion of qualified nonprofit sanctuary capacity, 2) Development of sponsored foster home networks, 3) Training and retraining centers to give horses a new career and therefore chance at life, 4) Assistance programs for dedicated but financially struggling long time horse owners, or what we call in-place rescue, 5) Re-homing networks in which rescue operators in the different regions work together to find homes for horses they can't accept themselves, and 6) Short-term holding reserves for large numbers of horses until they can be absorbed back into the rescue sanctuary system.

Because these alternatives and others offered by Dr. Grandin back in early 2011 and the subsequent circulation of the White Paper achieved absolutely nothing, I decided it was up to me to take each of these programs and prove that they would work if given the chance since I had written the paper in the first place. The following are the results of our pilot programs in each area, all conducted by one relatively small equine rescue sanctuary working on its own:  We expanded our resident herd by 50 percent from 24 to 36 horses in 2011 with a revised business plan, while staying true to our mission of only accepting horses with no other options to survive and providing them with a lifelong home.

Eight of our horses were quartered in nearby sponsored foster homes, their feed and other needs provided at our expense but the over-all cost minimal compared to those residing on the sanctuary itself due to there being no daily care or fixed overhead expense.

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 Since the recession placed several younger, untrained horses at risk and with no other options than auction and slaughter, therefore meeting our mission standard, we accepted seven of these and began training them for our school of horsemanship. These range from horses abandoned in pastures, animal control seizures, relinquishment from neglect and victims of foreclosure. Some were not even halter broke when they arrived on the sanctuary. All have now been trained in our gentle philosophy and are active in our school of horsemanship and equine assisted therapy programs. All would be highly adoptable with their new training at other sanctuaries.  Horse Harbor Foundation, in partnership with two other equine rescues in our area, used a small grant to offer an assistance program during the height of the recession called Project Safety Net, which kept a total of more than 60 horses in safe homes with committed but financially struggling owners one winter. This essentially doubled the total sanctuary capacity in our three-county area.  We organized an email cross-posting network called the Work Crew of 22 vetted equine sanctuary operators in the Pacific North West states of Washington, Oregon, Montana and Idaho to advise each other of at-risk horses we couldn't accept or place ourselves in order to give them a better chance of finding new homes. Although it has been impossible to keep completely accurate records, it is estimated that over 700 horses have found new owners via this group effort over the past few years.  A property owner in Oregon offered her 800-acre ranch for equine welfare use and because of its distance from us, we turned this project over to HSUS to develop a temporary holding reserve there. In the meantime we have another property here in Western Washington that can hold between 40 and 60 horses in emergency situations such as large seizures, or if we have to take horses from the region's feedlots and kill pens to quarantine and temporary sanctuary in a real crisis such as the one we thought we were in three years ago.

In other words, all six of the programs suggested by my colleagues and myself as immediate and viable alternatives to equine slaughter can be developed and implemented successfully.

And with funding from the breeder industry through the surcharge concept, we can start putting these in place all over the country immediately.

If equine slaughter of U.S. and Canadian horses were to suddenly end tomorrow, next week, next month or even next year as many hope when the EU med regulations are finally enforced, sadly humane euthanasia might be the only option we will be able to offer many if not most of the horses impacted by this. We simply have to be prepared to do better than that or we can't call ourselves equine advocates. If the end to the butchering of our horses for human consumption abroad is truly within sight, isn't it time we start getting ready for it now, not when it's too late? We can create something positive out of that frantic 2012 weekend's debacle if we make this a priority in our campaign to finally end the brutal slaughter of our horses.

I can only hope this plan might help provide at least some of the answers as to how that might be accomplished. Even as the killing continues, we need to start implementing these and other realistic ideas as quickly as possible for the day it finally does end. As we’ve been shown so clearly, not having such a safety net under horses in the slaughter pipeline would be a disaster. By not setting one up as quickly as possible we are guilty of putting them at risk ourselves.

Allen Warren ~ Horse Harbor Foundation www.horseharbor.org (360) 692-2851

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HORSES & STARS Bhalin there must be a connection to wonder under inky night cold meteors and manes

nostrils flare frost shocks white breath The gravity of horses a mountain shroud surrounds the desert horizon the gravity of gods cloaked in black silk comes and goes hooves crash sweet water pools of solace form and mirror the constellations and quiet moon Midnight mass an ancient peace gravity comes again and heals me a comforting snort and nudge at my back, I stumble forward into the firmament the invisible centaur I am

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www.theearthorganization.org

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Who is Gentling Who? Monty Roberts The Man Who Listens to Horses Monty Roberts is best known for his autobiographical book, The Man Who Listens to Horses, in which he describes learning the gestural language of horses by watching wild mustangs. Abhorring the violence that was typically used in horse training when he was growing up, he put his discoveries into practice. Monty developed his Join-Up technique, which engenders trust and causes the horse to want to work with people. The Man Who Listens to Horses was written at the prompting of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of England and who is now patron of Join-Up International a 501c3 non-profit organization founded by Monty.

Shy Boy, a wild mustang adopted by Monty in 1997 from the BLM in Nevada was his greatest teacher. The experience he gained from working with this world-famous mustang, made him a believer that there are better ways of taking a wild horse from untouchable to gentle with only sympathy and understanding of their natural behavior.

It has been Monty’s dream to share his knowledge. Consequently, a new course has been created and titled GENTLING WILD HORSES. Denise Heinlein, master and head instructor at Monty’s International Learning Center collaborated with Monty to design the course. A very special facility has also been created to work in with previously untouched horses and especially wild mustangs.

This very unique facility was designed by Monty to allow students to work in a safe environment for both the horses and themselves. The traditional way of working with mustangs and untouched horses in the past has been very dangerous and rough. Monty’s life goal is to educate people that horses have a need to be understood and if they are started in an environment in which we meet their needs, amazing successes can be achieved.

The first course of Gentling Wild Horses was held mid-July of this year. The participants were from England, Wales, Canada, Hungary and the United States. The students came from very different backgrounds and experience. All students were astounded by the response they were achieving in this safe and nurturing environment. While they started off with three mustangs and two abused horses, they ended the course with five interested and willing partners. Everyone loved the course and the results of their work and more of these courses are planned for the future. It was an absolute unique experience for all involved. www.flagisupfarm.com

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Whiskers Ain’t Just for Cats

By Emily McDonald The trimming of a horse’s whiskers is illegal in Germany whereas many English associations promote this. Strange, huh?

You may be shocked to know that a horse’s whiskers (vibrissae) are actually an incredibly important sense to them. The whiskers around the eyes and muzzle are extremely sensitive and have a rich nerve supply 7. Each whisker in mice has a region of the sensory cortex (in the brain) dedicated to it 2. As horses and mice have similar physiology we can deduce that horses may do too. ‘This dedication of a portion of the cortex to each vibrissa indicates that they must be extremely important sensory instruments which should not be removed for cosmetic purposes’ (McGreevy, 2004:51).

Horses need their whiskers to: * Judge texture and distance to things 3. Due to the position of their eyes, horses cannot see under their mouth 1 and so the whiskers allow them to explore and identify what is under their nose. * Foals use their whiskers to help them locate the teats to suckle (1).. * The whiskers and lips work together to gather information about what to eat and what not to (4). Therefore, horses without whiskers may be more likely to eat a poisonous plant by mistake. * The whiskers are used to detect how far they are from a surface and so aid comfort behaviors such as head-rubbing. Without this sensory tool they will be more likely to bump into objects and injure their faces and eyes by accident. This is especially problematic for stabled horses, who are surrounded by walls, hooks etc. * The whiskers may even detect vibrational energy (4). This explains why horses with whiskers will put them near electric fences to test if it is on and avoid an unnecessary shock. * Horses use their whiskers to communicate with a friend while mutual grooming. Mutual grooming is vital to horses both as part of their social life and as a form of silent communication. Whiskers enhance their sense of touch and help the horse to feel the other horse’s muscles contract and relax. This allows a mutual grooming horse to assess the mood of the other. (6). If horses have their whiskers cut off or live alone they cannot use this subtle way of communication and instead have to use big over-blown signals. A human example would be if your only communication with other humans was to shout at them from a distance, which would be very frustrating.

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If horses didn’t need whiskers, they wouldn’t grow them. We shouldn’t take one of their senses without permission, especially just for looks.

Think of that the next time you shave!

To see more factsheets by Emily please visit: www.embehaviourist.com/information and to be kept up to date with the latest please like her Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/embehaviourist

References 1. Fraser, A (1992) The behavior of the horse, CAB International, Wallingford 2. Harman, A (2002) personal communication cited in McGreevy, P (2004) Equine Behavior: a guide for veterinarians and equine scientists, Saunders, Edinburgh

3. Kiley-Worthington, M (1997) Equine Welfare, J. A. Allen & Company Ltd, UK 4. McGreevy, P (2004) Equine Behavior: a guide for veterinarians and equine scientists, Saunders, Edinburgh 5. Simpson, H (2004) Teach yourself horse, D.J. Murphy Ltd, Great Britain 6. Simpson, H (2008) Meeting the needs of your horse, NAC Library Publication, Great Britain 7. Talukdar AH, Calhoun ML, Stinson AW. Microscopic anatomy of the skin of the horse. Am J Vet Res 1972; 31:1751–1754.

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