Hi Friends:
I don't even know
where to start, and hardly remember where I left off the last
time we chatted! The trail ride? Super Night? The horse rescue
in Sauk County? The county fair, or Wild West Days? It has been
hectic, yet gratifying to be an ASAP volunteer or staff recently.
Thank God for understanding husbands, tolerant children, and
the funds to be able to continue doing the work for the horses
(there is never an abundance of funds, let me reassure you!)..........
The indoor arena
is going up!~ It was so exciting to watch the crane put the
trusses up! The sand is already hauled in, so we are just waiting
for the Penchi Brothers to finish putting up the sides and doors.
All was going so quickly, then they had to take a week's vacation
to go to Puerto Rico for a wedding! I was happy for them, but
sad for us to have to wait after having waited so long. We are
ordering the name plates for the barn for those who have donated
money to make the building a reality, so those should be up
in the next month and then we will have pictures for you! It
is still not too late to donate - the building came to $45,000
and we collected $8,000 in donations for the building fund specifically...........................so
the rest is on the Wellman bill! Honestly, it is one of the
last things I will ever ask for in my life and it is a true
dream being realized, but imagine how great it will be for people
who come to see horses to work them in an area free of distraction
and to ride in a controlled environment? Wow - no dogs, no trampolines,
no kids yelling - just horse and rider! I hope to also be able
to retrain many of the Standardbreds to saddle myself now, too
(it's so easy!).........
I think I also mentioned
to you that Tractor Supply Company got a local television station
to do a long feature on ASAP which aired in September. The response
was so phenomenal that I could not keep up with the phone calls!
We got donations of feed (thank you Darlene LeJeune!) in volume,
we got new volunteers (thanks Elizabeth and family, Joanne,
Peg, Jeanne, Sue, and Barb and Lynette!), and the local exposure
that we are so grateful for! Tractor Supply Company also donated
the round pen we used to take the minis to the county fair in
Viroqua - we have much to thank them for.
Super Night was fanatical! I loved working with Beth Dale and
Lindsay Sovil and we had two tables set up at the track that
were busy all night long! Meghan Fitman came from Chicago (she
adopted More Slush Please a couple of months ago) and Marisa
and Meghan and I had a blast working the upstairs table all
night! The only glitch came when I ran up a million flights
of stairs to tell the track announcer what to say for our raffle
drawing and in the meantime Marisa and Meghan had been called
outside to the winner's circle to do the drawing and Scott wasn't
ready for them! I looked at his television screen and moaned,
"Oh, no!" Jim Hannon was asking Marisa all kinds of
questions, and she and Meghan were standing there flaberghasted,
hardly able to speak! I teased them about being on television
and they were not aware that they had been broadcasted to many
people and they were so embarassed! I guess the drawing couldn't
wait for me to go up and down those stairs (I was wearing stilletto
- is that how you spell it? - heels which did not help!).
We also got to meet Anne Chunko in the flesh that night, and
we had tables next to each other at the track. Anne was so incredibly
kind and it was exciting being able to work next to her.
As for the horse rescue, did I leave out a little detail about
my - ahem - injury? I thought I had shared with you that I had
been kicked by a red horse (that is all I remember about him
or her) who was really kicking at another horse at 11 pm in
the evening while holding a very dim flashlight. The two hind
feet came up and caught me in the arm first and the front of
the chest = I started to wheel around to save myself and the
hind feet got me hard right on the right side of my back in
the rib cage and the onlookers said that I flew about 10 feet
and landed in a mud hole that was supposed to be the horses'
water..............................I was pretty impressed that
I was still holding the flashlight whenI got up, but quickly
found I could not breathe. Everyone gasped and then asked if
I was okay..........I held my hand up as if to say "Wait
just a second" and just started walking up the hill behind
the herd of horses as if I was a cat about to crawl off and
die. Eventually my breath came back and the ache began. I held
it together pretty well throughout the evening without complaint,
even when the vet came and the owner of the horses showed up
(he was supposed to be incarcerated and so the sheriff did not
accompany us). After the horses had been counted and we discovered
17 rather than the six we expected to find, we left with an
empty trailer because the owner would not have it any other
way. I was driving a six speed diesel Dodge and every time I
shifted tears squeezed out of my eyes and I had difficulty breathing.
I guess it was a bad time to not have health insurance!
I phoned my husband Craig after I dropped Marisa off and told
him I would be home in about a half an hour, but did not think
I would be able to get out of the truck without help. He asked
what happened and I told him and he did not show compassion
or mercy, that is for sure! He was plain out angry with me....which
seemed confusing but I was in too much pain to care. When I
got home I could hardly pivot enough to get my legs out over
the edge, and getting down out of the truck brought excruciating
pain.
I waddled to the
house and showed the hubby my quickly-forming bruise. He asked
if I needed to go to the doctor, but I refused. I guess I should
have, as I am positive that I did sustain a broken rib. I could
not sleep through the night for two weeks but this is the third
week and I have to thank God that I am tons better. It still
hurts when I laugh hard (darn it, I love to laugh) so I have
to be careful to avoid the pain that comes with hysteria, but
my doctor friend came down to check on me and I appreciate his
prescription for something that would help me sleep! So, the
rescue story included a minor injury, but the sad part is that
11 horses were taken off the property before we could get back
to remove them and the sheriff is watching them closely but
they are being cared for. Two horses were moved to the neighbors'
house and they are doing well. We only got four out of there
(or should I say O.E. and S.W. and R.F. did? Their names are
being witheld to protect their identity until this matter can
be solved in court). I have the blind-in-one-eye Standardbred
weanling filly here. She is so sweet and willing to please even
though she has been through SO MUCH. She has gained weight at
O.E.'s farm, but still looks like an emaciated, wormy mess.
It will take time, I guess. There was a carcass of a chestnut
horse discovered in a ravine at the time that someone came to
pick up the remaining horse that was alive, and the remains
of a foal that had been attacked and killed by the owner's dog.
There was a part of a leg here, the hoof there, etc....................nine
rabbits in cages without food and water were also taken to safety.
I think there were several dogs, but one was vicious and could
not be caught. I often wonder if that dog is still at that farm,
starving and cold, and what we can do to help.......I hope the
local animal shelter is involved to humanely get him out of
there.
We have people from South Dakota to Texas to Vermont seeking
adoption of horses at the moment, as well as many from right
here in Wisconsin. One difficulty we are having is horses are
being adopted, but left here for a long period of time without
being picked up due to trailering issues, work schedules, and
so on and so forth. This puts a cramp in space here at the farm.
Do you think ASAP should be charging daily board for horses
that are adopted and not picked up for weeks or months? Your
comments are welcomed on the discussion forum. This does affect
the number of horses that are able to come in that are waiting
in line, so it is an issue that needs to be resolved.
Another important thing I want to stress is that each applicant
should read and re-read their placement contract before adopting
a horse. There have been a few people in the past year who have
forgotten that they are unable to sell their horses, and these
cases are going to court as we speak. ASAP does not want to
pay attorney fees or court costs for people who suddenly forget
that they cannot transfer or sell a horse!
Adults can be so
much like children - it is easy to turn things around on the
person making the rules and say things are their fault, even
though they KNEW the difference between right and wrong from
the very beginning. This goes for people who are attempting
to race ASAP horses and are being caught in the very act of
trying to tattoo horses at race tracks and reported, to people
who try to breed ASAP horses to expensive studs and obtain ownership
of the mares through the USTA when the USTA knows ASAP owns
the mares, to feeling justified in disposing of a horse and
"forgetting" where the horse went because no one came
to pick up a horse they no longer wanted. ASAP is not responsible
for hauling a horse from an adopter to the ASAP farm or anywhere
else when it is no longer wanted. It is the adopter's responsibility,
and any horse picked up by ASAP is done strictly on occasion
when there is an emergency or life or death situation. Please
help us avoid hours of police-detective-administrative work
by reading and our placement contract. If you have misplaced
it, ask for another, or print it off the web site. It is so
important! The people that are doing the above mentioned things
just happen to be many of the same people who are posting complaints
on discussion forums on other web sites. It is amazing that
the same people yelling and screaming that they have not yet
obtained ownership of their adopted horses are the same ones
that suddenly didn't want them any more and let them go to another
adopter! What was the motivation for obtaining ownership? Was
it so they could go to horse shows, or was it so that they could
be resold at a profit? One has to wonder at times.....................
Okay, I am going to stop now! All in all, life is so good. We
have a wonderful new foster son from Marshfield who is working
hard in school and at home. He is 15 and from the big city (I
reminded him that Marshfield is really very small, but he is
a city boy), learning to tolerate being in the "boondocks"
of De Soto. He is not a horse lover but is willing to help us
out with daily chores and really enjoys the other pets we have
here. Cherie just was voted Homecoming Queen (proud mom) and
is number two in class rank right now and working for salutatorian.
She is busy with National Honor Society and Student Council
and cheerleading, and just got the lead role in the musical
"Annie" - what an overachiever!
Jordan was on the football team and is still growing at 6'2
and 185 pounds at 15. Zach is in second grade and loving school
and still a champion fisherman. Rachel is loving full day Kindergarten
and is my little cowgirl!
We are proud to say that Arne has a sponsor, so both Bob Cook
and Arne have loving sponsors who contribute monthly to their
care here at the ASAP farm. Arne's sponsor is a four year old
boy from San Mateo, California! He loves horses, and ASAP has
committed to writing letters from Arne to this little boy each
month with pictures. He just received his first letter from
Arne a few days ago, and in October he will receive another
one. Thank you so much for caring for these sanctuary horses!
Please keep in mind that Precious KC and Haiaku and Asha are
still without sponsors. Consider helping them as well!
I am not sure if I have covered everything, but this has been
a long letter. Take care and don't forget to write or call any
time!
May the Lord Richly Bless All of You........Keep Praying for
Us As Well!
Susan
