Guess who? It's RU!

 

Since my last post I have thought about what I would write in this one. The last thing that I wanted to do was create a situation where I would be stressed out....or aggravated again.

All I will say is that I got in between two women and that resulted in my being asked to leave where I was boarding my horse. What is the old saying?  I don't know.....but I say, never get in the middle of two women who are pissed off! LOL

Without going into all the unnecessary details, the bottom line is that I eventually had my horse and I moved her to a private backyard barn. The owner is amazing and cares for Ru like she is one of her own! She is fed top of the line hay 4  times a day and grained twice.

There is a large riding ring that Ru loves to run in and stretch her Thoroughbred legs. She is awesome to watch. I can only imagine what she looked like on the racetrack.

The weather has been so cold the past month that my time with her has been limited.

Right before the winter hit I was  doing groundwork with her, Natural Horsemanship, and she was great at it. Either she had training before or she just has a good brain.

I am told by many of my friends that owned or own horses how much I lucked out.

She is beautiful, number 1, and very cooperative! She is smart and listens to voice commands. 

She will follow me off a lead line, stops when I stop, and walks when I walk. Maybe all horses do that?

When I first bought her she would dive into her grain bucket to eat. She acted like I was going to take her food away or that another horse was going to eat it, even though she was in a stall and paddock by herself.

The story was that when the woman I purchased her from got her Ru was emaciated and had rain rot. That right there showed neglect. 

She was nursed back to health and the rain rot dealt with, and when I got her she was perfect!

As time went on at the place that she boards at now, she  no longer dives into her food. She is much more relaxed and eats at a normal pace. The constant supply of hay has helped I am sure.

In fact, she will sometimes only eat part of an apple, where before she couldn't wait for me to slice off a piece for her! LOL

Next up some history of her background.....sad times, but a happy ending!

Until next time.....

Frank

Ru's Human

& Sir's too 💓

Guess who continued

 Hello all

I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Ours was enjoyable and it was nice to be with family!

So as I was saying in my last post, I decided to leave it to the Universe as to whether I should have another horse or not.

I was on Facebook one day back in May and a post popped up about a horse that was available. 

A 13 year old Chestnut Mare 16hh OTTB. She was beautiful! 

She was the right age that I was looking for. She was chestnut. ( I love redheads! I married one!) LOL

My concern was that she was a mare and that she was a thoroughbred.

And of course the expense of owning a horse was a major concern.

So with some prodding from a friend, we went and met her. 

I watched as she was ridden for my benefit and she looked good.

She was brought over to the fence where we were standing and was so sweet. She nudged my hand a few times for me to pet her. Rubbed her head on my chest. Basically, she was playing me LOL

So over the next few days I wrestled with making the decision to purchase her or not. 

Eventually the pieces came together with some help from others and it seemed doable. 

So I purchased her! 

I couldn't wait for her to be delivered. And when she was I still couldn't believe that I owned another horse. I started researching her racing history and found that she had foaled twice. 

Earned roughly $50,000.00 and then the trail went dead. But that didn't matter to me.

I visited her during the week after work and on weekends to do my chores, I was rough boarding at a private barn.

It was a nice peaceful environment. And I thought that this was the place to be.

Until the rumblings from outside individuals began............

(To Be Continued.......)

Until next time

Frank

Ru's Human

& Sirs too

🐴

Guess Who? Ru....that's who!

                                                     Photo Courtesy of Angela Sangiraldi

Hi everyone

As is my M.O. it has been months since I last posted. But those that follow me on Facebook know what has been going on with me. 

First let me say that I am no longer involved with a rescue. I will donate to those that I believe are doing the right thing. But as far as volunteering physically, that's doubtful. I cannot subject myself to the drama and heartbreak that tends to come along with being a part of one. 

Since Sir's passing I was empty. For reasons unknown to me I have always had an affinity to horses.

Maybe it's a past life cell memory? Be it as it may, I want to be around and near horses. It has been that way all my life.

At the last rescue that I was at I bonded with Thor. (I had blogged a couple of times about him).

I had hoped to turn my sponsorship into an adoption but it was not to be. 

And I have to say that it hurt. You form a bond with an animal for almost a year and then you have to cut ties.

Once I knew that I wouldn't be able to adopt him I played around with searching for a horse to buy. 

There were some nice ones to be had but they just didn't seem right. So as I usually do I left it to the universe to decide.

And it did! 

More about that in my next post! Promise that it won't be long in coming!

Until then! 

I remain.....

Frank

Ru's Human

& Sir's too 

🐴

And this is Liberty

 

Alerted by a post on Facebook that this horse named Arrow was hours away from being loaded onto a trailer to be shipped to Mexico and ultimately slaughtered to be sold as meat, I knew that something had to be done! And quick!

She was listed as a Gelding, 14.3 hands, afraid, and appeared to have not been handled too much. She was hard to catch! 

Well when the Veterinarian examined "Him" he reported that He was a She! LOL

She had to be lassoed and sedated in order for them to examine her.

We raised enough money to save and transport her to NY from North Carolina along with a 4 year hold Thoroughbred castaway from a Texas Kill Pen named DJ Finale. 

Speaking with my wife, she came up with the name Liberty because we Liberated her from certain death! 

So Arrow who was a Gelding became a Mare named Liberty! 😂

Liberty and DJ arrived around 12:30 AM to our rescue. It was all I could do to keep my eyes open. We were in constant contact with the Transporter Diamond T Equine Transport. They are fantastic and I highly recommend them. They always had the horses well being at the forefront of the trip.

The driver let me know when they were close as I had requested, and I parked my vehicle at the end of the long driveway with my flashers on so that they could find it. 

As I saw the headlights of their truck round the bend my excitement rose. All of the frustration, letdowns, anxiety, etc. from the last week finally were  rewarded. 

My anticipation grew as they opened the trailer doors and we settled our account balance. Then there she was. She backed up off the trailer, nostrils flared, head high, eats straight up in the air! Taking in the new sites and smells. 

No screaming horses! No smell of fear or death! No known threats. 😊

We walked her around a bit to stretch her legs and she led pretty well considering what we were told. Then we put her and DJ in their quarantine stalls for the night. 

I got home around 2 AM and was so wound up that I didn’t get to sleep until around 3. 

I woke up at 6 AM the next morning and lazed around until mid afternoon. Then I headed back to the farm. 

Liberty wanted nothing to do with anyone. She was petrified. Trying to get the lead line on her was a chore. But we finally did. We were able to walk her and we took our time and were patient. And she did good. 

Monday I received a text telling me that she wasn’t eating and that she was lethargic, and not walking as usual. 

So I called the vet in. I met him there and he examined her. 

She had a fever, which after he looked at the paperwork from down south he determined that she was released with a fever, and she had pneumonia in her right lung. 

This was horrible news! 

He gave her a banamine shot and an antibiotic shot. Handed me a bottle of pills with instructions to give her 25 later that night. So I returned after work and we gave her the pills. And thankfully her appetite had returned and she took the pills in her grain!!

The Vet has been going there daily checking on her today and as of Wednesday her fever was gone. The report today was positive. No fever. One more antibiotic shot and pills for the next few days! 

I have to admit that I was very worried at first. He told me straight out that pneumonia in horses can be tricky. But our girl pulled through. 

When you adopt or save an animal you make a commitment to them. You become their voice, their advocate and they depend on you! 

We need support to save more from abuse and slaughter!

And any little bit that you can spare helps. 

Next time an update on DJ Finale. A soon to be 5 year old OTTB thrown away for failure to win the big purses!

Until next time I remain

Frank

Sir's Human & Thor's too!

Marlokai Fundraisers!

 Hi all

In typical Frank style I haven't posted anything since September!

Things are progressing nicely with Thor. We have totally bonded. I am his Human. 

I smile when there are others hanging around the paddock and he comes to me LOL 

And he paces in his paddock when he sees me. He is one smart cookie.

We have several fundraisers currently going on. 

We need to raise $395.00 for an Osphos shot for one of our rescues. Her name is Elsie and she has Navicular. 

She's a beauty as you can see from this picture. If you want to make a tax deductible donation follow the link below.

DONATE

We have also partnered with OneHope Wine. 10% of all purchases will go directly to support our rescue.

Purchase wine to support our EqWine! Great idea to purchase wine for the holidays or for gifts.

Follow this Marlokai Equine Rescue specific link to purchase your wine now!

OneHope Wine

And finally we are holding a Virtual Crafting Event. This is for our Nassau and Suffolk County NY supporters only. (It's the logistics of getting the materials to you)

The date is 12/20/2020. You must register by 12/15/2020.

Follow this link for more information and to register:

Craft Night

We truly appreciate your support throughout the year. We could not do what we do without you!

Thank you!

As always, I remain

Frank 

Sir's Human...........................................................................................and Thor's too 

It finally happened!

 Hello everyone

Things are moving along at the Marlokai Rescue. Riding lesson bookings are increasing, a few events are taking place online, and fundraising efforts are showing results.

We are still in need of dedicated volunteers, so if you are interested you can reach out to me at frank@marlokairescue.org. There is always so much that needs to be done on the farm and we could use as many hands as are available.

So yesterday I spent the day at the farm doing chores with Patrick Stultz, he is my second son in so many ways. It was nice to have the help and his knowledge of horses is an added benefit.

We got so much done and the weather was awesome! A cool, crisp September day. Even the horses were enjoying it.

I began the day as I usually do by saying hello to Thor in his stall. I haltered him up and took him to his paddock, and let him graze a little along the way. I led him into his paddock and gave him an apple, which he gobbled up piece by piece. 

As i worked my chores throughout the day he kept a watchful eye on me LOL 

And he would call out to me, (whinny),  and pace the paddock fence.

He just makes me smile. 😊🐴

At the end of the day  I was exhausted and had hurt my foot so I was ready to get home. But before I left I wanted to spend some more time with Thor. 

So I haltered him and took him out of the paddock to graze. 

Aside from grooming him this is when I feel closest to him. It was the same way with Sir. Do any of you feel the same? Or is it just me?n 

 I brought him back to his paddock and started to take off his halter. And then it happened. That special moment when you connect with an animal. Or another being for that matter.

I untied his rope halter, expecting him to turn away from me and head over to the hay bag or to the water trough. But, he stayed. Hovered over me, rubbing his head on my shoulder, pushing his nose into me hand. Putting his chin on my shoulder, He was moving his lips on my hand and rubbing his nose on my hands as well. When I stroked/petted his neck he rested his head on me. When I stopped he rubbed my hand again with his nose and lips. 

I don't know how to explain it. Nor do I want to. All I know is that it felt special. It felt like we bonded. The connection was made, cemented. 

And I couldn't be happier! 

Sponsor a horse, or any rescue! They need the love and caring that we can give to them! 

And we need it to! 

Until next time.....

I remain 

Frank

Sir's Human And Thor's too 

 

September 5th - Another great day at the rescue with Thor!

 Hi all

Wow! Can you believe that it's already September??!!!??? I guess dealing with COVID-19 moved the summer along so quickly for me. 

I have to admit that today was such a beautiful day. Temperature in the mid to high 70's and low humidity made doing chores so much easier. Even the horses were enjoying the weather.

I had Thor out to graze for a bit this morning. 

It's heartwarming that when he sees me round the corner of the barn he starts whinnying. I think that it's awesome that we are forming a bond so quickly. 

I put him back in his paddock and the work began. 

Lots to do which goes without saying. But it would be nice if there was more volunteers. 

But we make do with who we have when we have them. They are all dedicated hard working individuals for sure!

If you know of anyone who would like to volunteer have them call 631-689-1600 and follow the prompts for more information. You or they can also leave a message on the Facebook page.  You can find it by clicking here →Marlokai Equine & Animal Rescue Facebook Page. Please keep in mind that there are other Volunteer opportunities besides working with Horses. (If you are leary of getting close to one) 

I accomplished a lot today, and managed to groom Thor as well! He looked great afterwards and this picture that my friend Pete Casano took of us shows how shiny his coat was!

There are many horses at the rescue that are available for adoption and or sponsorship. Sponsoring is a nice way to support a horse without undertaking the expense of actually owning it.  

There are many ways that you can sponsor. Even pledging to buy a bag of grain, a bale or two of hay per month for that horse. Or you can up your game and make a monthly monetary donation towards  sponsoring the horse, If you live close enough you can visit the farm and the horse that you are sponsoring and spend some time with him or her. 

Again, if you are interested visit the website, Facebook or call the rescue at 631-689-1600. Or leave me a comment here and I will get the information to you. 

And if you want to, you can visit the Patreon page and become a Patron. Go To Patreon

Well that is it for now. I need to get horizontal and relax 😉

So please feel free to comment or ask questions. 

Until next time.......

I Remain 

Frank

Sir's Human (and Thor's too)