So much has happened!! Good stuff!

Hi All

Well as you know from my last post I was heading out to the barn for a little while the Saturday that we were celebrating Jack's birthday.
I had won a mosaic table and chairs set on Max Sell for Lynn's Mothers Day gift. The location that I need to go pick it up was close to the barn so I figured I could go early to the barn, go pick it up, and go back to the barn before going to the party.

I noticed that I was getting strange looks from Laurel and Elizabeth, Marissa and others that were there. Pete arrived and agreed to take a ride with me to pick up the the table and chairs.
I had hoped to be back by 11 but the place was further than I thought.
On the way back Pete asked if we could stop at the feed store so he could get some treatment for Bullet's thrush. So we did.

We got back to the farm and I could see everyone gathered around the decorated picnic table. As I walked up to it everyone said surprise! and wished me a happy birthday.
I was surprised. There were all kinds of cakes and cookies and gifts!
A birthday cake which had a picture of  Sir and I on it......
Plus a shirt from Heather saying "Sir's Human"

Nicole made me my favorite cupcakes with horse faces on them! Plus I received a gift certificate to the feed store, Pete's homemade caramel popcorn, a gift basket, Rumchatta! and so much more.

But what really put me in shock was when Nicole went to get Sir to join the party. Laurel handed me a red NSHRS folder tied with a red bow. She told me that it was all the paperwork that I had wanted for Sir. His history, etc.
I opened it and found a card in it. Then other paperwork which I could not wrap my head around, I was so nervous. Then she said " You are now the proud owner of  a horse. Sir!" Then it all clicked! I saw the adoption application etc. I am not ashamed to say that I cried. This was a lifelong dream come true. Laurel and Tommy gifted him to me! No adoption fee, No board! He was mine.......Unbelievable! I am still getting used to the idea. 🙌
That was one of the happiest days of my life! Right there with my wedding day and the birth of my son!

A few days later I was informed that I won the JetBlue Volunteer of the Year Award for our Technical Operations department. I received a trophy and JetBlue will make a $1,000.00 donation to the rescue. I received a standing ovation at the awards dinner, which I did not attend. However, I did receive one at our Leadership Summit in Orlando.
There is a buzz now as many attendees are asking about the rescue. My manager, director, V.P., and others want to support North Shore Horse Rescue and Sanctuary!

Very exciting!

I will keep you all updated going forward!

Thanks as always for following us!

Until next time......

Frank.....Sir's Human

A few words....very few words

Hi all

Almost a month has passed since my last post. Believe me, I always have the intention of posting more frequently but life sometimes gets in the way.

Not too much happening. Sir is doing well. The heat appears to be bothering him so we are looking at solutions to keep him out of the sun.  Donations of $5.00 towards that goal would be appreciated. Just note it in the pay pal or venmo apps.

I attended my first Civil War Reenactment in a year this past weekend. I had an awesome time. The welcome back that I received from so many people showed me how much I am appreciated in the hobby.

I went to the barn on Monday and saw Sir. As I stated, he is looking good.   I will see him for a little while this Saturday. I will be going to my Grandson Jack's 5th Birthday party. I can't believe that he will be 5 already. If his father was still alive he would be so very proud of him!

Before I close I would like to ask that if you have any lightly used items that you can donate for the fund raising yard sale (Date to be announced) please donate them. It would be very much appreciated!

Sorry for not so much content..........

Frank

Sir's Human

www.NorthShoreHorseRescue.org

😉

Is there such a thing as a horse with 9 lives??!!!???

Hi all

Well last week was one for the books.

All week long thoughts of Sir's last day kept creeping into my mind. In dreams, while driving, while doing anything. It seemed so real that I had to shake my head to get the thoughts out.
 I would see him lying on his side in a field and I laid down next to him. We were staring into each others eyes, mine tear filled. His nostrils flaring and taking in deep breaths. I watched his body rise and fall as he breathe the air.
I watched him and talked to him, stroked his head as he breathe his last breath. I watched the light go out of his eyes. Then I was drawn back to reality. Asking myself if I wanted to be there when it happens. Did I have the courage? The answer was and is yes! I want me to be the last thing that he sees. I do not want him to go to the other side alone. He deserves better than that.

Laurel sent me a text during the week and told me that Dr. Wen was coming out on Saturday evening to examine him. I asked if he was okay and she told me that he was.
I arrived at the Barn around 11 AM after spending the morning running errands and was greeted by my friends and some new volunteers going through this years Volunteer Orientation.
I went back to see Sir and he appeared to be happy to see me. He actually looked pretty good and was more like himself. Heather Davis, a volunteer, told me that he was being a brat. And when she told him that she would tell me he would stop. LOL

Later that day after everyone pretty much left, Laurel and I were talking as she prepared the buckets for the next morning's feeding. She then told me that Sir had taking a turn for the worse during the week. And that she had made the decision that we needed to put Sir down on Monday. He was that bad. She didn't want to tell me until she had him looked at and was sure it was the right decision. She called Dr. Wen to discuss it and went over what medications he was taking. He made some adjustments and she began the new regimen. Well 5 days into it and he improved drastically!
She is so much my friend and like a sister. She is always looking to protect me from stress and sadness. I love her for that. Tommy is the same way. They are caring and compassionate towards others.

Dr. Wen finally arrived. Sir was on cross tied. I had brought him in earlier and Laurel and I groomed him.
Dr. Wen examined him, feeling and pressing in various areas. He stated that Sir looked good. Then he listened to his heart. I stood by watching for what seemed like an eternity. Finally he stood up, stepped back, removed his stethoscope and said "This is good! His heart rate is almost back to normal"
The last time he listened to the heart is was so erratic that the best he could do was count around 120 beats, This time it was 70!

From www.LivingLegends.com:
A normal resting horse has a heart rate of 38-40 beats per minute, foals (70-120 bpm), yearlings (45-60 bpm) and 2 year olds (40-50 bpm). Maximum heart rates can exceed 180 beats per minute, but a rate above 80 should be considered serious in most non-exercising horses.

So you can see from the above that he was in peril and made a major improvement.

I haltered him up and led him back to his paddock. I talked to him the whole way. I was like a giddy school kid. Not ashamed to admit that I shed some happy tears. Once again he won!
When I got back to the barn Laurel was emotional and I told her that I felt like crying because I was so happy. She said that she already was.

We celebrated this small victory together and said goodnight.


Sunday I returned to the Barn and was speaking to Louise about the morning session with the Stony Brook Veterans Equine therapy session. She told me that the girls went to get Sir to participate and he basically refused. She went back to see if he wanted to join as he usually did and she got the feeling that Sir was saying that he was done with that, LOL He was feeling good and just wanted to chill. She said that he was a one person horse and that I am that person. I was of course very happy to hear that 😎

I will see if I can work it out financially so I can adopt him. That would be wonderful!

Thanks again for reading about and following Sir and I. Your thoughts and prayers really do help!

With much love and gratitude.

Sir and Frank "Sir's Human"

Sir and stuff

Hi everyone

I have been away from the keyboard for awhile. Lots going on at work and at home.

We had a scare with Sir a few weeks ago. He was bloated with excess water most likely caused from the congestive heart failure. His legs literally looked liked balloons. They had ridges or folds in them.
He could barely walk and his appetite was absent.

Thank God that Laurel's Niece Dr. Cait Rooney was there for the weekend. She and Laurel sprang into action. She increased the meds that get the water out of the body, a diuretic, and she and Laurel bathe his legs and wrapped them to get the scabs to fall off. (Which they did)
She monitored him through the night.

The next morning when I arrived he was looking much better. He was eating and a lot of the swelling had subsided. Since that day Laurel has been tending to his rear legs nightly. Bathing them with an antiseptic soap, etc. It is a lot of work. I only wish that I had different work hours so that I could go there a few nights a week after work.

He is blessed that he is at North Shore Horse Rescue & Sanctuary. The care that he and ALL of the horses receive, both rescues and boarded horses, is second to none!
Thank you Laurel and Tommy for all that you do for these horses!

I hope that Sir can hang tough as long as possible. It has been suggested that he fights and pushes through for me. I am truly honored if that is the case. I reassure him always that I want him to stay but he is free to go if that is what must be. It is all about him now. All his remaining days will be comfortable and carefree. They must be!

Next week Sunday, April 9th will be my late Son Frankie's Birthday.  It will be a tough day for my wife Lynn and I.  To this point Sir has made the loss of my only child bearable for me. I may need to call upon him one more time to help......................


I remain humbly

Frank

Sir's Human

Chairman of the Board?

Hi all

Well not quite LOL, though I am proud to announce that I was elected to the Board of Directors of the North Shore Horse Rescue & Sanctuary last Saturday night.
I am eager to serve and contribute to further the mission statement of the organization.

There is much work to be done in the future. Fund raising through grants as well as corporate sponsorships is at the forefront. Of course the importance of the individual donor is not lost. It is those of you who continually donate and support our fund raising efforts that have carried the organization throughout the years. We STILL need  your support and are eternally grateful for it.

We will be launcing a new website soon......same mission, more user friendly and informative. I am sure you will agree that it is a vast improvement.
I will advise once it is officially launched.

Sir is looking wonderful and seems to be holding his own. Dr. Wen's medication seems to be doing the trick. Again, if anyone wishes to assist with the purchase of his medication you can donate through paypal on our facebook page. Hit the donate button.

 or venmo.

@northshorehorserescue

That's all I have for now.....please check back or watch facebook for new posts!

Thanks for following Sir and I 

Frank

Sir's Human!

Wonderful Weekend!

Hi Folks

Spent an awesome weekend out at the barn with Sir and our volunteer family 😉🐴
The weather was very much spring like with temps in the 60's and bright sunshine.
Sir seems to be doing really well. The medication seems to be working. He is eating.....well, like a horse LOL

The warm weather brought lots of people out as well. Both volunteers and the general public. The horses enjoyed both the attention and great weather,
As we turned each group of horses out they ran and bucked and stretched their muscles, happy to run and enjoy their turn in the large paddock.

Alexis Ritsch took lots of pics of the horses and of Sir. Thanks Lexi!

We are getting ready for our Comedy night on Feb 26th. And on April 22nd we will be holding our ASPCA Help A Horse Day. Some ideas being considered are an Civil War encampment, Chili Cook Off, Swap Meet, and some others.

Keep an eye on our facebook page and here on the blog.


Thanks for following the blog!

Frank

Sir's Human

Still here ☺

Hi all

It's been a couple of weeks since I have posted.

I saw Sir over the weekend and again yesterday. He looked good. He seemed a bit stiff when we first started walking but gradually loosened up and was walking okay.
He seems so normal on the outside. But I know what is rumbling on the inside. I can only hope that he hangs on.

I wish that I could put into words how he makes me feel when I am with him. But no words could do justice to the overwhelming joy and euphoria that he brings me.

Yesterday when I was with him I was leaning over the top rail of the paddock fence and he came to me and was or seemed to be very needy. Needy of my touch and voice. So I accommodated him the best that I could. He seemed to be happy that I did.

Please continue with your prayers and rituals. And if you feel that you want to help with his medication a donation would be very much appreciated. Just mark in the notes field that it's for Sir's meds.

Visit our Facebook page NSHRS Facebook

Thanks again all!

Frank

Sir's Human