Typical Morning Eldercare Chores

I don't know that there is such a thing as "normal" or "average" at an equine Sanctuary, but this outlines many of the common summer morning chores.

First, of course, is breakfast.  Between 6:00 and 6:15, feed is measured into individual feed tubs according to each Elder's individual needs.  Warm water is added to the feed which is allowed to soak to make a thick "mush."  Breakfast is served at 7:00, with each horse eating in a separate stall, paddock or shed.  Once breakfast is finished and the horses turned out, we:

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Wash dishes

Since the horses eat "mush" feed tubs get nasty fast and, in warm weather, start to smell bad if not rinsed after meals.

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Rinse Beau's place mat (a car floor mat he eats on to prevent him from eating dirt when he drops food, then picks it up -- if not rinsed after each meal, the mat is a huge fly party.)

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Remove manure and wet sawdust from stalls and sheds.

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Rebed stalls and sheds with clean sawdust

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Fly Spray

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Dampen shed floors to knock down dust

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Shower Clara (because, otherwise, she won't go away)

(which of course rinses off aforementioned fly spray and as a bonus attracts a horse fly.)


Clara's shower then leads to this -

and 

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Okay - back to work.
Next...
Pick up manure in small paddocks and dry lots (the rest of the fields will be cleaned up this evening when the temperature starts to come down.)

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Dump collected manure and dirty bedding in manure spreader

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Finally, clean and refill water tanks and buckets

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Meanwhile, the residents are all doing this:

 Mona

 Lizzie

 Beau

As it should be.
They served us, now we serve them.

“I’d Rather Not”

Earlier this month, Traveller’s Rest Equine Elders Sanctuary was invited to present a talk on Equine Elder care at the Equine Extravaganza in Doswell, VA. The talk lasted about forty minutes and the floor was opened to questions. The room became silent. Either I had told the listeners everything they needed to know about keeping weight on senior horses, or I had baffled them into a state of confused speechlessness.

Finally, in the last row of chairs, a hand rose. What a relief. Unfortunately, the question did not concern the topic of geriatric horse health.

“Do you take donated horses?”

I repeated the question into the microphone. “Do we take donated horses?”

I thought: “I can answer this question two ways.” First, I can explain why we don’t consider TREES residents to be donations. Or, probably more to the point of this specific instance, I can explain how we decide which horses we accept into the sanctuary. I chose to start with the latter.

The decision process is really quite straightforward. First, and perhaps most importantly, the sanctuary must have the room and resources to take in a new horse without jeopardizing the care of the current herd. Since the farm continually operates at maximum capacity, we often have a waiting list of sorts. There are always more Elders in need than there are places for them to go for care. Because we can’t take them all, we have a basic triage system. Horses who will immediately suffer hunger, untreated illness or injuries, or other life-threatening issues if left where they are at the time, are given first priority. Underlying circumstances may include outright neglect, abandonment, or owners’ physical or financial hardships.

The bottom line is that, when we accept a horse surrendered directly to TREES by his owner, it is because the owner is no longer able to provide even basic care, usually through no fault of his own.

Following this explanation, the lady in the back row began to explain that she had recently rescued a horse at New Holland (a large auction barn in Pennsylvania) but that the horse turned out to be several years older than she believed at the time of purchase.

I repeated the basics of our acceptance policy – horses not receiving even basic care, i.e. food, basic veterinary care, etc – and followed up with “Are you able to provide basic care?”

“I’d rather not.”

Silence. Her “I’d rather not” hung in the room like a noose.

Thousands of people who desperately want to be able to provide basic care to their horses, literally, cannot. You can see it on local bulletin boards, classified sites and on internet forums. They’ve been laid off. They’ve taken lower paying or part time jobs to put food on the table but don’t have much left over for hay. Some are working two or three part time jobs, which almost makes ends meet, but doesn’t leave time for the actual labor involved in horse care. Other people are losing farms, losing homes, moving into smaller, more affordable accommodations that don’t include space for horses (and if they can’t afford a mortgage payment, they certainly can’t afford to pay boarding facilities to care for their horses.) Even so, I am regularly amazed at what some people are willing to sacrifice to buy a bag of feed or a bale of hay.

Now, at the Equine Extravaganza, I stood looking at a woman who apparently could afford to care for her “rescued” horse, but didn’t want to. I took a deep breath and, for the third time, explained that those horses whose owners cannot provide basic care take priority and that there are always – always – more waiting in the wings. It will be a long, long time before TREES will be able take in a horse whose owner is able to provide feed and vet care but would “rather not.”

Research into Muscle Loss

This is so exciting! The University of Kentucky has been granted funding to research equine geriatrics. At TREES, one very frustrating aspect of elder care is trying to deal with loss of muscle mass, even though the horse seems extremely healthy in every other way.

Kristine Urschel, PhD, assistant professor in Animal and Food Sciences,

"anticipates this will be the first in a series of studies during the next several years about protein synthesis in geriatric horses. The end goal of the research will be to "develop dietary or management strategies to maintain muscle and quality of life (in aging horses), be that through changes in diet, or the development of a low-impact exercise program, or some other management strategy," she explained. "

We're elated to see the recent increase in research pertaining to equine geriatrics. These studies can't come quickly enough to suit us!

"This research could impact many horse owners, from those with large competition barns to those with a few horses in the backyard."

For more, see Older Horses: Researcher Awarded Grant for Aging Study

TREES Opening Zazzle Store!

In addition to regular horse care expenses, TREES now has seven - 7 - "lucky number" - horses in our "Cushings Herd." That means seven horses on pergolide. (If it doesn't hurt too much, we may figure out the cost per day of that alone and post it later.) We're not complaining, mind you. Ten or fifteen years ago, there were no truly effective treatments for Cushings, and a diagnosis of Cushings was viewed by many horse owners as a death sentence. Not so these days, but there is that pesky bill to deal with.

In an effort to find more ways to help you help us, TREES is opening a store on Zazzle.com . The store is in its infancy, but we hope to add many many more items over the next few weeks and months. We chose this option as a way to raise money because it costs us nothing in terms of overhead. We upload images or designs, you order customized TREES merchandise directly from Zazzle, and TREES receives a "royalty" for each item.

For a sneak peak, visit http://www.zazzle.com/equineelders* . Check back often to see what is being added. And, please.....send us your requests for specific Zazzle products or specific TREES residents you'd like to see added to the product line. We'll do our best to accomodate!

Emma's Eye by equineelders
Create personalized t-shirts at zazzle

Hey, Good Lookin'!

We are so thrilled with this beautiful mare's recovery, we wanted to share:

Remember.....don't dwell on the memory of this:

Delphi - August 9, 2008 - Age 28

Instead, celebrate this!

Delphi - March 16, 2009 - Age 29

What IS an “Equine Elder?”

After working past the annoyance of removing a number of overnight “spam” comments, it became obvious that many people have no idea what this blog is about. Or maybe they don’t care and are posting on any and every site that receives hits in searches for “elder,””senior,” or geriatric.”

So, to begin, what is “equine?”

equine e·quine (ē'kwīn', ěk'wīn') adj.
1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a horse.
2. Of or belonging to
the family Equidae, which includes the horses, asses, and
zebras.

While Traveller’s Rest is not equipped to handle zebra or a few other species, we welcome horses, ponies, donkeys and all hybrids thereof.

Next, what does “Elder” mean?

That’s a more subjective definition. Some people consider a horse to be “aged” when it passes the ten year mark. In TREES terms, ten year old horses are still babies. As a matter of fact, in the TREES herd, twenty year olds are thought of as “whippersnappers.” Mid to late twenties and early thirties = Middle Age. The true elders are those approaching their mid-thirties and beyond.

Now back to the spam often posted in the blog comments:

Most recently we received several ads for handbags. Gucci handbags. Dior handbags. Miu handbags. Calvin Klein handbags. You name it. We’re picturing Emma and Betty sashaying around the field with designer bags hanging from their shoulders.

We also get advertisements for vacation cruises. The visuals here are more than a little funny. Wade, with his Bermuda shorts, Hawaiian shirt, white socks and sandals, accompanied by Marye in an enormous flowered hat and one-piece skirted bathing suit.

Then there is the costume jewelry. Delphi, sporting strands and strand of giant pearls as she naps in the sun on the poop deck.

Of course, there are ads for Viagra. We don’t even want to go there.

And so, while we welcome comments related to elder horses, Traveller’s Rest, or horse care in general, don’t be alarmed to see a number of “post deleted” notes. There are merely remnants of an entrepreneurial faux pas, entered by an enthusiastic business owner who didn’t know he was directing his advertising to Equine Elders.

Equine Dental Doin's - The Sequel

Warning -- if moderately icky photos make you queasy and you receive our posts via email you may not want to open the attached photo.

I hesitated to post the lower picture, but decided this more than adequately illustrates the reality of elder dental issues. This, folks, is why a quick feel of a tooth's chewing surfaces is not enough. Merely running a finger over grinding surfaces to look for sharp edges is NOT a thorough dental exam.

To conduct a thorough exam, the dentist should use a speculum to hold the horse's mouth open. Each tooth should be examined on all surfaces......the grinding surfaces, the side facing the cheek, the side facing the tongue. Feel not just the "top" surface, but along the gum line for irregularities. Smell the breath, and yes, smell your fingers after feeling around. Is there a spoiled or rotten smell? Possible infection? Then wiggle, wiggle, wiggle each tooth to look for looseness or fractures. Take note if the horse appears to "react" to specific areas.......is that site painful? NOTE! Don't do this yourself without a speculum if you value your fingers!!!!

The motivation for this post? Sonny. This photo was taken Aug 17. 2008, one week ago.

Our 37 year old alpha horse had been feeling a little "off" lately. He was eating fine, had no obvious injury or pain issues, but wasn't quite himself and seemed to lose a little standing in the herd. Sonny had no (zero) top molars when he arrived. Last November, he lost three lower molars that had become loose. Two days ago, another dental exam revealed several more loose teeth. Not only were they loose, but decayed beyond belief. How does something like this even stay in a horse's mouth?

Note that Sonny has not been losing weight, had not stopped eating, had not exhibited any obvious signs of pain or illness. There was nothing to indicate a problem of this magnitude. The moral of this story is something we've preached about before.........by the time your horse shows outward signs of dental pain, he may already have a big, big problem. This issue was detected during a routine exam. Had we waited until Sonny appeared sick or in pain, the infection may have spread to other tissues, possibly even the jaw bone itself.

In addition to Sonny's infected teeth, the dentist also discovered an infected incisor in Rienzi's mouth. It slid right out, having no root left. Rienzi had also been examined in November. Things happen that fast in elders.

And Val was found to have yet another fragment beneath the surface of the gum. These fragments seem to show up in places he was missing teeth as a teenager. We don't know why he lost so many teeth by the time he arrived here at age 15 but, four years later, pieces are still showing up.

More frequent dental exams..............don't skimp on this one if your horse is over 20 years old. Make sure exams are thorough, make sure they are frequent. Don't depend on your horse to tell you when something is wrong. An ounce of prevention...........

What Started it All

We are often asked about the motivation to open a sanctuary for elderly horses. "Why focus so much energy on horses at the end of their lives?" "Why spend so much time and money on horses who can no longer be ridden?" "What made you want to do this work?"

THIS made us want to do this work: Meet Gypsy.

More formally, Dame Gypsy Rosalee la Paramour.

Gypsy arrived at the Equine Rescue League, where I volunteered at the time, as a skinny, depressed 35 year old, having no use for the human race who had let her down in every way. There was nothing magical about our relationship at first. She wanted no attention from me and I wasn't interested in talking her in to liking me.

Slowly..........painfully slowly.........we each grew to respect the other's personality quirks and likes and dislikes. Gypsy came out of her shell, bit by bit, and allowed me into her life. From there, the magic blossomed. The big mare with the attitude problem would stand for hours, if you'd oblige, to be groomed, scratched, bathed, and otherwise beautified. She would, quite literally, fall asleep if the scratching happened to be in just the right place at just the right speed with just the right pressure. She tolerated all sorts of decorations for ERL Open Houses and seemed particularly pleased to wear anything with bells on it. For some odd reason, Gypsy also enjoyed the Armour Hotdog Song.

Taste in music aside, it was Gypsy who taught me to respect the dignity and wisdom of the Elders. If I did anything she considered vaguely stupid, she had a way of looking at me over her shoulder than said it all. "Don't do that again. I'll give you one more chance. And you know I don't give second chances often." On the other hand, on days I wasn't feeling quite up to par, she was right by my side, nuzzling, giving "neck hugs," and on her best behavior. The mare who was so emotionally damaged on arriving at ERL was herself becoming a caregiver.

Dame Gypsy eventually became the alpha mare in her field and ruled with an unquestioned authority. A small change in posture or in the carriage of her head brought immediate response from the most unruly youngsters. Watching her carry out her duties was a lesson in handling improper behavior. Remain firm, but show no anger.

The photo above was taken when Dame Gyspy was 36 years old. She subsequently lived another three glorious years, large and in charge, as Herd Matriarch, before leaving us with a huge hole in our hearts. Though we've had special relationships with other horses since then, none could fill the void left by la Paramour.

It is to her and to her successor, an Appaloosa mare called Mystic, that we dedicate Traveller's Rest.

"Turn 'em in with ours, and kick for the river," girls.


(For more info about the Equine Rescue League, without whom Traveller's Rest would not exist, visit http://www.equinerescueleague.org/ )

Summer Fashion

The horses are dressed for success during this heat wave. Fly masks andfly boots are the order of the day.


Wade (24 year old Quarter Horse) stays comfortable soaking up the sun's rays, wearing his Wimbledon Whites................





.............while Sonny (36 year old Arab) sports a less formal look, relaxing in the clubhouse.