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Our beloved Oreo

Oreo was a kitten when rescued 15 years ago from a taped up cardboard box left in a parking lot. He settled in at our rescue with another rescued kitten, Kitty Cat. Both were barn mousers. Oreo is friends with all 35 of our rescued equines and our volunteers simply adore him.

When we lost Kitty Cat last year to mast cell tumors, Oreo became deeply depressed. Afterwards, he lost much weight due to hyperthyroidism which was successfully treated. He was doing well, but then developed an ear infection which has been treated over many months.

After additional testing, it was determined that Oreo needs surgery to remove a tumor from his ear canal. His prognosis with this surgery is excellent.

If you wish to donate to assist with Oreo’s surgery you may do so via GivingGrid or here on our website by clicking the button below.

Thank you all, so very much.

Sincerely,
Theresa

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Chloe Update

Chloe was having lameness issues that were getting worse over time. Some days she moved pretty slow and on other days she wouldn’t want to even move at all and was depressed. Dr. Lugo came out to examine and evaluate her and to do x-rays and bloodwork (full chemistry panel, CBC, SAA, Cushing’s, T4, and Cortisol levels). He also did a nerve block of her feet to help identify the source of discomfort.

Dr. Lugo took several x-rays of her feet and knees. We learned her feet were good, and her knees weren’t bad, just some very mild arthritis. Andrew, one of our farriers, was also here and we all discussed a plan for Chloe. Dr. Lugo suggested a different shoe and put her on Equioxx and Succeed. She seemed a bit better and was more active, but not by much. She was still somewhat uncomfortable and it was upsetting to see her that way.

We decided to take her off Previcox and put her on aspirin once a day recently, and oh my goodness, what a difference! She also gets Equinety and Succeed.

Chloe is holding her head high again, she’s more active, bright and alert which brings much relief to all of us. It’s hard to believe she’s 16 now. She was a nurse mare foal that came to us in 2006.

We need help with Chloe’s vet bill which was just over $1400. And she needs monthly sponsors to help with her medication and farrier needs. Is there anyone who would like to help Chloe?

A dear friend and supporter has also just come forth and has offered to match all donations up to $500, so this is a wonderful way in which to double your contribution! You can forward your donation via the button below. Please note it’s for Chloe. All contributions are tax deductible and no contribution is ever too small. As always, we truly appreciate your support.

Sincerely,
Theresa

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Welcoming Gabriel, a gelding in need

Gabriel is a sweet gelding we brought in on Monday, whose owners could no longer give him the care he needs while dealing with their own serious health issues. We were told he’s 20 years old and that he had lived with them for 17 of those years; he had another equine pal until 8 years ago when that horse went to Rainbow Bridge, and the poor boy has been alone since. I don’t think he’s a Quarter Horse or a Thoroughbred, perhaps a Saddlebred cross based on his physical characteristics and demeanor (the vet agreed). Though his owners weren’t able to physically do much for him, they made sure he had hay and got grain twice a day.

Gabriel is quite the looker despite arriving with a snotty nose, elevated temperature, and labored breathing. We gave him Banamine but opted to hold off on antibiotics until our vet examined him.

When the time came to be checked out, he was a true gentleman. His temperature was normal, but some crackling was heard in his lungs so he got his first dose of Excede. He’s a bit underweight; his appetite has been okay but could improve after getting dental work. Hopefully Dr. Bess can work him into her busy schedule soon. When she comes, we’ll be able to confirm his age.



Gabe took a good nap after the vet left and wasn’t sure if he wanted to get up for his “hooficure”. We finally coaxed him up and he was great for the farrier. He’s got a good size crack that runs almost to the coronary band in one of his front feet that we will be monitoring, fortunately it wasn’t painful upon palpation.

When we get the blood test results back, we will post an update.

We estimate initial expenses for Gabriel to be at least $600, and would appreciate sponsors to cover them as well as his follow-up and routine expenses. 

Thank you for your compassion and support!
Theresa

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Or, visit our Donations page for a variety of giving options at https://bhfer.org/donate/.

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Big Adventure for Lady Sophia & Candace

Candace and Lady Sophia have come so far. From death’s door to two beautiful and healthy girls. Lady Sophia is so proud of her girl – she is a wonderful mom who loves her baby dearly. Candace had a rather large umbilical cord hernia that needed to be repaired. On Monday, they made a trip to Ocala Equine Medical Center so that Candace’s hernia could be repaired the next morning.

It took some time to get Candace to understand that she needed to get on the trailer with her mom to get to the milk bar. Once she did, however, they settled in nicely for a ride to the hospital and upon arrival, they contentedly settled into their stall. Our thanks to Pam of Double B Equine Transport for always taking great care of our precious cargo!

Back Home

Candace and Lady Sophia arrived back home on Tuesday and unloaded just fine. They settled into the birthing stall and the first thing Candace wanted to do was visit the milk bar and mom was truly happy to oblige. Once that was taken care of, Frodo stopped by to say hello. He believes that he is quite the “studly stud.”

Candace will be on stall rest for three weeks for her hernia repair to heal.

Then, if all is well, they will be able to go out into a small paddock for a week. After that, they will be turned back out.

Thank you all for your good thoughts and prayers. It’s so good to have the girls back home.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

Sincerely,
Theresa

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Match Game for Mishka

Mishka has been having some worrisome issues. Sometimes his feet get packed after it rains which can cause him to become tender footed. We dread this because when we are able to pick up a front foot, he tends to throw it forward rather abruptly which makes it dangerous for the human tending to his needs. And, if we’re lucky enough to get a foot up, we can’t make him keep it up. Trying to maintain proper balance in his feet has always been quite challenging and proper balance is very important.

After a recent rain storm, we discovered Mishka to be lame the next day – he simply would not cooperate in order for us to examine and clean out his feet. After a couple of days, we moved him into Penny’s paddock with Peaches, which is closer to the barn where we could keep a better eye on him and ensure he was drinking enough water. Because the lameness issue arose suddenly, an abscess was suspected – his pulses were not elevated and there was no heat in his feet.

The day before the farrier was to arrive, as I was trimming hair around Mishka’s coronary band, I poked around above his left coronary band a bit with my fingers to see if I’d get a response from him and suddenly, an abscess opened up at his heel. The smell was horrible! While he may have gotten some relief, he wasn’t close to being much better. Because Mishka had been bearing more weight on his right foot due to the abscess in his left, we placed icepacks around the right foot as a precaution. Bearing most of the weight on the right foot could cause laminitis.

We scheduled the vet to come out to do x-rays and we are quite concerned with the findings. Mishka’s front right does have rotation and his side bone has gotten worse in both feet.

Bloodwork done which indicated he was slightly dehydrated. Results from one blood test will not be ready until next week. The farrier came yesterday and, as always, Andrew did the best he could, but to do the job right, and to provide Mishka with balanced feet and shoes, we need stocks. Using boots isn’t an option because we can’t keep his feet up long enough to put them on. Stocks not only enable the handler to restrain a horse without hurting him, but prevent injury to the handler as well.

We have needed stocks for a long time, but now, it is an absolute necessity as we want to keep Mishka as comfortable as possible so he can be with us for many more years.

This isn’t going to be an inexpensive investment but we have faith that, with help from others, we will be able to procure the needed stocks and raise enough funds to cover Mishka’s present and future vet bills and x-rays. We don’t have the recent vet bill yet but Mishka will need additional x-rays and more “hooficures” to make adjustments over the next several weeks. The stocks are about $2400 which includes shipping – other horses will benefit from them as well.

A very dear friend and supporter is offering a most generous Match Game whereby all donations up to $1000 will be matched dollar for dollar!

If you would like to help Mishka while doubling your donation at the same time, just click on the ‘Donate’ button below. All contributions are tax deductible and please be assured, that no amount is ever too small.

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Thank you, all, for your love and support,
Theresa

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Prayers for Sweet Jo

Our precious 35 year old mare, Jo, is having a tough time today. She has a high temperature and refused to eat her breakfast which is quite unusual as Jo always looks forward to all of her five daily soupy meals. She is, however, trying to munch on some alfalfa. The vet has been scheduled to come out today.

Jo came to us in horrible condition in October, 2019 (Photo on the left). It took some time, but her rehab went well. She has few teeth which is the reason why she receives mushy meals. Her best friend, Dancer, (Pictured with Jo in the photo on the right) is also up there in age.

Would anyone like to pledge to help with Jo’s vet/health needs today? I don’t know what the cost will be but she’s going to need an examination to include bloodwork. Prayers would be appreciated as well.

Sincerely,
Theresa

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Sophia & Candace taking it day by day

Dr. Emily and Mandi came back on Friday to do follow-up blood and fecal tests on Candace and Sophia to see if there has been any improvement. I’ll provide an update as soon as I am able. In the meantime, “hooficure” day for Sophia and Candace was a success, they were great! Our farrier Josh was very patient with Candace. It was her first trim, we are so proud of our baby girl!

Thank you all for your love and support!

Sincerely,
Theresa



Happy Feet

Our farriers are scheduled every four to six weeks as the needs of each horse varies. If you would like to help sponsor a hooficure for which the average cost is $35, we would be forever grateful. You may forward your contribution via the ‘Donate’ button below. If donating via PayPal, please designate your contribution to “Happy Feet.”

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Standing Tall

Candace here! Look how tall I’m standing now! I’m still really skinny but I’m better than I was and I’m going to keep getting better! Please click on my picture to the left to see a video of me standing tall while talking to my new friends!

Restoring Her Glory

Isn’t Sophia stunning? She is on her way to becoming the proud girl that she once was, thanks to the love and support from our amazing little village of friends and supporters!

PHOTO: Sophia on the track in her former life as a racehorse.

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Thoroughbred foal
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Candace’s BIG Surprise!

Thoroughbred foal

Click the above image to view a precious video of Candace!

“Did you know that I didn’t have a name until Mommy Theresa brought me and my mommy to the rescue? But now, I do have a name and it’s Candace! Mommy Theresa said every baby deserves a name. And guess what?!? My mommy has a name too – it’s Sophia! Isn’t that a pretty name? Both my mommy and I are feeling better. She really loves the alfalfa we get here. It’s nice to have good hay and to not have to eat weeds and leaves anymore. I do have a big surprise to share! Are you ready? Is it okay if we go back to the beginning of me and my mommy’s story – before we came here?

Before we came to Beauty’s Haven, we lived in a place where there wasn’t any grass so me and my mommy were hungry a lot. There were some trees for shade and we had water – we loved the water! Mommy would put her nose in it and swish it all around. I can’t remember what happened first – if I was too tired to nudge my mommy’s udders to get milk or if she was too hungry to even make milk for me. I just know the milk bar stopped working and I was so hungry and my mommy looked frustrated. I tried eating leaves but they weren’t good, and by the time I finished one, my energy was all gone. At some point, I lost my appetite even though my tummy was empty. My tummy was kind of big and puffy, even though you could see my ribs. I had sores and cuts all over me and my coat was missing hair in some places, but you know, I didn’t really feel any pain from them. But I seemed to get more tired each day. I wasn’t feeling very good, but I promised my mommy that I’d be a big girl and try to stay strong.

Then, a human came and started giving us hay and something called sweet feed each day! But my tummy started feeling not so good and I could hear my mommy’s tummy starting to make a lot of strange noises. Then guess what? It’s kind of embarrassing, but my poops got watery! A couple of days later, a man came who had a shiny gold star on his shirt. I heard him say that we needed a vet to examine us. The next day, another human came (Mommy Theresa) and she promised she’d be back to pick us up as soon as she got permission, and take us to a place called the rescue. She said that once we got there, we’d see a vet who would check us out and do tests to see what we needed to help us feel better. She said we’d never be hungry again! The very next day, she came back with a trailer. It seemed like it took forever for us to walk to it. I was just so tired. We had to stop a few times, but we finally made it and my mommy walked right on, but I needed help – I had run out of energy. We were only in the trailer a short time and when we got to the rescue, we saw green grass, hay, a shelter, and a big fan! We didn’t have a shelter or fan thing where we were living, so this was all new to me. There were humans at the farm who welcomed us and there were lots of horses that looked really happy. Even little itty bitty ones!

The vet poked us with needles and used something to listen to our hearts and tummies. The vet’s name was Dr. Emily and she had another nice person with her named Mandi. Dr. Emily gave me and my mommy something she said was good for us through what they called IV tubes. I heard everyone talking about how we needed lots of protein and good food. Since my mommy’s milk bar wasn’t working, they came up with a feeding plan so I could get stronger. Oh, I also have something called a three finger hernia under my tummy that needs to be fixed when my body is stronger. Mommy Theresa had already taken some of our poop and put it in a glove to see how much sand settled in the fingertips. Dr. Emily said it was a good amount. She took some more of my poop and some of my mom’s poop to test for what she said were parasites. Mommy Theresa told her that me and my mommy are Thoroughbreds and that my mommy once raced and had even won a couple of races! My mommy was a race horse! After they left, I nibbled on a little hay and then I laid down and slept. I slept really good – I was so tired. When I woke up, I could tell my mommy was more at ease which made me feel so much better.

A couple of days later after test results came back, Dr. Emily returned and reviewed with Mommy Theresa what we needed. She said my mommy has lots of strongyles, whatever that is, and she had given them to me through her milk because I had a lot too. It helped explain why, combined with not getting nutrition, our tummies look so big even though we are very underweight, and why my eyes are glassy, my coat is rough, I don’t have any muscle, I probably have ulcers, and why I feel so weak. They talked about how I wasn’t able to get milk from my mommy and what I should be fed. We need lots of good protein to help give us energy. Oh, and we have to take supplements. Some don’t taste good, but I take them anyway. I want to get strong and run around and play. Mommy Theresa and others here may not have seen me every time, but I did try the milk bar many times each day, but it was just broken.

Over the next couple of days, I met new aunties and they all love us! They said I’m very cute but way too skinny. Everyday, I kept trying to help myself to my mommy’s milk bar but it still wasn’t working. I did see Mommy Theresa get the milk bar to work a few times but I just couldn’t do it myself. But, I wasn’t going to give up. Over the last few days, I’ve been feeling better and now, I’m a bit stronger. I kept trying the milk bar and guess what????? I’m able to get milk from my mommy now! That’s right – the milk bar is working! That’s my surprise!

Thank you all so much for caring about me and my mommy! We promise to make you proud!”

Love,
Candace

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Momma Sophia & Baby Candace safe with us now


On Friday morning, when the mare and baby loaded up to come to the rescue, Momma knew – they always do – she walked right onto the trailer. Upon arrival, they both settled in nicely. Sadly, Baby is very weak.

Dr. Pulliam arrived shortly thereafter and examined Momma and her baby. Blood and other tests were performed. Both received fluids and the baby received a vitamin cocktail – she was such a good girl. We did a glove sand test on the Momma and discovered that there is quite a bit of sand in her manure which was not at all surprising. There is a concern about the sweet feed which they were fed the past few days prior to their arrival at Beauty’s Haven which could have a negative impact. Both are receiving supplements to help with ulcers, their GI tract and immune system.

The baby is in very poor condition, scoring less than a 1 on the Body Condition Scoring Scale, but we choose to be cautiously optimistic that she will pull through. We’re not sure how she has managed to survive.

She does have a good size hernia that will need to be addressed once she is considerably more healthy. Momma has little to no milk to offer and is also in poor condition. We’ll see what the blood work and other test results reveal today and provide an update as soon as possible. Momma and Baby have, and will continue to be, watched around the clock. The baby had not been handled before we met her on Thursday, but she has been a very brave little girl.

This baby needs a miracle, but here, at Beauty’s Haven, we believe in miracles and have experienced many in past years. She also has to have a strong will to live – it’s amazing that she is still standing.

We have named the mare Sophia, and the baby’s name is Candace.

If anyone would like to help it would be so greatly appreciated. Contributions can be made via the ‘Donate’ button below. Please designate your donation to ‘Sophia & Candace.’ Please also note that another wonderful friend and supporter has offered a second $500 Match Game, whereby, all donations up to $500 will be matched dollar for dollar. If you are not in a position to donate at this time, we truly understand, but you can still help by sharing this email amongst family and friends.

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We truly appreciate your love, support, prayers and well wishes.

Please keep Sophia and Candace in your prayers.

Sincerely,
Theresa

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So Very Thankful

Kiah is doing very well. She is a happy pup and has really filled out. Her paw is also healing nicely and her ghost pains have pretty much disappeared. She’s a quick learner who loves to participate in everything. She is still trying to discern how to play with the pup in the mirror, however, instead of attacking her! Kiah has also learned to not jump out of the golf cart and she loves to go on sight-seeing excursions much to JoJo’s dismay!

Please click on the image above to view a video of Kiah touring the farm!

Kiah was spayed on Thursday and she felt a bit under the weather. She curled up on one of her beds when she arrived home and went right to sleep. Popper also wasn’t feeling well as she overdid it when playing with Kiah the day prior and her hips were causing her discomfort. It was so sweet when she snuggled up next to Kiah at bedtime. Keeping Kiah quiet for the next two weeks is going to be a challenge!

Sincerely,
Theresa

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