Update 1/8/13

It has been a few months since our last update. We do updates daily on our facebook page so don't forget to join. :-)

Bingo was purchased on the 22nd of June at the meat sales for $360. He is a 5 year old STB gelding and was in pretty poor condition. He had nasty ulcers and wasn't a very healthy horse. In 6 weeks Bingo was fat, healthy and ready for a trainer. Bingo has been vaccinated, microchipped, wormed, teeth, feet and will be heading to the trainer on Monday for 2 weeks before being offered for a home. :-) Keep an eye out on our page if you are interested in adoption.

At the sales

Week 6

 

 

Honey was bought from the same sale as Bingo. She was purchased for $150 and was in shocking condition. Honey is a 18 year old TB mare and has since put on weight well. She isn't ready for adoption yet but we are hoping in the next 8-12 weeks.

 

 

At the sale

Day 1

Week 6

 

Jinja was also bought from the same sale as Bingo and Honey. Jinja was purchased for $220 and was in light condition but nothing to bad. She has since spent 2 weeks with a trainer and is now looking for a new home. Jinja will be posted in our "horses for adoption" section very soon. She is 14.3hh and 13 years old needing a confident rider suitable for any type of riding.

 

Jinja at the sales

 

week 4

week 6

 

Illusion is a 6 month old Appy x Stock horse foal bought from a different sale. He was purchased for $260 and was completely unhandled. The poor little fellow has been with us for less than 1 week and is going well. He loves being touched and handled now. He will make a great horse for someone one day soon.

At the sale

Home

 

 

Maggie was bought from the Knackery at the beginning of the year as a completely unhandled broodmare. She had just had her foal taken off her and was tossed away to be killed. We paid $250 to save her and she is now at the trainers being broken in. Maggie is 8-10 years old and such a sweet mare.

 

 

Maggie at the trainers

First rug

 

 

Savi was rescued from a TB stud. She had a little colt still on her but was in emaciated condition. She has since put weight on slowly but well. Savi is 21 years old and won over $100,000 as a racehorse.

 

 

Day 1

Week 8





Star was rescued from a different TB stud but the same story as Savi. She was being shipped off to slaughter and still had a little colt on her. She windsucks sadly but is slowly becoming brighter every day. Star is 19 years old and won quite a bit of money as a racehorse. We purchased Star for $100 to save her from becoming petfood.

QLD Festival of Dressage

Hey guys!

Don't forget that THIS SATURDAY, 20 July, is the QLD Festival of Dressage! There are loads of demonstrations and seminars, a silent auction, raffles, plenty of shops and even a stallion and fashion parade! Tickets are only $30 for adults, and $15 for kids if you buy them by friday! So come on down to the QLD State Equestrian Centre at Caboolture and have fun at this great not for profit event, I know I will be!

Past Memories

As many of you may have read about 4 weeks ago I was beside myself trying to find where I had stored all of the rescue horse photos pre 2010. I had searched every hard drive in every computer and external I could find but they were lost. Well today I spent about 2 hours working on my book and stumbled across a file which was unnamed.. I cried tears of relief and joy to have found hundreds of photos that I thought I had lost forever... I’m writing a book on horse rescue and really needed some of those photos so the happiness I felt can’t even be expressed in this blog! It really did make my day.. Needless to say the 2 hours I spent on my book included looking through old photos and reminiscing rather than actually writing any words but it brought back some amazing memories.

Now im sure that everyone who has had horses throughout their life has had just one special horse who changed their life right? I have had hundreds of horses come through SAHA.. I can’t remember the exact figure but it’s between 600 and 700. For me there is one special mare that truly did change my life. She was the reason I started rescuing and the reason why I’m still doing it today.

I rescued Gypsy along with a 3 year old Appaloosa colt from the Narrandera sale yards in 1994 when I was 13 years old for $75. God my grandmother who was raising me thought I was crazy but I used my own money to buy them and care for them. I ended up riding the little Appaloosa colt to high school and tethered him in the vacant block across from the school. He was a gem but i couldn’t afford to geld him so ended up giving him to a horseman who could. He went on to be an awesome kids pony club horse. The beautiful Pally mare became my life and she helped me through many hard times. After moving to the Gold Coast when I was 14 I gave her to a friend to care for and a year later i moved Gypsy to the Gold Coast with me. Sadly after a few years someone stole Gypsy from her paddock and I dedicated my life to finding her. I did find her but she had been put to sleep only 3 months before I found her due to age and failing arthritis joints. I was at peace knowing she was loved in her final years. Rescuing Gypsy started something in me that I haven’t been able to turn off and knowing how many horses get abused and neglected each year made me more determined to at least try to make a difference. Even now I have photos of this special mare in my house and my “never give up” attitude comes from her.

At SAHA we have a purpose, a goal and a dedicated amazing team who work around the clock for no reward other than seeing these horses come into care a complete mess, and then head back out to a new home a different horse. That is the reward we get, the reward in our hearts that we have made a difference ~ not a huge world changing difference to society as a whole, but a world changing difference to one life at a time.

Im not a religious person, nor do I believe in heaven as such but I do believe that this special horse along with all of the others we have lost over the past 13 years are looking down on all of the SAHA team and the horses currently in our care.. Whether its true or not, its a beautiful thought. ~ Amanda Vella