Giving Tuesday

Today is Giving Tuesday, the largest giving day of the year.  This past year, Serenity nurtured back to health four very sad cases of neglect.  Three were saved from the kill pen waiting to be sent to slaughter and the fourth was living in someone’s backyard, near death.

Our veterinary bills this year alone will be over $20,000. 

Please help Serenity continue our work to save starving, neglected, and slaughter-bound horses by donating to Serenity this Giving Tuesday. Go to our site and read how you can help. Or click on the link below.

http://www.serenityequinerescue.com/donate 

Thank you for your support.  

We can't do this without you!

Patricia and all of the Serenity Volunteers

Reese Goes Home

Saturday, Patricia and I got to take Reese to her new home. It's always hard to see one of the "kids" leave the farm, but to know she's in good hands makes the transition a little easier. Reese was a little uncertain to begin with…

The rains have been torrential, so we got her dried off. Stylin' in her new purple blanket, you could tell she knew something was up. I think she'd seen the trailer moved into place to load, and remembered her paddock mate Chance disappearing through its doors a month and a half ago, and figured she was next.

She was good about loading, however, and we were soon on our way. Wending around through surface streets, it wasn't long before we arrived in Redmond, in a neighborhood filled with horses. Two women on horseback even greeted us as we arrived. They'd stopped to meet Maggie, Reese's new pal, who was also moving into her new home. Maggie is a beautiful 8-year-old Arab, the spitting image of Trina.

Reese relaxed immediately after moving onto her new pasture. She happily munched on the grass, rolled around on the soft ground, and made friends with Maggie. Her new parents are a wonderful couple, clearly already devoted to their equine family members. Realizing Maggie wasn't calm enough for the attention of four children, they choose to bring another horse into their lives, rather than give up on Maggie. We can tell they are going to honor the longterm commitment to Reese. Mike and Jeanna, along with their three oldest children, have already met Reese and spent time with her. They are thrilled with how well the two mares have already taken to their new home. Reese will be kept out on pasture for  longer and longer amounts of time during the day, as she adjusts to having free feeding on lovely grass. She's also going to start exercising, to get her back into shape. As we left, despite the sorrow of having Reese gone from Serenity, we also felt incredible joy that the mission of SERR had been fulfilled on this gray, rainy day. Reese was home. And as we drove back along the lake, the sun came out and lit the waters, as if the universe knew it too.

Holiday Bazaar

Don't miss Serenity's annual holiday fundraiser. 

Make this year's event even better than last year's! Visit our Facebook Page for updates

Shout out to Microsoft and the Day of Caring!

With over 70 volunteers from Microsoft, 

a ton of work got done at the farm for our Day of Caring. 

A huge thank you to all of the awesome Microsoft people that came out and worked in the blazing sun, 

getting us sparkling clean and ready for winter! 

You are now officially part of the Serenity Equine Rescue Family!

Our newest resident, Spirit, who has already stolen our hearts, 

is loving all of the activity and attention from the 

awesome Microsoft crew. 

They worked non-stop in the hot sun and 

our farm has never looked better! 

Thanks guys!

Microsoft has been coming to Serenity for many years now to help. Here's some great photos from 2009.

In Good Spirits...

It was a quiet day on the farm. I had cleaned out all the upper paddocks, marveling at how peaceful the horses were, except JayJay, who had been a bit agitated, calling out and acting unsettled. I had just finished dumping a wheelbarrow in the bin, when I turned to discover something beautiful. Our JayJay, had found a loving spirit, in Spirit.

Spirit and JayJay

At first I couldn't believe how calm JayJay had become. She stood still while Spirit gently nibbled on her neck. I crept up with my camera, expecting one or the other to move away, but they simply watched me, enjoying each other's company.

What we have all discovered over the short time our new boy has been with Serenity, is that the tall, handsome gentleman, is just that, gentle. A gentle soul, who exchanges nibbles and caresses with Chance (the two are so tall they can interact over the tops of their stalls in the barn). A gentle soul who loves attention from the people around him. A gentle soul who calms even JayJay, our beautiful Arab girl.

Every day, Spirit gets a little stronger. His confidence grows and he's slowly putting on weight. As he becomes healthy, his personality continues to emerge, his intelligence, gentleness, and good humor are all coming to the forefront. He is, without a doubt, a very special horse.

Volunteer Picnic

Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate Serenity and meet fellow volunteers!

Volunteer of the Year

Special appreciation for Joyce for her
exceptional volunteer service.

Great People

Yummy Food

Beautiful Weather

Looking forward to another 

terrific year together.

Introducing Spirit

It is my great pleasure to introduce Spirit! Our new boy has a new name and, starting tomorrow, a new paddock and pasture mate. It will be wonderful for him to be in with another horse now that his quarantine is over. Check back for photos of Spirit in his new spot at the farm.

Thank you to Charlotte Cox-Turner for putting the name "Spirit" on the list.

Spirit

Our sweet man is doing great, it's wonderful to see him eating.

And don't forget he's available for sponsorship! 

Help us get him healthy again.

The Ghost Horse

His story is not unique. Thousands of horses die every year from neglect and abuse. And yet, his story is unique to him … and to me.

This was the first welfare check I ever experienced with Serenity. Patricia and I arrived at a small house on a busy street and knocked on the door. Yes, they had a horse living in the backyard. Yes, we could see him. This is what we found…

So thin, you can count his ribs, see through his back legs, and his cheekbones stand out like two dinner plates covered in pale white skin. His quiet dying took my breath away. Then, the next day, we got to bring him home. Back to Serenity. He's now in quarantine, and not out of the woods. He has to regain hundreds of pounds of lost weight. His kidneys could fail. He could give up. But he has a chance. We gave him that chance, all of us, who donate our time to these amazing animals. Come on out and meet the newest member of the family. With our help, he can make it back to the animal he is meant to be, and not remain the ghost of an animal he has become.

Horse of the Month!

JayJay is a 15 hand, gray, registered Arab. She has been trained in English and has beautiful, collected, forward movement. She would make a wonderful dressage partner for someone. 

She is very sweet and loves attention. JayJay is allergic to Alfalfa but otherwise healthy and ready for a forever home.

If you would like to sponsor JayJay,  or you are interested in adopting her, please email patricia@serenityequinerescue.com to arrange a visit to the farm to meet her!