I don’t care if they are horses, dogs, cats, children, I just want to save them all.

I went to Rural King to pick up Beet Pulp (great price) and in front of the store they had cages with dogs that needed forever homes.  Some of them were happy and jumping up to catch your eye, but there was one small Chihuahua dog.  A little plump, a little older who just sat there and watched everyone pass by.  My heart broke for all of them, but this little one held my heart.  Obviously someone had to give it up.  The owner may have been an older person who went into a nursing home or who had passed.  I don’t know, but I’ve been thinking of him/her ever since.  My new little Jack Russell puppy from hell would not appreciate another dog in the house.  She stands at the door to block the Catahoulas from coming in.  I know that the little one will find someone who can give it all the love it deserves, at least I hope it does.

Right now I am fostering four, not quite adult, kittens who are looking for a home.  They are so timid they just live in their covered littler boxes.  Took the covers off today and told them they had to become more comfortable in the world around them.  They are in a stall in large dog crates.  Two cats in a litter box does not work for me when I have to clean the litter.

I’ve had horses come in who were down on their weight this past year and even though they now have owners who are trying to do right by them, I just want to keep them all.

It’s like a sickness, a disease.

My friend works at a shelter.  She plays with the dogs and cats and takes them for walks.  I couldn’t do that.  I couldn’t walk away from them until I knew they were safe with their own person.  It would break my heart.  It’s very hard for her when the time comes to put one down.

We are in a terrible bind since the hurricane.  Horses, dogs, cats, are overflowing the rescues and now they are bringing them in from Puerto Rico.  These poor animals didn’t sign on for this.  Some of the owners have lost everything and can’t care for their pets anymore.  Some were separated and have never been recovered by their families.

I heard one older couple say that when the storm was coming, they didn’t know what to do with their pets, because the shelters wouldn’t let them in, so they just turned them loose to fend for themselves.  Seems cruel to me, but there was no choice in their minds.  At the end, all shelters were told to take animals, because some people were endangering their lives trying to stay with their pets.  Well I just heard the other side of the coin.  A lot of schools, that weren’t supposed to be, became shelters.  The ones that were designated as pet friendly apparently don’t have carpeting on the floors.  the ones that were designated as “no pets” did have carpeting.  So in my mind, so what?  Well it seems under the circumstances with the storm,  a lot of pets didn’t want to go out to the bathroom, and just squatted on the rugs.  Now these schools had to remain closed after the storm until they could get the rugs shampooed before the children were allowed to return.  After a storm that had flooded so many houses, it’s not easy to get Stanley Steamer or any other cleaning or repair company.

Animals have become just disposable, thrown out like a toaster that no longer works.  These are living, breathing, creatures with feelings.  Have you ever witnessed a dog whose owner has passed, they grieve.  Have you ever seen a horse loose it’s best friend.  They grieve.

In all your spending this holiday season, or when you look in your dog or horses eyes, see all the animals who don’t have a home, or someone who loves them, and make a donation to an animal rescue.  If you can’t afford to send a gift or drop off a bag of food or kitty litter, see if you can spend an hour a week going to a shelter and taking a dog for a walk or just spend some time petting them.  Volunteer make a difference in an animal’s life.

It will bless yours.

Last year my husband told me, when I was going to my local tack shop, to pick out stuff I wanted for Christmas.  He hates shopping.  So being the good obedient wife, I did.  I told the owner what I would like him to purchase for me, and she said she would direct him to the right items.  Well the time came and she couldn’t remember all the things I had suggested.  So I told her that next year (being this one) that she needed “Dear Santa” letter forms.  The wife fills one out, and when the husband comes in he just gives the shop owner the name and she pulls out the “Wish List”.

Now I thought that was a great idea all the way around.  The husband doesn’t have to look around and guess what the wife wants.  The wife gets everything she wished for, and the store owner makes a killing.  No brainer.

Well I went to the tack shop on Saturday, two weeks ago, and asked if she had her “Santa’s Little Helper List” ready to be filled out.  The answer was no, not yet.  Hello folks, we are rounding the final turn and moving down to the wire here.

Years ago I always needed so much stuff.  Mostly because the horses kept breaking stuff.  Now they just damage themselves.

Do vets have “Gift Cards”?  I’ll have to ask.

Black Friday is tomorrow – let the games begin!

The poor people who have been hit with the flooding from the hurricanes now have one more thing to consider.  Not only does your house have a water line half way up the wall, all your stuff has been soaked for who knows how long, your car is soggy, and you’re done with this whole thing.  By the way.  If you are buying a used car, make sure you find out if it was involved with flood waters.

We no longer hear about the sufferings of the people who lost just about everything from a home, car, job, and everything else they owned, but now the horse owners who escaped the worst of it are faced with a new problem.  Sure down here in Florida we deal with hoof problems from water, bacteria, and fungus all the time.  Florida is a wonderful environment for these amazing treasures, but most people have never heard of Pythiosis.  Who???  What???  But so many of them are finding out the hard way.

I’ve seen two horses with it and it’s just plain disgusting.  The one horse had a sore on its leg.  The treatment was horrific, but the owner persisted and the horse was saved.  The other horse had no skin on its face, neck, and chest area.  It was supposedly getting better, but I don’t know what the outcome was.  These cases were several years ago.  No hurricane involved.  They just stepped into a pond with a cut, and voila!  Cases have been coming into the University since the hurricane.  If your horse has sores or wounds, it is susceptible to the invasion of this disease, where its zoospores encyst in the tissues, continuing to bore inward.  It grows quickly and must have professional treatment right away.  Treatment will likely consist of systemic and local anti-fungal agents, and surgical debridement if needed.  It can be fatal.  If your horse has a growth or sore that seems to appear overnight, and it’s been in standing water, pay attention to it and call your vet immediately.  It’s very aggressive, and trust me, you can’t fix this one by yourself.

Just one more thing horse owners must be aware of and take seriously.