Blogger says I have exceeded my image upload so I'll have to just talk. Can't believe the computer and I can't get along.
The rainy day was a wonderful break from the heat. Bucky and Frankie decided to have a wild rumpus. They played and ran and genrally caused everyone to keep an eye out for them.
Sugar and Moon Dancer decided to move out of the way.

The play continued for quite a while.

Frankie wasn't quite done. He's looking for mischief.

The rumpus ended with Frankie chasing everyone-hinnies, mules,donkeys, ponies and horses. Quest, Lacey and Babe romped in their turn-out, as did Breezey and Chance. The buckskins had already left the country.The day lent itself to snuggling inside with a good book. Translation-open the book and fall asleep with kitties in lap. Will try to fix Blogger. Any suggestions?

Often times in magazines there will be beautiful pictures of sunrises on hills or mountains. I think our sunrises are as beautiful as any anywhere. The light creeps over the top of the hill behind us, lighting the trees a little at a time.
We may have hot summers with lots of flies and rainy winters with lots of mud, but I love our home. I love the trees, the rocks, the wild turkeys, the deer, Maven and Cliff Caven the ravens, and all the other critters who make Home At Last home at last.
Today we went to the Home Tech Charter School in Paradise because Jim had a Board meeting. The students and teachers there are very supportive of the Sanctuary. One student, Cheyenne, used funding raising for Home At Last as a Senior project and she raised over $300.00!!! Thank you Cheyenne. Then the younger classes recycled cans and made $100.00. Thank you, children. What a great effort you made for the animals. Thank you, teachers, for teaching an important lesson to your students. Serving a cause larger than self is the most rewarding way to live.Friend Holley makes the cutest tin critters- horses, dogs, cats, snails and all sorts of other animals. If you would like to buy one let me know. 530-514-1439. The money goes directly to the animals at Home At Last.

The ceramic seagull in the bird bath is awaiting rain. Yes, rain. At the end of June. Whoa! Wait a minute. Are we still in No Cal? I guess so because after the expected 1/2 inch of rain due tomorrow it is supposed to be 106 degrees on July 4. Bet we get a few new flies.
The horses are fed and watered, the hay is covered and the chairs are brought in- time to call it a day.

Thank you Lin C and Ursula and Walt C for your continued support of Home At Last.

Visit our website http://homeatlastsanctuary.webs.com

Great Volunteer Day

Today was a great day. We had new volunteers Harley, Loren, Bill, Theresa and Lyric, plus our faithful volunteers Emily, Mallory, Jess, Tina, Leah and Carly.
First, a big THANK YOU to Mallory who raised money for Home At Last with her lemonade stand. It is so inspiring to have young folks give so much of themselves for the horses.
Our new volunteers got a tour of the ranch and a brief oversight of what Home At Last is all about, our expectations and our goals for the volunteers. Then we piled in our cars and went to the ranch where four of our horses are being fostered.
We were to spend the afternoon grooming and bathing horses. While we were there, Jess stayed at the sanctuary with Jim and they built fences, moved vehicles and generally worked themselves to exhaustion. Thanks Jess.

When we arrived Bobbie got ready for a day of love and care.

A breeze catches Bobbie's tail. Jesse got a big hello. He, Bobbie, Sparkle and Ruby are in horse heaven with lots of green pasture, good food and extra special attention. Thank you, Lin and Darell, for fostering these lucky Home At Last horses. Yankee was the first horse we met and was getting prepared for his bath. Lin gives some tying and bathing tips. Horse care and safety were stressed.

Almost every horse got a bath. Lots of work and lots of fun for everyone. Someone wanted a close-up. Who is this ?

Meet Bean. He didn't get a bath, but he made friends with everyone. He's an absolutely gorgeous Quarter Horse with tons of personality. Pizza was served to all who helped out. Lots of good cold water was available, too. Thanks, everyone, for a wonderful day. We all went home tired, but happy. Lots of new friends and Home At Last supporters.

Our next volunteer day will be the last Sunday in July, unless it isn't.

Anna Belle

Meet AnnaBelle our newest family member. She's a sweet little girl with a health issue. When she eats and drinks she swallows some of the food and water, but some of it comes out of her nose. Dr Darling will check her out on the next visit.
She's doing well with Frankie, Moon Dancer and Rosie. She also eats with the donkeys and mules so she is a well rounded girl. The computer has the summer miseries and is very slow and stubborn so I won't say too much tonight.
Thank you Carla G, Connie F, Lorie H and Ruth C for your donations. Thank you also to the wonderful donation of hay at the Thrift Store.
Had company on Tues., saved the blog in a draft and then couldn't retrieve it. Oh well. Will try again.
This Sunday the volunteers will go to one of the homes that fosters some of our horses to groom our horses there. The volunteer days are now just once a month.
Enjoy the summer heat because soon we will be complaining about the rain and mud.

Dr Darling was here last Tuesday. He had dogs, cats and horses to check. It is always hard to lose an animal and it took me a couple of days to get back in the swing of things. You'd think we'd get hardened to it, but we don't. In fact, we have promised each other if we ever take a euthanasia lightly we will quit what we are doing. We do value and treasure each and every animal here. We mourn their passing and celebrate their time with us.

The goats are always ready for a hello and some pets. The garden still looks a little barren, but there are sprouts all over the place. We rescued a lime tree and a lemon tree and they are growing lots of new leaves.A few of the tomatoes have blossoms as do the eggplant. The beans are growing and things that I've forgotten what I planted. I do that on purpose so there are always surprises. Granddaughter Beth spent a few days with us and she took some great pictures. Many of the photos in today's blog are hers. We had a great time playing Pictionary, giving her rag curls and driving the tractor. Saturday Jim, Beth and I went to another estate sale where we got to pick up all the unsold items. We will be taking them to the Thrift Store on Tues. Some nice items. Stop by and check them out.

This is the sofa and love seat we bought from the Thrift Store. Feisty cat likes them, too.

Another of Beth's photos. As the book says, "Good night, Moon."Thank you Hedy T for your generous donation. Home At Last has the best angels anywhere.
Next Sunday our volunteers will be going to a ranch where some of our horses are spending the Summer. We will be grooming horses there. Call me 530-514-1439 for time and directions. Volunteers will be meeting just once a month now.
Our new little pony AnnaBelle is doing well. Hopefully, there will be pictures tomorrow. AnnaBelle has a disorder where some of the food and water she eats and drinks comes out through her nose.Dr Darling will sedate her and check to see what the problem is.

Frankie has taken to her and is beside her all the time. Rosie has joined with Moon Dancer and Juan and they are usually not too far apart.
The warm weather means we are up around five, get our feeding, watering and gardening done early and hide out during the day if we can. We then go out about 7 PM to do the evening chores.

Stop by the Thrift Store 511 Walnut Chico Open Tues-Sun. Closed Mon.

Home At Last can always use donations.

Good Bye Levi

There are heavy hearts at Home At Last tonight. When Levi came to us he had a history of hoof issues, but we had been able to treat them with pain meds and antibiotics.

He lived in a stall while we first evaluated him and it was decided that to have the best quality of life he should be a part of a herd. He was in the upper herd where he and Rosie bonded. They had a great time with the horses there.

When the last abscess started we put he and Rosie back in the barn where he was treated with oral pain meds and antibiotics. Farrier Aaron Hamon open his abscess and we soaked his foot. We even put a medicated diaper on his foot. When that didn't work we gave him his medications in injection form. He received double doses sometimes, but nothing helped.

He and Rosie seemed to be depressed in the barn so we let them out at liberty where we could medicate and feed him as much as he wanted, but he didn't get better and kept losing weight.

Today Aaron, Dr. Darling, Jim and I did another evaluation. Levi was a beautiful, sweet, kind and loving boy. He was so brave during all his treatments. We knew what we should do, but kept trying to come up with just one more idea to help him. Levi cast the final ballot when he put his head on Jim's chest, looked him right in the eye and held up his very painful foot. We could all hear him say, "Please, help me. End my suffering." There wasn't one of us who wasn't crying. The message was so clear.

When Dr. Darling went to get his injections Levi walked over to the trailer and waited for him. The animals here always get a sedative before the final injection, and when Levi got the sedation he gave a sigh of relief. He was ready to go to the Rainbow Bridge.

Home At Last strives to give every animal here a great quality of life. Sometimes the best we can do is to give them the final act of kindness.

When I fed tonight Rosie went to Levi's spot and ate where Levi usually ate.

Good bye, Levi. We will miss you.

Whew!! Finally Done

What a busy day today was. Of course, feeding, watering, gardening and a little house work started the day. Was up at 4:30AM and it's 9:46 PM now and I'm almost done with the day-unless rampaging herds create some havoc.
Got a call to get some items for the Thrift Store. Robert and Judy are so good to us. Whenever they conduct an estate sale, they call and we get to get the unsold items.
It sounded like there might be a lot of things so we called Aaron and Amy to help us. Wow!! Three tuckloads of goodies with a promise of more next week-end. We'll try to get the things to the Thrift Store Tuesday or Wednesday. Our trucks look like we are moving in or out. There is a nice double bed, some lamps, some cookware, some ladies clothing, blankets and much more.
Aching feet and back are letting me know that maybe, just maybe, I'm getting old. Will take a soaky bath and maybe an aspirin and see if I can sleep.
When Amy and Aaron showed up Amy was carrying a little puppy. The puppy had been thrown out of a car and injured her leg or back. Tuesday Dr Darling can check her out, as they will bring her here for the check-up. Little Sophia was a lucky girl to be found by such loving, caring folks.
The frogs are singing their lullaby and I'm ready to quit for the night. (I know it's not a sleeping song they are singing, but I like to pretend. All that macho frog stuff can get old.)
Good night, friends. Let's wake up to a better world tomorrow. What will you do to brighten someone's life-whether it be a two or four-legged friend?