Category Archives: horses, dogs & more

Jun19

the soft animal 2

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My friend Suzanne Weinberg writes, “I think with my animal loves, there is just an automatic softening – and that contains all of what you write about: vulnerability, nakedness, etc. and more — presence, love, generosity, simplicity.”

I have not written about Nelson much lately.  But the last couple visits have been very good.  He is opening to me again.  He stays with me and is his inquisitive, sweet old self.  Even with big flies bothering him, he stays calm and connected.  He still does not want to do any of the movement games that we were playing a few months ago and I am good with that.  He will tell me when it is time. What I want more than anything is that sweetness, the presence, love, generosity and simplicity that Suzanne speaks of.

 

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Jun19

the soft animal

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Recently an animal communicator said that my horse Amadeo no longer wanted the pressure of performance.  He wants to just be a horse.  I was surprised because he has not been able to perform and there has been no particular pressure on him to perform.  But when I looked more deeply at my own emotional messages to him, the pressure, the expectation is there.  For his whole life, he has been seen as that:  a horse with a job and expectations.  Because of his allergies, his injuries and his volatility, he has also been like a boy in a bubble.  Small turn outs, no way to get in trouble.

Last week the barn manager, Melvin, started to put him in a big field across the street.  We thought let’s see what happens.  Since then, we have noticed that he is calmer, more balanced.  Soon, we are hoping that he will move up to Little Brook Farm and be able to be ridden by the wonderful Summer Brennan.  Relationships and connection without the old pressures.

ps.  If you have not seen Summer’s work with the Mustang Amado, check it out on the Little Brook Facebook page.

Jun15

act now

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Amado, the Mustang being trained by Summer Brennan at  Little Brook Farm in Old Chatham, NY.

Amado is one of the lucky Mustangs who was not shipped to Mexico or Canada for a brutal and inhumane slaughter. 

 There is a new urgency to the horse slaughter issue.  Please read this and make the calls to your representative.  And please share this with friends and through your social media.  Thank you!

Dear Humanitarian,

The House Appropriations Committee is poised to decide whether or not to block and unnecessary expansion of the federal government, save taxpayer dollars and – or particular interest to humanitarians – protect horses from being cruelly slaughtered for human consumption.  As soon as next week, the House Appropriations Committee may consider the Fy13 Agriculture Appropriations bill.  Last year the Committee approved an amendment sponsored by Rep. Jim Moran (D -VA) that prevented tax dollars from being used to fund inspections of horse slaughter facilities.  This bipartisan language had been included in every Agriculture Appropriations bill since 2005, until three legislators quietly removed it behind closed doors late last year.  Without this important provision, foreign-owed companies will be able to re-establish horse slaughter in the United States at the expense of taxpayers, food safety and the welfare of horses.  In fact, representatives of such companies are already making rounds in the Midwest looking for a plant location.

At a time when Congress is dramatically cutting back federal spending and eliminating federal programs, it is disappointing that some in Congress want to revive an unpopular taxpayer-subsidized program that existed solely to support foreign-owned slaughter facilities that inflict tremendous suffering on American horses.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
The full House Appropriations Committee will vote on the FY13 Agriculture Appropriations bill soon. An amendment will be offered by Rep. Moran to restore language prohibiting the USDA from spending your tax dollars to inspect horse slaughter facilities. This language de-funding USDA inspections of horse slaughter facilities is vital to protecting American horses.  The majority of the Committee supported this amendment last year. If your legislator is on the House Appropriations Committee (see list below), it is critical that you email or call TODAY and urge them to strongly SUPPORT the Moran amendment to de-fund horse slaughter inspections.
You can contact the main Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to the office of your legislator, or use AWI’s Compassion Index to quickly send an email, locate the direct office number, and view your legislator’s voting record on the issue. The majority of legislators have supported previous efforts to end horse slaughter. Your Representative has been among the ban’s supporters, so be sure to mention that when you call and urge continued strong opposition to any effort to restore horse slaughter.
For more information on horse slaughter and other important issues, please visit Slaughter | Animal Welfare Institute.  Please share this eAlert and ask friends, family, and coworkers to do the same. Be sure to post it on Facebook and share it on Twitter.  As always, thank you for your continued and critical support on this important issue.

Sincerely,
Chris Heyde
Deputy Director
Government and Legal Affairs

 

 

 

Jun15

dancing with amado

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Today was the first day that I danced with Amado, the formerly wild Mustang that Summer Brennan of Little Brook Farm is training as part of the Extreme Mustang Makeover.

Amado is only five years old and up until five weeks ago untrained, sitting in a Bureau of Land management holding pen.  Summer Brennan has done a brilliant and sensitive job of introducing him to the world of humans. After just a few minutes of moving with him, I told Summer that in 13 years of horse dancing, he is the most intuitively attuned horse i have ever worked with.

Visit their Facebook page to see the beautiful photos of her work with him!