cotton
We received a call from a rescue in Central California asking for help for two mustangs who were at Animal Control in Stanislaus County. These two wild horses had escaped from their ranch, where they had not been cared for in some time and had gotten stuck in a drainage canal. They had incredibly walked for over ten miles on the concrete trying to find a way out. This boy Jasper had tried to climb the steep banks but continuously fallen back down on his knees. By the time people found them they were both incredibly tired and very sore. A huge group of kind and wonderful people came together to help get them out. The videos of those attempts are dramatic and heartwarming with cheers of joy ringing out when Jasper reached the top.
The owner relinquished them as she did not want them back. They were obviously very bonded and could not be separated without getting very upset. They were seen by a vet and then taken to Animal Control. However, upon feeling better both horses turned out to be pretty hard to handle and their fate would have been a livestock auction or euthanasia. Hopes Chance Equine Sanctuary asked us to take them and give them back their freedom and we said yes. We were in the depths of winter so we asked them if they could hold on to them for a few weeks until we could transport them safely. Finally in the middle of February, with a break in the weather, we traveled to Modesto to collect them and shower them with kisses. Both seem incredibly happy to give. Jasper has one of the finest mustaches I have ever had the pleasure of encountering and he offers it whenever I pass by. These two are such sweet sweet souls and we are thrilled to add them to the Skydog herd. Jasper would love a sponsor and maybe one for his mustache too. #skydogjasper #skydogcotton
Mustangs and burros need your help
In addition to supporting our work by donating, becoming a patron on Patreon or sponsoring a Skydog, there are several important pieces of legislation to protect American equines currently moving through Congress. It only takes a few minutes to contact your Rep and Senators and urge them to support these bills:
Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act of 2023 (H.R. 3475 in the House / S.2307 in the Senate). This bill will shut down the slaughter pipeline that sends some 20,000 American horses and donkeys to savagely monstrous deaths in foreign slaughterhouses every year.
The Wild Horse & Burro Protection Act of 2023 (H. R. 3656) This bill will prohibit the use of helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft in the management of wild mustangs and burros on public lands, and require a report on humane alternatives to current management practices.
Ejiao Act of 2023 (H.R. 6021). To ban the sale or transportation of ejiao, a gelatin made from boiling donkey skins, or products containing ejiao in interstate or foreign commerce, which brutally kills millions of donkeys primarily for beauty products and Chinese medicine.
You can Contact Members of Congress by calling the Capitol Switchboard (202) 224-3121, submitting contact forms on their individual websites, or sending one email to all three simultaneously at www.democracy.io
See our How to Help menu for other actions to ban zebra hunting at US canned hunt ranches, stop production of Premarin & other PMU drugs, and defund the Adoption Incentive Program.