Otis

We rescued Otis from the cynically named “Sunny Side” kill pen after he went through the Eugene Livestock Auction - a terrible place for any horse to end up. A beautiful, broke, 22-year-old ranch horse with the best manners and gorgeous gaits, he appeared to have absolutely nothing going against him. We were certain he would be bought at auction. Sadly, it was a cold winter night and turnout was poor. The only person bidding was the kill buyer.  We needed to reach him quickly before he got sick. Jon, our trusty ranch manager, offered to go up to Washington to get him. We worked with another local rescue that wanted a mare, who had also gone through auction. Together, we were able to save them both.

Otis was scared and skinny when he arrived. They had covered him with a blanket to conceal the fact that he was skin and bones. Today, he is the sweetest, most patient, and easy going horse at a robust and healthy weight.  He’s living the mustang life with the boys herd, hanging out with good friends, eating good food, and running free. He’s one of the easiest, most trouble-free, and well-mannered horses we have. We’ll find him hiding out with Dollar or grooming with Cash or racing with Elvis. We once found him found so distracted by his hay that he hadn’t noticed his herd had wandered off without him. When he looked up and realized he was alone, he leapt athletically over a stream and raced to catch up with them.

American 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 2025 (H.R.1661 in the House and S.775 in the Senate). This bill would amend the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly known as the “Farm Bill”. There are several important provisions for animals in that omnibus federal law, including the Cat and Dog Meat Trade Prohibition Act. It is currently illegal to slaughter, transport, possess, purchase, sell, or donate dogs and cats, or their parts, for human consumption. The SAFE Act would extend the ban to equines and shut down the slaughter pipeline that sends some 20,000 American horses and donkeys to savagely monstrous deaths in foreign slaughterhouses every year.

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 and stop production of Premarin & other PMU drugs.

Bills from the previous 118th Congress that we hope will be introduced again this 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.