How it works
By committing annually to a $100/month sponsorship of a mustang or burro, you help us enormously by supporting our existing rescues so we can continue saving more.
SPONSORSHIP INCLUDES:
A personalized Certificate of Sponsorship with a photo of the horse or donkey you choose and your name.
A 60 minute one-on-one visit to Skydog Ranch to meet the horse or burro you are sponsoring, spend time hanging out with them, take photographs and ask questions of our staff.
To visit your sponsored equine, you must be a sponsor for at least 9 months. Anyone who wants to see them sooner will have to pay for 9 months ($900) in advance of their visit. We regret that this has become necessary. We need to discourage those sponsoring for one month in order to visit the ranch, then canceling because they don’t actually care about supporting the animals or our work. These tours take up a lot of time from our staff and the important work they do caring for our rescues.
Choosing a Mustang or Burro to Sponsor
You can search for posts about individuals on Instagram or Facebook with a hashtag that combines the word “skydog” with their name (#skydogdream #skydognugget). You can also go to the Then & Now page on the website to see their photos and read their biographies. (Note: their pages are currently being updated.)
Sponsor a SKYDOG on Patreon
A great way to sponsor a Skydog is by becoming a patron on Patreon and signing up for the $100/month Lead Mare level. This automatically makes you a sponsor and gives you access to exclusive content that we don’t post on other social media platforms. Each new episode of the Horse Love Podcast is released there, as are special offers on merchandise, and breaking news.
Our Giving Tuesday 2024 rescues
Mustangs & burros Who Need sponsors
Mustangs: Bo, Dumplin’, Drifter, June, Oliver, Rhiannon, Rose
Burros: Paulie
David “Bo” Bowie
An owner relinquishment in 2022, curly Bo (named after David Bowie for his shock of red rock star hair) is the son of mighty Maestro and Gracie. Rounded up from Salt Wells Creek when he was 2, he was adopted by a loving home, but suffered a brachial plexus injury and cannot be ridden. With only an acre of land and the need for regular chiropractic and body work, his owner tearfully asked if we could take him and we were only too happy to say YES! Maestro and Gracie were busy with his younger, full brother, Legacy, and had no interest in a reunion. So we turned him out on a summer’s day with his buddies, Gris & Whiskey. We thought they would stay below with Bobcat and the tame boys, but they picked the wildest bunch to hang out with. What a surprise to see them emerge from woods on the mountain with King, Thunder, and the rest. The running and exercise seems to be just what his back needed as he’s been showing no signs of discomfort or pain. We will do everything in our power to keep him comfortable, happy, and healthy. No one will ever saddle this boy again, he’s wild and free. More about Bo
SPONSOR BO:
Dumplin’
Dumplin’ lived wild and free on the Pine Nut range in Nevada, the mare of the stallion Samson. Her life was followed by over 50 thousand people in a Facebook group dedicated to the hoses in this herd area. Thanksgiving weekend 2019, the BLM bait trapped them on private property. Thousands of people signed a petition supporting their release back to their range to no avail. They were separated, processed, the males gelded, and the entire family put up for internet adoption to the highest bidder. The Pine Nut Wild Horse Advocates asked the public not to bid on these horses in order to keep them together at a ranch or sanctuary. We said yes to taking them and, with the group’s help, a very soft, safe landing was made possible for this incredibly close-knit family. Dumplin arrived with her foal, Sam, who was not fathered by Samson, but he raised him as if he were his very own. This group includes FOUR generations of a family and is a shining example of the deep love and devotion that wild horses feel for their friends and families. More about Dumplin’
SPONSOR DUMPLIN’:
Moose
Moose (on the left behind his buddy Smokey) is one of 2 yearlings we saved that had endured tremendous trauma as babies. They were rounded up, lost their families, were adopted out thru the BLM’s Adoption Incentive Program, and dumped into a kill pen for their meat price untitled - a federal offense. We were horrified and put in the paperwork for their reassignment to Skydog Oregon. Two weeks later, we found two more yearlings in the exact same situation, Spyder & Quinn. We also saved them and found out they had been adopted and dumped in a kill pen by the same people as Moose & Smokey. When we realized the four knew each other, reuniting them was essential, as was getting their wild development back on track. They were introduced to my husband’s mare, Winnie, who stepped right in to mother the rambunctious boys. She taught them how to be in a herd and understand the complexities of social structures. Once again, they knew a mother’s love and belonged to a family. Moose, whose little life was almost snatched from him, is happy, playful, and sweet with the very best wild future ahead of him. More about Moose
SPONSOR MOOSE:
Oliver
Oliver is named for Oliver Twist as he twisted and turned in defiance of domestication. He had been returned to the corrals after the last Trainer Challenge competition for being too wild and crazy. This beautiful South Steens paint first came to our attention when we were picking up Memphis from the Burns corrals in 2023. Oliver and his bonded buddy followed Memphis into the chute. Trembling and sad, we felt awful about leaving them there. “Maybe we’ll come back for you,” I called to them at the end of a video I posted, not realizing my phone was still recording. We never forgot about them - nor would our followers have allowed us to. Over the next eight months, when we were picking up injured or special needs horses, we always found the two of them together, waiting patiently. Finally the day came when I kept my word. We brought them to Skydog, where they needed minimal time to settle. When we released them with other wild boys, they ran like the wind. It felt like they were calling back to us, “Maybe we’ll come back for you!” More about Oliver
SPONSOR OLIVER:
RESCUED MUSTANGS
THERE ARE OVER 250 HORSES AND 50 DONKEYS HERE AT SKYDOG
Click on any of the photos to find out more or read their stories on our Then and Now Mustang Page.
RESCUED DONKEYS, MULES, ZONKEYS & ZEBRA
