Size Matters-Starting out Small
 Knowing your limit is important, especially in the horse industry.
As a nonprofit organization, it is our job not only be humane,
but to be ethical and responsible as well. With so many horses in
need of a kind word and a soft touch, it would be easy to get carried
away and take on too much too soon.
At Royal Equine Rescue & Sanctuary, Inc. our first
responsibility is to our rescued horses. We would not be doing
them or our contributors justice if we overwhelmed ourselves with
too many horses and not enough funding to go around. We do aspire
to grow and eventually take on many more needy equines at a time,
but for now we are starting out small. It’s important that we give
our rescued horses the best
care possible. After all, isn’t that what they deserve?

Cookie Sale a Sweet Success
Special thanks to all of our volunteers who helped to sell cookie dough!
With your help we raised over 700 dollars for our rescued horses!
Thanks also to Jeanne’s Gourmet who’s delicious foods made all of this possible!

Tack Sale Makes its Mark
Special thanks to the families who put up items for our garage
and tack sale.  With your help we raised over 100 dollars for RERSI.
We appreciate all the hard work that went into planning  the sale.
Leftover horse items are still available on our online tack shop.
Non horse related items were donated to Good Will.

Barn Tails
Fall is here and winter is soon approaching, but our special equine
rescues are holding up just fine. Angel, our perky Arabian cross,
has the fuzziest coat you can imagine, and has been spending
her days grazing and galloping through the pastures to keep
herself entertained. Art and Angie (our Thoroughbreds) are
actually the mellower of our rescues. Their days consist of eating,
sleeping, rolling, and eating some more! Because winter is
approaching and the weather is questionable to say the least, our
rescues are enjoying a well deserved break from their training regime.
Of course they are still being worked with constantly on the ground.
They are fat sassy and ready for their winter vacation!  
 
As most horse owners know just because the equines may be
getting the winter off, that doesn’t mean that we are! Horses require
constant care no matter what the season.
 
Horses need to be grazing constantly, and now that most pastures
are not filled with grass, hay is a good supplement to the horses diet. 
We buy quality timothy round bales for each pasture, and supplement
with quality field grass square bales. The cost of hay for one horse
is almost $100 per month. The cost of grain for one horse can be
as much as $60 per month.
 
 Of course horses need their feet done every 4 to 8 weeks,
but in the winter there is the added problem of snow.
Snow can get wedged into a horses shoe and form a snowball,
which makes it difficult and often dangerous for the horse to walk
on. To reduce the risk and to make our horses more comfortable,
we remove our horses shoes for the winter. Horses that may be
prone to bruising or have other reasons for needing shoes are fitted
with snow pads to prevent snow from building up in their shoes.
The cost of trims and shoeing can be anywhere from $20 to $100
every month per horse.
 
We always check to see if the horse is growing a sufficient
winter coat.  If the horses coat doesn’t seem thick enough,
or the horse doesn’t have much body fat we have several
waterproofed blankets of various sizes and thicknesses
for our rescues. Of course donated blankets are always welcome! 

There are pros and cons about keeping horses stalled vs. outside.
In an ideal situation there would be a large enough run in to
accommodate all of the horses in the field, yet let them come
and go as they please. Horses are outdoor animals, and they do
very well in cold climates. However its always better for them to
have some type of shelter, especially from very cold rain. We have
one pasture with a large run in, in addition to a stable where horses
can be brought in if need be. Stalls need to be cleaned at least once
a day. The cost of bedding ranges but averages at about $50 per month.
 
Our horses also need to be wormed monthly which is about $12 per horse.
They are also seen by the vet, and the equine dentist twice annually,
which does not include emergency visits. 

In addition to their annual maintenance the horses also need lots of attention
and training. As you can see, even though the horses are on vacation,
they’re still keeping us busy!