Adventures in Trail Riding with Lola!

Lola got the opportunity to go out on not one but TWO trails rides this weekend! First she hit the trails at the Redmond Watershed with Brittney: Then she headed out to the watershed again on Saturday, but this time with Brittney’s husband Darby in the saddle. Darby…

A dry lot for Shay & Marta

Shay was showing some increased signs of lameness last week, so she was seen by Dr Owens of Owens Equine. As we already know, Shay has clearly had laminitis in the past and has a 30-degree rotation in both front feet. Despite being carefully managed (which Dr. Owens…

Lola photos by Karen Wegehenkel

These stunning images of Lola were taken by photographer Karen Wegehenkel at SAFE Harbor in July. [gallery link=“file”…

Funny, but not funny

I was awake, but hadn’t yet gotten out of bed around 7 this morning, when I heard an unusual racket from outside. Something was on my front porch, something bigger than a raccoon, something…white? With hooves? Sinatra, is that you? You see, Sinatra has learned a new…

The Second Happiest Strider Update We Could Hope For

Since our move to SAFE Harbor Stables back in July of 2012, life hasn’t been entirely easy for our friend Strider. For several months after the move, the burned area on his back still needed to be protected from sun and rain, so he lived in a covered enclosure next to…

Bath time for Ginger!

Ginger let us give her a real bath! She was a little upset at first but I told her it was to help the itching and she seemed to understand. She did great! Fly spraying and baths will soon be easy! Xoxo Ginger Rogers! 

Misty is back to work!

Foster/Trainer update on Misty to share: Misty is just coming out of about three weeks off work due to a splint. She wasn’t lame, but we thought it best to rest her for a bit. (Unfortunately, we missed the show!) During her time off she was so sweet and personable,…

Champion SAFE Pony: Maggie

We’re so proud of all the SAFE horses who competed at the SAFE Show this year, but one of them in particular put in an especially impressive performance. Along with her young rider, Miss Kirann Gable, our Mustang pony mare Maggie was champion of both the Trot Poles…

A positive Chance update

Great news…Chance’s drain came out today. Brittney reports that his wound is closing up nicely, so in a few days we can hopefully release him from the high-line in his stall so that he can lie down again if he want to. He’s been getting SMZs to fight infection in…

Rehabilitated horses thrive thanks to SAFE rescue

Rehabilitated horses thrive thanks to SAFE rescue By Denise Whitaker Aired on Aug 2 2013 WOODINVILLE, Wash. — There’s been an increase in horse rescues in recent years and the KOMO 4 Problem Solvers have been there to help in several cases. But what happens after a…

Lola Photos by Karen Wegehenkel

These lovely photos of Lola were taken by photographer Karen Wegehenkel at SAFE Harbor in July. [gallery link=“file”…

Another setback for Chance

Chance’s shoe boil blew up again and Dr. Hannah was called out yesterday to look at it. Dr Hannah was initially going to just try another round of antibiotics, but after examining it decided that because there was a tremendous amount of fluid and that it should be…

Teaching future vet technicians

Today, a group of Vet Tech students from Pima Medical Institute took a field trip to SAFE Harbor Stables. The goal was to practice doing a physical exam, venipuncture, and administering dewormer. In exchange for providing the opportunity for the students to gain hands…

Ginger & Sinatra = BFF

Ginger and lover boy Sinatra are joined at the hip. She was much more relaxed having a buddy in turnout. They were eatting this close the entire time. Two needy horses found each other and I mean both of them! I thought he wouldn’t leave her but SHE was stuck to him…

Congratulations to River & Jenny!

We are thrilled to announce that River has been adopted! If you’ve been following his story, you know that he went into training with Andrea Lucianna at Half Trak Farm, and after a bit of a slow start while this young horse gained his confidence, he graduated from…

Ginger update

Ginger is settling in pretty well at SAFE Harbor. She’s got some things to learn, but we’re taking it slow and making good progress. She came to us with bad dermatitis along her mane and tail dock that has to be treated, so she is learning how to take a bath. We’re…

Special Guests at the SAFE Benefit Show

The Seattle Police Department’s Mounted Patrol will be stopping by Donida Farm to put on a special demonstration during the SAFE Benefit Horse Show!! The demo will take place at the start of our Exhibitor Party on Saturday evening at 5pm. The Patrol horses and their…

Problems with Kat

Over the past month or so, we’ve been noticing that Kat has been tripping more and more, both under saddle and even when being led. It’s gotten to the point where we’ve decided to pull her out of training with Brittney until we can have a vet examine her and possibly…

Photos from the Open House

We had a great time at last Sunday’s Open House with lots of folks stopping by to meet the horses and enjoy a grilled hot dog or two. SAFE supporter Margaret C took these gorgeous photographs and was kind enough to share them with us.

Moonshine Training Video

Moonshine started cantering under saddle this week without a lead pony! He’s doing great!! Here’s a video taken the week before last of his first ride off the lunge line. Look closely and see if you recognize the horse that he’s working with in the arena…it’s…

Lucky Training Update

Lucky continues to do well in his work with Helga Roberts at Dutch Mills Farm. Recently she had this to say about his behavior and his attitude: “Lucky has been at my barn since the beginning of June and has not shown ANY bad barn behavior. He gets turned out every…

Strider…Mystery Solved?

Strider has been puzzling us for months with an on-again-off-again urinary tract issue. His only symptom was random bouts of leaking urine. Sometimes he would “dribble” significant amounts of urine, splashing himself and making a mess of his stall. Other times, he…

Cameo is now wearing a saddle!

Cameo wants everyone to know she has been wearing a saddle for a few weeks now, but today was the first time it was put on while she was standing in the cross-ties. You’ll notice that Cameo is wearing a chain in the photo. That’s because she is still learning how to…

Nora the Poster Girl

Nora’s lovely face graced the advertisements we sent out for tomorrow’s Open House. Isn’t she the cutest?

Portland Update

Portland’s condition is continuing to improve, but he is still very thin. He’s also covered in bites, scrapes, and scars — evidence of the life he was leading before he was rescued. His coat is improving and he has shown us some glimpses of spirit and energy, which…

Checking in with Nora

Everyone is pretty much in love with Nora. She’s a doll, just sweet and loving and really, really pretty. Her physical condition is slowly improving and while she still needs to put on more weight, she’s looking healthier and her coat has improved. Nora’s biggest…

A new foster adventure for Chip

Chip has spent the past four months in foster care with three other geldings where he has learned a great deal about getting along with other horses, now that he is no longer a breeding stallion. It hasn’t always been easy for him, but he worked hard and eventually…

Open House this Sunday at SAFE Harbor

On Sunday, July 14, SAFE will be celebrating its one year anniversary at SAFE Harbor Stables in Woodinville with an Open House that day from Noon to 3pm. Come by and meet the horses and have a tour of the farm. We’ll be grilling hot dogs for lunch and selling…

Chance Update

Sorry to share that Chance is not feeling well and had to see Dr Hannah yesterday for an emergency visit. He did not seem to be himself on Wednesday and volunteers reported that he was not moving around much or interested in food. Yesterday morning we discovered that…

ASPCA Equine Welfare Professionals Workshop

SAFE Board of Directors members Kyle Putnam, Sara Hall, Jeanette Parrett, and Debi Shatos recently attended an all day seminar hosted by the ASPCA. The Equine Welfare Professionals Workshop provided an opportunity for our Board members to learn about effective Board…

April

The story of how April came to be a SAFE horse is a sad tale: she lived alone in a small muddy pen, her owner barely cared for her, and often she had nothing to eat but stale bread and potatoes. Her living conditions had already attracted the attention of Animal…

New Intake: Portland

Portland is a 16 year old Thoroughbred gelding who was seized as part of a neglect case by Snohomish County Animal Control and signed over to SAFE late last week. Portland was removed from his owner with a Body Condition Score of 1 (out of 9) meaning that he was very…

A Visit with Khianna

It’s been a while since we’ve updated everyone on Khianna. If you recall, Khianna “flunked out” of training after our trainer advised us that she would need extensive one-on-one work after she displayed a tendency to bolt under saddle. She went to a foster home for a…

Skye Training Updates

Friday, June 21 Skye has had an easy day of roaming the round pen full of scary stuff. Dave said that she was a little wound up early on but by the end of the day, despite the tarps, barrels and the Cowboy Curtain of doom, she has calmed down. She got a chance to…

A new start for Skye

Skye has come a long way from the horse she was when she first came to SAFE. Back then, she was so accustomed to being shut up in a stall all the time that the relative freedom of a stall with an outdoor run was very strange and scary to her. Everything scared Skye at…

Lucky training update

Bucky B Lucky was moved into foster care with Helga Roberts at Dutch Mills Farm to continue his dressage training. We just got this wonderful update from Helga and we’re really pleased that he’s doing so well for her! SAFE is so fortunate to have Helga working with…

Zanadu — Adopted!!

A very dear and special SAFE horse was just officially adopted, and we could not be happier about this match. Congratulations to Karen on your adoption of Zanadu! Karen originally contacted SAFE in October of 2012. She was interested in Zan, but open to other horses.…

Ginger’s “Tail”

Ginger came to us with a tail that was best described as a “baseball bat” — a thick solid tangled mass, unlike anything any of us have ever seen before. Valiant efforts were made to save as much of it as possible, but in the end, a large section of the tail could…

Logan Update

Logan has left SAFE Harbor Stables and is now residing at one of our very best foster homes where he has a large grassy pasture to enjoy and a wonderful caregiver who takes excellent care of him. A few weeks ago we were very concerned that Logan’s condition was…

Pretty Miss Skye

Skye’s summer coat has come in very light brown, and she has shed a few pounds, so she’s looking really pretty! She’s headed out to a new foster home pretty soon where she’ll be starting groundwork training…not a moment too soon! She’s a very big gal who’s gotten a…

Jewel is making progress!!

It’s been a while since we updated Jewel’s page, and last time we reported about her, things were not going perfectly for this little gal. She was having a rough time getting along with other horses, and she was showing some conformation issues that had us a little…

Bridgit Update

Bridgit has moved to a new foster home with SAFE President Debi Shatos in Snohomish where she shares space with Debi’s mare, Summer. Bridgit is a confident youngster, but she has wisely decided that Summer is the boss mare and she needs to be respectful. With that…

Chip the Happy Gelding

Chip has made such great progress in the past few months and I can’t help but be proud of all his accomplishments, no matter how small they may seem. When he first came to my farm, he was very timid. He seemed to have some difficulty getting along with the bigger…

Sinatra Update

What can we say about Sinatra that hasn’t already been said? He’s lovable, he’s laughable, he’s one of a kind. The Vitamin E supplements he’s been getting continues to help his proprioception issues, and under saddle, he seems to be feeling pretty good. Which for…

Miah’s First Trail Ride! (With Kat!)

Miah took a big step today with her first ever trail ride as a SAFE horse — possibly the first of her life — and she did great!! It’s only just recently that she’s gotten to a point where she was ready to hit the trails, and she was a very good girl. To be fair, she…