Halter Starting Lancelot
Maybe it had been different at one point, but the Lancelot that arrived at SAFE was not able to be haltered. He was curious, but unwilling to be approached, and very reluctant to be touched. The first step for horses like Lance, those who need to be halter-started (or…
Training Update: Frosting Moving the Hind
There are, according to Buck Brannaman whose style of horsemanship we follow most closely, multiple ways of moving the hind. 5, specifically. One of them, and in my opinion one of the most mystical, involves bending the horse using the rein only and simply… waiting…
Introducing Ciara
Before she came to SAFE, Ciara was living alongside her filly, Inula, in a mud pit of a paddock. She was yet another of the Gig Harbor horses to arrive here back in May, and yet another who was afflicted by the same poor coat, long hooves, and lack of clean living…
Introducing Harissa
Some stories, by their very nature, take a bit longer to tell than others. Harissa’s story will be one of these, especially when framed alongside the others she came in with, who are steadily trucking along in their training, checking off boxes and working towards…
Introducing Inula
Inula was the youngest of the Gig Harbor horses, and despite not being a literal baby, she still had a youthful element about her that we made note of from our first meeting. A subsequent dental put her in her 4th year this year, but when you compare her to a horse…
Introducing Mirana
Mirana, along with Meadow, was one of the matriarchs of the Gig Harbor horses we picked up this past May. She was part of the largest herd on the property, a group of four mares living in a scrubby paddock. They, like the others on the property, were lacking in clean…
Jax is Adopted!
Yet another happy ending for a member of the Graham 27, as we said our goodbyes to Jax last month as he made the journey to his new home. From the beginning he proved himself as one of the most easily adoptable of the bunch (not that a horse’s singular value is in…
Remembering Meadow
Meadow was one of the 7 Gig Harbor horses who came to SAFE in May. Likely the oldest of the group, she was believed to be somewhere in her 20s. She was the most gentle of all the horses on the property, allowing us to halter her from day one, and give her a nice…
Violet in the Outdoor Arena
Early on in her tenure at SAFE, we marked Violet as brave. Not long after first stepping off the trailer, she was already leading the way on walks across the property, supporting her decidedly more nervous half-brother, Scotty. Her energy was self-assured, even in the…
Q1 Report Card: Veronica
Beginning this year, we have developed and implemented a horse ‘report card’ to be able to chart how a horse is progressing with their training, be it on the ground or under saddle. The intention is to check in with each member of the herd on a quarterly basis in an…
Chip & Dale Seek New Home Together
Chip and Dale, a pair of bonded and extremely huggable senior miniature horses in Snohomish, WA, seek a new home! They are a package deal and come ready to snooze in the sun, get all the scritches, and occasionally have their floofy manes braided. These two came to…
Alumni Update: Tabitha (Willa)
October 2023 Update from Alyssa: I don’t take a lot of pictures or post on FB often, but I’ve been wanting to give an update on the amazing, kind, brave, incomparable miss Willa (formerly known as Tabitha/Tabbi), who came home with me from SAFE almost 5 years ago.…
Alumni Update: Dolly (Rose)
We recently checked in with Dolly’s (now Rose) adopter, Angela. Rose is a very happy, healthy horse. Angela has a busy schedule but still makes time a couple of days a week to groom and ride Rose at the barn. On occasional weekends, a friend of Angela’s rides Rose,…
Volunteer Education: No Hoof No Horse
If you polled our volunteers and asked them what initially drew them to SAFE, the surface level answer would likely be uniform across the board: a love of horses. No shock or surprise there. But digging deeper, the answer would become nuanced between individuals. Some…
