Shasta and Sunny D

Penned by Best Buddy to Shasta and Sunny and volunteer, Debbie Meyer.

March is traditionally known as the month to celebrate the luck of the Irish (and those who choose to symbolically be Irish) on St. Patrick’s Day. March also is the month that those who are fans of and mad (as in crazy!) about college basketball look forward to the March Madness competition. As a result, it was felt March would be a good time to pen a yearly update on Shasta and Sunny D, SAFE’s mini horse ambassadors and permanent residents. After all, SAFE is lucky to have them; and most who meet them become mad (as in crazy!) about them!

As a refresher, Shasta is the redhead who is the slightly taller of the two and mama of Sunny. She will be celebrating her 23 birthday on May 5, 2023! Sunny is more of a strawberry blonde with a somewhat fuller mane, and he will turn 15 on November 23, 2023! Both were given a SAFE landing in 2011 after being seized by Animal Control for neglect. Once they regained their health and it was discovered how special they are, they were made SAFE ambassadors and permanent residents.

In their roles, they represent SAFE and its mission at onsite and offsite events; and they were busy during the post Covid year of 2022 as SAFE again opened its gate and welcomed the public back to its events and felt safe to attend offsite events. The onsite events included SAFE Open Houses, the first Heart of the Horse gala fundraiser at the SAFE Harbor Stables and a number of Picnics with the Ponies which the minis co-hosted. Their offsite appearances included a child’s birthday party where they were surprise guests; a rodeo-themed social event at the Inglewood Golf Course where they were the hits of the party; and the Olson

Sunny says hi!

Tack Shop’s Holiday Open House at which they were very popular guests. Despite their busy event schedule, they always find the time to welcome the newbie horses to SAFE and check in with the residents during their guided walkabouts across the property; warm the human hearts of all who see them galloping, rolling, sunbathing or grooming one another in miniland or simply sticking their heads through the miniland gate to acknowledge the humans, horses, cats or dogs who pass by; serve as patient models during grooming classes for SAFE volunteers; AND help raise money to care for all the SAFE horses!

Shasta, the Rodeo Queen with Debbie Meyer

No greater financial contribution did Shasta and Sunny make in 2022 than from their participation in the Sweethearts of the Rodeo competition which drove over $48,000 for the care of all the SAFE horses, exceeding the goal of $40,000! In this friendly competition, the SAFE community was asked to donate to their favorite SAFE horse in the categories of Rodeo Queen, Rodeo King and/or Rodeo Clown, along with asking others to join them in doing the same. The horse whose team raised the most money in the respective categories won the title of Rodeo Queen, Rodeo King and Rodeo Clown. Shasta won the title of Rodeo Queen with a come-from-behind win after she passionately pointed out in a video that while her closest competition was the perfect Princess, she was the better Queen! Sunny competed for the title of Rodeo Clown and helped raise money, too, although he did not care to win that title, assuring his supporters that he did not mind losing as long as his mama won the title of Rodeo Queen!

Shasta and Sunny have been busy; and SAFE is lucky to have these adorable littles as part of their Ambassador squad. For all their hard work, they continue to be treated regularly by their Best Buddy (a SAFE volunteer who is most mad (as in crazy!) about them) to Masterson Method® sessions with Natalie, MMCP (Masterson Method® Certified Practitioner). The Masterson Method® is a unique form of interactive equine bodywork, where horse and human work together to find and release areas of tension. Most creatures enjoy and all benefit from bodywork; and Shasta and Sunny continue to be no exceptions as evidenced by their licks and yawns during their sessions. Shasta and Sunny also have been enjoying extra grooming from the additional volunteers who have joined their grooming team to help them shed their winter fluff and look their best for their events. In addition, Shasta appreciates all the volunteers who take the time to make sure she eats her mash to help maintain her ideal weight, as that is especially important to older gals!

Anyone who has the opportunity to spend time with or around Shasta and Sunny D can be considered lucky and who knows how many more mad (as in crazy about them!) fans they will have by their next update!

Written by our volunteer, Debbie Meyer, aka “Best Buddy to Shasta & Sunny”

Traditionally, February has been known as the month of love. As a result, no better time for an update on SAFE’s lovable ambassadors and permanent residents, Shasta and Sunny D.

As some of you may not know (or remember), Shasta and Sunny arrived at SAFE in 2011 after being seized by Animal Control when another mini on the property died from starvation. They arrived just in time because they were quite emaciated themselves. However, with proper care, nutrition and love, they regained their health and secured their permanent role as SAFE ambassadors once it was discovered how special these littles are!

Shasta, the slightly larger of the two, is redder in color and the mama of Sunny. Sunny has the lighter, fuller mane; think of sunshine! Shasta celebrated her 21st birthday on May 5, 2021, complete with a birthday cake shaped like a horse shoe, pieces of which she shared with all the SAFE horses! Sunny celebrated his 13th birthday in style on November 23, 2021, with a matching challenge which was met during SAFE’s Fall Into Winter Hay Drive!

Over the years, these two have definitely earned their keep and continue to do so by representing SAFE at public events where they help raise awareness of SAFE’s mission and even have been directly responsible for recruiting some volunteers, along with raising money to care for all the SAFE horses! The events have included Heart of the Horse at fancy venues where a visit with them is always a popular auction item, often driving a bidding war; Microsoft Give on the Microsoft campus; Redmond Derby Days Parade; Redmond Farmers Market; SAFE Benefit Horse Show where the last two years of the Show (pre-pandemic) they won the coveted title of Champion Rescue Horse sponsor because their fans donated the most money to their Syndicate Sponsorship; and SAFE Open Houses, the Holiday one at which they pose for pictures dressed in their Christmas costumes for a nominal fee! They also wore their Christmas costumes on the wet, cold and windy evening in December to help drive donations when they made an appearance at the Redmond Lights 2021 display, benefitting SAFE.

Understandably, their public appearances have been limited during the pandemic, giving them a deserved break. However, they keep busy welcoming the newbies to SAFE on their guided walkabouts across the property; visiting with those horses in rehab to give them some company and/or to help keep them calm; co-hosting the occasional Picnic with the Ponies at SAFE Harbor Stables; and bringing smiles to the human faces of all who see them, whether they are galloping, rolling or sunbathing in miniland or sticking their adorable heads through the miniland gate to say, “Howdy” to all passersby and to ask, “Got treats?”!

What perfect little ambassadors for SAFE! Some think Shasta and Sunny are ponies. After all, when you google the definition of pony, you find pony is defined as “a horse of a small breed, especially ones whose height at the withers is below 14 hands 2 inches (58 inches).” However, Shasta and Sunny are miniature horses. A miniature horse is defined as “a breed of horse bred to resemble a full-sized horse on a much smaller scale.” The American Miniature Horse Registry (AMHR) registers minis between 34” to 38” at their withers since minis are measured in inches instead of hands. Shasta measures 34”; Sunny, 32”.

Like all SAFE horses regardless of size, Shasta and Sunny enjoy being groomed (and need extra grooming in the Spring to help them shed their woolier winter coats); benefit from regular walks so are part of SAFE’s Handwalking Program; and deserve some extra TLC whenever possible, especially for all their hard work as SAFE ambassadors. As a result, they are treated monthly by their Best Buddy (a SAFE volunteer) to Masterson Method sessions with Natalie, MMCP (Masterson Method Certified Practitioner). The Masterson Method® is a unique form of interactive equine bodywork, where horse and human work together to find and release areas of tension. Most creatures enjoy and all benefit from bodywork; and Shasta and Sunny are no exceptions! This is evidenced by their releases of yawns, licks and chews while Natalie works with them and even afterwards, along with some occasional rolling!

Anyone who has had the opportunity to spend time with these special littles has undoubtedly felt some love in the air, no matter what month of the year. However and since it is February, Shasta and Sunny D would like to wish all a Happy Valentine’s Day!

Sunnny and Shasta were out once again to meet & greet their fans the 2019 SAFE Benefit Horse Show at Donida Farm in Auburn. They were also celebrating their Syndicate Sponsorship win for the second year in a row — raising $975 and winning the coveted title of Champion Rescue Horse sponsor.

Sunny D

Shasta