SARGE
Sarge was found emaciated in a kill pen in Waco, Texas. Rescued, fattened up, and adopted out, he had to suffer the consequences of betrayal and failure by humans a second time. He had deteriorated to the point where he needed to be taken back and we were asked to give him permanent refuge. One of the main reasons my husband, Chris, and I started Skydog was we were fed up with donating to save horses from killpens, only to find out they had been discarded back into the slaughter pipeline. We wanted a place where the horses are safe for life. When you donate to Skydog, you know that these horses are truly saved.
Sarge was too weak to haul all that way to Oregon, so we did it in stages. He put on enough weight to make it to Colorado safely, where he was built up even further and rested before the final stretch to Skydog. When he arrived, we wanted to pamper him, blanket him, and love on him, but he promptly informed us that he wasn’t into any of that nonsense. Mustang tough, he loved to stand out in the snow, even though he had a stall. The most opinionated curmudgeon, he doesn’t like hoof trims, fly masks, or blankets. He’s ornery to boot. If you can get a halter on him, he’ll usually charge off and drag you along. A salty codger who wants things his way, we do everything we can to accommodate his wishes. He wants his soft, warm mashes served on time. If you are a few minutes late, he rings a bell on the fence for faster service. At the same time, he always seems to understand when he needs human help and quietens down to allow treatment. He also has a soft side that he shows to his best friend, Monte Cristo, the oldest horse at Skydog with a similar tale of survival. These two grouchy old men just want to be left alone together to groom or doze in peace and quiet and that’s just fine with us.
Sarge is an Oregon mustang and we are so proud and happy to be able to bring him back to his original home and let him live out his life with us. We love you Sarge x
Mustangs & Burros Need your help
In addition to supporting our work by donating, becoming a patron on Patreon, or sponsoring a Skydog, there are several important pieces of legislation to protect American equines currently moving through Congress. It only takes a few minutes to contact your Rep and Senators and urge them to support these bills:
Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act of 2023 (H.R. 3475 in the House / S.2307 in the Senate). This bill will shut down the slaughter pipeline that sends some 20,000 American horses and donkeys to savagely monstrous deaths in foreign slaughterhouses every year.
The Wild Horse & Burro Protection Act of 2023 (H. R. 3656) This bill will prohibit the use of helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft in the management of wild mustangs and burros on public lands, and require a report on humane alternatives to current management practices.
Ejiao Act of 2023 (H.R. 6021). To ban the sale or transportation of ejiao, a gelatin made from boiling donkey skins, or products containing ejiao in interstate or foreign commerce, which brutally kills millions of donkeys primarily for beauty products and Chinese medicine.
You can Contact Members of Congress by calling the Capitol Switchboard (202) 224-3121, submitting contact forms on their individual websites, or sending one email to all three simultaneously at www.democracy.io
See our How to Help menu for other actions to ban zebra hunting at US canned hunt ranches, stop production of Premarin & other PMU drugs, and defund the Adoption Incentive Program.