Millie

When we found Millie in an Oklahoma kill pen, she was lost and confused with auction stickers all over her neck. The pen was told she was eight years old, but she was obviously a senior and in a lot of pain. Her feet had not been trimmed in years, yet she’d been dragged through two auctions and transport. It’s infuriating that her owner got paid for bringing her in rather than charged with animal cruelty. I showed pictures of her feet to our vet and Janelle, who both think that we can help her.

We wanted to help her feel better as soon as possible and sent her straight to Quarantine with lovely people. She needed support from a brace of ropes to hold her up so she could move forward without having to put full weight on her feet as that was so painful. The whole family assisted with her unloading and helping her to her stall.

A vet and farrier came straight out and went to work. They took x-rays to see what is going on with her coffin bones. Just getting the bulk off those hooves took pressure off her tendons when she walked. With pain meds on board, good food and water, and love, they were able to make her much more comfortable. The next day in the evening, she was walking so much better and eating her dinner with a whole now lease on life.

When we take on a new case, we really don't know if we are going to be able to help the animal. Sometimes their conditions are beyond us and we’re always prepared to have to make the hardest decision for them, if necessary. With Millie, just the first trim made a huge difference in her quality of life and pain levels. That's a great sign of hope and progress that we hope will keep growing.

When Millie arrived at Skydog, she was walking on her own. She is receiving top-notch farrier attention from Janelle. We got her into a new fly mask and soft gel boots. She loves the sugar-free Mrs. Pasture’s Cookies.  Love always wins and I know the day will come when she accepts the care and soaks up all the kindness. She occupies a stall right beside Eloise, a senior jenny with severe osteoarthritis. They can always see each other, commiserate on their aches and pains, and heal each other’s spirits as we work on healing their bodies.

Foot issues are all too common in donkeys, who are physiologically designed to live in arid climates, like deserts. Their diet is entirely different from horses. If they are fed a sugar-filled diet of grass or grain, it can lead to so many foot problems.  We also see horribly deformed feet from not getting any trims or standing in a small space on mud or urine soaked ground. Over the years, we have tried all kinds of treatments, but the very best thing for their hooves is traversing long distances and pounding rugged terrain with their hooves. It’s nature’s way and the best exercise for improving bad feet and keeping them healthy. We’ll love it if Millie is able to join our wild herd, but time will tell. Whatever she needs, we will give her. 

#skydogmillie

American Mustangs and 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 two Senators to urge them to support these bills. 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

Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act of 2025 (H.R.1661 in the House and S.775 in the Senate). This bill would amend the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly known as the “Farm Bill”. There are several important provisions for animals in that omnibus federal law, including the Cat and Dog Meat Trade Prohibition Act. It is currently illegal to slaughter, transport, possess, purchase, sell, or donate dogs and cats, or their parts, for human consumption. The SAFE Act would extend the ban to equines and 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. 4356) The bill would eliminate the use of helicopters in rounding up wild horses and burros, and require a study into alternative methods for humanely gathering the animals.

Ejiao Act of 2025 (H.R. 5544). 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.

See our How to Help menu for other actions to ban zebra hunting at US canned hunt ranches and stop production of Premarin & other PMU drugs.