Patrón

Giving Tuesday 2019

Donors made it possible for Patrón to come to Skydog on Giving Tuesday 2019. His happiness is the result of the persistence and determination of incredible people who go above and beyond for the mustangs they love.

His savior, Debra, found him terribly sick, starved, and half dead at a kill pen in Texas. She brought him back to life and restored his health. She traveled to Skydog so she could be at the ranch to welcome him when he arrived. It was the first time an owner had done that. The next day, she led him up to meet new friends and get his first taste of space and freedom. It was a deeply emotional and selfless thing to do.

Patrón was in his element with the Mountain Herds, which have included Feather, Tin Man, Scarecrow, Leonidas, Thunder, River, Marvyn and Francis. With his coppertone tan, long tail, beach-blond mane, and summer dapples, Patrón has gone from amazing to spectacular.

From Salt Wells Creek, you can see the draft influence in his build, which is prominent in that herd. How anyone in their right mind could even contemplate wiping them out is beyond me. Aside from their size, the curly genes that are carried by so many of them are rare and need to be protected at all costs.

#skydogpatrón

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 canned hunt ranches in Texas & Oklahoma, bringing an end to the BLM using Sale Authority to funnel wild equines into the slaughter pipeline, and stopping production of Premarin & other drugs made from pregnant mare urine.