SOLEIL

Soleil came to us with Nugget from the BLM corrals as a special needs horse. She had a big wound on her back leg, which Janelle was concerned would become infected. Her leg was cleaned and wrapped daily until it healed. There’s a lot of scar tissue, which would have left her unrideable, but that shouldn’t make her any less valuable. Sadly it does in a world where a horse’s worth is based on what they can do for their “owner”. I would say the majority of people who ask for sanctuary for their horse do so because they can’t ride them due to injury, age, or wildness.

When Pete came to Skydog, he was the first zorse - a cross between a zebra and a horse - we had ever encountered. Knowing only that he was wild and did not want to be trained, we introduced him to a pen with mustangs and burros to see where he felt comfortable. He swept Soleil off her feet and she has been with him ever since, following him far and wide.

It wasn’t long before Pete’s strong wild side attracted Hera & Strongheart. They joined his band and headed for the hills, Hera in the lead, Pete bringing up the rear like a stallion would. They gave Soleil a masterclass in how to be the wildest mustang mare, guiding her away, if they saw any humans, discouraging her from stopping to accept cookies from our hands. They head for cover any time we find them during our routine herd checks. They stick to their remote territory behind Sheeps Rock, a place with lots of trees, cool streams and springs, and all the forage they desire. Every time we see Soleil, she looks more filled out, muscular, athletic, beautiful and wild.

Horses have immense value just being horses, as Soleil’s popularity with followers attests. They don’t have to win ribbons, races or competitions to be valuable. She is precious to us just for being herself. It’s a complete misnomer that horses “need” a job. What they need is family, companionship with other horses, respect, clean water, forage, and room to run. I am not against the idea of riding horses, as long as they enjoy it, but I am opposed to throwing them away if they can’t be ridden. You can have an incredible relationship with your horse without being on their back. There is so much you can do and so much you can learn from them if you adjust that filter that has warped our perspective. Far fewer horses would end up in the slaughter pipeline if people would take responsibility for them for life. #skydogsoleil

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.