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Post by coconut on Dec 15, 2008 20:06:38 GMT -5
Next up in the never ending need department is FRIDAY.....as in ALL Fridays until further notice, including this Friday 12/19. Thank you JULIE for stepping up to help this Day AND Saturday  Our Friday gal, Mickey has come down with a respitory issue and can't be around animals...We're sorry to see her go & thank her very much for helping out. Again, this is best done in daylight hours and would include Cleaning Paddocks & Stalls
Picking up grain pans
WateringPM asap to take on this shift for this week or for good! Thanks for playing!! |
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Post by schwung on Dec 15, 2008 20:15:04 GMT -5
Ok, we have water in the barn again so its not TOO bad, but still best done with two people. With the weather, I will probably be working from home all week so can help.
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Post by lovemyhorse on Dec 15, 2008 23:31:54 GMT -5
Another idea to keep the water buckets from freezing is to put mineral salt in it. Remember salt freezes at a lower temp then water. I used to buy the 50 pound bags of crushed mineral salt at the feed store and that would last me about a month with one water bucket. It also gets the horses to drink water when its extra cold out. If you have extra salt blocks around small works best you can break those in half and just put them in the water. I did that with my rabbit's water bottles today and so far they havent froze, but i know they arent to happy to have salt water but its better then none. Oh another idea that I used to have to do is fill up a rubber wheelbarrow with water and use that to fill water buckets. But make sure its clean. That makes hauling water alot easier and you can have a few going at once. Hope you guys get some help.
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 16, 2008 0:00:32 GMT -5
Another idea to keep the water buckets from freezing is to put mineral salt in it. Remember salt freezes at a lower temp then water. I used to buy the 50 pound bags of crushed mineral salt at the feed store and that would last me about a month with one water bucket. It also gets the horses to drink water when its extra cold out. If you have extra salt blocks around small works best you can break those in half and just put them in the water. I did that with my rabbit's water bottles today and so far they havent froze, but i know they arent to happy to have salt water but its better then none. Oh another idea that I used to have to do is fill up a rubber wheelbarrow with water and use that to fill water buckets. But make sure its clean. That makes hauling water alot easier and you can have a few going at once. Hope you guys get some help. No offense LMH - but the first thing I thought of when I read that is drinking ocean water which we all know is a no no. So, I googled salt block in horse's water and this is what came up. I don't think it's a good idea. www.horse-sense.org/archives/20040620074218.php |
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Post by lovemyhorse on Dec 16, 2008 0:18:49 GMT -5
No offense taken. I didnt mean to put the whole block in but just enough. I had 100 gallon tubs for my horse where I had boarded before. I would put about half a pound in and it was enough to keep the water from freezing and my horse drank it all about every few days. My horse would never lick a salt block and would pick around salt if put in his feed. So putting it in the water was the only way to get him to get the salt he needed. He also never wanted to drink enough water or eat all his food, he was very picky and would starve himself if they hay was not to his high expectation, he thought he was living with a rich person who could afford to waste a ton of hay just because he didnt like it. I know its not the best idea but if its the only way, it wont kill the horse. I was told by my vet to try it, so I figured it was safe. I have been doing it for the past 15 years and never had problems. I never have been able to have heated water buckets as I always pasture board and we all know running an extension cord about 100' to a field where water bucket is not under shelter is not a good idea unless you want to cook your insides or your horses. I understand where your coming from but it was just a thought. I always thought salt water was just bad for humans, dogs and cats as its not a huge part of our diet since we are mainly omnivores and get our salt from the meat products we eat and herbivores need to substitute salt to stay healthy. Oh well, then scratch that idea, I was just trying to help without suggesting spending tons of money on enough water heaters to cover all the buckets.
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Post by jodycat on Dec 17, 2008 23:08:19 GMT -5
Next up in the never ending need department is FRIDAY.....as in ALL Fridays until further notice, including this Friday 12/19. Our Friday gal, Mickey has come down with a respitory issue and can't be around animals...We're sorry to see her go & thank her very much for helping out. Again, this is best done in daylight hours and would include Cleaning Paddocks & Stalls
Picking up grain pans
WateringPM asap to take on this shift for this week or for good! Thanks for playing!! Um, this is a bad time of year - especially weather wise. SAFE is extremely flush - has over $25,000 in the bank. Why is SAFE not looking at hiring some barn help for these days, if no one is volunteering? Juan, the young man who cleans stalls at Julie's (where Fred is now), is very dependable, looking for work, and reasonably priced. What's up with insisting on volunteers for these duties? (Edited for spelling.) |
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 17, 2008 23:18:13 GMT -5
25k is not flush - especially for a horse rescue - it is far far far from flush.
That money could be gone in a heartbeat in the rescue business
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Post by jodycat on Dec 17, 2008 23:27:55 GMT -5
25k is not flush - especially for a horse rescue - it is far far far from flush. That money could be gone in a heartbeat in the rescue business I disagree. $25K in the black is very good for a horse rescue. As a (somewhat high stakes) donor, I want to see this money used to help the horses SAFE is working with. A couple hundred a month to make sure barn chores are covered is small potatoes indeed. |
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 17, 2008 23:30:45 GMT -5
25k is not flush - especially for a horse rescue - it is far far far from flush. That money could be gone in a heartbeat in the rescue business I disagree. $25K in the black is very good for a horse rescue. As a (somewhat high stakes) donor, I want to see this money used to help the horses SAFE is working with. A couple hundred a month to make sure barn chores are covered is small potatoes indeed. You are absolutely wrong. All you have to do is think about how much Lily or Vivian's emergency stays at Pilchuck cost and it would only take about 3 or 4 of those to decimate that whole account. I stand by what I said. And I have donated quite a bit of money myself to SAFE and I would rather get as much stuff done by volunteer than pay anyone to do anything except for professional work. |
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 17, 2008 23:32:40 GMT -5
And I'd like to add that were it not for the extreme generosity of people like Dr. Hannah - it would be even less. Not many vets give breaks like she does to SAFE and places like Pilchuck do not give breaks often if at all.
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Post by jodycat on Dec 17, 2008 23:33:11 GMT -5
Obviously getting work done by volunteers is ideal.
But not always very workable. As a stop-gap measure, it makes sense to me that SAFE has a contingency plan.
And you will not convince me that $25K is not a heck of a cushion.
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 17, 2008 23:36:52 GMT -5
Ask any large animal rescue if they agree with you that has been in the business for a few years.
Ask them if all they had was 25k in the bank with all the large animals they had if they felt comfortable with that.
I can tell you that Pasado's has WELL more than 25k - and they did not hire anyone until their bank account was substantially larger than that. The founders themselves did not even take a paycheck.
They are located in Monroe and have people coming in from Seattle to do chores.
They squeeze every single penny. And that is one of the reasons they became as successful as they are. Good money management - getting it free where you can so every penny is spent on the animals.
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Post by huskiesnhorses on Dec 17, 2008 23:42:04 GMT -5
And I would like to add one last thing. This is probably one of the reasons that alot of rescues would not be so open about their books - everyone loves the honesty but it's a double edged sword.
People may not be inclined to donate because they see the balance and think - 'oh they have plenty'.
It can hurt them in the long run as their success grows. It's a risk.
Until SAFE has hundreds of thousands of dollars and the kind of facility they hope to have one day - they are always at risk - most charities fail....we have to be careful.
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Post by jodycat on Dec 17, 2008 23:50:50 GMT -5
Ask any large animal rescue if they agree with you that has been in the business for a few years. Ask them if all they had was 25k in the bank with all the large animals they had if they felt comfortable with that. I can tell you that Pasado's has WELL more than 25k - and they did not hire anyone until their bank account was substantially larger than that. The founders themselves did not even take a paycheck. They are located in Monroe and have people coming in from Seattle to do chores. They squeeze every single penny. And that is one of the reasons they became as successful as they are. Good money management - getting it free where you can so every penny is spent on the animals. Yes, there is Pasado's. I have sent you a PM about why I will never donate to that organization. I was just suggesting that it appears obvious that SAFE is having trouble finding volunteers for these weekdays, and it clearly has the money to pay for some help for those days. People like me who donate to SAFE EXPECT it to do whatever it takes to make sure the horses are taken care of - and that doesn't mean just whining and begging because no volunteers are stepping up. I did not mean to start a royal fight, just wanted to suggest alternatives since SAFE can clearly afford them. |
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Post by Whitewolf821 on Dec 18, 2008 0:43:32 GMT -5
Just another point to make on paying someone to do the work.
If we need to pay person X to do Friday's chores, then person Y on Wednesday is going to want to get paid. Suddenly, we are ending up paying someone for every single day of the week because everyone wants to get paid. I hardly think that's a worthwhile endeavor or use of the funds that have taken us a long time to work for. Then we have just become an employer instead of an organization built by volunteers and sustained by volunteers for the benefit of the horses. I have been helping SAFE since there were times we only had $2K in the bank at the end of the month. I'm glad that SAFE is doing better than that now, but I also realize that it could be gone very quickly.
I'd rather see Jaime spending her time with her own family and the horses than also trying to be an employer and manage employees and payroll. I have to agree with Redmond on this one. We have done well for years now working with volunteers. I don't see where there's crying and begging going on. I see an organization who needs help and is turning to the group that has always been there to help. Someone always steps up to volunteer in the end because it's the right thing to do. SAFE is a non-profit charity, not a business.
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