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| Bonnet Ridge Ranch |
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| Bonnet Ridge Ranch - Animal Rescue |
| It started a few months ago looking for a small dog to adopt on Craigslist
A few twists and turns later here is their story."Howler" 8 yrs old, is the taller horse facing the camera on the right being petted by Kathy. "Caper", to the left of the photo is 4 yrs old, and he is our other adoptee. These horses were both headed for slaughter, Patty Hyatt in the photo to the left rescued them. Her Sonoma County "rented" pasture was turned over for a winery, so the horses needed a new home. Both were rescued from GG Fields racetracks, where they stay 23 hrs a day in a small box pen. When no longer wanted most are sent to slaughter. "Howler" was rescued from the racetrack by Patty 4 years ago. He roamed free in a 20 acre pasture till now. “Knight Howler” is a descendant of "Sea Biscuit". Howler won a few races for his owner. He developed a bone spur his owner said to give him away. Patty rescued him. “Caper” was rescued from the racetrack a month ago. He was on his way to slaughter. He never raced. As evidenced by his ribs showing we guess he was given less feed. His owner wanted him gone. Patty rescued Caper as well. Patty contacted me seeing if we could offer "Caper" and "Howler" a new home. Sailor Bob said yes. Patty and her husband David drove the 3 hrs north from Sonoma County to the ranch, Saturday morning, October 14. They arrived approx 1:30PM, the exact moment Randy and I had finished walking down to the highway, to wave them through the gate. A serious problem arose as Patty and David got out of their truck and their horse trailer they had pulled in by the barn. We realized the fences around the pastures were not fully tied in. For the next hour or so we fretted, walked, struggled, moved "gates", searched for "bale wire", "string", tools to fill in holes in the pasture fences. We didn't want the new adoptees to wander out on Highway 101, located directly adjacent to the ranch. We checked and "double checked". Patty's cowboy David worked hard and fast without gloves and he got a bloody gash on his hand tying the fences with whatever wire we could find. Tim Martin; David Mack (ranch "ramrod"); Randy (our good buddy Jim Bazil's good friend from Ft Bragg); Patty Hyatt our horse rescuer; her cowboy David; Boss Bob and I all scrambled. We got the water trough hooked up with the float, carried steel gates, tied together "fences" with string and twisted wire between posts to get things secure in a hurry so the horses could get out of their trailer. Patty and I tied little cotton flags with cowboy David's old white T-shirts on as many of the fence posts as we could . Patty said we needed some flags there in the break between both pastures to catch the horses attention, until they got to know their perimeters. All six of us, tired, sore, had walked, stumbled, sweated and worried for over an hour. Patty and I filled in deep gopher holes with rocks and wood and the boys worked on the fences as fast as they could. We walked the 20 or more acres back and forth checking to make sure the fences were whole. Finally, the holes were filled in, the fences mended, the water trough was full. We held our breath as the moment arrived and we walked back over to the horse trailer by the Barn. Howler and Caper had just made the longest trip in their lives. They waited an unexpected additional hour "patiently", while we six people scrambled to secure their new pasture home. Both horses remained in the horse trailer for almost 4 hrs. They had not made a peep of a sound of complaint. Patty gave the horses a couple of carrots and then she unlatched the horse trailer door. Patty's David escorted the larger horse "Howler" out of the trailer first . Patty escorted “Caper” second. Both beautiful horses stepped and gracefully pranced out, down the metal ramp, sniffing the air and the ground, snorting a bit. They took a look at us all around them nervously, then followed Patty in their harnesses for their first drink of water after their trip and their long wait. Patty and David lead both horses through the pastures across the fields to introduce them to their water trough. The ramrod had just finished hooking it up. The rest of us 4 "non horse" people followed as fast as we could eager to watch these magnificent creatures take their first drink. Both horses made their way gingerly, yet gracefully across the new terrain, following Patty in their harnesses and rope leads. When it came to the most difficult part, a small rocky gully ravine, that fills in with water in the winter time, the horses smartly maneuvered their way horizontally across the flattest part of the rocky gully. The horses arrived at the water trough. I bottle fed Howler directly through the water hose, he was too nervous to dip his head down and drink. Caper dug thirstily into the fresh spring water in their brand new trough. Patty and David lead both back to the Barn again for hay and some grain. Next came the second biggest moment. Patty reached over to unfasten the harness from "Howler". Patty, gave her horse a last rub, under his ear, in his “special” spot, Howler bowed his large head down close to Patty to be scratched there by Patty one final time. Patty whispered "...go on Howler, this is your new home, go on boy..." . Patty released him and Howler pranced away, stretching his long limbs outwards in a stretch, one by one... Patty went to Caper next, she released him from his harness, whispering to him, though she had not know him long "...here's your new home Caper, go on...Caper...you're home boy.." Caper pranced away, following Knight Howler. Both horses joined up together, crossed over to the next pasture, through the opening between the fences. They began alternating between running, galloping, prancing. They would stop occasionally to smell the ground, eat whatever wild hay had been left behind from Danny Campbell’s cattle's seasonal stay on the ranch, then gallop again. There were large cow patties, dry grasses, mounds of wild grass and hay for them to wander through. Beautiful stands of large Valley Oaks spread out over the pastures for them to take shade under. Both beauties spent the next 2 hours, galloping the boundaries together, over and over, circling their new area, up and around, around and around, alternating prancing and trotting together. One leading, one following they came to understand the lay of the land. Patty whistled one last time to Howler from the barn in their intimate way, Howler raised his head from out in the pasture and looked over at Patty. She said Goodbye to her Howler, her horse rescue for the past 4 years. Patty swallowed a few tears, we all did. Patty explained that "Caper", had never been in anything else in his life but a small stall for 23 hrs of each day and one hour out in a "hot box" led around with a chain through his nose, Caper had never been free in a pasture except for previous 2 weeks in a 2 acre plot . He and Knight Howler's home was now a wild 20 acres for them both , secure in the high plateau mountains of Mendocino County, not far from where Sea Biscuit had lived. The horses were beautiful to behold in their pastures, that late October afternoon . The fog rolled in from the ocean from the Coast over the mountains to the West of us. The sun and the crisp October clouds shined down. The horses made us all happy. We had accomplished getting them there. Both thoroughbreds were so beautiful prancing in the afternoon sunlight. Tim took as many pictures as he could. Sailor Bob; the ramrod; Tim Martin; and I had not eaten a thing all day. It was almost 5PM, we said goodbye to cowboy David and horse rescuer Patty and we both thanked each other for the gifts we had received. The Bonnet Ridge Ranch was giving Howler and Caper new homes, that made Patty and David happy. We had two beautiful thoroughbreds prancing in their wild pastures, saved for a new life. They now could call the Bonnet Ridge Ranch their new home, that made us happy. Randy left the ranch soon after Patty and Dave for his Camp Mendocino Fall Vacation where he would meet up with his regular buddies for their annual October trip in Covelo. Patty and David had been so kind, they had brought along a large bag of grain. 6 bales of hay, harnesses and rope leads for both horses to get us started Tired, hungry, sore, David, Tim, Boss Bob and I walked up the road to the house. We collapsed into chairs in the house, drank our ice water and made plans for dinner. From the ranch house we could easily see our beautiful 2 large horses down in the fields circling the property still, discovering their new world, settling into their new home, feeling more and more comfortable with each turn around the ranch. Because of their large sizes, and their glistening dark coats we could easily distinguish Howler's and Caper's outlines against the golden pastures and the setting sun, all the more fog spilling over the mountains to the west. Already cars on the highway were honking as they drove by seeing Howler and Caper happily gallop together in rhythm and gait, their long manes billowing in the wind, they pranced and galloped along the highway inside their fence and then back out to their pastures, under the Valley Oaks and back to circle the opposite pastures by the Pond again and again. As these two horses get more familiar with us and their new surroundings we'll try opening up more areas for them. New gates and fence posts and wire will have to be laid in. We’ll try walking them up the back forests to the mountain tops as we establish trust. More pix will follow. Maybe more horse rescues too. A Tale of a "rescue" made good, 2 thoroughbred racehorses horses saved from slaughter and given a new good home, welcomed into our family for life. There are a lot of horses to rescue. There are breeding mares that need to be set free from their brood bearing days and there are dogs to rescue and all sorts of farm animals that need new homes but with what started with looking for a small dog on the Internet craigslist and a few emails back and forth ended with a good story for all. We can only afford to adopt these 2 horses now as we see what Hay and feed costs us but that does not matter, they are part of our family now and we shall keep them with us for life. Knight Howler and Caper. Welcome Home Boys! Welcome to the Bonnet Ridge Ranch! Thanks, kathyleather and BOSS BOB |
| Adoptions coming soon: Three Mules Three LLamas |
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