Shown above is SHADOW, our beautiful little blind girl prior to heading to her new home.

UPDATE
Once again my heart feels like it has been shattered into a million tiny pieces. Early Wednesday morning, Matt backed in the trailer to our loading area and I went to get Frosty and Braveheart.

To my horror, I noticed something was wrong with Braveheart. Just the night before he had been be-bopping around and feeling great. But this morning, something was terribly wrong. His poor little face was swollen halfway up, and you could tell he was done.

It took a minute to realize that overnight he had become 100% blind. He was struggling horribly and extremely frantic at losing his sight. Of course I called Doc immediately, and she came out to see what had happened.

The most likely explanation is due to the fact that his eye had been so horribly infected for so many months, (if not years), that he had probably had an abscess that for some unknown reason decided to burst during the night, and it caused the immediate blindness. Doc's other thought was that it could have been an aneurysm, but in either case, the way he was standing with his head down would account for the swelling of the soft tissue.

His eye was still perfect from the surgery. But my beloved Braveheart went from feeling great to absolutely miserable. Whatever happened last night had been traumatic and my sweet boy was done. I knew even before Doc arrived that his beautiful life would end on this day. The tears ran as I tried to comfort him until she arrived.

So instead of loading up Braveheart, Frosty, Shadow and Dabubbles, we spent the day taking care of Braveheart for the last time. It was devastating beyond measure to let him go, but it was our final gift to him. The only comfort I can find is the fact that he was so happy here and absolutely loved not having to fight for his food and to know so much love.

The happier news is that Shadow went to her new home yesterday and she is settling in well. We are already getting happy reports from her new place. Frosty is also settling in to his new place and already has a new friend. That warms my heart as he was kind of a loner, and he has a beautiful white gelding he is hanging out with. So that is definitely great news.

While we were in South Dakota we had purchased panels for the mission, and were planning to bring them home for the "blind pen". Unfortunately when it came time to bring them home we simply could not afford to. So we sold them back instead. It was definitely not a happy decision, but we ended up using the funds we got back from the panels to finish what we had to do in South Dakota and to bring the horse kids here and get them the care and special feed etc. they needed.

I am working on individual Thank You's, but as usual I am far behind. I want everyone to know that every single penny is so much appreciated and remind folks of how many lives y'all have saved. Unfortunately in our world it just doesn't seem to stop. But God is not only blessing us with folks like you who show your love and support for His creatures, but He is also blessing us with good homes for the ones we save. So please know that not a penny is taken for granted and I am working literally round the clock at this point. 3 babies doesn't seem like much but they still want their milk every few hours and really don't care if mom gets any sleep. lol

We need to raise funds for another delivery to the northern most border of Idaho. We need roughly $2000 for transportation, and 6 more horses will have their forever homes. These horses will be part of an amazing program where troubled kids have their hearts and souls healed by/through equine therapy working with the wild horses. Diesel, Lacy, Donkey, Chester, Loves Legacy and another wild mustang named Buddy will be heading out, (hopefully on the 22nd if we raise the transport funds).

Once we get the next batch of horses to their new homes, we will have the two little ones Sapphire and Stormy (who have potential adopters), Anicka and her seeing eye horse Diamond Dancer, Midnight Onyx (our blind ones from the ISPMB rescue), Honey Bandit, the twins Lucky and Spartan, Denny, and DaBubbles, (our little therapy man) and we are scheduled to pick up two additional miniature horses who needed rescued in the next week or so.

And baby season is just beginning. As I write this I am on standby for an approximately 3 week old colt whose mama was killed by a car today.

So the kids just continue to keep coming, and since most of ours end up being special needs, we cannot thank you enough for keeping this amazing journey a success. Your donations make it all happen.

So please, stay with us and lets "keep strong and rescue on". YOU are the reason these lives are being saved. We so appreciate your love and support and we will continue to share the stories of the lives you are saving and the difference you make for each and every horse we bring in. Some times the end result is simply giving the horse the gift of knowing what it feels like to be safe, have enough to eat and leave this earth peacefully, and those are the hardest ones. Those are the ones that make me want to quit, but I know that whatever God puts in front of us we need to take care of. So we cry for days, and then put on our big girl panties and "git 'er done".
Thank you for being part of this!

If you want to help You can go to You Caring - to help us keep saving lives..You can go to Paypal - [email protected] or go to our Donate & Support page

if you would like to help these horses.

You can donate via check at Chilly Pepper - Miracle Mustang, P.O. Box 190 Golconda, NV 89414

You can also donate via credit card by calling Palomino at 530-339-1458.

NO MATTER HOW BIG OR HOW SMALL - WE SAVE THEM ALL!
SAVING GOD'S CRITTERS - FOUR FEET AT A TIME

Chilly Pepper - Miracle Mustang, LRTC PROJECT - Rescue & Rehab
LRTC (Least Resistance Training Concepts) is a 501c3 IRS EIN 68-0434118

As I lay in bed, listening to the sounds of the babies moving about, I could not stop the tears from falling.  In the morning, for the very last time, we would be loading Annie & Lil Bit into the trailer to start their journey to their new home in Lompoc, at Return to Freedom.  Slowly, I drifted into an uneasy sleep.

At about 2:00 a.m. I awoke with a vengeance.  The sound of thundering hooves radiated all around us.  In the front, where the babies were, and in the other two areas where the big guys were, you could hear them flying around.  Every once in awhile you would hear them blowing and snorting.  "Matt, something is out there".  All of a sudden I heard a blood curdling scream.  It was clearly an animal in the horrible throes of death.   It was out on the highway side of the road and I raced out as fast as my knee would allow (which is not very fast at all).  I had grabbed the huge spotlight and I was calling desperately for DaBubbles.  I couldn't find him anywhere.  All of a sudden the light went out, (of course - lol) and I could hear Matt calling me telling me not to be out there without a weapon.  But I couldn't go back, I had to know he was ok.  I finally heard him running around, and breathing a big sigh of relief, realized that the kill had been outside of our gate.  Most likely the cat had taken down one of the deer that used to hang around.  My adrenalin was up and my heart was racing.  By then, realizing the danger was no longer, the horses and dogs had all settled down and were quiet, and we knew the danger was over.  I kept hearing that scream over and over in my head, and my heart was aching for the little deer that was now dinner.

Matt and I went back to bed for a few minutes and then we decided, let's just load 'em up and head out.  We had brought the babies into the inside nursery and they were all over the place.  There was no way we would get any sleep,  So for the last time ever,  I walked Lil Bit and Lil Orphan Annie into the trailer that they had come to know so well.  They just hopped in as if to say, where we goin' this time?  We got them settled, rechecked everything on the trailer and off we went.

The drive down was uneventful for the most part.  The babies traveled beautifully, and thoroughly enjoyed their little breaks and "milk stops".  They ride standing up part of the time but like to just lay down and chill much of the time when we travel.  We were about an hour from Return to Freedom when we noticed a large semi with a flatbed trailer who was all over the place.  He would go from 35 - 65, and would often be completely on the side of the road and other times be about 3 feet into the oncoming traffic lane.  Now I am pretty protective when we are pulling our little ones, and I sure didn't want to be in front of him.  After 3 separate calls and a great deal of time, most of which we were having mini heart attacks as he came within inches of wiping folks out, including a large fuel tanker, the CHP finally showed up.  He flashed on his lights and began to follow the truck.  Seems like it took 10 - 15 minutes literally for the guy to finally pull over.  We stopped in case they needed a statement, but the officer told us that they had seen enough.  Once again, the angels were with all of us on that highway.

We pulled in to Neda's place, and were met by a bunch of beautiful women.  However, when we opened the trailer door, the babies who could definitely tell that momma was being weird, decided that they would rather stay in the trailer.  So we took a bit of time to let them figure it out.   We had added a piece of wood just inside the back door so no little hoofers could get caught, and this was only the 2nd time they had seen it.  I think that with that piece of wood, coupled with so many folks waiting to meet them and them knowing that "mommy was different", they had decided why not stay in our cozy little trailer that is like our second home.  So we gave them a few minutes to settle in.

After they were unloaded, they went into a beautiful arena.  Both of these babies are secure, confident and ready to take on life.  They pranced around, showed off a bit and literally just soaked up the love.  That night when we came back from dinner, both of them ran up whinnying when they heard "their" truck.  It was really nice to be invited to stay there overnight.  We got to wake up to some of the most beautiful scenery there is, and I think it was easier for the babies to settle in when we were there for breakfast like normal.  I do have to say though, dropping off two babies that have bonded so well is so much less dramatic than dropping off one.  These guys have each other and are so secure that this will be an easy transition for them, although not so much for mom.

We spent a good part of the day with Neda as she showed us around and explained what they do.  Return to Freedom is an amazing place and a great one to support if y'all need a good tax write-off.  Their operating costs are about $6,000 a day, and they have done studies with the PZP that prove you can manage the wild ones with it.  As is the case with humans, not all mares respond to the PZP, so that core group of mares is with a stallion that has had a vasectomy.   The other mares who respond positively to the treatment are banded up with the stallions.  Life at Return to Freedom is very close to "nature" and the horses are living in their family bands.   I cannot begin to imagine the kind of responsibility and stress that could come with taking such excellent care of so many horses.  As she says, "these horses are yesterday's emergencies".  We were talking about how everyone wants to "save" the horses during the emergency, but as soon as it is over, the day to day costs of feeding, veterinary care, hoof care and all the other expenses seem to fall on the rescues.  We need folks to support these horses the rest of their lives.

You can sponsor one of their beautiful mustangs, and even if you cannot do a full sponsorship, anything helps.  Shirley Allen at Lucky Horse Rescue & Rehab in Dayton, NV also has some babies and big horses that could use a sponsor.  Honey Bandit & Donkey are also available for sponsorship at our place.  There is no end to the amazing places that need sponsors for the "saved horses".  Even $5 to any organization out there can make a huge difference for these animals and allow folks to provide the awesome care they deserve.

So Annie and Lil Bit are happily munching away at their new home.  They are surrounded by awesome folks and I heard a little secret that the staff run out on their breaks and visit with them, so we know they are still getting that special treatment they love.

Remember, please visit the websites and help if you can.  http://www.whmentors.org/lhp/orphan01.html  (Shirley's foal rescue) & Return to Freedom, where Lil Bit & Annie live  http://www.returntofreedom.org/about-us/   and of course www.chillypepper.weebly.com to see our latest.

During the year 2014, we had 10 babies here, Precious, Mikey & Ikey, Texas, Janie, Baby Boo McClellan & Luna, Lil Bit & Annie and Running Bucket.  Running Bucket is still on a nurse mare, (whom has done pretty much all the work) and has a potential, but not for sure adopter.  All of the others have found wonderful homes, with the exception of our beloved Janie, who is now in the arms of the angels.  THANK YOU EVERYONE who made these babies' lives possible.  Y'all are amazing and so very much appreciated.

It was feeding time, and the wind was actually raging.  (Woohoo)  As I took hay to the horses, the wind whipping my hair in my face, I looked up and smiled.  Living in California, it seems like if it rains, it is considered a storm.  I have to say I miss Washington State and Pennsylvania, where the storms truly rage and the thunder and lightning rock your world.  (I do have to admit that those types of thunder and lightning storms would not be a good idea in dry California, so again, God's plans are best.)   But there is nothing like a rockin' thunder storm as long as it is not starting fires :).  It is like God's power is so big and we are so small, and when the thunder shakes the mountains it makes me want to dance, the wolves get excited and the horses will run like the wind if you are riding in it.  Yet it is like a falling eyelash from heaven.  There is so much power out there and no human can ever truly harness it.  Kind of like a wild stallion tearing across the plains, hooves pounding, mane and tail flying and their hearts pounding as can only happen when you are truly wild. 

All around me the trees were swaying to the point where surely they would snap; instead they whipped back up tall and straight, as though they were doing a rapid dance.  The horses were jacked up, snorting and pawing and prancing around, their ears alert and their eyes wide.  Hmmmmmmmm I wondered, what amazing or scary smells does the wind bring to their world.  Living here makes you so aware of how much we humans miss.  Hundreds of smells, some of predators, some merely skunks and squirrels come flying through their world when the winds blow like this.  I wish I knew who and what surrounded us, as they surely do.  So many nights the dogs go crazy, barking at some wild animals in the woods.   We know the neighbors have seen the bears, (I only got to witness the log that was torn apart by those long claws as he/she grubbed for worms.  We know that although the cats stay away from our property PTL! and thank you Donkey, they are still in the woods surrounding us.  Several weeks ago a large bull elk was spotted near our road.  How many times are you riding in an area like this and the horses are spooking like crazy?  How do you know when they are being silly and how many times is their heightened awareness based on a true predator following us through the trees?

I continued feeding the horses, on one hand tired of all the flooding and standing water and mud; while so grateful for any bit of moisture on the other hand.  After being evacuated for 5 days a couple of years ago, and having the fire so close that it was a roaring freight train of orange and red, dropping embers over the house and buildings, one can never be appreciative enough of the life saving water we are given with each precious drop of rain.  It's kind of funny how Magic can walk through 6 to 8 inches of muddy water just fine when he comes to ask for his dinner, but on the trail, each and every drop of water wants to kill him.

We were doing some desensitization with Precious the other day.  She has had very little training due to the fact that she is supposed to run free and Mikey and Ikey needed to be adopted out.  I had some very large-bubbled, bubble wrap.  So I put it out in front of their feeder.  DaBubbles, of course, walked right on it and then he stopped, put his head down and started pawing, popping bubble after bubble.  This of course freaked out Precious to no end, but after a couple of days she was not nearly as startled when she heard the pops.   We also put out a bright blue tarp for them to eat on and she figured that out in a jiffy.   (And yes, I always have an alternative spot so if she is too nervous she still gets her munchies.) 

It will be very hard to load her up and take her back to her forever home, especially because the nursery is absolutely empty.  It is so hard knowing that there are babies out there and only some of them will be found in time to help them.  Every time the phone rings, I wonder, is it a baby call.   The first thing I do now every single day is check the computer, because that is where I found out about Precious and Mikey and Ikey.  We are getting lots done with no one in the nursery, but how my heart breaks at what could have been if Angel hadn't been hit so badly by that car.  She would most likely have been rehabbing here right now.  So please say your prayers that if there are babies out there and need us, they are found in time.

Shirley, (my mentor and "sister"), recently went and picked up an orphan who was standing alone by some big rocks.  The ladies that found him were on a ride and did everything perfectly.  They did not approach him, or touch him, but simply rode off and came back about an hour later.  This gives the foal time for his momma and the band to come back if they are going to, and he won't smell like a human.  Luckily for the little guy who is now named "Chance", the girls called Shirley and she went out and brought him in.  He is thriving in her nursery, although he still is under 24/7 observation and care, as he is still not for sure out of the woods.  Again, we do not know why he was left behind.  The band could have been scared off or the discharge in his eyes could have meant he would not survived without meds.  Only God knows, and I am so grateful it was His plan for this little one to be found in time.  The next day would have been too late, most likely.

We will keep you updated on the "baby status".  The rest of the critters are doing well and enjoying their romps in the mud.  Please contact us at [email protected] to come and visit or if you know of an orphan in need.

coming up on foal season, and we are definitely set up and ready for the next little one who needs us.  But it is always nice to know the ones that are healthy and rehabbed have found their perfect home, as the new ones always need most of our attention.  I get happier each day with all the improvements we have been making here.  Whether it is cleaning up slash or putting the finishing touches on the fencing and gates, it is just awesome to know that we are finally pretty well set up.  We still need to build a couple of shelters and another little place for hay, but after 2 1/2 years of working on the property, we are well on the way to having things set up the in best way possible to provide the best possible care for our critters and to share all of them with y'all.

We recently had the honor of taking Dabubbles for a "meet and greet" at One Safe Place, in Redding, California.   (One Safe Place is where people can stay or find help due to domestic violence or other situations that make it impossible for them to be safe at home.)  What an awesome day.  DaBubbles, our miniature therapy horse, (who looks kind of like a wooly mammoth right now) shone like the star he is.  The kids and adults had big smiles on their faces and you could see the joy that DaBubbles seems to bring about.  The kids brushed him, walked him, trotted him and fed him.  It was so nice to see their cares melt away, even if only for a few hours.  One young man was quite impressed that we drove "that far - just so DaBubbles could come visit". 

We have been doing a lot of work as far as perimeter fencing that will hopefully keep out the coyotes.  Our war veteran, and my service dog, "Soldier", is beyond happy as now he gets to patrol the front part of the property.  Even when he lays down in the front, it looks as though he is bursting with pride.  He just seems to radiate pride and happiness, as he sits out front with his chest all pumped up.  I guess after being an active soldier, not being able to have free run of the property was an insult to his dignity.

So we are very happy and thankful for all the blessings we have received this last year.  Our next biggest goals at this time is finding Mikey & Ikey a home, as well as the stray dog that we have been fostering.  These are some wonderful animals that will bring a lot of joy to whomever adopts them.  If you have any interest in adopting, please call me at 530 474 5197 or go to our webste at www.chillypepper.weebly.com or contact me at [email protected].  We look forward to hearing from folks and to our visitors.  We have had quite a few this last year and it brings joy to our hearts to share first hand this wonderful experience.

Hi y'all,


Well it has been pretty busy here.  We got home from the trip to Carson, (Earth Day Celebration with Rocky and Robin), the long road down to Las Vegas to drop off the Rock Star, back to Carson to the prison to pick up 2 mares and foals and deliver them to a beautiful ranch near Sacramento, and finally arrived home, safe but tired.


Collins has about 1600 miles under his belt and will hop in the trailer all by himself.  (I am SO PROUD!)   After spending one (and only one) night in the trailer, he had quit jumping in on his own.  But now he is back to my little man and just "loads up" by himself.  WOOHOOO!!  (This is also a really good indicator of how much he is NOT bothered by travelling or spending time in the trailer.)   His wounds are nearly healed and he is still friends with the dobermans.  So that is really great news that he isn't terrified of dogs, per say.  However, if he hears one in fighting mode, he can definitely show some signs of worry.


We will soon be introducing him (again) to Romeo and DaBubbles.  I am looking forward to pairing him up with DaBubbles, our miniature, as he is much smaller than Collins.  Dabubbles  will teach him that although Collins is much bigger than DaBubbles, he will still not be able to boss DaBubbles around, even if he is the 'biggest".  Since he will soon be bigger than me, I want him to know that respect has nothing to do with size.  We have waited a little bit longer than normal to introduce him to his "horsey brothers", due to his injuries from the dogs.  We didn't want to take a chance of a wound being re opened or Collins getting "hit where it hurts".  But it is imperative that he learns respect from the horses as soon as possible.  Where his natural mama would smack him or bite him when he is out of line, as much as we try to make sure that we are right on top of correcting his bad habits, there is nothing on this earth as good as his real mama, or other members of the herd to teach them about respect.  This will keep us safe when we are around him when he weighs 1000 pounds, and save him a lot of heartbreak and stress while he learns his manners and what he needs to know in life.  Since he already spends about a quarter of his time on his hind feet, striking and playing, it will be even more important that he respects our space and doesn't accidentally hurt anyone.


It is quiet here with out our beloved girls, and my heart is still breaking.  However, I am glad that I posted what happened, even though it was so difficult to do.   I am amazed at the number of people who have contacted me and said the same thing or something similar had happened to them.  I was told that there was even a young mom in Nevada whose toddler had went outside through a doggie door, only to be killed by the family pets.  Please pray for the family.  Although I don't know  the exact details, I do know that this young mom will always have to live with this and she only needs love and prayers, not prosecution.  It was a horrible accident and I think that we need to remember that although we love and trust our animals implicitly, there is always a tiny chance that there could be a tragedy we weren't expecting.  We cannot always predict how they are going to react.


Thank you for all your support and for being part of our rescue.  If any of you are good at fund raising ideas, please call me.  I could seriously use some help in that area.  Would love any ideas for a fun event.  God bless, stay safe and give your loved ones big hugs and kisses while you can!  


p.s.  Please remember that now that Rocky is safe in his new home in Las Vegas, and yes, I am still crying a little bit, we need to concentrate on finding Romeo a forever home!  He is a beautiful yearling and as sweet as can be!