8/21 Update

Wow,  so much has been happening since our Open House.  We had to make an emergency trip to Washington State (we are losing my mom, and I had to go right away to make sure I could visit her and she would be aware that I had come).  We got that call and away we went.  Of course we had to take the bottle feeding kittens along, so it was quite the interesting ride.  Dalton and I had taken the truck to Roseburg, Oregon when we got the call.  My mom seems to be in a happy state, smiling alot and is not suffering much if any pain.  Still it is heartbreaking to be so far away at this time in her life.

I am sorry that it has taken so long to send out an update, but I just didn't have it in me.  But now I have to catch up and start "gittin' er done"

So here is the latest.  We tried putting another foal, Carson, in with Honey Bandit.  He is one of the youngsters at the sanctuary, so he is not very aggressive at all.  He simply gave Honey Bandit "the look", and that was pretty much it.  There was no biting or kicking or chasing whatsoever.  However, Honey Bandit was completely traumatized, and spent the next half hour??? or so at the fence.  He was alternating from deciding to jump it or crawl through it.  We gave him some time, as we were hoping he would realize that he was okay and not in any danger.  But Honey Bandit was totally traumatized and frightened to death.  He would have hurt himself badly if we hadn't moved him out of the pen.  Carson was probably 50 to a100 feet away and totally ignoring him at that time..  

So I guess that shows that the roundups can leave a huge scar on these babies.  I was hoping he would be "bomb proof" from all the people and different experiences he has had.  But Honey Bandit, bless his little heart, seems to remember more of the scary stuff.  He is not one of those "freak out" horses normally.  If he is scared of something he will usually take his time and go investigate, which shows his superior intelligence.  (hee hee).  But he doesn't seem to remember all the blankets, leg warmers etc.  :) or all my hard work. haha

I have to say though, that I was really saddened at the fact that he was feeling so much terror simply by being in the same pen as a larger horse.  Honey Bandit knows how to move away, and follow the signals of the leader.  It is almost comical that his "leader" is a tiny little mini.  But at least he has respect for "space" etc. from being pushed around by Patches.  So he knows how to be a horse, he is just terrified of anything bigger than a dog.  Guess all those kicks and bites left more than physical scars.  So he seems like he will always be a "special needs" guy, but that is just fine and dandy.  He can still carry the message to stop the roundups and keep educating the kids.

We are on standby for the upcoming roundups in Oregon, and praying that there will be no orphans or injured babies, but if there are, we plan to be ready.  We are still looking for that "rolling hospital" and working on getting it supplied with all the necessary items.

Thank ya'll for coming and sharing the birthday party / Open House with us.  It was a wonderful way to celebrate.  Take care and God Bless.  We are starting to use our new mailing address.     

Chilly Pepper - Miracle Mustang
34694 SideBottom Road
Shingletown, CA  96088      

Phone numbers are still the same  530 474 5197   
530 339 1458 and don't forget to visit our website at www.chillypepper.weebly.com