Equine lovers can help by volunteering skills

By Marty Metzger
Correspondent

Volunteer opportunities abound for northern Colorado horse lovers of all ages. Unpaid tasks at a myriad of equine facilities run the gamut. Volunteers can work up a healthy sweat, get their hands dirty or comfortably recline at a desk.

Front Range Exceptional Equestrians is an all-volunteer-run program that provides horses and instruction to children and adults with disabilities. Its weekly sessions are held at Legacy Stables in Fort Collins and at Colorado State University. FREE is always seeking suitable horses to be trailered by owners to the classes and side-walkers to assist riders. The volunteer coordinator can be reached at 221-0646 for more information.

It's pony time all the time at The Farm at Lee Martinez Park. Children ages 13 to 18 can gain experience while having fun cleaning and feeding year-round. For details call 221-6665.

Horse fanciers also can help meet the ongoing needs of area and regional rescues. The horse slaughter industry still provides horsemeat for human consumption in Europe, with many equines from the United States trucked to Canada and Mexico for slaughter. Consequently, rescue facilities are constantly battling space and financial limitations. The quicker an animal can be placed with an adopter or in foster care, the faster another can be saved. Volunteers make all the difference for many slaughter-bound horses and rescue groups.

One that highly values its helpers is Denkai Animal Sanctuary in Carr. While the rescue provides a second chance to a variety of species, equines are a primary focus. Many groups and individuals take advantage of the opportunity to help at Denkai.

For example, more than 50 incoming CSU freshmen chartered a Greyhound bus last year for a workday in the country. CSU Unity, comprised of sororities and fraternities, likewise spent a day at Denkai, and Corbett Hall annually sends 10 to 50 people out for a day of brisk poop-scooping, fence-building, vehicle-repairing and animal-grooming.

Best Buy assists Denkai by donating $1,000 for every 40 hours each employee volunteers. Other supporters have included Turning Point, Peak School, Pioneer School, Weld County Partners, Berthoud Reflections for Youth, Larimer County Mental Health and folks working off community service hours. Individual volunteers include novice and experienced horse lovers, each of whom offer some special interest or talent.

Shannon Canfield, for example, has been donating her multi-faceted services at Denkai for more than a year. She originally sponsored Black Magic, a 5-year-old Paint mare that had been headed to slaughter. The young horse was a biter and kicker. Canfield patiently worked with Black Magic, eventually promoting herself from sponsor to adopter.

In 2006, Canfield organized a fund-raiser at Barnes and Noble and a bowl-a-thon at Chippers. She does community outreach to obtain donations such as equine senior feed from Cache la Poudre Feeds.

"My dream was always to own my own horse," said 29-year-old Canfield. "So working out there [Denkai] fulfilled that dream. I've always loved animals and I like that they are saved from slaughter or abuse."

Canfield's 4-year-old daughter, Makayla, is trotting right behind in mom's animal-loving footsteps. Makayla adopted Walter, a 6-month-old St. Bernard/Chow pup from Denkai in February.

A 15-year-old Denkai volunteer, Elli Poysti of Masonville, works hard to earn money to help care for May, a 9-year-old mare. May is one of the "Miracle Horses," so named because they were saved from an Illinois slaughterhouse in April. The Humane Society of the United States quickly acted to rescue as many as possible when a judge decided to temporarily close the plant. May survived, along with 31 others, and recovered from emaciation and gouged jaws. She is now a fit and muscled mare found to be incredibly well trained.

Elli and her family fostered May over the summer and expect to continue in that capacity through the autumn and winter.

Another Denkai teen volunteer is 15-year-old Katrina Stowasser of Fort Collins. She worked with two of the Miracle Horses, Smiley, a 23-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, and Lena, a 21-year-old mare that is in foal.

Katrina earns her own money to help the horses and has set up a web site, www.freewebs.com/mysponsorhorse, to report on the horses she sponsors and the Miracle Horses. She also provides a link to Denkai's information-packed site, www.denkaisanctuary.org.

When Smiley was fostered out, Katrina next sponsored Big Red, a 6-year-old chestnut OTT gelding whose attitude was "very laid back and lazy," she said. "His attitude was 'just pet me!'"

Red was recently adopted, and Stowasser chose to sponsor Commander, a 19-year-old National Show Horse whose attitude is far from laid back. He is a high-energy guy.

Volunteerism is a Stowasser family trait. Younger sister Kayanna, 13, brushed horses and has sponsored Cherokee Whisper. Cat-loving 12-year-old Sierra works socializing more than 15 cats and kittens, all but five of which started out wild.

Katy Hastings, 18, accompanied Denkai's transport to Louisiana last year to rescue 50 dogs and puppies that were still homeless from Hurricane Katrina. Hastings has since sponsored personable, elderly Flicka, a black mare that was saved from slaughter last October.

Volunteer opportunities at Denkai include horse handler, animal rescue, animal socializing, mobile unit operator for adoptions, fund-raising and special events organizer, barn helper, office and administration, community outreach, newsletter and public relations. Applications can be completed online on the web site or by calling 897-3122 for more information.

Two more facilities always seeking volunteers are Hearts & Horses in Loveland, 663-4200, and Colorado Horse Rescue in Longmont, 720-494-1414.

Everyone who appreciates the equine species will bring abilities, ideas and energies to a volunteer experience. In return, they'll receive satisfaction, knowledge and fun. It's a blue-ribbon winning situation all the way around.