All About Equine Animal Rescue, Inc. (AAE) is planning our 11th annual Boots & Bling celebrating our 15th year of rescue, which will be held Saturday, September 28, 2024 at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville, CA. Boots & Bling is an evening of family fun featuring DJ music, BBQ dinner, and auctions to benefit horses-in-need. Previous events have always been very popular, and the past six events sold out with over 400 ticket holders.
Our goal is to raise $125,000 at this year’s event. Funds are used to support general operating costs so we can continue to help horses and keep our programs growing.
Would you consider being one of our sponsors or donating an item to our auction to help the horses? We are looking for unique items, services or experiences. Everyone who sponsors and/or contributes items to Boots and Bling is posted on our website and/or social media, listed in the event program, as well as on the auction display and auction description.
If you can help, please let me know and I will provide you with more information/ documentation.
Thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity; your support makes a difference!
Boots & Bling: Event Info, Table and Event Sponsorships, Auction Donations, Volunteer Opportunities, and more!
Adoptable Horses
Volunteer Corner, Volunteer Needs
Other Ways to Help
AAE Friends, Supporters, & Service Providers
Dust off those boots and get ready to cut loose! Boots and Bling is coming soon!
AAE’s 11th Annual Boots and Bling will be held on Saturday, September 28, 2024 at 4pm in the Forni Building at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville, CA.
The evening will feature a delicious and full-of-flavor BBQ dinner by J. Wild’s of Folsom, auctions, dancing, hear about the horses we have helped, and more fun.
Boots and Bling supports AAE’s core mission of rescuing, rehabilitating, and re-homing horses (both wild and domestic) who have been neglected, abused, abandoned, and/or are otherwise at-risk. The evening is all about helping horses-in-need and our community!
This year is extra special because we are celebrating 15 successful years of working on the frontlines of equine rescue! Because it’s a milestone anniversary, we are planning some extra special and exciting things for the evening.
TABLE & EVENT SPONSORS OPPORTUNITIES
*** AVAILABLE NOW! ***
Sponsorship opportunities, from private family tables to exclusive business/corporate packages (and everything in between), range from $650 to $7500. Sponsor tables seat 12.
Sponsor packages are designed to provide branding exposure at Boots and Bling, through advertising and public relations, as well as potential exposure at the ranch in Pilot Hill and the tack store in Shingle Springs.
For more details and package options, please click here.
Contact our event team bootsnbling@allaboutequine.org to develop a package just for you that would be most beneficial to your business.
Table sponsorships aren’t only for businesses!
Table sponsorships are growing in popularity, and limited tables are available. Boots & Bling has sold out the past several years with upwards of 350 to 400 ticketholders.
Don’t miss your chance – secure your sponsorship/table now!
To get started, complete and submit the Sponsor Form in the downloadable packet (found here on our website) OR complete the online Sponsor Form.
Individual tickets will go on sale Thursday, August 1.
AUCTION ITEMS NEEDED
The Boots & Bling auctions are an extremely important part of this event. The funds raised from the evening, particularly the auction, provide critical funding that allow AAE to continue operations, keep our programs growing, and help more horses-in-need.
There are several ways you can make this year’s auction the best one yet!
Donate an item, experience, or volunteer your professional service (This evening is a great opportunity to highlight your business with 350+ in attendance)
Contact your family and network of friends and business associates who may be willing to donate items/products, services, or experiences.
Join our Boots & Bling Auction team and help us contact businesses about donating items/products, services, and experiences.
Refer someone you know to the Boots & Bling team. If you’re not comfortable asking, we would be happy to ask for you.
Thank You for Supporting AAE on Big Day of Giving!
Save the Date for Boots & Bling
Updated Adoptable Horses
Volunteer Corner, Volunteer Needs
AAE Friends, Supporters, & Service Providers
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Together, you gave $30,146 during Big Day of Giving to help horses-in-need! It was a BIG day indeed!
Thanks to you, we met our match, and we surpassed our overall BDOG goal! Once again, our amazing AAE community showed up for the horses and gave with their heart.
Thank you to the Sacramento Region Community Foundation for hosting this monumental Big Day of Giving to raise funds and awareness for so many wonderful organizations.
Together, we are making better lives for for horses like Stormy, but also our community.
Stormy’s owner passed away unexpectedly, and his family did not have the knowledge or resources to care for him. His and his mom lived quietly in a pasture. She found a home quickly; he sat waiting in alone in a pasture. Stormy was a 5-1/2 year old Quarter Horse stallion, and not only a stallion, but a cryptorchid (only one descended testicle). The family had a difficult time trying to rehome him, so they contacted us for help. Another horse-lover met Stormy shortly thereafter, and she offered to sponsor his needs so we could take him in. Besides needing castration, he was thin, his hooves were long, and he needed dental work. He didn’t know much about a halter and lead, either. Thankfully, he was well-mannered and good-natured, and we were able to get right to work. He progressed well at AAE. His basic care was updated, and he was gelded. He didn’t have to wait long before he found a new home; his sponsor adopted him, and now this sweet gelding has a wonderful family!
Your generosity and support is what gives horses like Stormy a second chance. Thank you!
Your donations, volunteering, adopting, and social media shares & likes really do make a difference; it’s what makes all of this work possible!
Today is the Big Day of Giving! Help us reach our goal!
Save the Date for Boots & Bling
Adoptable Horse Update
Volunteer Corner, Volunteer Needs
AAE Friends, Supporters, & Service Providers
Big Day of Giving (BDOG) is a 24-hour online giving challenge that helps AAE and other non-profits in the Sacramento area raise funds and awareness. It is a day to give where your heart is! To learn more about Big Day of Giving, visit www.bigdayofgiving.org.
Thank YOU for your donations so far today!! We’re so close to our goal, less than $4,000 to go. This is a Big day for AAE, and a very important day. Funding today helps bridge the gap between now and our annual Boots & Bling event in the fall. Your support helps horses-in-need like our recent large intake supporting law enforcement in a neglect case! Did you hear?
Back in early March, AAE was contacted by a Nor Cal law enforcement agency requesting assistance with a neglect case that involved 24 Arabian horses. We were told law enforcement stepped in when they learned of starving horses who had been abandoned on a large, remote, high desert property. Law enforcement started providing food and water for the animals from late 2023 until mid-February, but not before three were lost. By mid-February, they seized 21.
Twenty-one horses soon became 22 when a colt was born shortly after seizure. By the time AAE got involved, the horses had been under care of law enforcement for a few months. The horses’ body conditions had improved some, but they were still rough and in need of basic care. Together, with another rescue, we supported this effort, and in the end, AAE took in 15 of the horses (two pregnant heavily mares, four mare/foal pairs, and two young, sickly fillies). The other rescue took in seven (two mature stallions and young five stud colts). These are mostly younger Arabian horses. Basic care had been neglected for some time. In general, body conditions and hair coats were in poor condition, especially the foals and weanlings who were very heavily matted. Hooves were in poor condition with long toes, high heels, splits, cracks, and even one long slipper toe on a young filly. Dental care was needed for the mature horses. Arabian stallions (and potentially mustang stallions) had been running with the mares, so the older fillies and mares are all potentially pregnant.
The group joined us in Pilot Hill without much time to spare! The horses arrived on a Wednesday and just four days later, on Sunday, a new filly was born in the early morning. We named baby girl, Noah, and mom, Norah. About two weeks later, on Eclipse day, mom Sweeney, gave birth to a beautiful and healthy filly named Tyler (as in Bonnie Tyler who sang “Total Eclipse of the Heart”). The new fillies brought our intake total from this seizure from 15 to 17! That’s a BIG number for one intake!
Another important detail. Though most of the horses were friendly, few were familiar with halters and leading. After quarantine, education kicked into high gear. Once we could halter and lead, AAE began updating basic needs (hoof and dental care, vaccines, and deworming), microchipping, DNA analysis, and pregnancy checks, as well as other diagnostics/treatment that was needed (e.g. radiographs of slipper hoof, wound treatment, post-delivery foal testing, etc.). We’re close to all being done.
Once the horses are current with basic care and any additional needs, they’ll be available for adoption. Colts will need to be gelded, and foals will need to be weaned.
You did it! We met our $6000 Match! Just like that we doubled our impact! Thank you for you help in getting us there! And, thank you to our anonymous angels who offered to match your donations!
The match may have been met, but we aren’t done yet! We are only about $5500 away from our Big Day of Giving goal of $30,000, and there are about seven hours left to give!
(1) Set up a bill pay with your bank for a one-time (or recurring) donation.
(2) Mail a check to:
All About Equine Animal Rescue, Inc.
2201 Francisco Drive #140-174
El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
(3) Drop off your donation at:
AAE’s Used Tack Store
4050 Durock Road #6
Shingle Springs, CA 95682
(4) Donate online using a credit card, Venmo, or PayPay by clicking here.
(5) Text AAEBDOG to 53-555.
(6) Venmo your donation to @allaboutequine
(7) Check with your employer to see if they offer matching funds for your donations (another way to double your impact!).
Other Ways to Support AAE
· Give your time and become an AAE volunteer! We are always in need of volunteers and have opportunities at the ranch, the AAE Used Tack Store, remote roles (such as our outreach, grants, fundraising, or events teams), and more.
· Adopt! We have some wonderful horses looking for a forever home
· Sponsor a horse! Donate in honor of a specific horse and make a monthly donation to help cover his/her costs for basic and maintenance care while he/she awaits his/her forever family. Become a hero for a horse! Learn more about our sponsorship program here.
· Shop at the AAE Used Tack Store in Shingle Springs! There you can purchase tack, clothing, boots, and other items to benefit AAE’s rescue operations. The store also accepts donations of gently used tack, ranch equipment, and other ranch related items.
· Join us at Boots and Bling. Sponsor the event, purchase tickets, or donate to our auctions. Celebrate our 15th Anniversary this year on September 28 at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds.
· With our partner, FreeWill, you can include a gift to All About Equine in your will or revocable living trust without spending anything today. It’s a powerful way to rescue, rehabilitate, and rehome horses…today, tomorrow, and for generations to come. Begin your legacy with All About Equine.
· Turn your car, RV, truck, boat, trailer, motorcycle, and/or other vehicle into support for AAE! Learn more through our partner: CARS.
· Donate art, jewelry, coins, or similar items.
· Follow us on Facebook and Instagram then like, share, and comment on our posts!
With BIG thanks to two special, anonymous and generous horse-loving supporters, donations to AAE from now through 11:59:59 pm will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $6,000!
Donate now to double your donation and help us create brighter futures for horses-in-need!
1) Set up a bill pay with your bank for a one-time (or recurring) donation.
(2) Mail a check to:
All About Equine Animal Rescue, Inc.
2201 Francisco Drive #140-174
El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
**If you plan to send a check, please send us an email and let us know so we can count your donation towards the match.
(3) Drop off your donation at:
AAE’s Used Tack Store
4050 Durock Road #6
Shingle Springs, CA 95682
(4) Donate online using a credit card, Venmo, or PayPay by clicking here.
(5) Text AAEBDOG to 53-555.
(6) Venmo your donation to @allaboutequine
(7) Check with your employer to see if they offer matching funds for your donations (another way to double your impact!).
Other Ways to Support AAE
· Give your time and become an AAE volunteer! We are always in need of volunteers and have opportunities at the ranch, the AAE Used Tack Store, remote roles (such as our outreach, grants, fundraising, or events teams), and more.
· Adopt! We have some wonderful horses looking for a forever home
· Sponsor a horse! Donate in honor of a specific horse and make a monthly donation to help cover his/her costs for basic and maintenance care while he/she awaits his/her forever family. Become a hero for a horse! Learn more about our sponsorship program here.
· Shop at the AAE Used Tack Store in Shingle Springs! There you can purchase tack, clothing, boots, and other items to benefit AAE’s rescue operations. The store also accepts donations of gently used tack, ranch equipment, and other ranch related items.
· Join us at Boots and Bling. Sponsor the event, purchase tickets, or donate to our auctions. Celebrate our 15th Anniversary this year on September 28 at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds.
· With our partner, FreeWill, you can include a gift to All About Equine in your will or revocable living trust without spending anything today. It’s a powerful way to rescue, rehabilitate, and rehome horses…today, tomorrow, and for generations to come. Begin your legacy with All About Equine.
· Turn your car, RV, truck, boat, trailer, motorcycle, and/or other vehicle into support for AAE! Learn more through our partner: CARS.
· Donate art, jewelry, coins, or similar items.
· Follow us on Facebook and Instagram then like, share, and comment on our posts!
Big Day of Giving (BDOG) is a 24-hour online giving challenge that helps AAE and other non-profits in the Sacramento area raise funds and awareness. It is a day to give where your heart is! To learn more about Big Day of Giving, visit www.bigdayofgiving.org.
This is a Big day for AAE, and an important day. Funding today helps bridge the gap between now and our annual Boots & Bling event in the fall. Your support helps horses-in-need like Trinity, Rimes, Sage, Elvie, and Kinsey, recent law enforcement intakes.
This year, we’ve had a surge in requests for assistance from law enforcement. Trinity and Rimes were seized in a nearby cruelty case.
TrinityRimes
Both were thin and needing help. Trinity’s hooves were in poor condition, and she had a large swelling over a front fetlock. Radiographs and a vet exam indicated it appeared to be scar tissue from an old injury that was likely untreated.
Rimes was lame with swelling over her right rear pastern, and her long hooves caused more pain and discomfort. Radiographs showed two older, unhealed fractures in her hind pastern.
Visit Trinity and Rimes‘ webpages for additional information and photos of each gal.
AAE was also called to help with foster and medical assistance for three horses from a stray/abandonment case. They were all thin and needing basic care, too. Kinsey had an old, open laceration over a hind fetlock. Elvie had very long, neglected hooves and infected eyes, and Sage had a nail in her hoof.
KinseyElvieSage
When no one came forward to claim any of the horses, they were transferred to AAE. Their basic needs (hoof and dental care, vaccines and deworming) were updated, and they each received a microchip, as well as other diagnostics/treatment necessary (e.g. radiographs of long hooves and nail in hoof, wound treatment, etc).
You can learn more about each horse and see additional photos by visiting their pages: Kinsey, Elvie, Sage
When horses arrive at AAE, they often need their basic care updated (dental and hoof care, vaccines, deworming, etc). Some require more, such as diagnostics, treatment, and sometimes surgery. That’s why Big Day of Giving is so important. We need to be ready and able to provide the necessary care for horses who come to AAE. Feed and care costs have skyrocketed the last few years, and it’s getting more and more difficult to keep up with so many horses-in-need. Your support keeps us helping horses every day!
Give now and anytime until 11:59:59 pm tonight!
Donate for Big Day of Giving, and create a better future for horses-in-need!
It’s the Big Day of Giving, and we are so grateful for your ongoing support and dedication to helping horses-in-need! This is a very important funding day for AAE that supports our cause serving horses-in-need throughout the year.
Your gift this Big Day of Giving will helps provide funding for feed, veterinary care (basic and emergency), hoof and dental care, and all the other basic care and maintenance needs throughout the year.
You are why we are able to help horses like Miles, Monroe, Liza, and Lola!
Miles, Monroe, Liza, and Lola came to AAE as the result of a collaboration with another rescue organization. This is a group of young reservation mustangs. Miles and Monroe had been with a foster who didn’t have experience with mustangs, and Liza and Lola had been with another foster who didn’t have adequate facilities for gentling mustangs. They were unhandled/unhalterable, and as a result, they hadn’t had any dental or hoof care, vaccines, or deworming. Hooves were long, and Miles was intact and needed to be gelded. There was no adoption interest, and no other fosters available to help. They were not making any progress in furthering their gentling to get them the care they needed. We were asked to assist and the group was transferred to AAE. Monroe and Miles came in December 2023. Lola and Liza came in January 2024.
Thank you for being such an important part of the AAE volunteer team! You ARE the heartbeat of AAE, and we couldn’t make this world a better place for horses without every one of you!
With every moment given, your passion, love, dedication, and hard work make a significant difference in the lives of horses and for AAE. The work isn’t always glamorous and the weather isn’t always ideal, but you show up to get the job done, and you save lives! Thank you for your commitment to the horses.
Special recognition to all of our Shift Leads and Team Leads that have made the huge dedication to the horses, their teams, and AAE leadership.
Without all of you, there is no AAE. You truly make the world go around at AAE, you make a much better world for the horses we serve, and it is an absolute privilege to have you in our herd!
Thank YOU!
Would you like to join our volunteer team? Start here.
Did you know? Big Day of Giving is Thursday, May 2, and early giving starts TODAY! Big Day of Giving is a very important funding day for AAE and ALL of the horses we care for every day throughout the year. This year is as important as ever, as the need is extremely high!
Help us kickstart this year’s event and assure we reach our goal by making a gift anytime from today until midnight on May 2.
You can also raise the bar for horses-in-need by pledging matching funds! Inspire giving, and you can make your impact twice as BIG!
To learn more about starting your own matching funds campaign for the horses and AAE, send us an email. We would appreciate that in a Big DOG way.
(1) Set up a bill pay with your bank for a one-time (or recurring) donation.
(2) Mail a check to:
All About Equine Animal Rescue, Inc.
2201 Francisco Drive #140-174
El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
(3) Drop off your donation at:
AAE’s Used Tack Store
4050 Durock Road #6
Shingle Springs, CA 95682
(4) Donate online using a credit card, Venmo, or PayPay by clicking here.
(5) Text AAEBDOG to 53-555.
(6) Venmo your donation to @allaboutequine
(7) Check with your employer to see if they offer matching funds for your donations (another way to double your impact!).
Other Ways to Support AAE
Give your time and become an AAE volunteer! We are always in need of volunteers and have opportunities at the ranch, the AAE Used Tack Store, remote roles (such as our outreach, grants, fundraising, or events teams), and more.
Sponsor a horse! Donate in honor of a specific horse and make a monthly donation to help cover his/her costs for basic and maintenance care while he/she awaits his/her forever family. Become a hero for a horse! Learn more about our sponsorship program here.
Shop at the AAE Used Tack Store in Shingle Springs! There you can purchase tack, clothing, boots, and other items to benefit AAE’s rescue operations. The store also accepts donations of gently used tack, ranch equipment, and other ranch related items.
Join us at Boots and Bling. Sponsor the event, purchase tickets, or donate to our auctions. Celebrate our 15th Anniversary this year on September 28 at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds.
With our partner, FreeWill, you can include a gift to All About Equine in your will or revocable living trust without spending anything today. It’s a powerful way to rescue, rehabilitate, and rehome horses…today, tomorrow, and for generations to come. Begin your legacy with All About Equine.
Turn your car, RV, truck, boat, trailer, motorcycle, and/or other vehicle into support for AAE! Learn more through our partner: CARS.
AAE Friends, Supporters, Service Providers, & Boots & Bling Sponsors
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you all for your support and generous contributions assisting with our recent law enforcement intakes.With supporters like you, we know we can give second chances to so many horses-in-need.
LARGE SEIZURE GROUP UPDATE
This sweet mare finally delivered a beautiful and healthy little filly on Eclipse Day, and she’s so excited to share the news. Her little’s name is Tyler (as in Bonnie Tyler and “Total Eclipse of the Heart”). Mom is Sweeney. Y’all know our new intakes all get country artist inspired names, right?
Is she not the most precious creature?? This makes two new little fillies who were able to come into a much better world thanks to all of you. Both moms and babies are doing well.
The first filly and her mom have new names, too! Everyone, meet Noah and her mom Norah.
We were asked to assist with three more of the potentially pregnant mares from the group of 22 seized horses. The other rescue assisting with this group was unable to take the mares, so we jumped into action and picked them up just over a week ago. They’ve been reunited with their herdmates at AAE! Stay tuned for more updates on these all of these ladies. There’s so much more to share!
Meet Kacey, Mica, and…
… Karli!
We’re working our way through all of these beautiful mares and foals. Most are unfamiliar with a halter and lead (or act like they are), so they’re learning to live in our human world. Most aren’t familiar with hoof handling, either. We are working toward their spa days when they will have their dental and hoof care, as well as vaccines and microchips. Mares who are not with new foals and who are not obviously pregnant will be preg checked, too. Once they’re current with basic care and any further evaluation needed, they’ll be available for adoption. Keep an eye on the website, if you’re interested.
If you’re able to help support the costs associated with this rescue, please donate, post, share, etc. These horses appreciate your support, and so does everyone at AAE!
Please consider sponsoring a horse or creating a sponsor team. Sponsoring with a monthly donation is a huge way to help cover the ongoing costs for basic and maintenance care as horses await there forever family. Become a Hero for a horse! Learn more about our sponsorship program here.
AAE Friends, Supporters, Service Providers, & Boots & Bling Sponsors
March was an incredibly busy month at AAE with several law enforcement intakes, and together we have been able to help so many horses-in-need. Before we could introduce two new horses to you, we got the call regarding the big seizure. While the group of 12 is wrapping up their quarantine, we’re taking a few minutes to introduce the two new kids.
TRINITY AND RIMES
AAE welcomed Trinity and Rimes last month after they were seized by law enforcement in a cruelty case. (More applause for law enforcement!) These two were thin and not so trusting when we arrived to pick them up. Despite being hesitant to be haltered, they both loaded into the trailer without issue.
Trinity
Trinity is about a two-year old filly. She has swelling above one of her front fetlocks, and from radiographs and a vet exam, it appears to be scar tissue from an old soft tissue injury that was likely untreated.
After quarantine, Trinity received dental care, vaccines, and deworming, and she got a microchip. She’s been terrified of anyone touching her legs, let alone trying to pick up her hooves, so hoof care is a work in progress until we can handle her hooves safely and our farrier can work safely. Fortunately, her hooves are in fair condition.
Trinity is starting to enjoy people more and more (as long as they aren’t touching her legs or hooves), and we know she’ll make someone a wonderful partner. She will be available for adoption, soon!
Rimes
Rimes is an estimated 2013 mare with a beautiful, icy blue eye. Upon arrival to AAE, she was lame with swelling over her right rear pastern, and her long hooves (especially the right hind) caused more pain and discomfort. Pain meds and a quick trim to the long hind provided her with immediate relief.
Rimes’s basic needs were updated: dental and hoof care, vaccines, and deworming, along with a microchip. Additionally, we needed radiographs to better understand what was going on with her hind pastern. We learned this poor girl has two older, unhealed fractures in her hind pastern. A fracture at the bottom of the bone is almost fused, but the second at the top of the bone is not healing. She is currently on stall rest and daily medication in hopes the upper fracture will heal with some quiet time. Rimes will be re-evaluated in two to three months to see if the fracture has healed. If not, surgery will be considered. If the fracture has healed, she will be available for adoption as a non-riding companion.
Despite her current condition, Rimes seems more comfortable and more trusting than when we first met. She is a sweet mare, and we are hopeful she will heal so she can find her special human and have a special relationship for the rest of her days. Keep your fingers crossed for this sweet gal.
Most new intakes have had little to no basic care, and often other issues or injuries go untreated like Trinity and Rimes. New intakes generally need, at minimum, hoof and dental care, vaccines, deworming, and a microchip. Often times, they need more, like diagnostics (e.g. lab work, radiographs, etc.), various treatments, or even surgery (e.g. castration, etc.). Most are thin to emaciated and it takes time and extra feed for their body conditions to return to normal.
Your support today and every day assures we can assist horses-in-need, including these coming in through law enforcement, to help them transition from rescued to rehomed.
AAE has a very heavy population right now, and it’s especially important we have the resources to support law enforcement when asked. If you can donate to help support the care costs for these two sweet girls, please do. Your support makes this work possible, and it makes a difference in the lives of horses-in-need.
It looks like we got everyone here with no time to spare!! We have a new foal from the rescued group! A new filly was born very early Sunday morning! She’s a big distraction, and it’s hard to get our work done! Both mom and filly are doing well.
As you can see, baby girl is adorable! She is tall, and mom is so relieved her big belly is gone! Mom went from uncomfortably full-figured to trim, in just a short while. Pictured above left was mom last Friday and again, yesterday morning. She arrived back at AAE late Wednesday night, and baby came early Sunday morning. She had barely moved to her own paddock on Saturday, but it was just in the nick of time. If you missed the story about how/why they came to AA, click here.
Welcome to the world, precious girl! You are already loved beyond your imagination!
Thanks for your patience. It’s been a busy couple days.
Please accept our heartfelt gratitude for your passion for and commitment to helping horses! Thank YOU for donating, sharing this story, and sending your love.
We are always awed by the kindness of our community, but this time, we are absolutely overwhelmed by the outpouring of generosity and support. Everyone came together and raised three times our initial goal for these horses. It’s amazing, it’s what we need with an undertaking like this, and you came through in a big way! Thank you so much for helping!
On Wednesday, our plan was to pick-up three or four of the heavily pregnant mares and a mare & colt pair, then return in the near future for an additional five or six mares and weanlings. Well, as with anything horse-related it seems, once we arrived, there was another plan in the making. We left Pilot Hill early morning, and after a long day, we returned to AAE with the 11 original horses we committed to, plus an extra! In rescue work (and with horses), we’ve learned that we need to be prepared for the unexpected! Thanks to our community of horse-loving folks, our wonderful volunteers, and a few other caring individuals, we handled a quick pivot and got it done!
We are eager to learn more about these girls and the two little guys as we move them forward to better health.
After figuring out who was who, and who would ride where, the horses were sorted and loaded. Despite being so young, the littlest guy and his mom handled the journey well (as did the rest of the herd). Back at AAE in the dark, the group was unloaded into three large, connecting paddocks, and they spent the next morning huddled together, relaxing as the sun came up. (The rising sun was beautiful, but not great for photos). They spent the day settling into their new surroundings, while enjoying a little TLC. Everyone is adjusting in nicely, and we are eager to get to work! Thanks to your support, life is already getting better for these beautiful fur babies! Stay tuned for more updates!
…and know, even though we reached our initial goal, please don’t let that hinder you from donating now or in the future to support these horses. Wednesday was just the beginning, and there will be ongoing costs associated with the continuing needs of this group of horses (not to mention all of the other horses in our care). Each will initially get their basic care needs met: dentals (for those two years and older), hoof care, vaccines, deworming, and a microchip. The filly with the slipper hoof (pictured above) will have hoof radiographs, and the mare with the infected leg will receive treatment. Babies are coming soon, and any newborn foals will have IgG testing to assure they have absorbed ample antibodies from mom’s colostrum. Mares were free-roaming with stallions, so we suspect all the girls are pregnant. The mares who are not obviously pregnant will have blood drawn for pregnancy testing. There are also two colts (so far) who will need to be castrated. Once each horse is in good health, he or she will be available for adoption and receive maintenance care until finding his or her person. As you can see and as many of you know, there’s a lot that goes into rescue after initial intake, and it often feels like intake is the easiest part.
Please consider sponsoring a horse or creating a sponsor team. Sponsoring with a monthly donation is a huge way to help cover the ongoing costs for basic and maintenance care as horses await there forever family. Become a Hero for a horse! Learn more about our sponsorship program here. More individual horse information will be available soon.
AAE hasn’t taken on a larger scale rescue in some time, but this one hits close to home and takes us back to our roots (mare/foal pairs and pregnant mares). It compels action! Think back to 2009, Sierra/Dayton/Clayton, Lacy/Sparky, Zuni/Fallon, Takela/Carson, and the many moms and babies that followed. Team AAE is currently en route to support a Nor Cal law enforcement agency with a large horse seizure. This group of horses was discovered abandoned on a large property several months ago and left to fend for themselves in high desert conditions. They were starving when discovered, and a few perished before law enforcement began providing feed and ultimately seizing 20+ animals. The horses were transported for care by the agency, and they have been housed at a public facility.
Sadly, most law enforcement agencies don’t typically have the resources to provide the care and monitoring needed for a seizure of this scale, and many simply cannot or will not. We are so grateful this agency acted! These horses need resources and an environment where they can be monitored and care provided continuously, and we’re jumping into action to assure they get what they need.
AAE is working with another rescue to support this law enforcement agency with this large group that includes mostly pregnant mares, a couple mature stallions, and several stud colts and fillies. AAE is focusing on the pregnant mares, a mare/foal pair, and fillies while the other rescue is focusing on the stallions/colts. AAE is on the road now to pick-up the heavily pregnant mares that are imminent to foal. We’ll also bring back the mare/foal pair. Mom delivered a little colt (pictured above) in the last week, and they need to get to safety. We will know more about the remaining horses in the coming days.
One heavily pregnant mare has an infected leg; another young filly has a slipper foot; and thanks to feed provided by law enforcement, many that were malnourished are slowing regaining weight. They all appear to be friendly, willing, and handleable. Thankfully for most, their condition has improved since they were discovered. Nearly all (except the youngsters) need dental care, and all need hoof care, vaccines, and deworming. Some will need further diagnostics (e.g. hoof radiographs, pregnancy checks, etc.) along with treatment and any other needs discovered. Stay tuned for more info when we return.
This is a big undertaking! These horses need our support and proper care to get them back to good health, and to renew their faith in humans. Law enforcement agencies need to know we are here to support them when they take action. To our community, there’s a lot to do! These horses need you, and so do we!
Can you help us raise $5500 to help with the initial costs (approximately $500 per horse) of this intake? This should help with costs for transport, hoof and dental care, vaccines, deworming, and some of the other known issues. Additional funding will likely be needed as the mares deliver, and if additional vet needs are discovered, etc. Please help us get these sweet girls to safety. Take action, and donate now.
These horses will also need sponsors (or teams of sponsors) to help cover their ongoing costs of for basic care/maintenance. Become their hero and learn about our sponsorship program here. More individual horse information will be available soon.
It has been a little while since AAE has been contacted by law enforcement to assist with horses-in-need, but when it rains, it pours. We are currently assisting with three different cases. In addition to this seizure, we recently took in two medical horses from a nearby cruelty seizure, and we are fostering a group of three strays. Stay tuned for more information on these horses.
It is vitally important that we support law enforcement agencies with cases like these. We want them to know they will have our continued and dedicated support whenever they need to step in and intervene. When you support AAE, you support law enforcement agencies.
We have a variety of somewhat urgent volunteer opportunities, and we really need your help! As the transition to Pilot Hill is finally winding down (but not complete), we need to rebuild our volunteer teams!! Anyone interested in supporting this noble cause to help horses-in-need, we need YOU! Keep reading to see some of our most important needs: HORSE CARE, OUTREACH, FUNDRAISING, AAE’s USED TACK STORE, and GRANTS.
Whether you have volunteered with us or not, we want you! We have an amazing volunteer community, and learning can be easy!
Please read over these volunteer areas and see what interests you.
HORSE CARE
We are seeing a big spike in help requests from several nearby animal care agencies. We NEED to be able to support our law enforcement agencies that are one of the most important voices for our horses. We need more help at the barn to more effective and available to support.
Volunteers care for the horses and other animals daily, rain or shine, at our facility in Pilot Hill, CA. There are two shifts: morning (8:30am to 12:30pm-ish) and afternoon (3pm to 6pm-ish). There are MANY ways to help with horse and animal care, such as feeding, medicating, treating, grooming, mucking, loving the horses, etc.
If you are intimidated by horses, but LOVE them, you can help at the barn without having to work directly with a horse. There’s something for everyone. Other tasks include, fence repairs, fix-it needs, prepping feed, organizing, cleaning, equipment repair, grounds-keeping, etc. With 61-acres, the upkeep is huge!
For volunteers who want to help with care of the horses, there is a mandatory Basic Safety/New Volunteer Orientation where we introduce you to the basics of horse safety and the methods we use for handling horses at AAE. Horse experience is not necessary. We’ll teach you everything you need to know!
If you prefer not to volunteer directly with the horses, we recommend that you still participate in the Basic Safety/New Volunteer Orientation so you can familiarize yourself with barn procedures.
We have a variety of horses, and the safety of volunteers and horses is our number one priority!
Already know you want to volunteer? Submit a Volunteer Interest Form here.
If you have completed AAE’s Orientation and Basic Safety class, please select any shifts that work for your schedule here.
OUTREACH
AAE attends several well known community events, such as Western States Horse Expo, El Dorado County Fair, and Draft Horse Classic, as well as many other smaller events throughout the year to promote All About Equine. We share information with the general public about our organization, the work we do (rescue, rehab, rehoming, and more), volunteering, the AAE Used Tack Store, our events, and the many ways individuals, businesses, and organizations can support horses-in-need (sponsoring, donating, matching funds, etc.).
Next month, our Outreach Team will participate in the Gold Country Horse Day on April 6 at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds. This is a super fun event with lots of learning opportunities for everyone interested in horses. We need a few people to help with our “booth”. Experience with AAE is a plus, but not necessary. We have some talking point information for you if you don’t have a lot of experience with AAE. You will get a free ticket to the event, and parking is free.
If you enjoy talking with people, talking about horses, and talking about AAE, we need and want you on the Outreach Team!
Sign up for Gold Country Horse Day outreach shifts here. If you can’t help with this event, but you’re interested in future events, stay in the know by sending an email to our Outreach Team with a short note about your interest and any questions you might have.
FUNDRAISING/EVENTS
Fundraising support is a vital need for AAE! We need to secure funds to keep AAE operating and our programs afloat. If you have experience with a certain type of event or fundraising program, or you want to learn, we can use all the help we can get! If you’d like to organize a small event or activity, we need you!
Our most important current fundraising activity is this year’s Boots & Bling. The event will be held on September 28 and planning is underway. This is our biggest fundraiser of the year and a huge endeavor! Planning a fun and successful event is an enormous undertaking, and it takes an army of our horse warriors to make it happen. We need volunteers to help over the coming months, and on the event day itself. The following areas need volunteers in various capacities: auctions, sponsors, dinner, decor, facilities, graphics, marketing, volunteer coordinators, ticket sales, social media, set-up, break-down, other communications, and more. If you have experience and would like to lead a team, there are plenty of opportunities there, too.
If you’d like to help with Boots & Bling or other fundraising/events, please send an email with a short note about your interest to our Boots & Bling team.
USED TACK STORE
AAE operates a used tack store to sell tack and other horse-related items to raise funds for our rescue operations.
Volunteers are needed to support the store. Opportunities include daily store shifts, transporting donations, cleaning tack, researching items for pricing, merchandising, soliciting donations, photographing, posting inventory for sale on social media, and everything else involved in operating a used tack store.
The store is a VITAL part of our funding, and we are desperately short of volunteers to keep it operating. Can you help? The ideal commitment is one shift (4-hour) per week, but even one shift is helpful. Come check out the store and see if you thing you’d like it.
The AAE Used Tack Store is located at 4050 Durock Rd #6 in Shingle Springs, CA and it is open daily from 12-4pm.
To volunteer for a daily store shift, please sign up here.
To volunteer to clean tack, to help with social media for the store, or another store opportunity, please send an email to our Store Team.
GRANTS
Grant funding is also an important part of our funding. We currently need experienced grant writers, and we’d really benefit from a seasoned grant writer who is willing to help train a group of willing grant writers who want to learn.
If you have researched grants or have previous grant writing experience, we need YOU. Please join our grants team, even if you can tackle only one grant. If you’d like to learn, we want you, too. We’re are working towards a grants training opportunity, but aren’t quite there yet.
The horses (and other animals) of AAE want to show their love and appreciation for you today so they set up a kissing booth! Put on some lip balm and get ready to pucker up!
We are so thankful to have you by our side and in our community. You are an amazing bunch, and we wouldn’t be us without you.
We hope your day is filled with lots of love, chocolate, and sloppy kisses!
Your donations, volunteering, adopting, and social media shares & likes really do make a difference and make all of this work possible!
Miles and Monroe are both reservation mustangs who came to AAE at the end of December 2023 through collaboration with another organization. The pair had been with a foster family who didn’t have much experience with mustangs. They were unhandled, and, as a result, they had not received any vet care, vaccines, or hoof care. There was no adoption interest, they weren’t making any forward progress with gentling, and there wasn’t another foster who could take them. The organization approached AAE with a request to transfer. Thankfully, we had a several adoptions at the end of the year, which gave us the opportunity to help these two youngsters.
Miles is a stud colt, who will be gelded when he is more handleable. Monroe is a filly, both about 2 years old. Monroe miscarried an estimated four-month-old fetus shortly after she was rescued (yes, at not even two years old). They are both making progress with handling, and we’re looking forward to sharing their progress.
Miles and Monroe are not ready for adoption just yet, but in the meantime, they needs a sponsor (or a team of sponsors) to help support their care costs. Learn more and sign up here.
Your donations, volunteering, adopting, and social media shares & likes really do make a difference and make all of this work possible!
It’s time to start planning Boots & Bling 2024!
Boots & Bling is a big event, and we need help more than ever. We are looking for volunteers in all areas: auctions, sponsors, dinner, decor, facilities, graphics, marketing, volunteer coordinator, ticket sales, social media, other communications, and more.
Please help if you can! AAE and the horses will benefit greatly from having you on the team!
With a gift to All About Equine (AAE), you can create a lasting legacy and help us ensure a happy, safe journey for at-risk horses. Estate gifts have been instrumental in AAE’s growth and sustainability, allowing us to help more horses in the long term.
benefits.
Don’t wait! Leap into action by creating a robust estate plan through our trusted partner, FreeWill. FreeWill provides you with an easy-to-use, comprehensive, and free platform.
Additionally, if horses (and other equine/animals) are part of your family, FreeWill can help you establish a pet trust, and you can also appoint a pet guardian. Having a plan in place helps assure continuity of care for your animals should something happen to you.
We often hear about and care for horses left in the lurch because their owners didn’t have a plan in place. By working with a chosen guardian and including them in your estate plan, you help avoid heart-wrenching scenarios for your own horses and other animals. Your thoughtful planning makes their future as bright as can be.
Before naming a guardian for pets, it’s essential to chat with that person or organization to make sure they’re ready and able to take on such an important role.
Let’s saddle up and take the reins on this beautiful journey together. With your forward-thinking actions, our mission can continue to leap forward, making the world a brighter place for horses-in-need.
Warmly,
Wendy Digiorno
Executive Director, All About Equine Animal Rescue
P.S. If you’ve already included All About Equine Animal Rescue in your estate plan, please let us know so we can thank you for your support.
Meet Miss Lillie Mae! She is an adorable 8-10 year old jenny who came to AAE after auction and through Auction Horses Rescue. She completed quarantine (standard protocol for new intakes), and now, she is now being doted on daily. We don’t know much about her past, but her hoof care has been neglected for a long time, and she’s had intermittent lameness. So, we had Dr. Stolba out for radiographs early to evaluate. She’s very clubby and appears to have contracted tendons. Thanksfully, it’s not a laminitis/founder issue. She is a bit resistant to hoof handling and farrier care, and because of the tendon issues, we’re taking it slow (baby steps). Fortunately, she had her first trim (and deworming), and she’s looking so much better already. Lillie Mae is scheduled for her dental, vaccines, and microchip next week.
Lillie Mae is very sweet, and we are eager to get to know her better. She has the cutest ears, the cutest face, and the cutest bray! Admit it, she’s simply cute, cute, cute!
Lillie Mae enjoyed some peanut butter for National Peanut Butter Day today! She was one of the few from the entire herd who actually liked it!
Lillie Mae is not ready for adoption just yet, but in the meantime, she needs a sponsor (or a team of sponsors) to help support her care costs. Learn more and sign up here.
Your donations, volunteering, adopting, and social media shares & likes really do make a difference and make all of this work possible!
Thanks for your gracious and continued support of AAE!
Mud Stinks!
Can you help keep the horses out of the mud
by giving them the gift of a stall mat?
We’re in the middle of rainy season, and with the rain comes mud, especially with horses. We have 16 newer stalls/paddocks, and 12 need a bit more help with the mud. More stall mats will help keep the horses from standing in the mud all day/night, and they’ll help make more safe and healthy conditions.
With your help, we can purchase more stall mats to help get through the muddy winter, better.
Can you help cover the cost of one stall mat ($58.99), a set of six to complete one stall/paddock ($353.94), or any amount to help use mitigate the mud and use the stalls/paddocks for the better?
If we can purchase enough (25+), we can receive a small discount to reduce costs a little bit, too.
You’re support will help keep the horses on more solid ground!
