Sisters horse rescue needs help

Linda Leigh Daniel and husband Larry Boyd have watched the sad decline of the economy and its effect on horse owners. With hay prices rising and incomes falling, horses can become an overwhelming financial burden to struggling owners. Desperate owners have turned horses loose on public lands, abandoned their horses by tying them to someone else's trailer, or simply sold them to the nearest slaughter house.

Coupled with lameness issues and illnesses brought on by neglect or ignorance, many horses are left unsound and no longer able to carry a rider.

"These are the horses who become our greatest teachers," Linda said, "If we let them."

Daniel is the founder and operator of the nonprofit horse rescue organization Paso by Paso. Inspired by the Three Sisters Mountains - Faith, Hope and Charity - Linda is eager to share the organization's philosophy: "We have the blind faith to believe the horse can get well. We see the hope that exists in the horse's eyes and we draw on a heart full of charity to help the horses to live pain-free, valued lives. This example does transfer over as to how we will treat all of life, including ourselves."

Currently, Linda and her sporadic volunteer crew care for nine horses. Most are Peruvian Pasos ranging in age from 8 to 24 years old. The horses are from local barns and suffer from ailments like founder, Cushing's disease and insulin-resistance issues.

Most of the horses at Paso by Paso cannot be ridden, but Linda has found an amazing synergy between the horses and students who volunteer.

"The Bridges Boy's Academy are our angels. They do the work we can't," she said.

"It's wonderful to watch how certain people are drawn to particular horses. They heal each other," she beamed, "and it's just wonderful to watch it happen." In many cases, Linda has found out later that the kinds of abuse and trauma the horse had undergone are similar to the challenges the children have faced.

The amount of food, treatments and labor required to maintain and heal nine horses is immense. The horses go through about 40 bales of hay per month, which comes to about a ton of hay. With hay prices close to $300 per ton, it's easy to see how quickly costs can get out of hand.

"Recently, Black Diamond Ranch gave us three tons of beautiful hay," said Daniel. Their gift was even more important because hay the charity purchased earlier from a hay dealer had turned out to be moldy and had to be sold for low-grade cattle feed.

Along with feeding the horses, their individual treatments cost close to $309 per month. All told it costs the organization over $600 per month to keep the rehabilitation program going. And that's in a good month when there aren't unforeseen vet bills.

Paso by Paso ("Step by Step") grew out of Daniel's own difficulties. Facing surgery from car accidents suffered 23 years before, Linda was told her injuries made it impossible for her to continue riding horses. Like many dedicated horse-lovers that sentence was devastating.

While awaiting surgery, she discovered a Peruvian Paso who could no longer be ridden. His owners saw no value in keeping him, making his chances of survival precarious at best. Her desire to save the horse and the relationship that developed between them was the beginning of the nonprofit equine rehabilitation and education program.

Daniel has been asked why she keeps pushing herself, and how much longer she can keep it up. With her gaze taking in the distant mountains, she reminds herself the lesson each mountain can teach, and even more importantly how the horses become reflections of those virtues.

"We need help with chores, paying our feed costs and treating the horses." Linda knows when volunteers come out to help; they leave the ranch filled with a sense of pride and well-being that comes from interacting with the animals and giving unselfishly. "Everyone feels good from the experience," she smiled.

Paso by Paso is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which makes donations tax-deductible. They purchase herbal remedies and special feeds from Sisters Feed & Supply and Riding in Style in Tumalo. Sisters Feed & Supply offers a discount for charity purchases, and both businesses can let people know which products can help the program.

Donations may also be mailed to Paso by Paso, 67474 Trout Ln., Bend, OR 97701. Daniel's website, www.pasobypaso.org, also has a donation button.