Thank You!!!

We want to thank those who have made a donation and let everyone know what has been happening over the last little while at Back of Beyond. Our most heartfelt thanks to all of you who have helped in any way you could; through volunteering, bringing feed for the horses, donations, sponsorships and prayer. It is really appreciated and has been critical to our survival.

 

Our Horses

Most of the horses are doing well and have made it through the winter. Beau is as feisty as ever (even though he must be close to 30 years old now). Apollo still rules even though he is looking a little older and moving slower these days. Jackson and Damascus are still best of friends.

Sadly, we lost Betty to a catastrophic leg injury. Despite our best efforts, we were not able to repair her leg enough to give her a good quality of life. She is missed terribly, especially by Brady and Kestrel.

Her place was taken by Caddy. He is a big Belgian baby who will join the sleigh team in the next few years. Tom, who is babysitting Caddy, is learning to be a riding horse and doing very well on his special diet.

Muffin and Velvet are as cute as ever and devoted to each other, even if they do squabble from time to time. Eddie, Phoenix and Duke continue to be the backbone of the sleigh ride program.

Our Programs & Activities

Looking back over the last year, lots has happened…

Last summer, when we came out of the first lockdown, we were able to run a small weekly summer day camp. There were about 60 kids over the entire summer. Many of these young people were sponsored and this was a chance of a lifetime for them to be around horses.

In the fall, more children met the horses both after school and during the day. It was neat to see the horses and children make lasting connections. Fall also brought wagon rides – really beautiful with the autumn colours.

Snow brought the beginning of the sleigh ride season. Duke, Eddie, and Phoenix were in their element. Sleigh Ride to Santa was a new addition to the farm experience and really popular. Luckily, Santa is always dressed for the cold outdoors as we had a few chilly days.

All was going pretty well until the lockdown at Christmas. Although we were able to keep running in a very limited capacity, that lockdown had a huge effect on our bottom line as it is the sleigh and wagon rides that pay for the old and rescued horses’ upkeep.

So here we are in another lockdown and right now we are completely shut down. To date we have not been able to secure any government help – we just do not fit any of their criteria.

Upcoming needs:

• Regular hoof care and trimming by a farrier for all the horses (done usually every 4 to 5 weeks)
• Purchasing hay in June for the entire year for all the horses
• Medication for Damascus and Muffin (they have Cushing’s disease)
• Dental care and vaccinations by a veterinarian for all the horses
• Sponsorship: we are looking forward to the summer and hope to be able to offer summer horse day camp again. Sponsoring a child to go to camp who would otherwise not be able to afford it would really help out our Ministry for at-risk kids

Donate Here

If you can help us out with any of the above needs, or perhaps become a monthly donor we would greatly appreciate your gift. Your generosity and kindness to the horses here at Back of Beyond is making all the difference towards their health and wellbeing and the success of our Ministry.

Thank you for partnering with us.

Cathy and Bill