Spring Cleaning at Peyton's Place

Spring Cleaning at Peyton's Place as part of the ASPCA's Help a Horse day was the first time we have opened the rescue up to the public for an event and what a day it was. The weather was perfect. For this tiny, rural community we had an extraordinary turn out of 33 people. Many drove over an hour to get here. It's one thing to have an open house where people come just to visit. It is another to ask the public to give up their Saturday and labor on hard projects that need to be done at the rescue in exchange for a free lunch, some prizes and fun. But come they did and we are grateful. The biggest project of the day was removing all the pipe panels from the north side of the barn and creating drainage so when the monsoons hit the stalls will not be standing mud that is slippery and dangerous. A trench was dug and filled with driveway rock similar to making a french drain and the stall areas were filled with a fine cinder to make a good footing. There was a lot of manual labor with shovels and rakes to make the stalls nice and level. It looks FABULOUS. Crew: Lary, Nick, Craig & Jonathan. Finished project. The second major project was removing everything from the feed room so a new counter top could be installed replacing the six foot table we were using. When we bought the ranch we removed the corian counter tops in the house. We saved them for just such a project. With the feed room empty, the floors were swept, the counter installed, all the items cleaned and everything put back in an orderly way. Now we have more room to store things under the counter and more work space on top. We just LOVE it. Crew: John, Nancy, Dee, Holly & Sara. Project number three and a huge endeavor was trimming up many of the juniper pines to make it safer for our sight deficit horses. Now the horses, donkeys, minis have shade and more shelter from the elements. All the branches needed to picked up, hauled away and unloaded. Towards the end of the day we were using the Land Limo with the big trailer, a quad with a trailer and the bucket of the tractor to move them all. Crew: Wendall, Roger, Deb, Sharon & Linda. Then everyone pitched in to finish. Project four Kristi, Ginny V and Linda L tackled by driving around the property and removing all the old, downed electric rope fencing. They cut it in sections, pulled it from the dirt, bagged it and took it to the dumpster. Huge thanks to the Bruners for bringing their quad and trailer. Long time volunteer and foster Ginny S, took the lead on the painting which was project five. These pipe panels will be used May 6th when we attend and Adopt-A-Thon at the Petsense store in Show Low. With the help of Vivian, Peyten and Kylie they look awesome. Project number six was sprucing up the EqWBR garden. We purchased some new annuals, a few perennials and herbs to brighten up the entrance area on the barn and welcome people with cheery colors. The garden looks so pretty. The ladies even went up to the house and brought back empty pots so they could be added to the garden area. Crew: Nilda, Gail, Linda H, Vivian, Lisa and her daughter Stevey. A day doesn't go by at the rescue without some poop scooping and the event was no exception. Christine W and Cindy helped cleaning stalls and they got a chance to visit with the horses and minis at the same time. Grooming was another wonderful way for people to spend time with the horses and minis. Fran is 87 years old, she and her daughter Christine, took such loving care with Missy who enjoyed every moment. With the garden planted, the rope fencing picked up and the pipe panels painted, it was time to create a horse of different colors. Gwen was relaxed and patient as kids and adults dipped their hands in washable paint decorated her from head to tail. From 8 year old Peyten to 87 year old Fran, a first time for everyone to have this kind of fun. After pictures were taken, Gwen was given a relaxing bath. With most of the projects complete is was time for all to relax to a great lunch. Each person was given a ticket and after lunch everyone got chose from various colored EqWBR hats and t-shirts as a "Thank you" for all their help. Throughout the day people got to take time to hang out with the horses, donkeys and minis. To the right is Stevey with the mini mules and below is Deb, Sharon and Linda with Peyton and Pablo. As promised people got to spend time with our ear-less horse Peyton. We rescued him from a large neglect case in South Dakota where as a foal he lost his ears to frostbite. Though untrained, he has such a gentle soul and loved the attention. The beautiful photos were taken by Linda East of Linda Gayle Photography, who took over 4,000 pictures and spent hours editing them for our viewing pleasure. Immeasurable thanks go to everyone who worked so hard and to those who donated, raising $500 at the event. We are humbled by your generosity. Linda E, Nick & Nilda, Ginny S, Deb, Sharon, Roger & Vivian, Kristi & Craig, John & Ginny, Gail & Wendall, Lisa C & Stevey, Nancy, Holly, Sara, Linda L, Tara, Peyten, Kylie & Jonathon, Dee, Linda H, Christine W & her mom Fran, Cindy, Lisa W and Barbara Bruce who covered the story for the regional paper. You helped get SO much done in one day. You truly made the event live up to the title "Help A Horse Day". Supplies needed and lunch were made possible by a wonderful donation from our friends, Beth Williams Realty Executives-White Mountains and Bullseye Construction, both in Show Low, AZ. Special thanks to Kris Munson who is recuperating from knee surgery and created our lovely event flyer. xoxox On behalf of all the horses, donkeys, mini donkeys and mini mules, Peyton says "THANK YOU!" #HelpAHorse