The Chey/Annie Project

The Chey/Annie Project's mission is to place an emergency sling that is designed for horses in every state. The sling will be housed at a specific rescue in each state to be shared amongst all the rescues in that state as the need arises.   The slings will be provided FREE of charge.
No horse should have to be put to sleep because they need a sling to assist them until they can gain weight.

No horse should have to suffer from a sling designed for a cow.

Once we have placed slings in each state, we will work to put slings in every rescue! This way, rescuers and the horses they are trying to help will have immediate access to this life saving device.
This is the sling that we are planning to purchase with the funds raised. It is called the Adult Horse Sling and it is manufactured by Wiggins Inc. www.wigginsinc.com

How you can help:
1. Go to the Chip In Website for your state and donate funds to purchase a sling. Every dollar helps and we will continue to raise funds until we have enough.

Or you can donate directly through PayPal through my email. thecheyannieproject@gmail.com Or Click here to donate to the project so that the funds can be used wherever they are needed.

Or you can mail your donations to:

The Chey/Annie Project

c/o Brandi Qualset

2923 120th St

Petersburg, NE 68652

Please include a short note stating which state you would like your donation to go to. I will send you a receipt as soon as your donation arrives.

2. Share this website with your friends and family. Share it with your vet and feed store owners. Explain to them what we are trying to do to help the horses in your state.

3. Print flyers for your feed store and vet's office and anywhere else that you think might allow you to post them. (To see the flyers, click here: Flyers)

Chey/Annie project Fundraisers:
Please check out our special page for the fundraisers for the Chey/Annie Project at:

    The Chey/Annie Project Fundraisers

Now Open:
Missy's Hope Equine Rescue Resource's Cafepress Store!

I am in the process of setting up the store now (as well as working to create a logo for The Chey/Annie Project!). All proceeds from the store will go directly into the general fund of The Chey/Annie Project. If possible, I will set it up so that people can choose which state their funds go to if they would rather support a specific state. Please bear with us as the store is still a work in progress!

http://www.cafepress.com/Missys_Hope

Do you want to see how the fundraising is going for your state? Click here for the updated totals.

The Chey/Annie Project was created in honor of two special horses who were bought at an auction in Oneill, Nebraska.
Meet Annie:

Annie was the first mare that we bought at the auction. She came into the ring and the kill buyer for Mexico and all the other people in there laughed at her. She was extremely underweight and malnourished. She was pregnant and so very sad. Lynn had Jana bid $25 for Miss Annie and they won her at that price.

Annie at Phoenix Rising Horse Rescue the morning after the auction.

We learned from her paperwork that Annie was 22 years old. We weren't sure at first what to name her. Nothing we could come up with seemed to fit her. So I talked to a friend who is an animal communicator. I asked her to reassure the mares that we had bought that they were safe and to ask her what she would like to be called. She told us that this little mare didn't care what she was to be called because she had already had so many names. At that moment she said that she felt a presence of a lady who had passed on. The lady told her that the mare had once belonged to her grand daughter and that she had been called Annie. That is how she got her name.

Miss Annie was with us only a few days before she miscarried her baby. A beautiful filly that was perfect in every way. Even before the miscarriage we knew what her name was to be. Grace.

Grace

Annie perked up for a short time after she miscarried Grace. She was moving around better and while still sad, seemed just a bit happier. Then one day her back legs went out from under her. She was unable to get up.   At her age and her condition, there was nothing more that we could do to especially without a sling. Lynn and her family helped Annie cross peacefully where she is now running free with her baby.



These pictures were taken of Annie on the 8th of Novemeber.

We do not know if a sling would have helped Annie. It may or may not have, but having one available would have at least given us a few more options.

Meet Cheyenne:
I met Cheyenne for the first time in a holding pen outside of the auction house. She was tearing into the hay there as if it was the first good meal she had eaten in a long time. Standing there looking at her, I could believe that it was the first good meal for her in a long time. Cheyenne was extremely emaciated. Probably around a 1.5 on the scale rescues and vets use to determine body condition. (Not sure what the scale is or what that would look like? Go to the Slide Show Gallery. There is a slide show there that has pictures and descriptions of horses at each number on the scale 0-5). Cheyenne also had a bad knee and a stomach that looked as though she was pregnant.

Cheyenne the morning after the auction.

We knew that she would face a horrific fate if we were unable to buy her. She would either return to the owner who had neglected her or she would be on a free trip to Mexico when her owner begged the kill buyer in attendance to take her.

Cheyenne was scheduled to be one of the last horses to go through the ring. We had already bought two mares, a jack donkey, and four weanlings at the auction. We were out of money and really didn't have room in the trailer for one more mare. We got the trailer and were waiting on the auction house workers to find all the horses (and donkey) that we had bought so we could load up and take them back to Phoenix Rising Horse Rescue. None of us could stop thinking about that little mare. It seemed like fate when we found that Jana, one of the rescue volunteers, still had five dollars. That was all that was left between all of us there, but we decided to give it a try. I raced back into the auction building and stood next to the pen and three horses went through the ring. Then she walked in. The building went silent. No one would talk. No one would look at that poor mare. The auctioneer started his spiel, but no one would say anything. He had started at $25. He gave it another minute to try to get anyone to bid at that price. Then he stopped. Before he could say one word, I bid that final five dollars. He looked at me in shock along with everyone else in that room. He tried to get someone to bid higher and no one would. I won the bid on that little mare with just five dollars. I went in a paid for her and the clerk there said that was the lowest price ever paid for a horse at that auction house.

I went out to the trailer to find the worker that was helping us. He was off getting the four weanlings we had bought, so I looked around. Cheyenne was standing in a pen with several other horses, one was a stallion and he was picking on her. Lynn went in with just a lead rope, talked to her a moment, and then used it to lead her out of the pen. Once in the alley way behind the trailer, she let her loose so she could walk in the trailer on her own. She wouldn't do it and turned to walk back down the alley. I was the furthest back and in the center of the alley way, so I spread my arms wide as she walked toward me. I thought she would turn back from me, but instead she slowly walked forward and rested her head against my stomach and chest. I lowered my arms slowly not to scare her and then gently rubbed her ears. I told her that she would be fine and that getting on the trailer would take her to the best life she had known. She looked up at me and stared into my eyes for a moment. We stood there frozen just looking each other in the eye. Then I placed my hand on her neck and she turned toward the trailer. She walked in with no more urging and no more fear.

After bringing her to the rescue, we learned that Cheyenne was just seven years old.

Cheyenne was with us for five weeks before she went down for the first time. Lynn and her husband, Darryl (from Phoenix Rising) didn't have a sling to lift her, so they used two cinches and strong ropes to get her on her feet. That lasted a few days until she went down again. They got her back up and she stayed up for only a few hours that time. The local vet loaned them a sling to get her back up and to hold her up temporarily. The sling was made for cows and was not what she needed. Then the tractor began having hydraulic problems and there weren't support beams in the barn that could hold her. Lynn and Darryl brought her to my home and my barn where we were able to put her back in the sling in the barn.

Cheyenne suspended by the tractor at Phoenix Rising.

Unfortunately that night she managed to slide out of the sling. Our neighbor assisted us in getting her back up, but his tractor was too large to put her in the barn, so we suspended her from the center of the doorway. We were waiting on a sling made specifically for horses to arrive from another state as there wasn't one here in Nebraska.



Cheyenne from the left side with her blanket on.       Her right side prior to the blanket.

Lynn's friends and boss from work heard Cheyenne's story and began building us a sling that was made more for horses. They had me measure Cheyenne so they could fit the sling especially for her.

It was going to take a week or so to complete the sling. Watching the weather showed us that before we could move Cheyenne into the quonset, we were going to have snow! With cold weather on the way, we set up a temporary shelter for Cheyenne. It was made out of two panel fence pieces, a tarp, lead ropes, and even a few strands of baling twine! The night after I got it up it snowed, just a dusting, but Cheyenne was safe and dry.



My landlord took one look at it and offered to let us put her in the quonset so that she had shelter. He also offered to let us use his large engine lift to suspend her so that we didn't have to find a way to suspend her from the thirty foot high beams. We didn't know that the lift was even there because we don't have use of the quonset as that is where he stores his work and farm equipment.

Lynn arrived the Friday after Thanksgiving to help us get Cheyenne into the new sling and into the quonset. We got everything ready and then slowly eased Cheyenne down completely so that the sling was loose and she was steady on her feet. Unfortunately we found that the sling was starting to cut into her skin despite the padding that I had done on it. She was also only able to stand for a few minutes on her own and couldn't walk. When she went down, she began having seizures. We knew it was time to help her cross the Rainbow Bridge. She had fought long and hard for five weeks and while her spirit was strong her, body was not. I stayed with her while waiting for the vet (we live a half hour or so from town) and while he was helping her cross. During that short time, the seizures continued to get worse and to be more frequent.

While the medications the vet gave her were taking effect, I was watching her and talking to her. Just before her heart and lungs stopped, Cheyenne looked past me. She pricked her ears and her eyes got bright. I looked back and saw nothing. I looked at her face and you could see she was in peace, then she took her final breath and allowed herself to cross the Rainbow Bridge.

Slings In Use (Why We Are Doing This!):

I got this in my inbox today and I am so proud of all those involved in helping this horse and working together. This story needs to be shared far and wide!

Fw: A life was saved last night............

Posted by: "Horse Helping" horsehelping@gmail.com eaglewhowatches

Sun Feb 8, 2009 9:29 am (PST)
Got this, this morning & hopefully I can get it sent before my stupid server disconnects again.
Thought it was great news to hear...in several areas of it
Alli :)
----- Original Message -----
From: D. Moore
Please feel free to crosspost!!
Lately I have been seeing alot of posts and discussions about rescues not working together, going at it head to head over things that seem so minor in the greater scheme of things. Afterall, the animals is what us rescuers are supposed to be there for and right now there are so many in crisis.
A horse lived last night, her name was Cinna Spice. A rescue from a smaller equine rescue (Blairs Equine) here in Kentucky she went down and even though it was warmer out yesterday that ground is still cold, muddy in most places due to all the melting rain and ice. I received a call from the one rescue at about 5pm yesterday and headed out with things to help the horse. Despite the efforts the horse could not get up. Her legs were cold, and like jelly at that point and she just could not get her balance. Enter the third rescue folks....New Beginnings Animal Refuge near Corydon, IN, Bob and Becky Shope. These ingenious folks have a sling that they made for horses and as soon as they knew we needed help they loaded up and made the long drive to rural Shepherdsville without even blinking. Loading up a flat bed trailer with their tractor and the sling they arrived a little after 11pm. Along with them came David Thompson with the KY Ag Dept, a volunteer and board member to help as well. So together with the foster home, the first rescue, USERL and now New Beginnings - we got the horse up in the sling. First time up, down again. Second time up and leaving her supported longer than the first time, SUCCESS!!! So by 2AM we had a horse who was standing up, eating and drinking and back to her normal "feisty self".
So far so good, still up this morning, all is well on Sunday morning.
I wanted to share the story because first, it's a great story of a horse being saved. Secondly though, it is a great story about how rescue people CAN work together for the same cause. No toes getting stepped on, no personality conflicts, just compassion and caring for the animal in need. While I was initially called by the first rescue and did all I could, I could not have saved that horse without the help of those wonderful folks, Bob and Becky.....that sling was 'key' in saving this horse. Thank god for people like them. Thank goodness for all of us rescuers who give so freely of our time, our money, our hearts.
We didn't lose a horse last night, she will live and go on to live a happy life now. We all gained something as well, good friends, a good networking system, and we're all ready for that next animal in need, who needs us. The point here for me is that everyone does things differently, no rescue operates verbatum like the rest, we all have different viewpoints, and different opinions, BUT....we all share one thing that is far greater than any differences we could have - the love for saving these animals. Sure there are those that we all know are not reputable or good, but there are so many who are....last night is proof of that. If everyone would chip in and help their fellow rescuer - wow, what things we could do.
Kind Regards,
Deb Moore
D. Moore, Kentuckiana Regional Director
United States Equine Rescue League - Kentucky
userlkentucky@yahoo.com
http://www.userlky.org
"Taylors Emblem" - RIP my sweet boy, your place in my heart will always be yours to keep.
"Within the heart of every horse, lies the singular desire to be loved."

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