Site Redesign

As you may have noticed, a site redesign is underway! Goals are to clean and lighten up the page for faster loading, and to provide easier more direct access to all of our content. You'll also find the site more cross-browser compliant, whether you're running IE or Firefox.

It may take a couple days to get the changes propogated throughout the site, so you may see some inconsistencies in design between pages.

As always, ideas and suggestions are welcome, and please let me know about any broken links you run across!

Meet Molly - Her story and pictures will warm your heart...

Meet Molly. She's a grey speckled pony who was abandoned by her owners when Hurricane Katrina hit southern Louisiana . She spent weeks on her own before finally being rescued and taken to a farm where abandoned animals were stockpiled.

While there, she was attacked by a pit bull terrier and almost died. Her gnawed right front leg became infected, and her vet went to LSU for help, but LSU was overwhelmed, and this pony was a welfare case. You know how that goes.

But after surgeon Rustin Moore met Molly, he changed his mind. He saw how the pony was careful to lie down on different sides so she didn't seem to get sores, and how she allowed people to handle her. She protected her injured leg. She constantly shifted her weight and didn't overload her good leg. She was a smart pony with a serious survival ethic.

Moore agreed to remove her leg below the knee, and a temporary artificial limb was built. Molly walked out of the clinic and her story really begins there.

'This was the right horse and the right owner,' Moore insists. Molly happened to be a one-in-a-million patient. She's tough as nails, but sweet, and she was willing to cope with pain. She made it obvious she understood that she was in trouble. The other important factor, according to Moore , is having a truly committed and compliant owner who is dedicated to providing the daily care required over the lifetime of the horse.

Molly's story turns into a parable for life in post-Katrina Louisiana . The little pony gained weight, and her mane finally felt a comb. A human prosthesis designer built her a leg.

The prosthetic has given Molly a whole new life, Allison Barca DVM, Molly's regular vet, reports. And she asks for it. She will put her little limb out, and come to you and let you know that she wants
you to put it on. Sometimes she wants you to take it off too. And sometimes, Molly gets away from Barca. 'It can be pretty bad when you can't catch a three-legged horse,' she laughs.

Most important of all, Molly has a job now. Kay, the rescue farm owner, started taking Molly to shelters, hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabilitation centers. Anywhere she thought that people needed hope. Wherever Molly went, she showed people her pluck. She inspired people, and she had a good time doing it.

'It's obvious to me that Molly had a bigger role to play in life,' Moore said. 'She survived the hurricane, she survived a horrible injury, and now she is giving hope to others.'

Barca concluded, 'She's not back to normal, but she's going to be better. To me, she could be a symbol for New Orleans itself.'





This is Molly's most recent prosthesis. The bottom photo shows the ground surface that she stands on, which has a smiley face embossed in it. Wherever Molly goes, she leaves a smiley hoof print behind.

Hanna Swings By...

With all of the hurricanes rolling through, how is your evacuation/emergency plan? If you haven't visited the Equine Mutual Aid Association, you need to check it out!

Tropical storm Hanna didn't have much of an impact on the Salem area, and there was a great show out at the Green Hill Park Equestrian Center. The show was a benefit for the Astride With Pride therapeutic riding program and was sanctioned by the Blue Ridge Horse Force. Wayne Jones and Cindy Quick of Star-ro Trailers and The Tack Room did their always fabulous job of managing. Attendance at shows is not random, exhibitors are learning who runs a good show, and this show and the Star City Classic are getting well known.

Thinking about eventing? Be careful, this photo sequence of UK rider Zara Phillips will leave you with a sense of relief that she was not injured.

Ky. Regulators Ban Doping For Race Horses

AP) Kentucky horse racing regulators on Monday approved a sweeping steroid ban for the state's thoroughbred and standardbred races but dramatically toned down the proposed penalties for trainers whose horses test positive.

With a unanimous vote of confidence from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, the steroid ban could take effect as early as this fall's meet at Turfway Park and would be well under way in time for next year's Kentucky Derby. Gov. Steve Beshear has said he'll push it through swiftly using an emergency regulation.

While the ban is tough, it's not nearly as tough as the one proposed by Kentucky's Equine Drug Research Council earlier this month. That group had called for suspensions of up to three years for trainers and veterinarians whose horses fail a steroid test, but the authority revised the penalties, capping them at a 60-day suspension for first time offenders.

-more-

Horse OK after fall through barn floor

Still sedated, Bailey the horse rests after her rescue yesterday. (JASON SCHREIBER)

By JASON SCHREIBER
Union Leader Correspondent

HAMPTON FALLS – In his 42 years with the fire department, Deputy Fire Chief Russ Davies had never experienced anything like yesterday's rescue of a 1,000-pound horse that had fallen through a barn floor.
It was also a first for Fire Chief Jay Lord, a 20-year veteran of the department.

"We hope we never have to do that again," said Lord, who appeared exasperated after having helped more than a dozen firefighters and neighbors pull the horse, named Bailey, to safety in a harrowing hour-long rescue.

Firefighters considered bringing in a wrecker to haul her out, but they managed to do it on their own.

The trouble began about 2 p.m. at Cock Hill Farm, 149 Drinkwater Road, when Bailey walked into the barn and into a sheep stall that was supposed to be off limits. Farm owner Ed Beattie said he knew the wood floor of the stall couldn't handle the weight of the horse, but he had forgotten to shut the stall door.

Beattie was in the barn and saw Bailey head into the sheep stall....

- more-