Katy, her father Gary, Flicka and Jeb Spend Quality Time

Katy has come a long way since we first met her. Her timid, shy personality is turning to one of confidence. She was finally able to ride Flicka today, what a great pair! Flicka took such great care of Katy that she felt completely safe and even trotted a little bit!

Katy said that when they got back from their ride, Flicka pulled right up to the bench so that Katy Could hop off! A match made in heaven!



Katy's father, Gary has been an amazing support in her endeavors to learn about and begin riding horses. I do have to say that I believe our 26 year old Mule, Jeb is by far his favorite. Gary and Katy had a great ride together today!

New Arrivals!

Angel is a 16 year old Quarterhorse mare, she stands at 16hh and escaped the sale barn and slaughter. The mare is very beautiful and once comfortable with you, she'll walk right up. We know that she originally came off of a neglect case and was a brood mare for a good part of her life. Darrin will be working on training Angel to assess her riding capabilities.




Big Red is an amazing 6 year old Ex-Race horse. He has such a calm, friendly disposition, stands at 17.1 hh. We will be working with him and looking at him for a trail horse, he has been worked with previously, but has only been off the track for one year.

Both of these guys will be coming up for adoption soon!

Survivor, May and Lena Updates Miracle Horses

Survivor as of 4/20/2007, he is slowly but surely gaining his weight back, not bad for a 30 year old man!



Survivor's blind eye. The cloudiness has cleared and I dare say he can see out of it now!



Lena has really put the weight back on, we are concerned that she may be pregnant at this point.



May has really gained weight too, we are concerned that she may also be pregnant, we'll see what the vet says on May 1st!



May's cuts are healing daily, looking good!

Sasha, Miracle Horse Update!

I am so very happy to announce that Sasha has gone to her new home with Michelle in Cheyenne. Sasha is a 9 year old bay QH mare. Her eyes were swollen shut and she was barely able to walk when we first came upon her at the Stockyard.

What a magnificent change! Sasha has gained weight, had her hooves trimmed, which she did a pretty darn good job for considering she hadn't been worked with in quite a while. Darrin, the farrier spoke to us about her front heel, which had been torn off in an injury at some point in her life. She did her best to make him eat dirt, but he wasn't having it!





Sasha with her new momma, Michelle!




Sasha says, "Eat Dirt!" Darrin Says, "No Way Jose!"

Sherman (now Kiowa) Update

Sherman (now Kiowa) has the most amazing personality and is so very well trained. We have ridden him quite a few times now and have been absolutely amazed with the amount of training and disposition of this amazing horse.

Kiowa had his first hoof trimming on Thursday and stood stock still for Darrin, our farrier. He did not protest an inch.


Kiowa Has been adopted by Jill and Darius of Frisco and will be leaving the first week of May for his new, pristine horse heaven!

Miracle Horses Updated

Our veterinarians, Karyn Muggli and Katie Jones with Denver Integrated Veterinary Service are scheduled to come out May 1 for dental work on the miracle horses and an overall check up. These girls rock and our Sanctuary is very excited to be working with them.

Smiley was finally able to stand on his front hooves long enough to get his back shoes off on Thursday. His bowed tendon is healing nicely and we are looking forward to a speedy recovery!



This is what happens when shoes are left on too long, Smiley's hooves had grown around the shoes, this picture is with the shoe finally off.

The lucky 7 Denkai Miracle Horses

These are the seven lucky horses residing at our Sanctuary from the Miracle Horse rescue. Some of these pictures are a bit graphic. These horses survived a horrifying experience. First being trucked to the Dekalb, Illinois slaughter plant from Wyoming. They were off-loaded in Dekalb and are the only horses to have seen the inside of a slaughter plant and lived so that their tale may be told.

Some quick stats for you: http://www.hsus.org/legislation_laws/citizen_lobbyist_center/help_end_horse_slaughter.html

The Sanctuary is focusing on Humane Education programs. If you would like to help out with this, please contact us at info@denkaisanctuary.org.



Lena is an amazing 21 year old mare. She has a bad knee on her front left leg and twists it a bit when she walks. Lena is looking for a home with pasture, a buddy and peace! She is very sweet and luckily only has a few scrapes on her head from bouncing around in the trailer with 33 other horses.



Survivor, the famous #22. This gentle, kind 30 year old gelding is skin and bones with a blind left eye and no teeth left for hay. Survivor is by far the thinnest of the 33 horses that were on this transport and yet his will to live is strong. Survivor is on a diet of senior horse feed throughout the day and his energy and weight are picking up.



Gus is a 7 year old TB Gelding. He is an ex-racehorse and we have found a tatoo on his upper lip confirming this. He is showing some bone spurs on his stifle and is a bit stiff, but at 17 hands, he is a very majestic horse. He loves to nuzzle and would enjoy a good brushing along with a forever home!




Smiley is an amazing 23 year old TB Gelding. You will see from the first picture here, he has a bowed tendon (high). We were extremely concerned for Smiley upon arrival to the Stockyard, he had a horrible set of shoes on his front hooves and could not stand to move around or walk anymore. Our farrier, Darrin Hill immediately removed the shoes and trimmed his hooves back.

Smiley is a gentle and sweet horse with a kind soul and his tendon is recovering nicely every day! He will be looking for a permanent home soon!




Sherman is a gorgeous 11 year old Paint Gelding. Upon arrival, Sherman showed an outrageously swollen sheath, making it hard to urinate. He was tested for cancer and other abnormalities, thankfully, this all came back negative. We believe that this is from being kicked in the trailer by another horse.

Sherman's swelling continues to reduce daily. We believe that he is very well trained, but will find out in a couple of weeks. Oh and if you come to visit and he backs in to you, don't hesitate to give him a good scratchin on his rear!




Sasha is a sweetheart 9 year old Bay Mare. When I first saw her at the Stockyard, her eyes were swollen shut due to infection and being slammed around in the trailer to and from the Dekalb plant. Her eyes are back to normal now with only a few scratches to show. I pulled about 12 ticks off of her and then medicated her and the rest of the bunch for these little crawlies!

Sasha continues to gain weight and is looking forward to her new home with Michelle in Wyoming!




May is a wonderful 9 year old Quarter Horse Mare. She is super friendly and would jump in your pocket if you'd let her! May sustained some horrifying injuries to her jaw, pictured above. This is not a strangles break, it has been cultured, they are cuts, gashes from her horrifying experiences. Despite all of this, we believe May will make a full recovery and a wonderful companion!

Miracle Horse Rescue

The Humane Society of the United States Rescues Horses after Hellish Journey to Slaughter and Back

April 4, 2007

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Thirty horses bound for slaughter last week are safe today after The Humane Society of the United States halted their planned slaughter for human consumption and arranged their transfer to an animal sanctuary in Colorado.

The opportunity to save these horses came after The HSUS and other animal advocates won a court ruling last week closing down the last operational horse slaughter plant in the country. The horses' owner had planned to have the animals slaughtered and their meat exported for human consumption, but decided to contact The HSUS instead after learning of the court decision.

"These are the only horses on earth who have seen the inside of a horse slaughter plant and lived so that their story could be told," said Wayne Pacelle, HSUS president and CEO. "They have been through hell and back, stuffed into trailers, trucked for days, and led to the very brink of slaughter, only to be rescued at the last possible moment."

This group of horses was standing in line waiting to be slaughtered when news of the decision reached officials at Cavel International, which is located in DeKalb, Ill., and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which pulled its inspectors from the horse slaughter plant. While most horses, still waiting in trucks in the plant's parking lot, were promptly routed to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada, these animals were reloaded onto a truck bound for a stockyard in Cheyenne, Wyo.

The HSUS agreed to pay the owners' expenses, and took possession of the horses in Cheyenne on Tuesday. The HSUS is partnering with the Denkai Animal Sanctuary in Carr, Colo. to rehabilitate the horses so they can eventually be placed with loving owners. Currently, they are being assessed by HSUS personnel and given necessary veterinary care in anticipation of their move to the sanctuary. The HSUS has set up a "Miracle Horse Fund" to accept donations for the ongoing care of these animals and other rescued horses.

Because the Congressional funding limitation barring the USDA inspections for horse slaughter expires in September, The HSUS is calling on Congress to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503 and S. 311) to settle the matter permanently. This legislation will also prohibit the export of live horses to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.

Courtesy: Humane Society of the United States