Cortez Babies Get a Little Socialization!

The yearling horses rescued from Cortez, CO last fall are coming along well. Elijah has been working on gentling them first through socialization. These little ones will now follow and come up for a visit. Taming wild young ones isn't so bad, especially where treats are involved.

Wheat Field Raises Bumper Crop 2009

Floss Blackburn, Denkai's founder pictured June 2009 in Wheat Fields, stand is around 5' in height.

On a portion of our 640 acres, we have been growing wheat which is then sold as a commodity and helps to bring in funding towards our operating expenses. This year, the crop has come in amazingly thick and with extraordinary heads. We will be getting ready to harvest this crop in the next two weeks.

This is made possible through help from Ray Reichley.

Arabian Horses Finding Homes

Augusta Moun and Bint Joi are enjoying their stay at Lori and Bill Delfs in Loveland, CO. A big hug and thank you go out to Dr. Susan Williams for her dedication to our equines and veterinary care.



Lady Josephine, Jasmine, and El Lucero have found a loving new home with the Atkinson Family in Fleming, CO. They send weekly updates and are enjoying their time with these wonderful horses!



Maggie Atkinson shows Jamsine off to her grandchildren who waited anxiously in the car!



Karen Legros and her son, Elijah of La Porte have adopted Bint Bint Shafar

Six of our Niwot Arabian Horses have found homes in the last couple of months. The situation with these horses has been a very long, drawn out and political ordeal. There are no words to describe the joy we feel knowing that these horses are finding good, loving homes where they will have all the care, food and attention they will ever need. Never again will they go without.

There are so many to thank for assisting us in saving these wonderful horses: PetSmart Charities
ASPCA
Boulder Community Foundation
Darrin Hill
Brad Laue
Our many dedicated contributors
Arabian Horse Association
Ray Reichley

HSUS Provides Emergency Funding for Grover Cats

Due to a recent Panleukopenia (feline distemper) outbreak in the cats of Grover, CO. Denkai was able to secure funding for much needed vaccinations through the HSUS Annie Lee Roberts Emergency Grant. This clinic was successful and held on July 18 in town. We had posted flyers advertising this clinic, which is the best way to communicate with the community in Grover.

Not only did our veterinarian Dr. Michael Suit offer his services to this clinic at a very reduced rate, he offered health exams and vaccinations for owned cats and dogs at a rate of $30.00. The kicker? Nobody showed up. People in Grover can not even afford a minimal $30.00 health exam for their pets. At least this is what we were told. So, we offered it for free and managed to get animals taken care of. We knocked on doors and ran animals back and forth from the clinic. Some of these pets had not seen a vet in around 5 years.

We have a little more time to work through this grant and will put the rest of the funding toward spay/neuter services for the feral cats in need. Thank you HSUS for helping us to provide a very needed service to an incredibly under served area.

Rescued Rabbits Desperately Need Homes!

Rescued Rabbits from Cheyenne, WY are still in need of forever and foster homes. There are still more than 70 rabbits needing to be placed. These bunnies are very well socialized and have been handled on a regular basis.

This rescue lasted until Midnight, pulling, logging, sexing and sorting rabbits.
Little Bit of Love Rescue of Wyoming has been caring for these bunnies along with help, running them to their medical appointments and keeping the ball rolling on this rescue.

Thank you to those who have contributed and helped with this effort:
Bloedorn Lumber
Home Depot
Capital Lumber
Lowes
K9 Bed and Biscuit
House Rabbit Society Members
SpayToday
Christine
Tabatha
Denkai's Volunteers
Wyoming Tribune-Eagle
Channel 5 Grand Junction

Contributions are still immediately needed in the form of:
Funding toward Spay/Neuter
Pellets
Grass Hay
Rabbit Cages

Shelter or building for those that are not placed in homes or have a longer stay at Little Bit of Love

To Contribute: www.denkaisanctuary.org and click any donation button or mail contributions to; 36710 WCR 126 Grover, CO 80729

Contributions are tax-deductible within the means of the IRS 501(c)3 code

Over 100 Pet Rabbits Need Help Immediately!

Denkai Animal Sanctuary

Cheyenne, WY - Today we were called in to a situation in which more than 100 pet rabbits and counting are in desperate need. These rabbits have been bred and used for their fur. The owner brushes them on a regular basis to gather their excess and shedding fur in order to weave with it.

What started with a few rabbits and a hobby is now seriously out of control. Once again, animals are suffering at the hands of human callousness. This individual is losing her home due to foreclosure. These rabbits are currently being housed in her garage and will have two options: 1. To be rescued in a joint effort by Denkai and other rescue groups in which they will be spayed and neutered and placed in homes or 2. To be euthanized by the local shelter. Since these rabbits are being housed in the county, we have the opportunity to help save them. They are all handled daily by a 7 year old girl and would be wonderful pets for and educated family.

We expect all females of reproducing age to be pregnant as the males and females have not been separated and expect that what is now 100 rabbits will easily turn to several hundred or many more in a very short time if we do not act right away.

A Wyoming Sanctuary will be temporarily housing these rabbits while we work to seek out other rescues, sanctuaries and individuals able to assist in taking in or fostering these bunnies. A joint effort in getting these bunnies to safety will begin this week.

Funding in the amount of $7,500 for spay and neuter costs. This number will most likely mount daily.

Tuff sheds or another steel building would be really ideal. If you know of anybody who would be willing to purchase this item or contribute toward it, it is a desperate need.

In-kind Contributions Needed include:

Supplies needed:
Rabbit Cages
Tuff Sheds
Timothy Hay
Straw
Funding for spay and neuter at a cost of $75.00 per bunny
Foster Homes
Rescues and Sanctuaries willing to take these babies in.
Bowls
broccoli, cabbage, celery, and most dark colored greens
Papaya tablets
For baby bunnies up to adult hood we need: alfalfa hay and or pellets

To contribute: Visit www.denkaisanctuary.org and click any donate now button.
Mail Contributions to: 36710 WCR 126 Grover, CO 80729

Survivor, the Miracle Horse

This video is of Survivor, we believe his age to be close to 30. Survivor was one of 33 horses rescued together with the Humane Society of the United States in April of 2007 when the Dekalb, Ill. Slaughter plant was closed.

We believe that Survivor is a Tennessee Walker. He is very well trained and extremely fun to ride. Survivor desperately needs a sponsor or even a foster home. He is easy to catch, good for the farrier, extremely friendly, loves to be brushed and would be great for a beginner rider who wanted to go on that occasional stress relieving ride.
Height: 15.3 hh

Visit: http://www.denkaisanctuary.org/denkai_animals/sponsor_denkai_animals.htm for sponsorship information.

Contact us: info@denkaisanctuary.org or (970) 895-2337

Bubba The Haflinger

Bubba is an 8 year old Haflinger of whom our Founder felt a strong pull to rescue. He was off loaded at the local Fort Collins sale barn and we were told by the owner that he was given to him, trained to drive and ride, and he no longer wanted this horse, so he brought Bubba to the sale barn thinking he would bring a good meat price because he is so fat.

Seriously?????

So needless to say, a full day of harassment by sale barn staff did not bring our founder to her knees, she stayed, bid on Bubba and brought him home.

Elijah, our 17 year old trainer from Fort Collins is in the below video riding Bubba, you will see his one quirk which has gotten much better as we ride him more. After this workout, the sanctuary's workers and founder went for a 3 mile ride with Bubba and others. He did great, we truly think he will make a great beginner/kids horse.

Contact us for info at: info@denkaisanctuary.org or (970) 895-2337

Website: www.denkaisanctuary.org

Little Billy Goat Gruff

We were contacted by the Larimer Humane Society Wild Kind Department regarding a young goat that had come to their facility and had little handling. This goat, being a bit shy of people and very un-trusting, would fling itself into fences trying to get away. They were out of options. We arrived this past week to pick up Little Billy and found a very scared baby boer goat. These goats are bred for their meat. After a certain weight they will be sent to slaughter. A lot of the 4-H kids show them at fair as well.

After closely examining Billy, we found that this little baby is a hermaphrodite. Meaning that male and female sex organs are both present. So Little Billy will never work for a breeding program because he/she is more than likely sterile.

Little Billy will more than likely live a long life here at the Sanctuary unless that special adopter comes along.

Sponsor Billy today! Help us to continue care for this special little goat that would have missed a chance at life otherwise! www.denkaisanctuary.org

Where Does all that Manure Go??

As you can imagine, we have more than our fair share of horse manure, old straw, shavings and more. The animals put out more than 100 tons of manure over the last 12 months.

So, how do we deal with it? Well we have two ways, one is in the following video, spreading it on our crops, the other, selling it to kind folks such as yourselves, farmers that are farming organically and anybody else that wants a good quality compost. This helps to bring in program funding for the Sanctuary and aligns with our mission to become completely sustainable.

Thank you to Ray Reichley for the use of his time and equipment in hauling and spreading this on the fields. As you can tell, we are going to be in need of equipment in order to further this project for the Sanctuary, we were fortunate to have Ray's help this time.

Remember the Cortez Babies!

The rescued yearlings from Cortez are still residing at the Sanctuary, they are beautiful and will begin their training after the 18 Arabians have been worked through. Here is the latest video!

Bint Bint Shafar; Video of one of 18 Arabians

This is Bint Bint Shafar, she is one of the 18 Arabians recently saved by Denkai Animal Sanctuary.

Arabs: Lady Josephine

This video is of Katrina Stowasser working with Lady Josephine, National Show Horse, one of the 18 Arabians recently saved by Denkai Animal Sanctuary.

Housing Options available for Sanctuary!

Reflections for Youth has made us an offer can not refuse! As you may be aware, our facilities at Denkai are very limited regarding office space and options for housing workers and visitors. Thanks to Reflections for Youth, (www.reflectionsforyouth.org) a not for profit organization located in the Loveland/Berthoud, CO area, our option for additional housing is now a reality.

Denkai has the opportunity to purchase two modular classroom buildings that are completely plumbed, have furnaces and water heaters on board, electric is already wired and they have never been used. These will work very well for housing. Denkai is working on permits needed and other necessary paperwork that will allow installation of these buildings at the Sanctuary and would provide much needed facilities for workers, volunteers and visitors.

We need your help to accomplish this. We can purchase both of these buildings for $1,000, normal cost would be $10,000 per unit. We have a hauler that is going to help us at cost, estimated at $2,000, again normally we would have had to pay close to $20,000 to move these buildings.

Spring Snow Drifts In Sanctuary!

Denkai Animal Sanctuary was hit hard last night by spring snow storms. Founder Floss Blackburn along with Johnna Hayes and April spent hours digging animals out by hand. The largest project was Charles, the Sanctuary's 900 lb boar pig. He has been nicknamed pigosaurus due to his enormous size. Needless to say he and his shelter were buried under six foot snowdrifts. So it took three women two hours to dig him out. First came a snout and a snort, then came his head and then we all ran like our rear ends were on fire when he finally came tearing out of his hut.

It is vital to Denkai's operations to have a skid steer or larger loader on hand for storms like this. The north horse pens were literally drifted full of 6' snow drifts. The animals that normally reside in those pens had to be moved to other areas of the Sanctuary. The little tractor that was so generously contributed unfortunately is not built for this job and has a cracked frame.







































The Sanctuary houses three dogs that are dog aggressive. Rose's pen snowed shut, so she had to be moved, she has an insulated dog house with heated bedding. Denkai is seeking funds that would go towards building a badly needed facility for the dogs. When the weather is wicked like this, all eight dogs have to be moved and kept separate in the Sanctuary's 600 square foot house. YIKES!

Hi Floss! It's been two years since I adopted my little Maggie (she was DeeDee at DenKai). A lot has happened. She and I were doing just fine and she was my little lover girl. Always sweet and cuddly...very much the baby and happy she didn't have to share my affection.

Well a little over a year ago I ended up having to take my niece's infant in as a Foster child when he was taken away from a Meth house. I had never been a mother and didn't know what to do. I worried Maggie would not adjust to it either. However, because she had been a mommy in her previous home, she knew exactly what to do. Instead of being jealous of the attention I gave Austin, she became his best buddy and adopted him. Those first nights he was here and he would cry, she would run to him and snuggle him and kiss him and just lay beside him. They have a tight bond as you can see in the attached picture.

So, I just wanted to tell you once again how thankful I am for the sweet girl you rescued for me. She is happy in her forever home and loves her family. I wish you and DenKai nothing but blessings in the wonderful work you do.

All my best,
Donna Webb

Maggie was rescued from a Wyoming Animal Shelter and came to Denkai with a treatable eye infection for which she would have otherwise been euthanized.

New Sanctuary Arrivals

Prince, 12 ducks and 1 goose:
Jerre Fisher, an amazing rescuer, mother and wife most recently passed away after losing her battle with cancer. Jerre had an enormous heart and many rescued animals, most all of which her family was able to place. A few of the very special have come to reside at our Sanctuary. Their story follows;
Never have I had such a group of animals come in with so much spirit in them.


Jerre’s animals most definitely carry her within them. This was obvious the minute I saw them. Twelve ducks and one goose, all reside together at our Sanctuary now and as I observed these animals after placing them in their yard, I began to realize just how special they really are; They all carry scars like Jerre did of injuries past that they mostly healed from.


The goose had a broken wing and leg that are now long healed, this goose has a very kind eye, there are a couple of the ducks that have had broken legs and still get around just fine with the flock thanks to Jerre saving them.













Prince is Jerre’s 34 year old appaloosa gelding who came to Denkai with a very special diet. Prince has no teeth so is on senior feed, beet pulp and several other supplements to keep his health up. Never have I ever experienced a horse this angry and hurt. For the first two days here, Prince refused to eat, after all he had been removed from the only place he had called home for about 10 years, what was this strange place and where was his mom; The woman that used to feed him every day by hand and pet him while he ate?

About day three Prince had had it with me, he was ticked off and letting me know about it. I walked into his pen to feed him his grain and he came at me with ears pinned and eyes bloodshot. I figured, ok, he either eats or he bites me. Well he went to the bucket of food as I was holding it and ate. I cried hard and began to pet him, his ears went forward as through my tears I told him that I was so incredibly sorry he had lost his mother and that she missed him so badly and wanted him to be ok. The anger in his eyes began to disappear and just like that we had made headway. I stood there that day petting him, crying and talking to him for an hour while he ate. Since then, Prince has been a little bit better about eating on his own, but always welcomes the company of Sweet Pea. Volunteers are needed for Prince to give him the one on one attention he deserves and has grown used to. Please contact us if you can help or would be willing to contribute towards the cost of his care: info@denkaisanctuary.org or (970) 895-2337.

Jerre Fisher Memorial Fund

Jerre Fisher:

Greeley, CO - Jerre Fisher is one of the most amazing individuals that I have come across since founding Denkai Animal Sanctuary. Aside of caring for her own wonderful bunch of animals, Jerre reached above and beyond the call of duty for Denkai's Sanctuary animals and most recently the arabian horses in need.

On February 20, 2009 Jerre lost a very long battle with Cancer and still in those moments prior to her passing strongly advocated that her animal companions be taken care of.

In Memory of Jerre Fisher; Denkai has Established the Jerre Fisher Memorial Fund to carry on her heartfelt work on behalf of animals in need.

Contributions toward this fund will help to establish a much needed veterinary facility at Denkai Animal Sanctuary and will help to provide emergency care to homeless animals who would otherwise perish.

Pay It Forward! (Donate Now Button)

Aug. 4, 1936–Feb. 20, 2009

Age: 72

Residence: Greeley

Jerre Lee Fisher, loving grandmother, mother and wife, passed away Feb. 20, 2009, at Hospice and Palliative Care of Northern Colorado after a long and brave battle with breast cancer.

She was born Aug. 4, 1936, in Long Beach, Calif., to Arthur and Florence (Chamberlain) Frederiksen. She grew up in Greeley and graduated from Greeley High in 1954, excelling in band as majorette, Pep Club, athletics and a member of National Honor Society. In 1965, she married Charles Largent. They later divorced but remained good friends. She married Errol Fisher in 1998. Jerre retired from the State of Colorado 19th Judicial District in 1998 after 29 years.

She loved taking care of her many animals, especially her inseparable chemo companion yorkie, Amazing Grace. She lived and loved life to the fullest and enjoyed Dixieland and Queen City Jazz, cruising to Alaska and the Caribbean and Harley trips to California Highway 1 with her husband, Errol and her brother, Doug. Jerre was past director of the Weld County Humane Society and was instrumental in the early development of the organization as a safe and humane shelter for homeless animals. She was a member of the Greeley/Evans Moose Lodge No. 909, a longtime member of the Greeley Harley Owners Group No. 1462 and editor of the H.O.G. Herald newsletter. She was an avid supporter of many needy groups, including Denkai Animal Sanctuary, American Humane Association, Triangle Cross Ranch and Relay for Life. In her spare time, she crocheted dozens of baby blankets and hats and donated them to the Monfort Birthing Center at N.C.M.C. Jerre enjoyed sharing her many artistic and creative talents, including sewing, drawing, calligraphy and flower gardening.

Jerre is survived by her husband, Errol; two daughters, Lynn Largent and Lauris (Brad) Laue, all of Greeley; a stepdaughter, Kelly (Scott) Wheeler of Dallas, Texas; five stepsons, Mike of Dallas, Tom, Steve and Rick of Greeley and Mark of Denver. She loved and will be dearly missed by her 15 grandchildren, Mark, Mitch, Lauren, Sarah, Jeff, Tyler, Ronnie, Demi, Nick, Jake, Derek, Josh, Atienne, Tony and Nate.

She was preceded in death by her son, Scott Largent; her brother, Doug; and her parents.

Rosie is perhaps the most precious little girl many of us have ever known. Her story is nothing short of miraculous, so similar to those you may view on Animal Cops.

Rosie is a 4 year old Chihuahua, she grew up at a local Fort Collins Dairy in a home with many people and children whom she absolutely adored. Rosie would anxiously wait for the School bus every day looking for the children and following them home. Rosie's life was no cake walk. She resided under the trailer house with her own family of dogs.

One day all of this changed for Rosie, she was running along her merry way as she did every day when she was run over by a truck. Rosie, in an enormous amount of pain was placed by her owners on their front porch step next to a filthy jacket and a dead starling that the cat had brought as an offering. The weather was below freezing that day. She lay for two days, in shock and freezing on the front porch of this run down house with her frozen bowl of milk next to her. Her pain was unbearable.

A kind woman came to Rosie's rescue after two days had gone by. Dawn from Fort Collins saw this poor little girl and immediately came to her rescue. Dawn was able to gain ownership of Rosie and set to calling every rescue group she could find asking for help for this little girl. Dawn had x-rays done and discovered that Rosie needed an orthopedic surgeon immediately. Dawn Contact Denkai Animal Sanctuary, we were happy to send out an e-mail requesting help.

Lori Montano brought her down to Downtown Animal Clinic here in Denver, were Dr. Umlauf, the premier orthopedic veterinary surgeon in Colorado, performed the necessary surgery to fix her several injuries.

There were, I believe, four fractures to repair, including one of her acetabulum/femoral head area. There were no dislocations, so there shouldn't be a problem in the future with aseptic necrosis of the femoral head often caused if this kind of injury is not repaired quickly.

Dr. Umlauf donated all of his time to perform the surgery, and more importantly paid the clinic to use the surgical suite and the facilities for her subsequent recovery out of his own pocket. If there is any way donations for this pup could be used to pay some of the vet clinic expenses, it would it be much appreciated.

Thank you all for all of your concern and help with this sweet girl. She wins the hearts of everyone with whom she comes in contact and I am so glad she will have a caring and responsible home to go to. In particular, thanks to Dawn who showed the concern in the first place to rescue this pup from her former owners who left her to languish in pain, and who continues to check in with Lori every day to find out how she's doing. Thanks to Floss Blackburn of Denkai Sanctuary who sent out the appeal. Thanks to Lori Montano who contacted the surgeon after I forwarded Floss' email to her. Thanks to Dr. Emily for keeping in touch with the surgeon to get regular updates that I can pass along to all concerned. Thanks to Bob for giving this sweet pup a home when she's ready to leave the clinic. Thanks to Dr. McManus and Mary and all the staff at the Downtown Animal Clinic for their time and care and concern for this pup. And a very special thanks to Dr. Ed Umlauf who performed the surgeries on this sweet angel pup out of his own pocket.

And most importantly, thank you to Bob Grube, Vice President for Denkai Animal Sanctuary for giving Rosie the best home she could have ever hoped for!

Ways to Give - We need Your Support!

Taken from Kathy Zaffore: A dozen things to reduce taxes

MAKE A CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION – TAKE YOUR CHOICE AND
BE A BLESSING TO SOMEONE DURING THIS HOLIDAY SEASON:
• GIVE MONEY
You can use your credit card as long as the date processed is in 2008 (even if you don’t pay until January or even later). Or mail checks early because the charity may process your contribution on the date received rather than the date of post mark. For a gift over $250 at one time – you MUST get a receipt!!!! Your cancelled check is not good enough.

To give on line, simply go to your favorite charity’s web site –almost all allow you to make a contribution on line with a credit card. Otherwise, try www.guidestar.com .

For your friend who has everything, make a contribution in his/her name to his/her favorite charity. It is deductible to YOU.

• CLEAN OUT CLOSETS, GARAGE, KITCHEN AND MAKE A
CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION OF NONCASH GOODS TO
GOODWILL OR ARC OR DISABLED VETERANS ETC ETC.
To assure that your contribution is deductible – DOCUMENT it.
Take photos, make a list of items along with their original purchase price and their current thrift store value. BE REALISTIC. You can use www.itsdeductible.com as a guide, but remember that the IRS does NOT sanction that web site’s valuations. You are now required to have receipts to prove the purchase price. Just be aware of that. Get a signed and dated
receipt if your gift exceeds $250 per trip. Be sure to give us your lists to use in preparation of your tax return.

• GO SHOPPING
Pick up an “angel” ornament in almost any store or mall and buy a gift for someone who really needs a smile. Keep the receipt – it is deductible.

• CONSIDER GIVING AWAY THAT OLD CLUNKER CAR (OR BOAT OR TRAILER OR TIMESHARE OR…OTHER BIG THING).
If you give a car to charity before the end of the year, you could get a big deduction. Here are the rules, briefly. If the charity sells the car at auction, your deduction is the amount the car sold for and the charity will supply you (and the IRS)
with a 1099. If the charity will use the car in its mission or gift the car to a needy person, you will get a fair market value deduction and the charity will give you a letter indicating that it will indeed make use of the car itself. Big difference. Shop
around to find a charity that can use your car. If it isn’t running, how about a school for mechanics?? ☺

• VOLUNTEER MILEAGE IS DEDUCTIBLE!
If you drive your car to do volunteer work…your mileage is deductible. Pull together your log showing date, reason, and miles. Don’t overlook this deduction! If you drive thousands of miles, have the organization give you a letter thanking you for
driving A LOT (have them use your specific amount from your well maintained log). For 2008, the deduction is 14 cents per mile – which doesn’t sound like much, but if you drive 1,000 miles (a mere 20 miles a week) driving seniors to doctor appointments (for example), you will have a $140 deduction.

• GIVE WITHOUT GIVING A CENT
For a nondeductible, but ongoing gift, to your favorite charity, look at www.goodsearch.com. Goodsearch will give money to your charity EVERY TIME you do an on line search through Goodsearch. It works! Try it!