Celebrating Quantum Progress this Season of Thanks and Giving

Celebrating Quantum Progress this Season of Thanks and Giving

 Katia Louise: Wild For Life Foundation (WFLF)

It’s been a transformational year for animals at the Wild For Life Foundation. And we’re celebrating this success based on the individual animals rescued from distress and the compassion and awareness generated by our educational efforts. The animals are counting on us to deliver, and you have made it possible. Here are a few highlights of some of the biggest accomplishments that The WFLF has achieved over the past year with your support.

• The Wild for Life Foundation (WFLF) founded the Navajo Horse Rescue and Recovery Mission to
  
  address and provide for the urgent needs of horses and burros found in life threatening situations due to the Navajo Nation roundups.  Navajo’s sacred Mustangs, including orphan foals just weeks old and pregnant mares are at grave risk of after being captured in New Mexico and Arizona.  It’s been virtually impossible to intercept the pipeline of imperiled Navajo Mustangs impacted by the roundups because these victimized horses are taken directly to Mexico for slaughter within 24 hours of their capture. Through WFLF’s Navajo Horse Rescue and Recovery Mission approx forty of these sacred wild horses have been saved from barbaric slaughter and evacuated to safe harbor under WFLF’s wild horse rescue and sanctuary program.
• We founded  WFLF NM Mustang Rescue Mission as crisis intervention to save approx
  140+ historic wild Mustangs from the risk of going to slaughter.  WFLF’s Wild Horse Sanctuary Program has since provided emergency aid for hay, veterinary medical care and equine transport, and facilitated the relocation and re-homing of this large herd in family bands into private safe haven facilities. Over two dozen of these victimized Mustangs have since been permanently re-homed directly into WFLF’s “Back to the Wild” wild horse sanctuary in California.
• We conducted deployments of our Equine Rescue team in states across the nation, saving horses from starvation, slaughter, abuse and displacement. 
• We opened our transitional “Back to the Wild” wild horse sanctuary at WFLF’s Lifetime Equine Refuge in California and continued to expand our Safe Haven Equine network across the nation. Together with our accredited partners, we provided direct care to horses in more than eight states nationwide.
• WFLF’s expansion of its Wild Horse conservation and nature program, “Back to the Wild” has served to preserve and protect the lives of wild horses across America. WFLF offers
  
  positive alternatives which protect and preserve America’s Wild Horses through innovative methods for sanctuary management that include community enrichment and sustainable ecological approaches.  
•  WFLF's Lifeline Legacy Circle was established to recognize the most devoted and loyal group of individuals and families who are an invaluable part of Wild for Life Foundation’s lifesaving mission. Lifeline Legacy Members are recognized for helping to secure quality care and habitats for the neediest animals that come into our rescue and sanctuary program. With the monthly support of Lifeline Legacy supporters, we make sure these victimized animals get the medical care, time and attention they need.
•  WFLF established its 'Seeds of Life' Circle where prominent community members and businesses can contribute in support of the vital capacity building and expansion of WFLF’s lifesaving missions.  
•  WFLF’s established an ongoing Hay Drive to raise funds to purchase hay and grains to feed starved and homeless rescue horses in need. The ‘WFLF Hay Drive’ has raised awareness, saved and rehabilitated numerous horses, ponies, donkeys and foals that needed urgent care after being discarded and left to die.
•  The Wild For Life Foundation (WFLF) expanded its “Healing Hearts” program which provides a multitude of opportunities for horses and people to become partners in healing and therapeutic relationships.  A healing bond is developed through interactions with rescue horses.  The program strives to improve life skills, build self respect, and heal broken hearts. 
• We partnered with The Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes to promote equine assisted learning programs for military veterans and disadvantaged youth.  We are thrilled to work with the Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes in support of our new sanctuary expansion project which is aimed to provide programs with a focus on its community enrichment equine wellness activities, and robust equine assisted programs for disadvantaged youth, active duty military, and veterans and their families.

• We presented “Saving America's Horses” to a full house at the 2014 EAGALA Conference in Texas earlier this year.
• We partnered with the American Association of Equine Sports Preservation (AAESP) in a combined effort to promote horse preservation, along with equine-assisted programs that help children with autism, military veterans, and other victims of post-traumatic stress disorder. The AAESP sponsored WFLF's Saving America's Horses booth at the 15th Annual EAGALA conference which took place in Mesquite, TX. WFLF’s booth at the conference was visited by numerous conference attendees who were able to engage and learn from our compelling multimedia educational materials.
• Through WFLF’s Operation Thoroughbred, more risk Thoroughbreds raised for racing were saved, rehabilitated and re-trained over the last year after finding themselves in life threatening situations. WFLF saves and provides care for these abused, starved, neglected and slaughter bound horses that have been virtually discarded by the race industry.  We give them a second chance at life through rehabilitation, adoption, foster care, equine assisted learning and sanctuary. 
•  WFLF’s “Saving America's Horses” continues to raise awareness and compel people to action. We have made great strides toward launching the first in a series of “Saving America’s Horses” movie showings at theaters and local community venues nationwide. Dates and venues for each showing will be based on booking requests and availability. SAVING AMERICA’S HORSES is a powerful podium with a dynamic reach to animal lovers worldwide. This intelligent exposé reveals how the public has been misled by certain government agencies and special interest groups that run over the laws that are supposed to protect the horses, people and the environment.  "Saving America's Horses: A Nation Betrayed" is an educational documentary film project under WFLF's Humanion Films, created as an social action tool for people who want to engage. Promoting wild horse preservation initiatives – the prevention of equine cruelty – and to support the return of horse and burro populations to the wild and provide lifelong sanctuary for equines in need. SAVING AMERICA’S HORSES is a central tool in a larger grassroots effort focused on saving this indigenous species for the greater good, and supporting the wildlife and natural ecosystems that depend on them now and for generations to come.

• We helped reinstate a ban on domestic horse slaughter. The U.S. Congress reinstated the defunding language in the Consolidated Appropriations Act (aka the Omnibus Bill). The language effectively bans the slaughtering of horses by preventing the U.S. Department of Agriculture from expending funds to place inspectors in horse slaughter facilitates through the year 2014.  

USDA inspectors are required by federal law for the plants to operate in interstate commerce and effective the defunding language ensures no horse slaughter facilities can open in the United States.  The defunding language had been in effect every year since 2006, but removed in 2013.

• WFLF established the Village at Saving America's Horses by reaching out to our member base on Facebook.  Village members consist of dedicated Saving America’s Horses fans that support WFLF’s lifesaving missions. By taking part in this instrumental way, Village members make a difference in the lives of countless starved, abused, distressed, and homeless horses by contributing and sharing educational resources on behalf of America’s imperiled horses in need.
• We’ve made great strides over the last year in our continuing efforts to development WFLF’s western regional equine preserve plan comprised of natural habitat equine preserves and companion animal sanctuaries.  We’re now well into Phase One of WFLF's master plan including sanctuary expansion through acquisition of equine land and facilities where animals and people are partners in healing and therapeutic relationships.  The Wild for Life Foundation’s diverse educational and wellness activities are inherent in building compassion and positive life skills which foster symbiotic environmental stewardship through a healing partnership with animals. WFLF’s wild horse preservation component serves as an educational platform for the conservation and protection of wildlife through the provision of sanctuary and preserves for wild horses and burros who have been captured from the wild. The first of our Eco-friendly wellness and education centers is aimed to offer visitors opportunities to observe and learn from wild horses in natural habitat environments.  Programming also offers participants a place to heal, enhance life skills and to develop new skills in animal rescue, rehabilitation and animal assisted learning.
• We welcomed new board member Cheryl Casati - Master Trainer and Equestrian Professional.

• The kind and generous support from our devoted constituents, combined with collaborative support we received from partnering groups enabled us to provide lifesaving veterinary medical care for approximately 180 needy rescue horses.  We were able to improve and expand our equine programs and facilities.  We were able to purchase a 24’ stock horse trailer and deployed urgent transport for imperiled horses to safety.  We’ve fed hundreds of starved rescue horses from several states across the country.

In the coming months, we’ll keep you updated with more details about each of these victories, and the many others that you’ve helped us to achieve. And, as we celebrate this season of thanks and giving, we would like to give our sincere thanks for all you do to make this incredible progress for horses possible. We invite you to take pride and reflect on all the good that your kind support helps us accomplish for the animals – and the progress we can achieve together in the year ahead.

With blessings and gratitude, on behalf of the horses,

Sincerely,

Katia Louise, Founder, President, Volunteer Executive Director

The Wild For Life Foundation

www.WildForLifeFoundation.org

19510 Van Buren Blvd, Ste F3236

Riverside, CA 92508

Phone: 310.439.9817

(updated 11-18-2014 6:47AM PST)