Rainbow Valley
Pony and Goat Sanctuary
NEW
A very big 'THANK YOU'!
Heartfelt thanks to Mandy, Nikki and Sandra Watt who held a coffee morning and raffle on 29th Nov, and raised over £270 for the sanctuary! With lots of love from everyone at Rainbow Valley xxx
***IMPORTANT INFORMATION***
We are currently having problems with our email. We are hoping to get this resolved as soon as possible, but in the meantime we have a temporary email address which is rainbowvalley@live.com.
Are you concerned about long-distance transport of animals?
Many animals suffer long, distressing journeys before slaughter. This includes horses, thousands of which are transported from Spain to Italy every year. If you are concerned about long-distance transport and want to do something, then please sign the petition raised by the Handle with Care coalition, which will be presented to the EU commissioner in October.
A big 'THANK YOU' and a big appeal for help....
First of all, we would like to say a huge "THANK YOU" from the bottom of our hearts to the anonymous benefactor who has donated £500 towards our vet bill. This bill is a constant source of worry, and it's only through the kindness of and generosity of people willing to give that we are able to keep going. So thank you again, both for your amazing gift and for restoring our faith in human nature!
Which leads us on to our appeal for help. Due to this year's unseasonably wet summer, we have been unable to cut our hay field. This would normally provide us with around 400-450 bales of hay, which would go a long way towards seeing us through the winter months. So we would like to appeal to local people - particularly those whose animals we have helped, or are helping - to donate a bale of hay, and help the animals stay fed this winter. If anyone would prefer to make a financial donation towards the cost of some hay, please send a cheque payable to Rainbow Sanctuary to 43 Higher Budleigh Meadows, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ12 1UL.
Thank you!
Warning for dog owners - DANGEROUS TOY
This is a terribly sad story, but a warning for all dog owners to look out for potentially dangerous toys: http://www.thechaistory.blogspot.com/
Does your dog eat grapes??
This might sound like an odd question, but some recent reports indicate that grapes can be very dangerous to our canine friends. See the following links for more details:
http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/raisins.asp
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/grapeandraisin.htm
Horses for re-homing
We have received a request to help re-home a group of 5 horses. The current owner is seeking a generous, loving and caring person to look after the horses, possibly long term. Help will be given towards the cost of feed. The horses, 4 mares and a gelding, currently live together as a 'family group' which the owner wishes to maintain. They comprise: an elderly mare who is rising 31 and her son (the gelding) who is 15, a younger mare (23) and her daughter, also 15, and another mare who is half-sister to each of these.
In addition there are 2 Appaloosa stallions who live together happily, and have never covered mares. One was hand-reared after being rejected by it's mother, and the other is his half-brother. Both are 16 years old.
All of the horses are happy, well, healthy and cared for, and all currently live out with no rugs. They are well bred, good looking and love people. The owner will request to see where they would be kept.
We hope to receive some photos soon, but if anyone is interested or would like further details please contact Lin in the first instance.
Appeal for sponsors
As ever we are on the lookout for people to sponsor our animals. Sponsorship is particularly important at this time of year as we need to feed our motley crew over the winter months. The cost of hard feed is rising rapidly and we have many hungry mouths to feed. Our sponsorship pages will be updated shortly, but in the meantime if you think you can spare a few pounds a month to help us out then please contact Lin. We now have two very 'characterful' sheep - Jake and Shaun - who are also be available for sponsorship so there is a range of animals to choose from (even the geese and ducks need friends!)
Another big THANK YOU!
Many thanks to Sarah, Will, Joyce, Dave and Elouise for organising last Sunday's car boot sale, which raised £70.
Many of you out there regularly turn up to Rainbow events and we thank you wholeheartedly for your continued support. However, we feel we need to point out that people are asking us to hold these car boot sales, but then failing to turn up. The same is true of the fun rides. A HUGE amount of time and effort - all voluntary - goes into organising these events, and if they are to continue then we need your support. Lin has been told on several occasions that the Rainbow Fun Ride is one of the best in the area, so it will be a terrible shame if it were to stop due to lack of interest.
The Christmas Fun Ride will only take place if enough riders commit to taking part. Anyone interested in doing the ride should email Lin to register their interest.
New arrivals
Meet Magnus (left) and Robin (right), two little ponies that were rescued from the slaughter sales at Chagford earlier this week. There were many, many others that needed help and whose fates don't bear thinking about, but these are the two that Lin and Alan have brought back to raise at Rainbow. Find out more about Magnus and Robin's journey from the sales to Rainbow Valley......
A very big THANK YOU!.....
....to Louise and Karl Evans who walked 120 miles along the Poole to Torquay coast path and raised £200 for sanctuary. The walk took 5 days in total and involved camping out overnight - now that's dedication! If anyone else would like to raise funds for the sanctuary please email us!
Thinking of owning a parrot?........
This poor little chap is Charlie. He was kept shut in a room on his own, and out of boredom he pulled out all of the feathers on his body and wings. Luckily he is now in the care of Lin where he has another parrot, Fred, for company. Despite his appearance he is a real character, and is already showing some improvement by starting to grow back some of his feathers. But this is what can happen when these wild birds are kept in captivity with no stimulation, so please think very carefully before deciding to take one on.
Some happy endings!
Angus and Noah left the sanctuary on Sunday 30th September for a new life together in a lovely new home. It was sad to see them go, but apparently they are settling in well and basking in lots of attention. This is Angus about to set off, looking very smart in a new rug!
Diana the goat has found a lovely new home in Dartington with another elderly goat whose companion sadly died recently. Apparently they are getting on like a house on fire and Diana very much rules the roost!
Buddy and Bertie, the bottle-fed kids, have also found a new home. Here they are!
Mac and Dawn First in Show
Mac has been on loan to Dawn now for 18 months. He originally came to the sanctuary very neglected. He has now just had his first show win. Here is their stoy.
"I was doing a class called competition/sports horse. This was at the Gipping Riding Society show held in the grounds of Helmingham Hall. The class is judged on the best horse to be a general competition or sports horse. We had to do a show which included movements called a trot serpentine, canter serpentine, extended trot and free walk on a long rein. All movements which show how supple and obedient the horse is. The horse's general conformation and attitude was also taken into account as to how suitable they would be to be a competition/sports horse. Mac just did everything I asked (after I'd woken him up from his snooze outside the ring!). In my opinion I don't think he can have gone any better. He has come on so much from the horse I brought back from Devon and from the horse who tried to have me and judge off at a show last year! I never expected we'd be able to do anything like this. He was just a superstar! And I think he really enjoyed himself. He's certainly seemed rather pleased with himself since then!"
Fund Raising
Sunday 27th May Martin Stokes, Jodie Fisher and Kate Donovan from the University of Plymouth ran the Plymouth Half Marathon in aid of Rainbow Valley. The final amount raised is still to be confirmed, but is expected to be in excess of £250.
Martin looking very tired indeed!
Thank you for your hard work.
Download a copy of our screen saver.
Click on the link and install the exe file to your computer.
Rainbow Valley Newsletter for December 2006. Please email me your feedback.
A New Supporter to the Sanctuary
We have just been donated some copies of children stories written by Zemo Watts about a goat and a pony to sell to raise money for the sanctuary. If you are interested in a copy please contact me or visit his http://www.goatandpony.com
If you have any questions that are not addressed on this website or need advice please contact Lin East on the number below.
Home | The Sanctuary | Ponies | Goats | Volunteers | Supporters | Events | Rehoming | Sponsorship
Wrigwell Lane
Wrigwell
Devon TQ12 5UB
Tel: 01803 814212/01626 203938
Rainbow Valley Pony and Goat Sanctuary is currently not a registered charity