Welcome
Our Mission
Equine Safe Haven has a dual mission which benefits the community, visitors, and guests at the Ranch. The nonprofit saves Equines by purchasing them from a specific Texas kill pen, and rehabilitates and repurposes those Equines into a program that teaches all ages horsemanship skills. For the community, visitors, and out of town guests, the non profit program teaches life-skills, leadership, fitness, healing & compassion, and also focuses on carriage driving skills that can be used by those that no longer ride, or have disabilities that would not allow them to ride otherwise. We benefit the community by providing a recreational outlet for economically disadvantaged persons of all ages.
We provide educational instruction in various equine activities and disciplines. Basic horsemanship, driving a carriage/buggy basics, and general horse care, all using our saved horses, mules and donkeys as teachers. These animals usually have over 10 years experience, highly trained, and still have much to give. They are deserving of a second chance. They provide this community of the Southwest much needed outlet, and healing potential for underprivileged, persons with disabilities, educational opportunities & endless smiles.
Upcoming Events
Equine Safe Haven Ranch Opening Day and Ribbon Cutting - TBD Sprint 2023
The Big News
Equine Safe Haven is a nonprofit 501(c)3, tax exempt organization as determined by the IRS. Your donations are tax deductible as of Nov 15, 2022
Featured in the Deming, NM News - December 27, 2022
About Equine Safe Haven at SaddleHawk Ranch
Open Ranch Day December 17, 2022
Christmas songs played over a loudspeaker during a Saturday open house at SaddleHawk Ranch on Franklin Road east of town. Visitors were invited on arrival to hop onto a horse-drawn cab for a ride around the property with owner Katrina Lomax.
Pulling the cab was a trotter named Ronin, whom she rescued from a Texas kill pen in January 2022 — just around the time she and her husband, Ken Wendel, moved onto the 38-acre property. After retiring from harness racing, Lomax said Ronin belonged to an Amish community out of state.
“He was probably a school bus,” she said. “He’s really good with kids. He’s very easy to handle. When you go down the street, he asks you about driveways — ‘Shall I turn in this driveway?’”
The cab also moved past a few beehives before making its way down the main driveway past an RV that was boondocking at the ranch. The ranch welcomes RVs to camp without hookups to services, or “boondock.” We have 30-amp hookups are available, too.
Yet Lomax spoke with the most passion about the ranch as an educational center — a place to learn about leading and caring for horses.
“When they come from these kill pens, it’s like the end of the cycle,” Lomax said. “They go auction by auction by auction. They get weaker and weaker and weaker because they’re not fed properly.”
They may also suffer from arthritis, dental problems, worms or other concerns.
A point the couple repeated often, in separate conversations, is how much horses have to teach people of any age.
In November, Lomax founded Equine Safe Haven as a nonprofit through which supporters may sponsor a horse to defray the costs of feed and care, and also learn about equine training and care.
read the full article by clicking the link to the right
Algernon D’Ammassa can be reached at algernon@demingheadlight.com.
Your donations are tax deductible (as of Nov 15, 2022) and m
Make a difference in someone's life and help a horse
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Program costs:
- We have 4 horses that Equine Safe Haven sponsors at SaddleHawk Ranch. (CA$H, Ronin, Kona, & Hyster) but we need your donations to support them in the program
- With your donations we cover feed, daily care, vet care, hoof care. We have over 30 Equines still waiting to be part of the program.
- A $28 donation feeds 4 horses a day (horses are fed 2x a day)
- Horseshoeing/Farrier visits are every 8 weeks, and a trim costs $55 each. Set of shoes (for Ronin) is $130
- We provide teeth care (floating) when they first arrive, and any follow-up treatments. Average is $250 per horse
- Vaccinations 2x a year $70 each horse
- We need driving bridles, driving equipment, grooming supplies/equipment - we currently need equipment for CA$H the Belgian horse. As he is a draft size which we do not have
- We need supplements, and medications which are always needed and can be costly. $250 per horse for 6 months.
Program highlights:
- People come to learn about horses, (horsemanship 101)and how horses teach us leadership
- We use Equines that are completely trained and safe for beginners and novice
- Underprivileged or disabled can enjoy our Equines for free!
- Activities like; kissing a donkey, brushing a horse, leadline bareback riding or simply hugging a huge Belgian horse can make a lifelong impact on the child or person
- Weather permitting - we give horse & buggy rides and teach beginning carriage driving, and horsemanship.
- We have a horse driving school, Farrier Opportunities, board member & volunteer opportunities
Believe it - Donations help and are very much appreciated and needed
Nonprofit, 501(c)3, Charitable Organization, saving horses from slaughter, rescued driving horses
About Us
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
We save Equines that would be going to slaughter in Mexico. How? We purchase horses, donkeys, and mules from "kill" pens and some go to their new home at SaddleHawk Ranch. There they rehab and are repurposed into our educational programs - we offer them a second chance in life!
rehab & repurpose
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
We provide educational instruction in various equine activities and disciplines. Basic horsemanship, Driving a carriage/buggy basics, and general horse care, all using our saved horses, mules and donkeys. These animals have much to give and are deserving of a second chance. They provide education & endless smiles
Learn to drive
Saving Equines from going to slaughter
Learn to drive
Specializing: Showcasing our many saved, rehabbed and repurposed Standardbred horses, we teach people how to drive a cart or buggy using their foolproof skillset. These horses are such patient teachers! Students learn how to harness, drive, and care for the Equines.
The Horse Will Teach You If You'll Listen
Ray Hunt