ColoradoTB

From AlexBrownRacing

1 Bio
2 Horse experience
3 Animals You'll Meet at Our Farm
4 FOB activities
5 FOB Network
6 Our Rescue's Website
7 Questions from other FOBs

Bio

My name is Margaret DeSarno and I run Colorado TB Rescue in Wellington, CO. I am currently enrolled full time in Vet school obtaining a D.V.M. degree, so I am very very busy until 2011! I can be reached by email at Margaret@ColoradoTBrescue.org.

(Me with Champion Lodge. Here's Champ's (short) story: http://www.coloradotbrescue.org/Saved_horses.html )

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Horse experience

I have ridden jumpers since I was a 13, and I was lucky enough to work on the Grand Prix jumping circuit for 4 years with some of the best hunter/jumper trainers in the country. During that time my passion for off-the-track TB's emerged. I enjoy riding 'hot' TB's and have started many ex-racehorses (TB's and Standardbreds) under saddle. I also enjoyed working around the racetrack with TB's and Standardbreds, and working with a racetrack vet. After I was married to Pete in 2004 (with our horses, of course!), I worked full-time as a placement coordinater for the Standardbred Retirement Foundation in Freehold, NJ, and went to school part time. After graduating from Rutgers University in 2006, my husband and I relocated to Wellington, CO (just north of Fort Collins, CO and south of Cheyenne, WY) in April 2006. In September 2006, I became aware that the largest kill-buyer in the nation lived right down the highway, and my husband and I incoporated Colorado TB Rescue in November, 2006. In the past, I have done everything from design the website, purchase the horses from danger, and started them under saddle before screening potential adopters and following up on the adopted horse's care. I don't have much free time, so I spend most of my time in the saddle on new or young rescue horses that no one else is brave enough to ride, or on our own horses trail riding in the mountains.

(Here's a dated photo from 1997 of me and my old TB mare, Charm. Sadly she injured her leg in the pasture a year after being retired was lost much too young, only 16 years old).

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Animals You'll Meet at Our Farm

I own one horse, Slick, a 12 yr old Palomino QH gelding whom I have had since he was 18 months old. Slick and I enjoy trail riding, cross country jumping, and everything fun.

My Husband has 2 horses. Jessee Purkey is a 22 yr old retired Standardbred Racehorse. Jessee is now retired but loves to provide beginners for a fun ride, as he's a perfectly safe first riding horse. We adopted Saber, a mustang, in 2006 from the BLM and he has become an amazing trail riding mount. Saber was captured in Nevada as a wild stallion at 4 years old.

We have 6 dogs- Ben, 10 y.o. tan Anatolian Shepherd Mix shelter mutt , Merlin- 11 y.o. grey merle rescued Great Dane- Lance Rufus Gorilla, 3 y.o. brown Great Dane/Lab shelter rescue- Whitney, an old black and white Beagle/Jack Russel adopted from a vet after being severely neglected -Puma, black and tan mutt rescued and bottle fed since 2 weeks old, and the newest addition, Sprocket- a tiny tan matching island puppy!.

We have 2 presidential house-cats (George (pictured) and Bill), 2 (tame) barns cats and a few altered wild barn cats somewhere.
We usually house the horses for the rescue at home, also. We have Champion Lodge, Willy, Peggy, and Beyonce the pony here as well.

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FOB activities

We held a Celebration of Life party at our home in April 2007 and 2008. A Giant Thank You to Marydel for organizing these events!

I was also able to participate in the Americans Against Horse Slaughter March 2008 gathering in Washington, DC due to the amazing generosity of GloriaIL and help of Lucille Matte. I was able to meet many wonderful FOB's in person. Sadly, I was not able to convince any of my representatives to support an end to horse slaughter, but I know our voices made an impact.

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