LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – For those community members with horses and other large animals needing help in the wake of the Valley fire, a North Coast nonprofit is continuing its efforts to make sure that animals are fed and their people have the supplies and tack needed in the days ahead.
Sonoma Action for Equine Rescue, or SAFER, is offering assistance in the form of feed for all types of large animals and livestock – horses, cows, goats, sheep, llamas – to Lake County residents affected by the Valley fire, and also have expanded that assistance to those impacted by the Rocky and Jerusalem fires before it.
“We just have an enormous amount of hay and feed coming in,” said Kate Sullivan, who founded SAFER in 2007.
There also are bags of food like Equine Senior, and a wide array of donated tack, tools, tarps, some fencing and other supplies, Sullivan said.
Sullivan said they are increasing their local outreach – which has included social media, fliers at locations such as animal hospitals and outreach to groups around the state – to make sure that they have reached everyone who needs their help.
SAFER – also known in Mendocino and Lake counties as North Counties Horse Rescue – had an active presence in Lake County well before the fire, both on the side of animal rescue and assistance for owners trying to afford their horses through economically trying times.
Several years ago, SAFER instituted its “Donate A Bale” program through Rainbow Ag, which offered assistance for horse owners trying to hold onto their animals during the depths of the recession.
The organization joined many other groups from across the region, California and even the nation in offering assistance to impacted animals after the Valley fire began its devastating sweep through southern Lake County on Sept. 12.
Sullivan said SAFER also has assisted victims of the Butte fire, which burned in Amador and Calaveras counties at the same time as the Valley fire.
SAFER has a number of public programs, one being the rescuing of horses directly from auctions, Sullivan said.
On the day the fire started Sullivan was heading home to Sebastopol from the Escalon Auction outside of Modesto with six horses she had purchased after outbidding a notorious meat buyer, and thinking she might take a break for a few days. Then she heard about the fire.
She soon was swinging into action to offer help, calling Jim Mayfield of Rainbow Ag the next day to make adjustments to the Donate A Bale program so that it could also serve evacuees, their horses and livestock.
That night, she followed up by sending out an online request to her extensive network of connections, seeking help for fire victims.
While she couldn't have guessed how enormous the need would be, neither could she nor her group have known how big the response would be.
Working closely with Sullivan is Carleene Cady of Lakeport, an equestrian and a retired nurse practitioner who was employed in a Sonoma County hospital emergency room, and whose multitasking abilities make her just the person for the job, according to Sullivan.
Cady calls the entire experience of working both with fire victims and those who want to help them “truly amazing.”
Help from far and wide
On Sept. 14, Scott Bell at Bell Ranching called Sullivan, wanting to donate a semi load of hay for the fire victims. However, Bell had a short window in which to deliver it, and Sullivan needed a place to store the hay.
She began making phone calls and was pointed toward Lake County Farm Bureau Executive Director Brenna Sullivan, herself an accomplished horsewoman.
By the next day, Brenna Sullivan secured a large shed at Adobe Creek Packing for feed storage. Adobe Creek Controller Shirley Campbell contributed the facility for long-term feed storage.
Other help also started coming in, such as a donation from Rainbow Ag and Purina of 24 pallets of Equine Senior, plus smaller loads from other donors, Kate Sullivan said.
From there, Sullivan said supplies started rolling out to those who needed them.
SAFER now has supply depots in both Kelseyville and Middletown, with fire survivors also able to access help through the Rainbow Ag stores in Lakeport and Ukiah, Sullivan said.
She recognized the ASPCA's equine division for its help, noting the organized quickly granted SAFER $5,500 for horse hay purchases.
Sullivan said North Coast Barns and 7-M Ranch came forward in the Middletown area to participate with SAFER's fire assistance program. She also recognized Kevin Tighe for all his work receiving and dispensing feed as well as his counsel on how best to serve the agriculture community at this time.
“Together we watched and listened anxiously as reports came in of sad losses and miraculous survivals amongst the families impacted by the fires. We are both humbled and delighted to be working with so many folks from all over Northern California who have come forward to help out fellow animal owners. It's a great community,” Sullivan said.
There has been so many offers of help that SAFER had to turn some donations down, Sullivan said.
Sullivan said Cady came on four days into the effort, working seven days a week coordinating the comings and going of more than $150,000 worth of hay, feed and other donations, while also arranging meetings with people at the depots to either take applications for assistance or to receive donations and give tax receipts to donors.
“She's just tireless,” Sullivan said of Cady.
Cady said a lot of hay has been trucked in from the Sacramento Valley. Equine groups like the Shoreline Riders of Fort Bragg have stepped up to offer tack, putting out the call for donations and then driving over from the coast to deliver five Western saddles, three English saddles, saddles pads and bridles.
Only one of the saddles is left, Cady said.
She recalled one woman coming in seeking tack, and when asked what kind of saddle she wanted, she said she was happy with any kind – she just wanted to ride her horse.
For those who have lost everything save their animals, it's the little things that have had great meaning, said Cady.
She said one person came in and picked up a hoof pick to clean their horse's hooves. “You would have thought it was worth $100,” she said of the usually inexpensive item.
Another fire survivor became emotionally overwhelmed when she picked up a set of donated screwdrivers, noting she didn't even have that most basic tool, Cady said.
Cady said other donations have included shovels, tape measures, levels, pliers and duct tape. One person who came in gave an exclamation of delight at finding the duct tape, she said.
“These people have been so wonderful,” she said. “They don't want to take too much.”
The survivors also are optimistic, Cady said, and “are starting to get their feet under them a little bit,” and beginning the process of planning for the future.
“They're phenomenal,” she said.
She's been glad to help, calling it a rewarding but exhausting experience. Returning home after a busy day, she reminds herself that she is in her own house – something that isn't a fact for many of the people she is assisting.
She said those who come in seeking assistance are sharing their stories with her. “When bad things happen, sometimes you need to tell your story over and over,” she said.
Most of the people who have come to SAFER for assistance saved their animals, but then there are heartbreaking cases, like the woman who showed Cady pictures of the horses she lost.
“The people that lost animals, they've all said that was the worst,” beyond loss of houses, Cady said.
It's still not clear just how many large animals and livestock died during the fire or afterward as a result of their injuries. The California Office of Emergency Services reported that in the weeks after the fire, animal carcasses – including more than 100 cattle and five horses – were taken to a rendering plant.
Separately, Sullivan said they've heard of other animals that have died whose owners buried them at home.
Sullivan said that, as of this week, SAFER has fed more than 800 head of surviving cattle, at least 70 of the evacuee foster horses as well as contributing feed to Middletown Animal Hospital and Lake County Animal Care and Control.
“We are still sending horse hay to major evacuation fosters as well as livestock ranches and will continue to do so as necessary,” she said. “We are also aware, however, that the local businesses that supply these folks also need to be supported and we plan to phase out support of those animals whose situations are resolved.”
Sullivan added that, for families who have lost everything, SAFER will be here as long as they are needed to help care for dependent animals while rebuilding takes place.
Cady said they continue to store hay, tack, some fencing and other supplies, with everything kept secure and protected from the weather so it can be available in the months ahead.
In the midst of its Valley fire efforts, SAFER is keeping busy with one of its core tasks – finding homes for horses in need.
Case in point: Remember those six horses that Sullivan rescued the day before the fire? She said they were vetted, trimmed and evaluated by a trainer, and four already have been adopted in the month since they were rescued from the meat buyer at the Escalon Auction.
For those who would like to assist SAFER, money can be donated by calling the Rainbow Ag store in Lakeport at 707-279-0550 and asking for the SAFER Fire Relief Account; a tax receipt will be sent.
To donate goods like hay and horse supplies or to request assistance, call Cady at 707-349-1993. Kate Sullivan can be reached at 707-824-9543.
Visit SAFER's Facebook page and its Web site, http://www.saferhorse.com/ , for more information about the organization and updates.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.