JANUARY 2013 THE RIDER /41 A Child’s Dream is Realized At Wind Dancer Pony Rescue
Wind Dancer Pony Res- cue was born of a little girl’s dream to make life better for ponies. Isabel Dupuy was a talented equestrian who had a special connection with ponies. Her dream was to, someday, establish a sanctu- ary for ponies who needed love, care and good lifelong homes. Tragically, Isabel died in a car accident at the age of eleven. In March of 2011, her mother and veteri- narian, Dr. Paula Dupuy, established the Wind Dancer Pony Rescue Foundation in her daughter’s memory. Wind Dancer’s Mission is to “aid and protect ponies through rescue and educa- tion, to provide safe sanctu- ary and caring homes for ponies in need, and to pro- mote the responsible stew- ardship of pony populations both domestic and wild.” Located on Dr. Dupuy’s Sheffield, ON farm, near Rockton, the fledgling sanc- tuary has exceeded her wildest dreams. More than fifty volunteers help daily with the feeding, care and rehabilitation of the ponies, and countless friends, neigh- bours and complete strangers
have donated money to the registered charity. When ponies arrive at Wind Dancer Pony Rescue, their new lives are only beginning. Some- times they need help read- justing; sometimes they are ill or injured; always, they need extra love and care. This is where Wind Dancer’s fifty volunteers come in. Mostly girls and young women between nine and twenty years of age, the Wind Dancer volunteers make sure every day that each Rescue pony is fed, watered, groomed and com- fortable in his or her pad- dock. Sometimes their fami- lies get into the act, too. Each volunteer is trained in how to safely handle the ponies, and to cater to their individual needs. They record observations in a log book, and sign in and out for each visit. There are proce- dures for entering and leav- ing the paddocks, for bring- ing hay and feed to the ponies, and even for parking. Honey, pictured as the newest arrival, is a chestnut gelding about twenty years old. He was rescued along with two donkeys from a
petting zoo that was closing down in Sarnia area. The donkeys were taken to the Donkey Sanctuary of Cana- da. With growth though, comes challenges. With addition of the fourteenth pony in its first twenty months of existence, The Wind Dancer Pony Rescue Foundation needs more than ever to secure good homes for its residents . “We bring the ponies to our sanctuary, nurse them back to health when necessary, and make sure they are well socialized before we make them avail- able to foster families,” explained Dr. Dupuy. “We are always on the look-out for more foster families, because we need to make room at the rescue for other ponies in need.” Under a fostering agreement, the fos- ter family takes responsibili- ty for the animal, although ownership remains with the Wind Dancer Pony Rescue. If, for any reason, the arrangement does not work out, the pony returns to Wind Dancer.
Honey, the newest arrival at Wind Dancer Pony Rescue is a beautiful gelding around twenty years old.
Another need has arisen as well. They need to ensure the sanctuary has a reliable
water supply for winter, says foundation President, Paula Dupuy. “We are in the pro- cess of installing an electri- cal system to heat the ponies’ water troughs, and securing a large water tank that we can use to transport water to the paddocks every day,” Dr. Dupuy explained. Because there is bedrock very close to the ground sur- face at the Sheffield farm, the cost of laying water lines was found to be prohibitive. The next best thing is to lay electrical lines that, at least, will keep the water troughs from freezing. The large, portable tank can be filled from any source at any time, which will also be useful in times of drought such as the one last summer, noted Dupuy. The pony rescue will also need four new heated water troughs. The estimated cost of the project is $10,000. You can find more information about fostering ponies, volunteering, or making a donation at
www.winddancerponies.org or by emailing winddancer-
ponies@gmail.com; or by calling 519-622-4575.
Dr. Oscar Dalmeo Schomber, Ontario Cell: 647-406-6168
www.santamariapasofino.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56