My thoughts turned to how I spend my Sundays...

On my drive home tonight my thoughts turned to how I spend my Sundays.  Last week I turned 54.

At my age I am blessed to be in good health, strong, full of energy and to have a passion that fills my heart.

Today there was no normal to my routine.  I think the main theme of the day was “mini-donkeys”.   I was able to get the barn animals fed before I needed to load up one of the mini-donkeys who was just adopted. She was one of the mini’s that had been part of a county farm seizure.  Her new owners will love her, she is friendly and enjoys attention.  Shortly  after  the donkey adoption someone came to pick up 6 ducks they were adopting that were part of the same farm seizure.  I ended up giving them a short tour of the place. I think I probably walked around in 20 circles before figuring out the next priority. LOL.  I had to finish cleaning out a room in the barn and set it up to move a very pregnant mini-donkey, so she can give birth safely and quietly. Once done, had to move said donkey. Luckily she was very cooperative, I was very amazed.  I tried to give worming medicine to an uncooperative  draft horse. ( think Budweiser Beer size horse). With it being muddy and all the horses acting up, I decided after several attempts it was not worth risking. I tried to give a mini-donkey wormer too, gave up on that after a donkey rodeo.  I moved 4 mini-donkeys into the pole barn and “wrassled & dragged”, (that is not an exaggeration), the male for a good 20 minutes trying to get him to the outside pen.  I was able to get everyone fed of course, squeeze in cleaning the goat hut, goat feeder, top cleaning the straw in the emu house, cleaned a horse stall, filled up a few water tubs.   And all the little things in between.  It was now dark.  With a heavy heart I walked over to the Mississippi pen.  It was time to say goodbye to Roary.

He was released from his pain and sent over the Rainbow Bridge to be free.    I also had to help with moving his body.  There are many sides to volunteering at Valley of the Kings.  The painful aspects, such as saying goodbye to these wonderful animals when it is their time,  the body aches and pains from the physical labor,  it is all outweighed by the joy & love we experience by just sharing their space. 

Love and Light, to Infinity and Beyond.  Life is what you make of it, and my life is GREAT.

Tonight we said goodbye to Roary the lion, he was surrounded in love as he peacefully drew his last breath.  He was truly a wise and majestic soul.  He had been in a lot of pain from bone cancer in his leg, he was ready to say goodbye.  As his soul passed from his body the roars of his siblings and fellow lions at VOTK vibrated the sanctuary, it brought us all to tears.  He came to VOTK in 1996 from a horrific situation in Mississippi.  He lived the last 16 yrs of his life at VOTK, loved and spoiled.  He was in his mid 20's.                                                                                  

 When I first started my volunteer work at VOTK 4 years ago I wrote a story about Roary.  I would like to share that here. Because since that day we had connected, I always made sure I said hello when I passed by. :)  Love & light to you dear friend.

WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, A LION SAYS HELLO.
I volunteer my Sundays at Valley of the Kings, a big cat sanctuary.
This past Sunday was a particularly grueling day. The weather and conditions were a toss up between ice, slushy snow and bare ground. We use sleds in the winter to make it easier to transport food and garbage ( aka poop & other yuck).
The sleds work great over the snow and ice but not bare ground. I felt like an ox dragging a wagon, heave/ ho, back and forth across the compound . It kicked my butt.

When it is cold and near dusk the lions tend to go inside their enclosures, so it is usually pretty quiet. It was around 5pm, I was walking through the compound to finish a chore when I noticed one of the the Mississippi lions out near his house and staring at me. They have always been an aloof bunch and I have stopped many times to talk to them but I usually got a yawn in response to my chatter.
So of course I was intrigued, I immediately stopped and asked him if he wanted company or to talk. He then promptly walked through the feeding area and came over to where I was standing and stared me right in the eyes, face to face. I was no more than 10 inches away from him. I had no idea how massive he was until he was right in front of me and he was so beautiful it was breathtaking.
He was right next to his dinner but he was not possessive or aggressive in anyway. He continued to look at me, a very content look on his face. He let me know that he just wanted to exchange energy. He knew that I was dragging, as I mentioned above, and he wanted to help. Wow, how cool is that.
******
ROARY, you were beyond cool. Thank you for always being there. Godspeed.

LIONS & TIGERS & BEARS (my grant winning entry)

This was my Grant winning entry for a $5000 donation to Valley of the Kings! WOOT!

LIONS & TIGERS & BEARS…and many other exotics as well as farm animals reside at Valley of the Kings. Valley of the Kings aka VOTK is a Big Cat & Exotic Rescue and Sanctuary founded 38 years ago and is nestled in the sleepy countryside of Southeast WI. I started volunteering at VOTK the first week of January 2009 during a wicked ice storm. Let me add that I hate the cold, but my first day of hard labor sold me. For the past 3 ½ years I have volunteered every Sunday and work 7-9 hours. I also go some weekday and Saturdays when needed. My hours can easily add up to 500 in a year in labor and fundraising efforts.

VOTK is strictly non-profit and exists solely on donations and memberships. Operating costs are between $10,000- $12,000 per month , electricity alone can reach over $2000 a month.

I have always loved big cats, the panthers being a favorite since childhood, but it was RC, the horse with no eyes that stole my heart. RC came from a local farm that had a seizure of approximately 40 horses due to neglect. RC could not be placed at a regular farm due to severe infection in both eyes caused by living in filth. VOTK committed to taking in RC and had her eyes removed to relieve her pain. She has a seeing eye donkey, Monchee, who is her best buddy. To watch how she maneuvers around her small field area is always amazing to me. I committed myself to make sure she always had a spotless stall before I left at the end of the day. While I work in her area she stands at my shoulder listening to every word I say. She loves when I talk to her. I will occasionally stop to give her nose kisses and back rubs. When it is time to put the shavings down she waits until I tell her that I am all done, then she proceeds to roll around in bliss in her clean stall. I then brush her down, telling her how much I love her with each brush stroke. The bond I share with this amazing horse is beyond words. She completes my soul.

It is difficult to keep my volunteer experience short as there are so many stories I could tell about all the wonderful animals and people. I started writing a blog called animalbond.blogspot.com and added animal photography (flickr.com/susanR58) to share my many enriching encounters. Volunteering at Valley of the Kings is one of the most personally rewarding experiences of my life. I have learned firsthand about the circle of life, the sadness and joy that accompanies an animal’s passing, to see the love and trust these once abused animals now have for their caregivers. Volunteering is to give back and not expect anything in return. I satisfy my desire to help animals (my passion), provide service (something we all should be doing), get lots of healthy exercise and it all brings peace and unconditional love into my life. -Susan Reinholz