GoldHaven Studios

When our house was completed and we first moved in together as a family Kat told the universe that we would take in any critters who showed up needing a home.  Rufus was the first.  Kat had grown up always having big dogs, but we all got used to the comfort of a lap dog really quick!

Within a month after adopting Rufus, a little calico kitten we named Jasmine made a home in our our woodpile.  Soon we were able to coax her into the house. 

Tiger Lily showed up frightened and skinny, on the stoop to our sliding glass door during dinner on Griffin's 7th birthday.  She was nothing but a bag of bones as this photo taken that day will attest.  Probably due to her tough start she prefers to stay indoors.

Meadow was adopted, along with Midnight, as a very sick kitten from a yard sale.  Though not from the same mother, she was one of seven litter mates of Midnight.  When Kat cautiously asked Gary if we could take kittens home, he said, "not all seven!"  We came home with  two.  It's something we joke about to this day.

Midnight is Meadow's non-biological sister.  He's head honcho AND a love.  He tells you when he wants you to turn on the sink fawcet for a drink with a loud MEOW and runs his paws up and down on the sliding glass door to be let in.

Marble found her way to our property and settled into a tree where she cried all night before we could coax her down.  Like the other kitties, she loves to spend time with Kat in the garden.

Jax is our $1 horse.  He was adopted from a kind man who wanted to give him a chance despite his diagnosis as terminally lame with Navicular Syndrome (what we call High Heel Syndrome).  While it took some time, he is now gravel crunching sound.  Here Jax is giving Gidget some sugar.  Gidget was an aged Navicular rescue case and was only with us for a year due to chronic health issues, before moving on to Horse Heaven.

Jolly is the only member of the family for whom some money was paid (besides the $1 for Jax).  Still he was a rescue case in our eyes as he was under nourished, full of parasites and had horribly neglected hooves.  With lots of love, good feed, herbs and regular trimming he soon turned around.  So far around in fact that he is quite a handful.  It is evident that his former caretakers "easy" temperment description had more to do with ill health than with his horseonality! 

Oh our dear beloved Josie.  We struggled with controlling chronic laminitis her whole life (she did not pass the pre-purchase vet check as a 2 year old!).  Kat studied and tried every possible method, including foot soaking as seen here, to keep her comfortable for 21 years.  We finally had to let her go to greener pastures in March 2009.