Refuge Farms (www.refugefarms.org)

BLOG Entry Dated 02/27/07

As I sit here to update you on a rather large, recent change in my life, I’m not sure how to start. Perhaps it’s best to start at the beginning and our first meeting.

It was a Friday night. We were both out socializing in Eau Claire. And another couple introduced us. We greeted each other and my heart left me at his first touch. Our initial meeting ended all too soon and as I watched him walk away, I remember thinking, “Is he the one?”

The weekend passed as they usually do – very busy and with so many plans of tasks to accomplish … but before I know it, it’s Sunday feeding time! All the while, however, his face stuck in my head. I found myself wondering what it would be like to have him with me…

Monday I kept busy with work. But on Tuesday, I just had to call. So, using my handy dandy computer, I located his telephone number and without pausing to think, I called.

Yes, he was there and yes I could see him. How about Friday? It was set. I would go to his house on Friday and we would see how it went and where it went from there. Friday arrived and the day was merciless in its schedule. I did find time to go to his house, however, and bring him home with me for the weekend.


A tad younger than me, this young man is 5 to 6 years old. He is a Chocolate Lab and is so attracted to human touch he literally lays on my feet or rests against my leg. His manners are decently intact and to say he is grateful is to understate the obvious.

This lovely dog was found roaming the streets with another dog. He was rescued and has completed a full medical exam. His only health issue is a heart murmur, but that is of no consequence to me. It’s his soul and his compassion that attract me.


He is calm. He is polite. He is patient. He is respectful. He is curious. And he is the new dog of Refuge Farms.

His name? Well, he came with the name of Bunker. But that name doesn’t cause his head to turn. We have tried an assortment of names and the one that seems to stick as well as cause a reaction in him is “Little Man”. Don’t know if that name will stick, either, but it’s where we are now.


So yes, there is a new man in my life. Someone new to love. Someone to accompany me as I walk to the barns. Someone who loves to ride in the truck with me as I run errands. And amazingly, someone who already barks at the horses when they cross the fence line.


A dog with four legs. Still causes me to shake my head when I see a dog on the property with all four legs. And the horses are staring, too. I suppose they wonder what’s wrong with this dog that he has that extra leg hanging down?!

And so now you have a new reason to visit us! Come and feel the warmth from this young man as he adores you and your touch. And maybe you’ll find the name that sticks!

Enjoy the journey of each and every day,
Sandy and The Herd and The Man in Her Life

BLOG Entry Dated 03/25/10

This lovable creature became Little Man. A dog who would, in thiry-seven short months, cover over 100,000 miles with me in the back seat of the pickup. A dog who would be next to me as I cried over the loss of one or worried over the freezing ones or fretted over all of the business of rescue. A dog who never, ever failed to greet me. And a dog who simply oozed The Missions of THE FARM through his lovely chocolate fur.

Little Man arrived the Friday of the weekend that Big Jim crossed. So early in his life here, this dog learned the cycle of life and how we cry and then move on to another life to save. Stalwart throughout, Little Man never failed to understand, to console, and to support.

I never worried about group tours. I knew, with Little Man, we would entertain everyone. If, by chance, the young boys or the adult men weren't interested in the horses, well then they would just walk outside and there would be Little Man. Ready to entertain them until it was time for all to leave.

School buses would pull in the driveway and Little Man would be out of his skin with excitement! We would take him to schools and he would be in the very center of the children! He loved people and I never met a human who didn't love him right back.

My favorite story of Little Man is how he took Keller, his companion for a brief six months, to the manure pile one morning. Blind Keller was perched on the top of the pile with his face in the wind. Meanwhile, Little Man was digging like he was searching for clams! There! There was one! When a choice morsel was located, Little Man would gingerly retrieve it and place it on the front feet of Keller. Nudging him to say, "There. Try that one. You'll love it, buddy!"

On Tuesday, there were some young adults here to visit the horses, but their hearts were taken almost instantly by Little Man. He was leaning on them, loving them, and they loved him in return. It was a good day. Little Man worked his magic on Tuesday.

And then early Wednesday morning, he just floated away. He was not alone. I hugged him and held him close and I told him we loved him. It was just very simply his time to cross . . . while riding in the back seat of the truck. Where he loved to be . .

The house is empty without him. And the truck! Dear Lord, the truck is so big now! No little brown ball resting in the back seat while we run our errands.

This dog was a gift of the grandest kind. He was meant to come here. Little Man was meant for Refuge Farms. Many of us will cry over the loss of this little magician. We will tell his stories for hours.

Little Man. This little bundle of love wrapped up in a chocolate coat of fur.

Missing you, Little Man . . . .