Lemon's Hope Sanctuary

11/02/2026

It's taken me two weeks to be able to write this post.

Two weeks ago today we said goodbye to Chance, 32-year-old Morgan and newbie teacher extraordinaire. We euthanized him on a sunny fall day, with me and one of the other folks who had grown to love him by his side. The vet was extremely kind and explained in advance everything we would observe as Chance left this world.

Euthanizing Chance was heartbreaking, but the right decision. While he looked really good for a 32-year-old horse, he struggled mightily last winter with cold founder (also called winter laminitis), and it was likely he would experience this condition again. What happens with cold founder is that the horse experiences reduced circulation through their feet because of cold temperatures and that results in extreme pain. Among other interventions, Chance had to be kept indoors for many weeks last winter while we helped him to overcome the pain. This is not a happy condition for any horse.

Chance also had had stifle (knee) issues in his hind legs for many years and he could no longer eat hay or grass. We fed him a "soup" of soaked hay cubes and Triple Crown Senior, with snacks of wetted hay pellets in between the four meals he was getting daily, to make up for the hay and grass he could no longer consume. He could chew hay and grass, just not swallow it. So, we still provided him with both for "enrichment" purposes.

If I'd lived in a warmer climate I would have kept Chance going. But, I don't. It was time, given our location and facilities. All over New England folks are making decisions regarding elderly and ill horses as to whether they should navigate another winter. Quality of life is always front and center in these decisions.

Below is the last picture I took of Chance, a brown horse with a small white patch in the middle of his forehead, wearing a blue blanket with green trim and walking under leafless apple trees towards me. He loved walking out to the apple trees and "grazing" under them. On the way, he would interact with or just hang out near our miniature horses in their pen. Chance always came to me when I went out to retrieve him. And, he was wonderful with folks new to horses. Such an easy old man.

10/02/2026

Fall colors on the farm.

09/05/2026

08/29/2026

This is just a quick post on our history. My husband and I moved to our farm in Vermont in 2019 from New Jersey. I had had the idea of taking in farm animals in need of rescue and rehoming, and having them participate in trainings we would host through Training Matters for animal trainers, animal care professionals and others interested in how professional, positive reinforcement-based trainers train. Over time, that mission has become more focused on applied behavior analysis as the science of animal learning and behavior change that serves as the foundation and framework for positive reinforcement-based training.

The first animal to join us was Lemon the goat, who had been mauled by a dog and is consequently disabled. The second was Coconut Hope, a little sheep who had been separated from her mother at birth and was then rejected by her and the herd. The next to join us were three large sheep whose mother had died during their birth and they had lived as pets until their guardians needed to move. We then took in two miniature horses from a local rescue. Along the way, we acquired guinea pigs from someone who had an accidental litter. We adopted a pair of rats. My horse, Chance, who has been in my life for 20 years and became my own when his original owner gave him to me, and his buddy Henri, whose owner also needed to downsize her animals, also came to live here. Henri passed away about a year ago.

So, that's how the animals who live here and participate in training workshops were homed here. They are a motley crew of species and personalities. They are great models for practicing the mechanics needed to teach animals skills to exist in the world of humans. They are also sweet and fun.

Know that when folks attend our events, they are supporting the animals in our care. It’s a win-win! Education, vacation, and support of animals whose very existence has been in doubt.

Picture of Chance and the minis at the fence line.

08/16/2026

The sanctuary animals are a feature of all our trainer retreats, the next coming up in September.

There are so many great things about this event.

It is said that advanced training is just the basics well applied. We work on applying the basics via PORTL play and animal training. Some of the presentations also explore the reaches of the basics.

Among those presentations this year, it might be said that the application of what we understand about designing enriching environments for animals in our care (Rick Hester of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and Behavior Works) as well as applying the principles of cooperative care teaching with the little humans rather than telling them what to do and expecting they will do it (Catja B Pedersen) is applying the basics well and in an advanced way. Learning about the best approaches with species other than the ones we work with daily can and does inform the work we do with our own focal species.

At the same time, we explore advanced training concepts such as the talk about how we may best reduce problem behavior while strengthening wanted behavior by taking advantage of other behavioral processes going on when we reinforce behavior (Maia Nahele Owen, Ph.D., Behavior Explorer) and how and when to transition to using so-called naturally occurring reinforcers in your work (Kiki Yablon, Kiki Yablon Dog Training, Behavior Works and Karen Pryor Academy faculty). These are the basics applied really well, too. But they stretch what is commonly understood and taken advantage of by trainers to entirely new places.

All promise to be thought-provoking talks delivered by some of the best thinkers and trainers in the animal training business. Other talks explore a novel take on separation anxiety training (Morgan Katz, MSPCA-Angell), and what recent research tells us about the use of calming caps and approaches to crate training (Mindy Waite,Ph.D., Carroll University Dog Training Program). Can't come in person? You can still hear the talks remotely. Can't listen that weekend? You will receive recordings.

Join us any way you can. Link in the comments.

08/16/2026

Scenes from the farm.

06/12/2026

Before and after. Shearing day for Hope, Louis and Gina.

06/06/2026

Got some nice feedback from our farrier on this little guy, Angel, as well as his companion Diablo. I noted in a previous post that the farrier noticed how much better Diablo looks physically than he has in the recent past. She also was pleased with how well he did with his trimming. Not as worried about the process as at our last trim.

Our farrier has described Angel as her favorite mini. When she first met him while he was in a foster home, he was almost impossible to “catch,” nevermind work with. He was very avoidant of people and did not like being touched at all. For her to now say he’s her favorite mini is wonderful, given her earlier experience with him and since she trims a lot of minis. Yay, Angel!