Marrkee J. Katt

Bodie (2013 - June 30, 2026) It was my honor and privilege. 💔

“Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion." ~Robert Harling (Truvy Jones)

Leave it to Millie (JC: Mymichellego) to be our comic relief. For her, hay is tasty AND a handy scratching post, I guess. Millie has been here a year now, I know ya’ll remember when she came in in the middle of the night from a kill pen, emaciated and heartbroken after losing her baby and then being dumped. It took Millie a minute to settle, but she’s doing so well. She’s a stone-cold weirdo (just quirky and odd) but we love her and she’s happy… (she needs a day of beauty, she made an appointment for Saturday.)

Speaking of hay… it’s July 1 and our July hay fundraiser is underway. Over the past couple of days we received $373 toward our goal (thank you Joanne, Sheryl, Kathy, Erica, Cynthia and Delrene!), which leaves us with $5,572 to get to goal. We are so grateful to you all for the tremendous kindness you showed us in losing Bodie. We don’t need reminders of how great you are to us day-in and day-out, but the notes and calls and texts and comments and messages made a huge difference, truly.

Life goes on and so shall we… Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #thoroughbred

"A baby fills a place in your heart that you never knew was empty." ~Anonymous

Tyler (’26 by Laurie’s Rocket)… (sound up!) Oh goodness, my heart. I have had a really crappy few days, but this baby has been my bright light. He is sassy, silly and thankfully so happy and healthy. Every morning since he moved into the bigger pasture he waits for me at the gate for scratches. And he follows me around as I busy with morning chores, dumping and filling water troughs and feeding hay. He’s made friends with the goats and the LGDs, too. I am making plans for him and Amy (JC: Perfect Art) and Beryl (JC: Vintage Beauty) for the Fourth of July. While everyone who lives here has been through fireworks, we know baby Tyler has not and we don’t know about Amy and Beryl. So they’ll be in the barn with fans for a couple of nights just to be safe. We made progress today on our July hay fundraiser and we received $470 toward our goal (thank you Linda, Jane and Rose!) which leaves us with $5,102 to get to goal. Will you help us get there? Thank you so much, I appreciate all the help always. Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #thoroughbred

“What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps one in a continual state of inelegance.” ~Jane Austen Glynis (JC: Long Ears OTTB)… Heat dome gotcha down? Be like Glynis, find yourself a cool spot and chill! Isn’t she so cute? She will NOT wear a fly mask (nor will her mother, Gladys) but she’s smart and finds spots where she stays cool and the flies simply blow away. Clean, fresh and cool water and misters are also available to everyone. Ahh summer in Texas… q Since yesterday we raised another $100 toward our July hay fund (thank you Kate!) and we are hopeful to get more hay in today before the fireworks start (we’re already hearing a little bit, I expect things will ramp up since tomorrow is a holiday). Hay helps keep everyone calm and chill, but we have to pay for it. Today we are $5,002 away from goal, thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. 🩵 Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #thoroughbred

"Friends fill time in our lives that will be vacant when they die." ~Helen Fitzgerald. Stormy (JC: Funny Walkin OTTB)… Not going to lie, I have been worried about Stormy. He’s dealt with loss before (3 1/2 years ago his best friend got a new family before he came here) but he was younger then. At first he struggled to make friends here, but he and Bodie bonded quickly. For almost three years where one was, the other was nearby. If Stormy couldn’t find Bodie (Stormy likes to take long naps in the run-ins under the fans) he’d use his deep throaty whinny to call to Bodie until he found him. Stormy has used that deep throaty whinny a lot over the last couple of days without being able to find his best friend. And it’s heartbreaking. Thankfully Stormy is eating (he has never turned down a meal) and drinking and grazing, but he’s also doing a lot of this. Standing. Lost. Lonely. I wish my broken heart could explain it all to his, but I’m not sure it would make a ton of difference to either of us. I hope one of the herd decides to hang out with Stormy. He’s a crabby old man but afraid of nothing. And clearly he is a loyal, devoted friend. 💔 We haven’t received any donations today toward our July hay fund and we meed to bring in more hay before the real fireworks start. Munching on hay helps keep everyone calm, but we do have to pay for it. Currently we are $5,002 away from goal. Thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. 🩵 Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #tennesseewalker

"Something tells me I am going to love him forever.” ~Unknown (but really me!) Tyler (‘26 by Laurie’s Rocket) (sound up!) Baby spam incoming! Aside from being the friendliest little bugger, he is super chatty and now getting super independent. Don’t get me wrong, he follows his mama around as he should, but he’ll stop and look around and do a little chatting. The other horses in the big pasture sometimes call back and he loves it when they do. Is he not the most awesome little thing?!? (Stormy seems better today, too. We had breakfast together and he’s currently out standing in the herd, so… ) We received $30 in donations toward our July hay fund yesterday (thank you Maggie!) Unfortunately bringing in more hay before the fireworks is a longshot at this point. But we continue to try… Currently we are $4,972 away from goal. Thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. 🩵 Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #babyhorse

“My Nanny loves me so much, she made sure I have the cleanest and softest bed and a nice fan while I’m inside to protect me from the fireworks noises.” ~ Baby Tyler He is so happy in there with the fan going. Watch him scratch his face with his foot, too. Soooo cute! The truth is nothing much bugs him, but I am not taking any chances with the fireworks. I know everyone else (except Amy and Beryl) can handle the fireworks, but I could not chance it with the baby. So they’re all inside tonight (with some outside access), tomorrow night and maybe even Sunday. Today was a pretty good day… We received $620 in donations toward our July hay fund today (thank you Bob, Mary, Lesley and Katherine!) and while we haven’t raised enough to pay our amazing hay guy, he delivered some rounds so the horses have hay to munch on and keep them occupied during the fireworks. We’d still like to pay him ASAP. Currently we are $4,352 away from goal so we’re chipping away! Thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. 🩵 Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #babyhorse

“Popsicles: proof that happiness comes on a stick." ~Abner (JC: Shack’s Way) We hope you love your Fourth of July as much as Abner loves his red, white and blue popsicles! Happy 250th, America. We love you! 🇺🇸

“We are all the same and we are all different. What great friends we will be.” ~Kelly Moran Tyler (’26 by Laurie’s Rocket) (and Sandy Barn Cat)… Our sweet baby has been making friends with everyone… don’t get me wrong, as sweet as he is he’s also spunky and thinks it’s so funny to push and test us a little. He has threatened to kick us (he nailed Tony in the knee and I think it startled him more than Tony; the knee is ok) and he buzzes us regularly and thinks he’s so funny as he happily buzzes around. But he also loves scratches and kisses and is so happy to see us always. He is so special… Tyler also made it through his first Fourth of July without incident, thank God. The (illegal) fireworks went on until about 2:00 and he and Amy (JC: Perfect Art) and Beryl (JC: Vintage Beauty) had a stall with a fan and and an outside area and believe it or not during the loudest worst part of the evening they stood outside and remained fairly calm. Everyone did well last night, thank God. It was hairy and very loud for a few hours, but everyone was ok today thankfully. I am hopeful tonight won’t be as loud. We took a fundraising break for the holiday but since Friday we received $200 in donations toward our July hay fund today (thank you Pamela!) but we are still $4,152 away from goal! We’re going to need more hay in a couple of days (I am glad they ate a lot to keep them calm the last two nights, too) so we’re hoping to get to goal soon. Will you help us get to goal? Thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. 🩵 Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #babyhorse

"An unexpected friendship feels like a soft landing in a hard world. It reminds us that love doesn't always come dressed as romance." ~Mel Robbins My unlikely little herd…

Beryl (JC: Vintage Beauty), Amy (JC: Perfect Art) and baby Tyler (’26 by Laurie’s Rocket) have been sprung from QT with no issues, thankfully. So because Ty is a baby I put them in with the mini herd and Bella (JC: Bella Maureen). 

They’re all getting along famously which makes me very happy.

Rocky (JC: Very Small Pony) is absolutely in love with Beryl, absolutely enamored. And Tyler thinks it’s fun to bite and try to ride Marigold (JC: Roly Poly Mini Horse). I’ll get video… And old lady Bella — who did not want to be with the big horses at all ever — kind of looks out for all of them, which is sweet.

I don’t know whether this situation is a good thing or not but we used the space we had that was safe for the baby and everyone is happy and comfortable with lots of room. 

(we still have some big changes coming for the rescue this year that will benefit us all but we don’t want to jinx anything, so send some good thoughts for it if you don’t mind… 🩵) Since yesterday we received $497 in donations toward our July hay fund (thank you Seth, Katherine, Catherine, Rachel and Jane!) bringing us down to $3,655 away from goal. Will you help us get to goal? Thank you to everyone who donated and to those who we know still will. Donation links ⬇️: Venmo: @TheBridge-Sanctuary PayPal: [email protected] CashApp: $redransom Zelle: (626) 676-2556 Direct link: paypal.com/paypalme/thebridg… #rescue #Texas #ottb #babyhorse