Notes From Ozzie: A Season of Connection

Hello, friends—Ozzie here.

To everyone who recently joined our email herd, welcome! Whether you found us through a friend, visited the sanctuary, attended a class, volunteered, or simply love opportunities to learn alongside animals, art, nature, and one another, we are happy you are here.

In case we have not met, I am a Gypsy Vanner—which means I have magnificent feathered feet, an impressive mane, and enough hair to keep several human volunteers busy with brushes. Before coming to AHHS, I lived surrounded by barbed-wire fencing and did not receive the nutrition I needed. Today, I have safe fencing, proper meals, compassionate care, and a herd of humans and animals who watch over me. Perhaps that is why I have a few thoughts about boundaries: good boundaries should help us feel protected, not trapped or harmed.

Fall is arriving at Art, Heart & Hoofbeats Sanctuary. The air is becoming cooler, the pasture is changing, and the humans seem especially excited about the September calendar. Horses do not use calendars, of course. We prefer breakfast time, snack time, dinner time, rest time, and “perhaps someone brought a carrot” time.

Coming Up at AHHS

September offers many ways to learn, create, volunteer, and connect:

• September 1, 6:00–7:00 p.m.: Magnifying Abilities—an inclusive experience with horses, goats, and art

• September 2, 6:00–8:00 p.m.: Weekday Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 6, 9:00–11:00 a.m.: Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 8, 10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.: Painting Club—all materials and a project are provided

• September 9, 4:00–6:00 p.m.: Weekday Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 9, 6:00–7:00 p.m.: AHHS Board Meeting

• September 11 and 25, 5:00–6:00 p.m.: Mindfulness Walks with Horses and Goats

• September 12, 11:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.: Accessible mosaics at Carver County Pride in Waconia

• September 13, 9:00–11:00 a.m.: Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 15 and 17: Weidner Days at AHHS—we are honored to welcome approximately 160 Weidner Apartment Homes team members who will help complete carpentry and improvement projects around the sanctuary

• September 16, 5:00–7:00 p.m.: Weekday Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 19, 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.: Pottery Wheel Experience

• September 20, 9:00–11:00 a.m.: Horse Ambassador Class

• September 23, 6:00–7:00 p.m.: Abilities Unbridled at AHHS

• September 25, 5:00–6:00 p.m.: Mindfulness Walk with Horses and Goats

• September 27, 5:00–7:00 p.m.: Horse Ambassador Experience

• September 29, 4:00–6:00 p.m.: Horse Ambassador Program

• September 29, 5:30 p.m.: Eden Prairie Adaptive Recreation visits AHHS

Please visit our calendar and registration page for availability, registration details, and additional activities.

A Little Herd Lesson About Connected Boundaries

Horses understand that boundaries and connection belong together.

In a healthy herd, a boundary does not mean, “I do not care about you.” It means, “This is the space I need so we can feel safe together.”

We communicate clearly, notice one another’s signals, and adjust when someone needs more room. We listen, respond, and remain connected.

Humans sometimes believe kindness means always saying yes. From where I stand in the pasture, kindness can also sound like:

• “I need a little space.”

• “I am not ready yet.”

• “Please slow down.”

• “I want to connect, but I need to do it differently.”

A respectful boundary does not end a relationship. It can create the safety that allows trust to grow.

Wellness at the Sanctuary

Wellness does not always require complicated instructions. Sometimes it begins by slowing your breathing, noticing your surroundings, creating something with your hands, or standing quietly beside an animal who does not expect you to explain yourself.

At AHHS, wellness can look different for each person. You may walk with the goats, observe the horses, make art, explore nature, volunteer, or sit quietly and take in the view. There is no single “right” way to participate.

Gratitude for Our Volunteers

The herd would also like to thank our remarkable volunteers.

They fill water, prepare feed, clean spaces, organize supplies, build and repair things, welcome visitors, care for the land, support classes, and notice the countless little details that keep a sanctuary running. Their work may not always be visible, but we animals see it—and we are deeply grateful.

Every brushed coat, repaired fence, filled bucket, kind welcome, and patient moment helps create this sanctuary.

New Connections and Partnership Opportunities

AHHS continues to build relationships with schools, nonprofits, therapists, disability organizations, senior communities, youth programs, businesses, and other groups seeking accessible and meaningful experiences.

Partners may bring a group for a single visit, develop a multi-session program, plan a staff-wellness experience, volunteer together, sponsor accessible programming, or collaborate with AHHS on something entirely new.

If your organization would like to explore a partnership, please contact the humans. I am excellent at connection, but apparently I am not authorized to answer email.

Thank you for being part of our growing community. We hope you will visit this fall, try something new, and discover what can happen when people and animals are given the time, care, and space to learn from one another.

Come curious. Leave connected.

With a soft nicker,

Ozzie

Art, Heart & Hoofbeats Sanctuarywww.artheartandhoofbeats.org