Event To Feature ‘cowboy Vet,’ Whose Book Will Be Released As A Movie

Oct. 13, 2009 - PRLog -- Two thousand wild horses running free on a government missile range were facing starvation until a veterinarian with a reputation for getting things done took ownership of them.  Don Höglund, the vet, will highlight a Twin Cities event next month with tales of this dramatic saga and will share his views on issues facing horses today, especially free-roaming horses of the west, an icon he fears is doomed to extinction within the next 30 years.

Reservations are required by Oct. 20 to ensure seating.  The event will be at the University of Minnesota Leatherdale Equine Center at the St. Paul campus Saturday, Nov. 7 with a social hour at 4 p.m. which will feature live music, a cash bar, and a chance to meet animals from Refuge Farms Horse Rescue & Sanctuary, which is hosting the event.   Barring a medical emergency, tours will be available of the state-of-the-art equine center.  Participants can get started on holiday shopping during this time, by bidding on items in a large, silent auction.

Dr. Höglund will speak following dinner, which will offer a choice of entrees that include salmon, New York strip and vegetarian ravioli.  The program will also include an introduction by Sandy Gilbert, executive director of Refuge Farms, which is headquartered in Spring Valley, Wis.   Beth Kidd, a radio personality at Twin Cities radio station WLTE (102.9 FM), will emcee the event, which will conclude with a live auction, featuring original art and lifestyle items.  Jeff Hines, auctioneer, will donate his services for the eighth consecutive year.  

Tickets are $60 per person, which includes parking. To reserve a seat, go to www.refugefarms.org and click on the “Fall Gala” icon in the upper left-hand corner of the web page, to print a form that can be mailed back with your check; or call 715.772.3379 and leave a message including your name and address, phone number, the number of people who will attend, the meal choice for each, and your credit card number.   Either way, attendees will receive confirmation, a parking pass, tickets and map by return mail.  
                 
Those unable to attend the event may bid on auction items in advance by going to www.hinesauctionservice.com and registering.

Nobody’s Horses, Dr. Höglund’s story of the rescue he headed up on the Nevada White Sands missile range, will be available and he will sign copies purchased at the event, during the social hour.   The story is scheduled for pre-production as a feature film under the name Birthright in 2012.

In addition to the daring rescue of horses from competing, wild bands across two million acres of rough terrain pocked with unexploded weapons, the book describes the conflicting views of well-intentioned people with an array of agendas which, like the horses, had to be corralled and gotten into agreement so the effort could go forward.
Dr. Höglund is known for visionary thinking and credited with successful projects, such as one he conducted over a period of seven years with the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Prison Inmate System in which he guided the training of thousands of mustangs by prisoners, in which he taught non-violent behavior that benefitted horses and humans alike.  

He developed, produced, and trained horses for the largest grossing, for-profit, live-entertainment production in Europe, Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show at Disneyland Paris. For two years he was special animal consultant to Michael Eisner, then head of The Walt Disney Company, and he selected and trained the Eisner family’s personal horses at Disney’s Golden Oaks Ranch north of Los Angeles.

Dr. Höglund has also taught horsemanship to noted actors such as Don Johnson, Melanie Griffith, Armand Assante and others, and consulted on many feature films including City Slickers, Lonesome Dove, Silverado, Desperado, and the PBS production of The Black Stallion.

In addition to a veterinary degree from Colorado State University with emphases in surgery, nutrition, dentistry, pharmacology and equine sports medicine, Dr. Höglund holds a master’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in business administration.  He has provided equine training and consultation for the Pentagon and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, among others.  He was nominated Veterinarian of the Year in 1988 by then-Congressman Bill Richardson of New Mexico, and by the U.S. Department of Defense in 1996.

Refuge Farms, the host of the event, is a non-profit organization that over the past two years has assisted in the rescue and re-homing of more than 250 horses, a number that has increased dramatically in recent years due to the economy and the resultant loss of jobs, health care and homes faced by many horse owners.  The organization has no paid staff and operates on fund-raisers such as this one, donations and sponsorship of horses in its 15-member sanctuary herd.

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Refuge Farms Horse Rescue & Sanctuary is a non-profit organization in western Wisconsin that has re-homed more than 240 abandoned, abused, neglected or mistreated horses in the past two years. The failing economy, job and home loss, and other factors have created a critical need for rescuing horses whose owners can no longer care for them. Refuge Farms hosts events and fund-raisers to finance this work. Go to www.refugefarms.org