Meet Bernadette Spillane | President and Founder of Horse Sanctuary

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bernadette Spillane and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bernadette, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Taking risks has been the biggest determination of the success we have found in everything we have done. That and the ability to make decisions. Following your heart, your passion will lead you through a life of fulfilling challenges and accomplishments. Taking a risk means you don’t have all of the answers, you may not be the most qualified on paper, you may not have the most experience but what you do have is an inexhaustible determination and energy to have your dreams come to fruition. It means listening to yourself and tuning out the negative noise while looking for open doors and windows. Doing this allows for the most incredible connections to people and community. Like minded, self determined positive friends, mentors and acquaintances who feed and fuel your goals.

What should our readers know about your business?
I started out thinking I would be a teacher but when our oldest son had learning difficulties I was on a quest to help him find confidence, self esteem and a sense of worth that he could hold inside and carry with him. That led us to a family oriented karate school. It was exactly what we were looking for and rather than sit on the sidelines I joined the classes with him. That evolved into our starting our own martial arts school embracing all of the tenets that best served our goals. Physical fitness, self defense oriented rather than competition with an inclusive and family oriented mission. We made having a positive attitude and belief in ourself some of our core beliefs. We ran the martial arts school for 18 years until both of our sons had graduated high school and left to join the world.

After we closed the school my passion for horses was allowed to resurface and when we were able to purchase a horse property in 2006 the next phase of mine and John’s life blossomed. We started with one horse and soon we accepting relinquished horses that the veterinarians and some horse professionals were asking if we would take them. That soon required becoming a non profit and in 2011 we became the Happy Dog Ranch Foundation, inc horse rescue/sanctuary with our 501(c)3 status.

We are not a horse rescue with the emphasis on adoption but rather a sanctuary in which every horse and small farm animal that comes is rehabilitated and cared for so that they are happy and healthy. We have found that the process of healing animals also heals our own hearts. Along the way we met Mark Rashid, among many other great horse trainers but his way, with the blending of the martial art Aikido with horsemanship, really connected with all of us and transformed the way we worked with and trained the animals. We soon realized all of us need emotional and spiritual healing, not just the people actively seeking therapy, so our focused shifted to including life coaching and equine assisted psychotherapy. Horses bring an honesty and deep love connection that breaks down resistance and enhances and accelerates the work of the therapist in dealing with trauma, abandonment and attachment disorders to name only a few. We now host Gestalt Equine Institute of the Rockies, Epona trained Sharon Bringleson, and the University of Denver to train therapists in the use of horses and work with clients.

We also found that the emotional struggles often led to physical issues in people and animals and we host Tallgrass Animal Acupressure and Massage, Masterson Method and Tellington TTouch to train people to do bodywork on horses. We incorporate hands on healing and follow good practices in hoof care, horse dental care and chiropractics. If the horses aren’t feeling good physically and emotionally then we haven’t done our work.

Harkening back to the learning difficulties our son has we have offered tours and vocational training for people on the autism spectrum, others with learning and physical disabilities as well as people suffering from dementia and alzheimer’s. Our diverse staff includes people from the LGBTQ community and people with learning difficulties.

We also try to follow best practices in keeping our horses in herds, with turnout to graze and run, while always having free choice hay, shelter and plenty of water. Because our horses form herd bonds we don’t do adoptions, rather we encourage people to come out and volunteer to brush, lead and sometimes ride them so that all of our animals are seen and loved on every day. The horses enjoy the attention of the humans but have the love and support of the herd.

Our name, Happy Dog Ranch, sounds like we are a dog rescue, but actually it alludes to our mission to all be “happy dogs”. To live a life of acceptance, inclusion, health and harmony in nature and with animals

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So many of our friends and family are from much lower altitudes than ours so one of our favorite hikes is Panorama Point hear O”Fallon park, a beautiful hike along a stream with gradual elevation and spectacular views. If you get there early you can park easily and leave before the trail gets crowded then head up the road to old Evergreen and enjoy great food and wine at the winery, where you can sit outside along the creek. Arrowhead Golf course is a public park situated in the red stone formations near Waterton Canyon. Fabulous views of the rocks, the golfers and animals. Movies on the Rocks at Red Rocks amphitheater is always a blast! The Rockies games downtown is the full experience, beautiful views from the stands, enjoy all kinds of restaurants down town, take the light rail….Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg is an incredible experience walking above the free roaming animals on suspended walk ways. Estes Park is one of our favorites for great shopping and then Rocky Mountain National Park easy hikes and trails. For a beautiful horse back ride we recommend the YMCA camp at Estes park, they have nice quiet, well cared for horses and ride into Moraine Park. You can always catch a broadway play, local theatre, opera and symphony all at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts and if you like Opera a lot you can go to Central City to the historic Opera house about 45 minutes away.. There’s also the hotsrings at Idaho Springs again a short distance away and BeauJo’s pizza! The list goes on and on!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My Husband, John, has always been my biggest supporter and cheerleader. Believing I could do anything I put my mind and heart into he has supported me emotionally, spiritually and financially. Throughout this journey the teacher has always appeared, in terms of Happy Dog Ranch horse rescue and sanctuary it has been the heart centered horsemanship and guidance of Mark Rashid and Crissi MacDonald, the spiritual guidance of Sharon Bringleson and the inspiration I get from our staff, our volunteers and the people who attend our clinics.

Website: www.happydogranch.org

Facebook: Happy Dog Ranch non profit

Image Credits
Dorothy Kaiser