It hasn't been easy stretch for Abbie Ghini, an animal-welfare advocate and medical doctor who lives in an isolated area in northeast New Mexico.

Ghini's always been involved in animal rescue, having worked with Chicago's Anti-Cruelty Society and helping create one of the first low-cost mobile vaccination clinic. So when she settled in tiny Miami, just south of Cimarron, it was only natural that she quickly got to work establishing a rescue group finding homes for abandoned or neglected animals.

At the height of her operation in the summer of 2007, Colfax Pet Rescue was caring for 109 dogs. In three years, she and her volunteers helped find homes for 500 dogs and puppies.

But the glory days are long gone and the nonprofit shut down because of financial and other issues. It was the first rescue organization Ghini formed, and not an experience she wants to repeat.

Last month, one of Ghini's draft horses kicked her, crushing bones and leaving bruises that required surgery. The healing will take months, so she's looking for help in finding homes for the remainder of her adoptable dogs — nine canines as of Wednesday.

"I'm not going to quit until I find homes for all of them," Ghini said, noting that an email blast to some members of Utah's Best Friends Animal Society generated a lot of helpful comments but no firm commitments. "I want to find everyone good homes."

By the time of the July 18 injury, Ghini's rescue operation had dwindled down to just her and a helper, who happened to be on the property during the accident. Ghini's not sure exactly what happened, but suspects the horse kicked her and then "danced around a bit" on her.

She was able to drag herself from the barn into an area where a the helper "heard her whimpers." The ride to the hospital took several hours without any pain medication, but she connected with an amazing orthopedic surgeon who was able to mend her bones.

While she still uses a wheelchair, Ghini can drive herself to her office and recently even made a house call. But she can't keep up the work to care for an extended pack of critters. "It's basically just me now, and one person to help. My boyfriend tries to help and my sons are helping me, but I'm just trying to help my patients and continue earning a paycheck that supports the rescue work."

Animal welfare is improving in New Mexico, Ghini said, but it's still a long haul. The poverty in some areas is crushing, and there are few ordinances in rural areas to protect dogs. And few people safeguard their dogs with fences.

"Dogs are undervalued," she said. "It's the culture and the poverty. It's what they grew up with."

The longtime rescuer said she should have known better about starting her own rescue group and the pitfalls that come with it. But her own pack had grown, she said, and the need was too overwhelming to ignore.

The nonprofit quickly used up its seed money and had no option but to close down. But that doesn't mean the remaining dogs should suffer. Several animal-welfare groups have heeded her call, helping find homes at Fur and Feathers in Catron County for two dogs.

But that still leaves nine, plus a pig and a goat. When they all find homes, she'll have four dogs of her own and seven horses. While she won't start a rescue group again, Ghini said she plans to keep working to better the lives of animals in different ways, perhaps through networking.

Those interested in helping find homes for the dogs may call 575-447-1199 or email colfaxpetrescue@bacavalley.com or mauiranch@yahoo.com. You can also check out images of the nine remaining dogs at the group's Petfinder website.


It's hard to believe that it's been three years since Gracie galvanized a community when she went missing in Lone Butte. Dozens of people spent weeks looking for the blue heeler mix, lamenting the loss of the dog and commiserating with Gracie's owner, Bill Hill.

When the dog was found four weeks later in Cochiti Lake, animal lovers breathed a collective sigh of relief and vowed to spread the word about what they learned about finding missing animals.

Several people developed websites about finding lost pets; others posted tips on Scoop and other places, while Claudia Inoue developed a lost-animal email alert called Lost Dog Santa Fe.

On Saturday, a handful of "Gracie's Angels" met for the second anniversary of Gracie's return. Gracie, a little plumper now, was the featured guest at the joyous celebration.

Gracie's disappearance forged lasting friendships, but also a belief that with a collective effort miracles can happen. Many of those at Saturday's fete still believe in the power of networking and work hard to connect lost animals with grieving families.

"There still seems to be a lot of lost dogs and cats," said Inoue, who scans several websites, including Craiglist, to send out email alerts on missing pets. "It's terrible."

Inoue created her email list last year and only regrets that she didn't call it Lost Animal Santa Fe instead of Lost Dog Santa Fe. "I'm much more of a cat person than a dog person," she said, noting her free service reaches more than 200 people. "It's unfair not to send out the alerts, but looking for cats is a lot different than looking for dogs."

While microchipping a pet is critical in helping track down owners of a lost animal, proper identification with collars and tags is foremost. Most critters don't travel far from their homes, so if someone finds a lost dog with a proper ID, the rescuer can quickly return the pet, saving the owner much angst.

Lost dog services have been a boon to many people, Inoue noted. The services, www.lostmydoggie.com and www.petamberalert to name a couple, will immediately call everyone in the immediate neighborhood about a lost pet for a relatively low fee.

Inoue said she believes in the services. Not everyone goes for walks and sees bulletins, she said, and timing is critical.

Those who would like to join Inoue's list, e-mail lostdogalert@msn.com and put "Join the list" in the subject line. Read more tips about finding lost animals and about the lost-pet database at www.santafescoop.com.


Get out your tux and wag your tail for the Animal Welfare Coalition of Northeastern New Mexico's annual fundraising party Friday.

Tux & Tails takes place at 6 p.m. at the Plaza Hotel Ballroom in Las Vegas, N.M. The gala includes live music by the Rainy Morning Blues Band, a blessing of dogs by Father George from the Immaculate Conception Church, a live auction, a raffle for a drawing of Santa Rosalia and adoptable dogs. And get out your dog's fancy duds for the best-dressed dog competition.

The event supports the coalition, which works to better the lives of animals at the Las Vegas Shelter, promotes spay/neuter programs, provides education on animal welfare and helps to prevent abuse and neglect.

Tickets are $20. For more information, call 505-652-4366 or email awcnortheastnm@gmail.com.

Contact Ben Swan, special-projects manager for the Santa Fe animal shelter, at santafescoop@gmail.com.