21 unwanted horses find home at CK Corral

Care and kindness goes a long way at Chris Kautz’s CK Corral, home to 21 unwanted horses and Fred the Donkey. From left are friends and helpers Toni Canniff and Leo Watson, Chris Kautz, niece Sarah Jo Kautz, niece Angela Kautz and nephew Jake Kautz, with two of their 21 equine friends, Sadie and Bud. (Photo by Margaret Whitmer) All Chris Kautz really wanted was a llama.

Well – she still doesn’t have a llama. What she now does have are 21 unwanted horses and one donkey, named Fred.

And that’s not all. Kautz, owner of Kautz Shore Lanes in Worth Township, also has a large assortment of ducks, chickens, geese and cats on her 10-acre former family dairy farm at 6855 Burnsline Road.

She didn’t buy any of these animals.

They – like many of their human owners – were victims of today’s tragic economy.

“I went online looking for a llama,” said Kautz. “But all I found were ads for abused and abandoned horses. The economy went bad and people had them and couldn’t keep them.”

Even as a girl, Kautz cared for abandoned animals. Cats, birds, fish and even a fox all found a place on her family farm.

And so, without ever really intending to, she began a mission of mercy.

It began in August 2009, when she agreed to take in her first horse orphans: Ginger, Cupcake, two miniatures named Salt and Pepper – and the donkey, Fred. They were being neglected on a Sanilac County farm.

A month later, she took in two more neglected “minis” – Cocoa and Cinnamon.

Then came Garlic, Elvis, Sophia and DJ, from an online source who said they were four too many.

News of her began to spread and she was contacted with stories of more neglected horses and miniatures. She took in five more - Sadie, Ringo, Bud, Quincy and Danita – from another horse rescuer in St. Clair.

Three of them the lady had found just tied up to trees in her front yard one day.

“The owner was trying to care for all these horses and she wasn’t able to. She didn’t have enough money,” said Kautz. “I felt bad for her and she was so good with them.”

Last December four more arrived: Trace (who is blind), Magic, Carson (an abused racehorse) and Buster (a hackney pony).

Buster has since left the family. “He found another home,” notes Kautz.

Chevy came from the Applegate area.

And just a few weeks ago, she acquired MD.

“A guy left him in a field when he went to jail,” said Kautz. “He’s still undernourished, but he’s getting better.”

To say this influx of refugees was overwhelming would be an understatement.

“I came off a dairy farm, not a horse farm,” laughs Kautz. “I learned a lot about ‘em quick.”

She fenced in pastures and built stable accommodations. It was a lot of work and it had to be done fast. “I asked my nephew Douglas Kautz, if he would help. He knew about horses. And he said he would,” she said.

She named her rescue ranch CK Corral – CK ostensibly standing for Chris Kautz. But she prefers it to stand for “Care and Kindness.”

She also recruited a small group of friends and relatives to help with the daily feeding, watering and exercising.

These include husband Peter, her niece and nephew, Doug and Angela Kautz and their children Sarah Jo and Jake, and friends, Toni Canniff and Leo Watson of Worth Township.

“I like working with the animals,” said Canniff. “It gives me a chance to unwind and they appreciate it. You can see their change in temperament the minute they see you.”

Watson said he was in the restaurant portion of Kautz Shore Lanes one day when Chris Kautz asked him if he’d be interested in walking the horses for her.

“I told her I didn’t know the head from the tail! I’m a former city boy,” said Watson.

Now he is one of Kautz’s greatest advocates.

“I’m there seven days a week. I can’t imagine doing anything else,” he said. “You see in the paper every day where someone’s not taking care of a horse. They just get put to sleep. I think what Chris is doing is fantastic,” he said.

Perhaps the most touching adoption story is that of Anissa, a blind sevenmonth old Arabian- Andalusian pony, who came to CK Corral when it became obvious to her owners that a cattle ranch was a dangerous place for sightless filly.

When Kautz learned that her blindness was due to cataracts, and that the condition could be helped, she drove Anissa to Michigan State University for the costly operation.

She paid most of the $6,000 for the operation out of her own pocket, along with donations from friends and animal lovers.

Today, all the residents of CK Corral have shelter, hay, grain and the medicine they all need to keep them healthy and happy.

Fred the donkey brays the minute anyone pulls into the driveway.

“He’s our ‘watch donkey’,” said Kautz.

When they see treats and carrots coming, 21 horse heads drape over corral fences, lips flopping and ears twitching in happy expectation.

Kautz admits it wasn’t the retirement she and Peter originally envisioned for themselves.

“We were going to sell the bowling alley. Well – there’s no way we’re going to sell it now, in this economy. So we’ve gone back into farming. And that’s what I want to do,” she said.

The couple grows and bales their own hay, but it still costs about $200 a week for grain, apples, carrots and medicine. Kautz’s dream is to gain non-profit status, so she can raise money to maintain the ranch.

In the meantime, financial assistance from animal lovers would certainly be welcomed.

She really can’t take in any more horses.

“We’ve got all we can accommodate right now,” she said.

But maybe some day she might get that llama.