12/19/2011 10:00:00 PM
Circle L Ranch animal sanctuary seeks financial rescue to stay afloat

Ken Hedler
The Daily Courier

PRESCOTT VALLEY - Dogs have free rein in the three houses on the 40-acre Circle L Ranch off Coyote Springs Road north of town.

They sleep on small cots, get fed twice a day, and enter and exit a house through a doggie door. They greeted a visitor Thursday afternoon at the gate by wagging their tails and barking. "They love the attention," said Becca Benoit, a volunteer at the animal rescue and sanctuary. "We want to emphasize that our dogs are not in kennels."

Circle L is home to 75 dogs, 118 goats, 55 horses, 20 sheep, 10 head of cattle, five geese and about six chickens.

The ranch finds new homes for dogs and horses but not for other livestock, said Liz Stegmeir, an employee who shares a three-bedroom house with 19 dogs.

She said they rescued many of the dogs from the Yavapai and Maricopa county humane societies, where they would have faced death unless adopted. Circle L also has taken back dogs after owners who adopted them died.

The ranch has saved horses from slaughter, Stegmeir said, adding, "A lot are retired racehorses."

Stegmeir said Hindus blessed the cattle, which Circle L spares from the butcher as well, "and we call them our 'holy cows.'"

Stegmeir said Scottsdale gynecologist Deborah Wilson, an animal lover, founded Circle L Ranch in 2006, and has supported it financially by contributing half of her income. Wilson confirmed that.

"We started it as a sanctuary for elderly animals, and it has turned into an adoption sanctuary," Stegmeir said. "They live out their lives here."

However, Stegmeir and Benoit said Circle L's future is in doubt because of the costs are rising for keeping up the place and taking care of elderly animals. Stegmeir estimated the costs are $100,000 per year for animal feed, veterinary care and supplies - not including the mortgage on the property and employee wages.

Wilson concurred, saying, "Definitely, $100,000 is a very conservative estimate." She added hay and other feed for horses, goats and other livestock costs about $100,000 per year. Stegmeir said the ranch owes more than $2,000 in veterinary bills for dogs.

The ranch is in worse shape than what it faced in 2006, Benoit said. "We don't get financial support from the community."

Circle L Ranch has faced the prospect of shutting down the dog side of the operation, Wilson said. However, she said a deal is pending with United Animal Friends, a Prescott-based organization, to take over the dog side of the ranch on the north side of Smitty's Place.

"We are just transitioning," Wilson said, adding UAF could assume control within a month.

Toby Frost, president of UAF, confirmed that her 150-member organization has conducted talks with Wilson. "I am so excited because it will give us an opportunity to expand in saving a lot more dogs," Frost said. "We probably have an inventory of 20 dogs and 30 cats at any one time.

"And we will keep our foster-based operation, but we will supplement it with the housing that we can do at Circle L Ranch."

Even if United Animal Friends comes through, the Circle L Ranch will continue to need donations, Wilson said.

Stegmeir and Benoit pointed out needed repairs while conducting a tour Thursday as they walked by pens housing goats and horses. Ranch manager Cheryl Caldararo said she lets goats out of their pens after they are fed.

"They are just amazing," Caldararo said, referring to the goats. "They are so appreciative. They have a good life. Goats are affectionate. They cry if we don't let them out."

Caldararo, a five-year employee who lives on the ranch, said T-post fences need to be replaced with sturdier, top-rail fencing. She pointed out a horse that leaned over a T-post fence.

The ranch also could use improved access on Smitty's Place, Benoit said, referring to the dirt road muddied from a recent storm.

Stegmeir suggested making donations through High Country Pet Clinic in Prescott Valley or Noah Thrift Store in Prescott. For more information, visit the ranch's website at www.circlel.org.

Please consider that time does not weigh heavily on a dog's consciousness in the same way that it does with humans. Dogs live in the "here and now". The joy and dignity you can bring to an older dog's life by opening your home and heart to him/her is beyond compare. In return, you will find a truly enriching, satisfying, and humbling experience.

Old dogs, like old shoes, are comfortable. They might be a bit out of shape, and a little worn around the edges, but they fit so well.