Today we’d like to introduce you to Samuel Munholland.
Hi Samuel, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
The Friends of Lackota Animal Sanctuary focuses on rescue, rehabilitation and comprehensive care, education and advocacy for our equine friends. Our facility sits at the base of the Rocky Mountains allowing horses the freedom to run, rest, and graze on acres of beautiful pasture. Specializing in the old, unwanted, and unadoptable, we give horses a second chance by rescuing them from abusive and inhumane situations, mainly, the slaughter pipeline. Here, they are allowed to recover and or live out their lives in peace and harmony, free of fear and neglect. They will forever receive the love, attention, and the best care, everything they deserve.
Friends of Lackota Animal Sanctuary’s co-founder, Thom Munholland, rescued Lackota, his first horse, when he was 13 years old. Lackota, our sanctuary’s namesake, had been destined for the slaughter pipeline which prompted Thom to get his first job so he could earn enough to pay for him. Lackota lived a life full of care, love and safety in his forever home with Thom until he was 32 years old. Lackota’s life and Thom’s passion helped inspire our organization’s beginning and his legacy will live on in the work we do to give equines sold and bought at kill auctions a second, rightful chance at life.
Friends of Lackota Animal Sanctuary’s co-founder, Samuel Munholland worked in the veterinary field for nearly 20 years. His early child hood was full of abuse, neglect and fear, animals were his only escape. Samuel’s passion for animals helped get him through the tough times and set him up for a long prosperous career. Donating countless hours to help medicate, rehabilitate, and nurture animals of all kinds back to health, this passion helped inspire the creation of the sanctuary. Samuel enjoyed educating people of ages about animals so much that when he left the field, his passion helped inspire him to start the sanctuary with Thomas.
When Covid hit and everything began to shut down in 2020, the world saw an influx of people adopting animals due to their extra time. Unfortunately, once the world began to reopen. Many of these animals found themselves looking for new homes. This opened the founders of Friends of Lackota’s eyes to the disgusting and horrifying world of the slaughter pipeline.
Horses, mules, and donkeys who once gave everything they could to their owners find themselves in deplorable situations, while making their journeys to their untimely deaths. While a majority of these animals find their way to Mexico for slaughter, they are rarely eaten there but shipped all over the world. While you sit and watch the horse races and cheer on your favorite horses, many will ultimately find themselves in the slaughter pipeline, regardless of their earnings. Horses used for rodeo’s, even the winning barrel racing and roping events often find their themselves in a one-way trip to death when they get hurt. Cultures who used these animals for transportation, to work their fields, or profit from, ultimately throw them away when they are older or can no longer keep up.
These animals are often taken to the local livestock auction or even sold directly to the kill buyer for pennies compared to their worth. Now is often when their world becomes a horror story. Starvation, abuse, neglect, and fear will now rule their existence. Diseases, wounds left untreated, and illnesses are just a beginning. Many will find themselves losing hundreds of pounds with painful wounds, barely able to stand. Not a problem though, they are often crammed into a trailer with no room to move, so even if they wanted to lay down, they can’t. Your local champion race horse, child hood riding horse, or even your local riding instruction horses, aren’t safe. The donkeys and mules who pack your things on trips, pack out your animals after a hunt, or their owners just decided they didn’t want them anymore, aren’t safe. The draft horses who you paid to pull you around the town for a romantic getaway, the babies who were bred for their blood lines, and even the animals you watch in the parade, aren’t safe.
In early 2021, Thom and Sam found themselves wanting to make a difference, even if it was just one life. Many of the rescues they had visited, looked up online, or had heard about were saving as many of these animals as they could, but they wanted to do more. They were tired of animals being overlooked because they weren’t going to make a someone a profit. They were tired of age, wounds, or diseases being a death sentence. It didn’t matter whether they could rehab the animal and make a profit, they wanted to rescue the otherwise unadoptable and unwanted. Whether they needed hospice, surgeries, or just love, they set out to save the ones who were overlooked or underestimated.
Our first official donkey we rescued as a sanctuary, was a 40+ old donkey with feet so bad they looked like elf shoes, a supposed aggressive attitude, emaciated and malnourished, and an easily treatable disease. Mr. Herald P. Nibbs, as the kids named him is now the resident cookie monster, loves everyone, and while he will live the rest of his life at the sanctuary, he is happy. He doesn’t have to fear where his next meal will come from, that his feet will ever be so painful he can barely move, or he won’t get the care he needs or deserves. Ultimately, they were able to make a difference in his life, but his story touches people’s hearts daily.
Ms. Helen came to the sanctuary in extreme conditions. Thom and Sam heard about her condition in the late evening and traveled two hours at night to save her. They found Helen in the corner of her pen, barely able to stand and so emaciated you could count every bone in her body. Barely able to step in the trailer, no one had any idea she would change everyone’s lives. Emergency vets came out to visit Helen in the dark at nearly midnight. Her recovery started by receiving iv fluids of a week, special diets, and plenty of medications. Helen’s condition was so extreme she was in organ failure and wasn’t expected to survive. After countless treatments, multiple vet visits and plenty of food, Ms. Helen was a new horse. She gave everyone hope and proved many wrong who thought she wouldn’t make it. Helen is one of the first horses to meet and greet you in the barn every day and will forever be in our hearts. She is why Friends of Lackota Animal Sanctuary came to existence. After working her entire life, she was thrown away. She was overlooked and turned away because she was older, sick, and too skinny, otherwise deemed unadoptable. She is a whole new horse who along the way has touched and taught so many people.
Starting out as a small rescue in 2021 with around 20 animals, today we have helped well over 200 and currently have over 130. With out the support of volunteers, businesses, grants, donations, and their community, none of this would have been possible.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road has been anything but smooth. Hospice is hard work, and losing the animals you have grown to love so much is heartbreaking. Chasing funding and finding volunteers who will stay and help has been nearly impossible. We saw a huge increase in animals in 2024, the year of the presidential election when many of our funders were giving their money elsewhere, we started to struggle financially a little. This was also the year where we lost nearly 30 animals due to their disease, ailments, or age. This took the biggest toll on us, more than we could have ever imagined, we had to remind ourselves, hospice is one of our sanctuaries purposes. We have an amazing team of veterinarians and the best farrier you could ever want, so helping these animals and friends to their next journey was what we set out to do, but it’s not easy.
This year, due to the many changes in our government, grants and funding we had received before was no longer available. The financial struggle saw us for the first time considering shutting down. Our amazing support team and community have always been their for us and continue to help keeps us a float. We found ourselves having to turn animals away, which ultimately breaks out hearts because we had to focus on out current residents. As we improved our financial situation we can slowly start picking up where we left off.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
On top of running a Sanctuary and opening their home to a host home client who is developmentally challenged, Thom and Sam both work full time jobs. Thom is a Mental Health Therapist who has recently started his own private practice. Sam is in law enforcement and is a police officer in one of out local communities. We are able to use our experiences to help make a difference in peoples lives as well as the animals.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Thom’s grandmother, was always his biggest fan and was the support behind his passion for horses. Whether he was riding his pony around town or competing in horse show’s, His favorite times always included both.
Sam grew up on horses after school he and his siblings enjoyed riding their horses whether it was riding through the pastures or up to the local store to get some gummy worms, his favorite moments were always on a horse.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lackotasfriends.org
- Instagram: lackotas_friends
- Facebook: friendsoflackota
- Other: TikTok @friendsoflackota
