Every time Julie MacMillan has to leave some horses behind at an auction that are destined for the slaughter house, it makes her sick, but she comforts herself knowing that she is saving as many as she can from that fate.

"I get calls every day," she said from people wanting her to take their horses. "If every horse person in Canada adopted a horse every year, there still wouldn't be enough homes."

At J&M Acres it feels as if good karma hangs in the air, and MacMillan strives to look beyond the stories of animal abuse and neglect, to the happy endings of horses finding new and loving homes.

She currently has 10 horses at the rescue centre, and that is her capacity, but with two more coming soon she said she tries to make space for 12 or 13.

The rescues don't end there however, as she has also picked up a few rabbits, chickens, two goats, and even a rooster.

"You can't say no to lots of these stories," she said, "it's tough."

One of her goats, Rocky, was in a pen at an auction destined for slaughter, but when he saw MacMillan he jumped up on the side and started licking her face and crying loudly.

"You get a little bit hardened," she said smiling, "but you can't resist something licking your face."

This all started for MacMillan, who is also a full-time bartender at the Jolly Coachman pub, when she was at an auction 15 years ago, and saw a semi truck pull out filled with horses on their way to slaughter.

She wanted to stress however, that she doesn't think the auction houses are the problem.

"That's their job," she said. "If those horses weren't at that auction, they'd be starving in a field somewhere."

She is known around the auctions now so even some of the staff let her know when horses that can be rehabilitated are coming in.

She also gets horses from people that can no longer afford to keep them, and many are from the racing industry.

One horse, Ozzy, needs some special TLC, as he was a racehorse, then was adopted by someone else but was so badly neglected by never having shelter, that MacMillan knows it will be a while before he can leave J&M Acres.

She said her work with horses and other rescue animals "feeds her soul."

They are 100 per cent non-profit and could not survive without private donations.

"People are so good," she said.

Now that the shelter has a website, MacMillan said they are getting calls from people all over B.C.

"The more we can get out of here the more we can save."

To learn more about J&M Acres visit their website, www.jmacresrescue.com.

ajudd@mrtimes.com