Are Donations To WHY Ranch Tax Deductible?

According to IRS Publication 78, "You may deduct charitable contributions of money or property made to qualified organizations if you itemize your deductions." If you go about this properly, you can reduce your taxable income thereby lowering what you owe in taxes come tax time. If you're interested in doing this, just follow these guidelines:

• A promise to donate is not tax deductible therefore an actual donation of money or property must have been made
• The charitable donation you donate to must be tax exempt
• You must be able to itemize your tax return
• Record-keeping is a must! You may need to furnish canceled checks, appraisals of the donated goods and / or acknowledgement letters from the charity
• You can claim the tax deduction on Form 1040 Schedule A

As long as you follow these guidelines, you'll be able to claim a tax deductible donation. Since WHY Ranch is a non profit 501 (c)(3) organization, we can supply tax receipts for all donations that include money, horse tack, ranch equipment, feed, land, building supplies, horses, etc.

Does Animal Therapy Really Work?

British novelist George Eliot, in the year 1857, wrote, "Animals are such agreeable friends. They ask no questions and they pass no criticism." Many people have long believed that animals of all sorts possess therapeutic abilities which can benefit mankind. Can our furry, feathered and four-legged friends improve our mind, body and spirit health whether they are "therapy animals" or merely our pets?

On average, 63% of households in the United States have one or more pets. Many official studies have shown that the majority of pet owners are happier than than those who do not own animals while research at the University of Maryland School of Nursing has shown that owning and caring for a pet predicts a one-year survival rate among  heart attack victims.

On an official level (going beyond pet ownership), an article by Sandra B. Parker, Ph.D. and Kathryn S. Dawson, Ph.D. details a study whose objective was to introduce hospitalized psychiatry patients to a trained animal, along with the human owner, to facilitate the patients' progress towards therapeutic goals. During the study, 230 patients participated in which a pre- and post-treatment crossover study design was used to compare the effects between a single-animal therapy session and a regularly scheduled therapeutic session. The conclusion was that animal therapy was directly related to a reduced state of anxiety levels within patients with an assortment of psychiatric diagnoses while the regularly scheduled therapeutic session only assisted patients with mood disorders.

At the WHY Ranch "Diamonds in the Rough" youth mentoring program, horses are utilized to heal children who come from disadvantaged backgrounds or who face "special" circumstances. During the course of the program, children learn to care for, feed, groom and pick up after their horse. Then, a nationally-recognized horse-woman trains them to ride the horse properly. The result? Increased self-confidence, self-esteem, compassion, patience, discipline and a deeper appreciation for a strict work ethic.

I believe it's clear that animals, whether within a household or within a specially-designed program, offer healing and therapeutic properties that can benefit people in so many ways.