DayStar Ranch began as a dream of Kathy Rutan-Sprague inspired by the joy growing up with horses gave her life.  

Working since 1971 as a nurse and later a flight instructor, she developed a passion for both healing and teaching.

In 1991, horses came back into her life. Noticing that there is a difference between knowing what should be done but acting from habit was a part of her professional training as both a nurse and a CFI. Parents-to-be then, need time to practice new behaviors to make a new habit. Horses are better for this than newborns.

 With the support of family and friends , DayStar Ranch was started in 1997 and incorporated in California as a non-profit organization in 2001.

We began by offering empathetic horsemanship lessons to youth and women.  DayStar Ranch joined Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA.org) in 2003, and sponsored a training with their founders the following year. We continue to associate ourselves with EAGALA, and  even more so with  Greg Kersten's OK Corral Series (OKCorralSeries.com) as we have had more interest in Equine Assisted Learning than in professional therapy.

DayStar Ranch has been a voting member of the Tehama County Health Partnerships ( http://www.tchp.org ) since 2004 to work with other community agencies in promoting health and wellness through:

   * Improved interpersonal relationship skills

   * Facilitating personal insights

   * Leadership and teambuilding

   * Nurturing skills 

   * Recovering from grief

   * Loving and forgiving ourselves

   * Listening and communicating

DayStar Ranch believes that people really are OK and all are precious because we are human. The ranch is a "Real" place, and less than perfect but OK anyway.It is a safe and comfortable place to be.

 DayStar Ranch contracts with its dedicated volunteers  to use their ranches on an as-needed basis rather than owning and maintaining its own facility. In the past this has allowed us to serve clients in both Shasta and Tehama counties, and in the future wherever our services are wanted. So far, all of our staff are unpaid volunteers. We are growing  now to where we will need some employees  and our own property in the near future.