Cleaning Windows For Horses

Patrick and Annette Archambeau stand with their horse Mariah Storm at their home in Severance last month. The couple owns Willy's Window Washing, and part of the proceeds from their business help fund nonprofit Foal Rescue & Training program. The pair rescue young horses and raise them until they are about 3 or 4 years old, then find them homes.

Severance couple wash windows to help rescue horses: Patrick and Annette Archambeau wash windows in Northern Colorado to help clear the way for animals to have a better life. The Severance couple use most of the revenue they generate from their business, Willy's Window Washing, to support a nonprofit that focuses on rescuing young horses. The Archambeaus have been running the charity with a focus on assisting abandoned and injured animals since 1995. "Our job is the window washing, but what we do is the horses," Patrick, 53, said.

Through Archway Foal Rescue and Training, the Archambeaus are able to save some foals from being orphaned or killed by horse slaughterhouses. The couple commit to raising and training the foals they rescue for three to four years, then try to get people to adopt the equine animals. "These baby horses haven't got anybody; they have no voice," Patrick said. "A lot of 'em were rescued literally right out of the hands of the kill-buyer. They're going with us or they're going straight to Mexico or Canada."

The Archambeaus understand the issue of horse overpopulation and how costly the animals can be for struggling farmers, and they said they're not opposed to older or unusable horses being sold to manufacture products like glue or pet food. "It's not much fun to think they're going to go for dog food or whatever, but it's a viable thing," Annette, 53, said. "We're not against that. It's just the babies. The babies should have a chance to have a life."

Archway Foal Rescue and Training is a nonprofit operated by husband and wife Patrick and Annette Archambeau. The Archambeaus support the charity using funds from their window washing business.

The Archambeaus' nonprofit is partially funded by contributions from community members and a handful of organizational grants. The donated funds help the couple purchase hay and care services. Feed costs them a minimum of $600 a month, and every two months, they have to spend $300 to trim the horses' feet.

LaPorte veterinarian Allen Landes helps Archway Foal Rescue and Training by providing medical care and services to the seven foals currently in the program at a discounted rate. Often times he charges the Archambeaus only for supplies. "There seems to be a lot more unwanted horses these days," Landes said. "You know, veterinarians have to make a living too, but I feel like I can at least give back to the community by helping some of these rescues."

Another big help is people who buy King Soopers gift cards from the nonprofit, Annette said. The Kroger Company gives the charity 5 percent back from the purchase amounts made on the reuseable cards. Kroger's program, grants and community donations cover only about a third of what it costs to run the charity, the Archambeaus said. The couple is using money earned by Willy's Window Washing to pay for most of the nonprofit's expenses. They have owned the business for 27 years, and when weather conditions are good, they do about 60 residential jobs in a month.

Most of their work is in Boulder County because that's where they lived up until 2010. They're working on building more clients in Fort Collins, Severance, Windsor and surrounding communities, Annette said. "We're not rich, especially with the nonprofit, but we make it work," she said. "We take nothing compared to what's out there."

To get involved: Those interested in learning more about Archway Foal And Rescue Training can call (970) 482-5559 or visit www.nicehorses.org. The nonprofit's founders Patrick and Annette Archambeau are looking for people to buy grocery gift cards that benefit the charity, those interested in getting the foals used to being ridden or others who can help the organization.

Squeegee Free - 99¢ Any Window

"Now I'm laughing to the bank. I'm good at what I do,'' Rob Feinberg says. "I don't like looking bad.''

Squeegee Free - 99¢ Any Window - You might walk away from Rob Feinberg thinking he's one of the neatest guys you've ever met or a wild dreamer. But he is interesting. Just about everything he does, or doesn't do, is interesting. And so you listen intently and wonder if he's going to virtually walk off the street into the promised land of the show jumping horse industry. Feinberg plans to turn his jumpers into some of the best in the country, the kind of horse that wins big money.

Feinberg admits that some within the industry's establishment have viewed him skeptically. But he ignores the naysayers. "When I charged $1 to wash a window of any size, they all laughed at me,'' he says of starting up Itsnotapain.com, which is Web site now calls "undoubtedly the fastest growing commercial, industrial and residential cleaning company anywhere in the "Now I'm laughing to the bank. I'm good at what I do,'' Feinberg says. "I don't like looking bad.''

Feinberg bought Day Tripper two years ago for $2,000. Day Tripper was a Western Pleasure horse, a discipline focused on a horse's manners and calmness and disposition, not jumping over fences. He has converted Day Tripper into a jumper, and says the horse recently finished second in his debut at a beginner event in Sussex, N.J. But how? Feinberg cites a summer program at SUNY Morrisville years ago as his only formal educational experience with horses. Feinberg learned the ins and outs of standardbreds, not jumpers, in the program. So how was he able to turn Day Tripper into a jumper in less than a year?

Feinberg says the key is to train the horse "from the ground up,'' meaning he first walks the animal toward and over fences without a rider. Feinberg cites the importance of a quality diet for the horse, which is why, he says, Day Tripper eats only the finest hay and alfalfa. He says the other secret is connecting with the horse. "I understand their language,'' he says. "It's like a kid. You have to work with them through their problems. I know how to make a connection. You give me a horse, I guarantee you that I can make it do anything.'' Sounds like some kind of horse whisperer. "I guess if you want to call it that,'' Feinberg says.

Day Tripper made it over just seven of a dozen or so jumps in a low-scale non-monetary event at HITS on Wednesday. He will give it another shot on Thursday and likely each Wednesday and Thursday through early June. Feinberg acknowledges that Day Tripper might not be the horse to compete for six- and seven-figure purses at such shows as HITS. That is why, Feinberg says, he recently purchased two horses from Europe, at $15,000 a pop, currently being quarantined. He claims they will be Olympic-caliber jumpers within two years. "You can spend $100,000 on horses, but it doesn't mean anything,'' he says. "It's working with the horse and understanding that horse and respecting one another.''

Robin McNellis, who rides Day Tripper through training exercises at a Bethel facility, vouches for Feinberg's skills. She says his ability to convert Day Tripper from a Western Pleasure horse to a jumper is "pretty rare.'' "It's his confidence and belief in the horse,'' McNellis says. "That's the secret. When people tell him he can't do it, it doesn't distract him at all.''

The Luckiest Window Cleaner Alive?

Two years ago Terry Burrows, won £40,000 on the horses and now he has done it again and won another £40,000 last Saturday

Romford window cleaner mops up again- winning almost £40K: The world’s fastest window cleaner has taken another betting shop to the cleaners after winning almost £40,000 on the horses- just two years after mopping up £41,000. Terry ‘Turbo’ Burrows from Romford, who has been dubbed the Usain Bolt of the betting world, won the lucky bet a second time at odds of 250,000 to one after placing a similar bet in 2010. Terry said: “The first few days I walked around like a zombie and then it slowing started to sink in, but I was just ecstatic.”

The 55-year-old father of two, had four horses win at 16-1, 11-1, 16-1 and 13-2 for his £1 each way Lucky 15 bet. Terry also helped ten of his friends to win £65 each after they placed bets on his last horse. He said: “The last race was just too much and I had to look away but I had all the guys around me going mad so I knew that I was winning. “The first one was the closest because the horse only won by a small margin.”

Bucket full of money.

In 2010, Terry who holds the world record for cleaning three, 45 square inch windows, plus wiping the sills in just 9.14 seconds, won £41,439 at William Hill. He first started betting three years ago and says that his secret is studying the horses. Terry said: “I study the horses to see how they ran this time last year and that way you can get an indication of how well they are likely to do. “Its not always that simple because at the end of the day they are animals and you never know what is going to happen.”

Terry, who has had seven window cleaning world records overall, now spends just two days a week window cleaning and the rest of the time taking part in trade shows and adverts. He has vowed to continue betting and doing his window cleaning until he wins another £40,000 in the horses. He said: “It took me two wins to earn £40,000, models can’t even earn that in two hours. “If I keep on trying, I think I can do it again.”

Q&A With Terry "Turbo" Burrows here.