Enough doom and gloom…how about a Happy ending?
Jan 10 2010
There has been a lot of drama in the PNW horse rescue community over the existence of the Auctionhorses message board, which was developed to help coordinate the rescue of horses from the Enumclaw auction. Basically, the point that’s been made is that (a) sometimes when people save at the last minute, they don’t do so with a long term plan for how to care for the animal and (b) damn, that board is full of some of the worst known bottom-feeding horse neglecting ignoramuses that aren’t welcome anywhere else, and people are funding their idiocy.
I think (a) is true of most rescuing and it’s arrogant to assume that when person A acts on emotion, they’re going to make better judgment calls than person B.  I’ve seen plenty of experienced rescuers who ordinarily have good judgment go off the deep end when faced with animals that ARE going to die if they don’t intervene.  Almost everybody in rescue over-does it financially from time to time. It’s very hard not to. The pressure is always on you to save just one more, and the donors are at fault too – they donate very willingly when a horse is going on the slaughter truck tomorrow – then you can’t pry a dime out of them 3 months later, nor do they want to foster the horse or help in any way.  Try to get someone to show up and clean stalls – you’re lucky if five percent of your rescue’s supporters ever pick up a manure fork. It’s not glamorous, and you don’t get attention for it. Everybody wants the rush of the Big Save and all of the attention that goes with it. When you start saying no, not taking any more, as I have done and several good friends have done, then you are a jerk. This is true in every kind of rescue. I have all but put a sign on my car saying Not Taking Any Cats Right Now and yet a day does not go by when I do not receive an e-mail begging me to take just one more. Anyway, I don’t know any way to fix that problem. Charitable donations are fueled largely by emotion and emotion often clashes wildly with common sense and good judgment!
As to (b), oh, it’s a totally valid criticism. But the folks there will have to live and learn and get burned just like everybody else did by those people. There’s no way around it.  Let’s just say that if a half-dozen people are telling you that someone is bad news, you might want to take note of that before you buy them a rescue horse they can’t otherwise afford.
That said, and given that I’ve been criticized for publicizing the Enumclaw kill pen horses, as if somehow merely talking about it made me responsible for everything in there that might get pulled by a not-so-great home (give me a break, I talk about horses in need every week), I want to talk about an extremely happy ending from the October auction. Here is my original blog from that day.
Eeyore was lot #408, a skinny and sad looking Thoroughbred gelding originally identified as a mare. He had a big ankle and a sad look. There was a handwritten note on his stall suggesting he would make a good hunter/jumper. Maybe with a leg transplant! Eeyore sold for a whopping $85. I sure hope the asshat who dumped him enjoyed the $20 profit they pocketed after their gasoline and the auction listing fee. They walked away, and Eeyore was left where most old Thoroughbreds with a big ankle are left – in the auction pen awaiting the truck that would have taken him to Florence Packing, where he would have been quarantined for a few weeks before going to Canada and ending his life in a slaughterhouse.
This is the kind of horse that frequently does not get rescued because people believe that horses this old are unadoptable, especially ones that have an obvious injury. Â I have seen many people argue that we should only use our resources to rescue young, healthy horses, but this story is a good example of why I disagree with that.
I liked Eeyore and I raved about Eeyore to a friend of mine here in Los Angeles. She decided to bail him out for Second Chance Ranch, and even sent him a brand new plaid waterproof blanket to help him stay warm and gain his weight back. Katie at SCR had Eeyore for just two months. By Christmas he was not only fat and happy – and renamed Mr. Happy in testament to his outstanding disposition – but he was home safe with his new owner.
This is the ex-lot-408 with his new Mom, who loves him very much – precisely because he is old, sweet, sane and predictable!  As you can see, he is living very well and has regained every bit of lost weight. He turned out to be completely sound despite the old, fused ankle, and since all she does is light riding, it is a perfect placement for him. He lives at a lovely boarding barn that has many other Thoroughbreds and is just the light of his new owner’s life.
So, here’s my take on things like the auctionhorses board…proceed with caution, always, and use a little common sense and check people out before you blindly send money.  Sending money to a reputable rescue with an overall good track record is always going to be a safer use of your money than sending it to a private individual with iffy facilities and a questionable reputation. Whether you’re in Washington, Georgia or Arizona, just use a little common sense about where you send your money.  Look for someone who has a proven track record of success in rehabilitation, and who can show that they make good placement choices. The happy endings DO happen, and it’s totally worth trying to make them happen!
Just ask Mr. Happy!
Do you have a recent happy ending of your own for a rescue horse – particularly one that many people would have called unadoptable? Feel free to post about them – leave me the direct link with no tags and I’ll make it into an image – we still haven’t figured out how to make your images show up.
108 comments to “Enough doom and gloom…how about a Happy ending?”
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Not a rescue, but my cousin’s horse was turned down numerous times when people were told she was 20. My m-i-l decided to buy her. PLenty of years left to her despite the sway back from numerous babies. She isn’t the fastest, but really enjoys barrel racing.
My favorite mare was not neccesarily a rescue, but went through an auction, bought, had a baby the next day for her previous owner. Her and the baby were being kept in the owners backyard with a 30 foot circle for a pasture. She was presumably bred at the age of 1 1/2. (They stated she was 11-12 years old, when I bought her my farrier said 3 1/2 at the most) She had very long toes which made her pasterns nearly touch the ground. I couldn’t leave her there and bought her without to many questions.
When I brought her home, and after brushing the manure that was caked on her entire body and having her feet trimmed…
A few weeks later…
And after a couple months…
And of course she was supposedly a hard keeper, so her weight coming out of last winter…
Wasn’t hard for me for some odd reason… food maybe?
It’s more bittersweet than happy.
A couple months ago, I went with a friend to the sale barn for tack. I didn’t have much cash on me to keep me from buying another horse. I didn’t need any more. Tack went through and I didn’t buy anything. We walked through the horses on break and saw some nice ones and some pathetic ones. Nothing that screamed my name. In come the horses and I keep teasing my friend that she needs almost every horse that walks through the door. Then I see her. She was a small gray mare with a sweet eye. Her papers were missing, but she sold with a photocopy of the papers and her coggins. She was 24 [going on 25] and was used to give rides at one of those guided trail ride stables. The man selling her rode her around the ring with just the reins around her neck, stood on her back, and she didn’t bat an eye at all the people. Not one person bid on her and she sold to company. Before the next horse sold, I went to the office and bought her from Company. I couldn’t get her out of my mind and I didn’t want the old lady to end up in another sale or passed around. Worst case, I figured she could sit out in pasture and look pretty between the very rare pony ride with my fiance.
Her registered name was Miss Ginger Freight, though they called her Dolly. When I got her home, we noticed that her knees were quite large, though they didn’t seem to bother her. I trail rode her lightly until the weather changed and her knees started bothering her. No problem. I figured I would keep her comfortable until spring and reassess her for trail riding. Then she started dropping weight and wouldn’t put it back on despite everything that was done for her. That afternoon, that same friend and I struggled to get Dolly back on her feet when we pulled into the driveway and discovered her down. Dolly’s heart was giving out on her, despite her will to live.
I think that’s the part that hurt the most. She was still bright eyed eating the prettiest alfalfa as I made the arrangements. When the vet came out to put her down, she was standing there at the fence, demanding her dinner. My vet prepared me for the worst, explaining that it could be very traumatic [something about the chemical not getting to her brain all at once fast enough because of her heart]. Dolly passed on gracefully, sighing before rocking back slowly before going down.
I owned her for less than 2 months but I tried to make the time I had with her the best I could. She ate well, had her very own blanket, and worked very little. I miss that mare terribly… especially when the other horses are being difficult.
Reicheru, you do the lord’s work. Seriously. I loved this story,
I have a thing for the sad, skinny horses. Scout before…
…and a few months later
Very nice! Yes, that’s what they are supposed to look like.
When I looked at Scout, she was a last minute find. I had a horse picked out that was hubby safe and in excellent shape. The pictures I was emailed were far different from what I saw when I went to see her. She and 12 or so other horses were on about an acre and a half of dirt and mud. No obvious feed. There was no real barn either. Old frame with screen doors leaning against it was all they had, unless they wanted to walk into the old trailer that was in the middle of their pasture. I placed her up for sale about 3 months after I got her in shape and more time under saddle. I had many people look at her and turned nearly all of them away. Almost everyone wanted her to breed and I wasn’t having that. Then one day, my friends mom pulls in. I was confused at first, until she said she wanted to try Scout out. I was okay with it but didn’t remember ever seeing a barn and put the 20 question game on her. Turns out she has been wanting to get back into horses and just started building a barn. Her husband and her own a drilling company, so we’ll just say her barn is nicer than my house, and I didn’t worry about affording feed and basic care. : ) I held Scout and took down every ad I had for a month until their barn was done. She is one spoiled horse at their house. She has gotten even bigger since they’ve had her. She asked me to measure her again because she had to go by a mounting block all of a sudden and she grew 3 inches putting her at around 15.2 now. Her and her husband love that horse like she’s their daughter.
I acquired a 5yo chestnut gelding from an auction in September. He was originally purchased by a chuck wagon guy and I bought him after the auction. To be totally honest, I couldn’t really afford a horse at the time and I almost walked away. I’m not a fan of the chuck wagons, but there are guys who really care about their horses and take care of them win or lose. There are also guys that really don’t give a shit about their horses unless they’re winning with them. The guy that bought him was one of the latter. I’ve also known this horse since he was a 2yo, and he’s always been a favorite of both me and my boyfriend. I also knew that the owner was selling the horse because the horse had a recently fractured coffin bone and had fractured the other one a few years ago. Had that horse gone to the guy I bought him from he would have screwed him up beyond repair and sent him to the killers.
After calling my boyfriend in tears, he gladly agreed to pay his board for me for the next year and any vet bills related to his feet if I gave him a bill of sale for the horse he stole from me LOL. (I didn’t get along with the prick, but he was a well put together, pretty colored, and talented prick and I really didn’t want to sell him). I ended up paying for the horse with my credit card, but I got it caught up with now and all is good.
Despite having fractured both his front coffin bones, he’s doing remarkably well. I ride him two or three times a week and taking dressage lessons on him. I plan on getting him x-rayed once a year, and if I take proper care of him he might be sound for jumping under 2’9″ in the future, but whether he does or doesn’t, he’s a freaking awesome flat horse. He was limping pretty bad when I bought him, but it was hard to tell if he was lame because of his coffin bone problem or if he was limping because the asshat farrier that just trimmed him hacked WAAAAY to much off. Turns out it was because of the farrier, and my vet and farrier both say his coffin bones are doing remarkably well and not bothering him at all. He raced once in May which is when he had his most recent injury, and was turned out at the farm until Sept when he was at the sale.
Under vet/farrier/coach/BM supervision, we’ve been having a blast. For a horse that’s just off the track, he’s got amazing balance and is very agile and sure footed. I have NEVER seen a horse his size (17.2hh, not shitting you, I measured him, I didn’t guess) that can circle that small at a canter and not drop his shoulder and lean. My coach doesn’t believe it either. He’s also got a really nice supple mouth, and takes a perfect amount of contact with minimal training (which is surprising because he was a VERY difficult hard mouthed horse to gallop on the track). He also carries his head almost perfectly. We took him on a trail ride and he was probably the best behaved horse there, even though there were assholes on quads that decided to buzz us (there were no quads or skidoos allowed on the trails either! jerks). Despite his height, we’ve also been having a blast playing polo cross. Picked up a raquet he was totally fine with it, and we were playing the game within 20 mins with no probs. He picks up everything super fast. I’ve had my share of OTTB’s and make my living with on track TBS LOL. I can honestly say he is the coolest, easiest to work with horse I’ve ever had in my life. Its kind of funny because I’ve let other people ride him and he is no where near as good for them. He’s good for my bf, but has no where near they amount of try for him as he does for me. (as a result of this I will NEVER sell him, there’s no fucking way I’m letting him end up back where he almost was)
I only have one complaint about him. HE IS THE DESTROYER OF BLANKETS FROM HELL!! He’s not being picked on in his group, I’ve sat out there and watched him. If no one will play with him, he’ll torment them til they turn around and kick him/bite him whatever, usually tearing his blanket. We moved my bf’s horse in with him (my horses BFF LOL) and it got even worse! They’re both total goof balls and they LOVE to play, usually resulting in blanket casualties. I have NEVER seen a horse destroy blankets that fast. I seriously own 4 blankets for each season because he will easily rip 2 or 3 before my seamstress has a chance to repair the first one LOL. She actually LAUGHS at me when I bring in his mangled blankets.
I usually have really good self control in auction situations, even when I’m at auctions where horses are being sold to the killers directly. I can’t save them all, and I’m just screwing myself and not really rescuing horses if I don’t stay within my limits. This is the only time I’ve bought a horse when I didn’t really have the money for it. Thankfully it worked out and he didn’t require the massive vet bills I was anticipating. Its hard to maintain self control when a horse is going to a shitty situation as it is. The fact that I had a history with this horse and was one of my favorites just kind of pushed me over the edge.
I’m done bragging about me awesome “useless lame” horse now
I love to hear a happy ending. And I agree with you, older horses are well worth rescuing and can have just as useful lives as the younger horses.
Yes, several happy endings.
Topaz; whom I posted about on th boards… 19yo starvation case from early Jan last year. You won’t BELIEVE the difference in the photos. Adopted as a plod-around riding horse by a young family. Everyone rides him and he carts them all around without a toe out of line.
http://fhotd64476.yuku.com/topic/22290
And there’s Valentine, 22yo TB mare saved from slaughter, last minute bid at the auction saved her life. We didnt know her age at the time as there was no info on her card. She had a very long race career (over 50 starts) and was quite neglected when she was sent to the auction. Perfectly sound and ridable, still the livliest of the herd and gets ridden regularly, mostly on the trail.
http://www.schrar.org/valentine.html
Duchess, she and some others broke out of their awful home and got impounded by the Ranger – owners refused to come get them. http://www.schrar.org/duchess.html
Chloe – abandoned a year or two ago. Now 29 and loving life, another spry old lady in a super home as a companion horse. http://www.schrar.org/chloe.html
Our committee too is split two ways. Older horses are very hard to rehome but we’ve been exceptionally lucky with ours so far. We’ve come to a comprimise – anything 18yrs or older is accepted on a case by case basis, depending on their expected quality of life according to the Vet. Its the best we can do for a small org with limited funding.
Jessie,
I have not even looked at your other rescue stories yet, and I am just absolutely stunned at the transformation you wrought in Topaz. I have seen many formerly starved successfully rehabbed horses (like Fug’s Eeyore – he looks like a doll), but this one… his final photo has me in floods of tears. He’s just GLORIOUS!!! (I now have the picture set now as my desktop Background) Chills absolutely ran up and down my back. I haven’t seen such a shiny coat on a horse in my life, I don’t think… maybe matched only by photos of my hero, Secretariat. I am so very glad he’s happy and loved at his new home. His owners must LOVE telling his story! (I love his name, too – don’t know if you gave it to him or if he came named, but topaz is my birthstone and I love them. He IS a jewel so very appropriate!)
I am going back now to look at your other threads, if my emotional system can handle them. Please keep up the outstandingly good work and many horse hugs to you!
Wow, I really have to second that! What an amazing difference and that is just about the shiniest coat I have ever seen. Great job!
as if somehow merely talking about it made me responsible for everything in there that might get pulled by a not-so-great home (give me a break…
No.
People aren’t hard on you because you rescue horses, its because, you push to “save” horses from slaughter. They’re aren’t enough homes, no real euthanization program, or enough rescues. Just where did you think these “saved” horses were going to end up?
And whether you like it or not, you’ve chosen a leadership role and that makes you responsible. You only showcase this blogs successes. The failures belong to “other people.” But I know this blog has influenced more failures than successes. And of course now that its becoming a very public fact, you want to distance yourself from it. “Hey don’t blame me.”
But you are to blame. You created a fairytale, where every rescue has a happy ending. That’s not the truth. And its not just happening over yonder. It happens right here, all the time, perpetrated by people who read this blog. And no, telling people not to add horses when they can’t afford it, isn’t enough. You actively support readers who rescue with the intention of “re-homing.”
The message is don’t rescue if you can’t afford it, but it’s okay to rescue if you can’t afford to keep them as long as you “re-home” them. As if forever homes are lying around just waiting to be filled. So your readers rescue with the intention to “re-home” but discover the homes don’t grow under trees. What happens to those horses? Why don’t you ever talk about them? Wouldn’t even just one failed rescue prove that it can happen to anybody? Wouldn’t it make all the people influence by this blog thing twice?
Well that’s the rub isn’t it. By admitting that the rescues inspired by this blog have actually put horses in a worse circumstances, you acknowledge that there isn’t anywhere for these horses to go- except the slaughter truck. So unless you’re willing to offer an alternative such as a massive euthanization program…
Of course you say,” hey don’t blame me. Those horses shouldn’t be rescued by those people.” Which is to say the horses are better off in the feedlot. They’re better off not being rescued. Better off going to slaughter.
Fugly: No no, that’s not what I mean. They need to be rescued by someone else.
Me: Who? No one else is doing the rescuing. If they stay where they are they get slaughtered. If they go to these homes they starve. By telling us they shouldn’t be rescued your telling use the slaughter house is a better fate than living with those people.
Fugly: Your putting words in my mouth. Only rescue what you can afford. I’m not saying that slaughter is better. I’m just saying these people can’t afford to rescue them.
Me; So you’re telling us to leave them in the feed lot.
Fugly: No. I’m saying rescue them but only if you can afford to.
Me: But if people don’t rescue the horses, they do get slaughtered….
Fugly: Shut the F up.
Hi Ray. By the way, are you a vet? Someone told me you are a vet. I’m curious. If you are a vet, are you offering reduced or free euthanasia for your low income clients to help keep horses from going to slaughter?
>>People aren’t hard on you because you rescue horses, its because, you push to “save†horses from slaughter. They’re aren’t enough homes, no real euthanization program, or enough rescues. Just where did you think these “saved†horses were going to end up?< <
I do not push people to save horses from slaughter if they cannot afford to. In fact, I tell them repeatedly NOT to. I do push people to donate to rescues that offer euthanasia clinics and other means of avoiding slaughter, as well as reputable rescues that are capable of properly caring for horses. I also do not criticize rescues that euthanize horses after a period of time if they cannot find homes. Many "saved" horses CAN and DO find excellent homes.
>>And whether you like it or not, you’ve chosen a leadership role and that makes you responsible. You only showcase this blogs successes. The failures belong to “other people.†< <
That's a hoot. How have I chosen a leadership role? Because I have an opinion that I share on the Internet? Yeah, me and a hundred million other people.
>>But I know this blog has influenced more failures than successes. And of course now that its becoming a very public fact, you want to distance yourself from it. “Hey don’t blame me.â€< <
Really? Can you list some of those failures for me? Names, dates, horses' details, and how you think this blog was responsible? I'm just curious what you're going off of. By the way, I don't take "credit" for successes like Eeyore, either. I didn't have a damn thing to do with it other than finding a donor. Katie did all the work. I'm merely showcasing her good work.
>>But you are to blame. You created a fairytale, where every rescue has a happy ending.< <
OK seriously are you mentally challenged? I've talked about a hundred cases where rescues have gone bad. Even just this year. Do you EVER actually READ the blog? I talk about both sides - always have, always will. The good and the bad.
>>That’s not the truth. And its not just happening over yonder. It happens right here, all the time, perpetrated by people who read this blog. And no, telling people not to add horses when they can’t afford it, isn’t enough. You actively support readers who rescue with the intention of “re-homing.â€< <
Good LORD, what is wrong with that? So you think every rescue should keep every horse forever? That's ludicrous. Why don't you open a dog shelter that keeps every dog forever and tell me how that works out for you. The goal is ALWAYS to provide a "halfway house" - get the animal caught up on health and training and then rehome so that you can help more. Keeping them forever and refusing to rehome is how people become hoarders.
>>The message is don’t rescue if you can’t afford it, but it’s okay to rescue if you can’t afford to keep them as long as you “re-home†them. < <
Rehoming them isn't necessarily due to financial necessity. It's part of rescue. It's part of the process.
>>As if forever homes are lying around just waiting to be filled.< <
I don't believe in the concept of forever homes as the ultimate goal of rescue. The goal is to get the horse qualified to do a job so that someone will want him, even if he goes through several more homes in his life.
>>So your readers rescue with the intention to “re-home†but discover the homes don’t grow under trees. What happens to those horses? Why don’t you ever talk about them? Wouldn’t even just one failed rescue prove that it can happen to anybody? Wouldn’t it make all the people influence by this blog thing twice?< <
I talk about failed rescues CONSTANTLY. I do not understand how you can have missed all the blogs on this topic? I just talked about Amber Hyder - she was a failed rescuer.
>>Well that’s the rub isn’t it.< <
Apparently the rub for you is ACTUALLY READING THE BLOG.
>>By admitting that the rescues inspired by this blog have actually put horses in a worse circumstances< <
Please tell me which rescues claim to have been "inspired by this blog." Point me to one single web site where they claim that.
>>you acknowledge that there isn’t anywhere for these horses to go- except the slaughter truck. < <
Total bullshit. The slaughter truck is NEVER okay. Euthanasia or a gunshot to the head by an experienced person are acceptable when no qualified home can be found that is interested in the horse.
>>So unless you’re willing to offer an alternative such as a massive euthanization program…< <
God forbid I think that horse owners should be able to cough up $150 for a euthanasia if they want to own a luxury item like a horse...I guess that is just toooooo unreasonable of me, huh?
>>Of course you say,†hey don’t blame me. Those horses shouldn’t be rescued by those people.†Which is to say the horses are better off in the feedlot. They’re better off not being rescued. Better off going to slaughter.< <
They're better off not being born, in most cases, but saying I'm to blame for any of it is like saying the reporters on CNN are responsible for poverty because they discuss it and possible solutions.
>>Fugly: No no, that’s not what I mean. They need to be rescued by someone else.< <
I don't live in this fantasy world where there is a person to rescue every horse. I'd like the actual owners to be forced BY LAW to dispose of the horse in a humane manner - euthanasia or properly administered gunshot. If you can afford to own and (allegedly) care for a horse, you can afford euthanasia. And if you have suddenly lost your income, i.e. job loss or verifiable health problems, etc. then we DO need subsidized euthanasia - which some rescues, like NorCal, are already providing.
>>Me: Who? No one else is doing the rescuing. If they stay where they are they get slaughtered. If they go to these homes they starve. By telling us they shouldn’t be rescued your telling use the slaughter house is a better fate than living with those people.< <
I can’t even follow that remark so I can’t respond to it. At this point I don’t even know what you’re talking about.
So, answer my question, are you Ray Bixler the vet? And if so, are you open to offering free euth for people who can show proof of low income?
By the way, if I had the Magikal Solution for all of the equine suffering out there, I would not be doing this blog. I would be traveling the country sharing it with others!
Will we ever solve the problem 100%? Probably the same day we put an end to murder, child abuse, and human hunger. As with those things, it doesn’t mean there’s no point in trying, or that saving one out of ten isn’t a good thing.
Right, you two…….TIME OUT!!!
Cathy, you do actually need to do a blog, not on the “Krazy Kollectors” but on someone who meant well, genuinely meant well, and failed. Perhaps one of the “guest blogs” could do this??
Anonymously would be fine, but we do need to hear of the hardship and the worries that this can cause, not to mention the utter hopelessness of maybe seeing an animal you genuinely hoped to be putting in a better place, go off to God knows where.
Ray, you need to learn to read properly, not just skim over paragraphs.
God help your clients if you are a Vet and you do that!!
That being said, there is always an alternative.
To paraphrase, “even a slave holds the alternative to his slavery” ie anyone can find a knife to cut their own throat, so the alternative to slavery is death. The alternative to the slaughter truck is humane destruction.
I have had numerous horses destroyed, far too many, I have never sent one to a slaughter house, not alive!!
If you cannot look after a horse have it put down.
How many times has Cathy expounded on here that humane destruction holds no shame, and that, as a viable alternative to the meat truck, it is completely acceptable??
It is OK to come on here and say whatever you like, that is one of the basic precepts of this Forum.
To come on here and hold forth, without bothering to read previous blogs, and misquoting and quoting out of concept is just purely ignorant, and serves no purpose.
Why cannot people just understand that, however we may sometimes express ourselves (and I think far less, btw, of the people who choose to express themselves coursey than I do of those for whom this is obviously just the way that they talk) the common goal of everyone on this Forum, with one or two notable exceptions, is to HELP , as in aid to a better life, all and any horses that they can.
Well, the thing is that I believe EVERY hoarder truly and genuinely MEANS well. They just can’t put those feelings into perspective with their own financial and other limitations…hence the train wrecks happen. However, I would be more than happy to publish a story of a small rescue that went under despite their best efforts as an educational tale – I suspect a lot of those people know in hindsight what went wrong – and if you submit that story, I won’t “out” you.
This is a great idea! It’s easy to dismiss the “bottom feeders”, but if people that we can relate to post their experiences in getting over their heads with rescue, I think it’ll make a greater impact.
Ray, does it occur to you that a lot of these horses end up at auction and subsequently in rescue because they have little or no training, which makes many of them not feasible for a number of horse owners looking to buy horses? I donate to rescues because they are out there doing what I can’t (I work 40 hours per week and have my own to contend with), but I can be there with financial support. I agree, we can’t save them all but if we can help to save those that have a good temperament and would make a nice horse for someone, why not? I have known horses that would be better off being euthanized, and for them that is the most humane thing to do.
So much for “enough gloom and doom”… Why’d ya do it, Ray? Why’d you have to rain on the parade? We were sharing nice happy stories from our fantasy world of rescue today and it was going sooooo well until you just HAD to come and play Debbie Downer for us…. (whohmp whooohhhmmmp)
Okay, in all seriousness though, I read your comment once and then skimmed it a second time and I honestly don’t know what you are talking about. I’m not saying that in a rude “you don’t know shit” sort of way, I’m saying it in the “I think you might have spoken too soon” sort of way. I’ve been reading this blog for a while and this blog has IN NO WAY created some sort of fantasy delusion that all rescues have happy endings and that we should all go out and rescue horses. If anything, it’s done the opposite! I read this blog each day, and it makes me hate people and it makes me feel frustrated. Nothing is all “sunshine and flowers and butterflies” about trying to rescue horses. This blog makes it perfectly clear that (1) most of them will not be saved because there are not enough loving, caring, financially stable homes for each horse, (2) some of them will be “saved” but still not make it for various reasons such as medical conditions too severe to heal and will be euthanized, (3) some will be “saved” by people who are no better than the last dumbass who had the horse and thus the cycle continues. I have read several times on this blog that horse rescue is more expensive than anyone would expect unless they’ve already done it. I have also read several times that you should not rescue unless you have financial means to cover expensive diets, vet bills, corrective shoeing/trimming and other forms of “special needs” care for a very long time (until you can find another home for the horse, which is a timeframe that would be impossible to anticipate). I have never seen it stated or implied that it is okay to rescue a horse even if you cannot afford it, as long as you quickly attempt to place it in a forever home. I’m not sure where you got that from. The last part of your post is the most confusing of all. It seems like you’ve created some imaginary dialog between you and Fugs in your head, asking her explain whether it is better that horses should be left to die in feedlots or rescued by people who cannot provide adequate rescue services. Why is that up to her to decide? She can’t control the actions of others. She can’t erase a problem that is created by an entire population of backyard breeders and irresponsible owners and emotional/impulsive rescuers. What she CAN do is spread the word in hopes of educating more people to increase their awareness of the problems, and potentially decrease (but not solve) some of them. So she does just that, and many readers have reported that it has changed their minds on things that would have added to the problem. So…. what exactly are you upset about? Did I completely miss the point of your comment?
Where do I start? Normally I stay far outside of petty flame wars, but somehow, I must be cranky tonight, so I’ll add my fifty cents on this one.
Ray, you need to get a grip. The nicest image I could have of you would be to imagine you were Fugs in an alter account, designed to encourage diverse viewpoints. Unfortunately, you don’t write well, you aren’t coherent, and you don’t read before you post, so I’m very sure you are your own separate entity. I think instead of showing up on every single blog entry, grabbing whatever the topic is, and using it to flame FHOTD, you should perhaps post a thoughtful response that expresses your OWN viewpoint, instead of simply attacking FHOTD. You are beyond rude to create a pretend dialogue and put words into the ‘mouth’ of someone else. I might do it with a fictitious character, but NEVER with a real blogger on her website. That’s just unclassy.
The more I read your responses on this blog, the more I think you should THANK this blog’s owner. She puts up with your thinly veiled pro-slaughter rants with a diplomacy that would have long since escaped me. You don’t read the blog or the responses– you just spout your own opinions, or the opinions you are being paid to spout. The second possibility is more likely, since your lack of real knowledge would indicate you were one of those third parties who get paid to travel sites and blogs and spam the ideas they are paid to spam.
I suppose I should thank you for adding spice and excitement to this blog, but all I can really do is feel disgust for you. I seem to remember you are the same poster who plagiarized – word for word – from a human health site on the internet, placing the words on this blog as if they were your own without citing them. Based upon that alone I doubt you are a veterinarian. I doubt you are a medical professional of any field. Okay, I’ll take it one step further– I doubt you are a professional anything.
If you want to take a position, then I imagine most people on this blog love a good debate. If you are just on here to bash at FHOTD, and spout what is a bunch of out-of-context plagiarized statements meant to rant at the owner of this blog, then could you maybe shorten your posts? They are clogging up the site, IMHO.
Wasn’t there a poster awhile ago who used to show up here periodically just to bash Fugly using imaginary dialogue, which always concluded with “Fugly: STFU” ? This previous poster’s avatar wore a white hood and bedsheet. Not saying Ray is this person’s alter, but the MO is the same—makes me wonder.
OH my goodness, Im glad you brought this up.I frequent that board. I am so confused by all the name calling, abusive stories and drama going on over there. Its also mentioned on the SAFE board too.I think I’ll just help other ways, I cant see giving money to anyone I dont know or havent even met.I go to the Enumclaw auction all the time and it is very emotional for anyone that gives two licks about horses.If only I had more property…lol. I do know theres some that have the facilities and money etc to help those horses but some shouldnt even own a cat.I hope the ones that really shouldnt be taking the kill pen horses will stop.We cant save them all and we certainly dont need them to bounce from ‘rescue’ to RESCUE.
Well, my story isn’t about something that was branded “unadoptable,” and I’m not sure anyone knew he was off the track. He wasn’t sold to me with that advisory — he was “probably an appendix QH,” to quote the dealer I got him from. I had asked for a gelding, young, big, and with good ground manners, green broke, etc.
This guy had very good ground manners and was good with the vet and shoer. He was “skinny” but had a very shiny coat, so it was a matter of “needing groceries,” not having been starved to the point of being a rack of bones. Once I started taking him places, I learned that he did not tie, and he would “panic,” stop breathing, and then rear up and flip over. He never did this with a rider on his back or with anyone behind him — he knew to take care of his “peeps” and their friends — but there was “something going on” that created this reaction in him.
Five months after I got him, I discovered his tattoo — I thought racing tattoos were on the gumline — the dealer had a racing Paint or Appaloosa — and that’s where his horse’s tattoo was located, NOT under the lip. Once I found the tattoo and realized he had been to the track, his panic behaviors started to make sense: Every place I took him could be the track, every “group of horses” we encountered could be “the others in the race,” and his non-reaction to things like dumpsters and the trucks that emptied them made perfect sense — that kind of thing was a daily occurrence at the track. I learned, too, that one of his race trainers was an impatient guy who used whatever methods he could get away with to make the horses do what he wanted ASAP, and the “rushing with fear of a punishment” was what caused the panic-and-flip-over behavior.
Had I not bought this guy, he would have gone in a stock trailer to a big auction in the central CA valley held the first Monday of every month. Some “cowboy” might have bought him thinking he WAS a QH and might not have taken the time the horse needed to get used to everything, and as a former “trainer” once told me, “The horse probably would be dead by now.”
It took me two years to sort through all the behaviors and get his physical issues cleared up — he had a crappy knee, changes in his front feet, some hock issues, and a tight lower back (he actually has a slight roach back, which will never go away, but chiropractic and acupuncture along with “long and low warmups” and supplements have made a tremendous difference). I worked with my vet and added supplements to the feed and rode him or worked him every day.
A dozen years later, I have my own “Mr. Happy.” Outside in my barn is the most wonderful, tractable, biddable and “willing to wait before he panics” OTTB gelding that LOVES his job and loves his life.
As well he should ;o)
I agree with Fugly’s statement in this post — the reactions of those who support rescuers and are “right there” at the beginning and gradually fading away as time passes is typical of almost every volunteer endeavor. The challenge of the rescue operation is to keep renewing the requests for help and acknowledging early and often those who are there for you, even if they are only “there” now and then.
I’ve written this before: I know myself well enough to know I will NOT go to an auction because I just cannot “get a grip” and not walk off with everything in the place. I help rescues when I can with time and treasure, but my first obligation is to myself and my family of four-leggeds. Bills paid, pantry and hay barn full, THEN I look at my resources and see now much I can share. We cannot save them all, sadly, but we do what we can to make a difference for those lucky enough to find a way out of the kill pen and onto a trailer that will take them to a place of safety.
Mr. Happy looks great! I just love a happy ending. I have an interesting story of my own, although it doesn’t involve a kill pen.
I keep my yearling filly on a farm in the middle of nowhere. She has a three acre pasture to roam in with her buddy Eeyore (a miniature donkey) and the pastures next to her are full of retired OTTBs. She lives a happy life. On the other side of her fence is about 5 acres of woods that seperates our farm from another horse farm (this farm belongs to a person who we were told was a horse trainer, but we had never met him, and couldn’t see his farm through the woods). Back in March of 2009, a horse started showing up on the other side of the fence. The owner of our farm called the man to come get her, and he would come get her, but she kept coming back. We never did get a good look at her, but since the owner had a hard time catching her when she escaped, we decided one night to catch her on our own and then call him. Catching her wasn’t hard….we opened the gate to an open pasture and she came right in. When she did, we were horrified. If you were going to give her a body score, it would probably be a 2. I could count every rib, every vertebrae…she had long, stringy hair hanging off of her body and her belly was bloated from the worms (I have pictures if anyone is interested in seeing them). I wanted to cry. Naturally, we called Animal Control, took the steps to get legal possession of the mare, and started the process of rehabilitating her.
Long story short, the horse (a 6.5 year old TB mare) is now doing great. We named her Gypsy, and she’s fat and happy and has been “adopted” by friends of my family who think she’s the best thing in the world. She’s patient and kind and has the best disposition. We have had problems with her feet, but we have been working closely with the farrier and he is optimistic.
To add to the story, the man who owned her previously was finally sited by animal control for cruelty (we reported him in April, they reprimanded him in December…gotta love the speed of Animal Control). They found 10 dead horses on his property and took 6 horses and two minis that were alive. They have since had to put two of the horses down, and the rest of them have a long road to travel, and their future is uncertain. But for one mare, it was a happy ending.
I’ve never rescued from a kill pen, but I have two girls who were headed for one. Both are old girls, 17 year old T-bred and 16 year old arab, matching bay mares. They’re registered with good blood lines, never broke, just didn’t get used for anything more than a walking uterus.
They are now the ambassadors to the farm. I have no intention of breaking them now – they don’t owe me anything. They get regular treatments and upkeep like my show horses do. I love my old girls. They have purpose here, even if it’s not being ridden or pumping out babies year after year.
Enough doom and gloom…how about a Happy ending?………..The pressure is always on you to save just one more, and the donors are at fault too – they donate very willingly when a horse is going on the slaughter truck tomorrow – then you can’t pry a dime out of them 3 months later, nor do they want to foster the horse or help in any way. Try to get someone to show up and clean stalls – you’re lucky if five percent of your rescue’s supporters ever pick up a manure fork. It’s not glamorous, and you don’t get attention for it. Everybody wants the rush of the Big Save and all of the attention that goes with it. When you start saying no, not taking any more, as I have done and several good friends have done, then you are a jerk. This is true in every kind of rescue.
AMEN!
Mr. Happy is such a sweet horse!! All of the horses at SCR are!! I made a donation once and went to see SCR, and was very impressed with all of the horses. They are all very well mannered, even the ones just from the track. Kudos to Katie for all her hard work there!!
I rescued my horse from the Enumclaw auction a little over a year ago. I bought her from a certain jockey’s wife. She too is an OTTB, and she was WILD to say the least the first few days I had her. I did lots of waiting and was very patient while she adjusted to her new life. I’m a re-rider (who in the past few years learned that I CAN get hurt while riding a horse, something that never crossed my mind when I was 12, I hate that fear factor now) and she was very green. We have a great trainer who has helped us through all of our ups and downs. Auction horses are a gamble. I’m sure I could have bought a horse for the same amount of money when you add up training fees, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
http://www.wildponybeast.blogspot.com
I’m sure I’ve probably posted this story before, but I have pics to go with it this time. This is my aunt’s mare, (the small black one in the first picture) not a rescue but an upgrade from an ignorant abusive home. She was living off tortillas and clearly way too much alfalfa, not starving… she had the opposite problem, way overweight! Plus her feet had a terrible shoe job and the worst case of thrush I’d ever seen.
Before:
Granted, she is still in need of conditioning, but she’s come a long way and has overcome a lot.
After:
MUCH better. She looks like a dictionary pic of pre-Cushings before and now she is proper weight. Good example!
This was the first time I’ve looked at her before and after side by side… I can’t belive she was so FAT! Even harder to belive she didn’t founder or have any other serious health problems! She did have to have a tumor removed last spring, but has been good as gold since!
Is she a Paso? Very cute.
That’s amazing. If you hadn’t told me it was the same horse, I never would have known! So glad to see a happy ending for an older horse.
Awe, look at how cute he is! So nice to hear a nice ending for an old fella!
Some of you might remember Scarlett, blogged about on here in February 2008. I tried tolink to the original blog, but I was unable to. It was titled “When bad things happen to good horses.”
Anyway, here is an original picture from back then.
This is Scarlett and her new adoptive mom, Jill. The match between them is one made in heaven. Jill is a first time horse owner and is over the moon with Scarlett. I could never have asked for a better home for her.
So many of you helped me with Scarletts recovery and I am forever grateful. Thank you.
Just put the address of the images in with no code and I’ll fix them.
Thanks.
And here is the link to Scarlett’s original story:
http://www.fuglyblog.com/2008/when-bad-things-happen-to-good-horses/
Can I just say again how beautiful that mare is?
Huge kudos to you…this is a classic example of what I encourage people (who can afford one more) to do:
She rescued the mare from auction
Fattened her up/got the feet and teeth done
Gave her a refresher under saddle since she had been only a broodie for a long time
Found her an appropriate home
There was nothing wrong with this mare but a case of BAD LUCK. She is a daughter of an AQHA Champion. She is a very nice quality mare with a good disposition. Did she belong in a kill pen? HELL no. And now she is on track to never see the inside of one again.
This is a successful rescue, done exactly right.
Of course I have a happy ending – it’s Bazkheno Devinci, from the infamous Oct 09 Enumclaw auction. He’s now with Cowgirl Spirit. Here we are in December when I got to meet him.
http://www3.snapfish.com/slideshow/AlbumID=2532204006/PictureID=112062660006/a=14666410_14666410/
And yes, I saved him with the intention of re-homing him – and it worked out. I wouldn’t recommend it in every situation and it was stupid and emotional how it came about, but the Baz partners made it work. Should we have not done it because the path to his ultimate home wasn’t clear? No, we were willing to take the risk. Someone will get a darn nice horse and we had the satisfaction of making it happen. I would do it again with no regrets.
Back to doom and gloom:
These horses need homes ASAP. Like TODAY. The owner wants some money for them which is why they were scheduled to be taken by a dealer this week (the gelding was supposed to go today) – the trainer whose number is listed is trying very hard to find them good homes before that happens. Please take a look:
http://www.canterusa.org/index.php?option=com_alphacontent§ion=18&category=260&Itemid=282
Anyone who might be interested – a trailer and a couple hundred is probably all you need. We’re working on some stuff from our end too but the ideal situation here would be private buyers, as we are at capacity right now.
Especially to raybixler1 -
You’re laying a whole load at Cathy’s feet, aren’t you? Have you been to COTH, where OTT horses are posted with regularity? How many of them do we ever get a follow up on? I think EVERY horse BB suffers from ‘the Rescue rush’ (and we won’t even touch ABRF!) However, you neglect to mention the fact that Fugs has OUTED would be ‘rescues’ and has actively espoused and promoted such worthy situations such as Nor Cal’s Euthanasia clinic, even getting people like myself (who have been burned by would be rescues to the point where I just hold on to my funds) to send in my dribble, knowing it’s for the ACTUAL good.
We’ve also seen people who reply with “OMG! I’m NOT going to breed my mare after seeing this” and who reconsider a lot of things about horses.
Just my .02
Hopefully this kind of thing will make people breed less.
Some of the horses that are posted for free do get to good homes. However, they are far and few between. Euthanasia is a way better option for the horse than going to slaughter. I can count the number of OTTBs from the Enumclaw auction that have gone to good homes on one hand Of course I don’t follow all of them, but the vast majority go to the kill buyer (and some to “rescues” where they don’t get consistent training).
I got an OTTB last year, not from the auction, but from a farm. The trainer used to take all his horses and give them to the kill buyer when they were done racing. One person talked to him and asked him to try to find private homes for them first. He said he didn’t know any other way to “get rid of them” other than taking them to the auction. This one person helped him take photos of the horses and they all found homes. It only took ONE PERSON to make a difference.
Of course we can’t save them all. Good homes or euthanasia are the only acceptable options. Passing horses around from one marginal home to the next is not right for the horses.
Our TB is currently being transitioned and retrained. I do not plan to keep her, but she will be trained and placed into a good home with a return policy if it doesn’t work out. Training is the key. She isn’t just sitting around being lazy. It doesn’t necessarily take a lot of work to transition these guys, but it does take a plan, commitment and consistency.
Ray,
It’s not really clear what your point (in the big message sense) is to me (and I suspect to many). Are you proposing that all equine rescue be stopped? Are you proposing that all horse owners immediately kneel down and promise the almighty or whatever one believes in that they will keep every horse they own forever? Oh, better yet, that only rescuers have to promise to retain horse ownership for life. Unfortunately for you, and for horses in general, there is very little permanent horse ownership in the US. This is particularly true for competition and racing animals.
So please share with us what it is that you are actually working toward? Please lay out for us your solution for the “unwanted horse problem”. How many horses does this involve? How did you come by your numbers? do you believe that horses finding good homes and being reconditioned successfully by these efforts, many of which are cataloged on the blog, should be denied that?
About a year ago we went to the Hermiston Horse Sale intending to purchase a very broke gelding. Instead we spied a unique butterscotch colored Appy, combined that with auction frenzy, a bit of miscommunication at bidding time and truly accidently ended up purchasing the extreme opposite for $325 (I think I even outbid myself at one point). We left with a seriously underweight 4yr. old filly that was only green-broke, w/ very long feet with 3 shoes and a seller who was angry at the low price and unwilling to give any information. Fortunately for our new horse she came with papers so I contacted her previous owner who was shocked/saddened at this horse making its way to the sale; she told us all about her breeding, likes and dislikes and then when I mentioned she will be used for 4H, the sweet lady told us of her niece that was also in 4H…. unbelievably this girl is in our club (only 5 members) and was present when this horse was born and has video of it. God meant for us to “accidently†get this girl. She has turned out beautifully in body and brains and we have had a zillion compliments on her. She is my 13 year old daughter’s horse and is learning everything from barrels to pleasure….mostly they enjoy bareback riding with all of their friends. Since then we have purchased 2 other horses from Rescuers thanks to this website.
****Here is a photo of them only 6 months after purchase http://www.facebook.com/#/photo.php?pid=73932&op=1&o=global&view=global&subj=100000113987857&id=100000113987857
sorry to say your link was for facebook and did not work…
I don’t know the whole story with my old horse, Bear. All I know is that he was quite skinny when we got him. I could see ribs and hip. My parents, not being of the horse type, bought him without my knowledge and were only using what they had learned through books and the staff that worked at the stable. He was a seventeen (17 hh) hand Appendix Quarter Horse gelding; sorrel with an irregular stripe down his face and an “o” marking his right wither. He didn’t have much energy, for obvious reasons, so I didn’t ride him until he started filling out. When I did start riding him, he hardly understood the commands I gave him and they weren’t anything complex. Like when my trainer asked me to take him around the arena only using my legs, he sidestepped like he was trying to do dressage or something. Riding him soon became a problem. At one point, he spooked while I was riding him as we passed the mountain of hay that was stored in the arena, bolted from me and decided to roll wit his saddle and bridle on. I have never heard of a horse doing that. He became aggressive when food came around, sometimes bucking at his stall if other horses were fed first. Only after a few months of having him, I decided to sell him. I still regret it to this day. He was bought by a nice woman but I was twelve at the time and thought all horse people were good. The stable proved that they were not the kindest people and were only in it for the money.
In a sense, you can count my story as a rescue gone wrong. My parents had the best of intentions with little knowledge in what they were doing.
I could be wrong, and I certainly wouldn’t want to point any fingers, but it sounds to me like you took this whole post a little personally, Ray. As in….perhaps you’ve tried to rescue a horse and it hasn’t gone well? you should be paying more attention to what is written in the blog anyway, since you don’t seem to understand it, but in the case that you’ve been an unseuccessful rescuer, then you really need to read the blog. While the purpose of the blog may be to vent frustration, it’s also an excellent way to educate yourself. And forgive me if I’m incorrect, but probably a good network of support, if you needed advice and dared to ask. It’s not a crime to try something and fail, but don’t get defensive when you fail. Ask for help.
I don’t have time to read everything but, I thought I’d share my adopted horses’ pictures.
Before:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9594162@N02/3878262690/in/set-72157622205709944/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9594162@N02/3877468685/in/set-72157622205709944/
After:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9594162@N02/4205670077/in/set-72157622205709944/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9594162@N02/4253513811/in/set-72157622205709944/
Wow. I can’t direct link to those and make them show up, but people, take the time to click. You did a great job!
What did you change his name to? Certainly can’t call him Bones anymore!
Thanks! He’s such a GREAT boy, too. He is becoming a wonderful trail horse. =)
I thought about changing his name but, I decided to keep it. I like the fact that I’ll have a chance to tell his story when people ask why he is named “Bones”.
I have a rescue named “Bones” too!
Here is his website
http://save-a-horse.tripod.com/
I haven’t updated in a while, but he is still with me and will be until one of us leaves the earth.
When I saw these pictures I have to say, my immediate thought was HOLY SH*T!!. You did a great job with that horse. Even my very non horsey husband (who ironically was raised by a horse trainer with the perfect horse farm of my childhood dreams) said Good for you.
Thank you! He has a blog if anyone is interested. =P
http://frombonestobeauty.blogspot.com/
In November, we brought home Ginger. We were told she’s 17 years old. The lady who had her was a hoarder. She had a Belgian that was skin and bones. There were 4 horses tied to trees. Horses with no shelter and a cow living in a trailer. We were looking for a horse for our girls to ride, as our other two horses weren’t working out that well for them.
We brought her home with a 1 week guarantee. We tried to return her due to a problem tripping, but she renigged on her warranty. Not a big deal, as she’s better off with us.
You could see everyone of Ginger’s ribs. Obviously she didn’t get enough food because in the 2 months we’ve had her, you can’t see her ribs anymore, her withers don’t stick out as much, and her hips aren’t as sunken.
We just had the dentist out as she was having issues with spitting her grain out and getting it all smooshy to eat. Ends up she’s in her 20s. She had an infected tooth that came out. So she’s eating much better now.
Please be sure to personally visit a rescue before suggesting someone donate . Just because they have a euth clinic does not make them any better than another rescue. There are rescues using these euth clinics to dispose of horses in huge numbers so they can get new ones and new donations. The euth clinics don’t help but a few owners the rest of the donations go to put nice horses they don’t have time to make any effort to ride, groom or handle .
I always think visiting in person is a good idea and I always recommend it. However, whether you are a fan of NorCal or not, I have to give them credit for having the guts to HAVE a euthanasia clinic…I see a lot of rescues shy away from admitting that sometimes the only solution is a kind and gentle end to life.
The horse I adopted from them was fat and healthy when I first saw him. By the time they finally got around to doing his paperwork he was unrecognizable. Peeing smelly dark brown urine. My vet told me the horse was starved and dehyrdrated so NO, I’m not a fan. Too many other people say the same thing and they lost their good volunteers.
Sneaking horses to a euth clinic so you don’t have to feed horses or work with them is completely gutless.
I bought my mare from an auction. She was middle age. 14 yrs. needing a little bit more groceries. It was me and another person bidding on her. Your right when you say that people go for the younger ones. That night a lot of the younger ones got bidded on. Well my mare is going on 21 , happy and healthy. I was able to find the original owner,because she was lucky to have herpapers still. Come to find out was that he raised her as a baby and she had a food aggression. He would dump the grain and get out of her way. That was why she was where she was. When I brought her home and tried to feed her. She would charge the fence and run around like a loony bird. Well it took about a month to correct this behavior but I still had to be on top of her. Now she knows she is going to get fed and it doesnt have to be in a hurry either. The original owner was worried about his kid going out in the field with his sand pail and she might have thought it was food. She would guard the crab apples trees surrounding the fence. One day my boyfriend was picking up rocks in the vacinity and she thought he was messing around with her apples and she charged him. He had to climb up on a nearby rock wall. But now she can wait patiently for her food. She has come a long way. No treats by hand, correcting her and reminding her that she doesnt have to get so uppity around her food.
I use to drive her away with a driving whip, keeping her at a distance. Then I would walk away and let her go in. Which at first she use to run in. Then I got her to walking in. Now I let her go into the stall and wait on one side while I put her grain in her bucket. Sometimes she tries to get over their before I am cleared out of there, so I bring up the empty bucket and she runs into that. It gives her a wakeup call. But she doesnt do that too often. I think she tries to test you. She is soooo much calmer. Its like a whole new horse. But anyways a lot of good horses end up in auction because of their behaviors that the previous owners had taught them.
Here is a picture of her at 20yrs.(we were dressed as matching teams for a hunter pace-we are on your right)
http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#/photo.php?pid=96090&id=100000163288043
I don’t have any great rescue stories. What I do have is a 21 year old Arab gelding, Ghazal, that I have had since he was 3. Ghazal is my first love and I couldn’t imagine ever selling him to an unknown future. I chose to keep him even though it meant not being able to do a lot of the things that I wanted to do as I progressed as a rider. (Ghazal was a terrible jumper.) I was only 15 when I got Ghazal as a Christmas present. It has taken many, many years to get to the point where I could afford to start taking lessons again and finally have enough money to buy a second horse that I’m hoping to eventually start eventing. I know a lot of people don’t make that choice but it was worth it to me and it is highly, highly probably that my new 8 year old paint gelding will have a forever home as well. Forever homes may not be the norm in this country but they are out there. And I have to say that my biggest pet peeve are the ads for horses that are 20, 21, 25 or older. If you can’t afford your older horse then lease him out or sell him with some kind of buy back clause or if nothing else works do the “hard” thing and have him/her put down. I know that these older horses often times still have a lot of good years left in them (Ghazal is still a great ride) but once they reach that age they deserve to have someone who is willing to keep their welfare as a top priority.
I also just want to point out to Ray that I have been going through the Fhotd archives a little every day and at no point (so far) have I seen a blog that said I should rescue a horse without a plan and just hope that I can re-home him before I run out of money. And I certainly haven’t been inspired to run out to an auction and buy a horse that I couldn’t possibly afford to feed or care for properly. What I HAVE been inspired to do is to find a reputable rescue and start giving a monthly donation. I can’t afford to give a lot right now but I want to give what I can and a lot of that comes from having my eyes opened a little by reading this blog and I think that is a good thing. We are each responsible for our own decisions and blaming this blog for some rescue gone wrong is no different than any other blame game. I kind of doubt anyone had a gun pointed at their head.
Oh and just one more thought. I think that to run a rescue one criteria should be the ability to make the “hard” decision to have a horse, even one who is not suffering, put down. That requires a lot of mental fortitude and for anyone who knows they aren’t capable of making that decision they might be better off simply donating their time and money to a rescue or at the very least realize that they won’t be able to rescue as many horses as they’d like because they could get stuck with a horse that is un-adoptable for some reason and thus need to have a financial plan in place for that possibility.
I couldn’t agree more with your last paragraph. It’s like the animal shelter. It’s not staffed by mean people who love to euth dogs – it’s staffed by REALISTS who knows there are NOT ENOUGH HOMES for all the dogs that IDIOTS allow to happen, and who do not want to see those animals starve or suffer forever, warehoused in a tiny cage.
I’ve always figured that we can have “no-kill” when we can figure out a way to make the world “no-idiots.” Until then, it’s sad but true that since we cannot legally euth the idiots, we have to keep euthing the animals they carelessly and thoughtlessly breed, do not train, and do not care for.
Agreed – if dog (or horse) A has had a good chance at finding a new home with no luck, and dog B is in horrible need of rescuing, it’s more humane to humanely euthanize dog A and give dog B a chance than for dog A to spend its life at a rescue while dog B suffers.
Great post, and yes, my horses have forever homes too (which is why I can’t have any more, but I donate what I can-gladly, because I love horses and enjoy helping them). I have also had to save for many years, and give up some/adjust competition goals. It was a conscious decision and at the end of the day, for me it is worth it.
asharri,
I’ll keep it short but my story is similiar to yours. I had my TB gelding from when I was 12 and he was 6 until he was 22. He was sound for 3 of those years and fully retired for the rest! When I went to college I sold my sound TB eventer who was going prelim, and I kept my lame first love.
It was hard to pay the bills for him while in school, and, since I was far away there were some rough patches for him: it was hard to find cheap pasture board with excellent care. But I eventually found the perfect place for him. And when the vet said it was time, I was there when he was euthanized.
I’m sorry I don’t always go back to check on more comments so I just saw this. I’m glad that there are others out there who hold onto their horses, not that I’m criticizing those who train them and resell but I do think you get a really special bond with a horse you’ve had for a long time. You can see a picture of my boy and his bloodlines here (if you are interested):
Vanitys Ghazal
The picture was from about 2 years ago at our very first schooling dressage show. We got third and I was very proud of him!
The trend seems to be to post about rescues. I don’t know if I count all these as rescues. I guess I could just say I picked them up at the local sale barn, or from owners who were ready to put them in a kill pen. Since some people like to hear about the ‘failures’, I’ll talk a bit about those as well.
1. Charm– thin, horrendously long feet. Currently on a free lease to a knowledgeable family who uses her for 4-H.
2. Star– she ended up with the same family. She’s the first horse that I bought at the sale knowing I would probably lose my money– she was so sick, I owned her for a month before she moved faster than a walk. Now she runs gymkhana with her young rider.
3. Misty– from a caring home, but unfortunately a severe injury resulted in the ‘too many vet bills’ syndrome, and they had to give up on her. With a little ‘tough love’, she became sound enough to ride and we enjoyed trails for several years before she developed two chronic issues that make her unrideable. I call her my ‘lap horse’, and she has a home until her small feet and 16.2 hand AQHA halter body give out. At that point, I’ll put her down and bury her with my best.
4. Lady– I watched her care for the neighbor children for years. Whenever I went by, she was either staked out on the tetherball post in the yard, being ridden by some toddler, or pulling the buggy. Through some ‘confusion’, she ended up with a dealer at the sale barn, about 200 lbs underweight. I recognized her and brought her home. Now she carries the niece around for me. She isn’t sound (T-boned by a truck on the local highway) but she’s comfortable with light riding, and she has a home with me until it’s time to put her down– hopefully not for years.
5. Mimi– a nice old broodmare, she ended up with me by accident. She just wasn’t ready to be killed yet. I kept her with me for two years, then I could no longer keep weight on her. I picked a sunny day, in fall, and put her down.
Those are just a few of the ones I have had more recently. Which brings me to the question of what a ‘successful’ rescue is. In my eyes, ANY time you take a horse from an environment they are in, and move them to a better environment, then you have been a success. Naturally, we ALL think we have rescued horses. If I considered every story from every person who ever explained to me how the horse they currently owned was ‘abused’ or ‘rescued’, I would have to deduce that over 50% of horse owners are abusive and maltreat their horses. It’s simply not true. But I do believe that many people do rescue horses, and I consider that a success, regardless of how it turns out in the end. If you take home a terminally ill horse from a kill pen, and you put that horse down in a quiet safe environment, then THAT is just as much of a success as when you buy a young unbroke horse from a sale barn, put training into it, and sell it to someone who can use it.
What isn’t a success is taking a horse to the local sale unprepared for its future, then ‘closing your eyes’ and selling such a horse to the highest bidder, without checking meat prices. What isn’t a success is ‘saving’ a horse from slaughter, just to get bored with it in two months time and take it right back to the sale barn, just as skinny and untrained and lame as it was before.
When you make an effort to save a horse from a terrifying trip in a stock trailer to a slaughter plant or holding pen, you take a chance. You might have found a horse who will live for years. You might have found a horse who will die tomorrow. What you certainly have found is a horse who didn’t deserve to suffer all the way to its end– so in that sense, your rescue is a success.
>>If you take home a terminally ill horse from a kill pen, and you put that horse down in a quiet safe environment, then THAT is just as much of a success as when you buy a young unbroke horse from a sale barn, put training into it, and sell it to someone who can use it.< <
I think so too. I wish more people had that mindset.
And you can’t predict the outcome, particularly when you rescue the painfully thin horses. I’ve seen people save three year olds that didn’t make it, and 30+ year olds that bounced right back and went back to being ridden regularly.
here is me mare when i got her she was living in a back yard in a 12 by 12 pen
and now just 3 months later
she a great new member of the family
and she has had babys in the past i am guessing because she is white and gaited
I have several from auction horses. Some were from the kill pen, some i bought at the auction.
Angel is an ottb mare, cribber, and was a baaaaad racer. lol. not sure why she was on the track until she was 7 but whatever. She’s been with me since then..she’s now 13. Was supposed to be a resale project, but she’s an interesting horse…and my dad loves her. (He’s not allowed to ride her though..as she doesn’t like beginners.)
Angel a month or so after i bought her:
and her now…
When the weather clears up we’re going back to work at dressage.
Here’s one of my sale horses that i did sell, though he went to an excellent home and is winning in the hunters over fences with his new owner. Mr. Shamus when i got him…4/5 year old reg. paint gelding. Skinny from not being fed enough and green green green. Sold him when he was w/t/c, doing 1st in dressage, trail riding all over, and jumped up to 4’6 (NOT with me on him. lol. that was free jumping. Not bad for a 15.1h.
and before he left:
My PMU standardbred filly i bought as a coming 2 year old…Now 7 and does trails/1st in dressage, has jumped 3’3” etc. I *may* event her this year. lol. if i’m brave enough.
Remy was an unraced TB gelding, 7 at the time i bought him. I had him 7 months. He was very well trained, but was a lot of horse to start with. LOVED to jump. we would do up to 3′ at home and 3’6” in the woods (SO much fun on trails). Also doing low level dressage when sold. He was sold to a 12 year ols girl (she was SMALL and i was pretty nervous, but he loved her and they took him home.
They still have him 5 years later, even with his rider in college. He does well in hunters with her and she is still having a blast.
and my last “rescue” from the auction is my final gelding. He was a 1 1/2 anglo arab, we named Sebastian. He’s 5 now and is w/t broke. (would like him to be further along than that, but weather/life has gotten in the way.
i can’t afford to so really much of anything anymore, but i do pass along the rescue sites that are in my area, as well as the kill pen list to diff people and bullitan boards. Again last week, no horses went to slaughter from the feed lot at Camelot Auction in NJ.
One day i’ll win the lottery and be able to do more. But for now i do what i can.
You’re doing a lot. What we need to do the most in rescue is hook young, brave, talented riders like yourself up with old, better-funded chickenshits like me – one side to do the work and one side to foot the bills for an end result of a lovely, trained horse that people clamor to own.
As the primary administrator of the Auction Horses website, I would like to correct some points from Fugly’s post:
1) ” … that board is full of some of the worst known bottom-feeding horse neglecting ignoramuses that aren’t welcome anywhere else, and people are funding their idiocy.”
We have no control over who joins our board. The people Fugly is thinking about are members of several other rescue boards, and banning them won’t accomplish anything. The two most well-known have left the board, and none of them received any direct assistance from the group beyond advice. We can’t control interactions between two private parties either, but we are working to educate our members about where their money is likely to do the most good.
2) “Let’s just say that if a half-dozen people are telling you that someone is bad news, you might want to take note of that before you buy them a rescue horse they can’t otherwise afford.”
As stated above, the board as a whole did not buy any of these people a rescued horse. The warnings came only after an unfortunate situation had developed, which took the majority of us very much by surprise. That situation has now been handled and policies put into place to prevent a repeat of this type of occurrence in the future. We do not wish to go into lengthy details here, but the information is available to anyone who comes to our site. We have nothing to hide and in fact welcome any inquiries, within reason.
That said, we are complete agreement with the general message of the article. Rescuing an animal at the last minute, with no plans for its future, is a very bad idea. We are now focusing on education as well as organized support for appropriate homes for auction horses.
Infighting among charitable organizations diverts energy that could being going into making a difference. Although Auction Horses is not technically a charity, the principle applies here as well. We welcome constructive criticism that will make our rescue efforts more effective. What we recently experienced and do no want to repeat was a drawn-out argument with few constructive comments and a great deal of repetition. This diverted energy from the goal we have in common, which is to provide good homes for horses when we can and humane euthanization as an alternative to slaughter.
http://auctionhorses.proboards.com
From reading the post, I don’t think Fugly was saying your site sucked and needed to go away. It was more of the ranting and posting that occurs here, a repeat of the same messages – 1) The Scum BYB’s that think a good place for a horse is to be staked out in the backyard like a dog and doesn’t need food if there’s grass exist EVERYWHERE. 2) If people are saying or giving you that ‘no no no’ look when you talk about selling a horse to someone, remember it’s for a reason. Especially if it’s a lot of people. Because 1 or 2 might be a vendetta. If it’s a bunch of people involved in the industry, then it’s likely got some truth. If you have kept up with the Fugly Blog you know that Fugly herself has not listened and been taken for a ride. Most people with big hearts have to get burned in any industry, from saving any animal or people. We want so badly to help and to believe that everyone else wants to as well that we almost have to get hurt to know different.
Completely OT (I need to scan the before/after photos of my rescues one of these days)……I am REALLY, REALLY glad I’m 3/4 of the way across the country from Preston or I would be bringing home another horse SO can’t use to work cattle
!!!!!!
No kidding, right? He is SUPER, SUPER cute. He is just waiting for someone to buy him matching blankets and polos and a cooler and …
I can’t really take credit for a “rescue,” because the gelding I owned for 10 years was not being truly abused…but…he was underweight and hooves untrimmed, and somewhat neglected. His tolerant nature resulted in many beginners being put on him, who would flop and pull. He’d been a rental horse for a while. His owners charged me too much, not expecting me to bite, but I fell for him pretty hard and paid too much and transported him to my place out of state.
He had a disposition that I can call “golden;” no, “platinum.” After he gained his weight and got trimmed and floated, we rode in the open desert for hours, for years. He loved galloping and would jump little ditches. I could not tire him. He’d pull little games with me once in a while, but if I put small children in front of me on the saddle, he would practically tiptoe. He used to beg for my turkey sandwiches (rarely, he got a bite). I sure miss him. He was like a relative, except I chose him.
I’ve got one!
In 2006 I took in a horse that a friends uncle owned. His uncle found out that a friend worked with horses, and told him that if nobody took him, he was going to shoot him. This horse was 14 years old, and VERY skinny. The before pictures don’t really show just how terribly skinny he was… he’s got a pretty good winter coat going on in the pictures.
He was a great horse, very well trained, just sticky on his right lead. Very willing, beginner safe…. just a lovely horse.
Here are his before pictures. These were taken after he had already gained about 75-100 lbs.
Here he is after 1 month of great hay.
Here he is three months later.
At this point, I had a chiropractor out to check him out. He was so willing, but just couldn’t pick up that right lead. This is the report the chiro gave me… she said it looked like he was flipped over with a giant spatula onto cement. After this, he gained weight much faster, and was much more comfortable under saddle. Check out the chiro report– she only did about half of what he needed, this doesn’t show everything!
Annnnnddddd, the best yet… here he is 6 months after rescue, with his new little girl. He looks like a different horse!
Sorry for such a long post, you can delete some pictures if it is too long.
There is no such thing as too many pictures of a happy, rehabbed rescue horse! I’m sure my readers would agree.
lightsyouonfire:
Gorgeous, exactly my kind of guy. He is so lucky that you cared enough to help him. I can only imagine where he would be if you hadn’t stepped in… enough said. I am going to bed tonight with a smile on my face, thanks for that! There is some good in this world.
Hooray for a happy ending! Mr. Happy looks so cute now.
Here is Splashy Jill, AKA Gracie. She is my little red headed TB mare, who use to scare her riders. She reared alot, and most everyone was scared of her.
Here are her before and after pictures (I call her my diamond in the rough)
Here we are running around the pasture yesterday, finally getting a small break from the cold. I didnt go to the barn to ride, so never mind my outfit…
Just to clarify, I am not pro parelli. She also rides in a bit, and undersaddle…
She went from the track, to pony club, to barrel racing. Her twin brother bucks jack (they were kept together) was more tolerant of the people jerking around on him, and his mouth, however this mare said NO, a big fat NO. I have re enforced with her that riding is fun, by taking away everything that was so bad about it, and reintroducing it, using softer kinder methods. My 10yr old daughter rides and jumps her. She still has a ways to go out of the arena, but in the arena, she is a star!
She looks wonderful! And no, I didn’t think you were a Parelli-ite. They’re busy, by the way, bashing me on that old thread about giving your horse a cookie when he tries to bite you
Apparently I am a big meeeanie for suggesting that a whap in the nose is more appropriate. That’s ok, I will be a big meanie without any teethmarks in her!
Heck, I know one horse who has been known to get the whap on the nose BEFORE she bites me. After she gave me a bruise that took nine months to fade…now she gets the whap when she pins her ears and bares her teeth. I would normally just give a verbal ‘quit it’, but I’m not taking any chances with that brat of a pony…she’s taken chunks out of quite a few people.
Alot of people associate bridleless riding with parelli, and especially the neck rope, because you know he invented it ::rollings eyes:::
Funny concept how getting out of their face stops them from rearing. Who would have thought? Supposedly she was a really bad rearer, I put 30 days of nothing but ground work on her, re established the basics, the I am boss, my space your space lessons, then started riding her in a halter, to neck rope, to bit (french link).
We have a hunter show next month, wish us luck!
Like a friend of mine says.. If we dont end up in the concession stand, we did good!
Geez. If I’d have been giving my gelding a cookie everytime he tried to bite me, I would have had to roll him to the trainer’s barn! I tried Parelli about 6 years ago with him. Then my farrier pointed out that Dox was probably already way too friendly and didn’t need to play anymore games–what he needed was to learn some respect!
BTW isn’t it amazing how they stop rearing when you get off their face and put a nice mild bit on them?
Why is it people seem to confuse parelli with talented?? LOL
Seems like the only way your allowed to ride bareback and bridleless these days is if you do parelli. God forbid your just looking at a talented rider on a well trained horse (or should I say properly trained
)
A volunteer with the United States Equine League (USERL) has written a book about one of our rescues. 40% of the money from the purchase of the book goes to the rescue. You can find the book here
http://stores.userlstore.org/Detail.bok?no=89
or google USERL store
Dutch when I had him on lease a couple years ago:
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=dutch08001.jpg&newest=1
Dutch now:
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=IMG00101.jpg&newest=1
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=IMG00102.jpg&newest=1
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=bath001.jpg&newest=1
Not exactly a rescue, but an upgrade… he turns 26 this year, and is only lightly rideable at times with bute… his arthritis has put him into semi-retirement. He still loves to go, but runs out of steam after like 1/2 mile… but I love him, and he loves bossing my mare around… he thinks he is a mighty stallion, lol.
I just want to say “Happy” is boarded at my barn and his owner is a dear friend of mine. Everytime you look in this guy’s eyes you just see how grateful he really is. What a wonderful horse. He always come to greet you in the pasture, is so quiet to tack up and ride, and is just a super kind horse. I am so happy he found a great home!
Thanks for the first-hand update! I have heard NOTHING but wonderful things about this horse. I’m so happy he was saved – it really does go down as one of the few great things about 2009, a year that I (and it seems most people I know!) was very happy to see go away.
Here is some brilliance:
http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/grd/1548838526.html
Parents of the year with that first pic! I’m sure the horses are really great little ponies, but seeing kids up there with no helmets really grills my cheese.
Reading this thread reminds me of something that happened to me, many years ago, that is kind of a rescue in reverse … since the “rescuer” probably thought she was rescuing a horse from me!
I boarded at a very expensive, reputable h/j barn that gave lessons and took kids to horse shows, etc. I leased out a huge warmblood gelding from a woman who basically was letting him stand around on her property. I rode him, but counted on the barn owner to decide on the amount of feed he was getting. I was less experienced at the time, and this horse just kept getting gradually skinnier. When I would say something to the barn owner, she would explain that he was ok and I was being over-reactive. Now that I know better, I realize that she wasn’t feeding him enough because my basic board didn’t cover any extra amount. She was easily able to bully me with her “expertise”. Well, long story short, the owner came out to see him because I wanted to buy him, and she was furious at his condition! This woman was so angry with me for not taking care of her horse, and rightly so. She took him home and that was the last I saw of him. He got sold to someone else who took better care of him!
Obviously, I don’t board there any more, and I wouldn’t let anyone bully me around about how much food my horse should be getting.
My point of this story is that many beginner horse people board at places that really will short change a boarder on horse care and convince the novice that things are just fine, even though the horse is clearly not getting the care he needs. Taking on a rescue in a boarding barn can be difficult unless you are on board with the barn owner that it’s a long process that takes patience and lots more care. The boarding barn in my story was not a scummy place by any means! It is much easier to get hoodwinked when the place is nice. People trust the experts, and let’s face it, lots of barn owners and trainers are strong minded people! It’s hard to argue with them. Reminds me of the trainer stories on this blog — lots of people take the word of the trainer and don’t know any better. I feel personally responsible because I let the owner talk me out of what should have been my own common sense — feed my horse more food. He wasn’t a body score of two or anything, but he was not in good flesh. I am still ashamed to this day, can you tell?
Horsefever I had the same thing happen to me when I was 13. I started out riding at a barn that was pretty much an all purpose type of place. The barn manager was into hunter jumpers and had shown a lot in her younger years. She kept her old mount until he was 34 and had to be put down. She took us to shows and I had a great time. She was very knowlegable and kind yet firm when need be. Now looking back I realize she did send the old trail horses to auction and some of the trail string were not such good shape after all. The owner of the barn wasn’t the kindest and he cared about the bottom line money wise more than “babying” horses. For all you Seattle folks this was Aqua Barn Ranch in Maple Valley, WA. It was old and tattered and the horses weren’t fancy but I had a lot of fun and learned a lot.
Fast forward to age 13. I decided I was too good for the Aqua Barn because I really did want to try some new things and show. I started riding at a place in Hobart, WA. The woman who was older specialized in saddleseat with Arabs and NSH’s. She had a hook up at the track though so she would hook students up with “free” horses if they boarded with her. The trainer at the track got to get rid of his sound horses to someone who he probably thought was great and she made money off boarding. She did know how to teach other styles of riding, she wasn’t all saddleseat but that’s what she preffered and had lots of show experiance with. She kept her old show mounts well into their 30′s. That meant something to me even back then that they didn’t just chuck them when they grew old and had senior needs which can be expensive.
Well I get my free TB and so does my best friend. My horse was race fit when I got her and I expected her to gain a bit as she was let down. This woman starved my horse. I let her for four months. She was feeding my TB as if she was a tiny little Arab. I told my non horsey parents we had to move the horse asap. I was a bossy brat so they agreed. I took her to a little backyard boarding place in Burien that offered self care. My horse put on weight and did well. I eventually gave her to a girl who was in 4H and they went on to do really well together. I spoke up at 13. My friend didn’t. She let her TB starve there for years. When she moved him to place in Kent, full care board as well, he gained weight and looked normal for once. I knew at 13 something wrong. I’m happy my parents listened to me and agreed to move my horse. They were probably happy because the place I moved her to was a lot cheaper. This woman bullied me with her expertise as well. She was a crabby old bytch that thought she knew it all and since the TB’s belonged to working students who werent’ paying full board she didn’t feed them full board amounts of feed I guess.
Well, you remember Cheree Esposito of Safe Haven Arabians who found Jazzercised (AKA Nic) at the New Holland PA kll auction? well she found on craigslist in Spotsylvania,VA an arabian gelding called Patriot. 15.1, bay with black points, huge star and snip make him stand out. He was going rather cheap so she bought him to refresher train and re home him rather than have dealer buy him and sell him for meat. When her hauler arrived with him they were shocked, he was skin and bones literally and looked a pitiful sight. I had been chatting to cheree on her forum and had decided now was the time for me to get back in to horse owning. As soon as i saw Pats picture i knew he was meant for me, dont know how, just knew, so i waited for him to put on weight, paid his vet bills and a fee for him to become mine. I couldnt stand the thought of someone else getting there first! He was rescued May 20th 2009, and came to me in IL in late August 2009. He was still very obviously underweight at this point. So i would go hang out with him at the barn, groom him, take pics of him to see how how was progressing , take him for walks on the grass etc for about another 4 months, all the while he was looking better and better. I finally began riding him a few short weeks ago and now hes back to health he looks AMAZING, im biased i know, but its almost hard to remember how bad he looked back in May. I have to tell you hes the sweetest little dude, has great manners, and of course tries it on now and again but otherwise it was soo easy to bond with him. I still just cannot understand how he was just left, hes obviously had some training, rides English and is uber responsive off the leg and seat , yet he was just left to starve until Cheree bought him. The prev owner said “thats what horses are supposed to look like” what do you think?
Day of rescue
in November 09
And in December 09
Now i just have to figure out how to ride him cos ive never had anything so forward going in my life lol!!
ps – if anyone recognises him or has any background please contact me, im desperate to find out anytihng i can about him!!
My guy is a bay arabian too! I love him, he’s gorgeous! Do you know how old he is? Good luck… my guy stole my heart.
Hey Amy
YAY for the bay Arabians haha! 
I believe hes 12, LOL i always said id never have an Arabian, and now look! Hes my boy and i love him to bits 
he follows me all around i just wish i was a more confident rider cos he totally knows and takes advantage – although hes never done anything bad, I just need to be braver, lol hes SO forward going always feels like hes gonna GO!
Here is my rescue pony “Bucky”, we adopted him summer 2007 from a local horse rescue as a 2 year old . . . what a difference! Hard to believe he is the same horse, he is looking more like a QH than a pony now and is a fantastic trail horse. We LOVE him!
Bucky January 2007 at rescue
Bucky when we adopted him August 2007
Bucky summer 2008
And this is Haley, a lovely Morgan mare who came from Spring Hill as well . . .
Haley Winter 2009, hard to see how skinny she is with her winter coat, but look at her spine sticking up . . .
Haley Summer 2009, still needs a tail and a topline!
Can you tell I like buckskins?
T
i love buckskins too , right now i have a bay but, my first horse was buckskin! They both look fantastic, great job!
Can I try this again?
Dutch when I had him on lease a couple years ago:
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=dutch08001.jpg
Dutch now:
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=IMG00101.jpg
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=IMG00102.jpg
http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh171/amydudley1/?action=view¤t=bath001.jpg
This is a 30+ yr old pony we rehaabed last year.
Feb 09
dec09/jan10
I always love these topics on “old horses’ and rescues, loved reading the inspirational stories here on this thread and want to add, have posted before about our then broken down ’18 year old’ that turned out to be 21 and is now 24 years young! Just today, his 12 y.o rider came up to the window and said “look at my ride on mower”, still with his rug on and ridden in a halter and lead rope with her little dog also atop, before they did a spin and cantered up the hill, the three of them, bareback
Recently we purchased a ’15 y.o’ Arab in poor condition. His ribs showing, bad saddle sore on his back, mouth, neck and back pain and his owners discribed him in ‘paddock condition’ *cough cough*. 2 months on, he is building up over his back, muscle is appearing where once there was skin and bone and he is yet another ‘older horse’ at an approxmate age of 18 y.o with a fanatastic character for our 5’7 12y.o to move on to. He is also highly educated, can be ridden in a bitless bridle and stops just by the rider breathing down into the saddle, how cool is that!
Anyone contemplating buying a beginner horse for their kids or for a return to riding mother, an older horse is just the receipe for success, they have so much to offer and are a worthy investment and well worth a pension in later years.
I have seen some horror stories and read here some others of those older horses being moved on only to find themselves in bad hands, I woudl never do that to ours, but if a respected person was looking for a childs beginner pony or a nervous mothers mount, I would be only to happy to lease the older horse under strict conditions, these older horses have so much to offer and as the saying goes “age is no barrier” as far age vs versatilitiy is concerned.
Our older horses go on weekly trail rides into the unknown and are taking us for our first ever beach ride shortly, now that is something an inexperienced horse and rider package would find difficult, but with these ‘been there, done that’ older horses it is hassle free and full of F.U.N
I get a kick out of what some people consider old. I know plenty of people that will not buy anything above 15 and consider them old. I’ve never been around a horse in our family that hasn’t been completely riding sound until 30+ years. I am still young so I’ve mostly bought young green horses for the fun of seeing them progress into well-broke riding horses. However, we bought Ruby at 18 and she has had the most spirit of any horse we’ve had. My m-i-l bought Candy for my husband hen she was 20 and everyone said she had a foot in the grave. That mare barrel raced in 4h and took home ribbons until 32. My husband’s cousin won states in the IBRA 2 years ago with her slaughter find that was 17 at the time. He still runs in youth 1D and places top 5. She bought him at Belknap auction, and found out he was ridden through drugged. She is the only person that he trusts, and nearly killed his previous owner because she beat the daylights out of him when he did not win. This $400 auction horse is now well worth his weight in gold to her. What 17 year old turns down a $30,000 offer on a horse for shear love? Not many.
I’ve had a couple of great success stories, but my favorite was Rapidan.
Rapidan was a puchase from a motley little herd of assorted horses, goats, and pigs in a backyard somewhere near Palatka, FL.
He was thin, nameless, and, at age 6, just gelded. He’d raced, and then been a teasing stallion. I didn’t spend the money to trace his tattoo, but I did call the JC , who told me he sired one registered foal. He alternated between kind and vicious, kicked, bit, etc. .
Very long story short, this teasing stallion became a 4-H show horse, took a re-rider for long trail rides, and eventually became an A-circuit jumper.
I have a 6 year old Saddlebred that I got throught Saddlebred Rescue, who has a dropped hip. There is about a 2 inch difference between the strides of his back legs. It’s not noticable until you realluy study his gait. Or, stand behind him. When yhou do that, his right hip is noticably 4 or 5 inches lower than the left. He was hard toi place parftly because of his greenness, and partly because the slight uneven-ness of his gait is perceived as a lameness in many disciplines. He was a green-as-grass 4yo when SBR bought him from the Kill pen. Likely no one broke him once his problem was discovered. He’s now a wonderful trail and driving horse for me, and the bond we share is very special to me.
Here is his link:
http://forum.saddlebredrescue.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=14&whichpage=9
Go to the last 2 pages for the best pics!
I was given a half-starved crippled mare. She’d had a run-in with barbed wire somewhere between 2 and 4 years of age and no vet care/stitches to heal it, leaving her with a severed forearm muscle. Apparently that meant she needed to be used for breeding while not being fed enough. The woman I got her from bought the baby who was not weaned and was told she had to take both horses. She couldn’t afford the extra horse, but didn’t want to send her off to slaughter! Here she’s holding Lucky (after she’d already put some weight back on her, but before she was officially “my” horse.)
You can see the scarring on her chest/legs here:
She won’t be rideable, and it took her about 6 months to gain enough strength to be able to handle hand walking for even a few minutes. Now, though, she gets regular turnout and plays happily, and she’s about to start a career in an emotional therapy program, helping out others with their own problems. She has more muscle now – these pics were taken 9 months after the first, when she was first able to walk more (and right after a windstorm blew away all her bedding, unfortunately!), but I don’t have super recent photos. She now is somewhere with softer bedding and more activity around her, which makes her a very happy girl.
Not an old horse, but I bought a two year old Standardbred who was slaughter bound. The lady I took him from had saved him from the kill pen two weeks prior and posted his ad on Craigslist. I have no idea why I was looking on there, but for some reason this post titled “2yr old bay Standardbred Gelding – $75″ caught my attention. She must have posted it right after she got him, because I waited for two weeks and couldn’t get this horse out of my head. When I went to go see him (they called him Slim), he looked bad – cuts, kick and bite marks, horrible feet and the worst swollen knee. The people were terrified of him (no idea why, he was too weak to do a thing) and said he was hard to catch, wouldn’t let anyone touch him, etc. They had horses (Belgians, go figure) and another rescue they got from the same auction as “Slim”, but were slightly clueless (They had a stud colt in with a herd of horses – two being mares). Well, they got him no problem and he let me pet him with only mild flinching. He even let me clean out the eye boogers. I think I saw him on Sunday, had my vet out to look at him on Tuesday and took him home on Wednesday. The vet said she’d never seen a worse club foot and it was a miracle he hadn’t tripped or hurt himself to the point where the leg broke and he needed to be euthanised; the fact he’d made it this long showed something about his will. She also told me flat out he probably would never be rideable – I said I didn’t care if he just ended up as a pasture ornament, as long as he was healthy eventually. She also said he was barely 2, if even, and surprise surprise, retained testicles! When I brought him home, nothing bothered him, no spooking, nothing. He was the most depressing two year old, ever. The vet and I kind of agreed we’d have to wait and see, but he obviously was a fighter. I had another vet come out in the practice I used to get a second opinion who noted he swung his one back leg as if searching the ground and some other things. We ran an EPM test which he tested weak positive for, so we decided to start EPM treatment in case. I brought him home Oct 20, 2009 (when I decided to make his 2 yr old birthday). We’ve still a far way to go. The knee is still swollen, but doesn’t seem to bother him. I’m going to get it radiographed when he gets gelded soon. He’s acting like a regular two year old now – a right turd! His head is always up, taking in everything, curiousity over everything, prancing and tosses his head around while doing so. I was riding around the farm on my old mare one afternoon and saw him cantering around the field – break into a gallop at one point – without tripping (though I held my breath the whole time – we couldn’t get that far and him hurt himself now!). He has a casting problem, so he always needs banking (I call the baby bumpers) in his stall and a few weeks after he came home, he some how ripped the skin above his eye that required 11 stitches. He goes out by himself – we tried a miniature gelding that could walk underneath him once Fritz got stronger, but the mini was beating him up. He’s gained about 100-150lbs since I brought him home. He’s my goober, but we’re stuck for better or for worse – though he is the last horse my BO checks at night and the first in the morning because we never know what he’s gotten up (or down) to.
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/fritz2.jpg
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/fritz.jpg
Images I replied to – early Oct ’09
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/IMG_1571.jpg
The second night I had him – first club foot trim – late Oct ’09
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/111409.jpg
Nov. 14, 2009 (we had a warm spell and he got his first bath shortly before this)
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/Jan810-2.jpg
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w187/masihkap/Jan810.jpg
January 8, 2010
Definitely not there yet, but working on it!