Rescues are wonderful people in most cases caring for horses that have been forgotten.  Old 4-H pets maybe not as beautiful as they once were, horses broken by cruel hard hands, or horses just like their human counter parts, down and out and relying on the kindness of strangers to get by.

So, why should these generous people enter the feed lot with a discriminating eye?  The answer simply is for the same reason they go at all:  To help as many horses as they can.   Too many times I go out to service animals which are either too broken physically to have a productive happy life. or are so damaged mentally that they are not safe for anyone to handle.  I hope these simple guidelines will help anyone thinking of rescuing a horse decide which one is right for them.

1. “Life After Rescue” – Saving horses cost a lot of money; many times their feet are a disaster taking a lot of time to fix.  If someone is going to invest that much into an animal it should be one that is going to enjoy its new life, not one limited to only ever being in pain loafing its life away.  What will the horse do after it has been saved?
2. If the horse you are looking at is particularly mean spirited, I say watch out!  Most rescue horses have some trust issues but there is a big difference between horses that are fussy and nervous about having its hooves handled and one which explodes violently like a bomb when triggered.  Many problems can be overcome, but don’t risk your (or my) skin on a horse that is just plain rotten.  There are too many nice horses that need homes.  Is the horse a nice person inside?
3. The other reason I would look at a given horse is because it is special in some way.  Either breeding, show ability, or is it just a spectacular child’s pet?  I don’t care what kind of value it has, it just has to be something.  Maybe it is something as simple as it’s just extremely pretty.  But it has to be something, or it will have a hard time getting a forever home.  Does the horse have ANY sort of value?

I hope these suggestions are helpful, the world is full of so many horses needing help.  They are the equine world’s 3rd class citizens, the ones swept under the rug.  Hopefully as a team we can save some of the ones worth saving.

Anyone needing help with rehabilitative shoeing in a neglected horse, or a farrier worth his or her salt in your area, feel free to call or email and I will try to help in any way I can.   I have many resources for rescues to take advantage of.

This is Bird’s story.  She was brought into rescue with this condition and ultimately adopted out.  She fell and broke her leg two weeks after this picture was taken.  Unfortunately, she never should have been in rescue.  The adoptive family was told with enough farrier care she would be able to ride and live a normal life.  This would have never been possible.  Horses like this are really good examples of our limitations in life.  We want to save them because they are good people inside.  However, they unfortunately don’t have a future and I doubt seriously the people who adopted Bird will ever go through this experience again.  The bottom line is if you’re not sure please ask.  This isn’t meant to discourage those who wish to rescue horses, but we aren’t all experts in all areas.  What we can do is assist each other with our areas of expertise and help everyone save the horses that can be helped.