Running Free - A Wild Horse Tale

Horse Rescues

Introduction to Horse Rescues

Overview of Horse Rescues

Horse rescues take any neglected, abused, or unwanted horse. Unfortunately, there are a lot of those types of horses out there. Sometimes people do not understand the responsibility involved in caring for a horse. The initial cost of the horse is not expensive, it's the day-to-day, and year-to-year up keep that is expensive.

The Colorado Horse Rescue's mission speaks very well for all horse rescues, and what they set out to do.

Horse rescues are non-profit organizations. They receive their funding from private donations, volunteers, and sponsors. They are similar to dog and cat no-kill shelters and rescues. They take in the animals and rehabilitate them and try to adopt them out to a new loving home. Adopting a horse from a horse rescue is a great way to offer a previous unwanted horse a new loving home. However, not all horses are adoptable. Some horses have been so abused and neglected they do not fully recover, and thus are not good candidates for adoption. These horses stay at the rescues and live out their lives there.

Here is a good example of a typical case story. This story comes from Front Range Equine Rescue. Their mission is "to rescue, rehabilitate, and adopt to a loving home horses that might have been sent to the slaughterhouse without our help."

Tariq's Story

Tariq came from a kid's summer camp. Unfortunately, the camp operators did not understand how to properly care for horses, especially horses with special needs. Tariq came to Front Range Equine Rescue and has been rehabilitated, but not without almost loosing his life. Tariq has suffered some severe colic episodes. Colic is a general term for stomach upset, but with horses it can be severe, and even fatal. Colic in horses usually takes on the form of impactions, where a solid mass is stuck in the GI tract and is not moving causing a blockage. Other forms of colic include twisting of the intestines. All forms of colic require veterinary care and it can be very expensive. Tariq's most severe colic episode cost Front Range Equine Rescue over $2,000 in medicine and vet bills. Today, Tariq is doing well and has gained 200 pounds during his time at Front Range Equine Rescue.

Tariq Before	Tariq After

Search for a Local Horse Rescue in Your Area

To search for horse rescues in your local area, go to the Rescue Network and click on Rescue Links (at the bottom of their Main Menu on the left). There you will be able to select your main category (e.g. European, USA rescues, etc.) to find a local horse rescue near you.