Guest blog by Gloria Shramm: "My Long-distance love affair with horses. Try to rescue but will never meet"
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| Moon and Gloria |
Kill pens are businesses that have captured and caged horses for “holding” that are unwanted, discarded and abandoned until they are shipped to Mexico or Canada to be slaughtered. Many people who send their horses to auction after deciding they don’t want to keep them, are unaware that their once-beloved horses are destined for the kill pen. To rescue or adopt a horse from a kill pen, a “bail” fee of several hundred dollars must be paid to the kill pen before they will release the horse. Horses held in kill pens are stressed and sick from close, confined quarters, poor diet and lack of overall care. There are groups on Facebook that post pictures and descriptions by number advertising horses in kill pens for adoption before being carted off for slaughter as well as listings on Craigslist under “Livestock.” Horse slaughter is illegal in the U.S. but transport from such states as Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, California, etc. is legal up to the borderline of Mexico, where horses are then taken and slaughtered. Slaughter takes place in Canada, as well. Horsemeat is a staple in other countries. About 130,000 horses are slaughtered annually but that figure is probably much higher. Humane groups, horse lovers and others, look down on kill pen activities for its barbaric practices, mistreatment of equines and condemns them.
A big job awaits anyone who tries to help rescue horses from kill pens and auction houses before these majestic creatures are shipped off to Mexico and Canada to be slaughtered because there are no laws against slaughter in those countries. In my quest I learned it’s also a big job to operate any one of thousands of horse rescues and sanctuaries in the United States and save hundreds of thousands of horses from demise.
My love for horses began when I encountered 2015 Triple-Crown Winner American Pharoah. In the two years since, my love has grown into a volunteer commitment weekly at HorseAbility, Center for Equine Facilitated Programs in Old Westbury, New York, grooming, tacking and side-walking disabled children on the horses. My husband and I sponsor “Moon,” a gentle gelding trail horse with reddish brown hair who falls asleep on his feet when we brush him in his stable and allows me to plant lots of kisses on his face and leans into me when I lean on him.
My newly-discovered horse world is a stretch out of my comfort zone into a previously unchartered area. I did not grow up with horses. Living in a crowded suburban town of small plots renders me inappropriate to house a horse. Equine or equestrian environments were alien to me and I never know anyone who owned a horse. I fed sugar cubes to mounted police horses in NYC as a young woman and rode “Oola,” a donkey up and down the mountain trail in Santorini, Greece, quite a thrill I might add, and rode a white and gray horse named Chris in a park a long time ago. He took off with me on him, losing the group and frightening me. He would suddenly gallop without warning, so fast out of nowhere, that I had to duck the low-lying tree branches. He’d suddenly dip his head and neck down in a quick, jerky motion, lurching me forward on him, while hanging onto him for dear life. I think Chris wanted to get rid of me! Thus, ended my early life fling with horses.
But something struck me about American Pharoah which resurrected my earlier affection. After I met him at his home in Coolmore Ashford Stud Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, my growing connection didn’t stop there. I decided to take my first love for this unassuming, humble but privileged thoroughbred and serve his less fortunate, perhaps lonelier “brothers” and “sisters.” I visited retirement farms like Old Friends at Cabin Creek in upstate NY and Baiting Hollow Horse Rescue and Winery out on Long Island, in Calverton NY.
I found myself led on my own “runaway Pony Express.” I joined horse lover’s Facebook groups (there are many) and one fine day, as it happens, I was invited
by a screen popup to join “Saving Slaughter Horses.” I clicked onto it reluctantly. It brought me into a whole new galaxy, pummeling me daily by dozens of additional posts of horse videos with tag numbers and ship dates. All the faces seemed to cry out to me. They looked straight into the camera, as American Pharoah had looked straight into my eyes the day I met him.
These horse posts are mostly taken from Craigslist ads in various locations. There are other similar groups on Facebook but one group of this nature is all I can handle – right now!
In my wild, unbridled rides across the Facebook group pages of beautiful horses around the world and in American kill pens, I friended a horse enthusiast, Debbie Anderson-Shewman, an experienced, died-in-the-wool horse lover, who works and volunteers at Tierra Madre Sanctuary in Arizona. I began sending her posts of these horses. She explained how she posts some of the at-risk horses to her wall and tags horse rescues in the state in which the horse is currently in. Debbie got me started on my mission. More and more posts manifested daily of endangered horses, like nonstop waves in the ocean.
I decided to copy and paste one post at a time containing photos, videos, descriptions ID tag number and contact info to horse rescues corresponding with the horses in question to the Facebook pages of rescues I researched that corresponded to the state the horse was in. These often-ill-fated horses have no names. They are identified as “colt” “gelding” “stallion” “mare,” etc. and only have a tag number and location with contact phone number. Shipping deadline and price are visible on their posts.
I got lucky. One day, early in my odyssey as horse savior, I found a Texas organization, Happened By Chance Horses, who agreed to take a mare I chose at random one morning from the first post I saw on Saving Slaughter Horses. Linda Nemec answered me rather quickly said she couldn’t promise anything, but she’d try to raise the funds for “bail” (fee charged by the kill pen to make a profit on the horse’s back) and the transport fee. I didn’t stop there, informing other Texas rescue organizations I found. Not long afterwards, she informed me that her network of donors came through, she had the room for one more horse, and took her in.
They named her Gayle.
“Luckily, I have a great group of supporters and most of the time, if I ask, they come through. Sometimes we are full and can’t help. The timing for this mare was perfect. She had some angels watching over her for sure, ” said Ms. Nemec.
I struck oil in Texas. A lucky day for Gayle! Today, she is doing better and is safe. It truly “happened by chance” just like the rescue name because that is not the usual outcome – and I am only one person trying to do this from the group. I have repeatedly begged others, telling them what I do and how I do it, to join with me and contact horse rescues via social media. I explain the simple mechanics. And I emphasize that I cannot do it alone. One person cannot serve hundreds of horses slated for kill. It’s a 24/7 job via social media or telephone and not likely to be conquered alone. It takes a village.
The adrenalin pumps within me as I contact as many rescues as I can, fingers frantically flying across the keys – and I hold my breath and wait for the response I want.
Or the response I don’t want.
What I found is that most horse rescues respond quickly to my pleas and broken-heartedly apologize, explaining that they either had no room or no funds to rescue or adopt and support another horse. Some were struggling to maintain the horses they have. One said that they would never “give in” to the kill pen demands by paying them for the horses because it only encourages this travesty to continue and went so far as to say they won’t betray their donors in that way – and it wouldn’t be fair to the horses they already had in their care. Yet Many were disturbed by the fact that unwanted horses are often sent off for slaughter Another alerted me to the SAFE Act. If passed, this government bill will prohibit the transport of American horses abroad for slaughter and effectively kill the kill pens. It is illegal to slaughter horses here but not to transport them to the border. Moreover, some of these horses are used for food abroad but if they’ve had certain medicines such as painkillers because of illness, consumption hurts humans. Most, but not all, kill pen horses I found seem to be located mostly in Texas, with some in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Florida awaiting shipment.
I found their reactions enlightening because there are Facebook groups seeking donations to release horse from kill pens. How ironic, since few donations go to the rescues. This was the cacophony cry in unison from whomever I spoke.
There are approximately anywhere between 5-50 horse rescues and sanctuaries in almost all 50 states, though I suspect there’s more. They have a 501c3 designation by the IRS as nonprofit organizations or charities and have board members.
Some even have a Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) verified rescue or sanctuary
Accreditation. Many organizations offer mental and emotional therapy for special populations and individuals in crisis in conjunction with horse interaction, care or riding. The difference between a horse rescue and a sanctuary, is that a horse rescue houses and cares for horses but does try to adopt them out to caring educated families. The sanctuaries also rescue and rehabilitate but they keep their horses permanently. There is no adopting them.
Feeling the pain of the rescues and sanctuaries, I set out to find ways I could help them save the horses they already had and perhaps, if they could obtain grant funding, maybe they could then take a few of the horses bound for slaughter that I send them in social media messages -- down the road.
I researched and found a treasure trove of grants, charities, clearinghouses and also websites that made it easy to find rescues by state. There are websites just listing horse rescues by state, an invaluable resource. I amassed every link to a horse grant or charity I could find and began sending those links to each horse rescue I previously contacted with horses from the Saving Slaughter Horses Facebook group. I wanted them to know I was helping them help the horses in a way that I could, even if thousands of miles away. Most were very grateful for the information on several horse grants. Some had heard of one or two. Most did not. Others wished I lived near them to help out. One rescue was closing and in the process of rehoming their horses to private families.
“The kill pens cause many rescues to close down,” said Yvette Fees, President and Founder of C.E.D.A.R. (Cattle, Equine, Disaster, Assistance and Rescue) Rescue in Oklahoma and disabled veteran who runs “Fur Therapy” for veterans and domestic violence victims and emergency disaster relief activities in the state of Oklahoma, responding to floods and tornadoes by assisting the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA). She runs a clinic with the help of Dr. Boecker, whom she said is wonderful. They educate horse owners in disaster preparedness, advising them on what they need on hand should a disaster occur. Her and husband, Kody, a former marine, operate the rescue that is ballooned under His Promised Land Ranch, run by her partner, DeAnna Baker, in Oklahoma, as well. Despite the hefty operational costs of running a rescue organization, Ms. Fees operates the rescue by donations – or – as I suspect with many rescues and sanctuaries I spoke with – her own pocket – and her holistic approach to veterans suffering PTSD or with other issues preventing them from adjusting to civilian life, others in crisis, going door-to-door in communities devastated by floods and tornadoes – in addition to a full rescue operation of 21 horses and a wait list of six more.
Alexis Ferri, executive director, who has 36 horses at Tierra Madre Sanctuary in Arizona, says, “If every horse rescue got together and said “no” to kill pen bail fees, this would end. If everyone stopped backyard breeding and started educating the public on the proper physical, emotional and financial commitment before owning a horse, the slaughter would end.”
When she was asked why she got involved, Ms. Ferri answered, “Why I do this? Because if I don’t, who will?” She explained that there are four different ways for a rescue or sanctuary to obtain grants and donations: Individual contributions; bequests in wills; corporate grants and government grants. It costs $200,000 annually to operate a horse rescue or sanctuary.
Despite this intimidating figure, rescue and sanctuary directors are human with big hearts, and Ms. Ferri, like most, said they would save a horse if that horse had absolutely no place else to go in the 11th hour except the slaughterhouse.
Some rescues told me they had applied for a grant and were rejected because their place was too small or they didn’t have enough horses required to be awarded funding. Whoever turned me down about saving a kill pen horse, were heart-broken about turning horses away because they just didn’t have the room, enough water or funding. Some have had local sheriffs seize abandoned, abused or neglected horses from nearby areas to give them to rescues. Sadly, some of them were also turned away or at least placed on a waiting list. Meanwhile, back at the farm….
Perhaps a saving grace and ray of hope is that there are grants and charities for many types of equine organizations, including specific ones for therapy farms serving disabled persons, veterans with PTSD, drug-addicted persons and emotionally or mentally ill persons (for which many rescues conduct therapy programs), sanctuaries and thoroughbred retirement farms. The latter also keeps their horses, like sanctuaries which could also have thoroughbreds. and do not look to rehome them. Mostly, I was always careful to write them with, “possible” grant source and “F.Y.I. Just in case you hadn’t heard of these, and hope they help.”
Those who neither had the time to raise public awareness of urgent needs, fundraise or plan events for the public, because the tasks of caring for the horses and premises was enormously overwhelming, I suggested that they look into and contact their local universities and college department chairpersons or their own alma maters, for motivated, reliable, top-notch students majoring in grant writing; event planning; social media management; fundraising; marketing or nonprofit management and create internships for them. These internships would have the oversight of the person(s) in charge at the rescue, of course, and would be non-paying but offer a plethora of tested skills and experience on their resumes. With the right individual on board, it could be a win/win for everyone. An intern or two who loved horses would be a plus. Most seemed receptive to the idea and hadn’t thought of it before. If they could coordinate with the educational institutions to be recognized as offering college credits for time students invest in these activities, that would be a valuable benefit. Even so, whether college credits are possible or not, it is an invaluable real-world experience performing these services for a nonprofit and light up their resumes for any student wanting serious “real-world” experience and provide invaluable help to the rescue.
There are approximately anywhere between 5-20 horse rescues in almost all of the 50 states within the United States, though I suspect there’s more. I recently learned that Arizona has 55-60. That means there are at the very least about 1500-2000 horse rescues and sanctuaries as a conservative estimate from Google listings. Most have the 501 (c) (3) designation from the IRS for nonprofit and accreditation. Many are educational and training centers and run therapy programs.
I learned that the greatest needs of horse rescues are hay, water (especially in drought-prone areas of the Midwest and South), farrier services, funds for veterinarian services – and volunteers to help with everything and anything. While many organizations are hurting and strapped for cash they also need volunteer personnel. I am grateful that despite all the pressures, many horse rescues around the country took the time to speak with me on the telephone and educate me about the workings of a rescue operation, their challenges, heartbreak, victories and joy. Everyone I spoke with is extremely dedicated and proud of the work they do. For them, their mission is a calling and I am touched.
In my mouse-and Internet-screen travels with them, I also suggested imaginative fundraisers, like a Roll in the Hay Day or an Indian Rain Dance, for example. Free advertising sources are community announcements on local radio stations and local newspapers and inviting reporters to come and do video segments for human interest and publicity. A documentary is currently being filmed on Baby Bluebonnet Equine Rescue in San Antonio Texas, that only specializes in baby mustang rescue and works with children and adults with autism and epilepsy and veterans, for local television in the state. Media publicity can provide an increase in much-needed donations.
I am daunted trying to rescue at-risk equines from all over, horses I will never meet but whom I feel compelled to help just the same in any way I can. I now have one iota more of an in-depth understanding of what loving, caring for and saving horses is all about.
This has been an eye-opener and learning curve into the problems posed when horses go to the auction block. The same refrain echoed many times with the horse rescue directors and founders I spoke with : Donate to a rescue if they cannot buy, own a horse – or keep a horse – once they adopted one – before the horse goes to auction. It’s a Catch-22 situation and vicious circle paying fees at auction thereby perpetuating the dark business of shipping to slaughter houses over the US borders.
Ms. Ferri of Tierra Madre remarked on the poor treatment we as a society give horses and that we owe them a lot better. “They have given us so much. They built the foundation of our country, pulling the plows, carrying us into battle and they transported us west. “ says Ms. Ferri.
“We heal the horses but they heal us, “ she added.
“By working with rescue horses, humans are not only healing the horses, they are healing themselves,” says Ms. Fees of CEDAR Rescue in Oklahoma.
For the same reason, Ms. Ferri told me that her Arizona sanctuary name will soon be changed to “Tierra Madre Horse and Human Sanctuary.”
I also believe that horses deserve our love, respect, help and endless efforts to save them and keep them. Because I am smitten and enamored, I found ways right from where I am, cutting a wide swarth of ground, encompassing as many horses as I can, matching them with rescues and trying to save them, while helping the rescues as well. After all, horses are gentle, loving creatures eliciting our love. They are part of our heritage, natural resource, beautiful addition on our American landscape and have served mankind for thousands of years. They continue to do so today in ways that are spiritual, therapeutic and almost magical. We would be wise and righteous to honor those gifts.
Side Bar
These are the resources that I have found to date. I am continually adding to my collection.
A. How to Find Horse Rescues across the country
There are three “clearinghouses” I use to then finding corresponding Facebook pages with which to contact rescues. There are times when one or two do not have Facebook pages so I then go on the website and email them.
A Home for Every Horse lists horse rescue by states alphabetically from Alabama to Wyoming.
Horse Pasture sponsored by Seedland only lists several states on the above link. However, there may be rescues listed there that are not listed elsewhere.
Find My Horses encourages horse rescues to list on their website with no cost to them. In turn, they promise to promote the rescues on Facebook.
B. Emergency Horse Grants
Assistance program by states
Safety net by state
C. Grant resources and charities for possible funds if qualifications are met
Federal government grants
Carolina Equine Rescue Association -- helps with grants when funds permit and care for abused, neglected horses with special needs or needed rehabilitation.
Feed it Forward – Nutrena – for horses that help people in need – simple application form.
Thoroughbred Charities of America – generous for thoroughbreds only
American Horse Rescue Network
Find My Horses website says to list with them -- it's FREE -- and they will promote you on Facebook. They are currently adding my grant links to their website.
Bucket-List for horse grants -- some expired -- some may re-offer annually – inquire – some may also offer assistance with birth control for the horse population.
Unwanted Horse Coalition which also lists charities for thoroughbreds and other horses and includes the Equus Foundation which supports various horse charities.
D. Other possible sources of grants worth looking into for horses and other animal inhabitants of rescue organizations
Animal Welfare Trust
American Humane Association
Banfield Charitable Trust
Bernice Barber Foundation
The Binky Foundation
Bissell Pet Foundation
Bridgette Bardot Foundation International
E. Horse Advocacy – Write to your government reps to pass the SAFE Act
This site has the form to use and explanation of the act.
Bureau of Land Management contacts in every state to stop slaughter of wild horses.
F. Horse Rescue and Sanctuary Guidelines from Center for Equine Health and other resources
G. National Equine Evacuation Directory:
Riding Home: The Power of Horses to Heal, by Tim Hayes, a non-fiction book chronicling stories of people helped by horses. It also contains a detailed appendix of horse therapy farms, horse rescues, etc. in the United States of America, with location, description and contact information. See www.ridinghome.com for additional information.
OTHER IDEAS
INTERNSHIPS
In talking with a lot of horse rescues and sanctuaries, I know that operational costs are phenomenal and staff and owners alike are strapped for time and money.
I have suggested to some that they enlist the help of college interns majoring in marketing or non-profit management, which would include courses in grant writing, fundraising and publicity. If rescues need these services and cannot afford to pay (most cannot), perhaps a local college in the region would be
happy to assist in providing an intern or two to help with these activities -- the experience would be invaluable on a resume. Preferably, get a horse lover (ideal!) and someone who is serious, reliable and motivated. The person in charge would supervise the intern(s). Some colleges might even consider
giving college credits toward the experience. Of course, under supervision - someone serious who wants to make a difference. If rescues have a grant writer, they might want an intern to help with event planning and fundraising.
And....
Up in Saratoga, NY, there is a thoroughbred retirement farm that actually uses a veterinary intern for basic horse care under the supervision of a veterinarian.
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