Three Pines Farm

Before we begin, I'd like to ask that we not "flame" the owners too harshly; after all, they DID have enough concern for their welfare to contact me and sign them over and I believe they do deserve credit for that.  Thank you, ladies; you did what was right and now these horses have a chance at a healthy life again. 

Wednesday night, a concerned person contacted me with cell phone pictures of some emaciated horses.  The owners contacted me Thursday night to ask my advice on what was wrong; I told them they needed to call a vet immediately and gave them the names of four that I recommend.  In response to my questions, I was told they weren't on a rotational worming schedule because they were unaware that was necessary, that they were feeding the Rural King feed but that the horses' teeth were gone "because they don't get teeth until they're older".  At this point, I asked if I could come out and talk with them the following evening, and they agreed. 

Friday afternoon at break, I made a few calls.  I knew I didn't really have the funding or the space to take these poor guys in unless I did some serious shuffling (a partial plan of finding a place to put a few of my personal horses was also in the cards in case no help was available) but I couldn't stand by and let these guys die; from the pictures, I knew they didn't have long.  During my calls, I found out that the neighboring county's AC had received several calls about these particular horses but since they don't have anyone authorized to work in Pike County, there was nothing they could do unless the horses were seized by law enforcement or signed over by the owners, but that they had space available if we were able to help.  As much as I wanted to help these poor babies myself, I knew this was the answer to our prayers.  After a few more calls, including one to Steve about hauling arrangements, we were ready to go.

After work, we headed out to the horses' living area; a small dirt corral in a backyard.  Luckily their space was surrounded by trees so they had plenty of shade; there was also a fresh round bale in the corral; word had it that a visit by the sheriff had prompted them to put the hay in.  Unfortunately, they were too far gone with parasite infestation/etc. for the hay to do anything but feed the worms.  When I asked if they had gotten a vet out that day, the owners said they had called one but they couldn't agree on which one, and stated they had left a message but the vet hadn't called them back.  I informed the owners that at this point, they were looking at probably a couple grand just to get these guys back on track; in between vet visits, fecal parasite tests, treating the supreme rain rot on their backs and the fungal infections on the filly's legs, fixing whatever dental issues might exist, possible cryptorchidism in the colt, the supreme parasite infestation that was causing them to still have their winter coats (IN AUGUST!!!), the fact that they might already have been stunted so bad as to never get taller than pony-size, and the comprehensive and in-depth feeding plan they would have to have, the bills would mount up fast.  I also informed them that as far as I knew, if the police seized the horses, they would be on the hook for at least the first 30 days of the horses' rehab costs and possibly more, and that quite frankly I was surprised they hadn't been seized already.  When faced with this kind of mounting financial burden, the owners graciously agreed to sign them over.  It's always cheaper and easier to keep a healthy horse than to bring one back to health when they've been even close to this far down.

Thankfully we had Steve and his family waiting on Standby with their trailer and we were able to pick them up immediately.  I was worried that if we waited the owners would change their minds; however, I had along with me the phone numbers of all the local, state, and county police along with the DNR; if they wouldn't have signed them over, I would have stepped off their property and started calling until something was done.  I didn't want it to happen that way and I'm glad it didn't; I knew that since they had at least called me of their own free will and were concerned about the care they would receive once they left there, I wanted it to go as easy on the owners as possible.  They just didn't know anything about proper care for their horses and to make matters worse, they had gotten them from the infamous Benny Thomas, so it's hard telling what they were harboring from their time on his place...and while I believe that every animal owner owes it to their animals to educate themselves and keep their charges healthy (the library is still free, and if there aren't any books on your chosen subject, they generally have free internet and a librarian to show you how to use it, so there's pretty much no excuse for naive ignorance nowadays), sometimes things are a bit different in Pike County especially in bad economic times and I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt.  It's all about the animals, and getting them some help was what ultimately mattered the most.  I also left a bunch of material on feeding, worming, and equine dentistry so that they would at least have a start on knowing how to better care for their horses should they choose to get others.  Anyway, thanks to Steve and his family, we had them loaded up and headed for home within minutes.  Since it was so late I didn't want to take them the whole trip to their new home in the dark, so we decided to house them at our place for the night.

Ally came to help me keep an eye on everyone Saturday morning and blessed the horses with names; the chestnut filly became Lucy, the bay colt Thunder, and the pony was christened Dusty.  When Nathan came home from work, we loaded back up and hit the road to IHR Southwest in Owensville, Indiana (http://www.ihrsouthwest.com).  Their crew was ready and waiting for us when we pulled in; within seconds of stepping off the trailer, a betadine solution was being applied to the rain rot and leg fungus.  Vaccinations were given immediately and they were started on a worming program along with checking all their vitals.  Turns out that the filly has heart arrythmia due to parasite overload, something I have no experience with so I'm doubly glad IHR was able to take them in so quickly.  They aged them at 1 for Lucy, almost 2 for Thunder, and a little over 2 for Dusty and immediately started plans for them to each have 3 baths to battle the fungus and outward parasites right away.  I was intensely pleased with the care they received so quickly and I have no doubt that they will recover quickly in IHR's capable hands.  I plan on visiting in a few weeks to get updated pictures.

So all in all, it was a very successful effort on all fronts and thanks to everyone that helped and supported us during this, these guys are well on their way to as healthy and happy a life as possible.  Check back in a month or two and see how they're getting along; or better yet, give IHR Southwest a call and take a trip down there during visiting hours.  Volunteer for a few minutes; even the least-horsey among us could still scoop a little poop (which wouldn't be too much of a chore there, they keep the stalls very clean) or brush a gentle soul for a while, and every little bit helps.  Or make a donation via their website; these guys do GREAT work and donations ARE tax-deductible!  Their website again is http://www.ihrsouthwest.com.  Thanks!

You can almost hear them whispering to each other..."Look at all that grass....."

I was recently able to visit these 3 at IHR Southwest and they're doing great!  Thunder even came up to me for scratchins'.  They're all gaining weight and looking good!  Thank you, IHR!  I didn't get a chance to get pics, but they do have a new update on their searchable Horses page at www.indianahorserescue.com