Mamba, the stallion, a horse being a horse

03/08/2025

03/08/2025

This nonprofit journey has taken everything we have and then some. We are doing our best to keep it together, to stay strong for the mares, for the foals, for the people who believe in this mission. But we are at a point where we need to be honest and say we can’t do this alone. We are dangerously low on funding. We have not yet been able to afford ANY of our winter hay, we have dentals on all of our mares due this fall, along with fall vaccines and deworming, high four figure monthly farm lease and plenty of vet bills, equipment payments and supplies to buy just to name a few.

We are $8,000 short on our “Semi of Support” fundraiser which buys the first load of alfalfa for our girls this fall. This is one load of several we will need for the winter months.

Click here to support our hay fundraiser:
https://givebutter.com/3URjzH

Every dollar goes directly to operations, we only have four boots on the ground, a small team of dedicated board members, and one unpaid intern.. When we made the shift, we had to trust the community would meet us half-way. We simply cannot do this without you.

If you’ve ever believed in what we’re doing…
If one of our stories has ever made you smile or cry or think “this matters”…
Please, I’m asking you—help us keep going.

👉 https://www.coldspringnursemares.com/donate

If you can’t donate, we ask that you share our message as we make this push to survive our first year as a non profit.
On average our videos get 6 figure views from around the world. Occasionally we will get a video that goes viral with 2-3 million views. Earlier this year, we hit 8.9 million views in 28 days. Now- if every person donated just $1, it would drastically change our trajectory.
We would be able to help others in so many ways: lower our lease cost, broaden our reach, help other non profits, hire more people, own our farm, take in more mares, save more foals.

We are still here. We are still fighting.
Because these mares and our mission matter but we need community support!

With all my heart,
Bronwyn Watts
Founder and executive director
ColdSpring Mares Inc.

03/08/2025

Or simply love only the animal, period 💖

Picture source: Scott Beckstead

03/08/2025

Absolutely true...
As I always say to whoever asks me about it, to me riding can eventually be just a bonus to sometimes share together, but only if based on a relationship of mutual trust and understanding and only if it can be really pleasurable for the horse too, like going for a walk exploring nature, without using any coercive tools causing any kind of discomfort ❤️

Picture source unknown

03/08/2025

And that's why it's so important to learn how to truly listen 🧡

Picture credit: Thoroughly Equine

03/08/2025

I just will never understand how it's possible to see your horse looking like this and just peacefully going on using him for your own benefits, while also spreading the lie about how much he's enjoying his job being a happy willing athlete...
Simply sick 💔

03/08/2025

This a sweet picture of one of our followers Diane Vitale together with her 44 years old horse...
Wow, just an entire lifetime being shared, such a priceless gift ❤️
If you wish, you can share the pictures of your own senior horses in the comments 🥰

03/08/2025

Yes 💖💯

03/08/2025

Again, the more naturally they can live and the healthier they will be. Let's learn from nature, let's make our horses live as much as possible like horses naturally do ❣️

HOW AND WHY DO HORSES GET ULCERS?

Equine gastric ulcers can affect any horse of any age. Up to 90% of racehorses and 60% of show horses, as well as non-performance horses and even foals are affected by equine gastric ulcers. Gastric ulcers result from the erosion of the stomach lining due to a prolonged exposure to the normal acid present in the stomach.

Unlike ulcers in humans, bacteria do not appear to cause equine gastric ulcers. Instead, this condition is often a man-made disease. Stall confinement alone can lead to the development of ulcers. A horse’s feeding schedule and high-grain diets can also contribute to the development of ulcers.

Stress, both environmental and physical, can increase the likelihood of ulcers, as can hauling, training, and mixing groups of horses. Strenuous exercise can decrease the emptying of the stomach as well as the blood flow, thus further contributing to the problem.

The treatment and prevention of gastric ulcers is directed at removing these predisposing factors, therefore decreasing acid production within the horse’s stomach. Prevention of ulcers is the key in helping your horse, as neutralizing the production of stomach acid is nature’s best antacid.

Please note that the only way to definitively diagnose ulcers is through a gastroscopy. An equine veterinarian should always be consulted in any case of suspected gastric ulcers to determine the best course of action and treatment for the individual horse.

02/08/2025

Just listen! ❤️

It starts with a whisper.

Too often, riders wait for the big signs, the bucking, rearing, kicking, biting, to recognize that something’s wrong. But by the time your horse gets to that point, they’ve likely been trying to tell you for a long time.

Pain doesn’t always shout right away. Sometimes it whispers.

You reach for the halter, and your horse turns away.
You approach with the saddle, and he moves away
You lay the saddle pad on his back and he flinches, barely, just for a moment.

These subtle moments are where communication begins.

And when we don’t listen?

The horse learns they have to speak louder. That’s when the behaviours escalate, when discomfort becomes pain, and pain becomes desperation.

And yet, how many times do we hear…

“My horse is so sensitive, I’d know if something was wrong.”

All while the small signs are missed, or worse, dismissed.
Your horse is always communicating.
The question is: are you tuned in to hear the whisper before it turns into a scream?