The Pegasus Sanctuary

10/10/2025

10/10/2025

We have some extremely sad news to share with you. We are heartbroken to tell you that our darling Emeraude went down again on Tuesday and couldn't get up. With it coming so soon after the previous episode, and with the advice of our vet, we decided the kindest thing was to let her go.

Emeraude was 34 years old, which is in itself quite remarkable for a Cob Normand. She was truly a gentle giant and everyone who came to the Sanctuary always remarked on how healthy and well she looked for such a fine age.

We saved Emeraude and her sister from the abattoir around 6 years ago. When Emeraude's sister died a couple of years later, we all thought that because of her age and strong bond to her sister, Emeraude would not survive without her. However, she surprised us all by becoming best friends with Graziella and going from strength to strength. Emeraude was herd leader for most of her life at the Sanctuary and will be sorely missed.
The third photo shows Graziella standing guard over Emeraude after she had passed away. She stayed with her for many hours.

Thank you to all our supporters, and very sorry to have to share such terribly sad news with you all xx

If you would like to help us with our vet bills, please donate by PayPal to PayPal.me/ThePegasusSanctuary or to [email protected]
The fee alone for the body to be taken away is 370 euros😢.

05/10/2025

Emeraude is doing ok, but this happened this morning.
Emeraude, who is 34 years old, went down in the field sometime last night and couldn't get up. We are extremely grateful to our vet, Luc Van Vlierberghe, who came out at such short notice, and to Sébastien, Felicity's farmer neighbour, who also gave up his time to come and help with the emergency. Also to our wonderful French volunteer who was on hand throughout.
Thankfully, once she was up, Emeraude hadn't suffered any injury and she's doing ok, she had just been lying on her weaker leg. Felicity is keeping a very close eye on her, and we just have to hope this doesn't happen again.

If you would like to donate to help with our expanding vet bills, please donate to paypal.me/ThePegasusSanctuary or to [email protected]
Thank you xx

Emeraude va bien maintenant, mais c'est arrivé ce matin.
Emeraude était dans le champ et n'a pas pu se lever. Nous sommes extrêmement reconnaissants à notre vétérinaire, Luc Van Vlierberghe, qui est intervenu dans un délai aussi court, ainsi qu'à Sébastien, le voisin agriculteur de Felicity, qui a également donné de son temps pour venir nous aider en ce cas d'urgence. Nous remercions également notre formidable bénévole française qui a été présent tout au long de l'intervention.

Heureusement, une fois soignée, Emeraude n'a subi aucune blessure et va bien. Felicity la surveille de très près, et nous espérons simplement que cela ne se reproduira plus.

Si vous souhaitez faire un don pour nous aider à payer nos factures vétérinaires, qui ne cessent de croître, veuillez envoyer un don à paypal.me/ThePegasusSanctuary ou à [email protected].

Merci x

03/10/2025

👀Are you looking for something to do this weekend?
The Pegasus Sanctuary is open this Saturday and Sunday from 2-6pm. We have tea/coffee and homemade cakes on offer, as well as a plant sale. So, even if you're not interested in our sale of horsey stuff, please do pop in to say hello. You can also meet our residents😍.
All funds raised will help pay our bills. Hope to see you there🥰.

Here is the list of most of the items on offer, all at very good prices!:
Western saddle in super condition, with 2 saddle blankets, stand and waterproof cover, plus girth converters.
Weatherbeeta show sheet 95cm Brand new with tags
Weatherbeeta show sheet 85cm Brand new
Rambo 6' green stable rug, very good condition
Rhinegold turnout thick with neck 125cm good condition
Stable rug lightweight 85cm good condition, blue check
Style stable rug good condition 136cm
Stable rug 75cm green and black JIR good condition
Stable rug 85cm green and black JIR fair condition.
First fleece 175cm
8Ocm fleece
Terry towelling rug 190cm
Burgundy summer sheet good condition 175cm
Summer sheet
New bergandy saxon medium turnout rug 4'
Island horseware fly rug with neck 5'
Brand new 5'6 masta fly rug with neck (marked from storage)
Weatherbeeta wick dry cooler 5'6
Amigo rain sheet good condition red 110cm
Holscher sport German travelling rug/ lightweight stable 135cm
Masta 5'3 with neck, medium weight, black
Ruggles 3' turnout stars rug good condition
Brand new Requisit 4'3 turnout medium rug
Fleece lined exercise rug
Assorted turn out neck covers in good to fair condition

Assortment of good condition fleece stable bandages 4 blue 4 red 4 green 2 black 2 white
Neoprene saddle riser
Double bridle
Hand bridle, Shetland size
Real lambswool saddle riser
Cob sized lunging surcingle
Good condition pony brushing boots
Good condition long reins
Shetland size leather headpiece
Various snaffles
2 eggbut snaffles
D ring snaffle With copper rounds
Rubber snaffle
Pair stirrup leathers and stirrups
Cob size leather bridle
Large grazing muzzle
Elasticated surcingle
Leather riding boots

Assorted very good condition and new flymasks
A lot of secondhand fly masks
Set of 4 Rhinegold traveling boots cob size black.
Brand new padded red headcollar with matching leadrope
Assorted brand new pony-size field and normal headcollars
Brand new bandage pads
Assorted nice quality saddlecloths
English equine training books

03/10/2025

For centuries, the majority of equine studies and medical research have prioritised horses, leaving donkeys largely in the shadows.

This imbalance has resulted in a knowledge gap that forces veterinarians and caretakers to rely heavily on data and treatment protocols designed for horses, with limited validation for donkeys.

The scope of available studies on donkeys is also restricted by frequent use of small sample sizes, single populations, or research limited to particular regions, which means insights may not apply broadly to all donkey populations or management systems.

Comprehensive epidemiological data connecting management practices, nutrition, welfare, and disease in donkeys is also rare; so, there is little context-specific guidance for practitioners.

A recently published paper in the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science found that donkeys have distinct behavioural, anatomical, and physiological characteristics compared to horses, which critically affect their response to drug treatments.

Unlike horses, donkeys are highly efficient at conserving water and metabolising drugs, therefore veterinarians need to take special care when estimating dosages and liveweights.

For example, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics may clear from a donkey’s system much quicker, so a standard horse dose could be ineffective, leaving pain or disease undertreated.

Donkeys also show far subtler signs of pain or discomfort. This makes pain scale assessment much harder for veterinarians and owners.
Failure to recognise species-specific symptoms of pain can lead to late or missed welfare and medical diagnoses, especially in the case of chronic disease or post-operative pain.

Several validated scales, have been developed to help address the ongoing challenge of effective pain management in donkeys, however not all handlers are trained to use these assessment tools, and more education and field validation are needed before they can be implemented universally.

📑 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105700.

28/09/2025

Come and join us at the Sanctuary next weekend for a garage sale of horsey items. From rugs to riding boots, we have a wide range of items at very good prices, both new and second-hand, all in good, clean condition. All in aid of the Sanctuary, to raise much-needed funds.

Please come and support us. Even if you're not buying, you can come and meet our residents. Refreshments available, including homemade cakes!

Following is a list of many of the items available. Please message for more information:

Western saddle in super condition, with 2 saddle blankets, stand and waterproof cover, plus girth converters.
Weatherbeeta show sheet 95cm Brand new with tags
Weatherbeeta show sheet 85cm Brand new
Rambo 6' green stable rug, very good condition
Rhinegold turnout thick with neck 125cm good condition
Stable rug lightweight 85cm good condition, blue check
Style stable rug good condition 136cm
Stable rug 75cm green and black JIR good condition
Stable rug 85cm green and black JIR fair condition.
First fleece 175cm
8Ocm fleece
Terry towelling rug 190cm
Burgundy summer sheet good condition 175cm
Summer sheet
New bergandy saxon medium turnout rug 4'
Island horseware fly rug with neck 5'
Brand new 5'6 masta fly rug with neck (marked from storage)
Weatherbeeta wick dry cooler 5'6
Amigo rain sheet good condition red 110cm
Holscher sport German travelling rug/ lightweight stable 135cm
Masta 5'3 with neck, medium weight, black
Ruggles 3' turnout stars rug good condition
Brand new Requisit 4'3 turnout medium rug
Fleece lined exercise rug
Assorted turn out neck covers in good to fair condition

Assortment of good condition fleece stable bandages 4 blue 4 red 4 green 2 black 2 white
Neoprene saddle riser
Double bridle
Hand bridle, Shetland size
Real lambswool saddle riser
Cob sized lunging surcingle
Good condition pony brushing boots
Good condition long reins
Shetland size leather headpiece
Various snaffles
2 eggbut snaffles
D ring snaffle With copper rounds
Rubber snaffle
Pair stirrup leathers and stirrups
Cob size leather bridle
Large grazing muzzle
Elasticated surcingle
Leather riding boots

Assorted very good condition and new flymasks
A lot of secondhand fly masks
Set of 4 Rhinegold traveling boots cob size black.
Brand new padded red headcollar with matching leadrope
Assorted brand new pony-size field and normal headcollars
Brand new bandage pads
Assorted nice quality saddlecloths
English equine training books
:

28/09/2025

🐎Just €1 a month can make a HUGE difference to us! We really can't overstate what a massive help Teaming is to us, and we've now raised over €6000 since we joined Teaming in 2018, all from people donating just ONE EURO a month!

We use this money as our "emergency" fund, for when the bank account is extremely low and we need some help. It's truly proved to be invaluable to us.
So, if you haven't yet joined our Teaming group, please do think about signing up.

Teaming is a trusted website for charities, there is no commission taken, so no bank charges - even from a UK account. It really is just €1 a month 😊. And very easy to set up.
Please join our Teaming group by following the link - you will be making a massive difference to us:
https://www.teaming.net/thepegasussanctuary?lang=en_GB

Saviez-vous que vous pouvez faire une grande différence pour le Sanctuaire en devenant l'un de nos Teamers et en donnant seulement 1 € par mois ?
Teaming est un site Web de confiance pour les organisations caritatives, aucune commission n'est prélevée, donc aucun frais bancaire. C'est vraiment juste 1 € par mois 😊.
Depuis que nous avons créé le groupe en 2018, nous avons collecté plus de 5 000 € - le tout grâce à des dons de seulement 1 € par mois !!
Veuillez rejoindre notre groupe Teaming en suivant le lien - vous ferez une grande différence :
https://www.teaming.net/thepegasussanctuary?lang=fr_FR

The Pegasus Sanctuary. The Pegasus Sanctuary is home to 20 horses, ponies and donkeys, all saved from the abattoir. Most of our residents are elderly and will remain with us for the rest of their lives. We rely entirely on donations. Your compassion and generosity will make a desperately needed diff...

27/09/2025

Golden Oldies Subelli, Gypsy and Everard making sure that not one morsel of special feed is missed!

Your generous donations keep them supplied.

https://pegasus-sanctuary.com/donate-2

For 1€ a month:

https://www.teaming.net/thepegasussanctuary?lang=en_GB

https://www.teaming.net/thepegasussanctuary?lang=fr_FR

26/09/2025

We have some extremely sad news to share with you. Today, our beautiful girl, Irlandaise, was put to sleep. She had deteriorated these past couple of weeks and had seen both the vet and the osteopath. The exact cause of her malaise remains unknown, although we believe the root of it was severe arthritis. Today, despite being on strong pain killers, she was in too much pain and we made the heartbreaking decision.

Irlandaise was 29 years old and was rescued from the abattoir quite a few years ago. She has remained with us ever since. She always had a bit of attitude, but she mellowed considerably in her older years and always enjoyed a good scratch and some carrots. She is going to be sorely missed.

Sadly, even at times like this we would be extremely grateful for your help. We have yet to receive the vet bills for her, but we also need to pay for her to be taken away. It's an awful thing to talk about, but if you can spare a few euros to help us, we would be extremely grateful. (Scroll to bottom for details.)

These lovely photos of her were taken just a couple of days ago. RIP our beautiful Irlandaise. You will never be forgotten.

Nous avons une très triste nouvelle à vous annoncer. Aujourd'hui, notre belle Irlandaise a été euthanasiée. Son état s'était détérioré ces deux dernières semaines. Elle a vu le vétérinaire et l'ostéopathe, mais la cause exacte de son malaise reste inconnue, même si nous pensons qu'une arthrite sévère en est la cause. Aujourd'hui, malgré un traitement antidouleur puissant, elle souffrait trop et nous avons pris la décision déchirante.

Irlandaise a été sauvée de l'abattoir il y a quelques années et est restée avec nous depuis. Elle avait toujours un caractère bien trempé, mais elle s'est beaucoup adoucie avec l'âge et appréciait toujours une bonne caresse et des carottes. Elle va nous manquer terriblement.

Malheureusement, même dans des moments comme celui-ci, nous vous serions extrêmement reconnaissants de votre aide. Nous n'avons pas encore reçu les factures vétérinaires, et nous devons également financer son enlèvement. C'est une chose horrible à raconter, mais si vous pouviez nous donner quelques euros pour nous aider, nous vous en serions extrêmement reconnaissants. Si vous souhaitez faire un don, vous pouvez le faire via lien PayPal, www.paypal.me/ThePegasusSanctuary ou [email protected]. Vous pouvez également envoyer un chèque ou un virement. Veuillez vous renseigner pour plus de détails.

Ces photos ont été prises il y a quelques jours. Repose en paix, notre belle Irlandaise. Nous ne t'oublierons jamais.

If you would like to donate, you can do so via this paypal link www.paypal.me/ThePegasusSanctuary or to [email protected]. You can also send a cheque or virement. Please ask for the details.

25/09/2025

Thanks to the kind donation made to Graziella's appeal, here she is enjoying her special munchies.