RH Farm Rescue and Stables

11/03/2024

This adorable 17hh love bug is seeking a new home simply because he has finer aids than our current lesson student level. Some dressage training, will go in a frame. 9 years old, JC name: Prendimi Lovely big stride comfy hunter type movement, this guy has more whoa than go and will trail ride all day long. Super chill temperament! Mid fours starting with a four. Utd on everything incl chiro.
Burlington NC

11/01/2024

Welcome to our newest horse - Taz! He is a little guy under 14hh, but with a heart of gold. Which is amazing considering his face shows the scars of his past.
Video is up on our channel with all the details and his first arena ride.

10/22/2024

Ziggy is ADOPTED! 🥳 He has been attached to Raven since arriving here a year ago (it's a one-way love) and Raven's adopter has bought her own farm now and Ziggy is pefect to keep Raven company and give rides to neices and nephews!

He has been overlooked because of his age but he is in excellent health with no chronic issues and is very safe for kiddos - we are SO thrilled he will have an amazing forever home for the rest of his days.

10/19/2024

We ❤️ mystery boxes! Thank you Dancing Cloud Farm Horse Rescue in Georgia for passing on these items to us! Some of these items, plus other extra halters and blankets for horse who have been adopted, will be on their way to WNC to help horses in need up there now. When we give, the blessings flow.

10/18/2024

These videos are 8 months apart, it's amazing to see how much weight and muscle PJ has put on. In the first clip he is just a few months post-track (and covered in rainrot), his neck is so upright and he's rushy and he's not really reaching with his legs. The second clip shows his neck is down he's reaching a lot more - and yes he is heavy on the forehand which often happens when you're teaching horses how to slow down and move differently. He has put on topline and had chiropractic work and is learning how to move with his new body. With time he can progress to pushing more from his hind end.
We have been riding PJ exclusively in a sidepull for about 2 months and just put a bit in for the video so he is hanging on the mouth a little because of that as well.
Real training takes time!

10/15/2024

For Consideration: PJ is 5 y/o 16hh larger bodied OTTB who lightly raced and wasn't very fast so retired clean and sound. He was purchased to be in the lesson program and did a few lessons but isn't quite finished enough for our mostly Beginner program. He thrives best in more consistent work (3x or more per week) and we just don't have that for him.
Sweet and a good mix of whoa and go. We mostly ride him bitless if that gives you an idea.
Has done some xrails willingly, limited trail time. UTD on everything, stands tied and loads well. Front shoes.
🥕 amount: four, five zero zero
Will have videos soon, Burlington NC
3️⃣3️⃣six2️⃣7️⃣0️⃣nine7️⃣2️⃣7️⃣

10/08/2024

We caught Whinny rolling! Since her now 4 months in our care we have not once seen her roll or lay down EVER so this was super cool to see. She is SO much stronger now, we see her play running with Xena on occasion and it's just beautiful to watch her move. You can see the age in her stiffness but otherwise she's a sprightly lady!
(This pen in attached to their 1 acre field, they can come and go at will they just all choose to hang out in it at the same time)

10/03/2024

WHOOP! NEW video up on YT today at 5pm Est - it's been a while since we uploaded and you're going to want to watch this one! This picture pretty much explains it all 😆

09/28/2024

09/27/2024

A beautiful sunset after the storm today - thankful we were able to keep power and internet through this one. Property cleanup tomorrow from all the flooding!

09/25/2024

A Big BIG Thank You to those who have donated via our Chewy wishlist recently! These gifts don't come with names and notes like our Amazon wish list but we want everyone to know how grateful we are. Whinny's feed for the month of August was fully funded with donations (that's 15 bags just for her!)

Chewy is offering a $30 reward when you spend $100 right now so you can shop for the horses AND yourself! Code: FALL24

CHEWY WISHLIST: https://www.chewy.com/g/rh-farm-rescue_b127931566

09/24/2024

Zeus is our most regal looking horse when he wants to be, but 99% of the time he looks like this.😆

09/22/2024

Personal post - Four years ago, I opened my riding program wth the goal of making riding accessible, positive and fun. I wanted to show the value of rescue horses, aged horses, and horses with limitations. I used horses that were dead to the leg and tolerated heavy hands while kids and adults alike developed their skill. Clients were happy and business was booming...but I was blind to what I was doing to the horses.

Several developed serious back soreness from overweight riders who were learning body and balance control. And yes we stayed within the 20% rule (which is actually grossly outdated and doesn't account for muscle and fitness of the horse. Modern recommendations are 10-15% maximum).

I leased out horses so riders could learn and work through issues on their own, and I got back a cinchy horse who has never gotten over the mental anxiety even though she is not in physical pain (lots of vet bills later).

I had people come try horses to buy that kicked them so hard they had muscle bruising, yanked in the mouth to the point of rearing, and one was even overworked in the heat to the point of colic and having to be put down.
The horses did their job, but at the cost of their own health!

Currently, I don't teach riders over 160 lbs because I don't have horses with the size or muscle to support additional weight. I no longer teach riders who ride only once or twice a month because they don't take physical fitness seriously enough to improve.
I no longer teach timid riders because they end up causing issues through their nervousness that leads to injury (tight reins, tight legs and lack of emotional regulation).
ESPECIALLY because we are rescue-based, I cannot in good conscience subject these horses to even minor forms of abuse or pain. I can't watch another kid kick to go and then pull because they weren't ready. Our horses don't deserve to hate their job or be punished for doing what they thought was asked of them.

And those horses that were dead to the leg and dull in the mouth? They didn't teach students to be compassionate, cooperative riders who want to work with a horse and see things from their perspective. I unintentionally created students who preferred to tell the horse what to do with no regard for how they felt. I taught them to just apply more pressure to achieve results, and when they moved up to a more advanced horse, they didn't understand how to soften and lighten their cues.

Recently, I have refocused the program to only teach dedicated riders, and teach horsemanship - not just how to ride. We are teaching students to take fitness seriously, own their mistakes and consider the horse first. How to understand their horse, and put their own desires and goals aside to meet the horse wherever they're at that day. How to use groundwork to refocus a distracted horse. I want to create better horsepeople, not just better riders.

It makes me sad to see so many ads looking for not just safe, but dead broke horses that don't have a thought in their brain, who are so dull and have lost any kind of personality. Who tolerate pain from unsteady hands holding the reins.
People want these horses because they don't actually want to learn to ride. They don't want to be educated on saddle fit, seat cues and developing their horses fitness through ground work, pole work and other exercises. They want a horse so shut down that they don't need to learn how to communicate, or form a leader-partnership.
We no longer have, use, or create those horses here. While it means we can't cater to as many clients, I know it's in our horses' best interest.

If you've read this far - thanks for listening 🙂 Let me know if you agree/disagree in the comments! -Grace
Pictured: Freya, Peaches and Freckles some of our first lesson horses.

09/19/2024

In pursuit of ever quieter communication
Feat. 🐴 Zeus who is listening to seat and voice cues.

09/13/2024

The number of horses we have had to say "No" to so far this year when asked to help. Where are they now? We don't know and it weighs on us.
We only care for and accept horses we have the donations and financial stability to care for, and this year millions, yes MILLIONS of dollars have been donated to rescue groups who focus on mass-bailing "shipping to sl@ughter" horses for 10x the price the k!ll buyer got them for. So many smaller rescues like us have been forced to close because this is where donors are giving.

WAKE UP! K!ll buyers have quotas they need to fill or they lose their contract. "Saving" a horse from a k!ll pen, or funding a buyout does NOT reduce the number of horses shipped! ANY group who says you can save a horse "shipping tomorrow" is lying to you. Paperwork for export takes days to file, and if a horse is pulled it takes days more delay which costs money.
Skinny horses don't make money at the plant, which pays by pound. Horses that can't walk or are visibly sick are not even allowed to be shipped! There is so much misrepresentation on these issues we hardly scratch the surface.

Us and other rescue groups have tried educating but people don't want to listen. We are too small a voice, shouting into the void where no one can hear.

PLEASE SHARE and help spread the truth of these scams, so that those who can donate will choose an organization that does not line the pockets of these traders and dealers.

We are SO grateful to each and every supporter who has stepped up to help us save horses like Ziggy, Willow and Whinny, and others who have now found homes. We, the smaller rescues, can only help if the truth is made known!

09/09/2024

Why are there less videos and updates recently?
This is what we've been doing! We need 1000-1200 bales to get us through the winter with our current herd and with our horse trailer only holding 85-90 bales depending on size, it takes quite a few trips!
All our hay farmers tend to bale at the same time so we are at their mercy and on their timetable when it comes to availability.

If you're wondering "Why don't they just get it delivered?" It costs significantly more for that and we want to put EVERY penny towards the horses if we can. Our labor saves hundreds of dollars which means more grain and hay can be purchased!

As to the type of hay -
We could do a whole video on why we feed squares vs. Round bales right now but the short of it is - we have a tiny tractor and mostly vertical storage. Squares can be lifted on a hay elevator or by hand and stacked like steps, making it possible to store our hay over 20ft high!

Thank you, our loyal supporters - we promise to be back soon! And if you can donate to help with the cost just visit rh-farm.com/donations ❤️

09/04/2024

ADOPTABLE: "Trigs"
A 13.3hh gelding, half-gaited (he gaits and trots) sweetheart with a motor but a good stop. He can in-hand leadline walk/trot nice and calm but off the line he is green broke. No buck/rear but needs to work on steering and speed control (stop is easy but "slower" needs work)
3️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ with Adoption Application and Contract.
Details and Video at rh-farm.com/trigs

08/26/2024

Ziggy's story is one that began with so much uncertainty. Emaciated and missing nearly all his teeth, with winter coming we were very guarded as to his ability to pull through.
We are certain that if he hadn't received care he would not have survived in the cold temperatures.

He did have a desire to eat and with small meals frequently so as not to overwhelm his starved and shrunken stomach, he slowly became stronger. At first, he was so hungry that he would eat his own p**p (known as coprophagia) to recycle calories.
As his stomach was regularly filled with consistent, reliable meals he stopped that behavior and began to focus on munching hay. Due to the lack of teeth he couldn't eat much of it, but he sure did try.
We aggressively blanketed him even though he had a thick starvation coat to conserve as many calories as possible, and each week when we took the blanket off it was just a little progress.

Slowly he built back up the fat in his chest, over his ribs and rump. The topline is always last, and takes the longest to fill in and become round rather than dipped.
At 6 months post-rescue he had gained over 260lbs and was strong enough to carry a rider. An incredible transformation witnessed by many who came by the farm "Is that Ziggy?!" "He doesn't even look like the same horse!".

Our success with Ziggy emboldened us with hope to attempt helping a recent surrender via Animal Control who you know as Whinny. We want to always have space to say "Yes" to these cases that seem impossible. Cases that other rescues would have let go because they choose to rehab younger horses instead of the older ones who can't sustain themselves without help from us. We can only do that if we can find a loving home for these senior gems. Every horse that is rehomed opens up a space for us to help another horse, instead of us having to turn them away.

Ziggy has a permanent place in our sanctuary program, but we would love for him to have a family - he is well behaved and would be a great companion for a lonely horse.
You can find all the details on adoption at our website.