Bluemont Equine Sanctuary

09/19/2025

Rest in love beautiful Birdie 🕊️🌈💜

Today Birdie crossed over the rainbow bridge and left the tether of her painful physical body behind. She went gently surrounded by a group of people who both love and respect her.

We rescued Birdie from a disgusting auction in October of 2024. Silvia, a friend to our sanctuary sent me a video of Birdie in a pen struggling to stand. We immediately pulled her to safety and from that day on she had a full belly, warm stall, medical care and a herd of her own. Birdie was in her 20s and genuinely liked people. I think in her early years she was loved but like so many minis was sold on into the wrong hands. Had she received even the most basic care in the last 10 years she would still be here with us today.

Birdie had severe mechanical laminitis due to a lack of farrier care. This led to advanced osteopenia in 3 of her 4 feet. Even with intense pain management, corrective trimming and boots she found it difficult to walk. As a sanctuary we aren’t here to prolong life no matter what, we’re here to prevent suffering. We could’ve tried to push Birdie longer… and she would’ve continued until she couldn’t anymore. But that’s unethical to ask of her. To endure intense pain with no end in sight.

Birdie was the most gentle and loving soul and was beloved by every horse here. She was in Eva and Lily’s herd but she free grazed with Moondog during the day. We think she had a little crush on him 🥺. He walked slow for her and she would hobble along behind him as they explored the sanctuary together. Moondog saw her after she passed and understood right away. He immediately left to find Peanut who’s one of his constant companions.

We’ll miss Birdie’s big chocolate brown eyes and her sweet nicker in the morning to call Moondog over. We know she’s in a better place now with the rest of the Bluemont angels.

If you would like to help with Birdies end of life care we have attached a fundraiser. Thank you for loving her too.

Until we see you again beautiful Birdie. ❤️
Please give everyone up there a kiss from us.

09/13/2025

Life saving interventions like these are made possible by our incredible community. The fact is Chip would’ve needed euthanasia before his first Birthday without surgery to correct his severe form of skeletal atavism.

Chip has a complete ulna in both front knees. This condition cannot be corrected with special shoes or farrier services. The complete ulna contributed to his fractures and joint impingement. It’s crucial that before any corrective work begins that radiographs are taken by an orthopedic to be absolutely certain what is truly needed.

If you’re confused about what a complete ulna is here’s the definition:
A “complete” ulna in a horse is a trait associated with skeletal atavism, a heritable defect in Shetland ponies and American Miniature Horses where the ulna (next to the radius) and the fibula (next to the tibia) grow to their full evolutionary length, failing to fuse as in modern horses. This results in disproportionate and deformed limbs, a short, rectangular body, and severe movement impairments, with affected foals often requiring euthanasia. The condition is considered a form of atavism, the reappearance of a trait from distant ancestors, and is linked to mutations in the ACAN gene that cause chondrodysplastic dwarfism.

Now Chip has the chance to live a beautiful life in sanctuary with his Mama Vida. He will always require specialized care in the way of orthopedic monitoring, Adequan, corrective farrier care, intermittent pain management, diet and GI supplementation. Every dwarf in our care is on a formula with prebiotics, probiotics, licorice and psyllium. As we expand our dwarf program we’re creating a care manual of best practices for this herd. Every boy we geld and mare we keep safe from breeding helps hundreds if not thousands of horses avoid the pain and suffering of dwarfism. We’re deeply passionate about being a part of the solution for these beautiful souls. While so many people “want” a dwarf, most aren’t equipped to properly care for them.

Thank you for helping us help them. Your support is vital to the work we do and we’re so grateful to have you in our corner.

Please consider a donation for Chip if you can. 🙏🏻❤️

09/12/2025

I often think about what would’ve happened to Chip and Vida had we not been looking for them. Two friends of the sanctuary, Silvia and Denise watched the auction pages closely. Both alerted me within minutes of each other when Vida’s post went up at one auction and then a few hours later Chip’s went up at another. Chip had a few dwarf rescues looking at him but no one knew about Vida. We also find that the bond that mothers and their foals share is often dismissed if the baby can survive without Mom. Be sure to watch the last video for Vida’s squeals of joy when she realized she’d been reunited with her boy. She’s such a loving Mom, I can’t imagine what she went through when her other foals were taken.

Chip and Vida are our beloved Vera’s family. At just 3 years old Vera passed from a severe salmonella infection shortly after we rescued her. She fought like hell in the hospital. Once we became aware that her mother and brother were also sold off we vowed to find them and keep them safe. Not just for Vera but also for Vida and Chip.

I can tell that Vida has never known real kindness. Or if she has it was ages ago. She’s been used for breeding because she’s small and carries the dwarfism gene. She will either produce a dwarf or a micro mini that can be used in “therapy” programs or petting zoos. She’s very lucky to have delivered both Vera and Chip without losing her own life. She’s so small and well into her 20s. We don’t support breeding for all the reasons but it’s especially unethical to breed horses like Vida.

We knew Chip would need surgery on his front legs but we didn’t know how severe his situation was. After their rescue they went to the hospital for an immediate work up. We were shocked to find out that the leverage force from Chip’s severe front limb deviations caused him to fracture both knees.

Chip underwent a rather difficult surgery today but he’s doing well. His surgery turned out to be more complicated than they initially thought.

Their intake fundraiser covered their rescue expenses and first hospital stay. Please consider a donation towards Chip’s surgery. 🙏🏻

We’re so grateful to be able to help Vida and Chip with your support. ❤️

09/07/2025

So many of you have asked when we’re going to proceed with removing Lily’s eyes.

I hate the word unpack, but I’d like to unpack this today. We rescued Lily from a life of tragedy and isolation after she was “saved” from slaughter. Surely the word slaughter will lower us in the algorithm but I decided a long time ago that I will stay authentic on this page. Not bending to the rules that are shifting SM to a place of entertainment, influencers and ads.

I’d like to talk a bit about how Lily ended up in not 1 but 2 horrible places after being “saved”. Horses are considered livestock by the majority. The definition: “Livestock are domesticated animals that are raised to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool”

We don’t ever use the word livestock because the word’s origins reflect a view of animals as “stock that is alive,” reinforcing a profit-first mindset rather than acknowledging the animals as living beings with sentience and agency. Words matter.

Because Lily is blind and has tendon laxity from repeat pregnancies she has no “value”. She cannot be ridden, even though in an attempt to get blood from the stone she was offered up online as a kids lead line pony. You know like the ponies being dragged around to Birthday parties… Until we stop treating horses as commodities and making them sing for their supper the slaughter industry will persist. Until “rescues” stop paying MILLIONS into this very industry and parking horses wherever they can true sanctuaries will always have to clean up the mess. Real change begins with a forced shift in the culture around horses, demanding protective legislature and organizations refusing to pay slaughter buyers for horses.

Now onto Lily’s eyesight. Our vet and ophthalmology cannot establish with absolute certainty that she is completely blind. We believe she can still see shadows. We have stabilized her eyes with anti-inflammatories, eye drops and a UV mask. She will eventually need a double enucleation, but that’s a decision we take very seriously and won’t rush.

For the first time in Lily’s life she is truly happy, safe and loved unconditionally.

09/02/2025

This is so incredibly important.

Talking to a horse owner about euthanasia is like trying to catch a fish with your bare hands. Nature is against you. They avoid the consideration of suffering, the discussion of quality of life, the logistics of what that decision would look like.

We don't want to even think of the end of life, especially in this culture. We are not well prepared to consider life and death. Some of us have already had to face death in one way or another - and it is devastating to our soul.
For many of us, the death of our animal signifies something like a failure....somehow it means that we stopped trying and we gave up.

And *how* could you ask someone to give up on their beloved companion?

However understandable that perspective is (and as an animal owner I feel this way too!), I would argue this is not the best way to look at it for our horses sake.

Horses do not die naturally. Out of all the horses my clients have lost (usually 10-12/year from my schedule) over the past 10 years, only two passed without being euthanized.

If you were to ask how many of them needlessly suffered for weeks, months, years before finally being put to rest? Well.... that is a hard question to answer depending on who you ask, but more than one.

Horses are fragile in some of their systems. Their digestive system can rebel. They must be weight bearing to survive so something like a broken leg that could be healed in other species can be catastrophic for them. They are prey animals, something that even anxious fearful humans have a hard time comprehending as we are predators at the tippy top of the food chain. They are biologically engineered for survival which means they will do their best to hide their pain. In this sense, they are not fragile at all. They will persist despite great cost.

How can we best serve our horse as they age?
What does aging with dignity look like for them?
How would we like their death to be?
What will their death look and feel like?
How can we miss them and honor them?

These are the questions that we can ask ourselves.

Hold space for death in your life. It will not kill you. We see the ending, the transition of something all our lives. The seasons change, trees fall, relationships wane, our feelings, ideas, and needs ebb and flow.

Do you think your horse is afraid to die?
Or is it us who are afraid to "play God," to have that conversation with a friend or vet, to face the inevitable end that we all will have one day?
Is it you who is not ready?

Choosing to help your horse in the end, because they will be truly dependent on you by then, is an honor. It is an offering of respect, an acknowledgement of your role as their friend and guardian and advocate in both life and death.

✨️
To my clients who have been brave enough to face death, I'm here with you.
✨️

I have 15 and 14 year old kitties and an 11 year old dog who is graying around her muzzle and face. I love them deeply and it feels like a lightning strike to my gut to imagine life without them here next to me.

I am not writing this from an academic perspective. The facts usually don't matter anyway in these times until we can get ahold of our own feelings. Or until we are forced to deal in numbers, dollars, and days.

My hope is that as a collective who loves animals, we can pursue understanding life and death so that we're ready for when we are called upon to make tough decisions for the animals in our lives.

❤️‍🩹 - Corrie

Edited to add: I didn't not anticipate this post having such a big reach! Clearly this is a topic that we all need to talk about. I hope being a part of this conversation has relieved some of your guilt or stress over losing animals in the past or preparing for the future. See the comments for part 2 and 3.

08/28/2025

Sam and Skipper are the duo we never thought would happen. We were actually making plans to separate them into different herds because Sam was constantly going after Skipper. But let me take you on a little journey.

For those of you who’ve been following us for a long time you watched Sam’s transformation. When a horse first arrives you never really know where they’ll fall in a herd hierarchy. It takes time for them to adjust to a new place and most have been neglected and need to gain both their mental and physical strength. Sam falls somewhere in the middle, which is the hardest horse to place into an existing herd. They get pushed around by more dominant horses and subsequently they will terrorize horses who are lower in the herd hierarchy.

Skipper is a natural born leader, strong and sensible with a kind heart. He only executes his power when it’s warranted. “Stay off my food” “Get out of space” “Don’t you dare try that with me”. He embodies the term “do no harm but take no crap”. This disposition is easier to place into a herd… except when there’s already a clear leader.

Sam had just lost his companion when Skipper arrived and we really wanted Skipper on a grass pasture. Medically he was cleared for grass forage and the large field would strengthen his hind end. He’s arthritic and needs daily pain management and movement.

We decided to try these two together and Sam was insufferable. Running Skipper down any chance he could. Usually the loudest horse isn’t really in charge so I had hopes that once Skipper found his footing he would tell Sam off. Well it finally happened! Sam came over to steal Skippers food one day and before I could intervene Skipper let him have it. And that was that, Skipper gently leads this senior bachelor duo and they live in perfect harmony. Their friendship is deepening and they both look so happy. The eyes never lie.

It means the world to us to see these two living the good life in true Sanctuary.

If you would like to sponsor either of these two beautiful boys send us a DM. ❤️

08/26/2025

Ok guys we’re a little late getting this up but we’ve been making preparations all summer!

It’s time for our annual Gala and we’re so excited to celebrate with all of you. This isn’t your run of the mill stuffy gala with Spanx heels and a tux rental. Because… why would anyone want to do that 🫠

Think western chic! Yellowstone but make it humane and East Coast! People had so much fun getting dressed for last year’s Gala that we decided to repeat the theme and venue.

You will enjoy Gourmet Vegan Food, DJ, Open Bar, Photo Booth, incredible Raffle Baskets and Silent Auction items plus lots of fun!

This is our biggest fundraising event of the year and last year’s gala enabled us to build a beautiful run in shelter for our mini herd that’s adjacent to the barn. 🥰

How you can help! Share this post, Sponsor the event, donate a basket or basket items, reach out to potential sponsors and businesses to gift items for auction. We’re known for our beautiful baskets and Catherine and I will be spending countless nights meticulously arranging raffle items again! 🙌🏻

This year we would love for our non-local supporters to sponsor a basket so if you’re interested please reach out! We can pick a theme and select a dollar amount.

Details Below! 👇🏼

When: Friday October 24th, 2025
Where: The Barn on South Holland in beautiful Holmdel NJ
Time: 7:30pm to 11pm
Attire: Western Chic

We hope you can make it! 🐴👖🤠💎

To purchase tickets follow the link in the comments or head on over to our website Bluemontsanctuary.org!

We would like to thank the sponsors that have already signed up!

Every Excuse for a Party has been with us since day one and donates all of the balloons and Photo Booth backdrop. She’s an amazing human and incredible Mom.

MMS Medical Management Services. This is their 3rd year sponsoring! Ty ❤️

World Volkswagen of Neptune. This is their first year sponsoring!

Farm and Fir! They do all of our promotional materials pro bono for the Gala! We love Tara and Ashley.

Party Fair Oakhurst NJ. Stephanie is a beloved volunteer and helps us plan the entire gala. Her store provides all of the cutlery, cups, napkins, place holders, party goods and basket goods!

Abbey Feiler-Kober and Tom Kober. This is their 3rd year sponsoring! Ty ❤️

08/25/2025

I know it’s just an average picture but considering all Cinder’s been through I wanted to share it with all of you. These days we have to jump through hoops to make gorgeous and interesting posts with less caption and subsequently less story telling. But there’s such beauty in simplicity.

For a year now when Jovie would come into her stall at night Cinder would come over to the herd we call “the geese”. This herd of bachelors consists of Goose, Maverick, Hamlet and Noble. Hamlet immediately fell for Cinder and over time Hamlet grew on Cinder.

If Cinder doesn’t arrive right on time at dusk Hamlet begins calling. As if to say hurry up food ladies you’re taking too long and I’m ready for my date night. When she was at the hospital with Jovie he called for Cinder the entire time. Now that Cinder has returned we’ve decided to keep her with Hamlets herd and see how it goes. This herd is a bit rowdy so we may have some switches coming based on bonded pairs. Oftentimes as we approach Spring and Fall we move herds around and try different groupings if we don’t think a herd is just right.

A herd should be peaceful and loving. This doesn’t mean that there isn’t the occasional scuffle, just like with our own friends and family in our human lives. But by and large they should be living in harmony. We try to match personalities and physical capabilities along with dry paddock or grass pasture needs. It’s very nuanced and difficult to get right and we’re always tweaking things or mulling over potential matches. Who knew I would be the CEO, Co-Founder and match maker of a Non-Profit.

I know so many of you have held Cinder in your thoughts and prayers and I wanted to show you that she has someone she can lean on in her grief. Her boyfriend. 😍

I want to say thank you again for the outpouring of support over the past few days. It’s helped us through some very dark moments. ❤️

05/07/2025

So after Cora last year we said we would put bottle babies on pause. She was like having another toddler in the house and I’m already overstimulation central over here with 2 toddlers. On top of that our med pass is easily 4-5 hours a day as we have so many aged and special needs equines.

BUT I came out of an appointment to missed calls and an urgent text message from a trusted colleague and friend. She was at a farm helping another animal and saw this baby all alone in a bucket baking in the sun. She asked if we could help and even though I swore no bottle babies this year HERE WE ARE. We simply couldn’t let this sweet boy stay at this farm for another minute. He was walking around on his own with loose dogs who are natural predators to goats.

Supposedly Mom delivered 12 hours before and had no milk so she pushed the baby off. We still pressed the farmer to release Mom but he wouldn’t. She must be a unique color.

We’re waiting on a name until the right one sticks! 💙