Kentucky Humane Society Equine CARE

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Kentucky Humane Society Equine CARE

Kentucky Humane Society Equine C.A.R.E.
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(Connect, Assist, Rescue, Educate) is a program of the Kentucky Humane Society that is dedicated to helping Kentucky's horses in crisis and horses in transition, preparing them for new careers and homes.

11/15/2024

Good boys Rigel and Grit were very well behaved on farrier day this week. Grit even had a little nap before his hoof trim. These boys were born at KHS but their moms are from the same herd site where they lived as free roaming horses when these kids were conceived. Fun fact: Rigel’s mom, Sky, is actually the dam of Grit’s mom Moxie, so even though they are both weanlings, Rigel is Grit’s uncle!

If you are looking for two fine young gentleman to raise together and have a nice pair of trail horses or hobby horses several years from now, these boys would LOVE to be adopted together. They are also available for adoption separately too. Their adoption fees are $800 each and they should grow to be sturdy, hardy and likely low maintenence guys. They are likely of American Saddlebred, Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse and maybe some Rocky Mountain heritage.

Which one would you adopt?

📍 Simpsonville, KY

11/14/2024

This is a great graphic about fastener safety around the barn. Snaps they wear should be positioned so they can’t attach themselves to fencing, another horse’s tail, etc. However, a temporary fastener like the snap on a lead shank shouldn’t be placed so the protruding piece digs into their cheek when snapped, face that one out away from the skin and only use that while the horse is in-hand.

Horses are so crafty in that way, if there’s a way to get in trouble, it sometimes seems like they are on a mission to find it! 😅 Protect your equine friends with safe habits around the barn.

11/13/2024

Ruby Rocky is a great little mare looking for a home!
- grade Rocky Mountain mare
- 14.1 hands tall
- ~20yrs old
- ready to stroll around your farm or give in-hand pony rides to the grandkids 😍
Find more details, more horses, or our adoption application on our site!

Thank you to friend Ariella for letting us snap a video while she took Ruby for a spin!

11/12/2024

“I want that pony, when can I adopt him?”
Well…

Leo has testicles, and he’d like to be sure everyone who comes anywhere near the Quarantine barn knows about it. He’d scream it from the rooftops, but best he can do is climbing on the stall ledges. That’s certainly an interesting choice there bud. He’s a flexible guy, that’s for sure! He doesn’t seem to be able to fit his hooves through the bars thank goodness.

Duly noted: adding castration to Leo’s list of vetting needs.

11/11/2024

On scams and emotional ransom:
The “rescue” name in this photo is part of the name of another actual page/organization based out West. Someone has ripped some of their compelling posts and images and copied part of the name to gather followers and (we assume) gather money from well-meaning compassionate folks. Please don’t send money to anyone who can’t let you schedule an appointment to see their organization, give you a brick and mortar address, can’t post follow up photos or videos when asked, etc. There is a real page with a similar name but this isn’t it. Scam rescues post almost exclusively compelling or sad images and stories in groups hoping to funnel money intended for legitimate organizations. Giving is great when you can, but giving to illegitimate places takes food out of the mouths of real horses recovering or getting what they need at real organizations who are trying to do the right thing by the horses every single day.

Be caring, yes, but be wise. The same can be said for most “Kill pen networking” schemes. Does the money go to actually helping horses, or does it line the pockets of dishonest traders & livestock dealers who care about nothing more than profiting from kind, well-meaning people? If you want to buy an auction horse, go buy a horse at auction but only if you know what you are doing and are prepared to meet ALL of their needs. Go with the ability (or a person who has such) to evaluate a horse nose to tail, behaviorally, and for possible general health concerns like founder, navicular, heaves, vision issues, lameness, conformational problems etc. Have funding to remedy training issues, to properly refeed the skinny ones, and access to proper safe quarantine with the assumption the horse may fall seriously ill. If you aren’t prepared and skilled at all that, please stick to adopting evaluated, vetted horses from reputable organizations who show long-term accountability and responsibility for the lives in their care. If we had a dollar for every horse we took in that someone else “saved” but then couldn’t care for them or didn’t want them, we’d sure be paying the vet bills and feed bills a little more easily. Stay kind, but be wise.

11/09/2024

My my, what have we here? A pint-sized new friend?

Leo’s owner loved him and had access to pasture for him, but didn’t own the property. When she was advised that it wasn’t in his best interest to live out on grass 24/7, she found that modifying someone else’s property wasn’t an option, nor was paying for board elsewhere. So she did the right thing for Leo, and surrendered him to KHS so that he could receive the care he needs and a chance at a home that can meet his needs to keep him healthy and happy into the future. He will need initial intake vetting and an evaluation from our farrier as well as a training/behavior evaluation to determine what sort of adopter or job would suit him best in the future. Check back as we get to know more about Leo!

11/07/2024

Who’s that handsome Thoroughbred gelding?

It’s 3 year old Montevallo, a new intake. He shipped straight to Metcalfe Equine LLC for transitioning into the post-racing life as well as to be evaluated. (Thanks Metcalfe Equine!) So far so good. He has rehabbed from an injury and is ready for training for a new career. After he’s been thoroughly evaluated he will be available for adoption. We want to make sure we get to know him first so we know wjat sort of home/owner will suit him best. And to all you OTTB fans, no we don’t yet have a height or good movement videos but you are welcome to apply to adopt and get approved before he’s posted on our Available Horses page.

11/07/2024

We don’t usually share products but…
Where has this been all our lives?!?! 😍

11/07/2024

Who remembers Slammin Blue Kittie, the thinnest mare we took in from that gaggle of Saddlebreds a while back?

Kittie (the chestnut Saddlebred mare) has been a very tough one to place. Nobody wants a horse that doesn’t love them back it seems, and Kittie just has a lot of baggage that makes it very difficult for her to let her guard down. We are familiar with Saddlebreds with flair, and their beautiful animated action, that’s not what we’re talking about with this pretty girl. She can be sensible at times and then she’s just terrified of everyone to an extreme. The latter has been much less so in her foster home recently. Kittie is learning to greet AirBnB guests and accept pets from strangers. You’d really have to know Kittie to know what a huge milestone this is for her. Most of the time Kittie’s brain seems like it must be a terrifying place, but lately she’s mellowing some with consistent, patient love and care.

Kittie is one of our “unwanted”s. She and Una are the aged red mares nobody seems to care about as far as adopters are concerned. We love each for who they are and hold out hope that out there somewhere is a person for each who can accept them as they are. Una has become pleasant recently with Metcalfe Equine even though it seems she knows about riding and just is a bit grumpy and uncomfy about it so she’ll be coming back to KHS’s farm soon so another horse more ready and willing for training can take her place. Thank you Laura G for sponsoring Una.

We are grateful to our foster volunteer, Alona D, who has given Kittie time to come out of her shell in a more quiet home-like environment. She seems to be mentally thriving there as best she’s able. If you think you may be Kittie’s person and are interested in giving her a soft place to land for the rest of her days, let us know.

(Pictured is Kittie, standing with a pasture pal at the gate, enjoying some forehead scratches from an AirBnB guest ❤️)

11/05/2024

Attention-loving Deke was adopted to one of our amazing volunteers over the weekend. She was the first to put in an application for him and delighted to try him out. We hope they both make many happy memories together for years to come. He was such a good boy.

11/01/2024

Come and join the Veteran's Club Women Warriors group on Saturday, November 9th from 10:00am - 2:00pm for a day of building and bonding at Willow Hope Farm.

10/31/2024

Welcome to Willow Hope Farm, Ruby and Nana.

Nana is a bay Tennessee Walking Horse and Ruby is a black Rocky Mountain mare. We can’t wait to get to know them better. Both are said to be great to ride. They’ll get some time to settle in and clear quarantine and then we will evaluate them to figure out what kind home they might need.

10/31/2024

Sometimes a horse gets adopted before we get the chance to gather and assemble content to show everyone how awesome they are. Rocky is one such example.

This handsome Spotted Saddle Horse gelding was shown to an approved adopter yesterday and they decided to adopt him on the spot! We still like to get the content out there so folks can see the kinds of horses we sometimes have the pleasure of keeping for a short time while they transition from one good home to another. We enjoyed the time we had with you, Rocky. We hope you enjoy many more happy trails with your new adopters!

10/29/2024

Tater Tot said “No paparazzi please, this isn’t my best angle!”

To see some slightly better photos of her and all of our other adoptable horses check out our Available Horses page:
https://www.kyhumane.org/adopt/adoptable-horses/

10/28/2024

Would you like to help in our mission of finding homes for horses, but can't volunteer in person? We have a handy wish list of items that would be helpful to our efforts and the care of horses around the farm. If you'd like to send us and our horse friends some goodies, check out our wish list! We appreciate every item and utilize donated goods to care for and prepare horses for adoption. We also accept gently used donated tack, supplements, and farm equipment like water troughs, fence feeders, rubber feed pans, etc.
https://a.co/4LxLfGk

10/24/2024

Newer intake Corabelle the Arabian / Quarter Horse cross is a pretty girl!

She may take some time to settle in and for us to figure her out though. She has an interesting backstory and cautionary tale: Corabelle was an orphan as a foal. She was raised by someone basically on their front porch. We'll assume that while she was very loved she was also probably very coddled and not likely expected to learn basic boundaries and appropriate behavior. Raising an orphan to be a well-adjusted and respectful adult is certainly possible with the right knowledge and experience, creating social learning situations for the foal and expecting safe behaviors as they grow. Often times they are raised with a lot of love but grow as horses that are lacking in appropriate manners and behavior. Foals are often rough on their moms, they may disrespect them, aggressively bump the udder to encourage milk letdown. They chew on mom's halter, chew on her tail, practice showing aggressions with them, kick them, run into them, etc. Its a rough job. If raising an orphan they should be given safe adult equine mentors when possible to help model acceptable behavior and provide timely discipline. Likewise, the humans in the life of an orphan foal should keep in mind at ALL TIMES that this cute little foal can grow into an 800-1200 lb animal on average depending on breed and genetic potential. Anything not safe for a 1200 lb horse to do with or around a human should not be accepted from a teeny, adorable foal. Laying with a foal in your lap once to twice for a photo op is one thing, but consistently letting them "run the show", invade personal space disrespectfully, and show aggressive or dangerous behaviors is not okay.

Corabelle's original owner left her with a boarding facility years ago, and we don't know all the details nor do we want to condemn someone who may have had hard choices to make. She was difficult to handle safely and several folks have worked with her to help her since then. In a new unfamiliar place she quickly reverted to some of the behaviors she learned as a foal. She is choosy about if she wants to be approached or touched. She will offer to turn and kick at a person who asks her to do something she doesn't want, and if you approach her to calmly and carefully touch her neck and carefully catch her she sometimes will squeal in disapproval and has been known in the past to strike at people. Is this a "BAD HORSE"? No, it is not the fault of a horse that they have adapted the behaviors they needed or were allowed to develop when young. They do not seek to "be bad", they just do as they know to do. Corabelle has had several people say they love her appearance and may be interested in her, but it will be our job to make sure she can be a good, safe citizen to adopt out before looking to place her in a home.

Much easier than working on these behaviors to try to remedy them years and years after they were developed, it would be much less work on us, and much less confusion or stress on her part if she were only encouraged to maintain safe manners and good behavior from a young age. Its beleived that her hooves have never been trimmed, or at least in years. While she seems to wear them fairly evenly, all things considered, any horse should be SAFE to treat if needed by a farrier or veterinarian, and if they aren't you'd better have a safe system or way of handling them if needed. We have equipment to vet feral horses but this is not a feral horse. Its a horse with poor initial handling/training who is now an aged mare who won't let you catch her whenever you want, and wont let you pick up her hooves. Wounds and lacerations may be difficult to treat if needed, and because of this she is not yet a great candidate for adoption. We will continue to get to know her and work to give her a life with more opportunities by meeting any of her medical, mental, and training needs.

She has already received a dental (thanks Dr Beckman!) and if needed can be either sedated for our next farrier visit or since her hooves are not in extreme disrepair, we may give her more time to learn and adjust before her first trim. She will likely need a lot of kind, patient training but may also need some firm but fair boundaries for things like trying to strike or kick people. Potential hormonal and medical roots for some behaviors will also be explored so that we are being fair to her and her life experience/comfort.

Our point being that even though she looks healthy and ready to go, there is often more than meets the eye when it comes to meeting a horse's needs in their best interest. So if you don't see her offered for adoption immediately, please check back for updates as we learn more about how to best help this beautiful, sassy, squealy girl to find her place in the world. Orphaned foals are not just a cute pet, when raised right they are a LOT of work taking great skill and dedication! We believe in you Corabelle, you're going to do great!

10/23/2024

Thanks to everyone who came out and made our event a success! It was wonderful to see all of the costumes and our horses loved the attention from guests.

10/23/2024

UPDATE on our last feral group intake horses:

We wanted to share some updated photos of the last former feral free-roaming group intake. We posted them looking for sponsors and are happy to announce that EVERY one of these lucky souls received support from a sponsor! Thank you SO much to everyone who interacted with those posts and helped increase their reach across the social media world, and a VERY special thank you goes out to everyone who stepped up to sponsor one of these horses. They are all acting and looking a bit brighter as they transition out of survival mode and become healthier physically and mentally. There are two photos of each in this order: Glimmer, Dundee, Bixby, Peggy Jo, Champ, and Candi.

Glimmer especially seemed very tired at first. It seems she was a horse that was once owned by someone, and then was turned out to live as a free-roaming horse. Those kinds seem to sometimes have the most resigned looks, knowing they have lived somewhere that food was provided, and they were protected from multiple aggressors like the numerous quarreling stallions up on the mountain, and then one day they were not. She seems to have renewed energy and life to her after settling in here.

All three mares are currently together on the farm, while all three boys have made their way to spend some time with a trainer. Intact, mostly unhandled stallions accustomed to roaming thousands of acres now on a farm full of mares can be a bit of a challenge sometimes so it's often best for them to be castrated as soon as possible and to enter training to give them some handling and life skills. Dr Murray will be visiting them soon at the training location so that (so long as all are fully able to be) they will be geldings upon their return to the KHS farm.

Please enjoy these photos and maybe you can scroll back to their initial posts and let us know if you think they look a bit perkier now.

Address

4416 Todd's Point Road
Simpsonville, KY
40067

Website

http://www.kyhumane.org/equine

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Videos

Ruby Rocky is a great little mare looking for a home! - grade Rocky Mountain mare - 14.1 hands tall - ~20yrs old - ready to stroll around your farm or give in-hand pony rides to the grandkids 😍 Find more details, more horses, or our adoption application on our site! Thank you to friend Ariella for letting us snap a video while she took Ruby for a spin!

#horse #horses #equine #equinerescue #horserescue #animalrescue #equinephotography #nonprofitorganization #horsesintransition #adoptahorse

Sometimes a horse gets adopted before we get the chance to gather and assemble content to show everyone how awesome they are. Rocky is one such example. This handsome Spotted Saddle Horse gelding was shown to an approved adopter yesterday and they decided to adopt him on the spot! We still like to get the content out there so folks can see the kinds of horses we sometimes have the pleasure of keeping for a short time while they transition from one good home to another. We enjoyed the time we had with you, Rocky. We hope you enjoy many more happy trails with your new adopters! #spottedsaddlehorse #gaitedhorse #adoptahorse #horses #equineadoption #equinerescue #horseadoption #horserescue #righthorse #horsesintransition #fromonegreathometoanother

Update on Papi the Paso Fino gelding: Papi came to us from an owner who loved him very much but physically couldn’t ride him safely anymore due to their own struggles with medical issues. He’s a sensitive fella, as Pasos should be. Though he’s been ridden his whole life with a specific bridle setup that had a good amount of leverage and required very careful hands, we decided to send him to Metcalfe Equine LLC for him to be started back into some groundwork and to work on his fitness some too (he tends to be a calorie hoarder 😄 am Paige reports that Papi rides well in a simple snaffle. He is doing very well and seems to be a safe ride for someone not intimidated by his “brio” under saddle. Brio is the traditional term for “enthusiastic vigor” often seen in Paso Fino horses. Papi is a registered Paso, who has been acclimated to horse show environments in the past, and seems to be ready to do his thing for many more years. We work hard as soon as horses arrive to keep the end goal of adoption in mind and constantly ask ourselves which sort of outcome would be best for the horse. In Papi’s case, we scoped out a potential situation where he can go on foster, but still remain an active example of the variety and quality of horses that may come through our doors while helping to educate others. After he settles in to his new role, we’ll come back to update everyone and share the news!

All 3 of these were horses that recently were transferred to our friends in Iowa, after receiving healthcare and handling at KHS so they could be happy, healthy training prospects. What do you think we showed them to entice them to safety? 😋

Just kidding #WeGotThis #horserescue #equinerescue #feralhorse #starvinghorse #animalrescue

💚 DO WE HAVE ANY PASSIONATE PASO FINO FANS? 💚 Meet our new friend Papi!

More BabaLooey content! This was a video taken before he left to be fostered at Boys’ & Girls’ Haven. Not sure what’s more impressive, what a good boy he is, or our trainer holding double long lines and a camera at the same time! Great skills on both accounts. BabaLooey is a yearling but already has lightly worked on skills that will come in handy as an adult. The saddle is a tiny synthetic saddle that’s about light as a feather so don’t worry, we would never work a yearling under any significant amount of weight so early. Line driving teaches a horse to be accepting of the trainer’s directions, even if he cannot see them. This makes them better prepared to be a future driving horse but also helps a lot with their confidence when ridden one day. This little fella is just a gem!

🌸 UPDATE on new intake Khabira 🌸 Not much has changed since her intake but Khabira is settling in and showing us what a sweet girl she is. Also we answer a question from the comments on her arrival post. #horserescue #equinerescue #americansaddlebred #horses #equine #animalrescue #animallovers #horses #saddlebred

A blast from the past! Keeva was a feral free roaming mare from Martin County, KY who we collected near an airport in 2021. She was completely feral on arrival, but had some time to settle and learn a few things about people before heading to training with Metcalfe Equine for a bit to further her halter training and get started on being a civilized lady. Horses Haven in Michigan offered to come get her along with some others because their rescue was at a deficit of available horses. They worked with Keeva, continued her education and found her an adopter. Recently while talking with their adoptions coordinator about the recent transfers, they sent this update on how well Keeva is doing now. What a mare! They say she’s really blossomed into a great horse and her adopters are grateful for her! It’s SO rewarding to see a horse go from “wild as a March hare” to this! We never tire of updates like this, have a wonderful life Keeva and family, and thanks again Horses Haven.

As promised… more BabaLooey content. Here you can find adoptable yearling gelding BabaLooey walking out to his pasture with one of our awesome Equine Care Specialists, Jill. Jill brings an always upbeat, contagious positive attitude to her job at KHS and is great with volunteers and visitors alike. Thanks Jill!

A new friend at Willow Hope Farm. **Update: This mare’s breeder has reached out offering a soft place for her to land if needed.❤️ Her name is Win Gait Khabira** With LOTS of exciting movement around the farm of adoptions and transfers pending we had some space to welcome a new face. We are told her name is Khabira and she used to be a show horse. A woman contacted us to say that she went to look at this mare who was scheduled for euthanasia by another owner, and though Khabira wasn’t quite what she expected, they thought she deserved a chance somewhere, and asked if KHS would accept her. Shes an odd case because, while her condition isn’t ideal, she was being fed and has too much rib cover to qualify as a body score of just 1 we think, but we will definitely have a vet check her over soon and see what we can do for her. She was enamored with the salt today, received some ulcer meds, and picked at some senior feed. She later dove into some soft orchard/alfalfa hay and seems to think she’s in an okay place. She is quite friendly and we hope we can help her.

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Our Story

Our Equine C.A.R.E. (connect, assist, rescue, educate) Program focuses on horses in transition, helping them find new careers and forever homes. Equine C.A.R.E. priorities include moving horses from crisis into safe homes or rescue, providing re-homing services to horse owners who can no longer keep them, matching available horses with adopters, and making educational tools and resources available to our equine community. Our Equine Program has found new homes and careers for more than 300 horses over the last five years. Learn more about our program at www.kyhumane.org/horses.

In October 2019, KHS dedicated Willow Hope Farm in Simpsonville. The farm is named after Willow, a recently found abandoned and extremely malnourished horses. Her will to survive inspired KHS to name our new barn in her honor. The equine facility includes over 42 acres of pasture, 38 stalls, a quarantine barn, and an indoor arena for year-round riding and training.

Also in 2019, the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) - the only globally recognized organization providing standards for identifying legitimate animal sanctuaries - awarded Accredited status to the Kentucky Humane Society Equine C.A.R.E. Program. Accreditation signifies that our program meets GFAS’s rigorous and peer-reviewed equine care standards which are confirmed by a comprehensive site visit. Accreditation also signifies adherence to standards addressing the sustainability of the organization, ethical principles, finances, staffing, education outreach, security and safety and other operational aspects. The Kentucky Humane Society is a private nonprofit animal welfare organization. Donations to fuel our equine work are gratefully accepted at www.kyhumane.org/equine-donate.