We Don't Buy Horses

In response to several recent inquiries:

No, Traveller's Rest Equine Elders Sanctuary does not buy horses. 

The horses in residence come from a variety of sources.  Some had been abandoned at boarding stables, Some were left behind when farms were sold.  Several came to the sanctuary as the result of law enforcement investigations into cruelty or neglect.  Many were victims of starvation or lack of veterinary care.  A few came to us when owners encountered catastrophic changes in their lives, putting the horses' futures at risk.

The unfortunate truth is that TREES is asked to take in far more horses than we can possibly accept if we are to maintain high standards of care.  With so many horses in desperate need of places to go, purchasing horses is not an efficient use of available space and resources needed to care for current residents or to develop educational and outreach programs. 

In response to one follow up question - No, most of TREES residents were not "saved from slaughter."  Slaughter is just one of many many dangers horses face.  The horses here, abandoned or left to "let nature take its course," were never headed for the meat industry.  They, instead, were simply dipsosed of on their own home turf, like a car up on blocks at the edge of the woods in the Back Forty.  The difference, of course, is that the car does not suffer - sometimes for months or years -  when the owner stops feeding it or denies treatment of injuries or illness.  

Rienzi August 9, 2007

Rienzi August 7, 2008