the horse is, you still need to allow them the time to settle and decompress. Jane: Why do you think rescuing and rehoming horses is so important? What drives/motivates you to take this task on? Lisa: This comes from our throwaway society, not just animals but society in general. We have moral and ethical obligations to horses. I’m originally from England, been all over the US and parts of Europe and what I’ve gotten from horses it makes you want to give back. It makes you want to do the right thing, even if it is not the easiest thing. These horses have a lot left in them and a lot to offer, even just the trail sound horses. There is a lot of misconceptions about Off Track horses, both TBs and STBs. STBs can canter and jump, everyone thinks that TBs are crazy, hot/difficult. Each horse is an individual, many people can get so much pleasure from them. I believe especially if you make your living off of horses you have an obligation to give back. Horses have taken me all over the world, I’ve met some great people and I owe horses an opportunity. Jane: Rescuing horses is costly and time consuming but what can the average person do? One who doesn't have the ability or maybe the finances to adopt or foster? Lisa: Any rescue should be looking for volunteers, they realize how little you can contribute and make a difference. Donating $15 can buy a fly mask, it all makes a difference. Volunteers and merchandise are cost effective ways of offsetting expenses. There is nothing better than going to an event and seeing someone wearing your t-shirts, or seeing your magnets on their trucks. Having a nice product line can really help, plus having flyers and brochures to hand out at shows and events can progresses into a conversation about the program. Jane: What advice would you give someone looking at getting an off the track horse? Lisa: First thing is to know your limitations and everybody always seem to have a little bit of over inflated since of what they can handle, so have realistic expectations. Example if I have a 4-year old, sound with no injuries, and the person wants to trail ride, an older horse with far more miles would be more suitable for
their needs, it makes more sense to get a more mileage horse with some limitations than a young sound horse capable of going on to a higher level of career. Jane: I like your team approach to adoption: chiropractors, farriers, photographers, and veterinarians, do you think this helps to facilitate adoptions? Lisa: It is not cost effective to put too much into a horse that is sound, but to put resources where it is needed, you need a pretty cohesive team to keep costs down and adoptions up. I don’t think people realize how important photos and videos can be. People want insight into the personality of the horse. Novel little things like a horse picking up a cone, and seeing a horse being silly and being different, people like that. I keep videos under 3 minutes to keep people interested. Instead of trying to jam everything into 10 minute videos I may do 2 minutes of cantering at liberty and 2 minutes under saddle so people do not get bored and start skipping through it. Keep continuity when representing a horse. I’ve seen people in English clothes riding in a western saddle, it confuses potential adopters. Represent a horse as either a western horse or an English horse.
Jane: Do you have some success stories that have stayed with you? Lisa: Yes, we had a horse returned, he was 12, he cribbed, and the woman just didn’t like him. He had been adopted 3 or 4 years, we took him back, got him going, took him off the feed he was on, put him on Purina Senior, and he became awesome to ride, plus he was a flashy chestnut horse. We had photos of me riding and videos of him jumping and riding, but as soon as people found out he was over 10 and cribbed