Quigley on walkabout. (Low resolution is due to image taken by a good Samaritan from their vehicle.)
When we come across a stray dog or cat most of us know what to do: safely catch, secure and take them to a local animal shelter. But, what if it’s a stray horse? The usual methods for capturing smaller animals don’t apply here. It’s not as straight forward as setting a trap for a cat or placing them in a crate like a dog. So, your first call should be to local law enforcement and it’s in these instances that it’s clear that DEFHR is a vital community resource. Each year we equip over 100 law enforcement professionals with hands-on training, specializing in on-scene handling, containment and/or transportation of large animals. Because of that training, Prince George’s County authorities knew exactly what steps to take when they were alerted about an extremely skinny horse wandering alongside a busy road. When the call came in to us, we were also ready and our emergency response team was dispatched to aid in this stray horse.
YOU are the reason DEFHR is always ready to answer the call for help!
YOUR gift of $1,000, $500, $250, $50 ensures we can continue to be ready for future calls!
Once safely at DEFHR, Quirky Quigley (named for his roadside "walkabout" with a nod to the movie "Quigley Down Under") shared a story of suffering and neglect not with words, but through the condition of his body: emaciated, dehydrated, dull, lethargic, battered with cuts and abrasions. Even sadder, he had been found without a halter, and none of the locals recognized him; no one was missing him. Yet, it was his fighting spirit that compelled him to break free from his previous situation in search of help, ultimately leading him into our care.
Refeeding an exhausted, starving horse, whose teeth were in such poor condition that he was unable to chew hay had its challenges. While monitoring Quigley around the clock for the first few days due to his unstable vitals, we offered him small, frequent meals of soaked, finely chopped forage. After two weeks of critical care, when we normally would expect him to stabilize and start improving, he suffered a setback with an unexplained infection. Continuous veterinary care, a dental floatation, as well as medication for painful stomach ulcers that had been caused by his prolonged starvation, put him back on the road to recovery. Soon we got to know a much brighter version of Quigley!
Imagine how many more lives YOU can transform with your generous year-end gift of $1,000, $500, $250, $50, or any amount today?
Take Love Luci, a 27 year old mare that came to DEFHR in November 2021 from Anne Arundel County. Luci dedicated much of her early life as a trusty lesson horse. She was part of a small herd on a remote private property. As her owner aged, riding and lessons became less frequent, and before long Luci’s companion horses also aged and died. Her elderly owner became physically unable to care for her. Luci was alone and declining from neglect. In a desperate attempt to survive, Luci broke out of her pasture and was found wandering on her own by a neighbor. When animal control officers arrived to take her in, they found her owner was actually in need of medical attention herself. In pursuing her own survival, Lucy brought awareness to the assistance her owner needed. I like to think that Luci saved both of them. Because of YOUR support Luci successfully rehabilitated and adopted spending her golden years in a loving home she so deserves (see photo and postscript).
YOUR donation of $1,000, $500, $250, $50, or any amount supports horses like Luci and her 81 herd mates as they heal and hope for their forever homes.
In a similar story, 2023 kicked off with a case involving three miniature horses – Acorn, Bundtcake, Cierra – and a full sized horse we named Daryl, hinting at the volume of 55 new horses in need of rehabilitation that DEFHR would care for throughout that year. Like Quigley and Luci, the three minis escaped their pasture, where they had grown morbidly obese from grazing full-time on grass. Fortunately, a neighbor managed to secure the wandering horses on her own property and contacted animal control. When authorities conducted their investigation, they uncovered that the miniature horses had originated from a farm that once appeared to be well-maintained and thriving but had gradually deteriorated over time. The owner herself was living in squalor, with blackwater and trash scattered throughout her now dilapidated home. Alongside these distressing findings, animal control also discovered a neglected dog in urgent need of assistance and a fourth horse, Daryl, in a sorry state – his tail so severely matted that it resembled a solid baseball bat. Due to the homeowner's compromised health and unsafe living conditions, she was promptly transported to a hospital for necessary care, while Acorn, Bundtcake, Cierra, and Daryl found a secure haven at DEFHR. I am happy to report that all four transformed into trimmed down, healthier versions of themselves and are among the 50+ horses adopted within that year.
Unfortunately, for every story of a horse that saves themselves, there are hundreds more that are relying on all of us
