R.I.P La Vizelle R.I.P La Vizelle R.I.P La Vizelle R.I.P La Vizelle La Vizelle

La Vizelle, or Dawn as we affectionately called her, was with us at Hillside since 1997, which is almost as long as the Sanctuary has been in existence. She had always enjoyed good health until just before we lost her.

Dawn was rescued from certain slaughter at only two years old from a sale where horses, who are just seconds too slow on the racetrack, are ‘disposed’ of.

In all the twenty two years she lived

Deer Rescue

with us, she was certainly a character and all the staff loved her. She leaves behind her field companions, ex-Police horses, Bielby, Taylor, Luxembourg and Tiltro, Poppy and her best friend Sonique another ex-racehorse with whom she has shared most of her life. We know they will all miss her very much. Thank you so much to everyone who kindly ‘adopted’ Dawn which meant she was able to enjoy a long and happy life in the Sanctuary - a far cry from the situation she found herself in twenty two years ago.

In May we were called out to help this female Red deer who had been injured on a Norfolk road. As we arrived, the Police also turned up with a deer warden who was about to euthanise her. As no broken bones were visible, we stepped in to give her a chance. Back at Hillside, we treated her superficial wounds and left her to quietly recuperate. After a few days of convalescence, she had rallied enough to be turned out with our other rescued deer, most of whom have lived with us for several years.

Soul Train, a gentle ex-racehorse who so deserved to be rescued, will follow on in La Vizelle’s footsteps in our adoption scheme.

Easter Lambs

These two orphaned lambs came to us after their mothers sadly died. They are part of a flock of sheep we gave a home to after they had been neglected by their owner who had cruelly left many to perish. (See page 13 for story)

Preparing for Going Out to Grass

Prior to going out to grass for the Summer, our horses are vaccinated to protect them against Equine Influenza and Tetanus, de-wormed and have their hooves trimmed. Once they have had all the necessary treatments, they are ready to spend the summer months in their grazing meadows.

Mares arriving pregnant give

Jasper, Apollo and Ace arrived in may

Pound Ponies... Pound Ponies...

Throughout 2019 we continued to take in horses and ponies who had ended up in Stray Horse Pounds across the UK. Abandoned and unwanted, these horses are rarely claimed and would have been put to sleep had we not stepped in and offered to give them a home.

Since the horse crisis began in 2012, we have taken in over 1000 of these horses. All stallions and colts are of course gelded and all horses are de-wormed and vaccinated. Many mares arrive with us pregnant.

In 2019, twenty of these in-foal rescued mares thankfully all gave birth safely. Because foals are often born in the early hours, our staff take it in turns to watch over the mares during the night to ensure they have veterinary assistance on hand should they require it.

A thank you everyone who

Without your Without your Without your Without your Without continuing donations, we would not be able to carry continuing donations, we would not be able to carry continuing donations, we would not be able to carry continuing donations, we would not be able to carry continuing donations, would carry on helping these poor animals... on on helping these poor animals... on on helping these poor animals...

Here are just some of the stories from the year...

We were asked to give a home to this poor abandoned mare. When she arrived, we noticed dark patches on her and thought she had simply been splashed by mud. We were taken aback when we realised the dark 'spots' were actually unusually large lice which she was covered in from head to hoof! Alice, as we have named her, was treated and soon felt much more comfortable

Summer Summer

We hope for sunny days and occasional rain showers to keep the grass growing throughout these warm months. While out grazing our animals are checked twice a day...

17 Horses and Ponies Arrive From the Stray Horse Pound

Now safe in the Sanctuary - below are the mares and foals from a group of 17 horses and ponies who came to us from a stray horse pound. Once we had agreed to give them a home at Hillside, to save them from being shot, the pound were happy to keep them until they could travel. One of the ponies actually gave birth while waiting in the pound and their vet advised to wait a few days until the young foal was strong enough to make the 300 mile journey to Norfolk safely.

Our Land Appeal was a Success!

During the summer, we were offered the chance to buy a 4 acre area of land which sits between a 30 acre field used by fifty of our special care horses and 15 acres of Sanctuary land where their shelters are situated. The landowner had kindly allowed our horses to roam freely across the bottom part of the four acres, providing a vital link for them to gain access from one field to the other to reach their shelters. With the land up for sale, we very much wanted to purchase it, or else we would lose the vital link between our Sanctuary fields. However, funds were low and so we launched our Land Appeal to see if we could raise the necessary funding to buy the land. We are very happy to report that, thanks to the kindness of our supporters, we were able to raise the necessary funds and purchased the land.

All Creatures, Great and Small...

This tiny Water Deer fawn was found by a member of the public, wandering in the middle of a busy road. With the mother nowhere to be seen, the only safe action was to pick her up to save her from being run over. Usually, any fawns found curled up or alone in the countryside are safely waiting for their mothers, who leave them to go off to graze for a while, then return. So, unless the fawn is in danger or distress it is better not to disturb them.

This little fawn is pictured here with an extremely tame elderly deer who is disabled and who is happy to spend his time indoors.