Animal Welfare United States Project #17121

Provide Quality Care for Rescued Horses in Texas

by Easy R Equine Rescue

Project Report | Sep 23, 2021
Oreo is One Lucky Guy

By Angie Alspaugh | Project Leader

Oreo meeting Dakota

All the calls we get at Easy R Equine Rescue aren't about horses that are being neglected or abused. Some calls are from owners who are needing to rehome a horse for various reasons. Most of these horses have been well loved and cared for. While we cannot take in all owner surrenders, we are able to accomodate some of them. Oreo was one we were able to accept into the rescue.

Oreo had been with one family for most of his life. He never knew a bad day. But families go through unforeseen circumstances sometimes, and they want to do the best thing for their horse(s). Oreo had been by himself for many years, so we were curious how he would do with pasture mates. We put him in with another new horse, Sunny, and they became fast friends. Well, we think Oreo liked her more than she liked him, but that's a mare for you. As with all our intakes, we try to thoroughly assess all their needs for rehabilitation. Since Oreo had been well cared for, the only things we really needed to do were have a dental exam completed and x-rays taken of an arthritic joint.

Oreo is a black and white Paint Horse. And he started drawing the attention of many people who thought he was pretty. And, understandably so, they all wanted a horse they could ride. With Oreo's best interest in mind, we decided he needs to be mostly a pasture pet due to his advancing arthritis. Back in the spring we were contacted by a man who expressed interest in fostering for us. He was recently retired and was trying to find something to occupy all this new-found time on his hand. He lost his own horse to old age last year and really missed him. He didn't have much interest in riding. Just wanted a horse to love and care for. So, we thought Oreo might be a good fit for him to foster. They hit it off. Oreo loved all the attention and the foster dad loved spending hours each day with Oreo. This mutual companionship led to what we call a "foster fail". Oreo is now a permanent resident and was adopted by his foster dad last month. We love happy beginnings.

He liked Sunny much better

Everyone needs their teeth done every year

Checking out his new foster home

Oreo and Sam, his new dad

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Apr 8, 2021
No More Bad Days for Sunny

By Angie Alspaugh | Project Leader

Sunny upon arrival

Sunny came to Easy R Equine Rescue in late February in dire condition. She was extremely underweight and malnourished. She lived in a rural town about an hour away, and luckily for her, a concerned citizen repeatedly addressed her condition with her owner until he agreed to relinquish custody. She was accepted into a local boarding and training barn as a foster. We rely heavily on foster placements for the Easy R horses, and we are so grateful to have ones that will say "yes" when we have need for placement.

We started Sunny on a regimented refeeding program of very small amounts of alfalfa hay several times a day. It is very important to use a safe refeeding approach with such underweight and malnourished horses; otherwise, it could be deadly for them. A veterinarian examined her shortly after arrival and determined she is approximately 4 years old. And bloodwork revealed her organs are all functioning properly--about which we are very relieved. Oftentimes, very underweight horses can already be in organ dysfunction or failure as a result of the malnutrition.

Sunny has become a favorite at the barn. Everyone loves grooming and petting her and taking her out for daily short walks around the property. At this time she has progressed to eating a normal amount of hay--and boy does she love it!! She is slowly putting on weight, shedding her long winter hair, and getting a little gleam in her eyes. We don't think we will have a difficult time at all finding a wonderful adoptive family for this girl.

When we receive horses like Sunny, it is tempting to focus on the cruelty of some human beings. But it is also a great reminder of all the wonderful people in the world. Such as the man who was determined to get Sunny into a safe place; the barn owner who immediately said yes to fostering her; all the people who stop by her pen to love on her and take her for walks; and people like you who give of your financial resources so we can say yes when we get a call about horses like Sunny. We are optimistic about her future and pray there will be no more bad days for Sunny.

She loves attention

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Nov 23, 2020
Nugget is a Little Guy with a Big Attitude

By Angie Alspaugh | Project Leader

Fire (Nugget) and Ice before coming to Easy R

In April of 2020, we received a call from a lady who had been caring for two horses that had been severely neglected by the previous owner. She had done all she could to help them regain some weight, provide vaccinations, good food, etc. But she was coming to the end of her resources, and didn't know what to do since one of the horses just wasn't putting on much weight. We took both horses into Easy R Equine Rescue. One was a full size horse named Ice, and the other was a pony named Fire. Fire was placed into a foster home, and as is often our process, we encouraged the foster family to pick out a new name for Fire. In a few days we were informed they would like to name him Nugget. Which seemed a very appropriate name for a pony his size.

Nugget was still a stud, so his first visit with the vet was to be gelded. He also received vaccinations and a general exam. His weight was still a concern. He just wasn't gaining as he should with the amount of food he was receiving. Our intake process always includes a thorough dental exam and floating of the teeth. Once Nugget was sedated and his mouth examined, it was clear why he wasn't gaining any weight. For one, he was older than we were told--probably in his early 20s and his teeth were not in very good condition. And two, he had obviously, at one time, lost an upper tooth, which caused the lower corresponding tooth to grow long. REALLY long. Long enough to be piercing his sinus cavity every time he bit down. There was a hole up into his sinus that was impacted with food. And infection. What pain that little guy must have been in!! And that long tooth kept him from grinding up much food and absorbing nutrients.

After two dental visits 6 months apart, the long tooth is now the same height as all his other lower teeth. He still has a hole in his upper jaw, which will probably never close up. This hole will make him suspectible to more infections and hay impactions. But we will keep a close eye on the situation and make him as comfortable as possible. As we hoped would be the case, Nugget started gaining weight and feeling better. He was more active and alert. And boy, did he have a big attitude for such a little guy! Due to some herd dynamics with Magi, we recently moved Nugget to another foster home. After he was told by his two new pasture mates that he was NOT going to be in charge at this new place, he quickly settled down and settled in. Horses like Nugget need clear boundaries and expectations. And that's what he is getting not only from his very experienced foster family, but also from Gravy and EZ (his two new horse buddies).

We don't know Nugget's history. He is tentative and wants to evade being caught. But he is really warming up to people and finds a good grooming rather relaxing and enjoyable. And he loves his senior grain! Nugget is available for adoption and hopefully a family will come along that can provide him a nice pasture and a lot of TLC and companionship.

Getting to know his new friend Magi

Visit from the dentist

Gaining some weight

Some loving from current foster "brother"

A new hairdo

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