A few weeks ago we received an e-mail from a woman who had rescued two Shetland ponies. She had found a home for one pony, but the other pony mare was proving difficult to rehome- Sissy needed ointment in her eye regularly, and was not the most personable pony. We weren’t able to take Sissy, but we offered to put her up on our network to see if we could find her a home.
We kept in touch with the owner, and she said she had found a rescue that would take Sissy, but her truck had broken down and she was unable to haul her to the rescue. She is in Lancaster, CA which is a little over a two-hour drive from us. We gave her the number of a hauler who we use and trust, and we thought that everything was good and Sissy would go to her new home.
Another week later, however, Sissy’s owner contacted us again- the rescue was now unable to take Sissy, and Sissy was now starting to be a little aggressive towards her mini (who desperately wanted to be friends with Sissy, whereas Sissy just wanted to be left alone). She was desperate to find her a new home, but she knew that Sissy needed a place where she would be safe, and did not want to sell her.
We called the Southern California Miniature Horse Sanctuary to see if they could take Sissy, and we were surprised to find that they had already planned to take her, but that somehow the communication between the owner and the sanctuary broke down. So, we called the owner back and they made plans to get Sissy to the sanctuary.
Unfortunately, the owner was unable to pay the entire hauling fee, and the sanctuary had only authorized to take Sissy, so there was still a matter of $200 that was needed to pay the hauler. We only had a few days as Sissy was scheduled to be picked up on Monday. We were able to secure the funds so we could help pay for the hauler to take Sissy.
Rescuing a horse often takes a proverbial village, and while we helped in a small way, we have to thank the Southern California Miniature Horse Sanctuary and our wonderful hauler Nancy Louise who was able to take Sissy. When we all work together, we are able to make miracles happen!