A cautionary tale

Many times the stories we learn about the horses who are helped by our grants are deeply touching. Stories of love, devotion and heartbreak when choosing the Last Act of Kindness. Other stories touch our hearts for different reasons.

This beautiful boy, we'll call him "Darling", was taken to a boarding facility to be used as a lesson horse. The owner was a senior and had moved into a home. Such arrangements are not uncommon and are often referred to as a "free lease", whereby the owner retains ownership but those using the horse for lessons become responsible for the care and cost of providing for the horse. Such arrangements can work quite well provided that all parties agree on the terms and the horse continues to be looked after if a misunderstanding ever arose.

A senior himself, Darling was no longer able to be used as a lesson horse, which would naturally mean the end of free lease arrangement. The owner would have to start paying for the care of their horse and the boarding facility would continue to provide feed, water and shelter, at minimum.

We don't know what transpired between Darling's owner and the boarding facility. All we know is that they stopped feeding him. It is incredulous that anyone would do such a thing! Can you imagine walking by a horse's stall with hay to feed the other horses and not give him any? He would have been neighing, calling out, begging for someone to feed him. Darling suffered, and there is no excuse for that.

Thankfully he was rescued from that situation but not before it took a toll on his body. It wasn't just the starvation, he had also lost a lot of muscling. He was no longer able to lie down and get back up. He did enjoy a few good months, grazing happily in a herd before it was time for him to be given the Last Act of Kindness. He had a heart murmur and arrhythmia and his heart began to fail.