Horse rescue groups struggle

AUBURNDALE - Dani Horton of Hope Equine Rescue in Auburndale used to have a waiting list for adoptable horses.

Now her waiting list is a sign of the times.

"People would call and say 'if you come upon this kind of horse, call me.' Now you have to call people, we have to e-mail people. We have to beg people to take horses cause they don't want them right now. They don't want the extra expense," Horton said.

Horton says she gets calls every week from desperate owners looking for someone to take their horse.

An 11-year-old thoroughbred named Jessie has a story that's becoming all too familiar.

"His owner was keeping him with her sister, and her sister was renting a house and the house was foreclosed on, and they had to be out. She had nowhere to put her horse, so she had to surrender him to the rescue."

Horton has been rescuing horses all her life, and most of the time it's because of people who neglect or abuse their horses. Now she's taking horses from people who've lost their jobs or their homes.

"These are their companions, their friends. And they can't support 'em anymore. We've loaded up some horses and people are just devastated. They're crying. They don't know what to do. And it's very hard. It's very hard to take a horse away from somebody who loves them," Horton said.

Owning a horse is expensive: Horton has nine rescues and 13 of her own. She's watched the cost of hay and feed go up, and she says that's the least of it.

"You've got vet bills. Farrier bills. You've got worming, you've got shots. It's major. Average upkeep, just your basics, is $1800 dollars a year for a horse. That's just basic. That doesn't count anything extra," she said.

Horton says her rescue is working on its 501-3c status to become a non-profit in the state of Florida. She relies on volunteers to keep things running, but not on donations.

She and her husband both work full-time jobs to make sure the horses are cared for properly.

And she urges horse owners to think ahead and not wait for the worst to happen.

"You need to plan for your horses. You need to sit down and figure out, okay, if I lose my job, what am I gonna do? You need to have a game plan, because if you don't, you're gonna be in trouble," she said.

To learn more about Hope Equine Rescue, here is a link to their website: http://www.freewebs.com/hopeequinerescue/howtodonate.htm