GONE ARE THE TICKS; the protruding ribs; the 48 hours of uncertainty while rescuers held their breaths; the mental anguish of knowing that all was done but they had to let go.
It’s been four years since the HORSE Charity opened its paddock gates and gave near-to-death, ill-treated or discarded horses a second lease on life. Today, looking at the 12 horses that live in their Dukes, St Thomas home, it’s hard to believe that some of them once appeared to be one breath away from death.
In fact, trustee Monique Archer usually has to look at the “before” images on her phone to remind herself that the healthy, now even-tempered horses in the paddock, were not always that way. And now, twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays, the horses have a new role.
Champion race horse trainer Robert Peirce, who dedicates his time to the new charges, takes students from the Learning Centre in Orange Hill, St James, and the School House for Special Needs in Reece Road, Brittons Hill, St Michael, on specially supervised rides on the rehabilitated horses. The children seem to enjoy it and so appear the horses.
Then there is the Equestrian Programme for those teenagers who dream of race day at The Garrison Savannah, the brainchild of Peirce. They are paired with horses which have not lost the need to gallop.
The Charity has had its first success story. A student of the Equestrian Programme, Delano Lopez, not only got his race day jockey licence but won Race 3, the Cupid Handicap, two Saturdays ago at The Garrison.
Delano, son of jockey Simon Husbands – the brother of the renowned Patrick Husbands – and nephew of champion jockey Richard “Powchie” Lopez, is a young man of few words but was full of praise for the Charity and Peirce in giving him the opportunity.
Two other up and coming jockeys have also received their exercise licence.
“One of the Charity’s mandates from the beginning was to try to get kids to work with the horses because I know as a child, that was the highlight of my life,” Archer told Heather-Lynn’s Habitat.
Some networking ensued and the headmistress of the Learning Centre, Dawn Rudder, came on board.
“She said there were a few children she would like to try in the programme, and it grew from there. Then Robert made the contact with the School House. So now we have two schools and the Learning Centre has two programmes for children and for young adults. Robert teaches them skills with the idea being that they can get work in a stable if that’s what they want to or even if it just gives them a bit of joy,” Archer revealed.
Archer described the programme as a great cycle.
“They [the horses] come back and they are so trusting and so gentle after having been treated so terribly.”
But she admitted that there were many anxious hours for many of the “after images” trotting before her. It takes almost a year to get them past the worst.
“We’ve learnt over time when dealing with horses that are fragile, that you can’t give them the normal medication you give a normal horse. They can die within the first 24 or 48 hours when they get here because they are that bad.
“I know it’s hard to believe when you see them walking around here with some nice big tummies on them, but theydo start out pretty badly,” she said.
An example of a success story was a horse, whose name has not yet been ascertained, but which is totally blind.
Archer said the Charity was getting complaints about the horse. When they checked, she was looking bad but not as bad as some of the others which were rescued. But that was until she foaled and Archer and Peirce realised the “fat” they were seeing was the unborn foal. Without the foal, which died at birth, they realised how thin the horse really was.
“By the time she had the foal, then she looked like a skeleton. We took the mum in, she is completely blind in both eyes and one of the girls in the Equestrian Programme, Destini [Osbourne], she adores her and she literally brought her back to full health. So I think that is a huge success story to see her happy and healthy again having been through what I would have to call hell.”
However, as this year’s dry season approaches, Archer is keeping her fingers crossed that the Charity will not see the same numbers they did when it was first launched.
“March, April and May are our worst months. On an average year we have taken in ten to 12 horses in those three months, but it’s a bit early to say.”
Meanwhile, the Charity is planning two events to help with fund-raising. One will be a gala dinner for some of their supporters, while the second is being billed as a 1970s/1980s-themed fun-filled day for the family at Holders on April 10.
