Back from the Brink
Humane
Society/SPCA of Sumter County to the Rescue.
By Terry
Temple
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If
you’ve ever seen a starving or abused horse, you know
the sickening feeling. Rage and even wonder: How could anyone
be so cruel? What kind of situation in the owner’s life
could possibly justify the long, slow death sentence of neglect?
Chairperson
Claudia Labbe’ states, “Our Cruelty Investigations
for horses have been rising dramatically over the past few years.
As the equine industry has increased, unfortunately many people
who begin a horse breeding/training program can overextend themselves
financially and have |
Mr.
B pictured at the Detention Center Impound shortly after he
was rescued from neglect.
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| not
planned for such things as an economic recession, increases
in the costs of feed/hay or conditions such as a drought, so
their animals are left to pay the consequences. We ask people
to have a plan to place or sell animals before it gets to this
point, so that no animal has to suffer.” |
Trish
Cheston of the Humane Society/SPCA of Sumter County, Florida,
knows it all too well. “There are lots of terrible reasons
horses find themselves in these situations,” she says.
“The owners get incarcerated, or lose their jobs, or fall
on hard times.” As the chairman of the Equine Adoptions
and Foster Care program, she sees every bad case reported in
that county, and unfortunately, they are on the rise.
“The
drought and hay shortage sure hasn’t helped. Horses that
once thrived on pasture alone are wasting away,” Trish
continues. |
Today,
Mr. B is thriving after the care he received from the Humane
Society/SPCA of Sumter County, the trustees and his “Foster
Dad” Rick.
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The HS/SPCA of Sumter is one of the few HS/SPCA’s in Florida
equipped to provide abused horses with temporary care, recovery
and rehabilitation. Until recently, the agency had help from
an unexpected source -- the inmates of the Sumter Detention
Center. For the past seven years, inmates (called trustees)
could volunteer to take care of the rescued horses in a barn
on the Detention Property until they could be processed into
foster homes and eventually adopted.
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Unfortunately,
the program recently ended because the Detention Center needed
the land, so the HS/SPCA of Sumter is now challenged to find
safe haven for rescues while they are stabilized and vet-checked.
At a recent dedication, the Detention Staff and Trustees were
recognized for their assistance. The program was a true win-win
situation.
“The trustees learned compassion and the value of life
when they saw an innocent animal struggling to hang on,”
says Trish. “They cared for these horses when they were
at their very worst and willingly helped critical horses while
medical care was applied. After a few months, we would give
them photos of the horses they helped recover, showing them
the difference their efforts of kindness could make in a life.”
|
Inmates
at the Sumter Detention Center assisted with recovery of rescued
horses. |
| Mr.
B and Apple are two of the last rescues that went through the
Detention Center. Both were discovered by tips to the SPCA and
brought to the Center for vet care and a Coggins test. There
they began a long, slow process of recovery, and sent into foster
care when they were sufficiently stable. |
“As
far as feeding a rescue goes, there is not a hard and fast rule,”
says Trish.
“Depending on condition, the horse is started on one cup
of steamed crimped oats and a mixture of half alfalfa and half
coastal, three or four times a day. As time goes on, the oats
are increased and we begin to introduce Seminole Senior. Each
horse is different but the bottom line is that when the horse
is able to tolerate feed back into its system, it’s Seminole
Senior all the way. ”Apple got her name the obvious way.
“She went from 600 to over a thousand pounds in a few
months, thanks to Seminole Senior and bushels of apples.She
has found a |
The
barn on the Detention Center’s property served as a temporary
shelter for abused horses. |
good permanent home, although Mr. B is still up for adoption.”
says Trish. “But he is doing great. I spoke to Rick, his
foster dad today -- Mr. B had just had a bath when he promptly
rolled in the mud. Some things never change.”
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| You
can see how dedicated the staff, volunteers and foster parents
must be to affect these rescues, and how much help they need
to secure a permanent rescue center. That, along with the goal
to construct Florida’s 1st “Green” Animal
Shelter (mainly for dogs & cats), the equine/livestock shelter
will need support by donors & volunteers so that it can
come to fruition. The Society recently purchased a five-acre
tract in Sumter County, volunteers have fenced the perimeter
and now they need a builder to help organize a barn raising.
Additionally, donations are needed for the Equine Emergency
Fund to offset the costs of tests, treatment and farrier services.
At this writing, the Humane Society/SPCA is still in need of
foster |
Sumter
County Equines in Need receive support from the Sumter County
Sheriff’s Dept. (Detective Michael Calloway), Humane Society/SPCA
Cruelty Specialists (Sheri Evans & Trish Cheston) and Seminole
Feed (Jill Haight). |
homes
and the best gift people can give is to give of themselves.
For more information about how you can help, please contact
the, Inc., 352-793-9117, humane@sum.net
or visit them online at www.hsspca.org.
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In
her spare time Terry Temple enjoys riding her two arabians
Ayla and Khody. Terry owns Temple Media, a full service
marketing agency. |
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