Sweet Harley has been with Christ Redeemed Equine Sanctuary for over four years. Yes, I understand that he was not a great "business decision" as far as rescues go, but he has been worth every penny and every challenge.
He is not out of the woods yet, but I would love to see him go to his forever family who can invest in him with less divided attention. Harley's story goes like this:
A thoroughbred and former race horse, tattoo under his lip and all, Harley was likely auctioned off at a young age and sent into the world. This beautiful boy would finally end up at a commercial trail riding outfit that was a bit unprepared for the high expense that goes along with keeping horses. As a result, Harley suffered neglect on top of being pushed around by the other dozens of horses that he was penned up with.
It is unknown how many years he was in this difficult environment, but when he arrived at CRES, he had some serious challenges to overcome. Beyond emaciation, our farrier pulled ten nails out of both front hooves, his front right hoof had a blow out nearly to his cornet band, and he had severe overgrowth of his toe on that side. The difficulty walking on that foot created issues with the left front shoulder, back and hips. He has been through three years of corrective shoeing, laser therapy, chiropractic readjustment, and of course a regular vet check up on his teeth and vitals.
We are unsure of his whole story, but although he is only around 19 years old, he is already unable to eat hay and does have some skin issues that flare up from time to time. His new diet, after the recent discovery about his teeth, is putting weight back on him steadily: 25 lbs per day (half a bag) of soaked alfalfa cubes, 2 lbs senior feed, and soaked beet pulp shreds.
I do believe that he will make a full recovery, but his forever home is a family with a heart for thoroughbreds and all of their delicacies. Harley deserves a home with lots of investment in relationship with him. His personality is so sweet, quirky and cute-- he loves to play in the water and he has a calm demeanor. It may seem silly to expect such a blessing for a horse that is somewhat of a special needs boy, but I know my horse people and I believe that there is a family with a heart to take this sweet boy through the last little bit of his recovery and make him a part of their family <3
Comments