Angel

We asked weekend Barn Manager Ian to tell us a little bit about Angel and how she is adjusting to life at Safe Harbor. Ian has a very gentle way in his relationship with horses which is the perfect energy for Angel right now. Here is what Ian had to say about this timid mare:

Angel came to us extremely shy and mistrusting of humans, and also undernourished and in need of farrier work. My first time catching her at pasture with her herd was maybe 30 min of advance and retreat games that she finally acquiesced to. Due to her weight, we have been feeding her a mash at lunch in addition to her morning and evening feeds. To feed her, we must catch her and lead her outside of her pasture to keep her herd-mates from sampling the delicious grain. This little ritual of catching for grain has helped her immensely.

In addition to associating being caught with being fed, I have been very, very slowly and gently working on handling her and accustoming her to human touch. She is still very touchy around her hindquarters, especially from the stifle downward. However, after a couple months of this ritual, I can now touch her anywhere from shoulder to stifle without too much trouble. We are still taking this slow, rebuilding trust, but it is showing positive results in other areas. She is now being easier to catch and handle by other volunteers, as I now use any opportunity for other volunteers to catch her to accustom her to being handled by other people. She is coming along in great leaps and strides, but still has a long way to go. Compared to some horses who need more structure and support, Angel needs quiet love and someone with the patience to keep at her trouble spots for as long as it takes for her to have her process with it.

We are very encouraged by the great progress Angel has made since coming to Safe Harbor. She is now easily caught by people she knows well so at lunchtime, she’s being pulled out of her paddock for an extra mash to help her put on weight. She eats a little bit of hay but her teeth and age don’t allow her to get all the nutrition she needs just from hay so she will always need to be supplemented with senior type feeds. She loves her mashes and makes a good mess with then which is very endearing (even though it gets all over the place!)

We’ve been able to get a blanket on her to protect her from the rain in turnout and she even let Lori, our Barn Manager, fix it when it flipped up over her hind end. We still are not using back straps so she doesn’t get worried about them touching her hind legs but this is something we can work towards. She also got a GLOWING report from our farrier Daphne. She was able to pick up Angel’s hind legs with absolutely no kicking out! This is a huge step in the right direction. We still have not attempted to trim her hinds but they are not in bad shape so if it takes her a little more time getting comfortable with them being handled that is OK.

Video of Angel working on catching: 

From the day we met her, this mare has proven to us that she is a fighter who has taken care of herself for a long time. We were told that no one had haltered her in the 15 years she had been on the property. It took us about two and a half hours to halter her for transport but once we caught her, she was very easy to load and manage. When we got home she actually seemed calm, not sweaty or nervous from the trailer ride.

Haltering her in the field has gotten a lot easier and takes less time. For the first weeks she would only allow Terry to approach her but this week she is opening up and Lori our barn manager has been able to halter her as well. It helps that every time we catch her we make sure she has a bucket of senior feed to enjoy. She is slowly learning that we are here to help and we are hopeful we can give her a happy retirement where all her needs are met.

Her medical evaluation has been positive for the most part. Her teeth are old and worn down but no major complications. She will need to maintained on some amount of senior feed to help her get the nutrition she needs. Her front hoof xrays looked good and while she would not let us touch her hind end just yet, we have been able to trim her front hooves and are working on her gaining our trust with the hinds. She has some issues with her left hind. At this point it seems mostly mechanical but we are monitoring for pain and comfort levels.

This mare has already come a long way in trusting us. Each day we build a better relationship with her and while there may be small setbacks along the way, there are wonderful days ahead.