It has been a while since we’ve brought a new horse into our barn, but that doesn’t mean that we haven’t been helping horses in other ways. Thanks to the hard work of our outreach team, we’ve been able to actively support horses in our community without them needing to come through our gates.
Tucker, a small Shetland mini cross, is a recent example. Tucker had been with his owner for the past eight years, but was in need of a new home due to her advanced illness. Before his time with her, Tucker came from an auction in Eastern Washington, where he had experienced years of fear and poor treatment.
Around the same time we heard about Tucker, we were receiving an overwhelming number of applications for our little mini gelding TeSelle, including one from Christina and her family, who were especially eager to help a horse in need. Though TeSelle was already spoken for (more on that in a bit ;)), we had a hunch that Tucker would be the perfect fit for Christina. Thanks to quick work from our amazing volunteers, we were able to complete site and reference checks right away, and instead of bringing Tucker into SAFE, we facilitated a direct foster-to-adopt to Christina and her family.
While Tucker had been receiving plenty of food and love, he was overdue for some regular care. Christina immediately scheduled a farrier visit to address an overgrown hoof, and SAFE arranged for our fabulous vets at Rainland to provide a full intake exam—bloodwork, dental, vaccines, and microchipping.
Like any SAFE horse, Tucker had a 30-day adoption trial, but it was quickly apparent how smitten the family was with this cutie. We also welcomed Tucker into our alumni program so we can continue to support him and his new family long-term.
So while our volunteers have been doing an incredible job getting settled at the new property, we’re still actively helping horses in our community, welcoming horses like Tucker into our herd in a slightly different way.
