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Meet some Horses that Received a Second
Chance
at Flurry's Hope
Some of
these have been adopted, some have moved to other farms, and some have
died.
But all
were loved at Flurry's Hope!
Flurry,
Fiddle, LittleMan,
Nova,
Goldie,
Powder,
Snowflake,
Teddy,
Ace,
Reggae,
Diamond, Justice
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 Flurry
This blind appaloosa was given to one of the HorseFriends
board members because she was unwanted. Likely, equine uveitis took her
sight.
 Dirty, thin and worm infested, she was fearful when first seen by
Emilie in a large pasture. With a smaller environment, lots of love and
consistent care, Flurry became a beautiful, noble and willing trail
horse. Quickly, she learned a mental map of her living area and would
freely move about without running into things. Flurry
loved to be ridden and became the dominant horse over two sighted
horses.
A few days before she was to begin working in HorseFriends'
therapeutic program, she died unexpectedly, leaving a huge void and
great sadness. Because of her inspiring life, Emilie began Flurry's
Hope to help other blind horses have second chances in life. Flurry's
amazing courage has been the inspiration for other horses to be trained
and used in different ways. Her devoted spirit, enhanced by her
blindness, demonstrated the strong connection that blind horses can have
with their owners. Her true age was unknown but she was likely about 21
years old at the time of her death.
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Fiddle / Lady Fiddlesticks / Lady Hope / '506'
   Fiddle
came to NC in 2008. She had never had a name; she was only used for
breeding; she was referred to as "506." It is so inhumane to never
have a name, just a number. She lived a life we can only imagine; no creature should be
treated in an abusive way. We called her Fiddle, short for Lady
Fiddlesticks, a name given by a 12-year-old girl to rhyme with '506' so
she might make a connection. She is a gorgeous white, pure bred Arabian
with huge, kind eyes that reflect fear.
Throughout
her life, Fiddle has surely been abused. When you reached to pet her
head, she pulled away in fear. When you came towards her with a lead
rope, she quivered. She would only let a very few close enough to hug her,
and then only for a few seconds. Her fear took over and she pulled away.
She wasn't tricked by offers of grain. You could tell that she had been
lied to, perhaps with an offering made and then harsh hands grabbing
her. Fiddle broke our hearts.
 I
could never get close enough to her to give her the acceptance and love
she needs so badly. But Fiddle got more than a second chance. In
May 2010, Fiddle rode away in a trailer that she was afraid to enter, to
a place she didn't know, with people she never met, but to the beginning
of a better life. She already has a new name, Lady Hope.
She now lives Pennsylvania, with a wonderful Arab rescue group, to be
loved as she has never known. She is pictured at the left with
Aaron, her friend with Down's Syndrome. She is responding beautifully,
now coming to people freely and letting them pet her. Fiddle/Lady
Hope taught us that second chances come after suffering.
"God, please give this wonderful horse, who is beautiful on both the
inside and the outside, a knowledge that humans can heal, not just
hurt. Show her the opposite side of humanity. Thank you that we were
allowed to see You care enough to give this wonderful animal the chance
to know real love. You knew where she was. You came for her."
The picture
(right, of Fiddle with the rainbow over her) has inspired us to remember
God's goodness, even to the "least of these." This is a picture of
redemption at its finest. God never forgets.
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LittleMan
 Little
Man is about 6 years old, and he is a sighted horse. He was rescued
with a blind pony from an abusive situation. LittleMan was so afraid of
trailers that it took three different days to get him into a trailer so that he could travel to us!
Several different
people tried to load him, until he finally relented. He has settled into Second Chance Ranch for almost a year; and he is a great
trail horse.
One of our volunteers, Abigail, owned a horse which died suddenly in
December of 2009. Abigail has now adopted Little Man, and he is in
training for barrel racing. According to the trainer, he is a
phenomenal athlete, and Little Man has found a wonderful home and career
with Abigail and barrel racing. Another second chance!
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Nova (Cassanova,
formerly "Unexpected Success")
  Nova is
was born in May 2009, blind. On the left, he's relaxing after his favorite meal. His original
owner in Montana has lupus; she raises foals but did not have the
energy to also work with a blind foal. She couldn't find anyone who was willing to
take him, so she
never named him. Finally, she found Flurry's Hope. After we agreed to
take him, she named him "Unexpected Success." Our volunteers called him Cassanova because he's so handsome.
One of our board members fell in love with him and has permanently
adopted him. He has a wonderful life at her ranch. You can see him in
the YouTube
video: "Which horse is blind?"
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Goldie
  Goldie
is a 23 year old palomino who was given to Flurry's Hope by Gold Mine
Ranch in Minnesota. Her family loved her but was afraid that she was too
cold in the rough winters that they had and she was pregnant. Goldie had
been blinded by an eye being poked out and also by an infection in the
other eye. Even blind, Goldie was a winning barrel racer. She was also a
steady mount in the Black Hills in the western US for this family's
young son. Goldie came to Flurry's Hope in 2008 and her foal
is Golden Ice T, the yearling on the farm. His father is Doc's Dry Ice,
a descendant of T Bar and was priced at $75,000.
Goldie has been adopted and now lives in Ruffin, NC.
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Powder
   This
is Powder, who was born legally blind in April 2010 in Iowa.
Powder was going to be killed by his owner, because he did not know what
else to do. A wonderful individual and her sister organized
support to send Powder to Flurry's Hope. Our trusted transporter,
Tim Grant of Equestrian Express, donated the travel costs, so that the
support raised can go to help vet bills for Powder. Powder
arrived at Second Chance Ranch on September 16th, 2010 to begin his new
life. He was very calm and cooperative.
Sadly, Powder died just two weeks after arriving at Second Chance Ranch,
on October 2, 2010. Our hearts were deeply touched by this little one
who was with us for such a short time. He reminds us of the importance
of life: it's not the amount of time on this earth, but the quality of
life and the love given and received while we're here. Read
Powder's Memorial for a
glimpse of how bravely he lived and died. |
Snowflake
  Snowflake is an appaloosa pony who is about 22
years old. She is blind and partially deaf. Snowflake was found
wandering around Surry County, NC without an owner or enough to eat; she
was saved by an equine rescue group in July 2008. Her
past history is not known, but it seems as if she was neglected for many
years. Snowflake had been slated
for death TWICE. Snowflake is a very gentle horse who loves hugs. She can be
ridden easily. Snowflake tilts her head because of her hearing problem.
She was blinded by equine uveitis, the infection common to the appaloosa
breed. Snowflake is best friends with Jack, pictured
on right.
She has adored the love and nourishment she has received
at Flurry's Hope. In November 2009, she was taken into foster
care by Abigail (age 7) and her family. Abigail is shown here when
Snowflake arrived. Every pony needs a little girl and every horse-loving little girl needs a pony.
Snowflake now lives with a wonderful family and her blind friend Goldie. |
Teddy
  Our youngest horse at Flurry’s Hope, Teddy
is a quarter horse born in 2005. He was bought by an individual in Mississippi to
be a trail horse. When he became blind, she drove from Mississippi to
bring him to Flurry’s Hope because she wanted him to have a place where
he could be productive. Teddy is being used for just what she bought him
for originally, a trail horse. He is very willing and loves to ride in
the fields. Teddy has one-half of an ear that was bitten off by his father. We
do not know the specific cause of his blindness.
Teddy died suddenly in October of 2010. We will miss him so much; he was a teachable, cooperative and beloved horse. |
Ace
 Ace joined Flurry's Hope in February, 2011. Ace is a beautiful 12-year old Percheron who was saved from slaughter in N.Y.
In the photo to the right, he's seen with his friend, Suzanne.
Here is a picture that a patient's daughter graciously painted of me and Ace. It is from a photo that Robert took when we went to get Ace in NY in January. This woman truly captured this horse. What a gentleman.
He was recently ado pted and lives in Pelham, NC with a very nice family where the mother and daughter ride. They are very loving. We think that Ace was an Amish driving horse whose needs were not regularly met. Rescued as he was heading to Canada for slaughter, Ace was thin with poor teeth when he came to us. He has gained weight and is very happy at his new home where there is lots of grass. This picture is what Flurry's Hope is about. Redemption. The dead live and bless so many. Thank you for what you have done for these blind horses.
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Reggae
   Reggae is a registered
American Saddle bred who was a
champion competitor in show classes (far right). He was being
sold for $50,000 however when the vet checked him for sale he was found
to be somewhat blind in one eye. Reggae’s sale price went to $0 in that
one moment, and he was disqualified from competition because of his
eyesight, not his performance. Soon thereafter Reggae became totally
blind and was rescued by an individual in Indiana who was concerned
about his plight. After three years, when she heard about Flurry’s Hope,
she wrote and asked us to take him so that he could be productive again.
Reggae is a very sweet and fancy horse who will be a very beautiful
sight to behold. He has been with Flurry’s Hope since November 2009.
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Justice
"Before and After"
   This is Justice,
before (far left, when he arrived here) and after (middle,
after just 2 months with Flurry's Hope). Justice came to us with
his friend, Mercy,
in February 2010. Read their story in our
March Newsletter! Look how
beautiful he is now, compared to when he first came to
Flurry's Hope (far left picture).
December 2012, Flurry's Hope put to rest our beloved Justice
♥
RIP Justice |
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Diamond
  Diamond is an appaloosa who is 15 years old. Her death
date was scheduled for July 25,
2009. Diamond’s owner did not know how to care for a blind horse and was
going to put her down rather than have her taken advantage of. We
learned of this therapy horse’s plight and Diamond came from
Pennsylvania to live with us in August, 2009. She is an excellent riding horse
and loves to go on trails. Diamond has been blind since January 2009, a
result of equine uveitis.
Diamond has been adopted by Greg & MC in Virginia. Diamond has joined
Chilihorse, a Quarter Horse gelding, Leo, a Foundation Appaloosa
gelding, Daisy Mae, a one eyed Appaloosa mare, Otis, Quarter Horse
gelding, Cassie, a 30 year old Arabian mare, Eli, an abandoned
Thoroughbred cross gelding, (Cassie and Eli are a couple), ReRock,
Appaloosa and three burros, Desert Blossom, Jack, and Bear and one
donkey, Buddy. Flurry's Hope will miss her very much, but we are
comforted in knowing that she is at a wonderful new home.
(How can I 'adopt' a horse?)
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