Mountain View Farm Rescue Animals

GRACE

“Mardonnaray” is the registered name of this lovely older, retired Standardbred mare that has found her soft place to land and spend the rest of her years of well-deserved rest here at the Sanctuary. We have lovingly given her the barn name “Grace”, in honor of her courageous spirit and resilience she has exhibited despite all she has been through in life thus far. Grace was rescued in January 2016 by Gerda’s Animal Aid from a Pennsylvania feedlot. A feedlot is the last chance that cast-off, slaughter-bound horses get to be purchased and find a home prior to being shipped to slaughter. In this case, Grace had one week to be spotted by her savior(s) before being tagged and shipped to Mexico for processing. This sweet girl found herself in this dire predicament after many years of dedicated work to humans. She has a lip tattoo, which helped trace her history back to that she has been raced a total of five times, she has two registered foals and she spent the last of her years before landing in the slaughter pipeline, as an Amish buggy horse, working long, tiresome days pounding down the pavement transporting her owner’s family where ever they needed to go. As a result of the work she endured, Grace has very weak, lame hind legs and a hoof condition. She will never be sound to ride or drive again, and that is quite alright because she deserves her retirement. Grace is in need of physical and emotional rehabilitation; however, she is on the right track and in the right place to be well on her way to health and happiness.

SPIRIT

Spirit is a beautiful and sweet senior Tennessee Walking Horse mare.
Spirit was initially rescued by her owner from a kill pen (where horses on their way to slaughter are held) and spent the past few years prior to coming to us living solely with her human owner.

When her loving owner began to struggle with her health, as well as being able to supply Spirit with good nutrition due to lack of availability and all other home options fell through due to Spirit’s age and her vice of cribbing, her owner asked us to take her on for her safety. Spirit is a horse that could very well be susceptible to ending up in a kill pen once again, and we are grateful to be able to offer her sanctuary.

Spirit has a very kind and gentle, yet spirited persona; not to mention her beautiful black coat and striking white markings. She is slowly winning the hearts of all who meet her and we are happy to have her with us.

BUCKY

Bucky came to the sanctuary in January 2015 with two other miniature horses. All three were starved and grossly neglected. They had very poor body condition, rotten and overgrown hooves, skin problems, and major trust issues; especially Bucky. He has since been rehabilitated to full health and is learning to trust humans again. He is very smart and sweet, but takes some time to get to know new people and is frightened of quick movements.

SASSY

Sassy was part of a family of miniature horses rescued in January 2015 during a violent and cold blizzard. She and her herd-mates were emaciated and very neglected, needing months of rehabilitation to return to full health. Sassy is now very happy and healthy, and living up to her name! She demands the respect and attention of humans and loves to be told how beautiful she is.

DESTINY

Destiny is an older Rocky Mountain horse mare with an inquisitive nature and a zest for life. She came to us after being rescued from a situation of neglect. Upon arrival, Destiny was quite scared of humans and was especially fearful of being haltered or having her head touched. After many weeks of patient, dedicated and compassionate care, Destiny recovered physically and is very well on her way to emotional healing as well.

CHADWICK ”CHAD”

Chad came to us along with his companion, Zip following the passing of their owner, and the question of the safety of their future. He is a handsome senior Thoroughbred gelding with a sweet, wise persona. From what we know, Chad spent some of his earlier years with a loving family, whose daughter he developed a deep bond.

Aside from his time with this family and in his most recent previous home as a companion for Zip, we were told that he “worked” as a buggy horse at a Vermont resort until he good no longer meet the demands asked of him.

Chad is in fairly good health for his age. He does have arthritis in numerous areas of his body and has been diagnosed with Cushing’s disease. He receives medication for both of these conditions. Additionally, like most older horses, he doesn’t have the greatest teeth so he eats mashes and mostly second cut hay, which is less coarse and easier to chew.

BROWNIE

Brownie is a very friendly brown and white pinto pony gelding. He came to us after he lost his usefulness as a competitive pulling horse, and was no longer wanted. Brownie has many physical ailments, some chronic and others a result of earlier mismanagement.

To keep Brownie in good health, his diet must be carefully maintained and he occasionally requires supplements and medications when he has flare-ups from his insulin resistance. Brownie is also permanently blind in his right eye and has a respiratory restriction that is noticed when he gets excited or runs around a lot.

Despite his physical challenges, Brownie maintains an energetic, joyful outlook on life.

JONI

Big J – or Joni is a Standardbred gelding who was initially rescued from the kill pen by our fellow rescue, Gerda’s Equine Rescue”, and then found his way to us. Although he bears the scars of many years tirelessly working for the Amish community as a carriage horse, he is still full of life.

Since coming to us, J has blossomed into a healthy, exuberant, and goofy horse. He prefers humans and miniature horse friends over those of his own likeness. He has a quirky personality and loves to frolic and play.

We are happy to be able to provide him with a place that he can let go and express himself, without the need to do hard labor. Just be a horse.

ZIP

Zip came to us along with his buddy, Chad, following their owner’s passing and the impending sale of the estate that they lived on.
Zip is a gorgeous red-headed Quart Horse gelding. He is very inquisitive and playful, yet cautious and a bit anxious about new situations.

It is our understanding that Zip was destined at a young age to become a performance horse, racing barrels at competitions. That was until he began exhibiting explosive bucking episodes when attempts were made to ride him. The cause is still unknown, but it is suspected to likely be due to a physical issue with his back known as “kissing spine”; a condition in which the vertebrae in the back touch and pressure on the location causes pain. He does seem comfortable and pain-free at this time, however, we will keep a close watch for signs of discomfort and see if we can find out a bit more about this health issue. Zip is otherwise a very healthy boy.

Due to his physical issue and his unrideable condition we felt strongly that he was a very high risk for being placed in an unsafe situation, for both him and the humans involved. “Unrideable horses” are typically the last to be considered by homes and companion situations are hard to come by; especially this year in light of the pandemic and limited hay supply due to poor weather conditions.

Horses like Zip can also easily find their way into auction houses and the slaughter pipeline if they fall into the wrong hands. None of the scenarios are what we would wish for on any horse, and we are thankful to be able to offer Zip safety and understanding.