“We can’t save them all... 

 but we can show them love”

            “We teach them how it is to be loved.”
“Nobody was their voice... they had nobody to protect them." 

       

This is the heart’s desire of three women whose mission is to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome slaughter bound horses and also horses in situations involving abuse, neglect or the inability of the owner to provide needed care.

The gals are: from L-R:  Madeline (Maddy) Snyder, Apple Valley, Kat Rohl, Cannon Falls and Kathy Peterson, North Branch.  Kat has turned her home stables south of Cannon Falls into Resthaven Horse Rescue.

The business acumen of the three who also work full-time resulted in getting legal recognition of their tax exempt status with a 501c3.  And they have the enthusiasm to organize fundraisers to help with their project.

Their years of experience with horses has provided them with the understanding of the amount of work involved and the dedication needed.

Kat explained:  “All we do is work hard.”

Maddy added: “We can’t give up now!”

Why do this?

Kat explained how they got into this project.  A few years ago they knew they wanted to save horses from slaughter but decided they would focus on helping horses who were in life threatening situations.

Their plan is to get the horses healthy and then find homes for them.

Where do they find them?

They find the horses they rescue in various ways.  Some are seen online where it is explained that if they aren’t sold by a certain date they will go to slaughter.

Or someone gets a horse out of a slaughter pen and then finds it’s too much for them and they need the help of these gals.

Or authorities call them.

Where the horses come from...

It’s not always the fault of bad owners, Kat explained.  There may be circumstances that led to the problem.  They have a strict privacy policy and do not release the names of the owners.

In one case no one knew what the problem was.  The horse was deteriorating. They had tests done that showed an intestinal cancer that was difficult to diagnose or treat.  This horse didn’t make it.  To this day they miss her, Kat explained.   

“We cannot save them all, but we can show them respect, compassion and love.”

Some of the success stories...

The horses reflect a variety of breeds... quarter horse, mustang, mini and then there’s Erica, a “Jenny” mini mule. 

Kat explained, when Erica came she would not eat, she had a heart murmur, stomach ulcers, fluid buildup on her belly, open sores from her jaw to her tail and was so skinny her bones stuck out.  She was very sick.”

Here she is today.

Another horse, Sable, was missing one-third of her tongue.  And Kitchi is a mustang from North Dakota that had had no food or water over the winter and was severely malnourished.

Resthaven Horse Rescue is full at the present time.  Like Kat explained:  “We are responsible for the animals we have now.”

More stories and examples of ways to help are listed on their website: www.resthavenhorserescue.com.