EDMONTON – It’s hard to believe a pair of friendly little miniature horses at Farmfair International in Edmonton ever needed rescuing or rehabilitating.
Two-year-old Dora, a dark brown, shaggy maned miniature horse, is interested in everything around her, while five-year-old Roxy, a shaggy sorrel, sometimes gets crabby and bites but still loves to be scratched on her head.
The miniature horses were part of the Hearts and Hooves booth at Farmfair. The organization hoped to raise awareness and money for its efforts rescuing and rehabilitating miniature horses.
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The rehabilitated horses are taken to hospitals, nursing homes and drug rehabilitation centres to help with patient rehabilitation, said volunteer Marlene Dahl of Sherwood Park, Alta.
“They’re not frightening for people and they fit in the elevator.”
Dahl said the horses bring back memories for shut-in seniors who used to ride horses to school or had horses on the farm. They are also able to entice reclusive patients out of their rooms.
“Horses don’t judge. They don’t care,” Wahl said.
Brenda Watmough of Sherwood Park said she knew she wanted to volunteer with the program as soon as she saw the horses.
“I live on an acreage and love horses but am afraid of them,” she said. “I’m not afraid of miniature horses.”
However, little horses can have big bills. Each horse costs the organization $25 a month for feed, $35 every six weeks for a farrier and $50 a year for vaccination. It cares for four to 12 horses at a time, depending on the time of year.
Some rescued animals come with an existing vet bill or a lot of problems that require veterinary care.
“We don’t know when we rescue them what we’ll find,” Dahl said.
Horses and Hooves was started in 2004 as a rescue organization that also used miniature horses as an interactive therapy program for human patients.
Watmough said it’s amazing to watch the tiny horses place their heads onto a patient’s bed as if they know the patient is seeking a caring friend.
The group is looking for donations to help offset the care of the horses but also to help pay for visits to hospitals and care facilities.
Tim Moreland of Sherwood Park, has donated land beside his Aspen Ridge Greenhouse as the permanent home for the Hearts and Hooves rescue program.
“I wanted to give them a permanent, long-term home,” he said.
Dahl said the organization will put horses up for adoption if it finds a good home.
“It has to be something permanent,” she said.
