NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – More than a dozen horses taken in by the state due to unfit living conditions are on the road to recovery. It’s all thanks to a New Mexico horse rescue.
The rescue said, in their 22 years, this is the biggest group of horses they have taken in at once.
That’s how Executive Director Susan Hemmerle describes the conditions of the 13 horses that arrived at the Cerrillos nonprofit called The Horse Shelter in November.
The animals came from different parts of the state. Ten of them are from Deming after the State Livestock Board took them into custody from the owners who were not taking care of them. This is the largest intake to date for the shelter, which has the capacity to take care of up to 100 horses.
Out of the 13 horses, two have already been adopted. The shelter said the animals arrived badly in need of care and that it could take some time before the others are ready for adoption.
“The age of the horse, the overall health of the horse and the conditions of the horse, on how fast they’ll be able to recover,” said Hemmerle.
With daily feeding, vet bills, training, and more, the shelter said rehabilitating the horses can be time-consuming and costly. They rely heavily on the generosity of donations.
“We’re budgeting next year for 70-80 horses; $130,000 just for hay,” said Hemmerle.
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She hopes people will do their research before they decided to own a horse. Hemmerle said the cost of hay has increased by more than 20% in recent years. They expect to take in even more horses on Friday.
