Disappointing visit to a charity..

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Cedars

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Visited a well known charity today (not sure if I can name?) to look at rehoming a horse for my friend. She's not 100% sure what she's looking for so we were going for a preliminary visit just to get an idea.

So we got there, met with someone who wasn't who we'd booked the app with. She took us around and immediately decided that this one Shetland was perfect for us. Only problem, he was cut late, and therefore is very very riggy. He was nice but we were looking to get an idea of various and she was a bit grumpy when we asked to see a few more. After persuasion, she showed us one more but immediately declared it wasn't suitable (because it took two attempts to catch).

So then we brought the first horse in. Picked his feet out for what must have been the first time in months-we're talking compacted mud that's been there weeks and weeks-he could barely walk on the way in. We gave him a groom and found a really nasty infected bite on him that I squeezed a good amount of gunk out of-yummy... Anyway he was sweet enough.

Then the boss lady came out and basically tried to force us in to taking this horse-kept telling us about how someone else was coming on the weekend and if we wanted him we had to sign for him NOW. I stepped in and said that there was absolutely no way we were going to do that-firstly because that wasn't the premise of our visit and also because we wanted to know a lot more about him-such as does he load, does he bath, his medical history etc etc. She pulled a face at this like wanting to know this info was totally unreasonable. Then we had a discussion about keeping him-he would be on a livery yard with individual turnout-but this is absolutely unacceptable to them apparently and he would HAVE to be with a companion? Despite his real rig type behaviour? I think that's ridiculous personally..

Anyway, then she wanted to give him to us without a vet check before he goes, without any info on what he is like for the dentist etc, farrier history, lami history, why he'd come back from his old loan home... She couldn't understand why I wanted to see his passport or any records for him. Then she found a sheet in his file that was full of xrays-but she wasn't sure if that was the same horse?!?!

Anyway, we left with her basically saying if you don't agree to take him now you can't have him-and we said that's fine, I'm not being forced in to taking a horse!! And we're going to see WHW on the weekend who I know are amazing as one of ours is from there.

Anyway, do I sound really unreasonable?! Or does this all sound odd to you?! Oh, and she didn't know how old the pony was, had to look it up, and said the pony in the next field was a mare when it was in fact a gelding... When quizzed she said yes it's a mare it's had it's balls off.....?!
 
Sounds like some dog 'rescue' places I know of. Alot of people operate under the 'rescue' banner but they should be ashamed of themselves. I'd stick to WHW...know alot of people who have horses from them and they are brilliant..might make you jump through hoops to rehome one of their horses but rather that than have the wrong animal shoved on to you. Good luck.
 
Wow, that's pretty shocking.

I'd have walked away too, don't think anything you asked was unreasonable.

Am really pretty horrified at the apparent lack of knowledge their end.

Would you PM me the name - I've just suggested to a friend that they go round the charites to find a companion pony, don't want her to waste her time with this one.
 
I went to one of the big ROR places and that was quite disappointing. They kept trying to get me to take horses that had very serious medical problems. It wasn't what I wanted at all, I had gone to see a horse they were actually selling, it was the last one they showed to me and I had to press them to show her to me, they really seem to prefer the possibility of me taking a loaner. The horses were in great condition etc, but I was surprised they had such serious medical problems, one in particular they felt was not going to cause me much trouble, but my own vet was horrified they would try to get me to take it on.
 
Are they a branch of a bigger rescue? If so I'd be tempted to tell the head office or main rescue of your experience. Sounds like they are not operating within usual guidelines.
 
I believe that they are their own individual unit (they have a visitors farm too if that gives anyone any hints..) but I might look in to it anyway.
 
I have had a very scarily similar experience myself. I went to a very well known charity (mayb the same one, I will PM you the name) and after talking to them on the phoned explained what I wanted, which was a companion or something that could be lightly ridden.
When I got there I was shown a 32 year old who was very sweet but not what I wanted as I needed something to live out all year round and stay out alone (with horses in field next door) and she could do niether. Well while I was there I was literally forced to take her, I said I would think about it (I'm a bit of a soft touch and was very shocked by this point). They gave me some more info and I left.

2 days later I get a voicemail call from there wellfare assessor telling me he was coming the following day to check out the livery yard where I'd be keeping the horse!! I let him know that I didn't want to take the horse so he needn't come. I then recieved a phone call from the charity who made me feel incredibly guilty, even though I didn't promise to take the mare once.
I did not go back to them and found a more suitable horse at another charity.
 
Charities like everything to go in pairs nowadays (why get rid of one when you can get rid of two! ;) )
However to be fair "rescued" animals should not be perfect otherwise why are they rescued?
 
I absolutely wasnt expecting it to be perfect- I was just shocked that they weren't happy to fill us in on background, let us do stuff with him (basic stuff like check he loads !) and also that they seemed to have such little knowledge? About the horse itself and they weren't interested in showing us any of his records? And to INSIST that a horse has someoe in with it all the time seems ludicrous-surely that's a balanced decision you make based on the horses welfare?
 
Yep I had the same experience about the time a well known charity took over another local small charity. I visited a place in Norfolk and was shocked at how the horses feet were overgrown out in the fields.Anyhow it was a complete waste of time.The facilities were good and the staff were nice but the horses feet were turning lets put it like that!

I was more annoyed I drove such a long way to find out they were in the middle of no where, after my efforts to tell them it had to be good on road(I was after a companion and moving fields needed it to be good to lead along).

Will Pm you too wonder if its the same one now??
 
If it is the same horse charity as l think it is l would not touch with a barge pole l know of two families given ponies who had no experience of looking after them and to top it off they gave them newly backed youngsters.
 
What a shame. I never thought that would happen. I know it will be bad for the person taking the horse, but what will happen to the poor horse afterwards!

They should tell you everything that has happened to the horse & the health history. I would never part with an horse unless the person understood any illness the horse had in the past or has now.

This is shocking.
 
Name and shame !!! God knows other charities have enough of a blistering.

Then email them the link to here - will work wonders, I can tell you.
 
I can guess where you are talking about.
I did work experience there a few years ago and I am in no rush to go back. I was not impressed with the way they ran things seeing as it is a "charity".
 
I do get where people are coming from, no its not the best run in the world for a couple of reasons BUT they do great work and don't deserve a public ribbing IMO. I know several horses loaned out from there, nice horses rescued and rehabbed by them and now enjoying lovely useful lives in caring homes. Home checked regularly etc.
 
Professionally I have had a lot of experience with charities, equine and otherwise. Hand on heart I can say that i have met some of strangest, crookiest (sp?!) and untrustworthy people through this work - some of the worse in so called equine charities - one place in particular comes to mind!! But I can also say that I have met some of the most wonderful , patience and honest people. As with any other sector you have your good and your bad! The more people walk away from the bad and work with the good the better the overall equine charitable sector will become.
 
Definitely some dodgy horse charities out there, ive had a run in with one, not an experience i wish to repeat, as far as im concerned they were nothing more than dealers masquerading under another name. Truly awful, no home checks, no name or address taken, just took your cash & that was it!
 
indie999 said:
I visited a place in Norfolk and was shocked at how the horses feet were overgrown out in the fields.Anyhow it was a complete waste of time.The facilities were good and the staff were nice but the horses feet were turning lets put it like that!
Click to expand...

I think this is probably the same place as the one I went to and there were fields, and fields, and fields full of horses... and full height ragwort :mad: Not just one or two pieces either :(
 
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