has anyone rescued from rescue centre

[MissMay]

hi, as per title really,

I'm nearly ready after loosing my heart horse to purchase again and I came across a nice horse on a rescue centre. he is unbroken pound rescued with a sweet personality easy to handle etc (as per ad)
But I have never, nor do i know of anyone who has genuinely gotten a rescue horse (rescue dogs yes, is it similar?!)

what can anyone let me know-
was training any different?
did it prove very difficult with all background issues (I am experienced we have always bred and broke our own so this wont be a first and plenty of support, but slightly different I'm sure breaking a home bred who has never know hardship compared to a rescue case)
was there anything you wish you knew before?

Any info would be great as I said only browsing atm so allowing time to fully make up my mind and ensure i can offer the best home to the new horse

 

[poiuytrewq]

I have a companion pony from the Blue Cross if that counts?!
The process was very straight forward but I think is a bit more complex with ridden horses.
He is quite nervy even though he was rescued many years ago.
It’s lovely though just knowing that whilst he has had a horrible past I’m now in charge of his future and can make that part of his life as good as possible.

 

[thefarsideofthefield]

You want to rescue a horse that's already been rescued ? Who are you rescuing it from ? Or do you mean that you want to offer a home to a horse from a charity organisation ? Sorry to be pedantic but the 'rescue' thing drives me nuts . It's a very overused term in my opinion !
We've had many animals from charities/shelters and whilst I appreciate that there are welfare and cruelty cases , there are also many other reasons why animals are looking for a new home - we've recently rehomed two dogs whose elderly owner had died . They don't all need ' rescuing' ( and if they do it's the charity that does the rescuing ) - we just give them a new home . And lovely dogs they are too - they were obviously very well loved by their previous owner .
I know , I know - I'm a miserable old bat . But does nobody just buy a horse anymore ? You talk to people who have paid good money for a perfectly nice horse and they will still claim that they 'rescued' it because they didn't agree with the way it's previous owners kept it /didn't like the owner/it looked sad .
My neighbour is a prime example . Every single one of her animals has been 'rescued' , which would be wonderful except that one pony was 'rescued' from a stud a couple of weeks after it had won its' class at a county show and her other pony was 'rescued ' from a yard where she viewed him as an unbroken 4 year old and then paid for him to stay there and for them to break him . And a nice job they did too . When I queried the rescue she said it was because it was a dealers yard .
Sorry for the rant OP - not knocking your desire to give a good home to a deserving animal , and I wish you the very best of luck with 'rehoming' one .

 

[tiahatti]

I had a small pony from the rspca. I wanted a non ridden companion. I spoke to the local centre, told them what I was looking for etc. They suggested a little exmoor cross. She was fine but I think she had been used to a lot of treats, maybe as rewards, I dont know. She would nip a lot thinking we were going to feed her things. Apart from this she was an easy little companion, much loved by our other horse.

 

[honetpot]

The larger animal charities will try and match you, they sometimes retain ownership which means if for any reason your circumstances change you know it can go back. These tend to have been handled and may have some training. Smaller charities just may not have the people to train and handle them, some seem to be full of good deeds but really haven't a clue. I got one completely unhandled which in some ways was better, for me.
It costs as much to keep a good'un as a bad'un, and although you want to give something a home, think about what your long term plans are. There are a lot of black and white ponies under 13hands, but if you want to ride these may be too small. My that I took in is just a pet, which is a shame as I think he could do so much more, but I am sure he is not bothered.

 

[WHWMo]

The last two horses I’ve had have been from World Horse Welfare. One I still have (4 years on) was backed at the charity and the other was a youngster I backed myself then returned to them.

Both really lovely horses who had been taught excellent manners and the ridden one had been backed really gently. Both had come from backgrounds typical of those in charity centres (emaciated, dead horses in the field around them, largely unhandled/feral, worm burdens, with foals at foot etc) but don’t seem to have any issues they’ve carried forward.

The only thing I’ve noticed is that they are more difficult to keep away from a herd environment, individual/small number turnout makes them unsettled as I guess they’ve only ever been in large herds, both before and at the centres. However, I believe that as much turnout and company as possible is the best way to keep most horses anyway, so it’s worked out fine!

I would really recommend it and the reassurance of knowing I could return my mare to the centre if I found myself unable to care for her anymore is comforting.

 

[MissMay]

You want to rescue a horse that's already been rescued ? Who are you rescuing it from ? Or do you mean that you want to offer a home to a horse from a charity organisation ? Sorry to be pedantic but the 'rescue' thing drives me nuts . It's a very overused term in my opinion !
We've had many animals from charities/shelters and whilst I appreciate that there are welfare and cruelty cases , there are also many other reasons why animals are looking for a new home - we've recently rehomed two dogs whose elderly owner had died . They don't all need ' rescuing' ( and if they do it's the charity that does the rescuing ) - we just give them a new home . And lovely dogs they are too - they were obviously very well loved by their previous owner .
I know , I know - I'm a miserable old bat . But does nobody just buy a horse anymore ? You talk to people who have paid good money for a perfectly nice horse and they will still claim that they 'rescued' it because they didn't agree with the way it's previous owners kept it /didn't like the owner/it looked sad .
My neighbour is a prime example . Every single one of her animals has been 'rescued' , which would be wonderful except that one pony was 'rescued' from a stud a couple of weeks after it had won its' class at a county show and her other pony was 'rescued ' from a yard where she viewed him as an unbroken 4 year old and then paid for him to stay there and for them to break him . And a nice job they did too . When I queried the rescue she said it was because it was a dealers yard .
Sorry for the rant OP - not knocking your desire to give a good home to a deserving animal , and I wish you the very best of luck with 'rehoming' one .

sorry yes rehoming, he was emaciated and for meat when rescued by the charity. Very small charity so he is unbroken 5 year old but they say well handled.

Not looking for a freebie no problem with purchasing a horse at all and I'm sure there will be over all more expenses in taking a potential problem pony with training, and possible long term vet care.

We are a horse family and have had them since the year dot however we have always bred and produced our own. Just came across a lovely looking guy online and was interested in providing a new life to a horse in need as we have the position

 

[Ceriann]

I got my coloured from the Blue Cross when she was approx 3 (I’ve had her 7 years). Shes lovely but sensitive and has clearly not always had the best of care. She came to me post rehab after being v poorly - they weren’t allowed to share much info with me but I did know she had overcome a bad worm burden and liver issues. I later found out, by chance as i moved and she was registered with the vets that treated her worm burden issues, that she had been with them for weeks (they loved seeing back and looking so well). She was broken in and whilst backed beautifully she didnt cope well with ridden life, developing potential hock issues and ulcers. She is a companion now and will live out her days with me (and her neddie friends). The rehoming process was very straightforward and i found the Blue Cross supportive throughout. She’s now signed over to me.

 

[be positive]

My main concern with taking one from a charity that has rescued it from a bad life will be is it going to be sound, it may appear ok now but if it has been starved, possibly bred from unsound stock will it have a future as a useful ridden horse or was there a reason it was off to the meatman, that sounds harsh but as already said it costs much more to keep a lame one as a sound one with none of the benefits.

I think if you take one as a companion or to help the charity have space for more then you will not be disappointed but to take one with a view to it being your next riding horse I am not sure I would take the risk of putting in the time on one with a totally unknown history for fear of it not standing up to any work and then feeling obliged to keep it, fine if you can get another but if it is the only one you can keep it could prove tough long term.

 

[thefarsideofthefield]

You sound like really nice , sensible and experienced people . So if you like the sound of him then why not go and see him ( when we're all allowed to return to our normal lives obvs !) , but do try and stay open minded and not to be overly influenced by the emotive 'rescue' angle . As I said before there's 'rescued' and then there's rescued ! He might be absolutely lovely - 'going for meat' often just means it was a cheap pony going through the sales that someone bought because they felt sorry for it , so he may have no major issues other than he wasn't wanted . Or he might have acquired some major health/behavioural issues along the way . As someone else has said - it costs as much to keep a bad 'un as a good 'un , and you also don't want to end up with a pony who you don't enjoy dealing with .
All you can do is go with an open mind and treat it much as you would do if you were paying good money for him .

 

[Mari]

I’ve rehomed a rescue pony from HAPPA. He had many issues when they rescued him as a youngster. They sorted everything & he was well handled & very polite, backed but green in his schooling. When he came to me. He is so willing to learn & responsive to praise & kind treatment. This is my third ‘rescue’ pony & I have found them all so rewarding to work with.

 

[OdinsMum]

I got my coloured cob from the RSPCA, he’s just turned 3. I haven’t started backing him yet with the lock down but he’s very sweet and spooks at very little on the ground. I’ve done a lot of ground work with him and introduce him to lots of new things, nothing phases him.

 

[Berpisc]

I got a little hairy cob companion from a local centre. Other than be poor soul getting chronic grass sickness several weeks after she came she is great. They knew little about her as she had arrived from a different part of the country but then I have her as a companion so a lot of things that might become problematic are less of an issue.
So I would agree make some more enquiries but be aware of any behavioural or longer term health issues that might arise. Good luck!