"Rescuing" horses from auctions

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stangs

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This has come up on the FB thread but it’s irritated me enough that I thought it deserved its own thread.

A well-known trekking centre recently “rescued” two horses from auction (and, by rescued, I mean paid 8k for them) and has been asking for 15k to help care for them.

Now people can start GoFundMes if they want to, and other people can spend their money on those GoFundMes if they really want to, but seriously?

It’s one thing saying you’ve rescued a horse from auction if you’ve paid a hundred quid for some scraggly 30 year old with one eye. It’s another thing saying you’ve ‘rescued’ a horse when you’ve paid well above what the average auction horse goes for and when the horses you’ve bought are business assets, not companion ponies who’ll never manage a job. She even admits in the GoFundMe that she was looking at these horses as assets:

Could this horse be turned into a ridden horse? What was the risk? How much money and time would it take? I knew his feet would grow out but it would take both time and a fabulous farrier (which we have in Chris!)...would the leg injuries mean he might not work? Risk! But all horses get the base vetting and he'd obviously been OK….
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And yet people are willing to pay a business to get more assets?

And, of course, the numbers they mention in the GoFundMe are ridiculously inflated - even if they are heavy horses, I seriously doubt that it costs £100 to trim them. And there’s no way that a trekking centre that must buy its feed in bulk is buying feed so expensive that each horse is costing them £10 in hard feed a day. But then again why not fabricate the numbers a little when people are clearly lapping it up?

And the other thing that seriously irritated me was this sentence:

Horses, the most nobel and magnificent of animals, are treated like cattle with a pen to stay in and a numbered sticky label on the bum. Just a number.
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I just despise the implication that cattle are less deserving, and that it’s fine to treat them like numbers, but that horses are too ‘magnificent’ for that sort of treatment. All animals are equally deserving of respect.

On that note, if anyone fancies donating, have at it: https://www.gofundme.com/f/our-rehabilitation-vet-costs-for-marty-big-als-recovery At least the money's helping some horses, I suppose.
 
I've just seen this on Facebook as I've been to this centre before, and had much the same thoughts as you.
 
On a more serious note it really does irk me when people do this. You've chosen to take the animal on, it's your personal property. Expecting random strangers to fund it for you when you chose that responsibility really isn't fair on the animal, it doesn't make any difference if it's in poor condition when you take it on or not. Plus I think it rather encourages people to enter animals in less than stellar condition in sales or the like in the hopes some soft touch will pay copious amounts of money to take on their vet bills for them, when really this is something we need to be discouraging in the strongest possible terms (ideally by not allowing animals in poor condition to be entered, websites taking down adverts showing such, etc.).
 
If you are paying ££££ you are buying from an auction, not rescuing. If the price is that high, it's probably not going to end up in an abattoir. I bought one of mine from an auction, but I definitely didn't 'rescue' him as he was just what I wanted. I certainly don't agree with anyone other than a charity begging for money to keep or buy them.
 
I've never been used the trekking centre but have been to the camp site. I'm sure it's fabulous but this isn't the first gofundme they've put up. They seem to fairly regularly (as in I've noticed a couple over the last few years usually in winter I may be overestimating as I used to live in the area so get localish stuff on fb) ask for donations for hay because it's a bad winter/poor harvest etc. I do wonder about a business model that seems so precarious.
 
I watched a tiktok recently regarding a big lick horse being rescued from auction. A vet gave a report and it would need xyz for $$$ so naturally the place is raising money.

Someone else came on to say actually that horse was fine 6 weeks ago when it was bought by another trader and it turns out these people are buying horses from the same trader every time, the trader is neglecting them, knowing they will buy them and really they are “saving them” for online profit.

I trust no one.
 
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I didn’t realise that they’d paid £8k for these two ‘rescues’. I’ve just read the GoFund me blurb.

You’d think that the GFM had been put together by a well meaning numpty who is overwhelmed and out of their depth with unexpected post purchase expenses from sickly horses, and not by a professional who has been making money out of heavy horses for decades.

People are contributing, though. I won’t be one of them.
 
There's been a few crowd funding horse related things lately. I kind of think if you can't function as a business without donations maybe it's time to pack up shop.

Unless that crowd funding would really get someone out of a one off hole. But not when it's just for in effect core costs.
 
Go fund mes generally take the absolute p - remember SV one for Harry

Those heavies weren't exactly cheap so why buy them if you can't afford sorting them out? Will they even be able to be used in the trekking centre once sorted?

I wouldn't donate to any horse related go fund mes. Seems the done thing to jump to nowadays

There's a £500 donation and a few £200, why??
 
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I saw this and also didn't think it was right. Presumably once these horses are in good health again, they'll either make money off of them as riding school horses, or sell them on for a very tidy profit. I don't understand why other people should have to fund this when they are a business. It seems even worse when there are registered charities who badly need this kind of support to keep their doors open.

I hated the cattle comment too.
 
They appear to have at least 4 gfm or similar since 2015....3 if you discount COVID one because let's face it we'd all like to forget the pandemic ever happened.

Call me miserly but I don't think a business can be called sustainable - let alone successful - if you don't make enough money to have some set aside for unexpected calamities, nor is it fair to expect others to fund what is in effect a lifestyle choice (horsey business).

I wasn't aware, on first commenting on this thread, which centre was being referenced but I will say I'm really disappointed. I thought they were 'better' than that if you like.
The cattle comment is just crass and ridiculous, cows are wonderful animals and honestly nothing, from an earwig to an elephant, deserves to suffer or be treated as a commodity (though I would argue those horses really don't look that bad; I can't imagine any credible welfare organisation being much impressed if you tried to report slightly chipped hooves).

Probably mangled my words here but I hope I've at least halfway conveyed what I'm trying to...!
 
A rather defensive FB post this morning, but still containing another link to the GFM and more contributions welcomed toward the unexpected vet bills. Over £9k raised now which does at least cover their purchase price.

Still referring to having bought/‘rescued’ these horses.
 
Equi said:
I watched a tiktok recently regarding a big lick horse being rescued from auction. A vet gave a report and it would need xyz for $$$ so naturally the place is raising money.

Someone else came on to say actually that horse was fine 6 weeks ago when it was bought by another trader and it turns out these people are buying horses from the same trader every time, the trader is neglecting them, knowing they will buy them and really they are “saving them” for online profit.

I trust no one.
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If that was the big lick horse I saw it was still in stacks and it will take a very long time to gradually take them away poor boy…. I wondered if PTS would have been the kindest thing to do as I think he was 19
 
splashgirl45 said:
If that was the big lick horse I saw it was still in stacks and it will take a very long time to gradually take them away poor boy…. I wondered if PTS would have been the kindest thing to do as I think he was 19
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It would, but where’s the money in that?
 
splashgirl45 said:
If that was the big lick horse I saw it was still in stacks and it will take a very long time to gradually take them away poor boy…. I wondered if PTS would have been the kindest thing to do as I think he was 19
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If you have seen the horse I did that charity has a been in a long fight to get stacking soreing banned and therefore the big lick ended.

This horse will get great care and he might just push their campaign over the line .
In the US they would say he’s only nineteen they have a different attitude to age .
I would not say this charity keeps horses going too long they will routinely buy and PTS.
While I don’t agree with them in all respects ( and how can I fully understand from where I am sitting ) there’s no doubt that thousands of horses have been saved from a hideous trip to Mexico or Canada horse with broken limbs all sorts of terrible things .
The whole slaughter pipeline shames the US .
 
BTW I would call these horses at the trekking centre rescued they have bought them and are now asking others to pay towards keeping them .
 
Goldenstar said:
If you have seen the horse I did that charity has a been in a long fight to get stacking soreing banned and therefore the big lick ended.

This horse will get great care and he might just push their campaign over the line .
In the US they would say he’s only nineteen they have a different attitude to age .
I would not say this charity keeps horses going too long they will routinely buy and PTS.
While I don’t agree with them in all respects ( and how can I fully understand from where I am sitting ) there’s no doubt that thousands of horses have been saved from a hideous trip to Mexico or Canada horse with broken limbs all sorts of terrible things .
The whole slaughter pipeline shames the US .
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I have seen the state of the horses that are dumped at the sales and the charities are doing a great job and I know they PTS if needed. I was wondering if the horse in stacks would be able to do without them as it sounded as though that has been his whole life .. , as far as I am aware big lick is still going, they almost got it banned then Donald Trump arrived and didn’t let it go through … it’s unbelievable cruelty and I know many Americans want it banned , let’s hope they succeed
 
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