Homelessness hitting horses

WOODBINE, Md.

Maryland horse owners are “dumping” their unwanted livestock at 10 times the rate of last year, and the horses they’re shedding are not just backyard ponies, according to informal statistics from rescue organizations.

Horse-rescue operators are wrestling with a staggering number of horses in need of homes, a byproduct of the region’s crumbling economy, struggling racetracks and the closure of U.S. slaughter plants.

Kathy Howe, president of the Days End Farm Horse Rescue in Woodbine, keeps records of every call the farm receives from owners trying to surrender horses.

In February 2008, Days End received eight calls involving eight horses. In February 2009, Ms. Howe recorded 17 calls involving 101 horses - a tenfold increase in just one year. Of the 101, 47 were thoroughbreds.

The majority of callers say they’re surrendering their horses for financial reasons, Ms. Howe said. About one-third of the callers gave that reason in 2008.

Other rescue operators also have seen a dramatic increase in owner surrenders.

“I turn away five to six horses a week, and it used to be five a month,” said Elle Williams, executive director of HorseNet Horse Rescue in Mount Airy. “Within the last year, it’s gotten really bad.”

“Most of the equine rescues are filled to capacity, and I get calls at least twice a week,” said Pat Douglas, founder of the Pheasant Hill Equine Foundation in Adamstown. “I would definitely say the economy has something to do with the amount of horses needing homes.”

Rescue horses come from different backgrounds. Some are pets or riding horses that people can no longer afford to keep.

But Nicky Ratliff, executive director of the Carroll County Humane Society, thinks many are racing or show horses no longer wanted in the industry for financial or performance reasons.

“Any time that you are using animals for any kind of competition, a certain percentage of those animals will never be able to compete on the necessary level,” Ms. Ratliff said. “You’re only going to take the cream of the crop. You see how they perform, and the ones that don’t, don’t have another use.”

The thoroughbred industry is so prominent in Maryland that several horse rescues focus only on those castoffs, including Summerwinds Stables in Warwick. Founder Elena DiSilvestro said there’s been a huge increase in the number of horses brought to her attention just within the past three to six months.

“There almost has to be a level of responsibility that starts with the race industry, where they say, ‘Hey, eventually this horse is not going to be able to race anymore,’” Ms. DiSilvestro said. “I think they have to say, ‘When this horse’s racing career is done, what is his future?’”

Some measures are now being taken at a national level. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association is implementing new standards for its member racetracks that would, among other things, require them to have a program in place to assist with the aftercare, or second career, of thoroughbreds, according to spokesman Eric Wing.

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