We have had a very busy summer at Rainhill. There is always so much work to do and never enough time. As the days grow shorter, we find ourselves making lists in our heads of projects that must be completed before fall turns into winter. And, of course, winter presents a whole new set of chores that need to be done every day to keep the horses as comfortable and happy as possible.
We’ve been stocking up on hay, bales and rolls. You could never imagine how much these horses can eat. Luckily, it’s been a good hay-growing year with just enough rain to get the farmers several cuttings. We buy hay continuously throughout the year and, besides grain, hay is our biggest expense. And so, as we always ask our readers, if you are a farmer and have a few extra bales or rolls and can donate them, we’d love to have them. We can pick them up and gladly give tax receipts.
All donations are tax-deductible and very much appreciated. You can always make a donation by check and I will send out an acknowledgement and a receipt. Every dollar means so very much to the horses and allows us to help these precious animals live the good life that they deserve.
Rainhill accepted a new horse this week. He was hauled eleven hours from PA but still walked off the trailer curious and relieved, I’m sure, that a clean stall and a pile of hay were waiting for him. He is a registered Thoroughbred but was never raced, instead he lived a simple life on a farm with an older couple that raised him. That may sound like an ideal life, but the problem arises when suddenly, at the age of four, someone decides to “make a race horse out of him.”
After three failed attempts at making him a riding horse (I’m not sure what they were doing but from what I hear it was a real rodeo!), somewhere along the “training process” the horse got hurt and so now is not fit to be anything more than a pasture ornament. Well, no one wants a horse they can’t ride and so, well, you know how this story usually ends… Except someone knew someone who knew Rainhill and we decided to help this poor horse and give him a life without people wanting to ride him. Anyway, his name is Shorty Man, he’s six years old, and while he can be a bit pushy at times because he wasn’t handled very much, he is a darling horse who loves humans. And, of course, we’d love to have a sponsor for him. The sponsorship is $300 a year or $25 a month. I’ll send photos and updates so you can see how he’s doing. He lost a lot of weight being moved from home to home and was quite beat up by other aggressive horses at these training places. But now he’s here and safe with us. We turn him out by himself because he’s still cautious around other horses, fearing, I guess, getting bit or kicked again.
Thanks for reading our stories and also for being so good to Rainhill. God bless and stay safe!
-by Karen Thurman
Rainhill Equine Facility, Inc.
11125 Ky. Hwy. 185
Bowling Green, KY 42101
270-777-3164
