UPDATE: 28 of 75 Abandoned Quarter Horses Still in Need of Homes

Photo Credit: Hooved Animal Rescue & Protection Society Facebook page

Two Chicago-area animal rescue organizations have been hard at work in recent weeks to get the word out about 75 abandoned Quarter Horses that were in need of a new homes. 

So far, the hard work has paid off and only 28 of the horses, which are halter broke mares between 12 and 25 years old, remain, according to a Facebook update posted Wednesday on the Hooved Animal Rescue & Protection Society (HARPS) page.

“Our adoption committee is working hard matching the Hampshire horses with loving homes,” according to the Wednesday Facebook update.

The horses’ owner lead in breeding American Quarter Horses and won several national champion halter titles at shows across the country. The owner became unable to care for the horses after falling on difficult times following the deaths of her husband, daughter and then the loss of her family farm in Harvard in 2012, said Donna Ewing, founder and president of HARPS in Barrington.

• Follow Crystal Lake-Cary Patch on Facebook

HARPS has teamed up with Hands & Hooves in recent weeks to help find new homes for the 75 abandoned horses before winter.

The horses have lived for the past two years at a leased equine facility in Hampshire that didn’t have sufficient space. Thirty of the horses were confined to stalls while the rest were left outside in four small paddocks that did not have adequate shelter, excess manure and very limited human handling, Ewing said.

“We have less than a month to get 75 of these horses off the leased property and into permanent homes. We are pleading with the horse community to come and adopt these animals and give them a new beginning in life,” Ewing said earlier this month. “In addition to daily feeding, cleaning and turn-out, the horses need veterinary care and farrier work.”

Ewing estimated the costs to care for all of the horses would exceed $30,000.

Anyone interested in donating to the Hampshire Quarter Horse Rescue Fund or adopting one of the horses, can contact HARPS at (847) 382-0503, P.O. Box 94, Barrington, Illinois 60011-0094 or visit the HARPS website.

• To fill out an adoption application, visit this link.
• To donate directly to the Hampshire herd, click here.

For those who have already sent in an application, HARPS reminds applications to e-mail photos of their property including barn, fencing, stables, and horses you presently own to info@harpsonline.org.

You can view more photos of the horses and learn more about how to donate on the HARPS website