The Story of Annie the Rescue Mare

This is Annie, a 7 year old cob mare who started off life in a less than pleasant way. I rented a small holding where there was enough room for more than the 2 young ponies we had got already. I had a phone call asking can we take in a mare and 2 week old foal?! Absolutely yes! She arrived off the trailer very scared, little foal at foot. She was in a pretty bad state with scars across her chest where she had gone through a barbed wire fence, terrified of being caught. Over the coning days she lost weight very badly. It took no end of feeds, finding the right balance for her, she was like a bag of bones at one point. But then I found the right balance and she put it on very fast! She looked a picture! Lenny, her foal, was doing wonderfully too along side her. I started to gain her trust and even managed to groom her a little bit, only what she was comfortable with though, not too much. It was all going well... until... we were told that there was the wrong planning on the small holding and equines were not allowed there. It was a mess!!

I rented it with a friend and she told me one day that she had sold Annie and she was being picked up within the next half an hour!!! She owned her by this time. I was mortified, Lenny was only 14 weeks old!!!

They came, Annie left. So did we a few days later. We went back to an old livery we used to be at.

I will add that we also had a 3 year old and 18 month old colt.

After a week, my friend announced that she wanted to dissolve the horse partnership there and then. I made a call to an old friend and moved my youngster Cookie to theirs.

Now this is where Annie comes back into it.

I had a frantic message on the answer phone. My first thought was I was needed to take another rescue,then thought Annie, it could be her!!! It was about Annie. The new "owners" didn't know how to handle a very scared horse and had tried to force her into doing things. That really isn't the way! She had panicked and double barreled the husband and they classed her as dangerous. She isn't at all, she's just a very scared girl. My friend denied all knowledge of ever owning her and wouldn't take her back. The new owners said she us either picked up or she goes to the meat-man!!! I immediately said I will have her back myself. Didn't even think if the livery had room or if she was even allowed to go, but I knew I had to have her back. I wasn't giving up on her.

So.... she came back to me and the tears were flowing, she was even more scared than she was before. I knew I had to help her. So I just sat with her, talked to her, little by little she let me stroke her longer and longer each time. She wouldn't let you touch anywhere on her originally, flinched and shied away from any human touch.

I practice natural horsemanship and with this I inadvertently found out she had been beaten in the past, really rather badly. I walked into her stable (we worked on her fear and she trusted me enough to go into one, loved the comfort too) carrying a Parelli carrot stick, and leant it against the wall. She flew to the back wall shaking uncontrollably!!! I had no clue until now and started piecing together what had happened to her by process of elimination.

Things took a turn for the worse at the livery and I almost lost my youngster to colic.

I needed to move both quickly. My friend told me about where we are now and the ponies couldn't be happier!!! Their stables are one behind the other with a connecting door between them. Annie is improving daily and is constantly making me cry, in a good way LOL, just by being her and how she is turning into the perfect pony.

I am now riding her. Something I never dreamt I would ever do.

Annie is the most amazing pony and she has a home for life with me. Cookie is her best friend too. They adore each other.

I have grown within myself from knowing Annie and the way she is now a trusting, loving pony.

There is a lot more to her story, I have kept it brief. There will be a book at some point, but our journey together has only just begun.

My Girl Annie

Annie and Cookie