Economy forcing many to abandon, auction their horses
Demand for shelters far exceeds supply
LOS ANGELES - The calls and e-mails keep coming, and they are increasingly desperate: "I've lost my job. I'm losing my home. I can't afford to keep my horse. . . . Can you take it?"
The answer is usually no, said Jill Starr, president of Lifesavers Wild Horse Rescue in Lancaster, Calif., north of Los Angeles.
The ailing economy, soaring feed prices, and the high cost of euthanizing old or sick animals are forcing many horse owners to relinquish their pets, according to owners and caretakers.
Horse shelters are being flooded with requests for help, officials said. In some instances, owners have simply abandoned their animals, turned them loose or taken them to auction, where they risk being bought and sent to Mexico or Canada for slaughter.
In Los Angeles County, 188 horses were either abandoned, abused, or otherwise surrendered to authorities last year, up from 37 in 2006, officials said. Other Southern California counties have experienced similar spikes.
Some horse owners are turning to nonprofit rescue centers such as Lifesavers. But such facilities are struggling with increased expenses and fewer donations.
"The economy is hitting us hard," said Starr, who spends about $20,000 a month on hay to feed the 225 horses at her two facilities, which now are at capacity. "I've had to say no to a lot of people. What good can we do if we take the horses but we can't feed them?"
Websites of horse industry publications are brimming with sales ads. Prices run the gamut. But some, such as the half-Arabian mare recently featured on www.HorseTopia.com, are being offered for $1. Other sites, such as www.HorseQuest.com, dedicate space to horses being given for "free to a good home."
Economic hardship is often listed as the reason.
"We see parallels in the market between horses and houses," Warren Wilson, publisher of California Horsetrader, said in an e-mail. "Lower prices, fewer buyers, longer time on the market, increased inventory."
A shortage of horse buyers has pushed some owners to desperate measures. Stories abound of people abandoning their horses or surrendering them to shelters.
In December, a man arrived at Lifesavers hauling a horse trailer. Inside were a white thoroughbred and a brown quarter horse.
"They were emaciated; skeletons with some hide on them," Starr recalled.
The man told Starr the horses belonged to a friend, who had abandoned them to his care. But he could not tend to them, he told Starr. Starr suspected the man was probably the true owner.
But she took in the horses because they looked so frail.
To discourage abandonment, neglect or sending horses to auction, some horse lovers are advocating euthanasia.
That's the philosophy of NorCal Equine Rescue in Oroville, about 150 miles northeast of San Francisco.
For people who can't afford the $250 to $500 to put down an old or sick horse and dispose of the carcass, the group in November started free euthanasia clinics. 