Laughing Pony Rescue

Equine Rescue. Laughing Pony Rescue, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization whose purpose is to rescue and rehabilitate unwanted and abused horses of all breeds. Our long term goal is to have a facility where disabled children and adults can take part in therapeutic riding programs featuring rescued horses. As a California 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, all contributions to us are fully tax-deductible. We use every penny that we receive to care for our horses. We have no paid staff and run month-to-month depending solely on donations and grants. Although we are located in Rancho Santa Fe, we are in no way a show barn. We're dusty and ramshackle but we love our horses and they have the best possible care. While we would love to take in every horse that needs a loving home, we can't. Therefore, we only help horses that are adoptable once they are healthy and trained and are: Premarin farm mares - mares are impregnated and kept in stalls during the last 6 months of pregnancy so their urine can be collected. This urine contains estrogen that is used to produce Premarin for women's hormone therapy. The mares are kept pregnant so the estrogen can be harvested. Rescuing mares from these farms requires paying certain fees, so we cannot take every horse. Barbie was a Premarin farm mare, thus her brand. Feedlot horses - these are lots where horses are stored before sending to the slaughterhouse. If they are too skinny, they are fattened up until ready to send to the slaughterhouse. Rescuing requires paying current slaughterhouse prices, transportation fees, and any other applicable fees. Amigo was rescued from a feedlot in New Mexico. Neglect - when an owner cannot take care of the horse due to finances or inexperience or other situations that will put the horse's health at risk, they can donate the horse to us. Our 4 ponies and Reba came from these conditions. If a horse appears to be neglected or in a poor state of health, call the San Diego Humane Society or San Diego County Animal Services. The legal network needs to be notified first before any rescue can start. If you take it upon yourself, it's called theft or horsestealing!