A filly found so emaciated rescuers thought she was .d.ead has launched the charity that rehabilitated her into the spotlight after her dramatic story went viral.
Five-year-old Heidi has been in the care of Here4Horses, which had to postpone its official launch when to .d.isease since she was discovered lying in the mud as a three-year-old.
She was ꜰɪʟᴛʜʏ and ᴇᴍᴀᴄɪᴀᴛᴇᴅ but on a closer inspection, they found the horse, which they named Heidi, still breathing.
“At that point, a team from the RSPCA went in, as none of us local rescues have powers of entry, and they called the police,” said Wendy, who has been working with various rescue organizations for the past 15 years.
“At the same time a vet turned up, so did the ᴋɴᴀᴄᴋᴇʀ man —Whoever owned the horse must also have thought she was .ᴅ.ᴇᴀᴅ and called him. He wasn’t sent away immediately either, as no one was sure if they would be able to get her to her feet.”
Rescuers could lift Heidi, and she was just about able to stand on her own.
“Although she had to be virtually carried to the lorry she managed to stay upright all the way to us,” Wendy said. “We do save some that can’t stand but you have to be realistic — usually if they manage to stand up, we will try and do what we can for them.”
It actually took more than 5 weeks for the emaciated pony to be able to stand by herself and healthy more.
“We only see cases as bad as Heidi’s once or twice a year, although I would say more are found dead,” Wendy said. “The situation has improved — around three years ago you would find 10 or 15 .d.ead in a year and, without wanting to get too excited, we are seeing fewer horses on tethers as well.”
Thanks to the animal rescue team Heidi is now “high on life,” her beautiful mane has grown back and she is living her best life winning rosettes!
