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We founded the nonprofit Rolling Dog Ranch Animal Sanctuary in Montana as a safe haven for disabled animals – dogs, horses and cats. Our residents are blind, deaf, three-legged, or have medical and neurological conditions like muscular dystrophy and cerebellar hypoplasia. More than half of the 80 animals at the ranch are blind.
Yet every one of these animals enjoys life to the fullest. They don’t feel sorry for themselves for one minute, and they don’t want you to feel sorry for them, either. They are happy, joyful animals whose energy, playfulness, and confidence inspire us every day.
A Blind Mare Named Lena
Our very first resident was a blind Quarter Horse mare named Lena. Once word got out that we had a blind horse, the calls and emails started coming in: “My horse has gone blind, I can’t keep him, can you please take him?” Today the ranch is home to 25 blind horses, all of whom have a wonderful quality of life. They graze on pasture, roll on their backs in the grass, nicker for treats, and hang out with their buddies.
It was our work with blind horses that helped us understand the scope of the unwanted horse problem in America. Every week – sometimes daily – we’re asked to take a horse that has gone lame, has become old, lost its sight, or for whatever reason just isn’t wanted any longer.
What astonished us was how quick these people were to abandon their horses. The thought of actually keeping a horse they couldn’t use was a completely foreign notion. Keep it as a pasture pet? No way! No matter how long they had owned the horse, no matter how much the horse had done for them – there was no loyalty to the animal. It never occurred to these people that maybe ... just maybe ... their horse deserved a well-earned retirement.
And more often than not, these same people had other horses, owned plenty of land, and had the means to care for the unwanted horse they were calling us about. It’s just that they didn’t want to keep a horse they couldn’t use.
It’s About People, Not Horses
Ultimately, we realized that the unwanted horse problem is all about people, not horses. Too many people still see these animals only as a commodity, something that must be useful to have any value. Until that changes, we’ll always have an unwanted horse problem in America.
At least we know where to start.
Steve Smith and Alayne Marker
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