Relief Comes to Abandoned Horses in Kentucky

As the pickup truck hauling a horse trailer came to a stop at the end of a long, rutted driveway in rural Mercer County, Ky., June 28, volunteers who met the driver were hopeful the vehicle was there to remove several of the approximately 43 horses they have been caring for since they were abandoned four weeks ago.

One of the volunteers began to sob when the trailer door was opened to reveal much-needed supplies that had been paid for by a growing list of donors since the plight of the horses was reported and widely disseminated via social media.

Several hours later, two horses that were deemed among those to be in greatest need of veterinary care were loaded onto the trailer and left the farm located about seven miles outside Harrodsburg, Ky., and 40 miles southwest of Lexington. Rusty Ford of the Kentucky Office of the State Veterinarian said local officials, who had been working with state veterinary and agriculture department representatives to try to determine who owns the animals, who is culpable, and the extent of the culpability, had granted permission to transport six of the horses—three of which were described as emaciated—to the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation farm at the Blackburn Correction Center near Lexington.

Early in the afternoon, a Sallee horse van also arrived at the farm to take several more of the horses to TRF.

Ford said now that Mercer County officials have agreed to allow horses to be relocated while the investigation continues, state officials are working with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and other organizations to find new homes for the horses.

"We have a solution for meeting the short-term needs and now we're working on the logistics and the investigational aspects are moving forward," Ford said.

One of the volunteers, who requested anonymity, said she and the others were motivated only by a desire to help the animals and are grateful that help is finally coming after such a long time.

"It changes everything from today," the woman said. "It means that the horses are finally going to be able to have their stalls cleaned regularly, they are going to have food, and they are going to have farrier care. It is still going to be a very long process because there are a lot of horses that are going to need new home

Some of the horses were in worse condition than others and fit the  assessment provided by state officials who said three are emaciated, 10 are underweight, 14 are of suitable weight, and eight are overweight.

The plight of the horses was first reported by USRacing.com in an article by Margaret Ransom that said most of the horses are on property leased by Chuck Borell, whose daughter, Maria, saddled Gallery Furniture Stable’s Runhappy to win last year’s TwinSpires Breeders’ Cup Sprint (gr. I).

“Though the owner of the horses is believed to be either Maria Borell and/or her father, for months the pair have pointed fingers back and forth regarding the ownership status of the horses, as well as who is responsible for their care,” US Racing reported. “However, in several recent text messages, Maria Borell has claimed the horses are hers and said, ‘Nobody is taking my horses.' "

Supplies to help feed and bed the horses have come from various sources, and there is a Gofundme.com page set up for contributions: https://www.gofundme.com/AbandonedHorseFund.

The property that includes several barns, run-in sheds, and a residence with a log exterior is listed for sale by Disponett Realty for $499,900.