My visit to Longmeadow (long)

[Ike]

Sorry this is so long, but that is what horse stories are all about right?

I hauled the horse back to Longmeadow Rescue Ranch as they were returning him to them. My hope is that this story will inspire just one person to even make the trip to Union, Missouri to see what an incredible place it really is or better yet to help out in some way.

My visit to Longmeadow Rescue Ranch in Union, Mo.

What an eye opener… First of all, what a nice facility with some of the nicest people you would meet anywhere. It was farther beyond my expectations that I can even express. To say my visit left a lasting imprint on me is the understatement of a lifetime.

Secondly and sadly, what a large facility. Barn after barn of stall after stall. Within stall each was yet another sad if not sickening story of abuse or neglect. Some with known histories, some without.

It was a rain soaked afternoon when we arrived. The remains of hurricane Gustav had left nearly a half of a foot of rain over the area. Although it was an early September afternoon the air was surprisingly cool and the rain had left everything looking clean and fresh. The ranch had a strange quietness about it that was suddenly disrupted by my diesel engine and the rattle, bang, and clatter of my old horse trailer and the gravel road leading to a place of salvation for so many.

The horse I had with me was a survivor of the highway 44 slaughterhouse bound tractor-trailer crash about two years ago. He is a nice looking horse that only needs someone with the ability to continue his training. His history and breeding are unknown and they could only guess. He was definitely gaited, possibly Paso Fino or Foxtrotter mix which would have normally been a sought after attribute. Unfortunately he was a bit too much for his new adoptive owners, a mom and her 13-year-old daughter, so they were donating him back to Longmeadow. He is an extremely smart horse with a lot of energy and will take a mile if you give him an inch. Something any parent of a teenager should be familiar with. Oddly enough, I had called Longmeadow about this horse last fall when I was looking for a horse for my daughter. At the time he was more of a project than I was wanting since he had never been under saddle. Now, in a way, I wish I would have taken him although it would have meant that I would not have taken the horse from elsewhere that I did who also was in desperate need of a good home. In the hour or so I was privileged to be with him he completely understood me and the wonderful training he had had previously at Longmeadow came back in a hurry. Right before my eyes he became a different horse than what I saw the moment after I slipped the halter over his ears, respectful, willing, and affectionate. Longmeadow had named him Hocks; His new owners called him Rascal. After watching him reveal his mischievous personality to me I think I would have named him Dennis the Menace.

The first horse I saw as we came to a stop in front of the first barn was an incredible palomino with a flaxen mane and tail. She is beautiful. She looks like something Roy Rodgers should have been riding as he sang with snow capped mountains in the background. She peered at me from around the corner of the barn to see what all the noise was about. Memories of an old black and white movie showing an orphanage with throngs of children yelling "PICK ME!!! PICK ME!! as a perspective adoptive family came to visit suddenly ran through my thoughts. According to the staff she can be a real handful. The big red sign on the front of her stall reads "Staff Only" due to her nature. I walked away shaking my head wondering how a horse like her could have ended up here. Little did I know what the next few minutes held.

Every stall I peered into was yet another sad story. The palomino’s neighbor was just skinny; the next showed the scars of a time of out and out abuse, the next looked perfectly well until you approached. Once he knew you were headed towards his stall he would quickly move to the farthest corner and press himself in to the wall in an effort to be as far away from any human contact as possible. The next made my stomach turn, he had been dragged down a gravel road with a vehicle for reasons I never heard nor would I want to. I avoided his stall not even being able to stand the thought of what he might look like. A horse can feel a fly land on his coat. Imagine the pain of road rash on something so sensitive, and so large. In hindsight I’m glad I did avoid him. There are pictures of him posted on Longeadow’s web site. They are graphic and horrific to say the least. The next was a walking skeleton, obviously starved to within a few pounds of her life. Even in this disgusting state as I came into view she turned, nickered, walked to me, and begged to be petted. I petted her briefly while trying to blink back the tears as I wondered if she knew my thoughts as I touched her face. Could she feel the burning question within me as I wondered if there was a special place in hell for those that did this to her and the others? I let my hand trace the all too obvious contours of her skull through the thin skin. My hand suddenly became too heavy to hold up to her and it fell limply to my side. I could feel her gaze join the others that I had visited on my back as I walked to the next sad story contained in the nest stall.

How can we feel so many different emotions at once, anger of the events that lead them here yet joy over seeing the smiling staff working to save and train them? The sadness for those who arrive in such poor condition or in such pain that there is only one option yet the thrill of watching a youngster moving stall to stall ‘helping’ mom and dad look for the next special addition to their lives. The desire to see those that did this punished severely yet the calm serenity of this place. I can only offer the questions. It is up to all of us to offer the solutions.

Horses donkeys, pigs, miniature horses, pot-bellied pigs, lamas, ducks, goats, chickens, and cows all call Longmeadow home. Up to 450 sad sad stories at any given time… Their web page currently shows 109 ready for adoption with others that just haven’t been posted yet. Many more are waiting for the moment when they will be healthy enough or trained enough or pretty enough to catch an adopter’s eye. There are even more that wait for the opportunity to join the ranks of the residents here. They wait for the donation that will make the next new building a reality or the adoption that will leave an open stall.

[rivervu2]

Thank you for sharing this bittersweet story.

[Carri]

That is such a sad story, but it is such a great thing that those people are doing.

[Horselessnomore]

Thank you for sharing this story.

[scrapchick]

Well written, Ike....touching......heartbreaking.....encouraging .....sad but hopeful. Thanks for sharing, I don't know if I could go there, kind of like the Humane Society, it just makes me cry. Now I adopt Stray Rescue pups, out of foster homes, because if I went to a place where there were many sad eyes begging me to take them home, I would either cry hysterically or adopt more than I could handle.

Thanks for this story, Ike.

[Ike]

Thanks all. Your kind words mean a lot to me.

Scrappy, I know just where you are coming from. Imagine the pickle I was in, among all of these horses that so badly need someone and my truck and empty trailer sitting just 50 feet away.

The one thing I should probaly add to this story is even more shocking than what is written. ALL of the material is 100% true and came within the span of 8 or 9 stalls. At that point I had to leave or I would have been taking all I could cram in my trailer home.

[scrapchick]

Well the good thing is, they are in a place where they are loved and fed and paid attention to, its not like you were leaving them in a horrible place.

When people ask me what I want for Christmas, I tell them please no candles or clothes, I request donations to either Stray Rescue or Humane Society or Longmeadow. Since I can't go there, I feel like I'm doing at least a little something to help.

[ahlihaff]

Thanks for sharing this story. It truly is bittersweet.