My Nonprofit Reviews

Lady Sophia and her filly, Candace, were two neglected, starved horses that were so lucky to recently find their way to Beauty's Haven Farm & Equine Rescue. Their transformation under Theresa's care, like so many others before them, was amazing and they are now thriving. I have been a volunteer at this rescue for over 7 years and have been witness to a number of these transformations. Theresa Batchelor is truly dedicated to these beautiful creatures. Beauty's Haven truly is "where life begins again".

I began volunteering at Beauty’s Haven Farm & Equine Rescue approximately 5 years ago and while there are many stories about my own experiences at the rescue and the amazing success stories that Theresa Batchelor, one of the owners of Beauty’s Haven, has had with so many horses, this is the story of Shaker.
Shaker’s life before she arrived at Beauty’s Haven in 2010 was a horrible one. It was a large hoarding case in South Florida where many horses did not survive, but Shaker did survive – with a baby by her side and pregnant again. This was Shaker, lying helplessly on the ground, a few days before she was released to the rescue. Her foal, Kandi, was standing nearby, watching Shaker suffering through colic. If you look closely, you can see the remains of others that sadly did not survive scattered in the background.
Theresa didn’t know if Shaker would make it or not, but thankfully Shaker and Kandi made it out alive and came to Beauty’s Haven. Theresa immediately began the rehabilitative, often life-saving care with Shaker that all horses who find their way to Beauty’s Haven receive: Veterinarian care, farrier, equine dentist, a special diet to help her regain weight appropriately. And Shaker not only survived, but thrived, like so many have done under Theresa’s love and care.
In February of 2011 Shaker was adopted. In April of 2011 Shaker gave birth to her foal (named Phoenix). That same adopter also adopted Kandi in June of 2011. In 2014 the adopter began working with Shaker under saddle, but by 2017 Shaker’s life was once again about to change. The adopter was diagnosed with cancer and reached out to Theresa to find new homes for Shaker and Kandi (Phoenix had already found a new home). This adopter truly loved these horses, but she was losing her battle and passed away in March of 2017.
Theresa was able to find a new home for both of them and Shaker and Kandi remained with the new adopter until April of 2018 when, yet once again, they needed to be rehomed. Their new adopter was having serious health issues and could no longer care for them. A new adopter was found for Kandi, but Shaker still needed a home. At that time a friend and neighbor of mine, herself a very experienced horsewoman, had offered to foster a Beauty’s Haven horse and I suggested Shaker to her. This lady was not only offering her a foster home, but also a restart to her training since Shaker had not been ridden in the last several years. Theresa agreed that this was a great idea and would make Shaker more adoptable since this foster situation would only be temporary.
Unfortunately, when we arrived to pick up Shaker, we discovered she had injured her left eye the day before. We loaded her and immediately transported her to a veterinarian clinic to be evaluated. The injury was treated by her foster and me over the next month and, once again, Shaker healed.
Once Shaker healed from her eye injury, the foster began working with her. The foster uses natural horsemanship training methods and she began implementing those with Shaker. Over the next couple of months, I occasionally went over to the foster’s barn to observe her training methods. While I had owned horses and been actively riding the last 15 years, I had never had any formal riding or groundwork training myself and I was interested in seeing what I could learn from her. And, along the way, I learned so much about Shaker.
Theresa has a phrase she has used in her rescue efforts – “making all of their tomorrows everything their past should have been”. Shaker had a horrible past – neglected, starved, watching other horses dying around her as she lay pregnant on the ground. But she survived. And then, under circumstances none of us could have predicted, Shaker was moved from one home to another home to yet another home. And she took all of that in stride and survived. But being a survivor also made Shaker untrusting, headstrong, standoff-ish. But as I began watching the foster begin to work with her, I found myself asking her if I could also start to work with her some. Was I looking for a challenge? Absolutely not. I’m no horse trainer. Did I think I could “win” her over? I really wasn’t sure I could. I just saw something in those eyes of hers beyond all that bravado. And was I planning on adopting her? Not at all. I already had 3 horses. But then, in October of 2018, I told Theresa I had an adoption application for Shaker and handed it to her. Proposed adopter: me.
Shaker has been with me now for a year and a half. I call her “Shiloh”. The biblical meaning of the name is “peace” or “tranquility”, something I wanted her to have. While she can still be willful, unsure, she has slowly learned to trust me on the ground and in the saddle. I enlisted the help of an exceptional horse trainer and he has helped us both immensely. I am also fortunate to have an amazing friend that I ride with who patiently helps us work through issues as they come up. Shaker is becoming a wonderful trail horse and I ride her several times a week. I am lucky to live in an equestrian community where I can literally ride out my gate and onto 28 miles of trails throughout our community here. One of Shaker’s riding issues has been her reluctance to leave her barn and her horse family here, but she’s doing it and is realizing that I always bring her home. Yes, home, her forever home.
Shaker’s past? Yes, a tragic one. Her future? A bright one.