Assisting Homeless Horses

Each year, through no fault of their own, thousands of American horses become homeless. Some are discarded at auction by irresponsible breeders and owners; others suffer from abuse and neglect and ultimately are seized by law enforcement.

Overbreeding and owner ignorance are among the leading causes of horse abuse, neglect and homelessness. The Humane Society of the United States is working across a number of fronts to provide assistance for homeless and at-risk horses and to address the root causes of this issue. Our programs include:

• Direct Care: We provide sanctuary for more than 600 equines at the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch in Texas.
• Homes for Horses Coalition: In 2007, we co-founded this national coalition to help hundreds of horse rescue groups work collaboratively to end horse slaughter and increase their standards of care and level of professionalism.
• Helping Horses become Companions for Life: We believe that horses should be companions for life, which is why we have created the Forever Foundation, a yearlong, virtual training program offered to horse rescues around the country. This program provides trainers and volunteers with a video-based learning program and hands-on training to enable them to efficiently work with their horses to get them adopted into their forever homes.
• Assisting Law Enforcement: When local law enforcement is ill-equipped to deal with a large-scale equine neglect or cruelty case, the HSUS Animal Rescue and Equine Protection teams often step in to help, assisting with evidence collection, evacuating the animals, emergency sheltering and critical care, as well as final placement with qualified adopters.