As time permits, an bigger article will unfold with all the details! Please be patient with us as we are trying to get as many photos uploaded and as many updates written as possible! We want to be able to acknowledge everyone who participated!

But for right now, we want to share with you that the list of 25 rescued horses includes (click on the breed for photos and more info):

Belgians —  page 1  —  page 2  —  page 3

Haflingers

Percherons (2)

Donkeys (2)

Standardbreds (2)

One horse was adopted out right at the auction to another rescue group!

Horse slaughter, unfortunately, is still alive and well. Though a ban last year temporarily closed the three major equine slaughter plants in the United States, horse meat-buyers continue to purchase horses at auctions, and load them into over-crowded double-decker trailers for a long, excruciating journey to the horse slaughter houses in either Mexico or Canada.

On Friday, May 9th, Frog Pond Draft Horse Rescue and Happy Trails worked in cooperation to pull a total of 25 horses out of the Sugarcreek Auction just in time for MOther's Day weekend.

This was made possible by the generosity of kind folks from across the world — from animal-lovers living close-by in neighboring cities to fans of actress, Jennifer Beals, living in Nova Scotia and Australia!

Thanks to the joint efforts of Janice Mayfield and Anna Romito, local dog and cat rescue groups, Paws With Pride and Friends Of Pets, worked hand-in-hand, or rather paw-in-paw, to raise over $8,000 toward the draft horse rescue efforts! Click on their names to read details about their fundraising efforts!

Fans of actress, Jennifer Beals, raised enough donations to have a draft horse rescued in honor of their favorite actress who loves horses — here's details about the Percheron horse sponsored in honor of Jennifer's love for horses! 

J. Mack Bohn, owner of the incredible "A Touch Of Ear" draft mule hitch team of JK Ranches that makes appearances across the country, had beautiful green halters with a yellow stripe custom made for ten of the lucky rescued draft horses! We are honored to have "A Touch of Ear" draft mule hitch team as a supporter of our program!

This mass horse rescue would enable the healthier rescued horses to have a chance to be rehabilitated and find loving, permanent homes; it would afford the debilitated horses a chance to cross the Rainbow Bridge in peace and comfort instead of being trampled to death on the long journey in an overcrowded trailer; and it would help create awarness that there is still legislation pending to prevent sending America's horses out of the country to be slaughtered for human consumption overseas.

Here in America, we do not raise horses for our dinner plates. Horse owners in the United States see their horses as trail mounts, companions, competition and event horses, pets for the kids, a way to plow the fields or to provide transportation. We do not see them as hamburgers or food items. So why are they still allowed to be sold for meat?

Many people don't realize this happens weekly at many horse auctions across the country. The mass rescue that took place on Friday helped to publicly bring about the reality of the situation and brought awareness to the fact that the horse slaughter industry is alive and well, contrary to popular belief. The previous legislation this past year simply created a loop-hole through which meat-buyers transport the horses out of the country. The need for federal legislation has never been more urgent than it is today.  H.R. 503/S. 311 would both end the slaughter of American horses for human consumption and prohibit their export for slaughter in other countries.    Here's a fact sheet.

SUGARCREEK — Home to some of Ohio's most beautiful countryside, rolling hills, picture-perfect scenery, and quaint visitor attractions in a post-card-like setting. Also home to the Sugarcreek Auction, the second largest horse auction on the East Coast — the auction responsible for the suffering and deaths of literally hundreds of thousands of horses since it's inception. An article on the cover of Scene Magazine several years back highlighted the Sugarcreek Auction and it's owner, Leroy Baker.

What is the auction like?  Angel Animals has a video on YouTube, showing a typical auction day, and then follows auction owner Leroy Baker's meat truck all the way to the Texas boarder. You can see it here.

Friday started out extremely early here at the sanctuary. The Happy Trails crew fed the animal residents about 6:00am, and then loaded the trailers and trucks with supplies — halters, lead ropes, medicines, emergency supplies, wound care items, etc.  We were on the road by 7:30am, and got to the Sugarcreek Auction parking lot a little after 9:00am. We arrived with two trailers, but many more volunteer haulers met us there (a list of trailering names to thank everyone is coming together!)!

Tack was sold in the morning. Horses were to start running through the auction in the early afternoon. While we waited for the horse auction, we were able to wander around the cat walk up above and look down at the horse pens. Trailer after trailer was being unloaded. Horses came out in droves. Big and little, young and old, healthy and injured, all colors, all sizes, all were herded into holding pens and round white auction tags giving them a number that was slapped on both sides of their hind quarters. I watched a mother and her two daughters unload two horses, and silently wandered what circumstances lead them to have to resort to taking their family's horses to an auction — an auction known for catering to kill-buyers at that.

No matter how many auctions I attend, it's always sad even from the beginning, knowing that you are looking at many horses that will not be purchased by a kind family, and knowing what fate lies ahead of them.

We are often asked, "How do you pick out which ones you will get?" On Friday, the immediate goal was to pick up all the draft horses. Many horse rescues don't handle draft horses, and the awesome beasts often get overlooked at the auctions. These gentle giants are kind, magnificent, and incredible to work around. Frog Pond and Happy Trails both often handle draft horse rescue and rehabilitation, and we wanted to pull as many drafts as we could. And we did exactly that!  All draft mares and geldings that were being bid on by a meat-buyer were purchased in this mass rescue. Unfortunately, neither facility is set up to safely handle draft studs and we are very realistic about that. Along with the draft horses, we were able to save a handful of other lives too, including two donkeys, two Standardbreds, and now a pregnant mare that we just went back to pick up today.

The Belgians, Haflingers and a Standarbred went to the Frog Pond Facilities in Cambridge, Ohio.

The Percherons, Donkeys and a Standardbred came to Happy Trails, along with the pregnant mare.

All who are healthy enough will be placed in an approved, adoptive home. Many of the horses will need a period of recovery and rehabilitation.  As difficult as it is, if we would serve the best and highest good of some of the rescued horses by helping them to cross the Rainbow Bridge in the peace and comfort of people who truly love and care about them, we will do so at the expert advice of the attending veterinarians. Sadly there are several who may fit in this category, and we will keep everyone posted.

The horses are now in a process of settling in, getting wormed, getting their hooves taken care of, getting vaccinated as their health permits, and being vet checked. We will provide health updates as we go along.

Their true personalities are beginning to shine through! The donkey's are incredibly lovey, and funny as all get-out as they gear up to bray!

More of the story will unfold here as time permits!