Horses Struggle At Local Therapy Center

Posted: Mar 23, 2010 4:50 PM CST

Nearly two dozen horses are painfully underweight and need help. The tough economy is to blame. The Horse and Riding Therapy Center in Burlington says help is hard to find.

Three years and an empty retirement account later, the H.A.R.T. center is struggling to stay afloat. Bad weather has meant no or little riding business, and that means little money to pay for feed.

Meanwhile, these 23 horses are 150 pounds underweight. John Gough runs the non-profit center which provides riding therapy for disabled kids and adults.

"The horses are key to what we do. It's been rough the last few months but we see light at the end of the tunnel," John says.

The horses are getting just 80-percent of the hay that they need. The Bell County Sheriff says they are not in immediate danger and are eyeing the horses health through a veterinarian.

Even the H.A.R.T. center's healthiest horse needs buffing up on its ribs and other areas. Ray Field runs the Wild Horse foundation that is also a non-profit group. He donated two bales of hay and hopes the public can reach out to ultimately help these disabled kids.

"I hope people can bring back the healing process and someday allow these people to be able to walk again or just help them feel a little bit better about themselves. "

So how can you help? John says any amount can do. A bag of feed is about $7. A bale of hay is $80. John works a side job to pay for the feed.

"My heart...it's sadness. I worry about it all the time. Tossing and turning and not getting any sleep, worrying where the next feed is gonna come from."

That has yet to stop him from pouring his heart, soul and pocketbook into the H.A.R.T. center.