Raven was abandoned by her owner with a neighbor in Napa. She lived with the neighbor for 2 years, alone in a small pen most of the time. The neighbor realized that the owner was not returning and it was not sustainable to keep her.
Roxy came to us in 2015 after being diagnosed with narcolepsy. She was a lesson horse, but had become increasingly unsafe to be ridden due to her condition. Lesson programs typically cannot afford to keep horses that can't be ridden, a system that we hope will be changed one day to be more humane.
Echo Raine was an Arabian who was imported from Canada, together with another Arabian, to be endurance horses (long-distance riding). They were abandoned at a stable in Dixon for five years. The stable owners took care of them but they were in a small space and needed new homes that could provide more room and attention.
Sonny was a quarter horse and former riding horse who lived in Lake County for 13 years prior to coming to Sunrise. Their owner was no longer able to care for Sonny and his herdmate, Tink, and had appealed to Sunrise for help. When they were threatened by the LNU Lightning Complex Fire of 2020, Sunrise evacuated and sheltered Sonny and Tink at our Calistoga facility.
Hayleigh was a Quarter Horse mare and is approximately 26 years old. She was used as a trail horse but developed severe neck arthritis and is now retired. Hayleigh came to Sunrise when her owner could no longer care for her and her buddy Gazor. Hayleigh and Gazor enjoyed getting groomed and getting love from all the volunteers at Sunrise.
Rio was a Quarter Horse that was born in 1990. He was a ranch horse, privately owned, who was diagnosed with EPM, a rare disease caused by parasites that produces neurological symptoms including lameness and muscle atrophy. The disease is manageable but not curable, and in Rio’s case it meant he could no longer be ridden.
Mickey is a Quarter Horse/ Thoroughbred cross that was born in 1999. He was slaughter-house bound when a friend of Sunrise bought him at an auction to spare him that cruel fate. While it appeared that he would make a good riding horse for someone and would be easy to re-home, it became obvious that this would not be possible due to his overall unsoundness resulting from unknown causes in his past.
Mini-Moo is a miniature horse and was born in 2011. She is the young mom to Ronnie and as such, she is fiercely protective. Some might say she is a bit of a helicopter parent, although she is learning to let her baby have some independence. The lively mini is very close to her baby, and they never stray too far from each other.
Ronnie is a miniature horse that was born in 2016 to her mom Mini Moo. She is youngest of our herd and is up for anything anytime. She closely investigates everything and doesn’t hesitate to stick her nose in your pocket in search of treats. This bad habit qualifies her for the “No Hand Feeding” rule, although she will do her best to get visitors to break it. She is responding well to halter training and will happily follow her leg rehabilitation exercises as long as there is the promise of a low-carb cookie.
We teamed up with two other horse rescue organizations to save Donya and two of her pasture mates from terrible neglect and starvation. When we found them, they were eating rotten vegetables, some of which were toxic for horses, they had limited access to water, and were covered in ticks. Despite over two months of extraordinary efforts by veterinarians and dedicated volunteers, two of the three horses we rescued that day were not able to recover from their severe maltreatment.
Pace is a Quarter Horse cross that was born in 1991. He was a packhorse in Supai, Arizona, used to carry tourists gear in and out of the Grand Canyon under unspeakable conditions of abuse and starvation. Two friends of Sunrise were on vacation when they witnessed this, and worked tirelessly to rescue Pace and raise awareness about the abuse of Havasupai pack animals, which has been occurring for over 40 years.
Sunrise Horse Rescue is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization, # 42-1746834
