In July of 2008, David and Susan Peirce found a starving thoroughbred filly at a run down and dilapidated stable. Although it was evident that the horse had been beaten and abandoned, the barn manager did not feel obligated to feed her since he wasn’t being paid. Instead, he was planning on calling a meat wagon to pick her up; he felt no responsibility and certainly no empathy for the terrified horse.
Rescuing and rehabilitating neglected and abused horses
On November 24, 2013, Red Bucket Equine Rescue will hold their an end-of-the-year fund raiser with Bob Eubanks as the Master of Ceremonies so they can continue to rescue horses and provide the care, rehabilitation and training necessary to find them homes.
Unable to turn their backs, the Peirces went to the local feed store and bought 50 pounds of carrots and a “Red Bucket.” It took Susan 6 ½ hours to catch the emaciated filly, but once she caught her, she never let go. She named her Harlow and made her a promise of a loving forever home.
Fast forward to October 2013, and after years of hard work the Peirces now have an internationally recognized horse rescue facility in Chino Hills, California, with the Red Bucket Equine Rescue having been verified by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries.
The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), is the only globally recognized organization providing standards for identifying legitimate animal sanctuaries and the organization awarded Verified status to Red Bucket Equine Rescue as of April 1, 2013. .
The Red Bucket Ranch is a first major step in creating a long-term future for rescued horses, and the promise of a sustainable model to ensure that their good work will continue, and that many more horses would be provided a second chance. So far they have rescued 191 horses and found "forever" homes for 91 of them.
On November 24, 2013, they will hold their an end-of-the-year fund raiser with Bob Eubanks as the Master of Ceremonies. This event is to help raise money so Red Bucket can "continue to rescue desperate and deserving horses and provide the care, rehabilitation and training necessary to find them permanently, loving, forever homes."
Ongoing fundraising and awareness activities are targeted towards the goal of paying the mortgages on the rescue ranch off by December of 2015.
The stated mission of the Red Bucket Equine Rescue is:
To save and rehabilitate horses, restore their trust in humankind and find them safe, loving and permanent adoptive homes.
We strive to be seen as a point of pride in the equine community by demonstrating integrity and living the following values:
1) To always make decisions that are in the best interests of the horse.
2) To rebuild a horse’s confidence through positive reinforcement, compassion and consistency.
3) To be trustworthy for our horses, our volunteers and our contributors.
The RBER mission has three parts. First, to save or rescue the horse that is starving, abandoned or slaughter bound. Second, to rehabilitate, restore trust and retrain the horse to prepare him/her for the third part of our mission, finding the horse a forever loving home.
All RBER horses are evaluated and assessed, receive a training and/or exercise plan, are groomed daily and handled extensively in order to prepare them for their forever home.
Many of the horses are in the Guardian Angel Program. This program matches a horse with a volunteer who wishes to contribute five to seven days a week and wants a special relationship with one horse. The guardian relationship helps the horse develop a connection with a human. This has proven to be very helpful in preparing a horse to transition to a “forever home.” Many of our horses come to Red Bucket never having had a trusting friendship with a human.
The Red Bucket symbolizes more than nourishment. It is the beginning of a horse’s new life and reflects the intimacy, trust and relationship that each horse experiences at the facility.
When one of the horses is adopted into a “forever home”, the bucket goes along, a concrete reminder that in addition to nourishment, you’ve committed to a special, loving relationship with a truly remarkable animal.
Learn more about Available Horses and the upcoming fund raiser.