Horses are wonderful animals that have carried humanity on their backs for the longest time. But sometimes, even the strongest creatures like these need a hand, and this is where we humans get a chance to pay them back.
One such story occurred a few years ago when a woman found a baby horse who was abandoned by her mom. Seeing that the little one could never make it on her own, the woman brought her back home, bottle-feeding and nursing her until she made a miraculous recovery. Scroll down to learn all about it!
More info: Cross-Tied Farms
Horses have been giving their all for humans for the longest time, but sometimes they need our help too
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
A rescue organization saved a couple of horses from being put down, one of whom was pregnant with a foal
In the spring of 2020, We Say Neigh, a nonprofit rescue organization, saved a couple of horses who were set to be put down before their intervention. The female of the pair turned out to be pregnant, so everyone involved was now eagerly awaiting the birth of the foal. However, things didn’t go exactly as planned.
“I saw a baby in the field. She wasn’t due for almost a month, so I had no expectations to see that baby,” Cricket, the founder of We Say Neigh, shared with The Dodo.
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
The baby, who was born prematurely and with health issues, was abandoned by her mother but was fortunately found by one of the rescuers
The little one, who soon got the name Addie, was born prematurely and had health and hoof formation issues. That, and the fact that she was her mom’s, Anna’s, firstborn, were most likely the main things that led to the horse abandoning her foal and refusing to feed it.
Still, the reasons behind the incident didn’t matter much as the baby could not survive alone for long. Thus, Cricket took her and brought her back home where, for the first few days, she had to keep bringing milk bottles almost without a pause.
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
The woman nursed the foal back to health, and it didn't take long before she moved to the rescue's farm, where she got to run around and hang out with other horses
“Three to four days in, we saw a definite change where she would get up on her own,” The woman shared. “It wasn’t us trying to get her up. And then she would start to run, and we were like, ‘Where did this come from?’ The vet was shocked that she made it.”
Soon, with her newfound energy, Addie could no longer hang around the house all day, so Cricket started driving her to the rescue farm more and more often, where she could run and hang out with other horses. A few months later, when the foal was fully healed, she was moved to the We Say Neigh farm full-time, where she now lives her best life.
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Dogs have been called man’s best friend for the longest time. They are the first animals that we domesticated and are truly invaluable companions like no other animal. However, if we take a look at our history, it’s easy to argue that horses had a much bigger impact on our development.
Niobe Thomson of CBC explains that while dogs were loyal friends, perfect hunting partners, and great guards, horses quite literally carried humanity on their backs for thousands of years. They helped us travel vast distances at speeds that greatly outmatched our own, and their roles in agriculture, war, and many other fields were crucial.
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
Moreover, horses are very intelligent animals who, according to one study, are even able to understand subtle eye and body movements, making them quite capable of reading human disposition.
It is unclear whether this ability is innate to horses or if they learned it during the 6,000 years that we coevolved. Nonetheless, when it comes to understanding us, this may place horses a lot closer to dogs than we previously realized.
Image credits: addie_themini / Instagram
However, in the end, both of these animals are amazing, and there’s no one to say that we have to choose one or the other. We should be grateful for having friends like these, and when it comes down to it, just like it happened with Addie, we should always be ready to reach out our hand and help them. That’s the least that we can do to pay them back.
What did you think about this story? Do you like horses? Share it all in the comments below!
The commenters loved the story and were very thankful to the rescuers for saving the baby horse
