Mare and Foal Sanctuary's video: We re celebrating our 30th anniversary as a registered charity

It has been 30 years since the Mare and Foal Sanctuary became a charity. The sanctuary was founded by Rosemary Kind in 1988, but we didn’t become a fully-fledged charity until four years later in 1992. Since then, we have rescued over 1,000 horses, ponies and foals. It all began with a small group of rescued foals at Rosemary’s farm in Chudleigh in Devon. Her vision was to ensure that the smallest and weakest, injured or unwanted horses and ponies had care and a home for life. She dedicated her life to rescuing and looking after equines, retiring in 2013. Here at the Sanctuary we’re holding fast to her vision. It’s honoured on a daily basis by all the staff who dedicate their working lives to the horses and ponies in the sanctuary’s care. The last two years have been unpredictable. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has presented many challenges for the sanctuary to overcome. From keeping our staff and their families safe, to selling our South Manor sanctuary, we have worked hard through uncertain times to secure the future of our charity and stay true to Rosemary’s vision. We have rescued 21 equines in the last year – that’s nearly two admissions a month. A further 77 horses and ponies have been rehomed in the last 12 months via our Sanctuary at Home scheme. Additionally, 236 people were supported with advice, resulting in positive welfare outcomes. Of these 161 had early welfare intervention for their horses and ponies which meant they did not have to come into sanctuary. We are working hard to provide a safe sanctuary for horses, expand our welfare outreach and advice to the equine-owning community and deliver equine assisted learning to people in our communities. Horses and ponies are costly animals to care for, especially our rescued horses who require specialist handling and retraining or ongoing veterinary treatment, medication and care. With your ongoing support, we will be here for the next 30 years to provide lifelong, life-changing, loving care and support to rescued horses, ponies and foals. This will include building a high intensity care unit at our Coombe Park sanctuary in the future for vulnerable horses with complex needs. For more information visit: www.mareandfoal.org/thirty-years