HorseAid was initially founded in 1984 by the International Generic Horse Association's Enzo Giobbé (CEO, now retired), and Staci Layne Wilson (secretary/registrar, now honorary) as a worldwide equine relief program funded entirely through IGHA equine registration fees, unsolicited outside gifts, and personal grants and endowments from the IGHA Board of Directors and HorseAid founders.

The main purpose of HorseAid is the rescue and care of horses and ponies that have been abused or neglected "...so that all horses and ponies may lead a full and productive life, free from pain and abuse."

HorseAid also administers an equine adoption programme (the first of its kind) open to qualified private parties. While some of the equines available are those donated by owners who, for various reasons and intents, can no longer keep or care for (or have simply outgrown) their animals, the great majority are those animals that have been rescued. HorseAid relies a great deal on outside volunteer help by concerned and caring individuals to run its many valuable programmes. The ways you can help are many:

Adopt a horse or pony. HorseAid has many different equines available each month that are looking for permanent, caring homes. (more about this below -- download an adoption application).

Become a temporary foster parent (SafeHouse or SafeHaven). HorseAid does not have one central location for its horses (unfeasible, we have a vast amount of horses in the HorseAid programme); rescued and donated horses and ponies need temporary shelter and care while awaiting permanent adoption. (more about this below -- download a SafeHouse application).

Donate a horse or pony. Please, don't send your equine to auction or sell him for below meat market prices! HorseAid is still accepting private party and other donated equines, and once donated, will ensure that the animal is placed into a permanent, monitored home. (more about this below -- download a donation application).

Volunteer. HorseAid is looking for qualified and reliable Field Reps to do spot checks on adopted horses and help handle equine adoptions. Take assignments at your own pace. (more about this below -- download a volunteer application).

Furnish services / goods. HorseAid needs feed and hay, trailering services, veterinary field services, farriers, legal services and representing attorneys for our U.S. operations and our various world-wide chapters, etc. If you can help in any way, please contact us!

IGHA register your horse or pony. The IGHA uses a major portion* of every IGHA registration fee to help fund its equine beneficence programmes. But IGHA registration doesn't help just us, it helps you (and your horse of pony) too!

Please go to our Equine Registration Page to find out more about this.

*Beginning on October 1, 2003, 90% of all IGHA equine registration fees will go into the HorseAid program (including PMU research), the remaining 10% will go to IGHA/HorsePAC. That's 100% of all fees received going directly for equine beneficence programmes!

Order from our merchandise catalog. Surplus monies (monies above those used to purchase our goods) go to help the HorseAid horses and ponies. We offer tee-shirts, bumper stickers and back-issues of our publications as most horse organizations do, but in addition to these usual products we also have unique, handmade, one of a kind specialty heirloom-quality horse-related items! They're really terrific... browse the page to find out more!

EQUINE ADOPTION

While we encourage stating what you would prefer in a horse or pony, please don't fall into the trap of being overly specific or inflexible. Although we want you to be categorical, you probably won't find your "dream horse" if your requirements are too rigid -- you could miss the chance of finding a "near dream horse" that is maybe five years older than you wanted, or a hand shorter than preferred.

Our main objective is finding an unwanted, abused or no longer affordable horse or pony a loving and permanent home; we are not a horse-finding service. Our adoption programme is unique in that the horse or pony gets to 'pick' the adopter instead of the other way around, and simple to understand: we do not find horses for people, we find homes for horses...

HorseAid fulfills a deceased father's promise. Chris (and his mom, Martha) with "Cutie".
Chris looks at all the "horsey gifts" donated by local Kansas merchants at HorseAid's
behest. This was truly a very special, very Merry Christmas for all involved!

We try to match the right person and home environment to the horse, so we may have more than one person under consideration. The placement of the horse is a mutual agreement between the animal's owner (if applicable), HorseAid, and the potential adopter, so please do not be offended if you are not selected -- there will be other chances. If you are selected, you will take care-possession of the equine after signing the required documents.

When you sign the HorseAid Adoption Agreement you will, at that time, be required to supply us with your Social Security number and Driver's License number. Please be aware that you will not "own" the horse or pony you have adopted, you are only its care-giver and companion. Legal ownership of the animal always remains with HorseAid (per our adoption contract).

While there is never any required placement or adoption fee, a donation in the form of a gift to HorseAid would be greatly appreciated at this time to help cover some of our many expenses (our average expense is close to $500.00 per horse/pony).

The contract will also declare that you may never sell, give away (or otherwise deed), have destroyed, or remove from the state in which the adoption occurred, any equine adopted from HorseAid without first obtaining express written approval for any such action from the I.G.H.A. Board of Directors (HorseAid horses and ponies may never be sold, given away or deeded. IGHA/HorseAid always maintains full legal ownership of its adopted equines. There are NO exceptions to this rule).

In the event that a person having adopted an equine from HorseAid is not able to keep or otherwise care for the adopted animal any longer, HorseAid will resettle the equine with a new adopter.

All HorseAid horses must be registered with the I.G.H.A. If the animal is already registered with a "Purebred Registry" such papers will remain on file with us (copies furnished upon request after 6 month trial period has been satisfied).

The horse must also be "branded" with the HA "No Kill" EquiSafe Chip (ESC) .

Please note that breeding of adopted horses is expressly NOT allowed. The reason this country has so many horses looking for human companions is largely due to overbreeding, and HorseAid wishes to see this problem resolved. Further, all colts or stallions must be gelded at the adopter's expense within 30 days of adoption (subject to veterinary approval).

HorseAid was the first equine beneficence organization to offer an adoption programme by restrictive contract open to all qualified adopters -- in which the equine is monitored for the rest of its life, and in which the organization always retains 100% legal ownership to. We invented this adoption method in January of 1984 and initiated it organization-wide by May of 1984.

Bear in mind, you will be required to sign a Donation Agreement, relinquishing all claims to the animal. If the animal is registered, we will ask the papers also be handed over at this time, along with any records (veterinary / farrier visits, show record, etc.) you may deem to be of consequence. If applicable, you will then sign the registration transfer papers over to HorseAid.

If the horse is well taken care of during the course of the six month trial period, the horse will be placed in the new adopter's custodial care-- with the legal agreement that should the adopter find themselves in the position of no longer being able/willing to keep the horse, it will be given back to HorseAid. You may rest assured that the horse will then be placed into another approved home; adopters are permanently enjoined from ever selling (or otherwise transferring or destroying) a rescued or donated horse or pony at any time (express written approval must first granted by the I.G.H.A. Board of Directors should the animal need to be euthanized).

Please note that any horse you donate will not be used for any commercial purposes (e.g., riding school, lesson horse, rental horse) and that breeding of adopted equines is expressly not allowed (due to the equine over-population problem).

All stallions and colts will be gelded at the adopter's expense (unless you wish to do so prior to donation -- geldings tend to find homes faster) and will also be branded with the HorseAid "No Kill" EquiSafe Chip "ESC" (horses marked with our old HA freeze brand or newer microchip technology enjoy greatly increased odds of never ending up in a feedlot or slaughter pen, as anyone in possession of such a horse that is not the current legal adopter or a HorseAid constituent, is automatically assumed to have stolen the animal and subject to arrest and prosecution by state and federal law enforcement authorities).

As of 12/31/99, our figures show that approximately 82% of the horses placed into the HorseAid adoption program remain with the original (first) adopter until either the equine or adopter passes on. Of the 18% that have to be relocated with different adopters, 16% remain with the relocated (second) adopter until either the equine or adopter passes on. Only 2% of our horses ever have to be relocated more than twice. We think this is an excellent record, and speaks very highly about the thought and research that goes into placing a HorseAid horse into an adoptive home.

HorseAid was also the first equine beneficence organization to offer an equine donation programme open to all horse owners without restriction or fee. Thereby giving those owners an option other than auction or private sale to dispose of their animals, and the risk of the unknown future such disposal might eventually lead to. We invented this owner donation method in August of 1989 and initiated it organization-wide in January of 1990.

Please note that because of the great success of the HorseAid "Adoption Option", we have reached a saturation point in terms of accepting horses and ponies into our HorseAid programme in some states. As a result, we have had to limit our equine donations to those from Animal Control, Humane Societies, the Courts, and Police agencies in the states of California, Missouri, Kansas, and any state not having an active HorseAid Chapter. We hope to be able to resume our acceptance policy of equines from private parties in these in the near future, but at the present time it is most important that we care for the existing horses in the programme who are awaiting permanent placement, and those future horses we (or others) rescue.

Very few of our representatives are required to donate more than a few hours a week (sometimes it can be 10 hours one week, and then none at all for a month. It depends upon what is going on in your area at any given time).

Most of our representatives are willing to help us in all facets, but others may wish to avoid cases of abuse whereas some specialize in cases of abuse to the exclusion of all else. The following is a list of what may be asked of you as a HorseAid Rep (or HorseAid Field Volunteer).

Qualifications:
You need not be on an expert level, but as an authorized representative of HorseAid for your immediate area and/or county, you must have at least a very good general knowledge of horses as far as knowing what proper weight and appearance should be. You must be at least 18 years of age (21 for field volunteers).

You must have a telephone (we furnish you with a pager) and reliable transportation. And you yourself must be a reliable person who is able to take care of matters in a reasonably fast, efficient and professional manner.

*HorseAid Field Volunteers only:
You must be insurable (all field reps carry liability insurance).

You must not have moved more than twice in the past three years (old address required).

You will be furnished an IGHA owned cellular phone that is to be used only for conducting official HorseAid business, as well as a digital still camera to be used in recording abuse or abusive care complaints for HorseAid.

You must be willing to furnish us your drivers license and social security information and sign a receipt for all furnished items.

You will be required to sign a non disclosure agreement (NDA) in order to legally protect the identities and circumstances of any person(s) or organization(s) reporting any abuse cases or abusive situations to us.

Download an application for a HorseAid Representative position.

We receive many requests from young adults wanting to volunteer for our HorseAid program. Unfortunately, our insurance (and some state) regulations require that all our HorseAid volunteers working with, and around, our horses -- be at least 18 years of age.

To accommodate all the caring young adults wanting to volunteer for HorseAid, the IGHA formed the "Jr. Rep's" (HorseAid Junior Representatives, which we affectionately call the "HorseAid Pony Brigade") division of HorseAid several years ago.

To become a HorseAid "Jr. Rep", you will need to be under 18 years of age, be able to fill out an application (download a Jr. Rep volunteer application from our FTP site, or send a SASE for a "hard copy" one), and return it to us (disregard the items that are not applicable to you, or your situation - mark them as "N/A") along with a signed and dated note from your legal parent or guardian attached giving you permission to volunteer for the HorseAid Jr. Rep program.

While you will not be able to actually work "hands on" with any of our HorseAid horses until you are 18, you will be able to distribute our literature on horse abuse and proper horse care, as well as our newsletter, to local tack stores and help spread the word about who we are and what we do.

This is just as important as any other work we do, so those of you volunteering will be performing a very valuable and much needed service for HorseAid and the horses.

You will receive a certificate noting that you are a "HorseAid Jr. Representative", as well as the "HorseAid Update", along with all the other appropriate materials distributed to our representatives. There is no charge for any of this -- we appreciate the help you will be furnishing. You might even be able to get extra school credits for "public service" volunteer work!

Remember if the people in your area don't know about us, they can' take advantage of our many horse relief programs.

NOTE: We also need VERY qualified horse people to act as HorseAid Chapter Coordinators or HorseAid Action Volunteers (HAVs) for the states/countries we are not represented in. Download a volunteer application from us for more info.

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Since January 1st, 1996, you are unique guest