Horse Harbor Foundation
Rescuing at-risk horses. Empowering lives through education and therapy.
Horse Harbor Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, that has provided lifelong sanctuary for horses that have been abandoned, neglected, abused or faced premature euthanasia and slaughter since 1994. The Foundation provides shelter in a modern barn for its resident herd of up to 24 horses at any one time, all of which are provided the finest possible care to ensure that they live out the remainder of their lives in a safe, comfortable and loving environment.
Over 100 horses, most of them in their later years when they arrived, have been provided this opportunity.
Although most arrive at the sanctuary in poor health from neglect or abandonment, the majority live well into their thirties and several have made it into their forties under our expert care after being nursed back to health.
Rescued horses that are young and sound enough are rehabilitated, retrained and given a productive role in life by being incorporated into our year-round School of Horsemanship until their own time for retirement comes. Our equine education program emphasizes developing competent riders and future horse owners and provides the equine experience to families that could not otherwise afford it as the second part of our nonprofit mission. Income from this program provide the major portion of Horse Harbor’s operating revenue.
Our excellence in sanctuary operation was recognized in 2010 when the Horse Harbor Foundation was the first on the West Coast and only fifth in the United States to be awarded the highest level of achievement by an international organization of animal sanctuaries and is still one of only a handful of equine rescue sanctuaries in the United States to have earned fully accredited status in the areas of operational practice, animal care and keep, facility and governance. We continue to operate at a level that exceeds those standards.
The Foundation also offers free consultation and assistance to local horse owners on issues of proper equine stewardship or rehoming when necessary. In this way we have been involved in saving over 700 additional horses from at-risk situations. We are also actively involved in national horse welfare issues and intervene with local law enforcement agencies in situations of horse endangerment in the region.