In August 2010, Teri was alerted to a situation not far from the ranch of an injured and pregnant mare seemingly abandoned in a pasture.
The mare had been a victim of the cruel Mexican rodeo “sport” of horse tripping. In this event, a horse is released, galloping, into an arena of some sort. The caballeros (cowboys) chase after the frightened horse, lariats swinging as they attempt to rope the horse’s forelegs. The goal is to bring the horse to the ground to win points. A quote from Ambuja Rosen, an Oregon independent journalist:
This mare has already been lassoed several times―those scars you saw were rope burns that carved away inches of her flesh. But this time the mare won’t get up again. She crashes head over heels, breaks her leg, and is euthanized.
In this particular mare’s case, the event that broke her front knee was not in an official rodeo. She was maimed in a pasture for reasons of entertainment. Rather than being euthanized, she was impregnated so she could produce her own replacement.
The mare was transported by an anonymous rescuer to Terolyn. She was evaluated by a vet and the prognosis was not a good one: the leg would never heal, the mare would be forever in pain. Best to have her foal and then euthanize her once the foal was weaned.
The mare was given the name Oreo. Despite her prior mistreatment by others, she was very sweet and enjoyed her days at the ranch. She delivered a beautiful filly who was named Hope. Once Hope was weaned, Oreo was put to rest.
Hope has been adopted into a forever home—well-cared for, loved and cherished .