Malnourished Stray Horse Found Wandering Streets Of Philly Now Rehabbing At Quakertown Rescue
QUAKERTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- The stray horse found wandering in Hunting Park this week is now being nursed back to health. The animal care and control team transferred the horse to a farm in Bucks County.
"We like to have them out in the pasture, able to spread their legs and graze and be a happy horse," executive director of Last Chance Rescue Jackie Burke said.
Darien the house is making himself comfortable at his new home in Quakertown. He was found wandering the streets of Hunting Park earlier this week, but will now be rehabilitated at Last Chance Rescue.
"He's definitely going to hopefully get back to his roots and get to experience all the open space we have available for him," Burke said.
Jackie Burke is the executive director of the rescue. Their first order of business was getting Darien weighed in.
He came in at 645 pounds, about 200 pounds less than he should be and then he got to experience the rural life, away from the city, in his own paddock.
"They need space, they need enrichment they don't want to be in a stall 24/7," Sarah Barnett, with ACCT Philly, said. "That's not good for them, that's not what they're meant to do. They're meant to be able to go outside, be in a pasture and come back in and still work, be ridden, but also get the care they need."
CBS3 is told Darien will have a few months on the farm. First, they have to get his weight up and then they have to assess his skills and from there they say the sky is the limit.
"Is he comfortable being a riding horse? Is he sound enough to be a riding horse? If he isn't, he can be a companion horse. Our adoption program is pretty unique," Burke said.
ACCT Philly said if Darien was not rescued he could've been hurt on the street or sent to an auction. While it's not illegal to own a horse in Philly, they remind you of responsible pet ownership.
"It's really hard to properly care for them in the city. It doesn't mean it can't be done, but it's really hard, and the average person can't do it," Barnett said.