Rescue Me: Crosswinds Equine Rescue
It was with great pleasure I learned about Crosswinds Equine Rescue (CWER), a wonderful horse welfare organization located in Illinois. This rescue is well put together and has been a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit for 5 years.
AnnMarie Cross is the president of CWER, and I have really enjoyed getting to know more about this special lady for my first “Rescue Me” story for Tuesday’s Horse.
I asked AnnMarie what inspired her to get involved in horse rescue and rehabilitation.
AnnMarie explained that while she was in college at Cornell, she worked with a “horribly abused” ex-race horse named Perwnyk, a blue roan Thoroughbred mare. AnnMarie said, “This mare was abused by men, would run at her stall door and try to attack any man that would walk into the barn.” It seems the horse was thinking “kill or be killed.” The mental stress Perwynk endured had taken a heavy toll, making it difficult for her to trust anyone and frustrating to handle.
In 6 months, AnnMarie and the farm manager of the handicapped riding school where she volunteered turned the horse around. Perwynk went on to play polo on the University team, amazingly with a MALE rider. AnnMarie says “This was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done in my life, other than giving birth to my children.” AnnMarie vowed to herself she would do it again one day. She kept that promise, and that is how CROSSWINDS EQUINE RESCUE came to be.
The mission of CWER is to rescue, rehabilitate, retrain and find homes for abused and at risk horses. They also work to help educate owners and retrain horses before they become a rescue project.
CWER takes in all breeds, but they have a particular soft spot for Drafts and ponies. They currently have two Drafts, five quarter horses, three ex-race horses, two ponies, a wild Mustang (more about that later), and three horses of unknown breeds.
The organization has 10 volunteers who come around on a regular basis, and approximately 5 others who put in time when they can. CWER also has five families who bring special needs children to their facility who learn to help themselves while helping the horses.
Although CWER have horses who have been with them for years, it is their goal to rehabilitate and retrain horses in 6-12 months and find a home for them as soon as their rehabilitation and retraining is done. CWER can manage up to 15 horses at a time, although they occasionally go over that limit.
On a typical day they bring all the horses out of the pasture and put each one in a designated feeding location. Founder cases eat in their dry lot making sure the horses’ walking is kept at a minimum. Every horse is fed individually based upon the certified nutritionist’s recommendations, and checked at feeding time for any problems that may have occurred since the previous feeding. Each horse is socialized with and gets attention best suited to their problems at each meal, whether it is wound treatment, medical care, grooming, holding their feed for them, or even being allowed to go from paddock to stall and back without having to allow a human to touch him/her. At nearly every feeding, at least one horse receives formal training work, whether it is round penning, farrier care training, trailer practice or actual riding training.
One of CWER’s most heartwarming stories is about a horse named Miata.
Miata was a saddle seat show horse who was horribly injured in a trailer accident. His owner had either been seriously disabled or died. Miata was abandoned in a field. When CWER took him in, Miata was lame, 300 pounds underweight, suffering from mange, and had an infected scar.
Months later, through patience and gentle handling, Miata started to coming around. He was still terrified of cars strange to him. The first time the special needs bus came to bring wheelchair bound James to volunteer, Miata was so terrified he would not come out of the pasture.
The next time James came, they decided to put Miata in a stall before the bus arrived. James held Miata’s tray on this wheelchair while Miata ate over his stall door and the two instantly bonded. From that time, whenever James was there, they noticed that Miata was quieter, calmer, and more manageable.
The kinship that developed between these two was sweetly demonstrated on a day the special needs children bus arrived, but James felt too ill to help out and decided to stay on board. As usual, Miata came out of the pasture to greet him. When he realized his friend was not getting off the bus, Miata nudged and insisted that a handler take him to the bus. Miata nuzzled James’ window before he would be lead his stall to eat.
Horses taken in by CWER are not just lovingly rehabilitated and given another chance of a good life. Some are also able to go on to successful careers.
AnnMarie explains, “We take great pride in the training work we do here. Horses in our care have gone on to be competitive show horses, trail horses, and so much more. Most of all they have become great companions and partners to their adopters as we work very hard to ensure that we find the right life, the life that best fits their skills, and personalities.”
A fascinating new project CWER has gotten involved with is one called: Extreme Mustang Makeover. The goal is to train a BLM Mustang to compete in a special contest. Right now they have a Mustang named Cheveyo who will be with them 100 days. He is being coached by top trainer, Mike Cross, and they will compete in 3 levels. Mike Cross has started to make wonderful progress. After 3 days, previously wild Cheveyo was being lead by 14-year-old Junior Trainer Tory Cross; at day 24 he was riding outdoors. When the contest is over, Cheveyo will be auctioned off to an approved BLM adopter. This contest will be held at the Midwest Horse Fair on April 18th thru April 20th 2008 at Alliant Energy Center in Madison, WI. To learn more visit CWER’s website at: www.crosswindseqresq.org.
© Chastity Weese 2008 for Tuesday’s Horse
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CHASTITY WEESE is a mother of 7 with a passion for writing, researching and saving the lives of animals. Chastity has managed a horse rescue for over 5 years, and recently began taking in dogs and other animals. In addition to writing, her greatest joy is spending time with her children, husband, and horses. Visit her website at Heartfelt Stables.
