Caring for our horses during the pandemic

Coronavirus has changed our lives beyond anything we thought possible. Thankfully our animals, for the most part, remain oblivious to everything going on around them. That’s how we want it to be, but for many who own or care for horses, routines have been affected and even life at the yard has been unable to go on as usual.

Depending on your yard situation, you may have had to turn your horses away for the foreseeable future, or you may be able to continue with their usual routine but on a buddy system with other liveries. Either way, this time of year presents lots of challenges with weight and grass management, which have now been made even trickier. Plus, as we all know, horses thrive on routine and some have had to endure sudden but inevitable changes.

So there is a lot to think about regarding our four legged friends – from managing farrier visits to coping with reduced exercise to getting hold of essential supplies. Among the reams of information out there, this checklist from Horse & Rider is a good place to start and will help make sure you’re on top of everything that still needs doing despite Covid-19.

Here at Remus we are now reliant on a small but dedicated group of yard staff and continue to give our residents the very best day to day care amidst more and more challenging circumstances. In the meantime we’re enjoying sharing pictures of the horses and ponies with you on our social media pages and if you are able to help support us in any way possible, you’ll find links below:

• Please make a donation, even if its only to set up a monthly direct debit for £5 a month! remussanctuary.org/donate.
• If you prefer you can donate food and bedding via our online shop www.remussanctuary.org/product-category/animal-treats.
• Please share our posts on social media with your friends and family www.facebook.com/RemusHorseSanctuary, twitter.com/RemusHorse, www.instagram.com/remushorsesanctuary.

We and the animals thank you!

London Community Engagement Agency Supports Essex Horse Charity 2020-21

Sue Burton, Founder of Remus Horse Sanctuary – the horse rescue charity located at Buttsbury, near Ingatestone in Essex, is delighted to receive a £500 donation from London-based Skyline Comms Ltd, during this very difficult time. Despite the recent statement from the Government, there was no olive branch for animal charities and furloughing staff is not an option due to the wholly necessary care of the rescued animals.

Ms Burton said: “We need our staff to care for the 200 horses and donkeys at the Sanctuary and they still need paying and the animals still need feeding and caring for. No mention was made by the Chancellor Rishi Sunak about animal charities. We are disappointed that we have been overlooked as a sector.

“It is a relief that companies like Skyline Comms are stepping forward, recognising the important work that we do here and helping us to remain open without any prospect of fundraising or event activity.”

Skyline Comms take their CSR responsibility seriously. They aim to support smaller charities that ensure donations where made have the most impact. Whilst being a national company, a significant proportion of their activity is in the Eastern Region, so they tend to support charities in that geographic area. In this challenging time, they know that Remus Horse Sanctuary has been hit hard by not being able to hold open days and fundraising events – which is why Skyline Comms is stepping forward now.

Skyline Comms Ltd specialises in the community and political engagement on planning projects working with developers. This ranges from scientific commercial hubs to homes for the elderly to residential housing estate developments.

Managing Director James Hockney (pictured top left with his wife) said, “We are delighted to be supporting Remus Horse Sanctuary with this donation. Many charities have been hard hit – and especially smaller charities like Remus who rely on open days and fundraising events to cover their costs. When they are spending thousands of pounds a month just on medications – before you even consider feed, hay, staff, rent, repairs, utilities – we at Skyline Comms felt the need to step in and help right now.”

Ms Burton concluded, “I can hardly express how thankful I am to James Hockney and Skyline Comms as I am even more concerned for the long term future. Clearly we’re going to be in this state for some months, not weeks. Please do support Remus. Our animals rely on your support and need you now more than at any other time.”

For further information, visit www.remussanctuary.org or contact Sue Burton on tel: 01277 356191.

We’re Still Here

Amidst this Coronavirus outbreak, we wanted to let you know we are doing all we can to care for the rescue animals as normal. But it’s not easy.

YOU CAN FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW THE SANCTUARY IS AFFECTED BY THE OUTBREAK HERE.

If you are able to support us, whether it be with a one-off donation or perhaps by setting up a monthly repeat direct debit, you really could make a vital difference. If you are a UK taxpayer, don’t forget to tick the Gift Aid box when prompted, which means we can claim an extra 25p for every £1 you donate, at no cost to you.

Donate now >

 

If you’re unable to make a donation at this time we totally understand, and are so grateful for your support. If you are able to make a donation – thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

Improving equine welfare through changing habits

The 2020 National Equine Forum took place on 5 March with a focus on how changing our own habits as owners can improve equine welfare.

Here at Remus we provide lifetime help and care for horses, ponies and donkeys. We also advise owners of older horses in all aspects of care through our Elderly Horse Campaign and advise members of the public through our Horse Welfare Watch. So we’re very conscious of the need to encourage better awareness within our communities.

Veterinary, equestrian and behavioural change experts came together at the Forum to discuss how the welfare of our horses can be improved by changing our habits in relation to disease prevention and control.

One of the welfare issues they looked at was colic risk. The ‘REACT now to beat colic’ owner campaign was developed by The British Horse Society and the University of Nottingham and is helping to ensure colic cases are more appropriately and rapidly responded to in order to ensure more effective treatment.

Another issue discussed was worming. There has been lots of debate surrounding regular worming programmes and the message from the Forum was that the more we worm, the more resistance we will experience to the drugs we currently use.  Instead, if owners turn to targeted worming – in other words, only worming if a faecal worm egg count shows it is needed – then  this could decrease the use of the drugs by 80%, therefore delaying further resistance.

You can read more about the discussions from the National Equine Forum on the website: www.nationalequineforum.com/changing-our-habits-nef20/.

You can learn more about our Elderly Horse Care and Welfare Watch on our website.

Remus Horse Sanctuary Concerns for Animals

The outbreak of Coronavirus (Covid-19) is putting a major strain on local, national and global resources. At Remus Horse Sanctuary in Essex, the stark reality – so far – is that all fundraising events have been cancelled and many of the older volunteers have had to stand down. The charity is now reliant on a small group of yard staff maintaining their own health to continue to feed and care for the animals residing at the Sanctuary.

If you would like to donate and help support and care for our animals, you can do so online.

Sue Burton, Founder of Remus Horse Sanctuary, said: “We are all living through very difficult times at the moment due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Its impact is showing in all aspects of life and business and I want to offer my well wishes for everyone’s health and wellbeing.”

Whilst the position surrounding Coronavirus changes daily and continues to create fear and anxiety around the world, the horse welfare crisis in this country also remains unchecked. In fact, many more animals will likely be in need of help and rescue.

From a financial perspective this puts the charity in a very worrying position. Not least, because the Government advice of social isolation also means no fundraising, whether on the street or as a result of organised events, and yet Remus still have animals at the Sanctuary to feed and care for. The staff are hoping that its suppliers can still supply the quantities of feed, hay and straw required.

Many larger charities may be able to withstand this type of business interruption, but Remus simply don’t have the reserves to do so – financially or otherwise – especially given even the experts can’t accurately forecast how long this situation might continue.

Ms Burton commented, “It’s strange here, everything goes on as normal and the animals still have their same set routine and are oblivious to what’s going on around them. Thankfully they are all in good health.”

The horse welfare charity is calling on people everywhere to help by making a donation to the Sanctuary or by setting up a monthly standing order. Remus’ rescued animals need help and support now more than at any other time.

Any help that can be offered will be gratefully received by the charity.

Ms Burton said, “I know times are hard for everyone at the moment but if you can do something to help us during the coming months, we really would appreciate it. With your help and support we will get through this and come out the other side.”

Remus Horse Sanctuary offer many ways to aid donations, as listed on their website at www.remussanctuary.org/donate. You can also donate food and bedding via the online shop.

For further information about the charity, visit www.remussanctuary.org or contact Sue Burton on tel: 01277 356191.

Shopping at Co-op Stores offers Life Saving Paddocks for Horses

Sue Burton, Founder of Remus Horse Sanctuary, is delighted to announce that the Co-op Local Community Fund is now supporting the charity through to October 2020. The project supported is to create hospital paddocks for sick and debilitated horses, such as those suffering from a condition called Laminitis.

Laminitis is a prevalent, extremely painful condition in horses that has significant welfare implications for owners. It is an inflammatory condition of the tissues (laminae) bonding the hoof wall to the pedal bone in the hoof. It is often a recurring condition. In excess of seven percent of equine deaths are linked to laminitis, with many animals being euthanised.

There are a number of risk factors associated with the development of laminitis including the spring and summer months, obesity, being a pony rather than a horse, older age and hormonal diseases such as equine Cushing’s disease (pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction; PPID) and equine metabolic syndrome (EMS).

Ms Burton says: “A lot of our horses have laminitis as they have spent many years not receiving the care they should. These special paddocks are expensive to create and maintain but they allow the horses a quality of life that would otherwise be denied them. 

“Every year these paddocks need new woodchip flooring which allows the animals (a) to be kept off the grass which would otherwise add to the problem (b) means they can be kept outside with their friends and can walk around rather than being box rested, and (c) ultimately is very often the difference between life and death for them.”

Every time a Co-operative member buys selected own-brand products and services, 1% of the money they spend goes to help support local causes in the community, such as this project with Remus Horse Sanctuary.

The stores in the immediate vicinity of the Sanctuary include:

Store Name	Store Postcode	Business Unit
Billericay Queens Park	CM12 0UA	Food
Billericay	CM12 0RP	Food
Billericay	CM12 9BQ	Funeralcare
Blackmore	CM4 0RU	Food
Hutton	CM13 1LZ	Food
Ingatestone	CM4 9EA	Convenience Store
Pilgrims Hatch	CM15 9PD	Food

 

Ms Burton concluded, “Laminitic paddocks are very much a life-saving opportunity for many of our animals who deserve a right to some good quality life after all they have endured but it does come at a significant cost.

“We’re absolutely delighted that Remus Horse Sanctuary will be able to access this funding opportunity and I’d like to thank everyone involved for their support.”

Members can choose which causes to support by signing into their membership account or by calling the membership helpline on 0800 023 4708. For further information, please visit the Co-op web page at: https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/22277 or, to become a member and receive exclusive offers throughout Co-op, please visit: https://membership.coop.co.uk/new-registration.

Find out more about Remus Horse Sanctuary at www.remussanctuary.org or contact Sue Burton directly on tel: 01277 356191.

Giving our horses the quality of life they deserve

Quality of life is so important to us here at Remus. We aim to give all of our residents as comfortable a life as possible, but can we really know what makes our horses happy?

A group of researchers from the UK, New Zealand and Australia are working to identify accurate ways to measure a horse’s emotional wellbeing, so that we can all keep better track of our horses’ welfare.

The researchers have reviewed two areas that could reflect their wellbeing; equine behaviours and physical measures, such as heart rate.

They found that behaviours were more reliable in assessing welfare than physical measures, although these should still be taken into account. Behaviours such as: feeding behaviour, interaction with other horses and with humans, and interest in the environment around them most clearly indicated their emotional state. For example, when they were happy, the horses had more friendly social interactions.

Basic welfare requirements include food, water and shelter, but this study reinforces the fact that horses’ needs are much more complex than this.

At Remus our residents have access to whatever their individual needs require. They have deep beds, heat lamps and pain relief, if needed, for arthritis or other issues to keep them stress free and relaxed. We also have music and give self-selection herbs, and of course regularly check for dentition issues, take worm counts, feed high-calorific, high-fibre mashes and weigh them weekly to ensure we are keeping on top of their weight.

You can read more about the study into quality of life here.

If you would like to sponsor one of our animals, you can do so here.

Abandoned and Tethered Horses and Ponies Need Help

Sue Burton, Founder of Remus Horse Sanctuary near Ingatestone in Essex, is appealing for urgent assistance to help save the many horses and ponies that will die needlessly this year from starvation. The charity has created an appeal page on Just Giving to help raise £2,500 towards the cost – www.justgiving.com/campaign/WinterFeedAppeal2020.

The New Year generally brings colder weather as we’re already seeing and, as well as giving top class care to the Sanctuary residents, there are many more horses and ponies out there who are not so lucky and that Remus Horse Sanctuary also need to keep an eye on.

However, at this time of year, Remus Horse Sanctuary struggles to respond to all of the reports they receive from members of the public.

Ms Burton commented, “We try and rescue as many animals as we possibly can, but we just cannot physically be everywhere we are needed – and it all comes at a great cost. This situation continues to be a huge crisis in the UK, which many people just don’t realise.”

The horse welfare crisis in the UK has been escalating for many years and the news regularly features horses that are victims of physical and mental abuse.

Remus continue to receive calls daily throughout the year. However, the cold winter months will make any situation worse. With the public’s help, the Charity’s Welfare Watch aims to deliver assistance to horses in crisis in and around Essex and the South East of England.

Keeping an animal fed over winter will give it a chance to thrive into Spring. Forage will also help keep horses and ponies warm, yet a tethered horse may not have access to this. Without the Sanctuary’s help, many animals will die a slow, painful and unnecessary death in the unrelenting cold weather.

“The public can help us by working together. Please take a look at our Welfare Watch and we will continue to do everything we can to avoid many horses and ponies from suffering. The more information you can provide on the form, the better.”

Details of the Remus Welfare Watch can be found online at: www.remussanctuary.org/horse-welfare/welfare-watch.

Additionally, the Sanctuary sustained a lot of damage during Storm Ciara, losing an entire field shelter (pictured) and felt from roofs.

The charity also offers a variety of foodstuffs online which people can buy: donate a bale of hay, bag of animal food, straw bedding etc. A week’s supply of food and hay for a tethered horse will help improve their life and wellbeing for just £25 and help get them through the cold winter months. Visit: www.remussanctuary.org/product-category/animal-treats to find out more or contact Sue Burton on telephone: 01277 356191.

Introducing a new, speedy way to donate on JustGiving

We’re excited to share that JustGiving is the first fundraising platform in the UK to launch an exciting, new payment method enabled by open banking that will make it even easier for people to donate to us here at Remus Horse Sanctuary.

This message is perfect timing in one regard as we lost one of our field shelters over the weekend to Storm Ciara – will you help us raise the necessary funds to replace it? You can find out more and see pictures of the damage on our Facebook page at: facebook.com/RemusHorseSanctuary.

Anyway, the new payment method is called Pay with Bank transfer and just like the name suggests, it enables donations to be made on JustGiving via a bank transfer. There’s no set up required, it’s very simple and speedy to use, and with the payment handled entirely by the donor’s bank, it’s super secure.

Pay with Bank transfer is powered by American Express but open to everyone, so any of you with a UK bank account will be able to give to us and our appeals on JustGiving in just a few clicks – all without card details to hand.

How does it work?

All a donor will need to do is click on the ‘Bank transfer’ button on the donation page of JustGiving and select their UK bank. They’ll then be automatically redirected to the bank’s webpage or app, where they will authenticate using their normal method and approve the pre-filled transfer details. That’s it. Check out the video on YouTube to see it in action: https://youtu.be/Bn8OzlPOlHU.

What are the benefits of donating with Bank transfer?

Pay with Bank transfer allows people to make donations on the go, even when they don’t have their card to hand. It also shows them their account balance before they approve the donation, and means they’ll benefit from bank-grade security, as the payment will be handled entirely by their bank.

You can view and please donate to our Winter Feed Appeal on JustGiving here: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/WinterFeedAppeal2020.

Keeping our horses and ponies safe this winter

The New Year generally brings colder weather and, as well as giving top class care to our Sanctuary residents, there are many more horses and ponies out there who are not so lucky and who we also need to keep an eye on.

The horse welfare crisis in the UK has been escalating for many years and our countrywide Welfare Watch aims to deliver assistance to horses in crisis in and around Essex and the South East of England. At this time of year, we struggle to respond to all of the reports we receive from members of the public; we just cannot physically be everywhere we are needed – and it comes at great cost! Will you donate to our Winter Feed Appeal?

We’ve put together this simple five-step checklist, designed for everyone to refer to before contacting us, so that we can all work together to help more horses and ponies at this time of year. Why not print a copy and save it to hand?

1. Keep safe yourself. This is the most important thing: first of all, horses can be unpredictable and so you must always put your own safety first, secondly if you don’t know the owner of the land, you could be trespassing.
2. Make yourself aware of the Five Freedoms (see below) to help you decide the nature of the problem.
3. Collect information about the horse(s) you are concerned about and fill in our online form. The form will ask you for:
   • The nature of the problem in line with the Five Freedoms
   • Supporting photographs, if possible, to demonstrate the nature and scale of the problem and so that we can prioritise the visits
   • Horse(s) details including how many, gender, breed, colour and age (if known) and also horse(s) owner’s details, if known
   • The landowner’s details, if known
   • The location of the horses
   • Your contact details
4. If it is an emergency situation, contact the RSPCA immediately on 0300 1234 999.
5. If it is safe to do so, take the horse(s) some hay and water until further help is sought.

The Five Freedoms

There are many reasons why a horse may be distressed or need assistance. We’ve chosen to align our Welfare Watch with the ‘Five Freedoms’ identified by The Animal Welfare Act 2006, which enshrines the animal owner’s ‘Duty of Care’ in British Law:

• Freedom from hunger or thirst – the animal has little or no access to fresh water and/or food.
• Freedom from discomfort – the animal does not have somewhere to lie down or gain shelter or is exposed to extreme weather conditions.
• Freedom from pain, injury or disease – the animal clearly shows disease, an untreated injury or perhaps severely overgrown hooves.
• Freedom to express (most) normal behaviour – the animal is tethered incorrectly and/or does not have sufficient space or proper facilities and living conditions.
• Freedom from fear and distress – abandoned animals, those subject to dog attacks, low flying aircraft, or similar, or those suffering from any of the above.

Remember, it is really important that you send us photographs of the horses, ponies or donkeys in need so that we can prioritise our visits and their care.

Download the form here.