America's Unwanted Horse Problem
“Horses for Sale” is the most often searched horse-related term in the world’s most powerful search engine. More than 5,000 people search for “free horses” every month. And that’s just the beginning of America’s horse problem. The gap between the number of horses in the U.S. and the number of qualified horse owners is growing, thanks to irresponsible breeders and the federal government’s efforts to round up and domesticate wild mustangs.
That gap keeps America’s slaughter pipeline bursting at the seams, and inundates rescues with starved, sick, elderly and barely-trained rejects in need of intensive care and love.
Welcome to Swingin' D Horse Rescue
Swingin’ D Horse Rescue believes horses deserve to live and die with the dignity they’ve earned. Since the 1400s, when Spanish explorers roamed the plains on horseback, horses have been part the American fabric. They helped to discover and build this great nation. They deserve more than to be bred for human sport and entertainment, then overworked, abused, starved and neglected until the final betrayal and exploitation of foreign slaughter.
We hope you’ll join Swingin’ D in being their voice.
Every Horse Deserves to Know Success
Keep up with the horses we rescue from slaughter and nurse back to health in our Success Stories section. “Success” at the ‘D might mean keeping a horse out of the slaughter pipeline. Sometimes success is offering sanctuary; other times, it’s socializing a hopeless horse. The ultimate success is adoption of a formerly-doomed horse to its soul human. Whether the horses we rescue find their human match, or they find sanctuary here with us, the stories of their journey out of hell warm the soul.
At Swingin’ D Horse Rescue, we’re committed to saving horses from neglectful or abusive situations that force them into the slaughter pipeline.
Swingin' D Horse Rescue - What we do
We accept surrendered horses or horses bailed from kill pens. Swingin’ D Horse Rescue nurses them back to health, evaluates and trains them, then adopts them to responsible owners. We require contracts for all adoptions. New owners commit to making their horse(s) the center of their world, and ensuring their protection and comfort forever.
Bo and Aubrey - Not rescued. Just spoiled.
America's Dirty Little Secret
Shortly after we gave each other these magnificent Christmas gifts, we learned about the tragedy of American horses – like Bo and Aubrey – sold dirt cheap at auction so people in other countries could slap their meat between to pieces of bread and eat them. It’s illegal in America, but in other countries, people eat horse meat – chemicals, hormones and all.
When the U.S. shut down horse slaughterhouses in 2007, a new industry exploded, with the help of social media. Today, an estimated 100,000 to 130,000 American horses are shipped across the border to Mexican and Canadian slaughterhouses. The USDA estimates 92 percent of them are perfectly healthy.
Think about that. More than 90,000 horses like Aubrey and Bo are sent to the most inhumane death imaginable by the owners they trusted and served. But hey, we’re not doing it in America anymore, right? We’re just enabling it in other countries.
This new, unregulated industry attracts charlatans, crooks and animal abusers who travel around the country, stealing from generous donors, and starving, injuring and even killing horses.
Our goal is for every horse to feel loved and valued – like Bo and Aubrey. Our love for them is the reason we started this horse rescue.
Tami and Danny - Swingin' D Founders
Swingin’ D Horse Rescue was founded by a former Miss Oklahoma and television news anchor and her police detective husband. They learned about the horrors of horse slaughter through social media. Tami Marler began bailing horses from kill lots through Facebook brokers. Always Tami’s staunchest supporter, Danny Elliott jumped right in, mucking manure and tending the ranch.
Tami and Danny also advocate for responsible horse ownership. Both investigators at heart, they’ve collaborated to expose criminals in the horse rescue industry. They worked with law enforcement in multiple jurisdictions to investigate a woman accused of abusing animals and stealing from donors. They also share tips for proper horse care, as well as lessons learned in horse rescue.
Tami Marler, MBA
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