Blind horse travels 1,500 miles to Greenwood sanctuary
By: Andrew Westrope, Staff Writer
GREENWOOD – More than a year after being found at death’s door in Loreto, Mexico, a blind horse and an orphaned mule have been given a second chance by an animal sanctuary in Greenwood.
A young filly named Deli and her best friend, Macho the mule, arrived at HartSong Ranch Animal Sanctuary on Thursday, having traveled more than 1,600 miles in 14 days thanks to long-laid plans of their rescuers. Though they now stand to make a considerable recovery, Deli and Macho were headed for euthanasia only months ago.
Bracken discovered Deli by accident while visiting a local rancher who had requested medical attention for one of his other horses. She found the two-month-old foal tied to a fence post, blind, emaciated, infested with worms and handicapped by curling hoofs, and called McGorky, locally-known as the “dog man of Loreto” for his many animal rescues, for help. The owner had originally wanted to breed Deli, but after weeks of negotiations, he relented and sold her for about $250.
“Originally the idea was to euthanize her, because she was in such poor condition and she was blind,” McGorky said. “But then the owner said, ‘No, we don’t want to euthanize, we want to sell her,’ so we entered negotiations to buy her, and that went on for about six weeks, and I had to promise we would do a comprehensive examination of her eyes and see if we could do surgery.”
He placed Deli in a temporary facility with Macho, an orphaned mule he had rescued from the desert, and the two became fast friends. He decided against euthanasia about a month later as the animals apparently began to recover. Deli stood upright after her hooves were properly trimmed, and when McGorky employed retired horse trainer Maryanne Austin to look after her, she found the foal was exceptionally intelligent and eager to learn.
“(Deli) is so pretty and so loving, not an aggressive bone in her body, and she actually put on weight,” McGorky said.
The next thought was to put Deli and Macho in a facility in Baja, but McGorky didn’t like the one he visited, and after a nationwide search he found the closest viable option, and the one he was most comfortable with, was HartSong in Greenwood.
A non-profit animal rescue organization funded entirely by donations, HartSong Ranch is known for adopting animals with special needs. Owner Kathy Hart said it currently shelters more than 60 animals, including horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, turkeys and ducks, and Deli’s future there will be rehabilitative.
“The first thing we’re going to do is provide her a safe haven for life,” she said. “And we will continue on with Maryanne Austin’s training techniques. We don’t ride any of our horses here, but if we can get her to the point where we actually could ride her, we’d like to at least allow her to explore and have a little more stimulation in her life than just the pasture.”
Hart said once the deal was arranged, the hardest part was still before them – getting a horse across the border. But after several months and “piles and piles” of paperwork, she said the animals’ futures were more certain than they had ever been.
McGorky traveled with Deli and Macho through checkpoints and corrals in the desert until they were detained for eight days at a quarantine station in San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico, then rejoined them in San Diego and drove them last week to Greenwood. After months of negotiations and setbacks, he said the trip itself was surprisingly uneventful.
“The whole trip went like clockwork, on schedule, no problems – the animals traveled well, the equipment ran good – and then I had a flat tire on the trailer a mile from HartSong,” McGorky said. “Other than that, it was a perfect trip.”
Deli is now about a year and a half old, and though congenital cataracts have made her completely blind in her right eye, Hart is collecting funds for a $5,000 surgery that could restore vision to her left.
McGorky is confident Deli will see a better life.
“Mission accomplished,” he said. “When we decided not to euthanize (Deli), I promised her and that little mule … ‘It won’t happen overnight, because it’s Baja and it’s Mexico, but I’m going to get both of you out of here eventually.’ We did it.”
Categories: Equine Rescue, Horse News, Horse Slaughter
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
It’s Sunday and now I feel good. Thanks RT
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Oops Thanks Deb Coffey.
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You’re welcome, Morgan. And just to let everyone know, since there is more than one Debbie commenting on RT’s blog, I always post my last name with my comments.
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What a great ending to two very lucky animal’s, thank the lord for such good people in this world who really care so much… It gives us all hope for better day’s for more horses and other animal’s…
Loved this so much made me smile 🙂
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That you Rt I feel good now also, but i do Have a question where can we send donations to help with surgery for Deli ???
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Great “feel good” story with a wonderful and happy ending for two very fortunate animals. Special people caring for special animals…what a difference they made! (-: Thanks to all that made it happen and fcr all those who continue to be there for innocent animals in need. You’re truly appreciated.
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ahhhh, that’s wonderful :o)
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See what just a little time and care can do. Wonderful story.
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Happy Fathers Day! 🙂
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I wonder too how much in bribes this attorney had to shell out to get horse and the mule out of the country? The tons of paperwork also included bribes. Mexico has no known animal welfare laws that I know of. The dogs there just run the streets and breed so you have starving dogs as well as other animals everywhere.
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Exactly…that it takes mounds of red tape to get horses out when they seemingly bring them in easily by the truck load for slaughter.
Thank you Liz Bracken and thank you Patrick McGorky for all you’ve done to ensure an amazing life for Deli and Macho! A perfect example of what it means to be a father.
The Angels are smiling today, of that I am sure.
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Such a happy ending happens only in storybooks. This happened in real life and I thank God and His angels for the two precious lives they saved. Thank you to the wonderful people that made this possible. This is all about loving animals and going beyond the call of duty to save them and give them a beautiful environment where they will be safe and happy.
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Great story!!..
Love to hear them of great people with such love to give to animals especially our Equines….
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HartSong Ranch Sanctuary
http://hartsongranch.org/help.html
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If there is a will there is a way! Thank you, thank you, for caring about these animals. Our world is a better place, with people who truly value the lives of our 4 footed creatures.!! To see them blossom into healthy “ones,” is heartwarming.!
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What a great story!!! As a past hooved investigator, it is their strong will to live which can be the deciding factor in all of this. God bless all those involved in the rescue of these wonderful creatures. We are the only ones that they can turn to in some cases..We saved a pinto mare who was in deplorable condition if she was a three on the scale that was pushing it. As I lead her down the driveway to the waiting trailer, the police officers stood on each side of her waiting for her to collapse. I knew in my heart she wanted to live and had to give her that chance. As she approached the waiting trailer, I did not know if she would have the strength to get into the trailer as it was a step up. The time came and she jumped in with all the energy she had. When we arrived at the vet’s, he wanted to put her down. We could not let that happen and insisted we give her a chance to recover.
She was in a sling for 2 or 3 months. She recovered and was adopted by a wonderful gal who later took her on a 100 mile ride..So where there is a will there is a way..And I always wanted to give them the opportunity if God did not take them.
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Beautiful Story Gail, Kudos to you and your wonderful mind and heart !!!!!! You are so right Where there is the will , there is a way !!!!!!!!!! Great Rule to Live By !!!!!
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Incredible Story! Makes me believe in humans once again…..At least for a feel good Sunday! Thank u RT & Terry! Reading your book for the 4th time.. Have shared it with many friends….it is such a profound read! Just cannot thank you enough for all that you do for the innocent ones… Any T-shirts or bumper stickers 4 sale for WHFF on your website or Cafe Press? (To spread the word)? Just wondering?
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This is another amazing story from Hartsong. Kathy and Jim at Hartsong are wonderful people, they have many senior and blind horses at their sanctuary, including Mystery and Ranger, that my daughter and I had fostered. If anyone is in the area, my daughter is doing another fund raiser Hair Show for them…https://bay178.mail.live.com/default.aspx?rru=inbox#!/mail/ViewOfficePreview.aspx?messageid=6894cc5d-d5f3-11e2-8b84-00237de41626&folderid=66666666-6666-6666-6666-666666666666&attindex=0&cp=-1&attdepth=0&n=836428134
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