Nemo is a Chestnut Quarter Horse Gelding whose estimated birthdate is June 14, 2001. He worked for twelve years as a camp horse at a now-defunct upstate New York dude ranch where conditions were cruel and pathetically substandard. He and the other horses at this ranch were reportedly tethered and tacked up for hours in the hot sun during the summer months. Nemo has permanent scars on both sides of his mouth from the severe equipment he was forced to wear during trail rides. It is not known where most of those other horses went when this dude ranch shut down in the spring of 2022, but we were told that some ended up at a low-end horse auction where horse dealers and killer buyers could bid on them. Nemo’s life was saved due to the kindness and compassion of one individual who got him out of there, thus saving him from ending up on the auction block. He arrived at the sanctuary on December 18, 2022.

Over the years, Equine Advocates has rescued and provided sanctuary for many camp horses. Every spring, we revive our campaign urging parents to thoroughly research summer riding camps, dude ranches, riding academies, national children’s organizations, and resorts that offer horseback riding, as well as school and therapeutic riding programs to make sure that none of these places lease their horses from killer buyers and other nefarious individuals who send horses to auction and into the slaughter pipeline. There are very good riding programs out there for both children and adults, but one must take the time to do the research and ask the right questions so that the unethical and inhumane treatment of horses is not supported by unsuspecting parents who just are not aware of how some of these places operate. It is also a serious safety issue for children who ride horses who are not fed and cared for properly. Rescuing a camp or school horse is one of the best and most rewarding experiences one can have because they generally are wonderful and safe to ride for both kids and adults.

Fortunately, Nemo will spend the rest of his life here at Equine Advocates Rescue & Sanctuary. His story will be a way to educate visitors and the public about the sad fate of equines used at many dude ranches, summer camps, and riding programs. It is part of our mission to better inform people on how to avoid the bad places like the one Nemo came from and locate the reputable ones where horses receive good care and are not disposed of at auction when the summer season is over or simply outlive their usefulness.

Nemo is proudly sponsored by supporters from Sun Lakes, Arizona; South Bend, Indiana; Ithaca, New York; New Paltz, New York; Rensselaer, New York and Austin, Texas.

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Peggy, a Belgian Draft born around 1996, is a former PMU (Pregnant Mares’ Urine) Mare from Canada who was in foal at the time of her rescue in 2004. She was part of Equine Advocates’ largest rescue operation ever of 46 Canadian PMU mares. Peggy has a freeze brand #157 on her side, which represents the stall number at the PMU factory farm where she came from. These factory farms don’t even give them names—how sad! She now happily shares a pasture with her daughter, Melanie, another rescued PMU mare named Annie, and a rescued Philadelphia Carriage Horse named Mark in the area we call “Field of Dreams.” Peggy is a beautiful, sweet, and shy horse!

Peggy is proudly sponsored by supporters from Glencoe, Illinois; Israel; Cold Spring, New York and Valatie, New York.

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Photo credit: Jim Craner

Philip Seymour is a Dark Bay Registered Thoroughbred Gelding who had raced eleven times under the name of “Garitoff.” He was born in Kentucky on March 30, 2019. We don’t know what happened to him from the time he ran his last race in 2023 until October 8, 2025, when we took over his care. He was malnourished and had a serious injury to his front right leg that required immediate medical attention. We do not know how or when he sustained that injury, only that he had ended up with a horse dealer in that condition and needed to be rescued. When we were contacted about his situation, knowing there was the possibility that he could have been shipped to a low-end auction, we moved quickly. We arranged for a hauler to pick him up and transport him directly to Cornell University Hospital for Animals in Ithaca, NY. As soon as he arrived, veterinarians began running tests and working on his injured leg. The wound was open and very large. It was determined that he needed to undergo skin graft surgery, which entailed taking many small pieces of skin from his neck and transplanting them directly into the leg wound to promote new skin growth. The operation was a success! Philip spent 22 days in the hospital and arrived at the sanctuary on October 29, 2025.

As of spring 2026, Philip is still recovering. We plan to introduce him to a herd of four Thoroughbred Geldings once he’s healed. We will update this information once he fully recovers and we can begin the process of gradually increasing the size of his turnout area. From there, if he continues to do well, we will start introducing him to his new herd when he is ready.

Philip is proudly sponsored by supporters from Prescott Valley, Arizona; Lenox, Massachusetts; Pittsfield, Massachusetts; Sandwich, Massachusetts; Bellerose, New York; Hudson, New York; Ithaca, New York and Yorktown Heights, New York.

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Photo credit: Alex Valverde