• Sergeant York

    Sergeant York

    Sergeant York gained worldwide attention in 2004 when he was selected to be the Riderless Horse at the funeral of former President Ronald Reagan. He performed that role in thousands of Armed Forces Full Honors Funerals and other official ceremonies. He and Black Jack, the Riderless Horse at the funeral of former President John F. Kennedy in 1963, are the two most famous and beloved Caisson Horses of all time.

    In 2004, Sergeant York served as the “Riderless Horse” at the funeral for former President Reagan.

     

    Sergeant York was born on April 25, 1991, and is a Registered Standardbred who once raced under the name of “Allaboard Jules.” In 1997, thanks to horsewoman Marie Dobrisky and her son Frank, who was a member of the Caisson Platoon at that time, the striking black gelding was donated to the U.S. Army to be trained for military service. He was renamed “Sergeant York” in honor of Alvin C. York, one of the most decorated soldiers in World War I and whose life was immortalized in the award-winning 1941 film of the same name.

    Sergeant York’s unflappable personality, beauty, and demeanor were so impressive that the decision was soon made to train him as a Riderless Horse to perform at funerals honoring U.S. Presidents, high-ranking military officers, and soldiers killed in combat. Abraham Lincoln was the first president to be honored with a Riderless Horse in his funeral procession.

    Sergeant York’s illustrious career spanned 25 years during which time he inspired and captured the imaginations of fans and admirers across the globe, as well as the appreciation of those military members who were fortunate enough to know and work with him.

    We at Equine Advocates are thrilled to provide Sergeant York a permanent retirement home, which began on June 15, 2022 when he arrived here at the sanctuary following a short stay at Cornell University Hospital for Animals where he underwent a physical exam. This new stage in his life will be quieter than his former one serving with the Caisson Platoon, but he will still have an important role to play in his retirement. He will help to educate the public about the lives of Military Working Horses and the historic part he played as one of the most well-known and adored Riderless Horses to serve in the U.S. Military. He will be visited by new and old admirers, as well as by current military members and veterans who had the pleasure to know and work with him during his quarter century of service. We are honored to have Sergeant York as a permanent resident at our sanctuary.

    Sergeant York is proudly sponsored in full by a supporter from Wynantskill, New York.

    Photo credit: Terry Hawthorne

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  • Suzie

    Suzie

    From: $50.00 / month

    Suzie, a Percheron/Appaloosa Cross, was born at the sanctuary on April 25, 2004, to Bernadette, who was in foal at the time of her rescue from a Canadian PMU factory farm. As a foal, Suzie was black but has turned white like her mom as she has grown up. Sadly, Bernadette passed away in 2018. Suzie is a very lovable, friendly, and mischievous mare who loves to play with her pasture mates, Lily, Terry, and Gracie.

    Suzie is proudly sponsored by supporters from Sacramento, California; Acra, New York; New York, New York and Saratoga Springs, NY.

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  • Sylvia

    Sylvia

    From: $50.00 / month

    Sylvia, we believe, is an Arabian/Quarter Horse Cross Mare born around 2010. In September of 2018, she was standing in the Kaufman Kill Pens in Kaufman, Texas, and was less than 24 hours from being shipped to Mexico for slaughter. A friend of Equine Advocates found her photo online among equines bound for slaughter. Because no one stepped up to bail her out, we did, and with the help of a good friend with great connections, we located a farm in Louisiana where she could be quarantined.

    Sylvia remained at that facility for 40 days during which time she was examined by a veterinarian, vaccinated, wormed, and had her feet trimmed and teeth floated. In early November, she traveled to New York and was sent to a foster home where she stayed until we had the room to accommodate her. She arrived at the sanctuary on May 21, 2019. We named her Sylvia because she looked like a silver horse in the first photo we saw of her. Sylvia is a gem!

    Sylvia is proudly sponsored by supporters from Fresno, California; Hudson, New York and Saratoga Springs, New York.

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    Photo credit: Melissa Murray

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  • Terry

    Terry

    From: $50.00 / month

    Terry, a Belgian Draft born at the sanctuary in 2004, is the daughter of former PMU mare Sophia, who was in foal at the time of her rescue. Sadly Sophia passed away in 2019. Terry will never have to know the horrors that her mother experienced. Both had been adopted in 2004 but came back to us. Terry spends her days with PMU offspring Lily and Suzie, and a Thoroughbred named Gracie, in the area of the sanctuary we call “Girls Just Want To Have Fun.”

    Terry is proudly sponsored by supporters from Hudson, New York; Kinderhook, New York and Saratoga Springs, New York, as well as by a family from Chatham, New York and Washington, D.C.

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    Photo credit: Holly Scism

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  • Tim

    Tim

    From: $50.00 / month

    Tim, formally “Timothy Murphy,” is a Registered Thoroughbred Gelding born on April 14, 1999. He is a grandson of 1977 Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew. After his racing career was over, he was retrained and sent to join a State University Equine Studies Program. He and two other Thoroughbred geldings were consigned by the school to be sold at auction because they outlived their usefulness. Equine Advocates found out about their story and purchased them privately from the school on December 5, 2010. Tim spends his days along with Thoroughbreds in a section of the sanctuary we call “A Few Good Men.”

    Tim is proudly sponsored by supporters from Mascoutah, Illinois; Boston, Massachusetts; Wellesley, Massachusetts; Lake Katrine, New York; Red Hook, New York; Washington, Pennsylvania and Houston, Texas.

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  • Tina

    Tina

    From: $50.00 / month

    Tina, a mixed breed born in June of 2013, had a rough start. Her mother passed away while giving birth to her. As a result, Tina did not receive the vitally important colostrum through her mother’s milk within the first 72 hours of being born to help build her immune system. This resulted in her being much smaller than she should be. She was rescued by a great friend of the organization who learned, through her own veterinarian, that Tina was also half-blind in her left eye, due to an injury she sustained as a foal. She was not a horse eligible for adoption, so we took her into our sanctuary program in 2014. In 2021, her left eye was surgically removed. She is beyond adorable and we are so pleased to have her here. Tina hangs out with her donkey friend, Pensacola Pete, in our “Odd Couple” pasture!

    Tina is proudly sponsored by supporters from Emmett, Idaho; Albany, New York; Glenmont, New York and Schodack, New York.

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    Photo credit: Alex Valverde

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  • Tom Petty

    Tom Petty

    From: $50.00 / month

    Tom Petty is a registered dark bay or brown unraced Thoroughbred Gelding born in New York on April 6, 2021. He was surrendered to us by a trainer at the request of two Thoroughbred aftercare organizations after he was diagnosed with chronic lameness issues. Since he did not have a name, we named him “Tom Petty” after the late great rock musician who kindly added his name to a petition calling for a national horse slaughter ban. We presented that petition to the office of then-Vice President Joe Biden in Washington, D.C. in 2016.

    When we learned that “young Tom” needed to go to a sanctuary, we felt we had a good spot for him in a large pasture occupied by four geldings with one extra stall. He arrived at Equine Advocates on March 1, 2024. Within a few days, we began the introduction process gradually where the horses met over a fence that separated two sections of that pasture. In this case, the intro only took a couple of weeks as Tom was eager to get to know the other geldings and become part of the herd. They were interested in getting to know him as well. Tom is as handsome as he is kind. He also is extremely frisky and loves to run and play. In other words, Tom Petty rocks!

    Sponsors Welcome!

    Photo credit: Melissa Murray

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  • Tyler

    Tyler

    From: $50.00 / month

    Tyler is a Grey Quarter Horse Gelding born on January 14, 2002. For nine years, he led a fascinating life as a Military Working Horse with the U.S. Army Caisson Platoon, also referred to as “The Old Guard” at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, in Arlington, Virginia.

    His former job in helping to lead the caskets of members of the U.S. Military who have passed away or died in combat to their final resting places at Arlington National Cemetery has provided comfort and lasting memories for grieving military families. Tyler performed many important duties with the Caisson Platoon. He was always ridden and performed as a Lead Horse (The two front pair in the funeral procession are called Lead Horses), as a Swing Horse (The two middle pairs in the funeral procession are called Swing Horses), and as a Section Horse (The horse that is ridden and not connected to the wagon, positioned directly next to the Lead Horses is called the Section Horse).

    We are extremely honored to provide Tyler with a permanent retirement home as he enters this new stage of life after performing so many years of loyal service to this country as a Caisson Horse. He arrived at the sanctuary on January 18, 2021.

    Watch Tyler’s Welcome Video

    To learn more about the Caisson Platoon and the Caisson Horses, please check out these links:

    General Info (Official Site)       Facebook       Instagram

     

    Tyler is proudly sponsored by supporters from Oak Creek, Colorado; Ghent, New York; Mechanicville, New York; New Windsor, New York; New York, New York; Spencertown, New York and Arlington, Virginia.

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    Photo credit: Melissa Murray

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  • Vicky

    Vicky

    From: $50.00 / month

    Vicky is a Registered Thoroughbred Mare who raced under the name “Lady Flicker.” She was born on May 15, 2006, in Oklahoma. Vicky did not win a lot of money as a racehorse, so her last owner decided to breed her. After giving birth to at least one foal, she had trouble getting pregnant again which is how we first heard about her situation. Vicky was rescued in 2018 and was sent to a foster home until we had the room to accommodate her. She arrived at the sanctuary on May 21, 2019. Vicky is a gentle and striking chestnut mare who deserves a forever home where her life is not reduced to being passed from one owner to the next – a situation which sadly becomes the fate of so many equines who are bred for one purpose, only to end up in jeopardy when they can no longer perform or fulfill certain expectations.

    Vicky is proudly sponsored by supporters from Granby, Connecticut; Hudson, New York; Slingerlands, New York; Houston, Texas and Draper, Utah.

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    Photo credit: Jim Craner

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  • Vince

    Vince

    From: $50.00 / month

    Vince is a Grey Appaloosa Gelding whose estimated birth year is 2000. When first looking at him, it’s obvious the tips of his ears are missing and consequently are much shorter than those of a normal horse. Given that both ears are similarly affected, his veterinarians suspect they may have been damaged due to frostbite and that the injuries appear to be old ones. We first heard about Vince during the fall of 2023 when we were contacted about a cruelty case involving him and two mares in upstate New York. One of the mares, Perla, was surrendered to us by the owner on November 20, 2023. We shipped her directly to Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Saratoga Springs, NY. Vince and the other mare, Bea, were seized by State Troopers two days later at which time we were asked to assume their care, which we did. We immediately sent them to the same equine hospital for evaluation and treatment. After more than three weeks in the hospital, all three were released on December 13, 2023. They were shipped directly to the sanctuary where they continued their respective recoveries. Exactly two months later, Vince and Bea were also surrendered to us by that same owner after he was charged with animal cruelty. Vince shares a two-horse barn situated in a huge pasture with his longtime friend, Perla. (Bea, who has special needs, lives in another part of the sanctuary.) Vince is extremely friendly, outgoing, and beyond adorable. He seems to be very happy and content with his new life and especially loves to take off and run across the pasture with his friend.

    Vince is proudly sponsored by a supporter from Wynantskill, New York.

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    Photo credit: Alex Valverde

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  • Wiatt

    Wiatt

    Wiatt is a Bay Shire Gelding bred by the Amish in western Pennsylvania. He was born on April 15, 2017. We are not sure if he was bred specifically for driving or for work as Shires have a great capacity for pulling plows and performing other forms of heavy farm work especially where pulling is involved. What we do know about Wiatt is that he was very much underweight and deficient in Vitamin E, Selenium, and Potassium. He also had a small cataract on his right lens and tested positive for worms during an examination at Cornell University Hospital for Animals before arriving at Equine Advocates Rescue & Sanctuary on September 25, 2020.  The good news is that all of these conditions were curable and Wiatt has an excellent prognosis for leading a completely normal and healthy life. Equine Advocates has rescued countless horses and mules over the years from Amish and Mennonite farmers, as well as saving them at slaughter auctions. We are so happy that Wiatt will never be discarded and experience the horror of horse slaughter like so many other draft horses do. Shires, a British breed of draft horse, continue to grow until they are between five and eight years old. They are also the world’s tallest breed of horse. A good friend in western PA, who found Wiatt, helped us acquire him and kept him until we were able to ship him to the sanctuary. He is a sweet and playful gelding who definitely fits the description given to many draft horses as “gentle giants.” He and his pasture mate, Jasmine, reside in our “Splendor in the Grass” pasture. Wiatt was named for Jim Wiatt, a former high-powered Hollywood agent who once represented Willie Nelson, our 2020 Safe Home Equine Protection Award honoree. 

    Wiatt is proudly sponsored in full by a foundation based in Clifton, New Jersey.

    Photo credit: Kara Heniges

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  • Zoe

    Zoe

    From: $50.00 / month

    Zoe, a Percheron/Paint Cross born on April 3, 2002, is the offspring of Dolly, who sadly passed away in July of 2022. Dolly was pregnant with Zoe at the time of her rescue from an Amish farm in Ohio. Zoe spends her days with her best pal Elinore in the area we refer to as “Dream Girls.” Stop by and say hello!

    Zoe is proudly sponsored by supporters from Alameda, California; Albany, New York; Mechanicville, New York; Valatie, New York and Yakima, Washington.

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