The Director of Development at Colorado Horse Rescue (CHR) oversees fundraising for the $500,000 operating budget and facilities management. She also serves as the barn manager, supervising volunteers to care for 55 horses by feeding them individually, maintaining pastures and water troughs. One horse, a 28-year old Peruvian Paso named Mandy, came to CHR severely underweight and afraid of humans. Through daily feedings and gentle contact over several months, Mandy began to gain weight and trust the staff, eventually allowing gentle touching and haltering. Mandy was later adopted by a woman, where she continues to thrive in her new home.

1. As the Director of Development, I am
challenged with raising funds to support
a half a million dollar operating budget.
In addition to that role, I also serve as
facilities manager, part of the social me-
dia department, LeadChange facilitator,
but most importantly barn manager.
Being the barn manager means supervis-
ing a group of dedicated volunteers to
ensure the very best care for our herd of
55 horses. Every horse gets an individu-
al bucket of grain with carefully planned
supplements and medications. Hay is
dropped in the pastures, cool fresh wa-
ter is added to troughs, and ice broken
in the winter. Taking care of the 55
horses that live at CHR is quite an under-
taking. New horses arrive, rehabilitated
horses find homes, and some pass on
having lived out their final days at CHR.
You love each and every one of them
but every once in a while one comes
along that completely steals your heart.
That was the case when I met Mandy.
Mandy is a 28-year-old Peruvian Paso
that came to CHR severely underweight
and afraid of human contact. The first
time I weighed her she was only 680
pounds and you could feel the inden-
tions a halter had made after living on
her face for so long. We don’t keep
halters on our horses, so Mandy had
to learn to accept an approaching
staff member carrying a halter. We
had to quickly get her fitted into a
blanket before the next storm, for
she needed to conserve every pre-
cious calorie. This took time, pa-
tience, and repetition of pressure and
release for Mandy to accept the hal-
ter and a blanket. All the while, the
intense fear that was engrained with-
in her would almost paralyze her
movement.
Mandy during her rehabilitation at CHR
in early 2016.
Saving Mandy
M A R C H 2 0 1 6C H R O N I C L E
10386 N 65th Street, Longmont, CO 80503 (720) 494-1414 info@chr.org www.chr.org
By Shawna English, Director of
Development

2. Time is a healer around here, and with
kind volunteers and staff bringing her
mash three times a day Mandy began to
show a little bit of curiosity toward these
new humans. Yet, she would still wait
far from her feed pan until it was safe. I
continued to work on going into her pen
to visit her, slowly stroking her neck,
then walking away or just standing near
her while she ate her grain. She was try-
ing hard to trust me but everything in
her told her she should flee. Once she
was released from her initial two-week
quarantine, I would take her to play in
the large outdoor arena where she en-
joyed the space and rolled in the soft
sand. Though it was hard for her to
come back to me, she would.
During our Holiday Open House a won-
derful women noticed Mandy and made
the decision to adopt her. Terri visited
her most days, just spending time devel-
oping a relationship while waiting pa-
tiently for Mandy to become strong
enough to travel and make a transition.
Within a couple months, Mandy gained
125 pounds and made huge strides in
learning to trust. She no longer moved
to the furthest corner of her pen. In-
stead, she willingly approached me even
if I was carrying a halter, and she no
longer flinched when I reached out to
stroke her neck. Kindness and gro-
ceries had paid off. Her rehabilitation
at CHR was complete.
Mandy with her adopter, Terri.
Mandy has now left for her forever
home and a piece of me has gone
with her. I couldn’t be happier for
the life she has been given roaming
green pastures and making new horse
friends all alongside a kind person to
call her own. I am so thankful to
adopters like Terri who see value in
an old horse’s eyes, to our donors, for
without you, none of this would be
possible, and to all the individuals
over the past 30 years that have
made CHR what it is today. You have
changed hundreds of lives… lives of
horses just like Mandy.
Saving Mandy
M A R C H 2 0 1 6C H R O N I C L E
10386 N 65th Street, Longmont, CO 80503 (720) 494-1414 info@chr.org www.chr.org