Page 54 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine Issue 110

BV110 pg54-55 Cause For Applause.qxp_BV110 pg54 14/06/2024 21:07 Page 1

BlackVelvetMagazine.Com - 54

cause for applause

ast year, we discov-
Lered a horse sanctu-
ary right on our doorstep that
we had no idea existed.
About 10 minutes away, The
Healing Horse Sanctuary is
based on the outskirts of
Bromsgrove, Worcs. The
horse sanctuary is home to approximately 17 horses and ponies, as well as four chickens.
Founded by Susie Gessey, who initially rescued Daisy, an ex-showjumping horse, in
2005, the sanctuary now have horses spaced out in a number of fields. There’s Daisy’s Herd,
Sophie’s Herd and Ruby’s Herd. Daisy’s Herd includes Bobby, Bailey, Oscar and Chester.
Sophie’s Herd are the smaller ponies and include Sunny and Sapphire, while Ruby’s Herd
includes Charlie, Dodger, Ringo, Max, Michael and Louie. They all have their own unique
personalities and it’s when you go to visit, even if you’ve never met any horses before, that
you realise what lovely animals they are. Founder Susie has done an amazing job of looking
after the horses with the help of a number of volunteers.
Bobby was rescued as he’d been unhappy being a riding school horse, being kept tethered on a chain when he wasn’t working. He would
often escape and had kicked out at humans. Being at the sanctuary, he has healed and is now very happy. The sanctuary really IS a sanctuary
for the horses, who have all been healed back to good mental and physical health. Chester, another horse, had physical scars on his body
when he came to The Healing Horse Sanctuary. And, as the name of the sanc-
tuary suggests, it’s not just the horses that are healed, but they help heal hu-
mans too. Being in the company of the horses, humans have found peace
and become healed themselves. A trustee of the sanctuary, Kate, experienced
healing from Chester as they shared an interaction with both witnessing and
acknowledging each other’s scars, and how far they’d progressed on their
journey.

CAUSE FOR APPLAUSE