15 Stories of Care • Celebrating 15 Years of Gentle Spirit Horses Rescue
Support our $15,000 Giving Tuesday Match: https://givebutter.com/neighitforward
When people ask how long horses can live, we usually smile and point to Kiwi.
She’s a tiny Hackney pony with a greying face, enormous expressive eyebrows, and an ancient soul — our best estimate is that Kiwi is around 40 years old now. She’s been with us for more than a decade, and in many ways, her story captures the heart of our mission.
But Kiwi’s beginning with Gentle Spirit Horses wasn’t gentle at all.
In 2012, we were still a young rescue with limited space and limited resources. But when a sheriff in Sumner, Iowa called about a horrific neglect situation — one where another rescue had been contacted days earlier and nothing had been done — we knew we had to act.
We walked into one of the worst scenes we have experienced in our 15 years.
At least 30 recently deceased horses were visible when we arrived. By the time the investigation was complete, the sheriff reported finding the remains of around 100 horses on the property.
The 22 survivors were locked inside outbuildings. Some were in a turkey barn where the manure was knee-deep and the ceilings so low it was difficult to stand upright. All were severely emaciated, covered in lice, dehydrated, and traumatized. And several — including Kiwi — had gone blind.
We didn’t know it yet, but this rescue would change the course of our organization.
Kiwi was tiny, skeletal, and blind, but she had an unmistakable spark. She recovered well with early foster care, gaining weight and strength. Over time, as she settled into life with us, we learned more about her quirks — including her stringhalt, which causes her hind leg to lift sharply when she’s stressed or excited.
Despite everything she endured, Kiwi has never sought the spotlight. She is calm, steady, and thoughtful. She enjoys attention but never demands it. She navigates her spaces carefully and confidently, finding her way through a world she cannot see.
As she has aged, Kiwi has become more anxious about other horses, so she now lives in a quiet suite in our pony barn, with a private stall and attached pen she can come and go from as she pleases. She isn’t isolated — she shares a fenceline and stall wall with the pony herd — but she finally has the personal space she needs to feel safe.
The Sumner seizure was a nightmare — one that still sits heavy in our memory. But it was also the moment we learned just how many people genuinely choose to Dare to Care.
Because we had so little facility space in 2012, the community stepped forward in extraordinary ways:
families opened their homes to skeletal horses with no guarantee they’d survive,
volunteers gave lice baths and donated feed and medical supplies,
neighbors helped transport horses safely off the property,
veterinarians evaluated blindness, heart murmurs, injuries, and starvation,
and people across multiple states rallied to help 22 horses who had endured what no animal ever should.
We lost two due to the severity of their injuries, and one several months later to West Nile virus shortly after vaccination. But most recovered. And Kiwi is still here — thriving.
Kiwi survives on a complete senior feed diet, though she still celebrates with the occasional flake of hay. Her stringhalt means she gets a little sedation for trims, but otherwise she needs no special supplements. Her year is punctuated with moments of joy — including dressing up as a kiwi fruit at Halloween, which she tolerates with a mix of confusion and dignity.
We’ve noticed small signs that her body is slowing down, the kinds of little changes that come with great age, but Kiwi remains comfortable, bright, and fully engaged with her world. As long as she’s thriving and doing well, she’ll continue to enjoy her life with us.
Kiwi represents the heart of our mission: the belief that every horse deserves time, care, and a safe place to heal. Her survival, and the community effort behind it, is one of the 15 stories we’re sharing as part of our 15-year Giving Tuesday celebration. If her journey illustrates the impact you want to support, we’d be honored to have you with us.
Help us continue saying “yes” to the horses who need us most:
👉 https://givebutter.com/neighitforward