This month’s Corsica Horse Sale reminded us exactly why we continue to show up at auction—because we’ve seen firsthand where these horses end up when no one is there to bid for them. Many horses sold at local auctions are transported hundreds of miles to kill pens in Oklahoma, Texas, or Louisiana. From there, they're resold—sometimes even to well-meaning regional groups—at prices higher than their auction cost. The added costs of quarantine, vetting, and long-distance transport still dramatically increase the total cost to the end buyer. By going directly to auction, we can intercept at-risk horses earlier, reduce stress and travel time, and make donor dollars go further.
A total of 278 horses were sold: 175 catalog horses, 26 uncataloged, and 77 loose horses. The top-selling catalog horse brought $21,000. The highest-priced loose horse sold for $6,100. But the majority of the loose horses went much lower, typically between $200 and $1,500, with the average hovering around $750.
Like many months, we arrived with just $500 in the fund and a lot of hope, knowing our community often steps up in real-time to help. We walked the pens, documented horses in need, talked to our vet, and started sharing photos and stories online. Thanks to our amazing supporters, donations came in quickly, and we were able to place bids when it mattered.
We brought home five equines this month: a gray 3-year-old mare who slipped and fell entering the ring, a quiet bay mare and her month-old filly, and two fuzzy donkeys with painful feet. We bid on many others—mare and foal pairs, unhandled youngsters, injured or neglected horses—but were outbid more times than not. We bid on our priorities, and any horses that go under our budget, until our funds are depleted. Once our funds were gone, many sold well under our usual budget per horse.
When the catalog horses are done and the arena begins to clear, the brokers are still there—just as they’ve been all day. The public fills the seats for the catalog horses, often standing room only. But when the loose horses come in late in the day, only a few remain: brokers and kill buyers, a handful of trainers, local traders, and us.
These horses from Corsica start showing up at broker lots or kill pens within two to three days—with a new price and a deadline before they "ship" to encourage fast purchases. This month, we’ve documented the following horses sold at Corsica now listed at the Stroud Kill Pen in Oklahoma:
Tag 3217: Gray gelding, 4 years old, 15 hh, same brand as 3269
Tag 3225: Sorrel 2-year-old filly
Tag 3227: Brown Standardbred gelding, ~16 hh with freeze brand
Tag 3228: Belgian mare, teenager, 18 hh
Tag 3229: Belgian mare, teenager, 16.3 hh
Tag 3262: AQHA bay mare "Major Miss Dondi Jo," foaled 2010
Tag 3269: AQHA bay mare "VR CODY LUCKY MOON," foaled 5/21/22
Tag 3284: Dun 2-year-old filly – unhandled, good structure
Tag 3285: Palomino 3–4-year-old filly, unhandled
Tag 3286: Cremello stud colt (2024 foal crop, 55" tall)
These are just the ones we’ve been able to track—there may be others that haven’t surfaced yet, or that ended up elsewhere.
That’s why we go—to get the at-risk horses out of the pipeline before they disappear into it. With more than 70 horses sold loose and just nine showing up at one kill pen, and five coming home with us, that leaves dozens unaccounted for. Some may have gone to other brokers, some into resale programs—but many were likely loaded onto semi trailers and shipped directly to slaughter in Mexico. When we’re not in the seats, bidding, the brokers are.
The good news? We saved five this time, thanks to you. But we know there were so many more we couldn’t reach.
We go back July 5. If you believe in what we do, consider setting up a recurring donation to our auction fund. The more we have up front, the more confidently we can bid—and the more lives we can change.
To our fellow rescues—especially those here in the Upper Midwest—our door is open. If you're raising thousands to bail horses from kill pens hundreds of miles away, we invite you to join us at the source. At Corsica and other local auctions, your dollars go further, your impact is greater, and together we can break the cycle before it begins. Let’s be part of the solution—where it starts.