3 horses saved from slaughterhouse brought to Scottsdale to be therapy animals after LA fires

PHOENIX — Phantom, Phoenix and Presley have had more than their fair share of close calls with death. Once slated for slaughter, the three horses were rescued from a kill pen by a California nonprofit called All Seated in a Barn. They survived, but their dance with danger was far from over.

They spent around a year recovering before devastating wildfires tore through Los Angeles, driving families and animals from their homes.

Volunteers from Hunkapi Programs, a Scottsdale horse therapy farm, felt compelled to help the animals displaced by the fires. While many animal lovers successfully rescued these horses and brought them to the Los Angeles and Pierce College Equestrian Centers, the animals still needed care, including cleaning and feeding.

“We loaded up as much as we felt our tires could handle for the trip over,” Hunkapi Programs executive director Terra Schaad told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Friday. “It was around 7,000 pounds of food.”

That wasn’t all, though. They also brought salt blocks, which can weigh 50 pounds each, on the trailers they drove over on.

“We had multiple — 21 salt blocks or so. So we’re talking about 10,000 pounds of food and supplies,” Schaad said.

Scottsdale horse therapy farm found 3 horses after LA fires

She and around seven volunteers drove all the way to the Pierce Equestrian Center in LA, cleaning stalls and taking care of horses in need.

It was a long trek, according to Laura Heard, one of the volunteers who made the long trip to LA.

“Driving into LA on I-10, we passed San Bernardino, and then the whole sky was just clouded with smoke,” Heard told KTAR News. “It was just smoke all the way to the ground and you could actually smell it in our trucks.”

After helping at the center, the team dropped off their food at All Seated in a Barn, which then distributed it to families and equestrian centers caring for horses displaced by the LA fires.

Horses rescued from kill pen find new lives as therapy animals

That’s where they met Phoenix, Presley and Phantom, who were the perfect sizes to be therapy horses. They also had the perfect personalities, Heard said.

“We have some horses that need to be retired and they all kind of fit that same size dimension,” she said. “And just their calm demeanor. We walked to them in their stalls and they just stood there.”

Rather than being afraid, Phoenix, Presley and Phantom made eye contact with the volunteers, showing no signs of fear despite their traumatic pasts.

“We reached our hands out to pet them and just offer our love to them and they just took it. They took it all in,” Heard said. “It’s like, ‘Oh, these guys, they might be the ones.'”

How Scottsdale horse therapy farm works

Though the three horses weren’t displaced by the fire, Hunkapi Programs brought them to their new home in Scottsdale to make space for those who were. The farm is a 10-acre property near Cactus Road and 96th Street with a Lakota name that means “We are all related.”

“We’re a facility and a program that utilizes horses in a therapeutic setting to help heal people of their trauma,” Schaad said. “For us, our horses are not a horse, they are our coworkers.”

The farm offers therapeutic riding lessons, horse-assisted psychotherapy and garden therapy for adults and children with a range of diagnoses, including autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit disorder, addiction disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The farm serves around 300 clients. In addition to providing horse therapy, the Scottsdale location also hosts a variety of community events, private events and summer camps.

It costs thousands of dollars to feed, clean after and take medical care of the horses. Those who want to support Hunkapi Programs can donate online.

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