California: unclaimed stray pony.

Pony apparently abandoned by owner.

Stray pony unclaimed after several weeks [link]
Peter Burke | Aug 14, 2008

A Boulder Creek woman who found a stray pony last month has yet to find the owner despite her best efforts. "If my horse got loose, I’d be freaking out," said Boulder Creek resident Diane Hamilton, who found the Bay Roan pony. "It’s like losing a kid." Hamilton found the pony, which she calls the mystery horse, on Mitchell Drive near the campus of closed Redwood Elementary School in Boulder Creek on July 18. Since then she’s posted signs, contacted local feed stores, veterinarians, stables, farriers and local horse people she knows — with no response. Hamilton also listed the pony on Craigslist, the Santa Cruz County Horsemen’s Association Web site and Bayequest.com while filing reports with three animal services agencies in the Bay Area. There have been a few inquires, but all have come up dry, leading Hamilton to believe that the pony probably was abandoned by its owner. "You don’t just lose a pony, that’s the thing," Hamilton said.

Abandoned horses are a rare occurrence, said Henry Brzezinski, general manager of Santa Cruz County Animal Services Authority. However, they could become more common with the current state of the economy, he said. "Just today there was a foreclosure at a home where some animals were abandoned," Brzezinski said. Hamilton said she will not keep the pony, which is even-tempered, sweet and seems to be fully trained. She has at least one suitor lined up who wants to adopt the unnamed pony.

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Number of abandoned animals soars as foreclosures rise [link]
Alia Wilson | Aug 15, 2008

When Diane Hamilton and her neighbors discovered a wandering pony in their Boulder Creek neighborhood three weeks ago, they immediately put up signs with their contact information. "I've heard about dogs and cats getting lost, but a horse?" said Hamilton. "Who loses a pony? Seriously?" Hamilton said she figured she would find the owner in a day or two but no one has claimed the horse since she found it July 18. "I don't think anyone's looking for this horse," Hamilton said. She hopes to give it up for adoption to one of the stables or families that have shown interest after seeing her missing pony signs and Craigslist announcement.

It's not clear what happened to the pony's owners, but the Santa Cruz County SPCA was given three large animals in the last month because their owners' homes were foreclosed upon. In fact, officials from Santa Cruz County's SPCA say there has been a 30 percent increase in surrendered animals as a result of foreclosures in the past month. "People are losing their houses and are being forced into apartments, but a rental that allows pets is very difficult to find in Santa Cruz," said Lisa Carter, executive director of the SPCA. Despite a 20 percent drop in adoption rates, Carter was able to find homes for the three large animals, which included a miniature horse and a goat and a donkey that came from a Merced shelter due to overcrowding and foreclosures there. "It's been a tough last six months," said Carter. "The economy is hurting everyone, including the animals." Overcrowded animal shelters and rescue operations at maximum occupancy throughout the state have been contacting Carter in hopes of finding shelter for animals that run the risk of being put down. The SPCA's policy on killing animals is only to do it when they arrive too sick to be rehabilitated or are too aggressive to be safely placed in a home. Carter hopes that the new law passed last week Assembly Bill 2949, that will require anyone who encounters an abandoned pet to immediately call Animal Control, will help crack down on animal abandonment.

Jessica Kipp, barn manager of Willow Pond Ranch, a sanctuary for rescued horses, says that because their budget is so tight, the ranch cannot open up the 17 stalls that they have available. The ranch has 15 rescued horses. "We're being hit as hard as everybody," said Kipp. "We can't take any more in unless someone is willing to fully sponsor their horse but that isn't usually the case for owners." Kipp said between the price of hay doubling, farriers raising their prices, and people's homes foreclosing there's a definite theme of economic hardship.

Hamilton, who cannot afford to take care of the lost pony, can only hope that the owners will turn up or she can give it to a farm that contacted her about adopting and training the horse. "The pony is probably better off being somewhere else than where it has been," said Hamilton. "It's negligent on so many levels."

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