Many horses in the United States end up in holding pens and live out their lives waiting, never to be adopted because they are untrained. Thousands of other horses in the United States are given to or bought by first time owners that are unaware of how to work with these horses and they end up on kill trucks. Approximately 140,000 horses in the United States are shipped over the Mexican and Canadian borders for slaughter each year.

Equine welfare is a major problem in the United States. Horses Without Humans was founded by a gold medalist FEI trainer and rider who recognized what a massive problem this is, and has seen first-hand talented, valuable horses on kill trucks or abandoned because their humans had no other options. Three special horses stand out as the ambassadors of Horses Without Humans, they are the horses that inspired the ideas behind starting our program.

Coraline was a very tricky prospect who arrived almost two years ago with serious trust issues and some dangerous habits. She was not safe to ride, and was out of options. With time and training she has since evolved into a good friend and partner to our farm manager, Sergio. She will have a forever home with him and his family.

Dargon is an eight-year-old, Friesian Thoroughbred cross with a kind, sweet soul that was abandoned in a field for reasons unknown. With time and training he has been a feature performer in our National Western Stock Show Night of Dancing Horses and will continue to train for live equine theater work. He is also an excellent beginner lesson horse because he is forgiving, easy to handle, and wonderful to learn from on the ground.

Indy is a seven-year-old, off-the-track Thoroughbred who was taken off the track by owners that were inexperienced in retraining horses off the track. He was in danger of being sent to slaughter if Yvonne did not intervene and take him. With time and training he has become a wonderful all around horse, with so much talent. He will be the subject of “Seventy Two: The Story of a Loser” a book Yvonne is currently in the process of writing. Indy is going to stay with Yvonne until he reaches the Prix St George’s level in dressage. In the meantime, he does both liberty and trick work in between his dressage training sessions.

Since successfully re-training those three horses, and seeing how rewarding the process really is and how many wonderful horses we could save each year doing that, Horses Without Humans developed a 120- acre state of the art training facility in Bell, Florida where we have the unique ability to accurately assess each horse, train and work through any behavioral problems so they are a safe and legitimate option for those wishing to purchase a horse. We offer continued training options for the horse and human to ensure that we found the right match, and that people have a clear and educated understanding of what it takes to own and care for a horse. At any time, if an owner can no longer care for the horse, we welcome the horse back into our program. For the duration of their lives, we proudly save horses in transition from one career to another, and horses that for whatever reason have no other options, one at a time.

We are giving horses a chance at their own happy ending. Maybe they are meant to be a companion, or a cherished first horse, we train these horses for all disciplines. Some may go on to be equine theater performers, trail horses, or the next winning dressage, hunter jumpers, or eventer. We are working to unite the equestrian community and lower the number of horses killed each year in the United States. When all a horse needs is a human, we are there.