Crosspost from Off Topic: Byrd Rareshide’s Retirement

[McGurk]

@LexInVA,

This a very weird flex on the situation. There’s lots that’s nefarious here, but the “appear out of nowhere” thing that you perceive isn’t one of them.

She’s local to Richmond. She went to a Richmond High School. She went to Averett. She had a junior show career with a barn in Goochland and rode for some Goochland pros as a young adult.

She then spent some time with various BNTs up and down the East Coast.

She got married and bought this farm in Columbia back in the 90s, kept her own horses there and a few boarders. She then had two kids.

Like 90% of straight female horse people, horses and the horse business took a back seat while her kids were young.

Once her kids are grown, she started competing and judging again. I suspect, but I don’t know, once her kids were grown and maybe she wasn’t receiving support, she started the retirement board thing so she’d have some income. <<<<That is purely speculation on my part, the timing maybe purely coincidental.

Lots of local pros, vets and farriers remember her from the beginning, as do her BNT connections.

To repeat, lots of red flags here, but “appearing from nowhere” just ain’t one.

[luvmyhackney]

Just browsing on Facebook, she had a lot of equine professionals working on her show horses, dentist, massage, PEMF, multiple farriers it seems.
Is it wrong of me to add them to my never use list? I’ve used the same equine dentist as her for a few years now. And one of ladies that does massages for her show horses, I’ve used before.

[trubandloki]

@luvmyhackney

Just browsing on Facebook, she had a lot of equine professionals working on her show horses, dentist, massage, PEMF, multiple farriers it seems.
Is it wrong of me to add them to my never use list? I’ve used the same equine dentist as her for a few years now. And one of ladies that does massages for her show horses, I’ve used before.

I guess the answer to this question is - do these professionals know what was going on and are defending her actions?

I can see someone who does massages at a barn never even seeing the pasture horses and having no idea that they are crazy skinny.

[JBCool]

What trubandloki said. Those professionals may not have known the retired horses even existed, esp if the show barn was on the other side of the farm. I’d make sure your facts are straight before burning a bridge with a vet/dentist/etc.

[Rackonteur]

@Amberley

Either we police ourselves on the defrauding and bullying, especially of female clients, and we demand self-policing from professionals or the sport will die out completely. Public sentiment is no longer tolerant of covering up abuses.

Maybe it IS dying, and has been sick for quite some time. Maybe these are its final death throes.

[vxf111]

@Amberley

I’m talking about the newspaper article that reported a former boarder tried to alert the public about the situation and and was bullied by the professional horse community so much that she took down her social media post and walked away. Because Byrd was a local and “one of us” and the owner was just an amateur. Even thought he owner was absolutely right both factually and morally.

I just re-read the article. It doesn’t say that the boarder was dissuaded from publicizing the information BY HER OWN TRAINER WHOSE PROGRAM SHE WAS IN. It says there was a pile on from professionals in the area who were aligned with Byrd. I’m not even sure “professional” in the article means “trainer.” I think it’s being used to refer to a group of people who had jobs in the equine field (vets, farriers, trainers, etc.) But I think you’re reading in a fact that isn’t there, namely that the boarder’s OWN TRAINER was the one dissuading her. I don’t see that in the article and I don’t think it’s an obvious inference from the information in the article.

[Angela_Freda]

Would it hurt to noncommittally ask?

[Angela_Freda]

@trubandloki

I can see someone who does massages at a barn never even seeing the pasture horses and having no idea that they are crazy skinny.

Thing is, in pics of Byrd’s own horses (near a blue barn in some) on her Facebook page, thin horses are visible.
So how far removed from the barn were they, how hidden were they?

I’m not saying they were obvious, but I’m not going to assume they weren’t either.
Asking, looking into it hurts no one.

The horses deserve all questions being asked, of everyone.

[trubandloki]

I think it is reasonable for someone to make sure their service providers are not supporting that how these horses were kept is acceptable.
I would not want to use someone who thinks that care is OK.

I just can see how a person who parks and goes right into the barn might not see the condition of the pasture horses at a facility this big.

[GPjumper]

From my understanding, the vets who worked for her did speak out. Two major practices down that way are done with her. One still goes to the farm.

[vxf111]

Remember that Petunia pony that was horribly neglected at a barn in Allentown NJ? I did know people who were on the property for other reasons, to see other horses, and had no clue there was a skin and bones pony with a horrific abscess elsewhere on the property. I would not, personally, stop using someone just because they had been on the Byrd property and done nothing at the time. They legitimately may not have realized what was going on. But anyone who stands by her now, having seen the photos? I would never do business with someone who thinks anything shown in those photos is acceptable.

[Angela_Freda]

I remember many cases revealed on COTH including Retirement Home for Horses in Alachua FL.

[Railbird]

So on the note of “WTF _____” (insert service provider you liked previously here)

When you drive in, you drive past the retired horses and then the barn is down a hill, so you can certainly see them, but while you see them you’re presumably operating a vehicle and they’re not super close. When I came I remember asking the vet “Is that them? So it’s not that bad?” Because these are BIG fields and it’s kind of hard to see from afar. And of course, she responded “no, it is, you just aren’t close enough”

I also think a lot of the various service providers came during months of the year they had grass, or they worked on the stall board horses in the barn who looked fine plus the occasional one who had already been pulled in and maybe had a blanket on or a story about how they just got there/are sick/are ancient/whatever - There were also many who said something to her and called animal control with no response, so I’m trying not to point fingers at them. I did talk to one person who had been on the farm regularly today and asked them the kind of same question, and they said they’d been telling her that she needed to feed the old horses more and care for them more for years, but feared that if they put their foot down and refused to come at all, the horses would ultimately suffer and they wouldn’t be able to continue trying to help.

So, my point of view here is that I think there was a deliberate effort to cover up the severity, and unless whoever it is that was on the farm is supporting her directly still, none of those various providers have hit the “you’re dead to me” list, just the “I need you to explain yourself if we are going to continue having a working relationship” list.

[Railbird]

Posting on this thread too- here is the horse I purchased to get him out of there. He had all his teeth last summer.

[jaj]

This breaks my heart. I am so glad he’s with you.

[rubygirl1968]

I can’t imagine. It sickens me to know there are so many people like her who keep doing this.

Thank you for all you are doing and to everyone that is boots on the ground.

[AAHunterGal]

@Railbird so many jingles for your lovely boy. I’m so glad he has you.

[OverandOnward]

@McGurk

Whatever else is going on, she has always been a lovely rider with a very soft touch. I’ve known some pretty tough horses to go around like kid’s packers for her. And as a judge, I would say she knows her stuff.

…

There has always been the touch of a con artist about her, especially around sales and leases.

But I don’t know how she got from there to 17 paying boarders with body scores of 3 or lower.

Let’s all remember this case every time we hear a rumor of neglect/abuse about someone that we think “no way, couldn’t be true of someone with such an excellent reputation”. Good reputation does not always mean good character. It would be easier if it did.

Just like a child predator working as a barn trainer with a program of juniors, someone can be very good at their profession, very personable, and still be someone who just doesn’t care about the consequences suffered by people or horses when it comes to their own gratification.

@luvmyhackney

Is it wrong of me to add them to my never use list?

How could they have known? I doubt she let farm visitors see the truth. There are hundreds of ways a practiced liar can divert people from seeing the dark side.

She knew how it looked. If she didn’t, she would have been outed long ago. She was good at hiding the truth from others.

Personally I am not into canceling people who didn’t do the thing, but know the person who did the thing. Unless there is evidence of it we don’t know what they knew and experienced. Ask them, let them speak for themselves. Rather than cancel, maybe the thought should be ‘thankfully I didn’t fall into the same net’.

@GPjumper

One still goes to the farm.

And very possibly the vet goes for the horses, not for her. Because they know these horses are getting no other vet care and will otherwise suffer.

A very common and sad situation for vets who know more than they want to know. Some do decide to put the horses first. They make their reports and nothing happens. Or maybe it happens all too slowly.

[supernatural]

Charges filed

[cristalle]

Thank you @2bayboys for your spotlights - and thank you so much for all you have done for these poor horses, and for going “on the warpath” Grace @Railbird. Sending love and jingles for your handsome boy, thank you for getting him out of there.