Hi! I would be interested in trying to rescue and adopt out several minis over the spring and summer, and I was wondering where the best places to find minis that need help would be. I figured that a good place to find them would be at auctions, but I wasn’t sure. Also, any tips on what I would need to do it? I wasn’t sure what people thought about safely trailering, stabling, feeding, turning out minis, etc. Thanks in advance!
Auctions are the best place, yes. May I ask why you would want to rescue minis without knowing anything about them? I would suggest you find a reputable rescue in your area and volunteer for them instead.
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If you are in New England maybe try www.northeastminis
They do a good job of placing the right mini with the right person.
You mean you want to go to auctions, buy and then adopt out- to other people- miniature horses?
You are basically seeking to start your own rescue organization?
I would advise fostering or volunteering for an already established rescue with a good reputation, so you can learn, firsthand and from those with experience, the answers to your questions, and all the questions you don’t know to ask.
And this has what to do with Hunter/Jumpers?
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I’d suggest talking to other mini rescues.
https://m.facebook.com/BakerRanchEquineRescue/
This is where I adopted my mini. I’m sure the woman who runs it would be willing to chat with you. Even though we are on the west coast I know she’s worked in the east so she might be able to set you up with some contacts.
There are no rescues around me, I’ve already looked. It would not be an actual rescue, it would only be two or three over the summer. I also already know of some interested homes for them, like an equine therapy place that I volunteer at, and some of my friends who have their own places and would love a mini. So it wouldn’t be a legitimate rescue by any means, just trying to save a couple. And I wasn’t sure where an appropriate place to put this question would be, but I’m a hunter/jumper and I know that a lot of people showing in the hunters and jumpers have them so I figured that this would be a good place to start, but thank you for the advice!
Thank you so much!!
I would personally avoid auctions. Often animals from there are unwell and need some serious quarantine. Plus certain auctions that have pretend or actual killbuyers will bump up prices, particularly on minis [that do not ship to slaughter, but do tug at heart strings such that people pay premium to ‘save’ them].
You could do better getting them from homes that need to find a placement for them, like via Craigslist.
Or any local equine rescues will often have people contacting them looking to rehome animals they can not afford or care for.
The rescue I volunteer with just had a whole herd they are placing recently.
That way, if they come from a closed herd, the risk of them carrying something infectious that would devastate a new herd is lessened.
I can’t imagine where you are that there are no rescues!
There are always several at New Holland every week. They run around $25-50 most of the time. Yes you do need to quarantine but you should do that for any new horse.
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I recently got a mini, from what I have gathered minis are a higher founder risk. They typically don’t need grain, or much hay. And many need grazing muzzles if on pasture. Mine is on pasture with a grazing muzzle all day and in the run in shed with the muzzle off at night. He gets about 2 pounds of timothy/alfalfa hay cubes a night in the run in. No grain and very few treats.
Unfortunately they get treated more like dogs than horses sometimes, resulting in a very naughty mini. Mine was no exception, and had a few bad habits. He is really smart though, and very easy to train. I treat him like I treat full sized horses, he is responding very well and loves our ground work sessions.
I hope you find some sweet ones that need a soft landing. They are fun 
I would check out craigslist. Lots of cheap minis and neglected minis sadly in my area. And then HOPEFULLY you aren’t bringing home strangles and all the extra bugs home from the auctions
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