Congratulations! You’ll have her looking and feeling great in no time!
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So glad she’s home with you! Sure, she’s ribby, but she’ll bounce back with good nutrition and care. I picked up a TB at the end of June who was about 250 lbs underweight and by mid September he looked like a new horse.
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Honestly, I don’t think physical appearance - things like weight or hair - rates very high to horses.
They smell us, note our movements & that tells them more.
Your voice was probably most recognizable.
Mare might just be holding out until she’s sure she’s back with you for good.
They have amazing memories.*
My 2¢ says she’ll come back to her Old Self.
Glad you have her again 
*FWIW:
I’d moved barns at least twice in a period of 5yrs & stopped showing Hunters.
We’d moved horses to a nearby state & Trainer arranged for an Equine Massage Therapist to demo on any boarder interested.
My TB was never very vocal, but when the therapist walked in, he nickered LOUDLY!
Turned out she was from our former state & had often done the ingate at shows we went to.
Why that made him glad to see her, I’ll never know. But he sure knew who she was!
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Yep - my guy has been on rehab or boarded across the country from me for extended periods and he recognizes me every time. I just have to call him!
Another horse recognized me years after we sold him. Again by voice. Having cookies certainly helped win him back over asap, but I have no doubts he knew me - he didn’t act that cuddly with random people 
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When I put my mare into full board at my friend’s barn after she pushed me under another horse who trampled me and broke my foot … When I turned up at friends barn a month later in a cast on crutches in a wheel chair, maresy kind of ignored me until I interacted with her. First time she’d seen me since she bolted into the dusk fog and left me for dead. As soon as I started interacting with her she became friendly and nickered on subsequent visits.
They remember 
they just don’t always feel the need to communicate it. I wasn’t the one feeding her anymore
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I think many horses remember people.
I had a big classy bright red flashy sorrel to retrain, he had started bucking with his owner.
Horse retrained well and a new saddle eliminated the bucking problem.
A handful of years later walking the pens at a horse sale I heard a horse nicker and it was him nickering at me over the fence a pen over!
My friend laughed and said, guess who is there.
Yes, we took him home, he needed an old friend badly.
A show gelding I had for a bit with another trainer due to my continuous health issues was injured and in rehab far away for several months.
He just came back to our vet clinic and I went to look at him and picked him out of a large pen where he was with another two horses.
While we were talking with the vet, I was holding the lead rope loosely, vet said horse sure remembers you, since he came back he had been hard to catch for them and now he was sticking to me like a shadow.
Those are times where you know a horse clearly does remember you.
OP, your horse is very nice and looks to be in winter clothes, by next summer that red coat will shine brightly.
Bet your heart has not quit singing yet having her at home again.
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We sold our son’s truck seven years after his death because his horses always would nicker for him when ever we started it
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I first read that as your friend with the barn pushing you under a horse, and wondered why you would continue to keep your mare there. But I gather your mare was the guilty party? 
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I’m sure I’ve told this story somewhere on here before: I was riding my bike on a path at night once, and heard a large animal trying to crash through the bushes next to the path. We’d had some bear reports, and I thought, “Well, this ride may end up being the end of my life.” The animal came to the end of the bushes, and it was a horse–one I boarded with years before. I used to give her treats (with her owner’s permission), and the mare remembered me. She was sure I must have a treat for her, but I didn’t, and all she got was a good scratching on itchy spots that night.
Rebecca
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She looks GOOD. Nothing a little food, worming, vaccines, and brushes won’t fix.
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She looks good to me too, just enough behind it that you’ll love bringing her up to full health and having all that rebonding time. She looks like a great horse and I think you guys will enjoy your new time together!
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The vet came last night and gave her half her boosters now, and will come back and give her the other half in two weeks. We wormed her the day she got here. She is not allowed carrots, but the handful of grain(12% pellet) is fine so I can get some supplements into her: willow and magnesium with a multi vitamin(i love this stuff, used it on everyone for years and years). She just about lost her mind when she saw the grain was for her, SO EXCITED.
We will do a lameness exam in about a month- the vet did a quick one anyway- said she looked fine behind but a little stiff in the front but attributed it to the 16 hour trip. I honestly think she may have always been a little “stiff up front”. we shall see in a month if shes any better, and if not maybe some previcox might help her.
Im getting ahead of myself.
For now she is happily in her quarantine pen. Her eyes look bright and still have that brilliance to them they always have had. She’s still herself. I’m deliriously happy, but also with how skinny she is now it spooks me a bit- I dont want her to pass on too soon, I’ve missed her so much. I hope we have some more adventures together no matter if she can be ridden or not. I wish they lived longer. I hope I can make her as happy as possible.
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My wonderful quirky chestnut Overo mare is 19 now, I’ve been riding her for 12 years. She is not showing any real signs of aging and certainly will buck and run in turnout, though not every day. I don’t see 19 as that old! Your horse should put on weight quickly. Indeed, you have fewer potential problems than if she was obese for an extended period of time.
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Sniff! (Brought a tear to my eye)
I board retirees and most make it to their very late 20’s, and many into their early 30’s. You may have 10+ more years with her 
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Had the same thing happen.
Hadn’t seen the horse in 7 years, and when he heard my voice (before he could see me), he called out for me.
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She will shine up super and I bet you’ll have many years together.
Source: I’ve got a 30+yo and a 24yo outside right now. Both retired from riding for different reasons, but each ridden well past 19. Both bright eyed, slightly chubby, and one doing really well on his half Equioxx a day (full pill on farrier days).
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Looked at her papers today for fun and I guess I can’t count because she’s 22, not 19. Keeping that in mind going forward for sure.
I emailed her breeders in Washington State and let them know I got her back to retire with me. They said it felt like she was just born yesterday.
Going to give her a very good brush tomorrow afternoon in the nice fall weather. Can’t wait.
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Got a farrier visit lined up? Hard to see her feet in the pictures but it looks like she might have quite a bit of toe. That wouldn’t help her move evenly…good trims fix a whole lot of things far cheaper then vet visits and supplements.
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yep he’s on route for this week! couldnt get him earlier or i wouldve for sure
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Last night when I went out to brush her was the first time she seemed to recognize me as being there for her- she walked right over ears pricked. My heart!!
The more I brush her the weirder things I find. She has an old injury to her back leg that looks like maybe she got stepped on (by herself or by another horse) and it’s a bit puffy and weird looking, and she’s got this odd spot on her side that looks like skin cancer but Im not sure. She’s also a little stocked up, i dont know if shes moving around a lot. might be a pain management problem? I’ll be putting this new vet through her paces for sure, get my money’s worth haha. My old vet who was excellent moved to the united kingdom recently (and without telling anyone…) so this is a new to me vet but I’m sure she’ll do a nice job.
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