James City County horse rescue gives hope to neglected and abused animals

JAMES CITY — When Shadow arrived at The Pines Horse Farm & Sanctuary this past fall, he was severely underweight and infested with several types of worms.

The 10-year-old white thoroughbred had been living mainly on moldy hay and had shards of green glass embedded in his hooves, thanks to the broken Heineken beer bottles littering his backyard quarters. A long strand of metal wire was tangled in his tail.

Today, Shadow is healthy, worm-free, more than 150 pounds heavier and living happily with six other rescue horses at The Pines, a 22-acre home in James City County for animals that were neglected, abused or destined for slaughter.

“He just wants to be loved,” said Alexandria Middleton, who bought the farm on Saw Mill Road in May 2022 with her husband, Brett. “His former owners didn’t understand how much goes into caring for a horse and how expensive it is. His story almost had a really terrible ending.”

A lifelong horse lover and rider, Middleton launched the nonprofit rescue last summer. The farm also offers riding lessons for children and adults, and boarding facilities for non-rescue and adopted rescue horses, for a fee.

The Middletons currently have 14 horses, along with 50 chickens, seven dogs (six goldendoodles and a golden retriever) and a barn cat. They also have four children, ranging from 1 to 16.

The first rescue horses were Tender Boy, known as TB or Handsome, and Lizzie, which both arrived in August. TB, age 8, is a former racehorse that was destined for a kill pen in Pennsylvania after developing founder, an inflammatory hoof condition and a common cause of lameness. Lizzie, 1, was born in the same pen; her mother did not survive.

Kill pens are holding areas for old, sick or healthy horses abandoned for financial or behavioral reasons. Most are shipped out for slaughter; rescue organizations can save only a fraction by buying them at auction or getting a representative inside a pen to pluck out a lucky few.

While Congress has effectively blocked the operation of horse slaughterhouses since 2007, more than 23,000 a year still make an arduous journey to Canadian or Mexican sites, according to the Humane Society of the United States. Those horses are turned into glue, dog food or meat for human consumption in parts of Asia and Europe.

“People don’t realize what is happening right here in this country,” Alexandria Middleton said, urging support for proposed federal legislation to prohibit the slaughterhouse transit system. “It’s an absolute tragedy.”

Following a successful hoof surgery at Virginia Tech, TB is now a confident alpha male. He and Lizzie, a sweet-but-still-jittery mix of the morgan and Friesian breeds, are training to become riding lesson horses.

Brett Middleton, 45, a retired compression satellite engineer, is a full-time barn manager. He handles much of the farm’s operations with the help of his family, community volunteers and horse trainer Emily Huffman, including grooming the animals and feeding them grain and hay two or three times daily in four different pastures.

“It’s a lot of hard work, but watching them come back from whatever bad situations they’ve been in is really cool,” he said.

Alexandria, 35, a William & Mary graduate, runs several real estate ventures that bring in money for the farm. The family also sells eggs, hosts fundraisers and seasonal festivals, and relies on donations to help cover veterinary care, food and other supplies.

Each horse has a unique story. Finn, a shaggy 18-year-old Clydesdale, is a former Amish workhorse sold for meat and bound for a kill pen once he grew too old for heavy labor. A W&M graduate student adopted him and boards and rides him at The Pines.

Aspen, 35, is an appaloosa rescued in Oregon from an owner who beat and starved her. Lauren Marks, a Williamsburg resident and volunteer coordinator at The Pines, paid $200 to adopt Aspen about 10 years ago and now boards her at the farm.

Marks also has adopted Shadow, surrendered by a local owner who called asking for help after struggling to care for him for three years. Marks went along on the home visit.

“He immediately walked up to me, put his head on me and leaned against me,” Marks recalled. “Here was another horse just rotting away, just like Aspen had been. I was like, ‘Well, you’re mine now, too.’”

Once rescue horses are physically and mentally healthy, the Middletons would consider adopting them out to carefullyvetted homes, much like dog and cat shelters do. They’re also determined to teach riders and visitors what the animals need to thrive.

“Horses deserve the best, always,” Alexandria Middleton said. “They’re the most magical things in the world.”

To learn more

To learn more about The Pines Horse Farm & Sanctuary, including how to volunteer and/or donate, visit www.thepineshorsefarm.com or call 571- 466-6060. Private and group riding lessons also are available for anyone 4 and older.

Alison Johnson, ajohnsondp@yahoo.com