The heart of our program — and what really sets us apart from other rehabilitation facilities — is something we call a semi-feral management style. For us, that means the horses in our program live on 2,500 acres of lightly managed rangeland. They can move, forage, and hang out with their herd however they see fit and with very little interruption from us.
The most important aspect of our program: “semi-feral” never means neglected. Our horses are always cared for. Always monitored. Always checked on. Every single day, no matter the weather. Sometimes that means traveling a mile across the prairie to find the group that decided to hide out in a valley. Sometimes it means double-checking on the horse that looked a little stiff yesterday. They’re never left wondering if someone is paying attention — because someone always is.
Their basic needs are covered. We hay when they need it, we provide shelter (though more often than not, they prefer to use the land — valleys, ridges and rocks — instead of the structures we built), and we keep a close enough watch that if something comes up, it’s caught.
For most of the day though, the horses get to live like feral horses. They graze native grasses, move across the land as they want, and split off into smaller “bands” of friends. These little social groups shift their territories with the seasons and sometimes gain or lose friends. Whatever they choose to do, we try to honor them. If one horse needs to come into a pen, we’ll often bring their close friends in, too. Because yes — feed and water matter, but so does socialization.
That’s where our pens and paddocks come in. We have a seventeen-acre paddock for horses in regular training — big enough for movement, small enough to catch them. Horses with severe injuries or more intense needs go into designated pens where we can keep a sharper eye on them. These pens range from half an acre to four acres. And the ones who just can’t keep up with the big group anymore? They get space in smaller pens where they can still move around, but where we can keep them closer. And again — if they’ve got a buddy, we try to keep them together. It’s a little thing, but it makes a big difference. And stalls? Permanent ones don't exist here. We have panels and an arena if we really need them, but stall rest, in our experience, has not been beneficial, even in the most severe cases. Movement is the cornerstone of the rehab program here.
So when we say “semi-feral,” what we mean is balance. Horses living as naturally as possible, with the safety net of daily care behind it. It’s not turning them loose to figure it out. It’s giving them space to be horses — while making sure they’re never out of sight, never out of mind, and never without care.
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