“She’s been my partner, my joy, and my reason to smile — but right now, Elsa is fighting one of the biggest battles of her life.”

Anyone who knows Elsa knows she’s the sweetest mare around. Under saddle she’s your typical ex-racehorse — a little quirky, sometimes excitable — but that’s part of her charm. She raced from just two years old until she was seven, spending much of her life in training. Since coming to me, she’s been learning to enjoy a new chapter filled with love, patience, and plenty of cuddles.

The past 18 months since I bought her have been far from easy. We’ve been in and out of the vets constantly — dealing with ulcers, treating kissing spine, and once patching her up after a nasty kick that needed stitches. But Elsa’s a fighter. Slowly, she started to come right under saddle, her hormones settled, and she was really beginning to love her work again. I finally felt like we were turning a corner.

Then, on Wednesday, everything changed. Elsa came in from the field with a devastating injury — a deep cut dangerously close to the joint bone in her hock. We still don’t know how it happened, but it wasn’t from another horse. She was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, as any delay could have put her life and mobility at serious risk.

Elsa shares her field with Harry — my other ex-racehorse, a five-year-old who only joined us three months ago. The two of them adore each other. Whenever I go to see Harry, he’s always looking behind me, hoping Elsa’s coming too. Now that she’s in hospital, he’s out there on his own. Thankfully his neighbours also live out, but there’s no doubt he’s missing his best friend and partner in crime — and he’ll miss their games in the field for the next 3–4 weeks while she’s on box rest.

Thankfully, Elsa’s joint isn’t septic at the moment, which means no surgery right now. If all goes well, she’ll be coming home on Monday. But the next two weeks are critical — we won’t know until then if the bone in her hock has been affected.

Elsa is insured, but her policy doesn’t cover all the costs. I need to cover her 6-day hospital stay, the emergency transport to get her there, and the insurance excess. These bills are already adding up fast, and I’m doing everything I can to give her the best possible care.

Elsa has been through so much since I’ve owned her, and she’s never lost her gentle, loving nature. She doesn’t deserve another setback — especially when she was finally feeling happy, healthy, and excited about life again.

If you can help — whether through a donation or by sharing her story — it would mean the world to both me and Elsa. Every single contribution will go directly towards her treatment, recovery, and giving her the future she deserves.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for caring about my girl