Help Us Give Honey a Soft Landing

Honey is a 6-year-old buckskin roan mare who came to Groundwork Collective on May 9, 2024. I took her on believing she might become a project horse for my training program, a horse I could rehab and eventually start under saddle. She had an infection in her withers, but I was told it was treatable. I thought she’d need a little recovery time and then be ready to begin a new chapter.

But that’s not how her story unfolded.

Not long after she arrived, we discovered that the infection was the result of previously broken withers, an injury that required surgical repair. Since then, Honey’s recovery has been long, difficult, and often heartbreaking. Despite our best efforts, she continues to fall, suddenly and seemingly unexplained collapses that I’ve witnessed with my own eyes. Sometimes, the impact is so jarring it reopens her surgical scar. We’ve managed the wound and done what we could to best support her healing. But the truth is that something deeper is going on.

I’ve consulted veterinarians, farriers, bodyworkers, and other trusted professionals. Some suspect weak stifles. Others have suggested a neurological condition. I’ve tried exercises. I’ve used light hind-leg weights. I’ve worked with her on hobbles and liberty groundwork. I’ve even sedated her with Dormosedan during difficult medical care to keep things calm and safe. Through it all, she’s stayed smart, sensitive, and willing.

But here’s what I know with certainty. It is my professional opinion that Honey is not and will never be safe to ride.

She was only ever sat on twice as a two-year-old and has never been formally saddle-trained. Her reactivity, history of falling, the trauma around her surgical site, and her deep sensitivity to human handling all confirm that riding is not and should not be part of her future. I’ve had professionals I deeply trust advise me to consider euthanasia as the most responsible route. I’ve sat with that option. Honestly, I still am.

This fundraiser is about creating clarity. I want to give Honey every chance at a soft landing, whether that’s in a qualified, trauma-informed home, a reputable sanctuary herd where she can live with minimal handling, or, if necessary, be able to get the services to lay her to rest.

Your support will help fund a full lameness and neurological evaluation, any imaging or specialist consults, continued wound care and sedation when needed, and transportation to veterinary visits or long-term placement. It will also help offset a portion of the over $10,000+ already invested in her care. A full expense breakdown is available upon request.

We’ve absorbed the costs of her feed, daily management, medications, farrier work, and care because that’s what you do when you take a chance on a horse. But we realistically cannot take the next steps alone.

Honey is smart, beautiful, and surprisingly nurturing with other horses, especially the younger ones. She thrives in a herd setting and does best in low-pressure environments. She has been ponied on trail rides, loads well in the trailer, and is currently working on hobble training and liberty work. She responds best to slow, consistent handling and is most comfortable when approached on her own terms. She’s not easy to catch, but she is curious and shows moments of softness when trust is built over time.

I’m giving her the summer to find the right person or herd. If we reach the end of August without a sustainable placement, I’ll be pursuing sanctuary options like All Seated in a Barn’s Texas location. If no appropriate placement is found, humane euthanasia remains on the table. It’s the hardest part of this story, but it may be the kindest one if she cannot be safely placed.

If you are able to donate, every dollar helps us move closer to answers and a safe future for Honey. If you cannot give right now, sharing her story or connecting us with potential homes, sanctuaries, or skilled handlers is just as valuable.

I will be posting updates here and other ways you can support/give on my website & social media so you can follow along with her journey. You can find us on Instagram at @a_sagebrush_cowgirl or @_groundwork_collective and for the full write-up you can visit: https://www.doyourgroundwork.com/meet-the-herd/honey-ths79-84l8p

Thank you for reading this in its entirety and for believing that animals with limitations deserve soft landings and the opportunity to find placement.

With gratitude,

Taylor & Caleb Tatum

Groundwork Collective