Special needs horse in FL?

Question

I have a horse rescue in FL...we live in the woods...only residence on this road. We were misinformed over the actual amount of property we have here, and thinking we had almost two acres I took on the responsibility of my young mare who was born with contracted tendons in both front legs. Her hooves curl underneath her, and she is scheduled for surgery in August. Thanks to a "disgruntled" former staff member who made a complaint after she couldnt get my non-profit away from me, we now have code enforcement hounding us because it turns out we only have about a quarter of an acre. This horse cannot be allowed to run and according to my vet and farrier, she is doing perfectly fine despite not having an acre of land. Is there a statute in Florida that allows one to keep a special needs horse despite not having an acre? She may never fully recover from surgery, and will need constant vet care, and to be watched.

I cannot bear the thought of life without her...

Swampy

Answer 1

Where do you live in Florida? I'm in Charlotte County and I know there are some crazy statutes out there when it comes to keeping horses. Basically, you're supposed to have 1 acre per horse. Have you thought about moving her to another horse rescue facility?

Answer 2

Is this about you or the horse??  Put her down.  

Why do people insist on wasting money on horses that have no purpose whatsoever and will be in pain all their lives, you are not doing her any favors at all.  Your vet of course will say otherwise because he sees a cash cow waiting to happen.

Answer 3

What a beautiful heart you have. I don't know the answer to your question but it blows my mind. I live in the country in Northern CA and I have neighbors that have acres of land but keep there poor horses penned up in 12 by 12's (I mean guys smaller than my bedroom!) and I've never even seen them out of their corrals. Its horrible. If they had a quarter acre they'd think they'd died and gone to heaven!

Answer 4

You will probably HATE my answer, but for the horses sake the most humane thing would be to euthanize her. She will never have a good quality of life from what you've described and keeping her alive is only to make YOU feel better, not the horse.