The Big Purple Barn, A Sanctuary

The Big Purple Barn, A Sanctuary Providing a lifetime of comfort and care to our sanctuary animals and connecting our community.

The Big purple Barn, located at Hidden Haven Farm, is a non profit organization that seeks to promote the horse human bond through innovative education and outreach programs we offer to the community that utilize our resident equines. We provide a permanent home and care to 15 special needs equines from our work with local rescues. We provide volunteer opportunities, horse care education, riding l

essons, day camps and various programs throught the year. Our volunteer staff is highly trained, our resident horses are personable and eager to interact with people and our programs are are geared towards teaching people about the joys and responsibilities of horses.

Good morning farm family! Jewel 💎 is sending out good weekend vibes! Today is a busy day with the farrier. That means tr...
08/15/2025

Good morning farm family!

Jewel 💎 is sending out good weekend vibes! Today is a busy day with the farrier. That means trimming 14 sets of hooves and checking in on Abby and her special shoes. It's a long day for both us and the farrier.

Beginning this weekend, the barn will close for one week for all programs with the exception of our volunteer program. Daily care will always continue! We are closing down for a week to allow the animals a little down time to recover😴 from an action packed summer of camps, visits, a new horse arrival, and other activities. In just a few weeks, busy fall 🍂 season will be upon us and it will be nonstop until the holidays🎃🎄🎉.

Where has the time gone!? The days are already getting shorter, the leaves are changing slightly and the animals are preparing for their winter coats to come in. We just want to hold on to these last days of summer ☀️ and we certainly don't feel like we've accomplished everything we set out to. It's been a rough year for us all.

While the barn will be quiet for a week, the expenses 💲still pile up. We just got in a load of shavings and a load of hay 🌾and today we will purchase feed for the animals. This is in addition to our current vet bill and paying the farrier. I know I sound like a broken record all of the time asking for support, but we can't do what we do without our community. We appreciate each and every donor and your dollars go directly to the care of the animals.

It's $5 Friday so please consider just a $5 donation to help us continue to provide the best care for the animals in residence and to continue to be an integral part of our community. ❤️ We hope to see you at one of our upcoming events beginning in September!

Yours in gratitude 🙏, love ❤️ and light ✨️,
Tara

Good morning farm family, Today marks week 4. One whole month, which seems like forever, and yet just a blink of the eye...
08/14/2025

Good morning farm family,

Today marks week 4. One whole month, which seems like forever, and yet just a blink of the eye. Honor 🎖 has been here for four weeks now and so much has happened.

1. He had to learn his first turn out area, the round pen. This came with leading in and out daily and the patterns that came with it.

2. About a week later, we introduced him to night turn out in the round pen and day turn out with Zoe and Maggie. A whole new field, new horses to meet, and new patterns.

3. Learning about his stall and where his own personal food and space were. We had several hiccups including a popped off door, a broken guard over his feed area and a shattered front wall board. Most of his stall mishaps happened around feeding time. We learned he is very anxious over food and perceived lack of access to it, which is understandable and we can help with that.

4. Learning new neighbors both in turn out and in the stall.

5. Learning to be brushed and handled. He really got this quickly because he genuinely loves attention.

6. A NEW turnout schedule that finally included overnights in his permanent group as well as daytime stall rest with fans and food.

7. Making new friends and practicing herd dynamics and behaviors.

This is A LOT and he has generally been such a good boy about all of these changes. He has had to learn one pattern and then learn another. We are getting to know him better and understand his anxieties, his triggers and things he enjoys. We are working to support him at each step of this journey. Tomorrow is a farrier appointment, which is yet another new thing on his plate, but an important step in helping him feel his best. We will let him have another few weeks of his new group turn out before slowly introducing new skills and activities for him and use that time to continue to get to know him and improve the support we give him.

Thank you for being a part of his journey here ❤️ at his forever home! This is marathon, and not sprint. We have time 🥰.

Yours in love ❤️ and light ✨️,
Tara

Good morning farm family,As I say often, there is so much happening day to day they I don't post about, it's sometimes h...
08/12/2025

Good morning farm family,

As I say often, there is so much happening day to day they I don't post about, it's sometimes hard to decide what deserves and update. Today I'm updating everyone on Abby.

As you may remember, 2 summers ago, Abby started acting "off" and just not herself. We tried several things that had no effect before finally doing some bloodwork. Over the next several months, she would test positive for Lyme, cushings and equine metabolic syndrome. The EMS would eventually evolve into full blown insulin dysregulation and she would experience bouts of laminitis. Her feed, medications, and treatment protocols are evaluated and adjusted constantly and I communicate with the vet and farrier regularly.

This last bout of laminitis, which began over the winter, has been the most challenging. Whenever you get an illness or injury, we hope to see a general linear progression of improvement. We'll, this has been a wild roller-coaster with dips, hills, turns, and we might have been trapped upside down for a bit. I have leaned into an online support community to compare notes, began researching more, and working with the health-care team to come up with solutions. Thankfully Abby is a smart pony who rests when she needs to and seems to know what is best for her.

We recently got her feeling pretty stable and decided, since I'm going on my ONE annual vacation, to get her the soft ride clogs. These clogs are glue on shoes with a dome underneath on the surface that touches the ground, creating almost like a balance ball effect. The shoe is designed to add protection to the sole depth, provide cushion for the coffin bone and ease break over. A special gel is injected into the space between the shoe and the hoof to create a custom orthotic.

When we applied Abby's shoes, her left front foot, which was clinically the worst, immediately became better. She got instant comfort. The right front, which had take a lot of load from her painful left front, became worse. Our farrier and I worked through some different scenarios to see if it was the shoe. We removed it, had her walk flat, had her walk in a boot and then decided it was best to reset the shoe and leave both feet protected, because she walked thesame no matter what. We surmised it wasn't the hoof that was painful, but the tendon. I noticed mild swelling and some heat in that overloaded right leg.

So began the next phase of trying to help Abby. Abby went into a resting phase of laying down more agsin, and resting her feet and legs. We gave her the option to limit her movement as she didn't seem ready to walk much. I started wrapping her legs overnight with supportive bandages to help support the tendons and help them recover. We added back her secondary pain medication and just started applying diclofenac cream to her tendons.

I think this setback wouldn't have felt so significant if we hadn't put so much faith in some kind of amazing magic from the shoes. Almost everything we read and watched talked about how game changing they would be. We had them applied by one of the best farriers in our region. It was heartbreaking NOT to get that magical and miraculous improvement. But the horses here don't do ANYTHING by the books, so why should this be any different?

However, throughout this period, Abby has remained in good spirits. She's been eating well and pooping well and kept her sassy attitude. She is generally compliant with any care she needs. She is patient and I know she's just on her own healing journey and trusting us to support her every step of the way. She's finally, noticeably improving in comfort and she even felt good enough to make a break out of the back of the barn the other day! Our farrier will be out Friday to trim the other horses and take a look at Abby. We have faith we are on the right track, it's just a more scenic route at the moment. We can't give up!

Did you know that Abby's specialty care for rhe past 2 years is approaching the $10,000 mark? She requires specialty feed, prescription medications, special supplements, specialty farrier care and additonal supplies. Your support helps us keep our residents, like Abby, comfortable and cared for no matter what happens!

Send Abby some love and good thoughts 💕.

Yours in love ❤️ and light ✨️,
Tara

Happy Monday farm family!Let's talk hooves. You know, the big toenail at the end of each leg of a horse? Hooves are the ...
08/11/2025

Happy Monday farm family!

Let's talk hooves. You know, the big toenail at the end of each leg of a horse? Hooves are the very foundation of the horse. There is an old saying, "no hoof, no horse," and it couldn't be more true. Horses with hoof issues require far more care and management. Things like poor quality hooves, aging hooves, damaged hooves, laminits and even nutritional deficiency can affect the hoof.

Horses are designed to carry approximately 60% of the weight load on the front hooves and 40% on the back hooves. That means each front hoof takes a 30% load and each back hoof takes a 20% load. When a horse has a hoof issue that cause the load to be distributed incorrectly, that can cause catastrophic limb failure over time. While strong, the very makeup of a hoof is a delicate balance that has to be protected snd maintained.

From and AI overview:
A horse's hoof is a complex, multi-functional structure that supports the animal's weight, absorbs shock, provides traction, and facilitates movement. It's a vital part of the horse's anatomy, acting as both a protective barrier and a shock absorber.

Here's a breakdown of the hoof's key functions:

✅️Weight Bearing:
The hoof wall, particularly the outer layer, is designed to bear the horse's weight, distributing it across the foot.

✅️Shock Absorption:
The hoof's various structures, including the digital cushion and frog, help to absorb the impact of each stride, protecting the bones and joints.

✅️Traction:
The hoof provides grip and traction on different surfaces, preventing slipping and facilitating movement.

✅️Circulation:
The hoof contains a network of blood vessels that contribute to blood circulation, returning blood from the lower limb back to the heart.

✅️Protection:
The hoof wall acts as a protective barrier for the internal structures of the foot, shielding them from injury and infection.

✅️Communication:
The hoof contains nerve endings that can send signals to the central nervous system, providing sensory information about the ground and the horse's movement.

We work with our farrier every 6 weeks to maintain the best outcomes we can for the horses in residence. It's the single largest healthcare expense we budget for. Each visit is $600. Currently, Abby is on her own schedule due to her laminitis and her recent application of orthotic clogs coming in at $450.

Honor, pictured here, needs some hoof care. You can see his feet are flared wide and breaking. He also has a significant crack in his hind right that we hope is generally superficial. We are keeping his hooves moisturized with hoof dressing. Lucky for him, the farrier is here this week!

If you would like to sponsor a trim, the cost is $45 per horse. Can't do $45? Pitch in $11 and sponsor one hoof! Every dollar makes adifference!

Here is how YOU can help!

👉 click the DONATE button on this post
📫 mail a check to The Big Purple Barn at 6407 Hillmeade Road Bowie MD 20720
🤝PayPal directly at https://www.paypal.me/bigpurplebarnbowie
💳 check out our website for alternative donation options including Google Pay, Venmo, PayPal, credit card and bank transfer (www.thebigpurplebarnbowie.org)

Yours in love ❤️ and light ✨️ and hoping to help educate along the way,
Tara

Good morning farm family,So much happens behind the scenes every day here I sometimes don't know what to update you with...
08/10/2025

Good morning farm family,

So much happens behind the scenes every day here I sometimes don't know what to update you with. The animals here get consistent, customized care, so that means observations and adjustments almost daily. With over 30 individual animals to juggle, that is a LOT.

Some of the changes are minute details like a little extra hay for someone, moving water sources to maximize shade, attending to a small wound, replacing a fly mask, applying some fly spray or tending to some fairy 🧚‍♀️ knots in a mane. Some of the changes are bigger adjustments, like changing up the turnout schedule for Zoe to help manage her anxiety or adjusting Abby's care plan depending on how well she is feeling on a particular day. Helping Honor 🎖 make his final transition into the main barn field is a daily adjustment as we help him learn the patterns and support his efforts.

Today, I'll leave you with this image of Honor in his second sunrise with the herd. It was such a peaceful morning, the kind that helps you reset. I'll be sure to get to work next week updating everyone on the major things happening around the farm. But today, I'm going to enjoy the little things ☺️ and be thankful for the animals and all of you.

Yours in love ❤️ and light ✨️,
Tara

It was a beautiful morning at the farm! Honor did great for his second night in the field, the weather this morning was ...
08/10/2025

It was a beautiful morning at the farm! Honor did great for his second night in the field, the weather this morning was absolutely delightful, and it was a peaceful morning of farm chores 🥰. It doesn't get better than this ❤️.

Attention farm family!Honor 🎖 made it through🙌 his first night 🌙with the herd! This is a HUGE step in his journey here t...
08/09/2025

Attention farm family!

Honor 🎖 made it through🙌 his first night 🌙with the herd! This is a HUGE step in his journey here to his forever home. We've been slowly 🐌 giving him time to familiarize himself with the turn out space during the day and get companionship with Zoe and Maggie. He also gets to socialize with the mares over the fence. I cannot say it enough...

HORSES NEED OTHER HORSES!

It is critical for their mental well-being to be with their own species. They need physical contact and social time to engage in horse activities amd behaviors. This morning, I found Honor in the corner, exchanging in mutual grooming group with his grandma, Summer ☀️! This was a beautiful and and encouraging sight to see 💙.

Honor is now on his way to making lifelong friends and engaging in behaviors that will teach him, support him, and help manage his stress. He already had extremely good social skills and now he gets to use them!

3 weeks has brought so much change for this special boy, and we are so happy to help him navigate through it. He will soon realize this place is his forever home and that we will continue to care for him and support him throughout the rest of his life!

Have a great weekend! We are hoping the same for Honor!

Yours in love ❤️ and light ✨️,
Tara

Stella was happy to teach all about goat horns and then judge the kids as they modeled how they would wear the horns! St...
08/09/2025

Stella was happy to teach all about goat horns and then judge the kids as they modeled how they would wear the horns! Stella loves to judge. She's a judgmental lady.

As the eldest herd member, Pudge takes his job of educating and inspiring the next generation of animal advocates serio...
08/09/2025

As the eldest herd member, Pudge takes his job of educating and inspiring the next generation of animal advocates seriously!

Sometimes, the littlest horses make the biggest impression! Presley is known for making memories 💜
08/09/2025

Sometimes, the littlest horses make the biggest impression! Presley is known for making memories 💜

Bruce 🦄✨️💜 This big horse has put us through the ringer for years with the various significant trials of health challeng...
08/09/2025

Bruce 🦄✨️💜 This big horse has put us through the ringer for years with the various significant trials of health challenges that put us to the test. He has always been such a gentle giant, so kind, so sweet that we fought even harder to show him that we wouldn't let him down the way other humans did. This kind of moment makes all the frustration, the exhaustion, the worry, and the financial strain worthwhile. These kids love him, and he knows it. Seeing him be so gentle and share such sweet moments is why we do what we do and will continue to do so! We have always believed he was a unicorn 🦄 who just needed help to find his magic ✨️ again.

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Bowie, MD

Telephone

+12406876995

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Our Story

The Big Purple Barn was originally called Hidden Haven Farm, and established as a sanctuary for special needs horses and ponies. Since 2001, we have cared for over 25 resident horses, ponies and minis, until their call home to the rainbow bridge. In that time, we provided countless outreach experiences to our community and began community based programs to allow youth and adults a way to learn about and interact with our residents on a personal level in a supportive environment

The concept for The Big Purple Barn emerged in 2010 as a place for people and horses to connect and have the opportunity to learn and grow together. We are pleased to announce our non profit application acceptance in 2013. Prior to this, The Big Purple Barn was part of Hidden Haven Farm, established in 1991 and finding a permanent home in Bowie, MD in 2001. The farm worked closely with local rescue organizations providing a permanent home for special needs horses and ponies and minis as well as providing opportunity and access to the animals and basic riding and horse care programs to the community.

As our relationship in the community deepened, The Big Purple Barn was born out of the needs of our community to provide more focused opportunity to discover horses and provide opportunities for special needs populations as well as community service learning opportunities for local schools. Since 2010, we have expanded our programs to include volunteer opportunities, school and event outreach as well as interactive and educational opportunities for special needs members of our communities. In 2013, we received our 501C3 designation. In 2015 we began accepting new animals into the sanctuary and now we proudly provide a home to pot bellied pigs, sheep and goats! Our programs focus not only on animal care and appreciation, but on land conservation and stewardship and urban agriculture.