01/15/2026
Here's a little peek behind the scenes at our volunteers and rescues in action! Every Sunday in January, Sunrise's volunteer coordinator Anne-Marie Read is facilitating our Grooming/Walkabout program. This past Sunday, they worked with W***y (the larger of the two white* horses), Dash, the smaller one, and Abby (Abigail), with the chestnut colored coat.
"It has been wonderful seeing how our participating volunteers are expanding their skills and insights," she says. "We are all learning how to be patient as the horses are learning too. On some days, just like people, the horses come in from pasture in various moods and states of readiness, requiring adaptations in our strategies."
"Because we are in the colder, rainy season, part of our learnings have involved developing skill in removing and then accurately replacing their horse coats."
When it downpours, as it did last Sunday, the âwalkaboutâ portion of the trainingâwhich occurs after the horses have been groomedâinvolves taking the horses through an obstacle course in the arena. When the horses havenât been able to do their walkabout out-of-doors, where they are rewarded with grazing on rain-flourished grass, the horses receive carrot treats as rewards for their patience and cooperation.đ§ĄđĽ
Anne-Marie made two photo collages to share two noteworthy moments: "In one of them, W***yâwho had a difficult time settlingâfinally got to the point where he was responsive to being asked to walk backwards. In the other collage, there is a âbeforeâ image of Dash all spiffy after being groomed and an âafterâ image right after he had promptly rolled in the arenaâs sand at the beginning of his walkabout."đ
*Anne-Marie also shared that: "Many horses that look like they have âwhiteâ coats are technically called âgraysâ because their skin is a gray color. Actual white horses have pink skin. "I recall realizing this while bathing a white horse at another facility. Her name was Shelly and she was a âpaintââthat is, her skin was pink in some sections and gray in others. Both W***y and Dash are technically what is called âflea-bitten grays.â This term refers to speckles of darker hairs throughout their coats. W***yâs freckles of dark hair are found throughout his âwhiteâ coat, while Dashâs are mainly in the area of his neck."
