Title: Palm Beach County Woman Charged with Animal Cruelty After Horses Found Severely Malnourished
A Palm Beach County woman is facing animal cruelty charges after several of her horses were found extremely underweight, and one died. Pamela Howell Beres was booked in the Palm Beach County jail following a more than year-long investigation where officials rescued six horses and a pony from her care. Beres has been charged with seven counts of felony animal cruelty and seven counts of unlawful abandonment or confinement of animal.
The investigation began in February of 2024, when, according to the probable cause statement, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office was notified by Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control of several underweight horses at a property in rural West Palm Beach. An attending veterinarian at the property told officials he was called to the property for a severely emaciated horse lying in a stall. He met with the owner of the horse, Beres, and noted the horse was extremely underweight and had injuries to its head, likely from thrashing into the walls while trying to get up.
The veterinarian also reported the horse had pale gums and it was in some degree of shock. He said the overall prognosis was very poor and he alerted Beres that the horse would most likely not make it through the night. According to court records, the veterinarian suggested euthanasia, and Beres responded by yelling, “This horse is living and it will live because I say it will." Soon after, the veterinarian claims he witnessed Beres sit next to the horse and open its eyes. That’s when the man said he watched as she began licking the horse’s eyes with her tongue and mouth. The veterinarian said, "She licked away the mucous and spit it out in the stall then continued." According to the probable cause statement, the horse was given steroids to make it comfortable.
Roughly a week later, when a complaint was filed, a PBCSO deputy arrived at the property to observe the horses from a distance. According to court records, the deputy said he saw several horses who were in various stages of emaciation. "Two brown horses appeared emaciated, with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. Two white horses also were emaciated looking with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. There was another darker brown horse which was clearly in poor condition, with its hips bones visible. My vantage point was approximately 100-200 feet away, and I could clearly see the bones protruding from the horses," the deputy reported. The deputy said it was clear the horses were not being fed or provided adequate water and therefore had become so emaciated that, without proper care, the horses on the property would have become sicker or possibly died.
The PBCSO obtained a search warrant for the property and showed up the next day. According to the probable cause statement, the search revealed six horses and one pony found on the property. Investigators said none of the horses had access to grain or fresh water and there were only remnants of hay in some of the paddocks. "All of the horses were underweight in various degrees, ranging from emaciated to severely thin. The pony was moderately underweight," the deputy said. While they did find food in the barn, officials said if any food was provided to the horses, it was apparent that it was not provided in amounts sufficient to sustain the horses and pony. According to court records, officials found it was evident from the condition of the horses that the very basic care and nutritional needs were not being met, causing their physical condition to deteriorate. Soon after they arrived at the property, deputies learned that the horse seen by the vet on February 23, 2024, had died.
The six surviving horses and pony were seized and taken to Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control to be examined by a veterinarian. According to the probable cause statement, the veterinarian at PBCACC provided the care and treatment regimen for the horses and pony. The doctor noted, "All of the horses on the day of seizure were severely malnourished. The pony was slightly thin. Some of the horses were on the verge of starvation with body scores of one or slightly above."
After being given proper nutrients and receiving both medical and dental care, investigators said the horses gained weight and showed improvement within three months of proper care.
Once the animals were deemed healthy and cleared to be released to a rescue facility, six of the horses were picked up by Grune Heidi Farm Rescue in Polk County. The president of the rescue, Erika Gilbert, said they specialize in Arabian and American Saddlebred horses. "So these horses are all pedigree horses, they’re all registered, and what our rescue does is we go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their heritage and their pedigree," Gilbert said. Using DNA, she found each horse was registered and could be matched to their pedigrees. "So these horses were all Egyptian Arabians, and I could tell their pedigrees, and I found out where they came from. Many of them were bred from a farm in Ohio, and that Pamela purchased them from," she said.
With all the information she was able to gather on them, she was able to reunite one of the horses with their breeder. "One of the horses that was rescued went back to the original breeder, and they were happy to have her back. So that’s what we do," she added. "We go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their birth certificate." Gilbert said she started researching Beres and learned she was once well-known in the equine community. "With these types of horses, they assume that these horses are worth a lot of money. Like ‘Oh, they’re going to be making me tons of money’ and instead of letting them go to a good home, or just giving them away to someone that can feed them and take care of them, they want money," Gilbert said.
She said from talking with others in the equine community, she suspects that’s what Beres was doing. "She was willing to sell them to people. You know, oh, I want $8,000 for that horse, or I want $10,000 for that horse, and she’s totally blinded by what they look like, because she’s focusing on their pedigrees," she told WPBF. She said this specific breed of horses can be very empathetic and bonds with their owners. "These horses have such a strong bond with their people. It’s inherited in them. It’s ingrained. They make great family horses. They’re just, they love their people, and they’re very versatile. They bond with no other, and they have a beauty unlike any other," Gilbert said.
Gilbert said, unfortunately, rescues of all kinds are struggling to meet the demand. "Rescues are highly needed, and we’re tired. We’re tired. We’ve taken a lot of horses, and I’m just not speaking about horses, but all animal rescues, we’re all tired," she said. She said rescues need the community’s help to combat the growing problem of overbreeding. "Just stop the backyard breeding. Just do your research if you are breeding. These horses, they’re a lifetime commitment. They’re not just cats and dogs who live only maybe 15, 16, 20 years tops. You have horses that live 30 years, 30-plus years. It is a lifetime commitment and they cost a lot of money," she said. Gilbert encourages those struggling with costs and the work to reach out for help. "If you’ve taken a horse and you need help, reach out to a rescue and ask for help. A lot of rescues, not just our rescue, but many rescues, offer help with feed or offer help with hay for owners that are down on their luck or have financial problems in the short term. We do supply feed and hay. We also can take in a horse for medical needs," she added. All six horses have now found forever homes.
The smallest of the animals rescued was a pony who has since been named Freya. Claudia Campbell, who runs Delmar Farm, a nonprofit sanctuary, learned a pony was at PBCACC and couldn’t resist. "The minute we learned about her, we went over and picked her up and brought her home," Campbell said. She said when they first brought her home, they put her in an area with other ponies until Campbell realized that’s not what Freya wanted. "Eventually, we ended up putting her in this group behind me, and she was so much happier getting to be around the larger horses. So I just found it to be so sad that the other horses were taken away from her, and she was left all by herself. So she was really happy to come here," she said.
The farm sanctuary offers different programs and recently introduced a free program they’ve titled ‘Stable Moments’. The program is a one-on-one mentorship program for children in foster and adoptive homes. The sanctuary pairs one child with one mentor and one horse every week for one hour. "So we have a little girl that we paired Freya up with that was like the perfect match because their personality is really aligned. I told a little girl that this pony could probably use some help with her training and her mannerism, and it just it made such a difference in this little girl’s personality. So it worked out really great and Freya now is a little therapy pony," she told WPBF.
Campbell said they don’t see many horse abuse cases originating in Florida, but they do take in a wide variety of animals. "It’s a lot. We do have a great team of volunteers, but it’s constant. With water and feed and cleaning and everything, it’s a huge undertaking. The overhead is astronomical," she said. Being a non-profit, the sanctuary runs on donations, volunteers and sponsors. "We’re hoping to get more sponsors because that program [Stable Moments] we’re doing for free. So we hope to get more help with that so we can help more children with our animals," she said.
Similar to what Gilbert said, Campbell explained how owning a horse is a lifetime commitment and huge responsibility. "I try to express to everybody who comes here to the sanctuary, responsibility and the responsibility of ownership for life. If they can’t take care of the animal for life, find a place that maybe they can pay to keep their animal, like a retirement home for their horses. Horses are probably the most expensive animal to keep, especially in South Florida," she said. Campbell said seeing horses get dumped or neglected hits home for her and reminds her of her of two of her first horses named Del and Mar. She said her family adopted Mar when she was just nine years old after the horse was injured and they learned it might be disposed of. "She was going to go to the, back then we used to call it to the glue factory, so we ended up adopting her, and it changed my life. I couldn’t show or do anything like that, but it didn’t matter because I wanted to make sure that she was saved," she said. Campbell had Mar for 16 years through all different ups and downs in her life. "I never let that horse down. I kept her till I was 29 years old, and eventually she told us when she was ready to go. So when I hear all these excuses why people can’t or they won’t or they feel like it’s a better home or whatever, I get very frustrated," she added.
Since the sanctuary opened in 1998, they’ve started offering more and more programs to introduce the community to the animals in their care. "My core mission is to make sure that the animals that we have taken in that they have the best quality of care for the rest of their life and to make sure that we are making those important connections with people," Campbell said. Delmar Farm has more information on the programs they run, volunteer opportunities, and educational resources on their website.
![Title: Palm Beach County Woman Charged with Animal Cruelty After Horses Found Severely Malnourished
A Palm Beach County woman is facing animal cruelty charges after several of her horses were found extremely underweight, and one died. Pamela Howell Beres was booked in the Palm Beach County jail following a more than year-long investigation where officials rescued six horses and a pony from her care. Beres has been charged with seven counts of felony animal cruelty and seven counts of unlawful abandonment or confinement of animal.
The investigation began in February of 2024, when, according to the probable cause statement, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office was notified by Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control of several underweight horses at a property in rural West Palm Beach. An attending veterinarian at the property told officials he was called to the property for a severely emaciated horse lying in a stall. He met with the owner of the horse, Beres, and noted the horse was extremely underweight and had injuries to its head, likely from thrashing into the walls while trying to get up.
The veterinarian also reported the horse had pale gums and it was in some degree of shock. He said the overall prognosis was very poor and he alerted Beres that the horse would most likely not make it through the night. According to court records, the veterinarian suggested euthanasia, and Beres responded by yelling, “This horse is living and it will live because I say it will." Soon after, the veterinarian claims he witnessed Beres sit next to the horse and open its eyes. That’s when the man said he watched as she began licking the horse’s eyes with her tongue and mouth. The veterinarian said, "She licked away the mucous and spit it out in the stall then continued." According to the probable cause statement, the horse was given steroids to make it comfortable.
Roughly a week later, when a complaint was filed, a PBCSO deputy arrived at the property to observe the horses from a distance. According to court records, the deputy said he saw several horses who were in various stages of emaciation. "Two brown horses appeared emaciated, with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. Two white horses also were emaciated looking with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. There was another darker brown horse which was clearly in poor condition, with its hips bones visible. My vantage point was approximately 100-200 feet away, and I could clearly see the bones protruding from the horses," the deputy reported. The deputy said it was clear the horses were not being fed or provided adequate water and therefore had become so emaciated that, without proper care, the horses on the property would have become sicker or possibly died.
The PBCSO obtained a search warrant for the property and showed up the next day. According to the probable cause statement, the search revealed six horses and one pony found on the property. Investigators said none of the horses had access to grain or fresh water and there were only remnants of hay in some of the paddocks. "All of the horses were underweight in various degrees, ranging from emaciated to severely thin. The pony was moderately underweight," the deputy said. While they did find food in the barn, officials said if any food was provided to the horses, it was apparent that it was not provided in amounts sufficient to sustain the horses and pony. According to court records, officials found it was evident from the condition of the horses that the very basic care and nutritional needs were not being met, causing their physical condition to deteriorate. Soon after they arrived at the property, deputies learned that the horse seen by the vet on February 23, 2024, had died.
The six surviving horses and pony were seized and taken to Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control to be examined by a veterinarian. According to the probable cause statement, the veterinarian at PBCACC provided the care and treatment regimen for the horses and pony. The doctor noted, "All of the horses on the day of seizure were severely malnourished. The pony was slightly thin. Some of the horses were on the verge of starvation with body scores of one or slightly above."
After being given proper nutrients and receiving both medical and dental care, investigators said the horses gained weight and showed improvement within three months of proper care.
Once the animals were deemed healthy and cleared to be released to a rescue facility, six of the horses were picked up by Grune Heidi Farm Rescue in Polk County. The president of the rescue, Erika Gilbert, said they specialize in Arabian and American Saddlebred horses. "So these horses are all pedigree horses, they’re all registered, and what our rescue does is we go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their heritage and their pedigree," Gilbert said. Using DNA, she found each horse was registered and could be matched to their pedigrees. "So these horses were all Egyptian Arabians, and I could tell their pedigrees, and I found out where they came from. Many of them were bred from a farm in Ohio, and that Pamela purchased them from," she said.
With all the information she was able to gather on them, she was able to reunite one of the horses with their breeder. "One of the horses that was rescued went back to the original breeder, and they were happy to have her back. So that’s what we do," she added. "We go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their birth certificate." Gilbert said she started researching Beres and learned she was once well-known in the equine community. "With these types of horses, they assume that these horses are worth a lot of money. Like ‘Oh, they’re going to be making me tons of money’ and instead of letting them go to a good home, or just giving them away to someone that can feed them and take care of them, they want money," Gilbert said.
She said from talking with others in the equine community, she suspects that’s what Beres was doing. "She was willing to sell them to people. You know, oh, I want ,000 for that horse, or I want ,000 for that horse, and she’s totally blinded by what they look like, because she’s focusing on their pedigrees," she told WPBF. She said this specific breed of horses can be very empathetic and bonds with their owners. "These horses have such a strong bond with their people. It’s inherited in them. It’s ingrained. They make great family horses. They’re just, they love their people, and they’re very versatile. They bond with no other, and they have a beauty unlike any other," Gilbert said.
Gilbert said, unfortunately, rescues of all kinds are struggling to meet the demand. "Rescues are highly needed, and we’re tired. We’re tired. We’ve taken a lot of horses, and I’m just not speaking about horses, but all animal rescues, we’re all tired," she said. She said rescues need the community’s help to combat the growing problem of overbreeding. "Just stop the backyard breeding. Just do your research if you are breeding. These horses, they’re a lifetime commitment. They’re not just cats and dogs who live only maybe 15, 16, 20 years tops. You have horses that live 30 years, 30-plus years. It is a lifetime commitment and they cost a lot of money," she said. Gilbert encourages those struggling with costs and the work to reach out for help. "If you’ve taken a horse and you need help, reach out to a rescue and ask for help. A lot of rescues, not just our rescue, but many rescues, offer help with feed or offer help with hay for owners that are down on their luck or have financial problems in the short term. We do supply feed and hay. We also can take in a horse for medical needs," she added. All six horses have now found forever homes.
The smallest of the animals rescued was a pony who has since been named Freya. Claudia Campbell, who runs Delmar Farm, a nonprofit sanctuary, learned a pony was at PBCACC and couldn’t resist. "The minute we learned about her, we went over and picked her up and brought her home," Campbell said. She said when they first brought her home, they put her in an area with other ponies until Campbell realized that’s not what Freya wanted. "Eventually, we ended up putting her in this group behind me, and she was so much happier getting to be around the larger horses. So I just found it to be so sad that the other horses were taken away from her, and she was left all by herself. So she was really happy to come here," she said.
The farm sanctuary offers different programs and recently introduced a free program they’ve titled ‘Stable Moments’. The program is a one-on-one mentorship program for children in foster and adoptive homes. The sanctuary pairs one child with one mentor and one horse every week for one hour. "So we have a little girl that we paired Freya up with that was like the perfect match because their personality is really aligned. I told a little girl that this pony could probably use some help with her training and her mannerism, and it just it made such a difference in this little girl’s personality. So it worked out really great and Freya now is a little therapy pony," she told WPBF.
Campbell said they don’t see many horse abuse cases originating in Florida, but they do take in a wide variety of animals. "It’s a lot. We do have a great team of volunteers, but it’s constant. With water and feed and cleaning and everything, it’s a huge undertaking. The overhead is astronomical," she said. Being a non-profit, the sanctuary runs on donations, volunteers and sponsors. "We’re hoping to get more sponsors because that program [Stable Moments] we’re doing for free. So we hope to get more help with that so we can help more children with our animals," she said.
Similar to what Gilbert said, Campbell explained how owning a horse is a lifetime commitment and huge responsibility. "I try to express to everybody who comes here to the sanctuary, responsibility and the responsibility of ownership for life. If they can’t take care of the animal for life, find a place that maybe they can pay to keep their animal, like a retirement home for their horses. Horses are probably the most expensive animal to keep, especially in South Florida," she said. Campbell said seeing horses get dumped or neglected hits home for her and reminds her of her of two of her first horses named Del and Mar. She said her family adopted Mar when she was just nine years old after the horse was injured and they learned it might be disposed of. "She was going to go to the, back then we used to call it to the glue factory, so we ended up adopting her, and it changed my life. I couldn’t show or do anything like that, but it didn’t matter because I wanted to make sure that she was saved," she said. Campbell had Mar for 16 years through all different ups and downs in her life. "I never let that horse down. I kept her till I was 29 years old, and eventually she told us when she was ready to go. So when I hear all these excuses why people can’t or they won’t or they feel like it’s a better home or whatever, I get very frustrated," she added.
Since the sanctuary opened in 1998, they’ve started offering more and more programs to introduce the community to the animals in their care. "My core mission is to make sure that the animals that we have taken in that they have the best quality of care for the rest of their life and to make sure that we are making those important connections with people," Campbell said. Delmar Farm has more information on the programs they run, volunteer opportunities, and educational resources on their website.](https://i1.wp.com/kubrick.htvapps.com/htv-prod-media.s3.amazonaws.com/images/b1752f5f-31fb-44d1-adf1-b5f1bacf8806-681bed96798c8.jpeg?crop=0.989xw:1.00xh;0.00651xw,0&resize=1200:*&w=696&resize=696,0&ssl=1 "Title: Palm Beach County Woman Charged with Animal Cruelty After Horses Found Severely Malnourished
A Palm Beach County woman is facing animal cruelty charges after several of her horses were found extremely underweight, and one died. Pamela Howell Beres was booked in the Palm Beach County jail following a more than year-long investigation where officials rescued six horses and a pony from her care. Beres has been charged with seven counts of felony animal cruelty and seven counts of unlawful abandonment or confinement of animal.
The investigation began in February of 2024, when, according to the probable cause statement, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office was notified by Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control of several underweight horses at a property in rural West Palm Beach. An attending veterinarian at the property told officials he was called to the property for a severely emaciated horse lying in a stall. He met with the owner of the horse, Beres, and noted the horse was extremely underweight and had injuries to its head, likely from thrashing into the walls while trying to get up.
The veterinarian also reported the horse had pale gums and it was in some degree of shock. He said the overall prognosis was very poor and he alerted Beres that the horse would most likely not make it through the night. According to court records, the veterinarian suggested euthanasia, and Beres responded by yelling, “This horse is living and it will live because I say it will.\" Soon after, the veterinarian claims he witnessed Beres sit next to the horse and open its eyes. That’s when the man said he watched as she began licking the horse’s eyes with her tongue and mouth. The veterinarian said, \"She licked away the mucous and spit it out in the stall then continued.\" According to the probable cause statement, the horse was given steroids to make it comfortable.
Roughly a week later, when a complaint was filed, a PBCSO deputy arrived at the property to observe the horses from a distance. According to court records, the deputy said he saw several horses who were in various stages of emaciation. \"Two brown horses appeared emaciated, with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. Two white horses also were emaciated looking with their ribs, hip bones, and spine prominent. There was another darker brown horse which was clearly in poor condition, with its hips bones visible. My vantage point was approximately 100-200 feet away, and I could clearly see the bones protruding from the horses,\" the deputy reported. The deputy said it was clear the horses were not being fed or provided adequate water and therefore had become so emaciated that, without proper care, the horses on the property would have become sicker or possibly died.
The PBCSO obtained a search warrant for the property and showed up the next day. According to the probable cause statement, the search revealed six horses and one pony found on the property. Investigators said none of the horses had access to grain or fresh water and there were only remnants of hay in some of the paddocks. \"All of the horses were underweight in various degrees, ranging from emaciated to severely thin. The pony was moderately underweight,\" the deputy said. While they did find food in the barn, officials said if any food was provided to the horses, it was apparent that it was not provided in amounts sufficient to sustain the horses and pony. According to court records, officials found it was evident from the condition of the horses that the very basic care and nutritional needs were not being met, causing their physical condition to deteriorate. Soon after they arrived at the property, deputies learned that the horse seen by the vet on February 23, 2024, had died.
The six surviving horses and pony were seized and taken to Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control to be examined by a veterinarian. According to the probable cause statement, the veterinarian at PBCACC provided the care and treatment regimen for the horses and pony. The doctor noted, \"All of the horses on the day of seizure were severely malnourished. The pony was slightly thin. Some of the horses were on the verge of starvation with body scores of one or slightly above.\"
After being given proper nutrients and receiving both medical and dental care, investigators said the horses gained weight and showed improvement within three months of proper care.
Once the animals were deemed healthy and cleared to be released to a rescue facility, six of the horses were picked up by Grune Heidi Farm Rescue in Polk County. The president of the rescue, Erika Gilbert, said they specialize in Arabian and American Saddlebred horses. \"So these horses are all pedigree horses, they’re all registered, and what our rescue does is we go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their heritage and their pedigree,\" Gilbert said. Using DNA, she found each horse was registered and could be matched to their pedigrees. \"So these horses were all Egyptian Arabians, and I could tell their pedigrees, and I found out where they came from. Many of them were bred from a farm in Ohio, and that Pamela purchased them from,\" she said.
With all the information she was able to gather on them, she was able to reunite one of the horses with their breeder. \"One of the horses that was rescued went back to the original breeder, and they were happy to have her back. So that’s what we do,\" she added. \"We go the extra mile to reunite those horses with their birth certificate.\" Gilbert said she started researching Beres and learned she was once well-known in the equine community. \"With these types of horses, they assume that these horses are worth a lot of money. Like ‘Oh, they’re going to be making me tons of money’ and instead of letting them go to a good home, or just giving them away to someone that can feed them and take care of them, they want money,\" Gilbert said.
She said from talking with others in the equine community, she suspects that’s what Beres was doing. \"She was willing to sell them to people. You know, oh, I want ,000 for that horse, or I want ,000 for that horse, and she’s totally blinded by what they look like, because she’s focusing on their pedigrees,\" she told WPBF. She said this specific breed of horses can be very empathetic and bonds with their owners. \"These horses have such a strong bond with their people. It’s inherited in them. It’s ingrained. They make great family horses. They’re just, they love their people, and they’re very versatile. They bond with no other, and they have a beauty unlike any other,\" Gilbert said.
Gilbert said, unfortunately, rescues of all kinds are struggling to meet the demand. \"Rescues are highly needed, and we’re tired. We’re tired. We’ve taken a lot of horses, and I’m just not speaking about horses, but all animal rescues, we’re all tired,\" she said. She said rescues need the community’s help to combat the growing problem of overbreeding. \"Just stop the backyard breeding. Just do your research if you are breeding. These horses, they’re a lifetime commitment. They’re not just cats and dogs who live only maybe 15, 16, 20 years tops. You have horses that live 30 years, 30-plus years. It is a lifetime commitment and they cost a lot of money,\" she said. Gilbert encourages those struggling with costs and the work to reach out for help. \"If you’ve taken a horse and you need help, reach out to a rescue and ask for help. A lot of rescues, not just our rescue, but many rescues, offer help with feed or offer help with hay for owners that are down on their luck or have financial problems in the short term. We do supply feed and hay. We also can take in a horse for medical needs,\" she added. All six horses have now found forever homes.
The smallest of the animals rescued was a pony who has since been named Freya. Claudia Campbell, who runs Delmar Farm, a nonprofit sanctuary, learned a pony was at PBCACC and couldn’t resist. \"The minute we learned about her, we went over and picked her up and brought her home,\" Campbell said. She said when they first brought her home, they put her in an area with other ponies until Campbell realized that’s not what Freya wanted. \"Eventually, we ended up putting her in this group behind me, and she was so much happier getting to be around the larger horses. So I just found it to be so sad that the other horses were taken away from her, and she was left all by herself. So she was really happy to come here,\" she said.
The farm sanctuary offers different programs and recently introduced a free program they’ve titled ‘Stable Moments’. The program is a one-on-one mentorship program for children in foster and adoptive homes. The sanctuary pairs one child with one mentor and one horse every week for one hour. \"So we have a little girl that we paired Freya up with that was like the perfect match because their personality is really aligned. I told a little girl that this pony could probably use some help with her training and her mannerism, and it just it made such a difference in this little girl’s personality. So it worked out really great and Freya now is a little therapy pony,\" she told WPBF.
Campbell said they don’t see many horse abuse cases originating in Florida, but they do take in a wide variety of animals. \"It’s a lot. We do have a great team of volunteers, but it’s constant. With water and feed and cleaning and everything, it’s a huge undertaking. The overhead is astronomical,\" she said. Being a non-profit, the sanctuary runs on donations, volunteers and sponsors. \"We’re hoping to get more sponsors because that program [Stable Moments] we’re doing for free. So we hope to get more help with that so we can help more children with our animals,\" she said.
Similar to what Gilbert said, Campbell explained how owning a horse is a lifetime commitment and huge responsibility. \"I try to express to everybody who comes here to the sanctuary, responsibility and the responsibility of ownership for life. If they can’t take care of the animal for life, find a place that maybe they can pay to keep their animal, like a retirement home for their horses. Horses are probably the most expensive animal to keep, especially in South Florida,\" she said. Campbell said seeing horses get dumped or neglected hits home for her and reminds her of her of two of her first horses named Del and Mar. She said her family adopted Mar when she was just nine years old after the horse was injured and they learned it might be disposed of. \"She was going to go to the, back then we used to call it to the glue factory, so we ended up adopting her, and it changed my life. I couldn’t show or do anything like that, but it didn’t matter because I wanted to make sure that she was saved,\" she said. Campbell had Mar for 16 years through all different ups and downs in her life. \"I never let that horse down. I kept her till I was 29 years old, and eventually she told us when she was ready to go. So when I hear all these excuses why people can’t or they won’t or they feel like it’s a better home or whatever, I get very frustrated,\" she added.
Since the sanctuary opened in 1998, they’ve started offering more and more programs to introduce the community to the animals in their care. \"My core mission is to make sure that the animals that we have taken in that they have the best quality of care for the rest of their life and to make sure that we are making those important connections with people,\" Campbell said. Delmar Farm has more information on the programs they run, volunteer opportunities, and educational resources on their website.")
