I first learned about a severely abused and wounded cart-horse named Palomo in October of 2020. He suffered a horrific attack at the hands of his cruel owner. Immediately, I offered to take him in and rehabilitate him, and with the help of Dr. Lester Tapia and his social media network, we were able to raise the funds for his medical bills and recovery.
We may never know the circumstances leading up to Palomo’s injuries, other than his owner attacked him with a machete in a fit of blind rage. He was left bleeding on the side of the road with deep gashes on his face and a punctured carotid, helpless and terrified. He was left to die.
Based on his physical condition, it looked as though Palomo had already suffered years of abuse prior to this attack. He had already suffered so much in his life, and I made it my mission to see him through his recovery and put him into the hands of caring and thoughtful owners.
Palomo was found soon after his attack, likely by someone who had witnessed the incident but was too afraid to intervene. The man knew Palomo needed help and began walking him to the nearest veterinarian for immediate medical attention. They walked for three miles and came across Aprovet. Thanks to Dr. Tapia and his veterinary team, Palomo’s life was saved. They were able to repair his punctured artery and clean and stitch up the gashes on his face.
Like I often do for cases such as Palomo’s, I posted his story on social media in the hopes that someone would help sponsor him through his recovery. Within minutes, an angel of a woman responded, asking what she could do to help. She made it clear that she was committed to seeing Palomo’s recovery to the end. I almost cried.
After a few days of close monitoring in Aprovet’s care, as well as addressing the issue of chronic poor health, he was stable enough to be moved to a temporary home where he would remain until an adoptive family could be found. I had grown attached to Palomo from afar, and I asked if we could take him into our care. I wasn’t quite sure what this meant at the time, but I was determined to make she he lived the rest of his life free from pain and suffering. With the help of our animal welfare partner, Fundación ADAN, we moved forward with placing Palomo in a temporary foster situation on a farm in Masatepe in early January 2021. It was a beautiful and quiet farm where he was able to roam across acres and acres of rolling hills with two other rescued horses of Fundación Adan.
On January 24, 2021, we had the pleasure of final meeting Palomo’s and I could hardly believe my eyes. His wounds had completely healed, he had gained weight and it was clear to see that his energy was coming back. He has quite a spirited personality, yet timid of human interaction which I cannot blame him for.
During our 10-week stay in Nicaragua this winter, I returned to check in on Palomo every 15 to 20 days, bringing fresh fruits and grain, a gift from his sponsor. I wanted to see his weight go up faster but something seemed to be off. I asked Aprovet to come to see what was going on. Due to the history of poor health, Palomo had lost a number of teeth, making sharp foods difficult to eat – likely the reason for his slow weight gain. That same day, Palomo’s feet were filed, hooves trimmed and he was given vaccinations, courtesy of Aprovet.
We returned once again to see Palomo on February 24, toting his favorite sweet treats, watermelons, and bananas. We heard he had become increasingly hard to bring back to the house at the end of the day, and that day he evaded our capture and ran off. In an attempt to catch him, we tried approaching him spooked him, and caused him to run off.
Palomo ran off and continued down a steep hill where lost his footing and tumbled into a ravine. I can’t even express the horror and thoughts that went through my mind, as we realized what may have just happened.
Saying it was a challenge to get him out of that ravine is an understatement… and the fact that he was unharmed was a miracle. The terrain was tricky, the ravine was deep. The thick brush surrounding the ravine needed to be cut in order to free Palomo, steps needed to be dug into the earth for him to get his footing and he needed to be pulled to his feet in order to get out. At that very moment, Elisa and I realized this place was maybe not a great fit, but we had no idea what to do with him. Palomo had not found his place with the other two horses on the property and was lonely. The fact that he was becoming increasingly hard to catch to bring back in each day, was a sign to us he needed more interactions with people as well.
On March 13, what would be my last visit to see Palomo before returning to the USA, events unraveled during our visit, that forced us to move him unexpectedly.
Our partner had been working hard on Palomo’s behalf and found him the most magical placement with his, now, forever family. I knew in my heart that he would be adopted soon, just not that day. After one phone call, Palomo’s new family welcomed him with open arms! I was immensely happy that I had the ability to witness the moment Palomo walked into his forever home. It’s a moment I will never forget; my eyes welled up, knowing how wonderful the rest of his life would be.
Palomo now lives on a beautiful farm in the countryside of El Crucero. It’s always breezy and cool, with green grass as far as his eyes can see. His new family is experienced with rescued and farm animals. Palomo now lives with two sheep, two cows, several dogs, and his new best friend, Ponchito, another rescued horse. The best part is that his family can already see positive changes in Palomo. Here, there are no expectations of him, he is learning to trust and become a true horse.
Palomo is a retired cart-horse, estimated to be about 12 years old. It’s difficult to imagine that many years of cruelty, neglect, and suffering. On October 28, 2020, he was rescued and we kept our promise to him that he would never fear human mistreatment again.