Babies are often beacons of hope and love. For one horse that had survived a truck crash, her baby was also a symbol of a brighter future for her.
She was part of a group of horses who were on their way to be slaughtered when everything changed in a moment.
In October 2020, 29 horses were supposed to be taken to slaughter. But then, the truck that was bringing them to their end got in a serious wreck.
Many of the horses perished from the crash. 10 died at the scene of the accident, 2 were immediately put down, and 3 more were put down later under vet or hospital care.
There were 14 survivors left.
Longmeadow Rescue Ranch took in the remaining horses for rehabilitation.
When the ranch heard about the crash, they knew they had to save the horses from slaughter. Longmeadow Rescue Ranch is a rehabilitation facility for animals that is affiliated with the Humane Society of Missouri.
They publicly committed to providing the horses a happy and safe place to live out their days.
One of the horses to survive the crash and get rescued by Longmeadow Ranch was a horse named Journey – and she had quite a surprise up her sleeve.
The group’s website reports:
“Journey managed to walk away from the accident with minimal, superficial injuries, but was underweight and had sustained abrasions in several areas on her right front leg that made it particularly painful to walk and trot…About a month after the accident, Journey underwent a routine pregnancy check via ultrasound. It was at this time that we learned Journey was pregnant, and the baby appeared to be healthy and viable in all prenatal evaluations.”
Longmeadow Rescue Ranch also made it clear that it is illegal to slaughter pregnant horses, but it is unclear if the people taking her to slaughter knew she was pregnant.
Regardless, her baby was a pleasant surprise.
Journey got a taste of the star treatment during her pregnancy – including a little baby shower and pregnancy photo shoot!
The people at Longmeadow really wanted to celebrate this pregnancy. After all that the horses had survived, it was especially exciting.
Longmeadow not only coordinated a pregnancy shoot for Journey, but they also set up a baby cam so people could see the baby when it was born.
There is now another calf at Longmeadow Rescue Ranch.
Born on August 16th, he has been named Cruiser. This name was decided via a poll on social media.
After about 8 months, Cruiser will be weaned from Journey. At that point, both mother and child will be available for adoption. A blog post on Longmeadow Rescue Ranch’s website describes them this way:
“Journey is a concerned and involved mom and her baby…is a happy and active boy.”
It’s pretty miraculous that Journey survived the crash and had a healthy pregnancy.
Events like a car crash can often jeopardize the health of a mother and fetus. But somehow, Journey survived and gave birth to a healthy calf.
For the employees at Longfellow Rescue Ranch, there is some symbolism here. The director of the ranch said:
“Journey has really been given a second chance at a happier life here at Longmeadow and I think this new baby really symbolizes that.”
Be sure to scroll down to see more about the sweet story of Journey and Cruiser!
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