Martha the mini-horse was born with a big disadvantage.
She had a type of dwarfism that was often fatal for horses. Vets said she wouldn’t live for more than a year.
Just like all dwarf horses, Martha had lots of health issues that were expected to give her a bad quality of life.
They believed she would die soon because of those problems.
When Stacy from R&R Ranch which rescues miniature horses found out about the dwarf horse, she was determined to do her best to save her.
Her best was more than enough.
“We did not want to be selfish, but we also didn’t want to cut short a life that could be saved,” Rolfe told Daily Paws.
Stacy Rolfe found Martha on Craigslist.
Immediately, she decided to buy her.
Though her life expectancy was short, she felt she couldn’t fail the poor soul and decided to do anything in her power to give her as good a quality of life as she could.
Indeed, the dwarf horse was taken to the miniature horse sanctuary.
There, Stacy and the people who take care of the animals there saw Martha had a serious problem with her front legs.
“Her legs jutted out of her chest,” Rofle told Cuddle Buddies, “and then down, and splayed out at a very wide angle.”
It was painful for her to walk.
So they decided to have her hooves trimmed in a way that would help to slowly bring them in.
In the meantime, Stacy spent time bonding with Martha, who just loved to go sit right next to her or cuddle with her on the floor.
It was obvious that the two had a special connection from the very first moment.
The extra care paid off.
Indeed, after a while, they realized that her legs started to look better.
Soon, Martha could walk more comfortably and even started enjoying herself around the ranch.
“We have this little girl that was just like, I don’t care what’s wrong with me, I’m happy.” says Rolfe. “She didn’t know how long she had to live, and she was like, it’s OK, I can do this, I can play, I can be happy.”
Marth overcame her odds.
Indeed, Martha, against all odds, has celebrated her third birthday, and she’s ready for many more years of joy ahead of her.
She loves running and “dancing” around the stables and the ranch, she enjoys playing with the snow, and she definitely cherishes every moment she shares with her favorite person, Stacy.
At the same time, she is very sociable both with the other animals on the ranch and with people taking care of her.
Besides that, she also visits nursing homes, letting people hug and brush her, lifting up their spirits.
The sweet dwarf horse is also popular on social media since she’s often featured on the ranch’s Instagram page.
What an amazing, inspiring story.
Martha is an incredible horse, and we’re so glad she’s thriving in her forever home.
Learn more about sweet Martha in the video below!
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