Helping to save America

Leiha was one of HHR's first rescue horses. She was retreived from an auction where she was not bid on at all. She was about 3 years old, thin and wormy. We quickly found she has a mouth condition known as sow mouth where the bottom jaw protrudes out further than the top. This causes difficulty eating because her teeth do not match up the way they should to grind up her food. She also has very crooked hind legs. The first summer she was with us, she coliced 3 times. The vet recommended a grazing muzzle be worn 4 out of 7 days of the week until she was able to control her food intake and digest what she was swallowing.
	After the first year, she had put on quite a bit of weight, but would still have problems digesting food if she ate too much hay. We put her on a complete feed and used the hay as a supplement for a couple of months.
She is now able to digest what she eats on an almost normal level. Her mouth condition has not improved, however her body has compensated for this. She is able to be out with the other ponies and will always have a place here at Heartland Horse Rescue. To be a Guardian Angel for Leiha click here.