It was a horrific accident that claimed the lives of over a dozen horses—but the survivors are getting a second chance thanks to one animal rescue.
On October 18, a tractor-trailer transporting 29 horses crashed on Interstate 44 in Franklin County, Missouri, according to KSDK.
The trailer flipped to its side, causing critical injuries to the horses. The Missouri Emergency Response Service — Large Animal Rescue (MERS) arrived on the scene to save as many as they could.
“Some of the horses were standing some were down,” they wrote on Facebook. “Each horse had to have a halter put on and was either lead out of the trailer or pulled out of the trailer with our straps using a backwards or forward assist.”
Sadly, of the 29 horses, 14 were killed in the crash or had to be euthanized. But MERS worked through the night, in the rainy weather, to rescue the remaining horses, who were “confused, injured and scared” after the crash.
It was later discovered that these poor horses were being transported because they were on their way to be slaughtered.
These surviving horses are now being treated, hopefully giving them a second chance after the traumatic crash.
According to KSDK, 11 of the surviving horses are now being cared for at the Humane Society’s Longmeadow Rescue Ranch. Another four were brought to Homestead Veterinary Hospital, and will be transferred to the ranch when they are healed enough.
The survivors are suffering from leg abrasions and lacerations, head and eye trauma and back injuries, as well as shock.
But they’re now in good hands, being cared for and on the road to recovery. Many people have donated to the rescue to fund the horses’ care.
“Our main focus right now has been making sure they get the medical care they need,” a worker at Longmeadow Rescue Ranch said in a video. “They are getting pain medication, wound treatment, and they are getting a safe place to rest right now.”
These poor horses… we hope the survivors recover quickly and get the second chance at life they deserve.
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