Desert Spark, or “Desi” is a 6 year old 16h chestnut Thoroughbred gelding by Desert Rival out of Strip N Get, born in Arizona. He raced and trained at Turf Paradise up until 2005, no winnings on record.
He was rescued on September 11, 2006 at a feedlot in Colorado. He weighed 875 pounds, and was covered with bite marks and scratches from other horses. With the help of Shiloh Acres and Colorado TB Rescue, SAFE was able to purchase Desi from the feedlot, and place him in a foster home in Larkspur, CO. Desi fought his way back not only from starvation but from strangles, cellulitis, abcesses, and insomnia. His story is best told with photos, for his amazing transformation must be seen to be believed.
9/8/06 Desert Spark at the feedlot
below, Desi is the horse on the right
9/21/06 Safe now, but painfully thin…
10/4/06 Desi’s weight is already improving…
10/25/06 Desi reaches 1000 pounds!
12/24/06 Looking even better now…
11/29/06 Winter in Colorado
1/12/07 Baby, it’s cold outside!
3/25/07 After 6 months of good care, Desi has finally reached a decent weight. Incredibly he also gains 2″ of height, going from 16 hh at his rescue, to 16.2hh. Desi’s foster mom decides to officially adopt him and give him a forever home.
A happy ending for our Desi, shown here displaying one of his talents: making people laugh!
