Cooper came to SAFE at a time when every human in his life had failed him. As we uncovered his past, we learned how unfortunate his early interactions with people had been. Likely around two years old, he was wild-caught off the Yakima Reservation and pushed into the auction pipeline. A family with no horse experience purchased him at a local auction, but they were unable to handle him. From his reactions with us, it’s clear they tried, failed, and unintentionally taught him that he can run or fight his way out of getting caught.
We understand the challenges of gentling horses. Of all the skills in horsemanship, it may be the most demanding and takes a tremendous amount of experience. It lays the foundation for a horse’s entire future with humans. Even in the toughest cases, including Autumn’s, we were able to make first contact on day one and get a halter on. It wasn’t easy, and some needed repeated introductions, but within a day or two, we could approach them freely. Though they weren’t truly gentle yet—that takes months—the first touch was achieved.
Cooper, however, has told us every day for 17 weeks that he does not want to be touched. With years of dedicated effort, we might be able to halter him. But even then, we question whether he would ever reliably accept vet or farrier care. To complicate things further, Cooper is not completely sound, and we’ve witnessed recurring lameness that we are unable to diagnose or treat. And if a serious illness or injury were to happen to him, helping him would be exceedingly difficult since he can’t be caught or held.
Cooper is a horse that may never be safe around humans. This puts us in one of the most difficult positions in rescue. As a small urban organization, our mission is clear: to rescue, rehabilitate, and retrain horses facing neglect or abuse and provide them with the best opportunity for a permanent home and a lifetime of safety. We love every horse that comes through our doors and give them as much time as they need to heal and prepare for a new life. But with a capacity of only 30 horses, every adoption makes space for another life in need.
Our role is not just to house and feed the horses who come under our care but to ensure they are safe to handle. We work hard to match companion and riding horses with the right families, giving them the best chance at a successful future. And while SAFE provides a safe place for troubled horses, their success outside our environment is never guaranteed. Gentling Cooper will take years, and the chances of finding an adopter with the skill and patience to take him on are slim. Most adopters seek safe, well-mannered horses. Placing even moderately challenging horses is difficult—Cooper’s prospects are far more uncertain. Even among experienced homes, few are equipped to take on a horse with such deep-seated fear.
Over the past four months, Cooper has made some small steps forward. He now allows us to enter his paddock twice a day for cleaning and doesn’t react as much when we feed him over the fence. As long as he can keep his distance, he tolerates our presence. However, any added pressure or attempt at confinement quickly escalates his fear response. He has not shown aggression, but we have been very careful not to put him in a position where he feels forced to fight. For safety reasons, only staff and experienced volunteers work around him, and we take every precaution to limit risk.
SAFE is simply not equipped to provide lifelong sanctuary for a wild horse like him. While we do everything we can to meet his needs, his life here is isolated and, frankly, sad. Cooper needs a different path.
Our commitment remains the same: to do the best we can for each of our horses, while placing them into permanent homes to make room for other horses who need our help. We are actively seeking a sanctuary that can provide Cooper—a wild, untouched stallion—the opportunity to live safely without human interaction. If needed, we have the means to sedate and geld him before transport to facilitate his transition. But our efforts thus far to find a sanctuary have not been successful. The ones we’ve worked with in the past are regretfully too full to accept a new horse. We are trying not to get discouraged, but it is difficult.
The reality is that not all wild-caught, troubled horses can find sanctuary. In some cases, euthanasia is the most humane option. It is never the ending we hope for, but it can be an act of kindness in a world that does not always have a safe place for a deeply troubled horse like Cooper.
