We are thrilled to announce that River has been adopted! If you’ve been following his story, you know that he went into training with Andrea Lucianna at Half Trak Farm, and after a bit of a slow start while this young horse gained his confidence, he graduated from under saddle training with honors. River won a lot of hearts at Half Trak Farm, with his flashy looks and his sweet, sensible demeanor, and even before he finished his 90 days of training, there were several people who’d fallen in love with him and wanted to take him home. But it was Jenny Lucianna, Andrea’s mother and owner of Half Trak Farm, who contacted us and asked if we’d consider leaving River at her barn a little while longer so she and Andrea could continue to work with him and see how he developed with a little more training. Jenny has been on the hunt for a sweet, easy, fun, “family horse” that grandkids and guests can ride for a long time, and she is also an active competitor in the Dressage ring. A few days ago we got the word that Jenny has decided to officially adopt him and offer him a forever home at her beautiful farm in Arlington.

Jenny posted his photo online with the caption “Its official! River is now a Half-Trak horse. Let the road to Grand Prix begin!” She says that River is a fun energetic guy with a great work ethic. Sounds like the two of them have big plans together, which is thrilling considering where River came from and what he went through to get to this point in life!

There are many people who helped River get to where he is but first and foremost we’d like to thank Janelle Braun who was the person who initially recognized River’s plight and took steps to save him, Bridgit and Jewel. Janelle had dreams of adopting River for herself, but came to the conclusion that she was not in the right place to adopt a young, green horse . This was a difficult decision for her to make, but we admire her tremendously for making a careful, thoughtful choice that was in River’s best interest, even if it broke her heart. Janelle is now the proud owner of a gentle giant named Prince who she can ride to her heart’s content! We’d also like to thank River’s special sponsor, Kristine Larson, who helped him along the way financially, and who is still his number one fan.

River’s training was supported by a grant awarded to SAFE by the ASCPA Equine Fund. The grant paid for 60 of River’s 90 days in full-time training with Andrea Lucianna at Half Trak Farm. It is important to note that this grant made it possible for us to extend River’s training to allow him the extra time he needed to gain confidence under saddle. Because of this extra time he was given, the future is wide open for this wonderful horse. We are very grateful to the ASPCA Equine Fund for their support of the SAFE Training Program!

Best of luck to River and Jenny, and we hope to see lots of pictures & videos of this pair together!!