Horses are our friends and have assisted us throughout our history. But not all humans realize this, though most horses do. I'm serious, go ask a healthy horse and they'll probably tell you that they love their humans and would do anything for them.

Some humans are just plain creepy, they send horses to kill pens and slaughter them in cold blood. I have witnessed the horrors of kill pens, and I have cared for it's rescued victims. If you want a friend for life who would do anything for you, go buy a horse from a kill pen and give it a better life, a second chance. I work at an animal rehab center called Heartland. I've had the pleasure to work with many kill pen horses, along with many other animals that range from domestic to wild creatures.

The most memorable of these victims was Chance. Yes, I say was. Sadly, Chance is no longer with us but I've had the joy of helping care for him for almost two years. Chance was a gorgeous white crossbreed gelding, as sweet as could be. We weren't supposed to be looking at horses at the swap meet, but I couldn't help it. I felt drawn towards the kill pen horses for some unknown reason. My eyes fell upon a white emaciated horse and I knew right then that I had to take him home.

Chance, as we named him, was in bad condition. You could see every bone in his body and could count his ribs and vertebrae. He looked like a skeleton with some skin and fur thrown on as an afterthought. He was nervous of us, which was perfectly understandable, but trusted us all the same. He needed his hooves trimmed badly and need to be shod desperately, at least as soon as his hooves were healthy enough to do so. He had bruises and small cuts speckled all over his body and had a sinus infection. We called the vet out to look at him and treat him.

It took several months for Chance to return to health. Besides a few scars, the only thing that told you that he had a dark past was that he spooked easily in dark places and at night. He flinched if you came up from behind him to pet him without him seeing or hearing you. I accidentally spooked him once, he was in his box stall and I was bringing him his food and checking his water. I touched him gently and he freaked out, turning to face me and backing into a corner with the whites of his eyes showing. I felt bad for scaring him, it was sunset and I could see fine although the barn was a little dark I didn't feel the need to turn on a light. I poured the grain and water into their respective

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