ARIZONA HEART & SOL: Karuna Horse Rescue saves horses across the country

TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - This week, KOLD News 13 is recognizing the founders of Karuna Horse Rescue. They save horses from potentially deadly situations all across the country.

Candice Kratzer and her husband never dreamt of having horses. In fact, they didn’t even know much about them. that all changed one day when Candice met a horse named Dolly. Dolly was all alone and showed signs of neglect.

“I saw her at someone’s property one day and I don’t even know, don’t understand why, but I stopped to talk to her and six months later I bought her and that was it,” Kratzer said.

With that first horse in 2015, Karuna Horse Rescue began. Over the years, they’ve rescued and made a huge difference in lives of around 50 horses. The horses they save come from cases of abuse, neglect, or worse.

“We started rescuing horses from kill pens from all over the country, different states. After that it’s just whenever. It’s not about where and how. It’ just when we can,” she explains.

Through the years they’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars caring for the horses. The biggest expense being the medical bills.

“Especially with the horses we rescue, they always have continuous medical issues. They are severely neglected or abused, so they come to us in really bad shape and it’s an ongoing process,” Kratzer said.

Kratzer has before and after pictures of each horse to show where they started and how healthy they are now. It all falls in line with “Karuna,” the Sanskrit word meaning “compassion in action.” She says it’s not enough just to be kind. It’s the actions behind the kindness that got these horses to where they are today.

Karuna Horse Rescue is always looking for more volunteers, but their main need is funding. They have a Christmas fundraising event coming up in the December and you can also donate on their website. If you want to lend a helping hand, you can find more information here.

If you have someone you think embodies the “Heart and Sol” of Tucson, you can nominate them here.

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