This Winter season has marked two special milestones for our off-the-track Thoroughbred Permanent Wave – or Waverly as we affectionately call her. This leggy racehorse celebrated her 11th birthday on February 28th. She was born on a Kentucky farm to Awesome Again and India Halo — racehorse royalty. Destined for a career in speed, she raced the Northeast tracks, placing first at Aqueduct in February 2012. She was retired after earning over $39,000 in winnings. For the next few years, she served as a broodmare, birthing five foals in five years.
And then her luck changed. Waverly was retired to a Hudson Valley farm that did not make horse care a priority, nor did they have enough food for all the equines on their property. The severe neglect of the horses finally came to the attention of authorities in early 2019 and the sheriff and a local rescue organization stepped in to re-home eight of the horses. That’s when we were contacted and immediately agreed to provide a forever home to Permanent Wave at the sanctuary. She arrived with much fanfare on St. Patrick’s Day of 2019, thin, muddy, and covered in rain rot. We began the process of rehabilitation, having her cleaned, vetted, treated for the rain rot, teeth floated, hooves trimmed, and placed on a diet to increase her weight. The results were dramatic as she recovered and blossomed here in her new home.
Waverly spends her days with Sammir and April, flirting with Mister Ed over the paddock fence, much to Sammir’s chagrin. There’s no shortage of drama with this gal, who is known to rear and buck when it’s time to return to her stall for meals. We frequently catch a glimpse of the speed of which she’s capable when we call the horses into the barn for dinner every evening. Sammir and April trot dutifully over to their stalls, but Waverly waits at the far end of the paddock. Once everyone else is in the barn, it’s game on as she launches from a standstill to full gallop in two seconds, tail rippling and hooves kicking up showers of dirt as she rockets across the terrain. It’s not until she’s inches from the barn door that Waverly gracefully comes to an abrupt halt and calmly walks into her stall. It’s breathtaking to watch!
Happy Birthday and Happy Adoptaversary Waverly!
