Meet Our Horses

Bailey arrived at Special Equestrians in August of 2022 and has been such a joy to have at the barn. Bailey is a Welsh quarter horse cross and loving the semi-retired life. He has been participating in regular hippotherapy lessons as well as group sessions, such as Girl Scouts and Gilda's Club. Bailey is a social guy who has made fast friends with our horses! His best friends and turnout buddies are Captain and Kat, and you can usually find these handsome boys napping together in the sun. Please join us in giving Bailey an official welcome to the SE herd! We are so happy he's here.

Captain officially joined the Special Equestrians herd in the Winter of 2021. He is a Quarter Horse who was foaled in 2014 and stands at 16.3 hh, he is officially the second tallest horse in the herd. His calm disposition and eagerness to learn new things with our students makes him the perfect addition to our program. He can’t wait to keep meeting new riders and friends!

Desi is a 20-year-old black Percheron mare standing at 16 hands high, and she is the newest member of the SE herd. This gentle giant is as sweet as can be and is really enjoying her time at the barn and in lessons!

Desi comes to us from a lovely family in Ambler, and has became fast friends with the other horses in our herd, as well as our volunteers and staff – plus she takes great care of her riders. You’ll find her giving her all in silver saddles, independent lessons, and a few on lead lessons as well!

Fiona joined the SE herd in the Fall of 2021 and is just the sweetest girl. She is a Miniature horse who, like Glow, is trained to drive with a harness and cart. Fiona is set to begin visiting senior centers and local schools were her curious and sweet personality will surely shine. Fiona loves to be groomed and can't wait to make new friends at Special Equestrians.

Glow arrived at Special Equestrians in October 2021 and is already winning the hearts of all who meet her. Just 31 inches tall, this chestnut Miniature mare was a show driver for most of her career. Glow came to us with her cart, so she’ll continue to do light driving with some riders at SE. She’s also looking forward to making new friends at area schools and senior communities.

Fury is an off-track thoroughbred adopted by our Executive Director, Janice Witt in summer of 2021. Previously known as Junglist, he joined Turning for Home racehorse retirement after 5 starts and no wins. After a short rest, Fury started working with students and is happy to finally take things slow and steady. He loves being outside with his friends and visits to his stall!

Harley joined the SE herd in the Winter of 2021. She is a Welsh Cross mare and is an extremely cute and lovable pony standing at 13.2 hands! She can walk, trot, and canter beautifully and is very excited to start working with more students! Harley was a show jumper at a nearby barn before arriving to Special Equestrians. She is having a lot of fun with her new best friends, Glow and Fiona!

JZ is a Missouri Fox Trotter whose owner brought him to Special Equestrians because he’s got a sweet disposition and loves to be around people. JZ used to ride Western and go on lots of trail rides. He has a special gait called the fox trot and loves showing it off to his riders.

Winner of the 2023 T.I.P. Thoroughbred of the Year Award

Kat came to Special Equestrians after his career of racing ended. This stunning Thoroughbred is a very energetic and talented boy and really (really) loves to work. Kat is a fan favorite in both our therapeutic riding program as well as our Silver Saddles program, and when he’s not in a lesson you’ll find him paling around the pasture with his best friend, JZ. Fun fact: Kat is owned by our Program Manager, Dana!

Named after the small, rugged but ever so important component of a vehicle, Lugnut is small but mighty! He was born into the amish community and served some time in a lesson program for young kids. Born in 2012, this adorable miniature horse is broke to ride, drive and even has experience jumping cross country. He’s already made his place in the program providing riding lessons to our younger clients and visiting our off-site community partners. In his spare time he loves going for walks and getting kisses from his favorite kiddo, Annabelle.

This gentle giant is a 17.2 hh 2010 Warmblood, and he’s officially the tallest horse in the barn! Since making his recent debut in lessons, he has been a dream to work with and he can walk, trot, and canter beautifully. Mack came from a big jumper background, and can still safely jump cross rails and small fences! Mack will be in both independent and on-lead lessons, and he has already won over the hearts of so many riders and volunteers.

Opus is a (2005) Thoroughbred gelding recently free leased to our program! This extremely handsome chestnut stands a little over 16 hh! Opus has made fast friends with two of our other Thoroughbreds, and has captured the hearts of staff, students, and volunteers. He is very easy going and can be off lead in independent lessons as well as a trusty partner for led lessons. Plus, he loves participating in games and activities!

Rolex may be retired from lessons, but she still has plenty of spunk! She goes out to the pastures with all of her best friends each night. Even though Rolex no longer works with riders, she still loves being groomed and doing ground work. She is a small Quarter Horse/Appaloosa mix.

Salem is a 15.3 hh 2017 Friesian/Morgan cross owned by our Barn Manager, Laura Guarino since 2018. Salem was born half blind, with no use of her right eye, but that doesn't stop her from being the best possible horse she can be. Salem is currently being taught to pull a cart for our program, and she is doing wonderfully - we are so proud of her continued progress! Keep an eye out for her in lessons, ground work, and group programming!

Sonja is a Norwegian Fjord who was trained to be a therapy horse in Montana before coming to Special Equestrians. Her full name there was Heart Mountain Sonja, which is a good fit because she is so sweet and cuddly. Sonja loves working in all of our lessons, but she especially loves our Hippotherapy riders because she knows how much they appreciate her rhythmic gate.

Steven is a Belgian Warmblood who had a successful career as a show horse, but now he enjoys making students smile. Steven loves getting attention and causing mischief in the field with his friend Bear. His gentle manner and smooth gaits make him a perfect ride, and is great at teaching riders how to trot and canter on their own.

Vanilla is a (2005) Welsh Cross gelding shared with us by his loving family! This sweet little guy is around 12hh, and his name is a perfect fit for his Palomino coloring. Vanilla is participating mostly in occupational therapy lessons but can be ridden independently as well! He has participated in everything from children's jumpers, lesson programs, schooling shows, cow penning, western riding, gymkhana games, and many more – you name it, Vanilla has done it! We are so lucky and excited to have this small but mighty gentleman in our program!

The Pennsylvania National Horse Show Foundation 2021 Therapy Horse Of The Year

Z came to Special Equestrians after his best friend Steven joined the team. He is happy to be here with him teaching our riders to ride. This handsome Warmblood loves attention and getting scratches on his neck. Z was a competitive jumper before he came to Special Equestrians, but he’s truly found his calling here at Special Equestrians.