Rehome a Hugs Horse/Pony

Height: 13.1hh

Breed: Mini Cob

Date of Birth: 2015

Arrived at Hugs: 2021

Suitable for: Possible teenager or small adult ridden pony with further education

Lovely Luna is super friendly and is good to catch, lead, handle, groom and to have her feet done. She arrived at Hugs with a group of mares as part of a welfare case. She has been well handled and is a really fun little pony. She is a lighter weight cob who could turn her hoof to most disciplines. She needs a confident handler to continue her education. She is bright and has a big personality and would suit a similar human.

Height: 11hh

Breed: Unknown but Moorland Pony type

Date of Birth: Estimated to be in his mid 20’s

Arrived at Hugs: 2020

Suitable for: Companion

Humbug is looking for a special home where he can be a companion and live out his retirement. He came into Hugs with a group of 12 ponies that had been surrendered by their owner as they could no longer look after them.

Height: 14.2hh

Breed: Cob x

Date of Birth: 2017

Arrived at Hugs: 2020

Likes/Dislikes: Boo loves being fussed and quiet one to one time in the stable.

Boo was surrendered to Hugs to save her as she was destined for the meat market. She has Horner’s syndrome, which means she head tilts, from a suspected broken vertebrae which may have been caused by an old injury left untreated. She loves being around people and learning new things and would excel at in-hand activities. She will require an experienced home to continue her education. Due to her condition, she will be available as a non-ridden pony only. With her Horners syndrome, she needs to wear UV protection (UV fly masks) or stabling on very sunny days as uveitis can be a common condition that occurs with Horners.

Height: 12.1hh

Breed: Mini cob

Date of Birth: Approximately 2015

Arrived at Hugs: 2019

Suitable for: Children’s or very small adult ridden pony in the future

Likes/Dislikes: Idris is quite a nervous chap but once he is confident in his handler, he is super to groom, pick up his feet, lead etc. He can be a bit difficult to catch because he is worried but this is improving daily.

Idris was rehomed in 2020 but sadly came back to Hugs during the pandemic. Whilst at his new home, he continued his training, longreining, getting used to tack and having someone sit on him. Since returning to Hugs, we have continued this work and he has been lightly ridden by a small adult. Idris is a super chap with a lot of potential but is very green and will need to continue his education. He will require an experienced home to build his confidence and continue desensitising him and gain his trust.

Height: 13hh currently but will make approximately 13.1hh

Breed: Cob x Welsh

Date of Birth: 2018

Arrived at Hugs: 2021

Suitable for: Potential ridden/driven in the future

Likes/Dislikes: Murphy is very interested in learning and loves being around people. He’s still learning to pick up his back feet but is getting better each time.

Murphy came into Hugs early in 2021 when his owner sadly passed away. He was still a stallion so he has been gelded and given some time to recover and mature. He is a quiet member of the herd, very sociable and friendly and is good to catch, lead, groom etc. He is a confident boy but hasn’t seen much of the world yet. He has started walking out in hand with an older pony and now longreining and is proving very sensible following them. Murphy is full of character and is going to be an amazing chap. He needs the perfect home to match!

Height: Approximately 12hh

Breed: Moorland

Date of Birth: 2015

Arrived at Hugs: 2020

Suitable for: Companion pony

Gloria is another of our ‘Dartmoor Dozen,’ a group of ponies that were surrendered to Hugs as their owner could no longer look after them. She was unhandled when she arrived so the team have been working with her to gain her trust. Over the last few months she has really come on but she will need a home that can continue her education and enjoys working with chestnut mares!

“Adopted from the wonderful Hugs Foundation our lovely cob mare, Bonnie, who has become the best friend of a little girl isolated from her school friends. with no siblings and also unable to attend her usual riding lessons. Bonnie has done us and Hugs proud.”

Bonnie’s adoptive owner

After almost a year and a half at Hugs Bumbles was adopted by a lovely home where he had a lot of adventures, going to the beach etc. He began a little training with them and he got used to wearing some tack. Unfortunately, Bumbles returned to us through a change in circumstances, which was no fault of his own. However, in June 2020 Bumbles found his forever home. We are so excited to watch his journey and see how he progresses, he has turned into the most handsome, fun pony to have around and will be hugely missed on the yard.

Prince came to us after unfortunate circumstances led him to being abandoned by his owner. He had a very cheeky character and was incredibly handsome. He is one of the very lucky ponies that found their forever families during the coronavirus pandemic. We love seeing his updates, he looks very happy in his new home, which is what Hugs is all about, finding ponies their happy ever after.  

Moomin arrived at Hugs in March 2020 with 3 other horses that were rescued from Surrey with the help of another charity and funding from the awesome Network for Animals. They had been abandoned and were in awful condition, covered in dirt with matted coats, lice and intestinal worms. He was an entire boy when he arrived and had a very complicated castration which resulted in a big operation. He featured on our Facebook Live project, A Daily Hug and had his own episode ‘Moo’s News on a Tues.’ He has been lucky to find an amazing forever home where he is very much enjoying life.

Jessie was rescued with a group of young ponies who were abandoned. He grew into a very sweet, quiet boy and even learnt a few tricks with Hannah. He had a few very cute spots that appeared on his hindquarters as he got older. Due to his confirmation, he was available as a companion only and in April 2021, he found an amazing home.

Ella arrived at Hugs totally wild with a few other moorland rescues. When she first arrived, Ella, or Cruella, when naughty, was incredibly nervous and quite defensive with it, kicking and panicking with human interactions. Over time she became one of the friendliest ponies at Hugs, often being the first over for nose tickles and entertaining. She was incredibly lucky to find a wonderful home with her friend DJ.

Margaret was one of the group that came in with Pickle. She was very lucky to be offered a foster home in winter 2020 and returned to Hugs in spring 2021 with a new confidence and lovely manners. She grew into an incredibly beautiful pony and found her family in June 2021. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for this stunning mare.

Jigsaw was born at Hugs. His mum was the lovely Frances who also found her forever home. Jigsaw was a very lucky boy and has been rehomed by one of our staff members, they just couldn’t resist his cuteness!

Hermione came to Hugs at just 3 months old and was sadly orphaned alongside Hay Jude and Fitzherbert. This beautiful pony had been with us for over a year and we are thrilled to see how well she’s settled into her new home.

The pair are getting on amazingly well. Merlin is just starting cantering, in an open field too! This is what makes our hard work worth it, rehabilitating these horses and ponies and finding them loving homes Bringing animals and people together for their mutual benefit and happiness and alleviating suffering is what Hugs is all about.💚

“What lucky people we are to have such wonderful horses and what a cracking team that you guys are at the wonderful hugs.”

Merlin and Hettie’s adoptive owner

Annie and her friends were in a poor and sorry state. Underneath her thick matted coats was just skin and bone. The little herd were constantly being monitored by Hugs staff, on four feeds each a day and had three paddocks of grass to graze to help build their strength up and start gaining weight. Annie was only a year old when she came to us and had an awful start to life. When she arrived at Hugs she didn’t know how to be caught, groomed, led… let alone someone touch her feet!

Along her rehabilitation journey she learnt all these things. She also had rugs on and even became so relaxed that we dressed her up as a Christmas present for our Christmas open day! She is just FAB and in July 2020 she found her forever home. Good luck Annie and her new family, we can’t wait to watch you grow up and see what your future brings 💚.

See her journey in the video above.

Biscuit was rescued just before the 2019 Chagford sales. Every year many ‘drifts’ occur across the moors. Here the moor ponies are rounded up by the farmers/owners and separated into their own stock. Biscuit was around 2 months old when she came to Hugs, far too young to be away from her mum. They all had huge worm burdens plus eye infections and severe rainscald! Unfortunately for Biscuit, her immune system was very run down and she was covered in infected scabs from rainscald so she was clipped and had medicated baths to treat in and help kill the bacteria. Luckily she fully recovered with no permanent damage. We did a lot of handling work with the rescues so they got used to having headcollars on (to make administration of medication easier!) plus we slowly got them used to being stroked and brushed. Biscuit found her home in August 2020. She is growing into a stunning pony with a very confident cheeky character. She’s always interested in what’s happening and we can’t wait to see what she gets up to with her new family.

Lottie Long Legs (now known as Duchess) was Mumma Mo’s huge foal. She was the spitting image of her mum and absolutely loved zooming around the field. She found an awesome home along with Primrose (Queenie). We get regular updates and love seeing the girls grow up.

Hugs rescued Paddy (right in photo) and Guinness (left) in November 2017. They were only a few months old and were so weak that they could barely stand! They found an amazing home together but sadly, due to no fault of their own, they ended up back at Hugs. Both boys were lucky enough to find their forever homes in 2021 and they are both enjoying life with the new families. 

Fitzherbert arrived at Hugs with Hermione and Hay Jude (now rehomed). They were orphan foals so needed a lot of extra care. He was wild on arrival and found it hard to trust humans so his training was a slow, steady progress. In September 2021, he found a lovely home to continue his education. 

Boris was with a little herd of ponies that were rescued from the 2019 Chagford sales. Chagford saw 258 ponies sold out of 300+ ponies entered. Unfortunately this meant that some were left unsold and therefore with an unsecured future. Boris was one of 4 lucky ponies that Hugs came back with, 3 colts and a young skinny filly. Although they are supposed to be a minimum of 6 months old when they come through the sales, many are much younger. All 4 had huge worm burdens. They were all terrified and extremely stressed from being separated from their mothers during the drifts and going through the busy sale. Hugs spent a lot of time handling the ponies so they got used to having headcollars on (to make administration of medication easier!). The team also got them used to being stroked and brushed and their confidence grew. Boris has now found a fab forever home with his friend, Scrumpy. We can’t wait to see their adventures together!

“Our new companion pony did not take long to settle in and she is now the boss. Hugs provided all the information about Ferns character and everything was spot on. She has been an absolute delight and we all love her very much already. She is about have some training and hopefully be ridden in the near future. We promise to give regular updates on her progress. ❤🐴”

Fern’s adoptive owner

Moana was one of five ponies rescued by Hugs after being abandoned fly grazing. They all arrived pregnant with terrible feet, lice, worms and in poor condition. She was well known for being absolutely huge during pregnancy and her foal, Lottie (now known as Duchess and also in a fab home), was absolutely beautiful and a complete mini me.

Primrose was the first foal to be born at Hugs during the coronavirus pandemic. She was very beautiful, just like her mum, Lady Rose. She is now known as Queenie and has found the most incredible home along with Lottie (Duchess).

Pickle was rescued just before the 2019 Chagford sales. Every year many ‘drifts’ occur across the moors. Here the moor ponies get rounded up by the farmers/owners and separated into their own stock. Each pony can then be checked, have any appropriate medical care etc before either being returned to the moors or sent to the auctions. Sadly many foals lose their mothers either in the rounding up on the moor or in the pens which means a very sudden and stressful weaning. Pickle was around 3 months old when he arrived at Hugs, far too young to be away from his mum. He came with a group of babies who all had HUGE WORM BURDENS plus eye infections and severe rainscald! After lots of love and care from the team at Hugs, Pickle was lucky to find his forever home in June 2021. He was a favourite with the team, due to his kind and sweet nature and they very much look forward to watching his future adventures.

Angelica was one of our ‘Dartmoor Dozen,’ a group of ponies that were surrendered to Hugs as their owner could no longer look after them. She was unhandled when she arrived so the team worked with her to gain her trust and increase her confidence. In June 2021 she went off to her forever home and the team couldn’t have been prouder of how far she had come. Good luck Jelly!

Taz was surrendered to Hugs in 2021 as his owner could no longer care for him. He was a very eye catching spotty and as such, had been very spoilt in his younger years, so needed to work on his manners and boundaries! He loved human attention and was always the first to come trotting over to you in the field. It didn’t take him long to find his home!

Branston was orphaned at the Dartmoor drifts and was too young to be away from his mother. He had a huge worm burden and rainscald and would likely have faced the bullet if he hadn’t come to Hugs. Branston is an incredibly sweet, handsome guy and has now found his forever home as a companion to another horse called Pickle!