On February 17, a beautiful 18-year-old sorrel mare came to live at Sky Ranch Sanctuary. Her registered name is Richochex Seqouia and her nickname is Ricci.

Ricci’s owner was being forced to leave her property and though she had found solutions for re-homing the other horses on the ranch, she didn’t know what to do about Ricci.

Ricci was trained in barrel racing, a highly competitive sport where horses and riders enter the arena at full speed, navigating a cloverleaf pattern around three barrels in the fastest time possible. Due to her age and injury to one of her legs, the owner did not want Ricci to be used in that sport anymore and thought Ricci a little too “hot” to be solid as a trail horse. Ricci needed a safe place to retire and the owner asked if we could take her.

Ricci has been here almost a month and is happily grazing in the pasture with the other horses. We are happy to provide Ricci with a caring environment to live out her years and happy to give her former owner the peace of mind she needed in knowing Ricci has a good home.