I caught up with Martina Kenny recently, from My Lovely Horse Animal Rescue. As the charity approaches its 10 Year Anniversary, we wanted to discover a little more of the story behind its huge success.
How It Began.
It all began in 2011 when Martina, her sister Deborah and a good Friend the artist Cathy Davey embarked on a mission. Hailing from Dublin, the 3 friends were only too aware of the horse problem in Dublin City and many of the surrounding suburbs.
Martina said, “It all started with just witnessing 2 horses suffering from great neglect, and our initial aim was just to help those two, as we believed, if we didn’t, who would? So we made a few calls and we had a friend in Kinnegad, who had a couple of acres and he took those first few horses. Then, it just sort of grew legs, and people started to contact us to tell us of horses in need, and we just kept helping.”
However, Martina’s friend in Kinnegad only had 3 acres and when they had rescued 5 horses in total he could no longer take any more, so the search was on for more accommodation. Martina remembered, “We found a livery yard, run by a lovely man and we started to put horses with him. It was costing us a fortune as all of our savings and money were being put into caring for these forgotten horses. We were not from a horsey background, and we had a lot of learning to do along the way, but we believed that all animals deserve “A life worth living.” This is what kept us going.”
The Story Behind The Name.
As word began to spread of the three friends and their work, numerous calls with horses in need came flooding in, so the friends got together and said, “Let’s form a Charity.” Martina recalls, “Cathy Davey’s partner Neil Hannon from Divine Comedy, wrote and sang the song “My Lovely Horse” for the comedy Father Ted, so we gained his permission to use the name. We also got the blessing from Graham Linehan, the author of Father Ted to call the Charity, My Lovely Horse Rescue. Once we got the go ahead we had our branding created and the search was on for premises.”
From Horse Charity to Animal Charity
The Charity found a farm which was rented to them by a lovely woman, who has since become a volunteer. Once they had a base the Charity just exploded, initially just a horse rescue, it quickly became an animal rescue. Martina remembers the day it changed, “We were contacted by the pound to say that they had 15 horses and a pig! We of course took the lot! Normally horses don’t like pigs, but this pig who became affectionately known as Wilbur, loved being with his horsey friends, who seemed to enjoy his company. Wilbur became one of those special souls that will always have a place in our hearts. From then on we have rescued Pigs; we love pigs, Goats, Cats, Dogs, any animal in need really. We also had to change our name to reflect this and we are now known as My Lovely Horse Animal Rescue.”
Special Characters They Met Along The Way.
The Charity has literally helped thousands of animals over the years, and there have been so many special souls, that it is hard to name them all, however, Martina shared, “There have been so many amazing stories over the years, obviously Wilbur our first pig will always be in our hearts; then there was Sklyer, a mare that was blind in one eye who got a great home and is living her best life; also little Jason a pony that had lost one eye and went blind in the other, and he became great friends with another pony Elliott, who he would follow everywhere. Then there was Gramps a very special Donkey who was like the wise one who would check up on all the others. More recently we had Stefan a tiny falabella that we rescued from Kilkenny and Sydney who was found in a river bed at just a few hours old, who took round the clock care, and now is looking fantastic. To see all these animals transform with correct care and kindness is just so rewarding.”
The Biggest Challenge Over The Years.
The biggest challenge for the Charity over the years has been fundraising, to ensure that they have enough funds to meet all the animals’ needs, and keep the show on the road. Martina Shared, “During the Covid Lockdown, we never closed our doors. We were careful and only worked with volunteers in small groups of the same people that covered certain areas. Our feeling was that Animals would need our help now, more than ever. In our care now we have 63 Pigs, over 200 horses and various Cats and Dogs and Goats, over 450 animals in all. We have wonderful volunteers; however, we do need to have people on payroll as many animals are on medications, not to mention feeding and day to day veterinary care etc, which need to be handled by a person in charge that is knowledgeable. We also opened a new branch in Co. Cork and Plan to open another one, possibly in Limerick, Tipperary or Kilkenny, so fundraising is an important part of keeping our Charity going.”
Looking To The Future
I asked Martina what are her hopes for the future of the Charity and Animal Welfare throughout Ireland, here is what she had to say, “MLHR is always for the animals, so as I previously mentioned, we plan to open another branch in the coming year so that we can help even more. As for Animal Welfare issues in Ireland, I believe, that all the societies need to work together in order to get to the bottom of the problem; for example we aim to work closely with the Gardai, to help them to better understand the legislation enabling them to enforce it more easily. By Local Councils, Gardai and Animal Charities working together, I believe real change can be made for Animal Welfare within Ireland.”
My Lovely Horse Rescue started with just 3 Friends who through this wonderful Charity have literally helped Thousands of Animals, their single mission;
“That Every Animal Deserves, A Life Worth Living.”
Martina Kenny – Co Founder of MLHR Animal Charity
If you believe that you could help MLHR in any way, either through Volunteering, Adopting or Donating, especially to their Winter Appeal as Winter is the hardest time of year for this rescue, please contact them via the MLHR Animal Rescue Website Here>>>>
This Interview was originally published in the January 2021 Issue of Irish Sport Horse Magazine, All Pictures were provided Courtesy of MLHR Animal Rescue.