The calls and e-mails keep coming, and they are increasingly desperate: "I've lost my job. I'm losing my home. I can't afford to keep my horse. . . . Can you take it?"
The answer is usually no, said Jill Starr, president of Lifesavers Wild Horse Rescue in Lancaster.
The ailing economy, soaring feed prices and the high cost of euthanizing old or sick animals are forcing many horse owners throughout Southern California to relinquish their pets, according to owners and caretakers.
Horse shelters are being flooded with requests for help, officials said. In some instances, owners have simply abandoned their animals, turned them loose or taken them to auction, where they risk being purchased and sent to Mexico or Canada for slaughter.
In Los Angeles County, 188 horses were either abandoned, abused or otherwise surrendered to authorities last year, up from 37 in 2006, officials said. In Riverside County, 246 horses were impounded, compared with 70 in 2006. And in San Bernardino County, 61 horses were taken in, up from 20 in 2006.
Some horse owners are turning to nonprofit rescue centers such as Lifesavers, which also runs a sanctuary in nearby Kern County. But such facilities are also struggling with increased expenses and fewer donations.
"The economy is hitting us hard," said Starr, who spends about $20,000 a month on hay to feed the 225 horses at both facilities, which now are at capacity. "I've had to say no to a lot of people. What good can we do if we take the horses but we can't feed them?"
Newhall resident Shannon Bonfanti said she is distressed over having to sell three of her six horses, including Isaac, a 21-year-old trakehner gelding; Honey, a 13-year-old palomino mare; and Performing Star, an 8-year-old thoroughbred mare.
But the cost of feeding the horses runs about $600 a month, Bonfanti said, adding that her freelance work as a pattern maker in the garment industry no longer guarantees daily assignments. So money is tight, and Bonfanti's husband has threatened her with divorce if she doesn't sell some of her equines.
"They're all my babies," Bonfanti said. "It's like selling one of your children."
Irvine resident Ginny Williams, who lost her job last month in the automobile industry, said she is seeking a home for her horse, Chip O One, a 16-year-old thor- oughbred. Williams also recently underwent knee surgery and expects to be laid up for a year.
