06/23/2026
This is going to be a long post from the President of GAIT, Inc., Denise Parsons. I hope you take the time to read through and consider some of the challenges we are currently facing. This is NOT and will NOT BECOME a political statement. It WILL NOT become a bash sesssion about other rescues. Those comments will be deleted. GAIT, Inc.'s ability to move forward as a rescue is shifting and this message is to keep our supporters informed that we are here, we are working but we are having to make adjustments.
With the shift in "rescue" that's going on throughout the country via mass bailers and crowd funding, along with the struggles of the economy that have donors simply tapped out and costs through the roof, grass-roots rescues like GAIT, Inc. are struggling. Many long-time rescues have shut their doors with many more looming in that direction. When millions are being directed to groups with no accountability the available funds for rescues like ours are dwindling to a point of unsustainability.
We at GAIT, Inc. are shifting our focus proactively. We are going back to our roots and are going to focus more on supporting other rescues that take in gaited horses via education and colaboration (not financially), advocacy and education for owners that need help understanding the needs of their gaited horses. Providing public information about the gaited breed will also continue to be a priority.
We will need to cut back on direct rescue, doing so only when funds permit, the more funds available, the more we will do direct rescue, it's that simple. We will not be purchasing any horses from any sources at this time, auction, private owner or otherwise. When owners come to us for help, we will often need to request an upfront intake fee to cover costs for the initial care of those horses since donors seem to be unable to support those efforts. We appreciate each and every one of our donors and we know times are tough.
GAIT, Inc. survives on donor funds, we are not "rich" as a rescue, and we are responsible with those funds and keep in mind that our donors show trust in us to use funds appropriately. We are 100% volunteer based, all of our board members and those active in the rescue hold "real" jobs - as President, I actually have TWO full time jobs as a busy Realtor in MD, PA and VA, and also running Horse World Expo. I not draw a salary, nor do any of our board (I also don't run the rescue as a "job", if I did, I would expect to be paid a reasonable salary, but that has never been my goal). I personally support the rescue through monetary donations, sponsorships and donations of products among other things. I foster several of the "unadoptable" or rehab horses at my own small farm in Montgomery County at no cost to the rescue other than the rescue supplying their feed and medical and I actively work to keep our costs manageable.
Right now we struggle to raise funds for even basic care and training. In order to keep the doors open, we have lots of folks in the background doing things like accepting tack donations and then selling that tack. Our adoptions have dropped significantly, horses that are more challenging, those young, green or forward horses that need more experienced riders are simply overlooked, so they remain on our feed and board bill until we find the right person for them. The seniors and non-rideable horses, are also sitting on our board and feed bill.
We're a rescue, so we're not about to do what we've seen others out there do - cherry picking horses and only taking those that can bring money into the rescue. Is this always the smartest financial decision, maybe not, but we're a rescue! Do we go out and look for horses we know will never be adoptable, no we don't do that either, but sometimes we have horses that are no longer rideable despite our best efforts. We do not try and pull on the heart strings of donors by monetizing a horse's suffering - yes, that's done, we've all seen it, we try to think of the horse's best interest. Do those tactics make other rescues large amounts of money - yep, it sure does, but it's not what we're about. If compromising the principles this rescue was founded on is the only way to keep the doors open, the doors will close.
GAIT, Inc. has always been operated with the horse's well-being in mind. Quality care, quality feed, quality training and giving the horse the time it needs to find the right partner is what we do. We will not sacrifice that, even if it means fewer horses can be helped when our donors are no longer able to offer support. Just this year, several donors that have been sending life-saving checks at the end of the year, did not do so this year and it means we must adjust. But sacrificing quality care is not how we're going to adjust. So this means that means we will only be bringing new horses into the rescue when funds are available to care for new horses.
The door are open, we are actively working to help as many horses as we are able, but it's clear that for whatever each person's reason is for being unable to support the rescue, we must slow down, cut costs by not bringing new horses in and do what we can, while we can.
Pictured is GAIT alumni (Adopted and loved) senior TC, who attended Horse World Expo this year with a youth rider to participate in the gaited demos and Trail Champions Challenge placing 2nd overall in the Youth division. TC is in his mid-20s, blind in one eye and is the perfect representation of why we fight so hard for these horses.
