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Adopted Horses Need Sponsors

Four Shire horses are now in residence at the Dune Alpin Farm in East Hampton.
Four Shire horses are now in residence at the Dune Alpin Farm in East Hampton.
Durell Godfrey
By
Virginia Breen

Mary Lou Kaler, an East Hampton horsewoman, has been known here as the owner of a Clydesdale called Bubba, a horse about town, who clomped in parades, took children on hayrides, and pulled lots of carriages, even one at the head of a Montauk St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Ms. Kaler, who came to East Hampton in 1987 to work in a barn, now cares for four adopted Shires at the former Dune Alpin Farm in East Hampton. According to Ms. Kaler, she got use of the pastures there through an agreement with the property’s owner and had kept several horses there, including three rescued Clydesdales, one of which was Bubba. She adopted the Shires from a convicted horse abuser about two and a half years ago, and her goal is to offer education about the Shire breed through free programs and an open barn.

To do so, she recently established a nonprofit organization and is now seeking financial help for the attorney’s and Internal Revenue Service fees through a go-fund-me account. She also is looking for sponsors and people willing to commit to the horses’ upkeep.

All in all, “the majority of people are so happy to be able to just hang out by the fence and be with the horses. I tend to leave people alone, let them have their private moments without telling them how. It’s satisfying to enjoy your own interpretation,” she said.

“My horses are art and it’s not because they are beautiful. It’s because they make you think, pause, reflect. The scene touches a New Yorker in a way that would not occur in Wisconsin. They are my public intervention.” She said her dedication to the horses had gotten her through long winters and seasons with very few resources.

“There are two things I am passionate about and they both involve freedom. One is pleasure horses. Riding freestyle wherever I feel like going, trails, beaches, parades. The other is substance abuse, not because I ever had a problem myself, but because it is painfully clear to me how damaging this is to our society.”

Donors who would like to contribute to Ms. Kaler’s nonprofit have been asked to go to the gofundme site.

 

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