For Eley E. and his wife, Sherrie, horses are family.

Just beyond their back porch, about an hour northwest of Oklahoma City, three horses, Sky, 29, Roany, 30, and Elvis,13, spend their days in large pastures on nine acres.

Eley, a retired feed and tire store manager, and Sherrie, a nurse, recently adopted King, a 3-year-old blue roan from the ASPCA’s Equine Adoption and Transition Center (ETAC) in El Reno, Oklahoma. They found King on the myrighthorse.org website.

“Eley fell in love with King immediately when he visited us last August,” says Libby Hanon, ETAC’s manager of equine adoption and marketing. “He described himself as a lifelong lover of horses.”

As preparations were made for King to go home, a timid roan horse in the adjoining stall caught Eley’s eye. He was Chief, a bay-roan registered with Pinto Horse Association.

“There’s a mysterious connection between horses and humans that’s hard to explain,” says Libby. “That’s what happened when Eley saw Chief.”

A week after adopting King, Eley returned with Sherrie so she could meet Chief. They adopted him that day, bringing their number of horses to five.

A Difficult Past

Chief, a youthful 9-year-old, was abandoned in 2022 on a property in eastern Oklahoma and was suspected of having been abused.

“The police chief in that town knew who the owner was and gave him the option of potentially facing charges of cruelty and abandonment or surrendering Chief,” says Thomas Persechino, senior director of equine welfare at ETAC. “He chose to surrender him.”

Chief was named for the police chief who contacted ETAC and hoped he might be suitable for mounted patrol work.

“Unfortunately, Chief was too fearful and uncertain about human interaction,” Tom explains. “We didn’t think he’d be appropriate for the rigors of that job.”

Chief was adopted, but when his new owners divorced, he returned to ETAC, where he was diagnosed and treated for several health concerns.

An equine endoscopy, also known as a scope, revealed several ulcers and Chief was diagnosed with a neurological disease called equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM), which affects the central nervous system and is caused by a parasite spread in the feces of infected opossums. Horses can become infected by eating contaminated hay, feed or water.

Chief’s treatment consisted a course of antibiotics and antiprotozoal and vitamin E. He was also treated for fly-bite allergies.

Still wary of humans, he remained reactive and sensitive to sound.

“Anything remotely loud would startle him,” says Libby.

Eley with Chief on adoption day.

On September 6, Eley gently nudged Chief onto a trailer, and he and Sherrie promised to give him a good home with meticulous care and love.

“We could tell he’d had a tough life,” Eley says.

‘Life Here Is Not Too Bad’

Once home, Eley and Sherrie gradually introduced Chief to Sky, Roany and Elvis.

“Our pastures are divided into three sections by fencing,” says Eley. “We put Chief in the front pasture in a round pen, along with King, since they were stall buddies before. They’re all buddies now.”

Chief (left) and King.

Eley and Sherrie have three donkeys named Peaches, Ginny and Demon, and their property is also home to another paint horse, Remy, whom they board for their son. They also have two Highland cows, Wilma and Karen, and a calf, Charlie, belonging to their daughter who lives in an adjacent home.

Two of Chief’s pasture mates, Wilma and Karen.

Both King and Chief have gained weight since their adoptions. Eley even hand-feeds Chief, which he loves.

According to Eley, Chief’s best friend is his 14-year-old grandson, Trey. Chief has adjusted well and enjoys the companionship of Sky and Roany, who are three times his age, and Elvis. While Chief had been previously trained under saddle, Eley and Sherrie no longer ride but have no regrets about adding Chief to their family.

“We don’t ever want to be without horses,” Eley says. “Chief’s a good boy and just needed a home. And he’s decided life here is not too bad.”

Feeling inspired and ready to adopt a horse of your own? Visit myrighthorse.org to browse hundreds of adoptable horses nationwide by breed, age or discipline.