Making a difference one hoof at a time
by Courtney Ortega,
co-feature editor
With tiny hearts shaved into their fur coats, the miniature
horses of the Hearts and Hooves of Lubbock charity sure are
a sight to be seen.
Despite their miniature statures, Sparkles, Oreo, Pepper
Jack, Jolly, and Honor, the five horses of Hearts and
Hooves, have brought an enormous contribution to the lives
of many special-needs patients of Lubbock and the
surrounding area.
Located in the 5000 block of 24th Street, Hearts
and Hooves of Lubbock is a nonprofit organization run by Kim
Sparks and her sister-in-law, who personally own the horses.
The purpose of the organization is to cater to those seeking
therapeutic healing, both physical and emotional, by
bringing the miniature horses indoors to them. The
horses have traveled to nursing homes and children’s
hospitals, as well as to grief groups and children’s homes.
Helping individuals with special needs, both young and old,
each horse is outfitted with two pairs of specially-fitted
tennis shoes to use when wandering the halls of hospitals
and other facilities.
“We literally just walk right in and visit people,” says
Sparks. “We can go into people’s rooms if they do not feel
like coming out, or we can take them right into a classroom.
They will go just about anywhere.”
While the Hearts and Hooves of Lubbock is an affiliate of
the Hearts and Hooves organization of Austin, it was the
Austin affiliation initially that led to an interest in the
charity that later developed into a Lubbock chapter. In June
of 2004, Sparks’ sister-in-law saw a live segment on the
“Today Show” featuring the Heart and Hooves charity and the
organization’s interest in creating future
affiliate “Saddlelite” chapters
throughout the United States and overseas.
“They were opening up their facility for people to come and
get certified to run an affiliate,” Sparks recalls. “She
called me and was like, ‘Kim we have to do this.’”
Sparks was initially not sold on the idea, knowing nothing
about horses or their maintenance. She remembers thinking to
herself, “I have a cat; that’s a pretty low-maintenance
animal. It certainly doesn’t prepare you for raising
horses.”
Both Sparks and her sister-in-law eventually took a nine-day
trip down to the Hearts and Hooves of Austin, where they
instantly fell in love with two of the miniature horses
currently there, Jolly and Honor. With the horses placed
safely in the back of her Pathfinder, Sparks returned home
and began building what has become the Hearts and Hooves of
Lubbock. Yet early on, many had their reservations about the
charity and its unique approach to helping those with
special needs. “We started calling people, and some were
worried about the horses pooping,” Sparks says. “Then we
called the nursing homes, and they were like, ‘We’ve seen
much worse come out of the human body, so come right on
in.’”
It eventually caught on, and four years later the Hearts and
Hooves of Lubbock was growing exceptionally strong. That is,
until one unforeseen morning that almost brought an end to
everything that Sparks and her family had spent the last
fours years working for.
The future, it seems, for not only the horses themselves,
but for Hearts and Hooves as well, was radically put into
question, when on Jan. 31,
they became the victims of a gruesome attack in their own
stables. Two pit bull terriers attacked, leaving one horse,
5-year-old Oreo, dead, and the other four sustaining bites
to their legs, bodies, and faces.
Honor, the 4-year-old, was immediately transported to the
Frenship Veterinary Hospital in Wolfforth, while Sparkles,
Pepper Jack, and Jolly, were taken to the Lamb County
Veterinary Hospital in Littlefield for further treatment.
Since the attack, the owners of the pit bulls have
officially signed them over to Lubbock Animal Services.
According to Kevin Overstreet, director of Lubbock Animal
Services, while the owners won’t serve time, they are
currently being charged with a Class C misdemeanor, which is
accompanied by a fine not exceeding $500.
With the recent pit bull attacks, help is essential in
getting the charity back on its feet, or hooves, that is.
Currently, the charity is receiving donations to help fund
the highly-expensive veterinary treatment that the horses
are currently receiving.
However, money is not the only form of help that one can
give to the charity. They gladly welcome volunteers to come
help out at their facility with basic chores, such as
feeding and grooming, as well as those who would like to
help transport the horses to the facilities where they offer
their services.
Today, Sparks, her family, and the horses of Hearts and
Hooves look to continue to achieve their mission of helping
others by spreading happiness and love, despite the setback
of recent events. They hope to continue to expand the number
of new facilities that they visit, as well as bring the
horses to as many people as possible who are not able to leave
their environment.
As the days go by and the charity continues to grow, Sparks
hopes to continue to keep alive the memory of the one fallen
family member of the Hearts and Hooves charity.
“Since everything has happened, we would really like for
there to be
an Oreo fund,” Sparks says. “This happens more frequently
than we realize to other people, and they eventually have to
put the horses down when they cannot pay the veterinarian
bill. We would really like to help them before they have to
make that choice.”
With the determination and drive of the family that makes up
the backbone of the Hearts and Hooves of Lubbock, you can be
quite sure that just like the charity itself, the memory of
Oreo will continue to live on for quite some time.
Anyone interested in learning more about Hearts and Hooves
of Lubbock
may contact Sparks at 543-6368, or by email at
heartsandhoovesoflubbock@gmail.com. For those who would like
to make a contribution to the charity, a fund has been set
up through Security State Bank at 7801 Quaker Ave. in
Lubbock. The bank can be reached at 785-8500.
All photos by Brenda Cuellar/Plainsman Press
