Free Rein Horsemanship

29/10/2026

I'm not a Brumby rehomer, my three Brumbies won't be leaving me. But I have spent years rescuing horses from kill pens, rehabilitating them, training them and giving them a second chance at life. And I can tell you, there's certainly no money to be made in it. In fact, I've lost an enormous amount of money doing it.

So when I see people accusing Brumby sanctuaries and rehomers of doing it for financial gain, I have to wonder whether they actually understand what's involved in rescuing, caring for and rehabilitating horses.

Of course, that doesn't mean every organisation is beyond criticism. But we need to be very careful about where we're directing our anger, and whether the information we're basing our opinions on is actually accurate. And we need to look at the bigger picture and decide whether the words we spread will help or hinder the Brumby's cause.

Just because something is said in court, published online or repeated enough times doesn't make it the whole truth. We need to stop blindly accepting information and start questioning it. Look into things ourselves, consider who benefits from a particular narrative, and use a bit of logic before jumping to conclusions.

If the result of all this is Brumby supporters turning against the very people trying to give these horses a second chance, then who really benefits?

We don't all have to agree on everything. But the constant nitpicking, accusations and infighting are doing absolutely nothing to help the horses.

We need to remember what we're actually fighting for. Not our egos, not who's right or wrong, and not winning arguments against each other.

The horses. Their welfare, their lives, and their future.

That's where our energy needs to go.

27/10/2026

So grateful I am still able to help these amazing beings. My true purpose in life.

God what an incredible honour to be able to be a part of a rescue horse's story.
What a privilege to be with them every step as they go from wild, unhandled and terrified to trusting, bold and kind.

How easy it is to forget the details in the journey, the thousands of tiny, tiny steps that led you both here.. Until you look back just a few months into the past and realise how much trust this exquisite being has gifted to you, and then it seems like you've crossed a vast ocean to reach this point.

How lucky we both are, to be able to share this incredibly important path.

24/10/2026

23/10/2026

Minister for the Environment, Penny Sharpe has declared that the suspension of aerial and ground culling of brumbies in Kosciuszko is only temporary.

Brumbies are still being trapped and rehomers are being inundated with horses.

There is a very real fear that trapping is separating mares from their foals and that any horse that a rehomer is not able to take in, is sent to an abattoir. This is not conservation, this is animal cruelty.

There is a new NSW Parliament epetition calling on the government to stop all culling and trapping of brumbies in NSW and to implement humane, non-lethal management methods. This is not simply a petition to save a non-native species, it is the first step to encourage the government to manage all animals (native and non-native) in NSW with compassion and transparency.

Deadline is 29th October. NSW Residents only.

https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/parliamentary-business/petitions/sign-epetition?epetitionId=890&ref=10902

18/10/2026

I have seen posts come up of Brumbies in the pens at auction in Victoria.

Auctions are no place for any horse. The ridden horses can potentially find a good home, but there are precious few people outbidding the doggers for (usually) unhandled horses that have been thrown into the pens.

For the past 8 years, I have been rescuing horses from the dogger bids at kill pens. I never choose horses, it's up to fate which ones are the first to go to the doggers, and those horses will come home with me. Once I have bid on as many as I can take, I leave the auction and grieve for the rest who weren't so lucky. I can't help but get emotional even now as I write this. The sight of those faces peering over the top of the the dogger's truck is something that is burnt into my memory.
When it's over, I can run those precious few into my float and take them home to safety.

Once they have been rehabilitated and trained (some to handle, some to ride), which can take from a few months to a year or more, I find suitable families for them after screening their potential new home.

Every rescue goes home under contract to come back to me for any reason if need be, so they never end up back in that position again.

The very few rescuers that outbid the doggers for penned horses can only take so many. This problem is the biggest that faces horses in Australia by far. Rehomers need to take more responsibility, and people buying horses need to think about whether the horse they want is actually suitable for them, whether they are prepared to develop the skills needed and spend the time giving that horse what they need, not just as a sporadic decision.

And once that decision has been made, if a horse really must be rehomed, never, ever send them to an auction. Particularly if they are unhandled.

If anyone (business or personal) would like a copy of my "Right To Return/ No Slaughter Or Auction" contract to use for yourself, send me a message and I will email it to you.

This video is of the "Kill pens" last year, where I was able to rescue 6 horses from the doggers.

10/10/2026

How to relocate a Huntsman:

Step 1: pick her up

Step 2: put her outside
😆

Please excuse the dog-hair floor, I was just about to vacuum when I found this lil guy

30/09/2026

After everyone's efforts fighting, advocating, questioning and refusing to give up, there is finally some genuinely good news! Reported by Sharilea Hitchcock, the planned November Kosciuszko National Park cull has been put on hold!

The aerial shooting operation that had been scheduled to commence in November will not go ahead as planned, with the issue now expected to be addressed further early next year. There are still other court proceedings to come for 2026.

This means the foals born this season won't have to start their lives in unimaginable horror. And the mobs who roam peacefully through the mountains won't know the fear and brutality that was to come.

Take a moment for the gravity of that to hit, and then take a deep and grateful breath.

Enormous kudos and thank you to every single person who has made these changes come to life. XD Law, instructed by Roxanne Phoenix, Matthew Holland and Andrew Thaler and every single person who was a part of this great outcome, whether that be those at the head of the parliamentary proceedings down to every person who is sharing posts and spreading awareness.

Because of this win, there is now more time for the legal challenges to be properly heard, for questions surrounding the management of Brumbies to continue being scrutinised, and for people to keep pushing for transparency, accountability and genuinely humane alternatives.

But importantly, this isn't the end of the fight. The cull has been put on hold, it has not been permanently abolished. I will continue to update information where I can, as I come to learn it.

But for now, we can breathe a sigh of relief for this massive win.
This proves why we can't give up. Next, we need permanent change and safety for our Brumbies, for good.



Pictured: KNP brumby, Sovereign and Barmah Brumby, Kiko

26/09/2026

I've noticed a bit of drama stirring lately, and with so many passionate people coming together, I suppose squabbles are inevitable.
But we cannot afford to lose sight of what we are actually here for.

We don’t have to agree on every strategy or belong to the same groups or approach advocacy in exactly the same way, but turning on each other only takes energy away from the horses, and risks pushing away people who might otherwise stand beside us.

I want to see Brumbies remain wild and I want humane, evidence-based management that allows them to remain part of the landscape, but right now, I believe there is one achievable objective worth putting our collective energy behind, which is to have mandatory cameras installed on every helicopter conducting aerial culling, recording the operation in full.

More than 6,600 horses were reported as killed through aerial shooting in Kosciuszko National Park between November 2021 and June 2026. At the same time, NPWS states that operational details of wild-horse control are not publicly released.
There is absolutely no transparency, and the only people who are gauging how "humane" the cull is, are vets appointed by the government, and the RSPCA who are majorly funded by the government.
So the bias is huge, and likely the reason cameras have been refused. If the information is well hidden, people will just listen to what they're told.

Whichever side of this debate you stand on, surely everyone can agree that transparency should be the basis. Then people can have whatever (informed) opinion they like.

If aerial culling continues despite our efforts to change how Brumbies are managed, independent scrutiny and a reliable record of what actually happens during the cull will be enormously important for everything we fight for going forward.

We can keep fighting for better management, we can keep advocating for horses to remain wild. But we should also fight for the safeguard that means, whatever happens next, the public is able to access reliable information about what is being done in its name.

Let’s stop squabbling, focus on the Brumbies and put our energy into something that moves us forward.