Firefly Finds His Forever Home at FORA (Friends of Rescued Animals)

Written by Linda Scrace

Professional photography by CK Photography

The chestnut colt arrived at a police station in Randfontein, Gauteng, with some form of a strap around his neck but no halter or identification. The police asked the Randfontein SPCA to collect him and he was held as a stray until the three-week holding period ended. Nobody claimed him.

Meeting Firefly

I’d seen a picture of the chestnut on Facebook. I had no idea whether it was a colt or filly, but, on Saturday the 6^th of June when the holding period was up, Devon and I took a drive to go and meet him.

We met a cheeky, bitey, nippy colt – typical coltish behaviour. I decided to fill in an application to adopt him, obviously pending a home-check and normal adoption procedure, which would include gelding if I was approved.

We left and I said to Devon that this could take a couple of weeks – the SPCA’s new manager, Stephen Maila, hadn’t yet been out to the FORA property where I live where the other horses and ponies are kept. There was also a chance that my application – even though it was a personal one and not through FORA – would be declined as FORA is a shelter.

Attempted theft averted

AND THEN – the very next afternoon at around 14h30 on Sunday the 7^th of June – I received a call from Randfontein SPCA asking that we urgently come and fetch the colt.

After they’d locked up for the day, a group of men had broken in, smashing out prefab panels from the wall, and tried to steal the colt. I think being a colt without a halter on probably saved him from being caught!

They’d thrown food bowls and bits of metal at him and doused him with water. The incident was all caught on CCTV footage. I put out a call to my neighbour to borrow his horse box and Devon and I headed off to fetch the colt.

When we arrived at the SPCA, the security company and SPCA members were trying their best to sort out the broken wall and damage done by the attempted thieves.

Fortunately, although he’d been through the trauma of being chased and having things thrown at him, the colt loaded pretty easily, stood well in the horsebox, and, by just after 16h00, he was safe in a stable here on the FORA property; out of danger.

Firefly’s happy-ever-after

On Tuesday, Inspector Stephen came through and did the inspection – we could finally show him the whole of FORA and our entire set-up. He was pretty impressed and said our animals are in an amazing condition; he loved the space we give them as rescues. He had to refer my application through NSPCA and it was approved.

I picked Firefly as his name.

I undertook to geld (sterilise) him at my own expense as it was a very unexpected, emergency pick-up. He halter-trained very easily and now stands nicely for grooming, and he’s learned to pick up his feet for them to be picked out.

Firefly will continue to enjoy the rest of his happy life with me and the rest of the FORA rescues.