On a day in February 2013, Skanda received a phone call that forever changed our course. The CNY SPCA asked Skanda owner Marion Secor if she was willing to accept 14 wild ponies who were starving in a snowy field. Without questioning, Marion gave her answer: Yes. When the ponies arrived, most were near death. Some were so weak and emaciated they could not stand. The weakest among them, a sweet and gentle yearling, brought Marion to tears. She knelt down beside him as he lay on the ground, and cried for what had happened to him. He could not eat or drink on his own. The little yearling was also blind. For seven days Skanda provided round-the-clock care, hand feeding him hay, and giving him water through a syringe. Modig could not see us and he had never encountered people before, but from the moment he was carried off the trailer, he melted
into the love and tenderness that embraced him, trusting us implicitly. His courage—for which he is named—changed us. The community was also deeply touched by him. A local equestrian who had helped in his rescue donated bales of soft straw for his bed, and two Amish friends showed up each day to help him stand. It was the gift of a firehose from a local fire department that allowed us to lift him gently to his feet, so he could build his strength. There were many others who also stepped in to offer their love and support, both to Little Moe and to us, so we could take breaks to rest and find our own strength again to keep going. For the seven days Moe spent with us before he died, this little horse and his pure heart showed us a truth about the essence of animals, a truth that offers a profound possibility for all of us. In the midst of great pain and trauma, he let go into trust. Out of this love, The Haven at Skanda was born.
