Winnsboro nonprofit works to save horses from slaughterhouses

Lisa Smith, founder and president of Hooker Ranch Slaughter Horse Rescue in Winnsboro, is a U.S. Army veteran who served seven years as a Chinook (CH47) helicopter crew chief.

After leaving the military, Smith went to work in the corporate world. She later left her corporate job in Georgia and moved to Winnsboro, Texas, where she founded Hooker Ranch Slaughter Horse Rescue. The term “hooker,” in this case, refers to a Chinook helicopter crew member.

Hooker Ranch Rescue is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Winnsboro. The group seeks to rescue and rehabilitate horses with an immediate risk of being shipped to slaughter in Canada or Mexico. Hooker Ranch Rescue provides a safe haven for those critical and senior equines that have been failed.

Since April 2022, Hooker Ranch has rescued 42 equines from the slaughterhouse pipeline and found homes for more than half of them. The organization’s mission is to rescue, rehab, re-home or provide sanctuary to critical horses at risk of being shipped to slaughter in Mexico.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that in 2022, more than 16,300 horses were shipped to Mexico to be slaughtered. Another 5,100-plus horses went to slaughter in Canada. The saddest part of this is that the USDA documented that 92% of horses sent to slaughter are in good condition and are able to live out a productive life. As of 2023, there is no federal ban on private slaughtering of horses for human consumption. Horse slaughter is illegal in a only a fraction of US states, including California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and Texas.

In addition to rescue operations, Smith and her crew work to educate people about the proper care, feeding and upkeep of equines. They also provide transport of horses when possible, take owner surrenders of equines and assist with law enforcement animal seizures. They are currently working with the Texas Department of Health and Human Services to become a licensed equine shelter.

“We take any horse from birth to death, no matter their condition, training or behavior. We also help educate people about the proper care, feeding and upkeep of horses. And we assist when we can with medical care or food,” Smith said. “Most rescues don’t take in the really bad cases, but we help however we can.”

In the event that a horse comes in with medical issues too severe to live comfortably, Smith said Hooker Ranch will euthanize, if it’s in the horse’s best interest, and the staff at the ranch use methods approved by the American Association of Equine Practitioners to do so.

“We take the hard right over the easy wrong,” Smith said.

Hooker Ranch has also worked with other small horse rescues in the Gilmer and Tyler areas.

In addition to rescue operations, Hooker Ranch also provides horses for Hooves and Halos, a Christian- based therapeutic riding center also located in Winnsboro.

Hooker Ranch has also been named as a finalist for the Full Circle of Life grant from Horse Plus Humane Society, a national organization founded in 2003. Hooker Ranch will be featured on an upcoming episode of Horse Rescue Heroes, Horse Plus’s weekly show available on YouTube and Prime Video. If selected, Hooker Ranch will receive a $15,000 grant, which Smith said they would use to build a vetting/ intake area to care for incoming horses

For more information about Hooker Ranch Slaughter Horse Rescue, visit their website at www. hookerranch.org or check them out on Facebook.