About Us

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A Nicker For Hope was founded by Steff & Kris Carlson because of their passion and devotion for horses, and after an unexpected rescue one spring evening...

It was 6:00pm on April 11, 2024. My husband and I had just finished dinner and we were getting ready to settle in for an evening of family cuddles with our fur babies. That’s when we got the call. A call that would forever change our lives. 

One of my husbands rig managers, Myles, was on the other end of the phone,  very concerned about a wild foal that had been hanging around his lease site since 6:00am. It was pacing back and forth and was in pretty rough shape. He had multiple wounds all over his body and looked very thin and frail. There were no other horses in sight and the sweet baby kept nickering for his mom.

Without hesitation, my husband and I hooked up to the trailer, and headed on our way - an hour into the deep bush. We were not sure what to expect when we got on site. Was the foal severely injured? Was he going to be curled up in a ball, barely surviving? Were we going to have to humanly euthanize this baby? Was he even going to still be there? We had no idea what we were driving into. Every scenario was running through our minds. We were preparing for the worst. 

We arrived on scene and there he was, just standing beside the road. It was as if he was waiting for us. He couldn’t have been more than a few days old. It was heartbreaking. He was alone. So innocent. So beaten up. He was quite alert and had a mouth full of thistles which he was trying to eat and doing everything he could to survive. My husband stopped the truck and I hopped out. He nickered at me - it was a nicker for hope. I spoke to the little guy in a very low, soothing voice as I approached him. I stopped frequently and moved very slow to show him that I was not a threat. He let me walk up to him and I was able to touch him. I pulled the thistles out of his mouth and that’s when I realized he had no teeth yet. His tongue was sticking out of his mouth and it stayed like this for hours. Poor little guy was so dehydrated. His tongue felt like sand paper! I spoke to him the whole time. I had a lead rope in hand so I could loop it around his neck, to help guide him to the trailer, but he didn’t like the rope, it scared him. I decided to just spend some time with him. I squatted down in the grass and waited. He was slightly hesitant, but it didn’t take long for him to walk back up to me. He had probably 30 different wounds all over his body, the majority of them on his face and neck. The wounds were huge and completely raw. He had a massive cut on either side of his left eye. I honestly don’t know how he didn’t lose this eye, it was that bad. As he stood next to me and I looked into his eyes, I could feel his little soul and how desperate he was. I could feel the heartache. The fear. The loneliness. It brought me to tears. Such an innocent little baby and he had literally been through hell, and he was only a few days old. But, I could also feel his will to fight - his will to survive. 

I decided to start walking, and he followed. Side by side we walked up and down the road together. I wanted to make sure that he completely trusted me. He didn’t leave my side. As we made our way back to the trailer, my husband was waiting to help me guide the foal into it. The little guy was quite scared because of the new human that suddenly appeared, so my husband scooped him up as quickly as possible and carried him the few short feet to the trailer. He was hyperventilating at first, and terrified, but immediately once we were in the trailer, he went completely calm. He felt safe for the first time in his life! We knew that he was extremely dehydrated, as he had not had any milk for at least twelve hours. We didn’t have milk replacement with us, but because our service dog is always with us, we carry a collapsable silicone dog dish and lots of water. I offered water to the little foal, as it was better than nothing. He kept dipping his tongue in the dish as he wasn’t sure what to do, but he knew he needed fluids. It took a couple minutes for him to understand what to do, but he figure it out! This little guy is such a survivor! He drank almost 750ml of water! I knew I was not going to leave this colt alone again, so I got myself as comfy as I could next to him in the trailer. I knew this was going to be one heck of a bumpy ride. Off we went.

Oh my lord, was it a terrible ride in that trailer! The little foal did amazing! He had quite the “trailer legs” on him, I couldn’t believe it. I’m pretty sure I had a harder time in the trailer than he did! 

I knew this beat up foal was exhausted, how could he not be after the day of hell he had just been through! He stayed standing for about the first half hour (which was the bumpiest), his eyes would slowly start to close, his head would start to do the “pump jack”, then we would hit a bump and he would wake up. Enough was enough, and he literally dropped with exhaustion onto me. He just collapsed. His little body just couldn’t do it anymore. God only knows how long he had been awake for, fighting to survive. He snuggled his head into my lap, let out a huge sigh of relief, and fell asleep for the remainder of the drive. I was honoured that he felt so safe that he could not only go to sleep and stay asleep, but go into REM sleep! It was the most special, indescribable feeling. My soul was filled with warmth and love! As he slept, it finally gave me time to realize what all had just happened. My husband and I just rescued an orphaned wild foal! Did this really just happen?! In that moment, my life was forever changed. 

As soon as we had cell reception again, my husband called Bear Valley Rescue in Sundre as we knew this was going to be the best place for this foal to be and to get the care he needed. Kathy, the owner, told us to bring him right over and her and her team would be waiting for us. We had about a two hour journey to the Rescue. 

We decided to name this little colt Myles, after the Rig Manager. If it wasn’t for the call he made to us, this little guy would not have survived! As Myles slept, I looked up what the name Myles meant - “A warrior of strength and courage.” Wow, how much more perfect could that be!

We arrived at Bear Valley Rescue just before 11:00pm. Kathy and her wonderful team were waiting as we pulled up. As my husband opened the trailer door, Kathy exclaimed “Oh my God, you’re wife is in here with him!” My husband scooped Myles up and carried him to the barn. There was fresh wood shavings in a stall for him and the volunteers had just finished warming up the milk to start bottle feeding him. As Myles drank, he started to perk up and get some life back into him. While he was feeding, we also did a good look over him to determine the severity of his injuries. Nothing too alarming was noted, his wounds looked terrible, but there were no punctures, no deep lacerations, no broken bones, and no deformities. He did have some slight swelling on his neck as if he had been kicked by another horse, however, it caused Myles no discomfort as it was palpated. He also had part of his umbilical cord still attached, and as we checked to make sure he didn’t have an umbilical hernia, he let out a little kick with his hind leg. This was a great sign! The life was really coming back to him! Once he finished his milk, we examined his mouth, he truly had no teeth, just as I thought! He was less than 8 days old. Kathy estimated 2-3 days. On a side note - his teeth started to erupt 6 days after we found him, so he was only 2 days old when we rescued him!

Scroll forward… and Myles is absolutely thriving! Bear Valley found him a nurse mare, he is so full of life and loves love! He is the happiest little foal I have ever seen! Every week I visit Myles (until he can come home) and every time he sees me, he nickers and run towards me! Myles and I formed a bond that day that not many people will understand - a bond that is so deep of trust and love that it can’t be put into words. 

My whole world changed the moment I looked into this foals eyes. Myles inspired us to start our own rescue, because like him, there are so many horses that are abandoned, abused, neglected, or sent off to slaughter. Horses that are in need of hope. It is our duty to provide them with a safe haven that is filled with respect and unconditional love to restore that hope they once had, and so deserve. 

Our little Myles is the very definition of what A Nicker For Hope is all about. He has the strongest little soul I have ever seen - he is a warrior. His courage to survive and his strength to fight, shows us what we are all capable of. It’s almost as if he knew that we were coming for him, so he never gave up. - Mighty Myles - A warrior of strength and courage -

And just like that, A Nicker For Hope was born. 

Saving just one horse will not change the world…but surely it will change the world for that one horse.

- Steff Carlson -