September 12 2016

An Albemarle County horse-riding center spent part of Sunday afternoon shining the spotlight on rescue horses.

North Garden Equestrian Center hosts several horse shows a year but for the first time, a new division was added that exclusively featured rescue horses.

Twelve-year-old Taylor Thomas was one of the riders.

She’s been riding horses for four years but it was only just last Christmas that she was united with Amber, a rescue from Hope’s Legacy Equine Rescue.

“She was skin and bones and covered in lice but she was a sweetheart and Taylor fell in love with her,” said Keena Thomas, Taylor’s mom.

“She’s a good girl,” said Taylor. “She does anything I ask, basically. I bathed her and got most of the lice off and then trained her basically again.”

Since her rescue, Amber has gained more than 100 pounds and is now winning ribbons along with the best of them.

“I am extremely pleased to be able to be the first one to judge it,” said equestrian judge, Davera Ackenbom. “I have goosebumps.”