Colorado Horse Rescue has developed a service to aid horse owners in the event of an emergency that requires horse evacuations. In the midst of Colorado’s wildfire season, the rescue is promoting HorseAlert to Coloradans who may need to evacuate their animals from the path of wildfire.
This free service provides an easier way for horse owners to find evacuation help by connecting them to volunteer trailer drivers across the state.
“Current evacuation methods rely primarily on scattered social media pleas, causing chaos on roads with excessive vehicles,” Katherine Gregory, CEO of Colorado Horse Rescue, said.
HorseAlert works similarly to a rideshare application by matching requests for help with nearby and available drivers to speed up responses when wildfire is looming. When evacuation becomes necessary, an owner only needs to submit a request, which sends immediate text notifications to the closest available volunteer drivers.
HorseAlert was launched in 2024 and helped coordinate horse evacuations during the Stone Canyon and Alexander Mountain fires.
Horse owners and those who wish to be volunteer drivers can register at no cost at horsealert.org. Preregistration is encouraged, as it will speed up the process of matching with a driver in case of emergency.
The website also includes an emergency preparedness guide for horse owners, which can be viewed and downloaded at horsealert.org/be-prepared.
More information about Colorado Horse Rescue can be found online at chr.org.
bduran@the-journal.com
