PLEASE Don't Feed The Wild Animals

If you've lived on the Eastern Shore long enough and you love the beach you have seen the wild ponies that live on the beaches of Assateague on both Maryland and Virginia.  And if you've traveled there enough times you have no doubt witnessed the stubborness of these beautiful wild creatures.  It is not uncommon for them to be lured to a cooler on the beach, turn it over and search for food- your food. 

But then we've also seen them at the hands those that do not know they shouldn't  have popcorn, bread, candy, chips nor anything that is consumed by humans.  No, not even fruits!

So, my guess of all these years of being at  the hands of improper feeders has gotten this poor guy with the addiction that he is being treated for.

Here is the link that will take you to see Fabio and get a kind look at the wonderful "rehab" he's in.
http://www.humanesociety.org/news/news/2011/08/fabio_assateague_ddhrac_081111.html

Horse is exiled from Assateague

Fabio

Written by  Charlene Sharpe

BERLIN -- After a horse was removed from Assateague Island because he fixated on taking food from campsites and visitors, he is showing potential at a horse rescue center in Texas.

Eighteen-year-old former stallion Fabio, removed from Assateague Island National Seashore's herd of 114 horses in late June, is undergoing training at the Doris Day Horse Rescue and Adoption Center in Texas. With a reputation for aggressive behavior like biting and charging preceding him, trainers at the adoption center were concerned about Fabio -- until they began working with him.

"We were so pleasantly surprised, and pleased that very quickly he showed himself to be gentle," said Anne Rathbun-Favre, director of the center.

Staff members at the center have been working with Fabio since his arrival in mid-July. Officials at Assateague Island National Seashore determined in June that the stallion was getting too aggressive to remain in the park.

"He was getting to the point where there was the risk of someone being seriously injured," said Allison Turner, a biological technician at Assateague.

She said nearly two decades of being fed junk food by visitors and plundering campsites for food had made the already dominant horse too pushy. Charging at park visitors with his teeth bared and even biting some led to the decision to remove him.

In the past, Assateague equines with aggressive behavior like Fabio have been admitted into the Chincoteague herd, in a wildlife refuge where no camping is permitted and there is no access to roads for begging tourists. Chincoteague's herd is limited by a grazing permit, however, and could not accommodate Fabio, Turner said.

Instead, park staff coaxed the stallion into a corral with his favorite food, hamburger buns, and castrated him, something that can help quiet down an unruly horse. Again using hamburger buns as a lure, Fabio was loaded onto a trailer and sent to the new Doris Day Horse Rescue and Adoption Center. Turner said the center was equipped to deal with an essentially wild 18-year-old horse.



FABIO At his new facility.



She said the Doris Day facility, which just opened in May, is part of the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch, a sanctuary where the horse could spend the rest of his days if deemed unsuitable for adoption.

While Fabio may end up joining the sanctuary's herd of 600 horses and burros, staff say he is showing potential for adoption.

"When he came we weren't quite sure," said Ben Callison, director of Black Beauty Ranch, "but we let the horse define that for us."

Although his small stature does not lend him to under-saddle use, Favre said Fabio was showing promise as a companion animal, used to keep other horses company.

Favre said since Fabio's arrival staff had had few difficulties with the horse. His initial refusal to eat hay or grain --because aside from his penchant for camping fare, he lived solely on grass at Assateague -- ended when staff used applesauce and molasses to make the fare more enticing. Once Fabio began eating regularly, trainers have stayed busy teaching him to wear a halter and learn to be handled. Although he's still feisty to lead around, Fabio is still in the beginning of the training process and Favre is optimistic that he can one day be adopted.

"The advantage is that even if he's turned out into the sanctuary, these skills will allow us to care for him," Callison added.

Although Fabio is the most recent horse to leave Assateague Island because of bad behavior, there have been a number of others.

Turner said that 39 horses have been removed from the park in its history, but it hadn't happened since 1995 until now. Although the one before Fabio went through a training process and was adopted by a family in Florida, the others were all absorbed into the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company's herd.

Turner hopes new regulations at the park -- which prohibit visitors from getting within 10 feet of a wild horse or doing anything to attract them -- will prevent other horses from becoming as aggressive as Fabio.

Source;  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20110818/WCT01/108180302/Horse-is-exiled-from-Assateague?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Worcester County Times|s