Windy, left, and Misty recently moved to an equine sanctuary in Campton Hills as part of the closure of their former home, Palatine Stables. The Palatine Park District confirmed that Windy died Monday.
Courtesy of Equine Guardians
A horse formerly housed at Palatine Stables died Monday at the suburban equine sanctuary where it had recently been relocated.
The horse, a 32-year-old appaloosa named Windy, was donated to the Palatine Park District’s stables 17 years ago by Karen DePue, who now lives in Florida. Windy lived at Palatine Stables with her daughter, Misty.
A photo of Windy, taken last week at the School Masters Sanctuary in Campton Hills. Windy, a former resident of the Palatine Stables, died at age 32 at the sanctuary, where she had been transferred.
Courtesy of Karen DePue
With the stables near Northwest Highway and Dundee Road scheduled to close Nov. 30, Windy and Misty were moved Aug. 30 to the School Masters Sanctuary in Campton Hills.
Social media posts from the sanctuary initially were upbeat, with one post reading, “Windy and Misty are loving retirement!”
But DePue, who readopted the pair prior to their relocation, was concerned because Windy “didn’t handle change well at all.”
“They hadn’t been out on grass in 17 years for any length of time,” she said. “They went from being in a stall 24 hours a day to being outside 24 hours a day. Imagine doing that to your 90-year-old grandmother, because that was her equivalent age in people.”
The park district issued a statement expressing deep sadness, especially from those who care for the horses at the stables.
According to the district, Windy was diagnosed this year with dropped fetlocks, a chronic degenerative condition in which the joints above the hoofs begin to sink closer to the ground.
The park district said it donated $2,000 to the sanctuary to help support their care.
“We are confident that Windy received excellent care in her retirement at the sanctuary,” a statement from the district reads. “Windy spent her days with Misty and new friends, free to roam in grassy fields under the sun’s warmth.”
Sue Gould, the only park board commissioner to vote against the closing of the stables, had warned of the danger of moving the horses.
“I didn’t want to be right,” she said. “I’ve just heard of too many cases where, especially older horses, get very stressed out by a move. And I just felt like this was an accident waiting to happen.”
She added that the $2,000 would take care of one horse for about 10 months.
“That’s almost an insult donation,” Gould said. “Those are our horses, and now a nonprofit is going to spend their money to take care of them. And there are 24 more (horses) to go.”