Layla Rose Ranch

Catherine Hudson is on a mission to give every unwanted horse a home.

Catherine and her husband moved to the country in 2019. Each evening, they would walk a winding road that led past this small, 3-acre property with a horse roaming a wooded pasture. Like most people, she wanted to stop and pet the “pretty horse.” Catherine says, “the horse did not want to be interacted with and looked like his owner had given up on him. His eyes were black, and his hooves and mane were tattered. He didn’t want to have anything to do with people. Yet, somehow, I was drawn to him. It was an odd feeling. A feeling that true horse lovers can appreciate and resonate with.”

Hudson knew she just had to do something. “I made an excuse to pass by this property, often waiting for a chance to meet the owner. And one day, I finally did. He was honest. He had been around horses his whole life, but he was done. He had given up. And Cletus – that was the horse’s name, he said – had become a nuisance. Cletus didn’t like people, and his people didn’t seem to like him. I convinced my husband to buy him. And that was my first rescue. Today, Cletus loves people. He is gentle now. He trusts again. And he is my “heart horse” (many of you know what I mean). We will never part.”

“But going through the very long journey from rescue to rehabilitation to trusting opened my eyes to the amazing therapy a horse can be. My life has not been easy. I have had many difficult trials – the kinds movies are made of. But somehow, Cletus knew. He sensed that my story and his story were similar. And while I brought him back to life were beautiful green eyes sparkle where once black holes existed, Cletus brought me back to life as well.”

From then on, Catherine would find a horse, convince her husband to buy him, and then she would give it her all to see that sad animal realize the life it truly deserves. She even rescued a mare who was pregnant. “That foal, which my daughters named Laylani, is the namesake of our charity – Layla Rose Ranch.”

Catherine and her husband recently built the rescue a stable worthy of true love, compassion, and patience – all the things that the horses she rescues receive.