Major announcement!
We started ColdSpring Nurse Mares LLC in 2018 after seeing an immediate unmet need for nurse mares being provided in an ethical manner. Bronwyn developed an innovative protocol that allows the mares to come into lactation without breeding them and adding to the equine overpopulation problem. Effectively creating a program that has zero “Throw-away foals”, something that has brought understandable negative attention to the nurse mare industry.
At the end of 2024, the program had grown so tremendously we asked ourselves “how we can help more mares and more families when faced with such tragedy”? Given the tremendous support and demand within the industry we have decided to start the non-profit, ColdSpring Mares INC We are now operating as a 501c(3). With the help of donor support, we aim to provide a safe home for more mares and make nurse mares more attainable to the average horse owner. We challenge our equine community to step up and finally put an end to the dark, traditional nurse mare industry and hold us all to a higher standard of equine welfare.
With your help, we hope to grow our program by giving more mares in need a safe place to land with purpose, in turn also effectively saving and positively impacting countless orphaned foals’ lives across the US.
CSM provides a loving, safe space for retired broodmares that are unable to or are no longer being bred. Many of our mares come to us in the prime of their lives, but are unable to have riding careers. Being a nurse mare allows the horses to still have a job and mental stimulation which is extremely important to their well being in the long run. When the mares are no longer suitable to be nurse mares they are able to be safely and responsibly retired, living out their days.
At the end of the day, it is more expensive to ethically bring the mares into lactation. Due to the increasing costs of everything, we had to adjust our lease prices to cover the expenses over the previous years. We saw a direct correlation to the amount of people able unable to attain a nurse mare due to financial constraints, prompting us to ask ourselves - how can we combat this problem?
The reality is, it takes a village to “raise a kid” and a foal is no different! We are so grateful and thankful to have a dedicated group of supporters that share our stories and content with the world. If everyone of us just chipped in just a little, we could continue to make a tremendous and impactful difference on countless mare, foal and families’ lives across the US.
If you wish to contribute to our cause, you may donate below!
Bronwyn Watts has 30+ years experience in the horse industry. Starting from birth, she was raised on a working horse farm in rural southwest Virginia. She grew up doing both 4-H and Pony Club and since 2004 has been a professional groom in the 3 Day Eventing world. Bronwyn has groomed at all major 3 Day events in America and Canada including Rolex/Land Rover Three-day Event in Kentucky 7 different times. Bronwyn Shares, “Grooming at a 5* is the Grammys in the event world for us grooms. To be able to go on 7 different occasions has been an incredible achievement in my life.”