Maddie 🤍
Registered Name: Appomattox
Born in Kentucky on May 3, 2002
Sired by Stravinsky Out of Galunpe (IRE) by He Loves Me (GB)
On August 1, 2021, when Appomattox (Maddie) was in the sales ring at the Enumclaw Livestock Auction in Washington, the local kill broker stepped in to bid. He had a slot ready for her on his rig. In New York, our founder Susan Kayne, joined the auction online, and bid until the gavel fell to Unbridled.
We learned of Maddie's impending fate when fellow rescuer Cristy Pemberton brought her to our attention a few days before the auction. Cris traveled five hours to the Auction to bring Maddie to her Full Circle Rehabilitation Center in Colbert, Washington to quarantine and recover from the trauma of her brush with the slaughter pipeline.
Maddie was dumped at the auction by Jennifer Nunnally, the breeder of her 2021 Filly by Misremembered. When Maddie did not become pregnant for the eleventh time, at the age of 19, Nunnally deemed her unworthy of support, so immediately after weaning, Maddie was shipped to the nearest livestock auction.
Maddie is royally pedigreed, she was bred by the iconic partnership of Gaines-Gentry Thoroughbreds. Her sire STRAVINSKY was named the European Champion Sprinter in 1999. Her dam is the Irish-bred GALUNPE, a stakes winner in France and America. Her brother EXPRESSIONIST is a stakes winner of $457,810 in California.
As a yearling, Maddie sold through Fasig-Tipton for $135,000. As a broodmare, Maddie produced eight live foals. Her first foal CHANTILLY NAYLA is a stakes winner in Canada and the United States and a stakes-placed producer for Team Valor. Maddie was sold four more times through Keeneland in November as a broodmare, and for a sixth time at the Washington Thoroughbred Auction where she was sold to Nunnally when pregnant to Misremembered.
Most people think that mares like Maddie with so many high profile past connections and having done all that had been asked of her would be safe from slaughter and retired in bucolic green pastures. Maddie’s story illustrates the devastating reality we see every day. Thousands of thoroughbred mares across this country, just like her who have given all that has been asked of them, are trapped in a culture of indifference that commodifies their worth and fails to protect their lives.
On January 14, 2022, Maddie began her travels east to join her forever family at Unbridled. She arrived on Wednesday, January 19th. Exhausted from a cross country trip in the middle of winter, Maddie took a week to rest and settle in next to Miss Ruud. In the coming months, she and Miss Ruud became friends. Maddie has shone as doting Aunt to little Prince Ruud whom Miss Ruud gave birth to in the stall next door. Today, the trio is healthy, strong, safe, and celebrated every day at Unbridled.
You can become an integral part of Maddie's unbridled life by virtually adopting her and joining us in supporting her care and dignity. Maddie requires $22 per day to cover her special needs. You can support Maddie with a one-time annual sponsorship of $8,000, or
a monthly giving plan of $675, or any increment thereof. Every dollar is a precious gift to Maddie.