Shorty S Safe Haven Equine Rescue & Rehab Inc

What it reported doing in 2025

Our ranch girl program is set up to serve low-income girls from age 10-18. We accept enrollment year-round. We conduct our program impact measurements every three months. We evaluate our girls' progress in the following areas: * school attendance as reported by the school [as measured by attendance before and after 3 months in the program] * improvement of grades as reported by the school [as measured by grades before and after 3 months in the program] * improvement of behavior at home and at school as reported by parents and the referring * program attendance at the ranch * improvement of behavior at the ranch as reported by staff and volunteers there Our enrollment process is referral based, and an application is required. We accept referrals from several sources: * Parents with proof of need (ie; failing grades, behavior, in trouble with the law) * School staff * Therapists, either in practice or at rehab centers * Law enforcement We select applicants based upon several different criteria. The applicant must provide proof of failing grades, behavioral issues and/or trouble with the law. Our program is free if the applicant is currently receiving SNAP food benefits and/or Medicaid services. We also require each family to contribute 4 hours of working hours per month. Working hours can consist of office work such as organizing and filing, ranch work or serving at one of our outreach committee events. During the school year, the girls come twice a week for 2 hours each time after school from 4:30-6:30 PM. When they first begin our horse therapy program, the girls focus on horse and farm safety. They learn to catch, halter, lead, and safely groom the horse. Once they are comfortable with these tasks they begin to learn to ride. One of the two days of the week is devoted to team building with the other girls in the program where they work in groups doing things around the farm. They care for the horses, and clean stalls and water tanks. They learn about feeding the horses and their nutritional requirements. They learn first aid for horses and how to spot a sick animal and are involved with the farrier when he comes. The second day is the one all the girls look forward to with excitement: riding day. This day provides much needed stress relief and calmness that can only be provided by being near and around a horse. This day they start to bond to and really care about the horse for whom they are caring, and it is mutual - between horse and girl - always such a joy for us to behold. We work on breathing exercises within the riding sessions. The girls learn to saddle the horse. They learn to understand the importance of caring for their tack spotting any potentially problematical issues with their horse. Currently this summer we have 21 girls enrolled with 13 therapy horses. In the summer we run camps twice a month for a week in each camp. All of our ranch girls are low income and all but one is in a one-parent family. We do our best to open the farm up for them to come and have a supervised safe place to stay for a few hours or even all day in some circumstances. To date, every one of our girls have improved their grades and behavior both in school and at home after just a few weeks of being enrolled at Shorty's. The girls learn how to solve problems and grow their confidence, which helps them with good decision making. Our whole goal is to provide them with the emotional support they need to make the right moral decision when faced with the opportunity to make a wrong decision that can change their life and take them down the wrong path. Emotional support provided by working with and bonding to horses under close supervision is crucial for our girls to learn how to heal. Our team of volunteers and professionals work closely with the girls as they work with the horses, providing them with a safe space to express their emotions and process their experiences to develop healthy coping mechanisms Our preliminary data from testimonials

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 98.5%; rating input score 98
• Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Missing
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 1.5%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.21; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: Limited
• Revenue growth: Limited
• Asset growth: Limited