Hendry County horse trainer prepares animals for Hurricane Dorian

A horse trainer in Hendry County told us it’s safer for them to stay put than try to evacuate before conditions potentially worsen due to Hurricane Dorian.

Trainer Coy Smith said Hurricane Irma taught him a tough lesson.

Talking about another farm, Smith said, “The horses were in the barn, and it destroyed the barn and they lost a few horses.”

After Irma devastated many farmers and livestock owners across Southwest Florida, Smith isn’t taking any chances with Hurricane Dorian.

“You can’t chance fate,” Smith said. “Just prepare, and if it comes, it comes.”

We spoke to Smith just as a blacksmith showed up to his barn to work on his horse’s hooves, preparing them to stay out in the pasture, which is the opposite of what some might expect.

“I turn my horses out,” Smith said. “Because if the barn roof rips off, your horse could get messed up in the barn. They have a lot better chance of running away from something in the pasture.”

Smith said, in Hendry and Glades counties, constant change is a signal for large animal owners to consistently prepare.

“Whenever all the ditches get full, it just outflows into the pastures,” Smith said.

While many ran to stores for water, Smith is filling up water buckets for his horses, a reminder animals of all sizes need a plan for bad weather.

Smith is doing everything he can — mowing grass in case of standing water to ward off mosquitos, removing debris so it can’t fly off and injure a horse. He didn’t lose any animal during Irma and said he’s not going to now.

“God puts that ability in those animals to survive,” Smith said. “And, it’s just, they survive.”