FALLBROOK—With nearly six inches of rain over two days, the Fallbrook area had more precipitation than it could handle— and Hoof Haven Farms is still recovering.

More than a third of the farm’s 40 horses had to be evacuated Feb. 14 when a small creek swelled to a raging current that overtook a crossing to several pens on the property, then changed course and wiped out all the pens that boarded senior horses.

“All those horses had to be evacuated for their safety,” said owner Teri Cagle. “Our water well now is inoperable. I need to rebuild these pens as well as rebuild our crossing so we have access to all the horses in the backside of the ranch.”

At one point, about half of Cagle’s 10-acre property was underwater, she said. Neighbors from Bonsall and Fallbrook helped evacuate, and the horses all survived.

The farm faces a rebuild, and a Go Fund Me page has been set up for it. In addition to fixing the well, there was “a tremendous amount of land and fill dirt” that needs replacing, and equipment is desperately needed, she said.

“It’s a slow long process putting the ranch back together,” said Cagle. “All horses are home and safe except the five minis that continue to stay at a very generous customer’s home. Some of my students paid them a visit and gave them much needed exercise.”

Cagle publicly thanks all the donors on the Go Fund Me page, and those who helped her evacuate during the flood saved several horses’ lives, she said.

“It’s because of the community that we got them out as fast as we did. We are just going to have to rebuild when it decides to quit raining,” she said. 

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