Retaliation or Enforcement? The Fight to Keep Therapy Ponies in Jasper County
After 15 years of child sex crime advocacy and holding local government accountable, advocates say a criminal case over residential ponies is not about zoning — it is about silencing them.
Since July 2009, this organization has operated in Jasper County with a single mission: advocating for survivors of child sex crimes and holding local government agencies accountable for their failures. That work is documented at zorrow.org and spans more than 15 years.
When the organization lost its lease on a large ranch in July 2022, the therapy ponies — central to the equine-assisted healing program — were relocated to a residential property where they have lived peacefully ever since. The ponies are not incidental to the mission. They are the mission. Survivors visit to volunteer with the animals, giving them a natural, low-pressure reason to be present without being required to disclose their abuse to anyone.
Now the community is moving to remove the ponies, and a criminal case has been filed. Advocates say the timing and the actors involved point to one conclusion: this is retaliation for 15 years of accountability work. A civil lawsuit for damages is being prepared. The Jasper County Sentinel exists to make sure the full record is public.