ZOETIS
Kindred Spirits
Role: Senior Creative Producer
Year: 2022
Kassie Barteau is an equestrian champ who, in her own words, has “ridden hundreds of horses.” And yet, when she first met rescue horse Sky, she felt intimidated. His sheer power and tendency to bolt without warning, Barteau said, “had me shaking in my boots.” Fast-forward to today, though, and Barteau and Sky aren’t just a winning competitive dressage team. Barteau adopted Sky and, together, the pair developed a partnership that has helped each other heal and grow.
Their story adds to a mounting body of evidence that suggests the unique human-horse relationship improves the well-being of both species. And this perhaps lends urgency to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ (ASPCA) assertion that horses are under-protected. In fact, the ASPCA’s The Right Horse initiative — a drive to offer better protection by increasing equine adoption in the U.S. — doesn’t just help at-risk horses. It brings a variety of wellness benefits for people, too.
This video was produced in partnership with Zoetis, to showcase the ways in which their deep scientific expertise is not only fostering horse health and longevity, but also human wellbeing.