I totally understand being afraid to stop and talk to them if you're alone/your hubs is out of the country. That makes sense. I will say, though, that it's very possible that these folks are in waaaaaay over their heads and don't even know it. I think there's got to be someone in the horse community nearby who can try to befriend these people and maybe help them a little.

There's a farm that's on the main highway leading to our house. She started with a house. Then a goat. Then a llama. Then a horse. Then a pony. Then another horse. We were curious, and one day my husband happened to meet the woman and strike up an acquaintance with her. Turns out she has never owned a four-legged creature larger than a dog in her life. Her lifelong dream has been to ride horses. She knows NOTHING about horses. It gets worse, though...She's actually TERRIFIED of horses. Oh, and all of her animals are hard-luck rescue cases who haven't been ridden in a looong time. If ever. (Head desk, right?)

So we've kind of adopted her. My husband gave her the name of a nice trainer who gives beginner lessons and recommended a vet. He jokes about getting bitten by "animal fever" and adopting a lot of animals (as a nice way of saying, lady, slow the fuck down on acquiring animals). We keep an eye on her property. We make sure the animals look well fed. We've dropped by from time to time. All under the guise of friendly horse owners who just love to talk horse. Mostly, though, we're worried about her animals and her. She's drowning at this point, and I worry that someday she's going to need a lifeline.

Maybe these people need a lifeline too? And if you can't throw it out to them, maybe a local vet or another horse person who's not on their own right now can? Maybe this situation calls for a combination of toughness AND compassion?