A father from Brighton has rescued nearly 40 abandoned clothes horses from the streets and set up a sanctuary where they receive 'medical procedures' and calming sounds of washing machines. Sam Smith, 32, a support worker, founded The Clothes Horse Sanctuary in 2016 after noticing discarded clothes horses near communal rubbish bins.
Sam, also known as 'Spud', initially kept the rescued items in his back garden, but it became overcrowded and a 'tripping hazard'. He then moved them to a local stable, where each clothes horse is named and allowed to 'free to roam'. The sanctuary currently houses 36 clothes horses, with the latest arrivals named Steve and Susan.
Sam says the clothes horses undergo repairs for broken parts, such as twisted backs or broken legs, and are played recordings of washing machines on a delicate wash to calm them. He has gained over 4,000 followers on TikTok (@clotheshorsesanctuary) and describes the support as 'amazing'.
Sam believes clothes horses are 'resilient, majestic and kind' and aims to reduce waste by repairing and rehoming them. He estimates he finds an abandoned clothes horse almost daily in Brighton, attributing the problem to cheap manufacturing and a lack of repair knowledge.
