A seven-year-old open heart surgery survivor from Tarporley has taken on a charity challenge in aid of equine welfare charity Brooke.
Lucy Rayner will hack 10 miles over 100 days with her pony Maxwelltown Meric for #MyMiniHackathon to help improve the lives of working horses, donkeys and mules in developing countries.
Despite her young age, Lucy has already had open heart surgery twice after being diagnosed with rare heart condition Hemituncus at just eight-months-old.
But Lucy has not let her condition hold her back and with Meric’s help she keeps a positive approach to life and stays active by riding regularly.
Horses have always been a huge part of Lucy’s life and rehabilitation.
She got her first pony Teddy, a miniature Shetland, aged 22 months and together they trotted around the country lanes.
Lucy’s mum Catherine said: “I’m very proud of Lucy and I’ve enjoyed doing this Mini Hackathon challenge together.
“Lucy loves horses so much, they have helped her through her various hospital visits and she even had a photo of Teddy by her bed when she had her second operation, so it made sense to support a charity that helps millions of horses in the developing world.”
The brave youngster is fitted with an artificial pulmonary valve and will have to have further operations to replace the valve as she grows up.
Any cough or chest infection is particularly dangerous as it may mean she has fluid on her lungs, caused by the condition.
The operations have left Lucy with a large scar on her chest which she and her mum call her ‘magic zip’.
Her condition was picked up when a scan to look for a hole in her heart revealed the far more serious illness.
Catherine hopes that taking part in Brooke’s #MyMiniHackathon will help Lucy with her ongoing recovery whilst raising money to help the animals Lucy loves most.
#MyMiniHackathon is part of Brooke’s new fundraising campaign #MyHackathon which challenges keen riders to hack 100 miles in 100 days to raise £100.
Aimed at younger riders or smaller horses, My Mini Hackathon suggests supporters lead their ponies 10 miles in 100 days to raise £100 to help Brooke with its latest campaign, How The Other Horse Lives.
For more information, visit www.thebrooke.org/theotherhorse.
