A few years ago, one of my neighbors moved several states away to assist her elderly parents. She did not want to sell her lovely mini-farm, so she leased it to some very kind folks who didn't have much experience living in a small town on 46 acres.
Not to say anything bad about this family - they were very polite, very nice, and absolutely loved having a large garden, a barn, a hayfield for the kids to play in where they didn't have to worry about the boys getting into things they shouldn't - and enough pasture to have a couple of horses.
The wife was kind of the stereotypical 'animal rescuer' - two rescue dogs with issues, a 3-legged cat - soon to answer one "free to good home" ad for a 3 year old mare that had never been touched (which soon became, she's been so abused, see how scared she is?!?)......and another "come get her or she goes to the sale barn tomorrow" ad for a 20 year old mare which had once been the owner's prize barrel mare.
Poor Tess was pain on 4 hooves. The saddest part was, you could see how beautiful she had once been - buttermilk buckskin with frosting in her mane and tail, two white socks, gorgeous babydoll quarter horse head, even though it was now flecked with gray from age. I don't think there was a joint in her legs from the stifles down that was not arthritic. She must have been pigeon-toed to start with, but between the neglect to her feet and the windpuffs and other bone spurs on her pasterns and lower legs, her front legs were a nightmare. She literally could not stretch her legs far enough to put them on the hoof stand for the farrier to trim, and she couldn't stand on 3 legs long enough for him to do a thorough job.
Of course, she was also underweight - people who throw away their old horses generally don't care to feed them, either -- and I'm sure the pain she felt contributed to that. Now, you all can probably guess how this story ends - but it is what happened in between that is so important.
The woman who owned Tess for many years - showed her, won ribbons on her, gave lessons on her, let her children ride her - dumped her for $100 on Craigslist. "Too old to compete in barrel races anymore, can't feed what I'm not showing." This woman was going to get the last hundred dollars she could out of this mare, one way or another. She rode the $hit out of her for years (you'd have to see this woman and her daughter ride - no warm up, no cool down, no 'fitting' - just go out there the first Saturday of show season and ride barrels, poles, and all the other open show games like your horse hasn't had 4 months off) - and when the poor mare was as broken-down as a cart horse in "Black Beauty", she decides to dump her as if she didn't contribute to the issue.
Tess's guardian angel was looking out for her the day my new neighbor brought her home. The mare was groomed, loved, petted, fed senior feed with lots of carrots daily...within a few weeks, I'd convinced her to try a joint supplement and call one of the local vets for a consultation to see if bute or another therapy might be an option to help her get around a little better. My neighbor followed through, Tess went on daily bute, and spent the last part of spring and most of summer just enjoying green tall-grass pasture, daily feedings and groomings, and the companionship of one (surprisingly), equally quiet and kindhearted young horse. By that fall, it became obvious that Tess's discomfort was increasing, and my neighbor found her down in the pasture unable to get herself back up more than once. She finally realized it would be a kindness to send Tess across the Rainbow Bridge before the cold, snow, and ice arrived.
My neighbor gave Tess the retirement she had earned doing so much for her previous owner. It's sad that Tess's last days were left up to a stranger, -- but Tess lucked out by finding someone who, in the end, gave the mare more comfort and dignity than she'd had in a long time, and making her last months on earth much more comfortable.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
I don't call myself a professional...and perhaps you shouldn't, either
Click the image to see the ad at full size.
No attempt is made to conceal the identity of the person posting this free horse. The context of the ad implies "don't know what breed he is nor do I care."
We pull up the website so prominently featured in this ad; the homepage reads: "We are a family-operated, all inclusive professional equestrian facility for sales, training and boarding located in the heart of horse country.....Our main focus is producing top quality horses that are healthy in body and mind, willing, safe and enjoyable....Renee is a John Lyons Certified Trainer..."
There is so much wrong with this, it just makes me see red. This is the heart of everything wrong within the horse industry summed up in one simple advertisement.
Here are these "equine professionals" who train and sell horses for a living on LSN, dumping an "I don't know what he is" untrained horse for free.
Questions, questions. You are a professional facility. If you are getting rid of the horse due to non-payment by an owner, you would be asking a price to recoup your losses (i.e. months of board or months of training or both)...of course, that would be after following all the legal requirements in the state of Tennessee to do so.
You are a John Lyons certified trainer dumping a free horse with no training. Is he beyond your skill level to train? Are you too lazy and selfish to put a month of training into him and sell him for something? Is he so worthless in your eyes that he's not even worth the effort to put 2 weeks into him, get some decent photographs and ask a few hundred dollars to a carefully-screened home?
Now, I don't care if the horse was dumped in your pasture; he is on your property, he has become your responsibility, and you advetise far and wide that you are a professional. You repeatedly state on LSN, Craigslist, and your own website that you broker horses. Yet, here is a free horse (with no handling, no photographs of him, and the I DON'T CARE plain as day...posted by the same hands.)
Now, I don't care if the horse was dumped in your pasture; he is on your property, he has become your responsibility, and you advetise far and wide that you are a professional. You repeatedly state on LSN, Craigslist, and your own website that you broker horses. Yet, here is a free horse (with no handling, no photographs of him, and the I DON'T CARE plain as day...posted by the same hands.)
I may not be a professional selling dozens of horses a year, but I damn sure do my best by each and every one that crosses my path. If they leave my property, they do so with a solid foundation of at least 60-90 days, most of the time over a year of time invested to help insure they will NOT end up where this free horse is certain to...
Renee? Why didn't you just call one of the kill buyers directly?
Monday, February 6, 2012
Horses and Emotions
I think it is fair to say that anyone who has worked around horses for any length of time knows that horses both have emotions and are receptive to human emotions.
Horses are a fight-or-flight animal; they feel fear (for themselves) and they pick up on fear (coming through a rider's seat and legs or coming through a handler's body language). A horse may react differently around a calm, quiet person than a nervous, hyperactive person. I've seen high-strung horses react completely differently to a low-key handler than to an extroverted, outspoken owner.
Horses have good memories: I've seen horses that have been separated for months immediately bond back together when re-joined in the same herd.
All that said, there are certain differences between a horse's emotions and that of a human owner. For example, a woman may feel the need to have children to feel complete. A mare does not share that feeling. Nature gives her a heat cycle; that doesn't automatically mean she wants to make a baby every year for her entire life.
A horse doesn't need 10 pounds of sweet feed a day to feel loved. You wouldn't give your four year old free reign of the candy dish and cookie jar; why load your horse up on sugars and carbs? Fat is fat, whether horse or human, and a horse is happy just to graze on good quality hay, romp in his pasture, and have the dirt brushed from his itchy places on a regular basis.
You may hurt a child's feelings by sending him to his room for a time-out. You're not going to hurt your horse's feelings because you tie him up and expect him to stand still for grooming and saddling. I've actually seen people who halter their horse, attach a 12-foot lead rope, let the horse wander as it will, while they "chase" along with brushes, fly spray, and tack. Now, if you let your horse do as he pleases the entire time you handle him, why should he listen to anything you try to do during a ride?
In the wild, a horse's entire life is based on the structure of a herd. The herd has an alpha mare, the stallion, and then everything else falls into place. In your relationship with your horse, for your safety and your horse's well-being, you basically become the "alpha mare" of your horse's world. You are responsible for his safety, you're responsible for setting the ground rules. If he does something wrong, it is your job to "punish" him, and then "forgive" him - in the wild, the alpha mare may drive others away from a watering hole first, then allow them to drink after she does. In your world, you expect your horse to respect your space in much the same way.
It doesn't make your horse love you any less. And in the end, it makes him respect you more.
Horses are a fight-or-flight animal; they feel fear (for themselves) and they pick up on fear (coming through a rider's seat and legs or coming through a handler's body language). A horse may react differently around a calm, quiet person than a nervous, hyperactive person. I've seen high-strung horses react completely differently to a low-key handler than to an extroverted, outspoken owner.
Horses have good memories: I've seen horses that have been separated for months immediately bond back together when re-joined in the same herd.
All that said, there are certain differences between a horse's emotions and that of a human owner. For example, a woman may feel the need to have children to feel complete. A mare does not share that feeling. Nature gives her a heat cycle; that doesn't automatically mean she wants to make a baby every year for her entire life.
A horse doesn't need 10 pounds of sweet feed a day to feel loved. You wouldn't give your four year old free reign of the candy dish and cookie jar; why load your horse up on sugars and carbs? Fat is fat, whether horse or human, and a horse is happy just to graze on good quality hay, romp in his pasture, and have the dirt brushed from his itchy places on a regular basis.
You may hurt a child's feelings by sending him to his room for a time-out. You're not going to hurt your horse's feelings because you tie him up and expect him to stand still for grooming and saddling. I've actually seen people who halter their horse, attach a 12-foot lead rope, let the horse wander as it will, while they "chase" along with brushes, fly spray, and tack. Now, if you let your horse do as he pleases the entire time you handle him, why should he listen to anything you try to do during a ride?
In the wild, a horse's entire life is based on the structure of a herd. The herd has an alpha mare, the stallion, and then everything else falls into place. In your relationship with your horse, for your safety and your horse's well-being, you basically become the "alpha mare" of your horse's world. You are responsible for his safety, you're responsible for setting the ground rules. If he does something wrong, it is your job to "punish" him, and then "forgive" him - in the wild, the alpha mare may drive others away from a watering hole first, then allow them to drink after she does. In your world, you expect your horse to respect your space in much the same way.
It doesn't make your horse love you any less. And in the end, it makes him respect you more.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
It's Grammar Time
You're writing a horse for sale ad. I understand that spell check is not fail-safe, but it can help. We're going to have a short (but hopefully helpful) grammar lesson today.
You have a horse for sale. Or you are selling a horse. You don't have a horse for sell. And you're not saleing (yes, I've seen it spelled this way) a horse.
Your horse has nice conformation; he is well put-together. You receive a confirmation email from Craigslist to let you know your ad has been posted.
Your horse has been ridden a lot, he is ridden every day. You rode him yesterday, or it's been a week since you rode. He hasn't been trail rode; he's been trail ridden.
Your horse behaves for the farrier. Not the ferrier or the furrier. (He may be furrier this time of year, but that's kind of irrelevant).
A hand is 4 inches. 11 hands, 11.1, 11.2, 11.3, 12 hands. If your pony is 11.2, you might say he stands 11 and a half hands, or you might just say he's 46 inches. Your pony isn't 11.5 hands tall. Nor is your horse 15.6.
My point is not to deride anyone; I'm not poking fun at someone for a single mis-spelling or typo or autocorrect that their eyes may not have caught. That happens to everyone.
My point is this - as I've said before - you want to make your horse look the best he can in an advertisement. That first impression when a buyer is wading through fifty other ads is incredibly important; and if you come across sounding ignorant of the basics -- and ignorant, in general -- why should the buyer have any faith that you know your stuff when it comes to your horse's level of training and his value?
You have a horse for sale. Or you are selling a horse. You don't have a horse for sell. And you're not saleing (yes, I've seen it spelled this way) a horse.
Your horse has nice conformation; he is well put-together. You receive a confirmation email from Craigslist to let you know your ad has been posted.
Your horse has been ridden a lot, he is ridden every day. You rode him yesterday, or it's been a week since you rode. He hasn't been trail rode; he's been trail ridden.
Your horse behaves for the farrier. Not the ferrier or the furrier. (He may be furrier this time of year, but that's kind of irrelevant).
A hand is 4 inches. 11 hands, 11.1, 11.2, 11.3, 12 hands. If your pony is 11.2, you might say he stands 11 and a half hands, or you might just say he's 46 inches. Your pony isn't 11.5 hands tall. Nor is your horse 15.6.
My point is not to deride anyone; I'm not poking fun at someone for a single mis-spelling or typo or autocorrect that their eyes may not have caught. That happens to everyone.
My point is this - as I've said before - you want to make your horse look the best he can in an advertisement. That first impression when a buyer is wading through fifty other ads is incredibly important; and if you come across sounding ignorant of the basics -- and ignorant, in general -- why should the buyer have any faith that you know your stuff when it comes to your horse's level of training and his value?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)