This the "tail" of a horse,
a horse named Sidney.
But really it is the tale of two horses.
One horse.... a thoroughbred retired from racing....injured, thin, joyless.
The second horse.... training to be an eventing horse.... fit, sound,
and filled with the joy of living.
It is also the tale of a girl,
who has lived and breathed horses since as long as she can remember....
loving them so deeply that she put herself through vet school
to became an equine veterinarian.
The girl is Becky, our Dr. Becky, Hubb's sister who shares
the tribulations and triumphs of farming with us.
A little over a year ago, Sid and Becky fell in love.
It was love at first sight.
Sid had (at a still-young age) just retired from racing.
He was injured, thin, lack-luster and very sad.
But behind those sad eyes, Becky saw some glimmer of what he might become,
and set about rehabilitating him, building his strength, adding some weight,
and allowing him to once again become a horse.
Her love and care paid off.
Sid is now in training to become a cross country eventer.
He is being schooled in dressage and jumping.
Jumping seems to come naturally for this athletic horse with "happy feet."
Part of Sid's training involves "free jumping"...
allowing him to build his confidence jumping without a rider on his back.
Sidney sails over jumps with wings on his hooves
and lands with jubilation...
taking off in a full gallop (his victory lap) around the arena,
leaving Becky beaming in his dust.
Round and round, back and forth he runs with wild abandon
until it is once again time to jump.
And once again he sails over the pole.
A job well done deserves a lot of praise...
which he gets
as well as a bit of time to graze in the hayfield.
It is a wonderful life for this once tired, sad horse,
who never knew what it was to just graze
or to run purely for the joy of it!
Comments
We have a story that is very much the same.
We bought our Jake at a horse sale, a retired race horse. He looked good (because of drugs I believe) but after they wore off it was a horse in need of a lot of tender loving care. He limped badly and in need of love. We have worked with Jake now for about 5 years. He is healthy and happy... He is also the gentlest horse around. We let all our grandkids and foster kids ride him without worries. He's the best!
Have a great week Bev.....
Dawn
Maura :)