14-years....and counting!

Angel has never lost her inquisitive nature.

It was Spring 1997. I had graduated high school early and my days were filled with horses and riding. I'd been horseless for about 8-months, my junior career was over and it was time to move on, so I was back to catching rides on whatever came along. I had thought I had found a nice Hanoverian gelding the previous winter, but his owner's were firm in the price, which was too much, and my trainer said, "We'll find you something, just have patience..."

On March 24, 1997, a truck load of horses arrived from South Carolina. I remember the date because (one) they were a week late, one of the horses was a steeplechaser and his owner wanted one more race, and (two) this steeplechaser was renamed Oscar with the show name Academy Award - it was the night of the Oscars when they did finally arrive.

I knew one of the six horses on the van was for me, but I wasn't sure which one yet. I was secretly hoping it was Harley. He was this big bay gelding, just built like a hog and he had the most enduring personality. Every opportunity I got, I was taking care of him. After more than a month had passed, all but three horses were spoken for: Harley, Andrea and Aaron. Andrea was a young-green-grade filly. You couldn't tack her up in the cross-ties, you tacked her up in the arena, you had to lunge her before you rode, and you had to make a moving mount-up. Otherwise this filly would EXPLODE and she had a buck on her that no one stayed on! Aaron was a BIG imposing mare, very curious and inquisitive. She had the most amazing eyes and this beautiful dished face. I would hang on the fence and watch other riders school her, her jump was always flawless. I saw her take a 5' vertical with a foot to spare and it never mattered the size of the jump, her jump was always the same. She would boldly gallop to the base of the jump, spring up catlike with her knees to her nose and crack her back over the jump. She was just so round, not too many riders were able to stay with her. One day, during a home show, I was asked to turn her out in one of the back grass paddocks. I couldn't get over her size and how attentive she was, I was definitely smitten.

A few days after the home show, head trainer, Polly, told me to go get Andrea and my friend, Katie, to go get Aaron and be ready to ride in the outdoor. We were both probably nervous, I knew Andrea's reputation and by this time she had earned the nickname 'Bucking' Andrea. Katie was a good rider, so I can't imagine what she'd have to worry about. But then out of the blue, Polly came by and stood watching us get ready. She announced that she had changed her mind, I was to ride Aaron and Katie was to ride Andrea. "Whew," I thought, but then I remembered how bold Aaron was and her concussion forming jump. I was not going to win that day.

Katie and I joined the next lesson, and at the end of the hour Polly came out to check on us. I'll never forget what she said, "That one [Aaron] will like Kelly's soft hands, they'll be good together." I was ecstatic!! The date was April 28, 1997.

I had my new horse and now it was time for a new name, we had been calling her 'Aaron' because she came from Grand Prix rider Aaron Vale's farm in South Carolina. (Similarly, 'Andrea' was named for Aaron's business partner, Andrea King.) I was NOT going to call her a 'boy's' name, so at first I thought Sasha because she was so sassy over fences. I was also a big fan of Fox's Kindred: The Embraced, where one of the characters, a red-head, was named Sasha. However, the name just didn't feel right and instead I just kept calling her 'Mare'. Just a few days after I got 'Mare', I had a particularly bad jumping lesson, "It's like learning how to jump all over again....", I cried. Then it hit me, I learned how to jump on an old American Quarter Horse buckskin, named Angel (see below), and so 'Aaron' who became 'Mare' was officially christened...Angel.

Angel, an American Quarter Horse mare.

It wasn't long before Angel lived up to her new name. We were always short on taller-bigger horses in the lesson program, so I had agreed to Angel being used from time to time for the adult riders. I was not at the ring to witness this, but from what I was told, they were jumping a line of combinations and the rider became off-balance. So Angel stopped, but in doing so, somehow, got her reins caught on the jump standard pulling the jump onto herself. Angel didn't freak out, bolt, spook, panic, etc., she just stood there like a statue while my trainer walked up and untangled her. After the lesson my trainer, Beth, came up to me all smiles telling me what had happened.

This trademark in her personality has continued over the years. There was the time we were hauling to a show and her foot mysteriously became wedged under the manger in the trailer. We had to use a sledgehammer to get her free, and she didn't freak out. When people go to horse shows, they typically stay away from the loud speakers. They crackle, hiss, are loud, and basically they spook a lot of horses, not Angel; we could park right underneath one and they never bothered her. Best part was, no one else was ever parked next to us! Another time was when I had my accident, no one saw me fall and Angel got me help. A few months after my accident, I was getting on Angel bareback when I over-estimated my strength and actually leaped over her back. Instead of my falling to the ground, I had my hand still on the reins, Angel pulled back sharply keeping me upright and then lowered her head so that her head caught me in the chest.

If I hadn't decided on the name 'Angel', I think Cat would have been just as good. In all my life with horses, I have never seen such an accident prone animal...and one that has lived to tell about, too!

1. She tore her left front tendon.
2. She had a reaction to a bad rhino flu shot.
3. Said reaction^^ caused her to founder so badly she seedy toed.
4. She fell through an ice covered pond.
5. She fell into a 6' ditch, with me on her!
6. She got loose once and caught in a rope - major rope burn.
7. She slipped on ice and broke her knees open.
8. She jumped the pasture fence, landed on asphalt and re-broke open her knees.
9. She got her foot stuck under the manger on the way to a horse show.
10. She's colicked twice.
11. Has been cast once in her stall,
12. While rehabbing her took her swimming; she reared up and cracked her head on the ceiling.
13. Another time while backing out the horse trailer she slipped and cracked her head again.
14. Got stung in the eye and nearly lost said eye.
15. Accidentally stepped on her lead rope, reared up and slipped on the grass injuring her sacroiliac joint in her back. (Which has ended her career and almost her life.)

Angel doesn't let those little things bother her too much. She still gets free-range when turned out, we seriously don't pasture her just turn her loose in the yard. She rarely leaves the property and comes galloping when called. Recently she was up by the side of the garage and I called her to the back, she turned picked up a canter and jumped the corner of the back patio, a good six feet wide corner. But she didn't miss a stride, she was simply in her glory. When she was younger and I would leave the jumps up in the pasture, it was not uncommon to see her out there jumping on her own -- completely freestyle. People can say racehorses don't love to run or are not born to run, but I disagree. All you have to do is watch Angel jump something and you know that she truly loves it, so why can't racehorses love running?

Angel freestyle jumping.

One of the things I always considered myself lucky was, you couldn't tell when Angel was in season, as in ovulating. I've heard stories and I've witnessed mares that are purely witchy when in season. All they care about is not what you want them to care about and because they don't pay attention to the handler they are easily spooked and can kick out or bite. Under-saddle, I've heard its not even worth your time trying to ride them, you just can't gain their attention long enough to get any work done. Angel was never a moody mare in the sense of being nasty to ride, she was all business all the time. I just couldn't go changing my mind on distances or expecting her to carry me if we chipped in while jumping. In fact, to this day, the only way you know when she's in season is by her frequent 'potty' breaks.

On the ground was a different matter, as I've said before, Angel is truly an independent horse and has little use for humans or Dino and Sancho for that matter. She's still not moody, just a tough cookie and she truly has mellowed with age. Except when it come to blanketing. She will still nail you (or me, in this case) if you mess with her blanket. The last time my farrier was out he touched Angel's blanket up by the withers. Immediately Angel's eyes narrowed and her ears went flat back. Don't know what it is, but I think everytime she has bitten me it was over blanketing.

Even with all those injuries, freak accidents, and personality quirks, I look at Angel now and remember all the good times, 14-years worth. We know each other better than anyone, there are no secrets between us - just raw thoughts, emotions with no self interest; its a pure relationship. I look at her now and I still see this beautiful-amazing creature. This creature that is so smart, sometimes too smart for her own good, you show her something once and she'll do it herself the first chance she gets. What I don't see is this broken down animal, which is the reality. I remember in her 'glory' days she was so big that she wore an 80/82" blanket, and now her in twilight years she wears a 75". Her girth was a 52" and now she could probably wear a 48". I have to constantly remind myself now that I can no longer live in the past and rehash what was, instead I have to live in the present and cherish what time I have left with my Angel. And really, isn't that what's all about? Always being in the present and appreciative of what you have?

Angel and I enjoying some quality time.

As for 'Andrea', my friend, Katie, leased her for that summer and gave her the show name: Russian Roulette. Horse-people really do have a sick twisted sense of humor, don't they? When Angel was out for an injury and Katie had gone home for a few days, it was I who got to keep Andrea in work. As I had already mentioned, she had a buck no one could stay on....well that's not exactly true. She never got me off, she tried though, boy did she try, but I stayed on and I was the only rider to have ever done so.

Ahhh, to be young and stupid again, with a touch of stickability. :P

You want something? Don't wish for it.

You know how they say, if you want something bad enough, wish for it and it'll come true? Well it's ALL hogwash. You see, I've been wishing for wonderful riding weather. Wishing for it with all my might. What did I get instead? Rain. In fact, I have been able to work Dino since April 13! Which is why the blog has been so quiet. How was he prior to that? Doing pretty good, he was just starting to show signs of Losgelassenheit -- looseness in his back. I could visually see him swinging in his back, and let me tell you, it got me so excited! For a dressage horse, it is one of the hardest things to truly achieve. With this, Dino was also really starting to come over his back, engage his hindquarters while using them more effectively beneath him. A lot of racehorses, they, obviously, don't know how to properly use their body. So when they trot, they kind of just go up and down on their hind legs like a pogo stick. To make them more engaged, loosen their back and have a connection is really a step forward in the right direction.

But then it started raining...and it hasn't stopped!

So what else has Dino been up to? Remember a few posts back when I said Dino really doesn't have anyone in his corner? We can emphasis that now. On April 7, Dino managed to kick off Angel's stall door.

What happened was simple (and completely my fault). Angel, for whatever reason, has decided that she doesn't like the timothy grass anymore and was literally starving herself over it. So I went out and bought $4 alfalfa hay, but I'm still mixing it with the old hay. Doesn't really do me any good, Angel just shifts through it and scatters it in her stall. I don't want to waste it, so when I clean stalls I pull Angel out of hers, put Dino in there and I'll then clean Dino's stall while he finishes up her hay.

Angel's a smart girl, too smart. She knows how to open and close her stall door, open the grain barrel, the pasture gate, etc., among other things. This is were it becomes my fault. I've shown her how to do the first two things, after that she started to figure things out.

So I'm in Dino's stall, he's in Angel's stall and Angel's loose in the barn. My back is turned and out of the corner of my eye, I see Angel open her stall door and enter. Before I could even do anything, Dino started kicking. I don't know how Angel escaped unscathed, but poor Dino didn't. He actually kicked Angel's stall door off, and I'm talking the 4x6 that the door was hinged to split right down the middle and the door itself, landed 4' in front of the opening! How do I know the distance, because it cleared the 4x6 rubber mat in front of Angel's stall door.

At first, I didn't even see if Dino had any cuts on him. I thought he had injured his patella by the way he was holding his leg, and the fact he was hopping around on three legs. The patella is the knee cap and on a horse and is located at the stifle, the juncture where the hing leg meets the belly. When the patella has slipped out of place, it will move over the joint locking the leg. The best way to remedy this is to either a)back the horse up or b)pick up the hind leg, stretching it back until the horse pulls it forward. I opted for option (a) and backed Dino up to see if it popped back into place, if that was the problem. It wasn't. Then I discovered the bleeding right at his left hock. It was a good abrasion. I cleaned it up and managed not to get kicked. Yay me! Last year, while I was at WEG, I purchased a bottle of Well-Horse and I am so glad I did! It really came in handy and I'm happy to report, the product lived up to its claim. Dino's leg healed within two weeks with new hair growth. I should also mention, that Dino's entire left hind stocked up but a little DMSO cleared that up within a few days as well. I just swear by DMSO.

So without further adieu, and for your viewing pleasure, the pictures:

Angel's stall door (top), right where it landed, four feet in front of her stall. Dino's back left hock (bottom), the day after the incident.


In other good news, Dino has two projects in the works. Along the lines of National, and not just me writing here, publication. Stay tuned! ;)