Let's start at the beginning and look at my life a little along the way, too. Maybe some of you can relate to my experiences.
I started riding at 11 years old. My best friend Ashley introduced me to the world of horses. She was taking lessons from a girl in Manheim, Kerra Allen. Kerra was in high school and her family owned a small farm next door to the Gehman's old farm. The Allens owned a herd of Chincoteague ponies.
My very first ride was on an older pony named Rainbow. After that, my main pony was a half blind palomino pony named Heatwave. I rode once a week unless the weather was bad, and I couldn't ride in the summer because the Allens would go to Chincoteague with the ponies. I would drag poor Kerra out in the snow and ice even when ring conditions were bad just so I could get saddle time. Even when I was sick, I would make every effort to ride each week.
That's me on Heatwave on the end at Columbia riding ring for a 4-H show.
Kerra's pony at the time was a Heatwave's sister, Twister, a bright palomino mare with a bit of an additude. I remember thinking e was stunning and wanting to ride her so badly, and eventually I was good enough to ride her. This was definitely my turning point. I liked riding before, but Twister made me horse crazy. She tried to kick me, buck me off, and bite me. She made me earn my right to ride her...and I adored her. After sticking my fair share of bucks and learning to dodge her random attacks, she and I formed a bond I have never had with any other horse. I felt so connected to that pony and still feel connected to her today. She was special. I felt like we could conquer the world together. It became clear that she liked me just as much...I could get that pony to do things for me that she wouldn't do so easily for other people. Even when I would only get to see her once a year after the Allens made a permanent move to Chincoteague, she would still nicker when I came to visit. When she had her first baby and became very protective, she would let me come sit in her stall and play with the baby and bicker at the pair of us. Holy moly I loved that pony and I'm getting teary just thinking about the amazing times I had with her. She was my mount for shows, the drill team, parades, trails...no question which pony I wanted to ride. It was always Twister.
Twister an I at the beach (do as I say, not as I do...always wear a helmet!!!)
Me and Twister performing at the Chincoteague Pony Centre...I have a death grip on the flag!
Beautfiul girl
One of our favorite events...pole bending!
When I was 15 Kerra decided that I needed to ride something bigger and my parents secretly decided to look for a horse of my own. Down the road from the Allens house was Julie Good's farm. Julie had a 15 year old, 16.1 hand chestnut Trakehner mare named Sarasota. Sara was primarily a broodmare, but was sitting in her field getting bored and lonely. Kerra started giving me lessons on Sara, and while at first I was intimidated (Twister was smooth to ride and 14.1 hands, Sara was two hands taller and a huge moving warmblood...big change!) her sweet an forgiving nature made me fall in love. I tried to get out to ride more often and began really learning what it meant to ride a horse. Sara treated me very much like one of her foals and took extremely good care of me, even when I was being just plain stupid or careless. That mare had every right to stomp on me or throw me off, but she was very patient and tried to guide me down the right path.
When I turned 16, my parents surprised me at the barn with Sara wearing a big blue bow around her neck. Julie made it possible for me to own this lovely mare...she saw how much I loved the mare and how much Sara seemed to enjoy having me.
Sara and I never accomplished a whole lot but she taught me a lot about horses and riding. During that phase of my life, I was very depressed. I stayed inside my shell and felt very dead inside many days. Sara was always there for me. I would tell her everything. She let me cry on her shoulder or curl up in her stall. I swear the mare understood when I needed her. She would even chase other people and horses away if I was trying to hide him her stall and stand over me, occasionally checking up on me and being very careful about where she was putting her feet.
I took Sara with me when I went to Wilson College to pursue a B.A. In Equestrian Studies. Horses were the only thing I had any interest for anymore and I couldn't even stomach the idea of pursuing any other degree.
Sara being very tolerant as my mount for a tournament of broomball!
I was still pretty low upon entering college, but Sara helped me come out of my shell freshman year. She was there through thick and thin.
I was getting two lessons a week now and doing on the drill and dressage teams. I was placed in intermediate level riding classes when I entered Wilson but quickly moved to advanced...and I thank all my back yard riding for that!
Sara was getting older and wasn't used to the busier environment and didn't take well to increased work. She was a little nervous and I had trouble keeping weight on her. I decided to move on from Sara and find myself a horse that I could start to show with. So after freshman year, Sara went to a woman named Ildiko in Warrenton, VA. Ildiko was a Trakehner fan and wanted to breed a few mares. We traded. I got the first foal and she got Sara. So at the urging of my parents, who argued that I might not be able to afford a nice horse like Sara again, we bred her. For the record, I didn't want a foal...I was in college, and had no where to keep a foal.
Sara in VA very early in her pregnancy
Poor Sara, Moose made her look like a planet!
Sara and Moose
Sara, Moose, and Me with Ildiko on her mare, Tigger and Tigger's foal, Wart
We chose the stallion Santa Cruz, a grey Oldenburg stallion from Elizabethtown. Sara had a foal by him before with Julie, and I quite liked him.
Santa Cruz, Moose's sire
Santa Cruz
Moose was born a year later and a half sibling born a year after that. then life changed for Ildiko and she could not retire Sara like originally planned, so she came back to me my senior year of College. She didn't hold weight well with the back to back babies so we spent a lot of time putting on weight and muscle. Since she was so skinny I ponied her off another horse for exercise. Eventually she was in good enough condition to ride again. But then one day Sara acted colicky coming in from her field. She sucked up her belly and picked up her hind feet funny and slapped them down when she walked. She only had a small impaction...but the funny walk did not go away.
Sara walked funny for months and her back began to sway and as finally started showing her age. It was hard for me to watch. She always looked so young. We worked with vets to try to figure out what was causing her neurological issues, but all came back inconclusive.
I was contemplating putting her down if she became worse. But she wasn't getting worse so when I graduated, she went to live in Lancaster with my Aunt and mom as a pet. And one day she magically stopped walking funny an never had an issue again, but I never rode he again because I was afraid of causing her walk to come back.
She remained happy and healthy in her retirement until a couple months ago. She crashed mysteriously over the course of a week. The vet said it was probably advanced gastric cancer. Sara made it very clear that this was where she was planning to say goodbye, so we put her down before she had to suffer. If you truly love your horse, you will do them the favor of letting them go before the real suffering begins.
I hope every little horse crazy girl has the chance to own a horse like Sara. I'm very lucky to have Moosey...she is exactly like her mother, so it's like owning Sara all over again.
I'll add pictures later and then continue one with the next horse!
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