Comment

Comment by Jennifer @ Richvale on November 29, 2009 at 12:26pm

I'm happy to be back in the saddle. I like to think of myself as a fine wine "Better with age"

Comment by Ann Hatfield on November 29, 2009 at 12:12am

Thinking of our life spans and the shorter ones of the horses we love reminds me of what a mule breeder told me 5 or 6 years ago, before I got into breeding mules myself. It's a lovely twist. He looked me firmly in the eye, when I said I was interested in owning a mule, and said anyone middle-aged or older, who bought one from him, would be asked to put the mule in the will. I must have blinked. He then told me rather crisply that if I was in good enough shape I could still be riding the mule 30 years hence. Remind me to let you all know how it is going!

Comment by Jane Woods on November 28, 2009 at 3:24pm

@April Keays: I have a Standardbred from Greener Pastures --Donny" -- I got him 2 yrs ago almost to the day & he has been awesome.

Comment by Shirley on November 28, 2009 at 12:50pm

Jan, you say you bought your first horse at 50. How long has that been now? I started at 53~ five years ago.
So glad I did! Bumps and bruises and laughs and swoops and spinning and log mounting and stopping on a dime and head/up with a kiss and the greetings from the pasture when I arrive!
It's great to be with my own horse!
Enjoy!!

Comment by Karen Murphy on November 28, 2009 at 10:00am

Congratulations Jan and have fun!

Comment by Linda White on November 27, 2009 at 10:07pm

Congratulations, Jan! Good times ahead.

Comment by Jan Melchior on November 27, 2009 at 9:17pm

I bought my first horse at 50!

Comment by Barbara Ellin Fox on November 23, 2009 at 1:12am

April,
I know how hard it is to lose your friend. You have my sympathy. He sounds like a great guy who was a huge part of your life.

Comment by Linda White on November 22, 2009 at 4:24pm

What a nice way to honour your horse, April. And I'm with you re: standardbreds - the best kept secret in the riding world. We are seeing many more SBs ridden - on trails, in shows, eventing. It's a good breed.

Comment by April Keays on November 22, 2009 at 1:02pm

Oh, I know. If we have animals in our lives we are going to loose them. But it's still worth having them isn't it?
I lost my 17 year old Appy about a year and a half ago and I'd had him since the day he was born. I expected we would both retire from riding at the same time, but things don't always work out the way we think.
I was at work the day Kiefer broke his leg out in a field he had lived in for six years and the barn manager couldn't get hold of me. The vet was called right away of course and once he saw how bad it was he didn't wait for my permission, he just put him down. It wasn't until I got home from work that I found out via numberous messages on my answering machine that I no longer had a horse.
I'd been there the night he was born and at first I felt that I had let my boy down by not being there at the end, but speaking to my vet later he said it was probably better I hadn't been. Apparently the injury was so bad that even he had been upset dealing with it and it was better that I remember my horse as he had been.
I spent about six weeks "in my cave" grieving, and then close to a year before I felt that I would want another horse. I decided that I wanted to give back something since Kiefer had never been mistreated or even sold for that matter. So perhaps in his honour I would look to a rescue and try to give a good home to a horse who maybe would not have the chance otherwise.
So now I have adopted a little Standardbred from Greener Pastures and I couldn't be happier with him, so life and riding do go on! I have also started volunteering some of my time to this organization as I have become so empressed with this breed and want to do what I can to get the word out there that Standardbreds do not have to end up at the auction house after their racing career is over They are wonderful horses and can be re-trained to just about any discipline.
So. basically this is my tribute to Kiefer. He was a good horse and had a good life and now it's time to give some back.

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