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Comment by Barnmice Admin on March 16, 2012 at 6:38pm

Ok, so now I'm laughing and crying at the same time reading all these stories!

No wonder we choose our contest winners with a draw. It would be IMPOSSIBLE to pick!

 - Barbara

Comment by Emmalia on March 16, 2012 at 6:29pm

I have two amazing thoroughbred/clydesdale mares.  Puzzle is the first one, I've had her for almost 7 years and she's my best friend.  This horse has done it all, and done it all well.  I got her when I was 15 when after riding for ten years my parents finally bought me my dream horse.She was then 4 years old, a big dark bay mare with 4 white socks and a white face.  It was love at first sight and today we have an amazingly strong bond.

My other horse, Waffles, didn't have such a fairy tale story. She came to me about two years ago, as an unbroke, abused, wild 2 year old.  I was living at the barn where her previous owners brought her to be trained.  She was terrified of people, about 500 pounds underweight, and had two large scars on either side of her neck.  Through months of patience and hard work I got her to trust me, however she was too much for her owners to handle and they ended up giving her to me, wrapped in caution tape of course.  She was a handful. It took awhile but last fall we competed in our first show and came out the reserve champions! Today we are gearing up for our first full year of competition together!

These two horses are the best part of my day, they both come when I call them and will willingly follow me around everywhere without any kind of lead line. I love them to bits.

Comment by Gayle Wolfe on March 16, 2012 at 6:16pm

A few months ago I had to make the hardest decision.  My 22- year old Arabian gelding Repryse (Misha) had battled breathing issues for the past several years and finally on August 19, 2011 with his medication no longer giving me relief the decision was made with a heavy heart to put him to sleep.  Being 69 years of age, I had no intention of getting another horse (I still have my 30-year old standardbred pacing mare Easy Date (Flirt).

I have a very good friend (Liza) who obtained an absolutely gorgeous 15.1 hand black Arabian gelding (whose owner was going to university and sadly no longer had the time to share with him) to use as a school horse. 

Chevy (Firefox Kassic Chevy) is a 15.1 hand Arabian gelding who is trained to 3rd level dressage, has done cross country, english, western, hunter, etc.  He is well schooled and great as a school horse, but she wanted someone to ride him and keep him on his toes.  Liza thought he would be a good match for me and introduced me to him.  I rode him a couple of times and we clicked. He had just lost his friend and I had just lost mine.  An arrangement was made with Liza for me to ride, school, train, and keep him in line for the kids to ride. 

A deep companionship has developed between Chevy and me.  He greets me differently than anyone else.  He has certainly been good for me and has helped me with the loss of my beloved Misha.  I hope that I have done to same for him.  I am again looking forward to showing Chevy at our upcoming classes, something that I have not been able to do for the past several years.  But, if that does not happen, I have the enjoyment of riding, grooming, and loving him as well as helping the kids with him.

Chevy is not a replacement for Misha, but he is a wonderful addition to my life.  New ventures have opened up for me that were not possible with Misha because of his health issues. I wll now, hopefully, be able to show again, go on trail rides, and just ride and joy wonderful moments with a wonderful animal.

My thanks go out to Liza for being so intuitive to realize the bond that would develop between two lost souls and to give them both companionship, love and enjoyment that should develop between two living creatures.

Love from Chevy and Gayle (and in memory of Misha)

 

 

Comment by Liza Lapham on March 16, 2012 at 4:10pm

It was a long road to my horse Lizzie but well worth it!

Over the past six years I have been trying to keep working with horses and have a family but having kids was not to be for us. After two partial and a full hysterectomy and with all the healing my riding was put on hold but that didn’t stop my love for horses. I went on to learn to be a coach so that I could keep the ponies I had and still be around them. It was before Christmas and I was looking through the horse ads and saw one for a fabulous chestnut Arabian filly. A horse I had dreamed of owning...so I contacted the lady from the ad and ended up talking with her for quite some time. I was going to arrange to see the filly and start out my adventure with horses yet again. In the day that followed one of our other horses ended up having the vet come three times to treat her for colic. I had to phone the lady with the Arab filly and let her know that at this time due to the cost of the colic treatment and ongoing costs I would have to wait on seeing the filly and asked her to let me know if she sold. To my surprise the lady said that she wanted me to have her and I could come and pick her up and free lease her until I could afford to pay for her. I didn’t wait a moment longer....hooked up the horse trailer....and was off!!!!!!

We arrived at the farm and went to the barn and went to meet Izzabella. We found out her barn name was Lizzie ( Whenever my husband and I talked about kids and names we had picked Izabella for a girl and my nickname is Lizzy). There she was....the sweetest and most beautiful girl. We liked each other instantly and have been together every day since. A few months later we were able to complete the sale and she was mine and I was hers. She has seen me through an acl ligament replacement surgery, a back surgery and now that I am better and she is 3 ½ years old we are both going to begin our riding journey together from the start. I am so excited and I know that what we have shared during this time of not being able to do too much with her due to my medical conditions has strengthened our bond. She has been comforting, a friend, non-judgemental and she is always there.

The doors have opened for Lizzie and I to finally be able to go down the trails, enter her in shows, and just enjoy every moment big and small because what I have learned from my time not being able to ride is that there is more to the horse than what you can sit on. They listen, feel and show love in so many ways.....we just have to be open to listening.

Liza & Lizzie

Comment by Edie Urbasik on March 16, 2012 at 3:11pm

A few months ago I came across this quote and it brought me back to my youth.  The quote read ‘The daughter who can’t keep her room clean is the same one who rides her bike two miles in the pouring rain to muck out stalls.`  It’s been a long time since I felt that way but through my partnership with LongRun, my passion and love for horses (and one in particular) has been rejuvenated. 

Tall Glass.  It was love at first sight.  His eyes captivated me as they peered at me from within his stall yet I tried to remain impartial.  I knew that he had long since retired from racing but last summer was brought back into the program after an unsuccessful adoption.  Ever the skeptic, I figured there had to be reason why he came back.  What was wrong with him I wondered?  I spent nearly an hour with him at his foster farm inspecting, critiquing, judging - waiting for a sign that he was ‘The One’.  Then as I stood in front of him to say good-bye, he lowered his head to my chest and sighed.  He was content and so was I.  And that was the moment I knew this was my horse and I think everyone else there knew as well.  `I think he’s picked you,’ they said.  I was still in the foster farm's driveway when I called LongRun to say‘ He’s the one.  I want to adopt Tall Glass’ and so began the friendship that I had craved since my youth.  Tall Glass came to his forever home in April 2008 and we now call him `Kadin`, which is Arabic for friend.  The name is perfect – just like him.  While I have had to endure many trials and tribulations – I look forward to each and every one as we make this journey of discovery and friendship together.  Everyone always asked `What will you do with him? Hunter, jumper, dressage?' and the answer was always so very simple.  I will love him – that`s what I will do with him.    LongRun filled a void in my life that I did not even know was there. `Bravo!` to LongRun and all their supporters and friends who make this organization successful.  Thanks again to everyone who had a hand in bringing us together.  I will keep the photos coming and keep you posted of our progress.

Oh and the answer to that burning question ... why he came back into the program to be adopted?  I believe he was waiting for me.

Comment by Lynsey Campbell on March 16, 2012 at 2:48pm

We first met our special horse Picasso at a farm where we were riding out of.  I was 15 and he was owned by a lady who rode Western.  Picasso was this big, beautiful black and white paint gelding who just loped around the ring as quiet as can be.  He's 16.1h and slender so he's not your typical quarter horse/paint.  We heard that the lady planned on selling him so my mom thought why not see if he like to jump.  We took him over to another farm and he jumped a full course without even batting an eye!  Needless to say we bought him and he had an amazing carrer in the hunter ring here in Ontario.  He was champion in the Junior Training at least twice and then he went on to win the Beg Children's division on the Ontario A Circuit.  He was then sold down to the States, New Jersey to be exact and we never saw him again....

Last year I decided to try and look for him and after a few months of searching I finally got in contact with his owner.  She was so stunned as she was just about to retire him and no idea what she was going to do.  Her board was $1500/month and she had two horses!  So you could say it was fate...we had him trailered to our farm in Ontario one month later and he's been here ever since!!   He's back home where it all began :)

Comment by Delilah McMillion on March 16, 2012 at 2:12pm

My husband and myself are disabled, and we love animals. An aging couple that we became friends with down the road needed some help with the few dozen horses they have. My husband offered to help, believing it would be therapeutic for him and share some love with the animals. Most of the horses were from auctions, most of which came from loving homes that the owner either was getting too old or couldn't afford them any longer. The owner of the farm warned my husband that they were still not used to their surroundings and wouldn't come up to anyone easily. One beautiful girl in particular, who had been raised in a barn with heating and air, and only outside for limited times. She was unsure of what was going on, no longer having a barn and the owner she had known for years. At the end of the first week, my husband was going around and giving all of the horses their feed along with a little treat for those that would come close enough. He came over to the area of that beautiful girl Samantha, and she walked over and put her head on his shoulder. The owner of the farm see that and talked to my husband when he was done with feeding. She said that Samantha had chosen my husband and if we wanted her, she would allow him to work off what she purchased her for. He jumped at the chance, and that is where our beautiful girl came into our life. My husband and her are inseparable. He talks to her and she answers. She is the perfect fit to our family.

Comment by Kel on March 16, 2012 at 11:35am

I met my wonderful guy on a beautiful spring day in May in 2000. It was after spending months carefully choosing a stallion for my mare and then waiting 11 agonizing months and spending countless nights in the barn waiting for her to foal......after one of those long nights in the barn, I turned her outside for 20 minutes just long enough for me to have a much needed shower and change of clothes, only to find that she had foaled outside in the warm sun on the new green grass, WITHOUT ME! Out I ran to meet my gorgeous little wet chestnut colt. I carried him into the barn, placed him carefully on the deep clean straw bed and watched him have his first meal on unsteady legs. I then over the years, watched him grow into the fabulous, athletic and oh so kind stallion that he is today! His name is Tagaelen and he is now all grown up and competing in Florida, while I winter here in the frozen north and work to pay for it all!

 

Comment by maureen hall on March 16, 2012 at 11:15am

I didn't meet my horse, I made my horse -

In 2005 after a 20 year hiatus from horses we decided as a family to get horses.  Both of our sons, my husband and I were getting horses.  I found a clyde/hackney gelding that just captured my heart.  So much so that I searched out his breeder and bought his full sister so that I could breed her to a beautifu swedish warmblood stallion I had heard about. 

 

As luck would have it the breeder was really looking for some eastern breeders to breed to her stallion - that was located in BC.  She gave me a fantastic deal - no lfg, but one shot of semen at a phenomenal price.  Luckily the mare caught right away.

 

Two weeks before the mare was due to foal I fell on cross country and broke my leg.  The mare foaled at 10:30 pm - luckily I did not have to do night check on crutches.  I watched as he was born and knew it was a boy right away - my dream - my own stallion.  Throughout the summer, with my broken leg I would ride my little ATV out to the field to play with my foal and the bond was made.

We have had our ups and downs with my now 5 yr old but I am thrilled with him - he is training level 2 - I backed and trained him with the help of our coach.  He was a stallion until 3 and we have 2 foals from him.  At 17.3hh it was decided that I was going to ride him so he was gelded shortly after turning 3 and backed 2 months later. 

 

3 months after that he went to his first show and last year as a 4 yr old he won a gold dressage training level championship at one show and was 1 point away from being the reserve champion training level at the gold Ontario Championships. 

Not only under saddle is he a great horse.  I am the only one he really responds too.  I feed him every day and look after him exclusively.  He comes whenever I call and knows my voice instantly. 

 

I truely love this horse and our bond is undeniable.

Comment by jacqueline winkelaar on March 16, 2012 at 11:00am

long time ago I went to Ireland and fell in love with the Irish Hunter or Irish sporthorse. 2years ago I was searching for my first horse and of course It had to be an Irish one. Here in the Netherlands it was a mission impossible....so I continued searching on the Irish and English internet sites. Think I must have seen more than a thousand adds and the only one without picture seemed to be THE one.. I made a list of 3 favorites and we booked our trip to the UK. It was just before xmas and snow covered the country. The moment I saw Courage Mojo it was clear...(the one without picture). As there were no possibilities to see him under the saddle, because of the snow, we went back home to the Netherlands only after seeing him in his stable...love makes blind? I decided to follow my heart and had my Irish hunter transported to the Netherlands. Best decision ever!!

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