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The Unlucky Horses |
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| Posted on: Tuesday, May 18, 2010 |
Category: 'Uncategorized' |
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There’s a little black stallion at my stables. His name is McKenzie, he’s a Shetland pony, and he needs a friend. Not a girlfriend, mind you; we don’t want any hanky-panky going on up there, at least, not for the moment. We don’t want any fighting, either, so another stallion is out of the question. What McKenzie needs is a nice little, even tempered, sexually-snipped companion to help him keep the daisies and dandelions under control. He needs someone other than Chelsea, the fluffy white Swiss sheepdog, to play with him and race him up and down one of the vast, lush, impeccably fenced paddocks. Yes, McKenzie needs a friend, and yesterday, when my friend Steph (who owns the stables) and I hopped into the lorry and set off for a small village in Burgundy, about two hours from home, we thought we’d found him one.
It was while browsing a local equestrian website about a week that I came across a cute little blond guy named Rusty. A six-year-old Shetland pony gelding, Rusty was - according to the blurb - friendly, schooled in the basics, and easy to handle. Pretty photographs portrayed a happy, cheeky little fellow who looked like he’d be perfect company for McKenzie. What could go wrong? How could we be disappointed? It wasn’t as though we were expecting to be presented with an exceptional, elegant, riding pony. We were expecting…well, a Shetland. They’re small and stocky and rugged.
There was a funny moment as we neared our destination. Stephanie frowned, drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, then turned to me wondering whether there was something specific we should request when they showed us the pony. Should we ask to see it trotted up? Giggling, I suggested flexion tests (tests performed on horses by vets to evaluate soundness), and for a couple of kilometers we laughingly extrapolated on ways of ensuring Rusty came with a relatively clean bill of health. But it wasn’t an issue we were particularly worried about; what could go wrong with a Shetland pony?
Oh dear.
Our jaws dropped and our stomachs lurched when we arrived at the so-called “centre” and discovered a spectacle of equine desolation. Trotting anything up was out of the question; apart from one healthy looking little mare being saddled up for a prospective client (this horse clearly didn’t “live” there), the forty horses and ponies on that godforsaken property looked as though they could barely muster enough energy to plod across the field to their water trough. Toast rack ribs poked through pock marked, scabby coats. Long, cracked feet stumbled through thick, oozy mud. Heads drooped, flies swarmed, and desperate noses nuzzled the earth in the hope of finding a clump of decent grass.
We were introduced to Rusty. Maybe he wasn’t toast-rack thin, but he was heartbreakingly apathetic, and the state of his coat made us cringe. He was clearly suffering from some sort of skin disease as vast areas of his body were balding and rubbed raw. When we asked what was wrong with him, we were told the pony had recently been examined by a vet who had been unable to figure out what the problem was, and that therefore it wasn’t anything serious. But wasn’t it contagious? we wondered. Oh, no! Look at all the others; they’re perfectly fine!
Perfectly fine. Yeah, right.
Admittedly, at Steph’s stables, the horses lead extremely pampered lives. Their stables are impeccable, they receive top quality food, are groomed daily from head to toe, their bodies regularly scrutinized for the slightest booboo, their demeanor constantly observed for any sign of distress. They spend a couple of hours every day grazing in individual, regularly rotated, juicy green pastures. They’re shod every five weeks, and wear leg protections when out in the field or being exercised. They’re spritzed with fly-spray, with mane and tail detangling spray, or with whatever kind of spray their wellbeing requires at any given moment. Yes, they’re extremely lucky horses. They’re also happy horses; those expressive eyes and shiny coats don’t lie. Nor do those welcoming whinnies!
Of course, horses and ponies can do perfectly well without all the trimmings ours are fortunate enough to enjoy. The crazy thing is that the young lady who greeted us at the “centre” yesterday is probably a horse lover brimming with good intentions; she was clearly devastated when we regretfully informed her that we wouldn’t be buying Rusty because we couldn’t risk infecting our own horses with some obscure skin disease. I felt terrible, because chances are she was counting on that money to buy a few bales of hay, or a couple of bags of food for her skinny animals. But even if we’d bought that poor pony, the money we’d have paid her would have been spread far too thinly on the remaining forty horses. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and a part of me feels sorry for that misguided young lady, but, seriously, what is she thinking? As we stood there, stroking sad faces, she solemnly told us she’d recently bought nine young horses from Romania.
Does she honestly think she’s doing those Romanian horses a favour? Are they really better off semi-starved and practically crippled in a muddy field hidden away down a dirt track somewhere in the hills of Burgundy? It's not like she’s running a horse rescue centre; she's running a business, buying young horses, breaking them in, and selling them on. But what kind of future will these malnourished, physiologically doomed young horses have? Who will buy them? How long will they suffer?
We drove away thoroughly depressed. I couldn’t help thinking of those sordid stories you read in the  newspapers once in a while about animal protection services discovering cat-crazed individuals sharing tiny living conditions with hundreds of felines. Is Rusty’s “home” in Burgandy a case for the animal protection services? Probably. But there’s only so much the animal protection services can do, and most horse rescues are already overcrowded.
Should we have bought Rusty? Should we have taken on this sad, mangy looking Shetland pony, diving head first into mountains of vet bills in an attempt to nurse him back to health? Should we have risked infecting our healthy horses with some obscure skin disease? The passionate, idealistic, thoroughly incensed horse lover in me is jumping up and down screaming “yes”. But common sense and years of experience as a horse owner insist we were right to walk away from what was bound to become an emotionally draining, financially taxing, long term problem.
Lovely little McKenzie still needs a friend to help him keep the daisies and the dandelions under control. And one of these days we’ll find him one, through word of mouth, or via a reputable breeder.
xx Francesca
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| Comments |
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At 20:03:56 on Wednesday, May 19, 2010, Celia Yeary wrote:
Francesca--this broke my heart. You can't save and nuture every living thing on the face of the earth, that's a fact. I'm just sorry you saw that pathetic little horse and the conditions he and the others lived in, because, knowing you, you'll be unable to push it from your mind. I feel the same way when I see endless photos and pleas for help when animal shelters beg you to take home a kitty or a puppy, or even grown ones who never had a home. But, if I had one wish it would be that every homelss child in the world would have a real home. In other words, the animals touch my heart, too--but little humans? I'm agonized over their plight. Remember, God gave you your own "little acre" to care for--do that well, and you will have fulfilled a basic requirement for all people. Celia
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At 20:57:29 on Wednesday, May 19, 2010, Molly Cloyd wrote:
Cesca, so sad! I'm sure that girl did truly think she was helping - but misguided indeed. I think your instincts and experience led you to the proper decision, albeit a difficult one, to leave Rusty behind. I'll play with McK and the daisies :)
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At 21:21:21 on Wednesday, May 19, 2010, Lindsay Townsend wrote:
Francesca, that is so very sad. Some people should not be allowed to keep animals, especially horses.
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At 09:57:42 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Sheryl Browne wrote:
You're right, Cesca, so very sad that it is. I imagine anyone reading this would want to reach into their pockets...but then, where would it go? How can it help that sad little animal. I think I may cry. :( Bless you for caring for those you have contact with. Sheryl xxx
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At 12:03:07 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Sabina wrote:
So sad. Is there not a branch of the SPA near there that she could contact for some help? Or maybe Brigitte Bardot can come to their rescue...? You did the right thing, as hard as it must have been. Poor Rusty, he looks and sounds like a horse in Karachi. I'm happy to do some sort of fund-raising thing if you and Steph want to help this poor girl and her 9 Romanian horses. What do you think? Even if we collect a couple of 100 euros, its better than nothing.
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At 15:14:09 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Beatrice Trigo da Silva wrote:
Quelle tristesse, tu es bien raisonnable! J'ai moi il s'agit seulement de chats, mais je ne résiste pas à les ramasser.......et merci pour les factures de vet. Mais quelque part ce sont les plus malades et maltraités et plus moches qui sont devenus mes compagnons les plus affectueux et fidèles. J'espère que vous trouvez très vite un ami pour McKenzie. Bizzzzz Bea
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At 15:34:38 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Francesca wrote:
Celia: I'm with you on the homeless children issue; in my perfect world all living creatures would be happy and healthy and we'd all be running around blowing kisses at each other. I love the imagery in the "little acre to care for" - it says it all, doesn't it! Molly: I think McK would love to play with you :)
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At 15:39:57 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Francesca wrote:
Lindsay: thanks for reading. Looking after one horse is already a huge commitment on every level. Looking after 40 horses without adequate resources is simply impossible.
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At 15:48:47 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Francesca wrote:
Sabina: you're a sweetie. Sadly, it's not just 9 horses, it's 40 horses. And even if she sells a few, she'll just buy more. Helping her financially just exacerbates the fundamental problem. It's like buying sickly looking puppies from dodgy places: not a good idea as it fuels this type of market.
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At 15:59:58 on Thursday, May 20, 2010, Francesca wrote:
Sheryl : Oh dear. Tissues all around! Big hugs to you.
Bea: J'ai recueilli des animaux de la SPA, et c'est vrai qu'ils sont souvent parmi les plus affectueux et reconnaissants. Mais ces chevaux n'étaient pas à la SPA, ni dans un refuge genre Darwin (à Genève), et même si c'est très difficile de tourner le dos, je pense qu'il ne faut pas alimenter ce genre de marché car ca ne fait que perpétuer la misère. Mais penses bien que cette vision me poursuit!
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At 08:06:01 on Tuesday, May 25, 2010, Savanna Kougar wrote:
So sad there isn't someone who could help her maintain the horses in a good way. It's been my experience, all too often animals are removed by those who think they own the moral high ground, when in reality, the animals end up in a much worse situation, and these animals would rather had stayed. Often they end up dying out of heartbreak. The person, often an older person, in most cases, just needed some good assistance, a helping hand. Not in every case, of course. There are real problems. But, I've known too many of these cases, plus the cases where healthy animals are taken on some technicality to be resold at a profit. Given my own finances aren't at that level to provide that kind of help, nor am I physically able... well, I wish they were and I wish I was.
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