Horses,... The OTHER white meat!

Na... we don't eat our horses! Made you think though huh?!

Currently we have 4 horses:

My 6 year old 16hh APHA Paint gelding named "Ice" (Iceman Zippeth)

My daughter's 6 year old 14hh grade black breeding stock paint mare named "Jewel".

My husband's 6 year old 18hh bay roan Clydesdale gelding named "Rick"

And our newest addition, Jewel's baby- a (now) 6 month old black grade colt named "Leggs". Who is now waiting to be delivered to his new home! And no, we didn't breed her- she came to us that way. (Below is his baby pic, he was only 1 day old!)

The horses are nice "pets" to have. Expensive... but nice. There is nothing more breath-taking than watching a big Clydesdale do a high stepping trot across a fresh snow covered field. It almost makes every dollar you cork into them worth it.

Don't get me wrong I love all of my horses dearly but unless you own horses and keep them on your own farm you don't realize how much they strain your time, and your wallet. Funny, up until I started raising livestock as food I thought horses were the next best thing to gold. Now I just scratch my head as they sit here day in and day out, year after year without "real" purpose (other than the occasional ride) soaking up the finances.

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I remember when I first got into horses years ago. I bought my first horse when I was 27, and spent a whopping $350. on him. He was a 2 1/2 year old grade gelding I named "Dudley" aka: Duddy. That horse was the love of my life! Before I had this farm I used to board him at a local barn for $210.00/month. (I wish it was that cheap to have them at home! I don't know how those places do it!) It was only for about 3 months until we bought this place when he came home. I sure did miss having an indoor arena!

Duddy didn't come to me without problems. He had a club foot on one back foot, and DJD (Degenerative Joint Disease) in his other hind leg. I was aware of his condition prior to buying him through the vet's pre-purchase exam. The vet said he was sound enough for the light riding that I did. (I'm a two speed kind of gal- walk & stop!- I ride maybe 5 times a year) Over the years his conditioned worsened. I did everything I could for him. I had numerous x-rays done on his legs, he was on joint supplements, pain killers..etc. In the pasture he would lay down for hours on end. Everyday I would go out into the pasture to check on him. One of the commands he knew was "Duddy Get up!". It was hard watching him rock onto his rump with his front legs outstretched holding up his weight trying to stand up. As the years past, winters were the hardest- he would continuously go lame.

In the last few years I had him I stopped riding him. He and I resorted to going for walks together down the road. He was like my big over sized dog! It was so peaceful walking him on a quiet country road listening to the sound of his hooves on the pavement and feeling the sun on my face. I always kept him groomed like the finest show horse around and his bay coat just gleamed in the summer sun.

I knew we had come to our end in the winter of 2006. Duddy's legs had become so painful that I couldn't pick his feet anymore. He couldn't even lift a front foot- because it put too much weight on his failing back legs. Every time we had his feet trimmed it was a 3 person job. One to do the trimming, and two to hold up his hind end. No small feet given he was a 1100lb 16hh horse. He never protested though, he knew we were only trying to help. But that was when I knew it was time. I have always said when his quality of life goes downhill and living becomes no fun anymore it's time to go. So I called the vet. and scheduled the euthanasia.