Charlie
Charlie - Oh Charlie - how did you end up at the gates of hell? Charlie has been here for about 2 months now - made his way up from the Lone star killpen in Texas - I can not find one mean bone in this little guys body :) We have taken him on several in hand trail walks..... nothing fazed him - i have touched him ALL over - nope didnt flick an ear. He has been sharing Tommys night time space - locked in the small pen for a few nights but i think the sound of metal gates reminded him of the killpen. he never settled in there so i let him out to fend for himself with Tommy, as the nights are getting colder i can image him standing just outside the stall because Tommy has to be side to blocking the way - so i thought we would switch tommy and Thor (who once again has been playing babysitter to Charle :) it is working ok - i would rather have them each have their own stall but at least they are somewhat equal - Charlie gets his way more then not because Thor is just that nice. He has seen the farrier a couple of times but has very short hooves - they stopped chipping and are looking healthier but man they are slow to grow. All was good with the vet. Kristen Kramer has been coming to play with Charlie - she has noticed the same thing Mary and I have - he is very "obedient" "does everything right" "what some might call dead broke" but he has no fun at all. Our hope for him is to find someone that will work AND play with him - someone that will take him on trail rides and let him eat on the lawn and braid his mane - someone that wont just ask what he can do for them but what they can do for HIM! He is a very special boy that needs alot of love - he is the kind of horse i worry about being used hard because he just does it - no complaint - no fuss - it would be really easy for the wrong person to get him and think how dead broke he is and he can be used by everyone and anyone. NOPE ! wont happen. If you have some horse experience and some 12 year old girl horse love to spare - Charlie may be looking for you. He obviously lost someone he loved and we are on a mission to find him someone to fill that void.
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Imagine living with the same family for 20 years. Fed and loved daily, you spend your days hanging in the pasture and toting the kids around the door yard as your led with a gentle hand. One day you are asked to get in a big dark box, trustingly you walk in, the door shuts behind you. Never again will you see your pasture mates, never again will you see your stall, never again will you see your kids that you lovingly walked around each weekend. Your world has changed forever. The days and weeks that follow are full of fear, hunger, confusion and sadness. You are told to get in that dark box time and again. Each time you step off there is another pen full of scared and hungry horses. Where is my family? When are they going to come get me? You are asked to get in a bigger box, this person seemed a bit friendlier, but you rode in that box for hours, for days ...... Where am i going? what am i going to find at the end of this trip? The doors open, you smell salt in the air. you are led to a big field full of grass, hay, water and other horses that are munching on their hay. You are still scared but at least these people are not yelling, they are patting you gently and giving you time to know you are safe. The weeks and months pass and the people continue to be nice, to play with you and take you for walks. You start to trust that you are going to be ok, but something is still missing... Where is my person? Someone that loves me and spends time with me and brushes and talks to me. Someone that i can call mine. People come and visit and then they leave , there is always my stall that is mine and my friends in the pasture, especially a big brown guy that i feel very safe beside. One day a girl comes to visit and she is so nice, so loving - when she pats me i feel warm all over. She got on my back to see if i would let her ride me and it pinched a muscle in my back and i bucked... oh why did i do that! i didnt mean to scare her - she patted me after and said good bye - I hung my head and went back to my friends - The big brown horse said "you shouldnt have done that" I hung my head and thought i would never see that girl again. A few days later the people asked me to get in another dark box - were they sending me away again because i bucked? would i end up in another pen full of scared hungry horses? The fear started to creep into my belly again. We traveled for hours and the air was getting colder. I didnt mind that because i already was growning a nice thick coat. The smell of the ocean was replaced by earth. When the doors were finally opened i stepped off and there she was, the girl that i had seen days before. She took the rope and layed a hand on my neck. The fear that had been creeping up in my belly was gone and all i could feel was warm and fuzzy, even though it was really cold. There were 2 pretty girls in the pasture waiting to meet me and a warm stall with hay in the corner. I knew at that moment I was Home
Charlie found his forever barn - From a Texas killpen to a barn in Presque Isle - He has his forever girl that hopes one day to teach him to once again lead kids around on his back and teach them how much love, hope and trust a horse can give. This Thanksgiving i am thankful we could be part of Charlies quest to find the place he was always meant to be - no more bucking Charlie |
Charlie hanging with Magic in his pasture in Presque Isle a little more then a year later
June 13 2021
Two years ago today, standing all alone in a lot at Lone Star Killpen in Texas, was a little grey gelding. Known only as 1411, he was scared and hungry. Two years later, Charlie is happy and has his own girl that loves him dearly. Not scared, not alone and not hungry Today is Charlies Freedom Ride Anniversary Way to go Charlie |