Damn. But, look – I’m 61. I got my first horse at age 43, and after decades of living in Boston moved out to the exurbs because of him.
I used to ride a lot, but now I hardly do. MY two horses are pretty much enormous expensive pets that occasionally have to haul me around a little; today, for example, I rode each one – for all of ten minutes per horse.
If you could be in a place where you had access to rough board, what about taking in a “pasture sound” horse, and giving it a happy, pampered, loved life? The exercise of rough boarding would be good for you without being too strenuous, you’d have horse time without feeling guilty for not riding, and you could make the last years of some old guy very happy.
When I left to do night feeding, it looked like he was being zeroed in by one of the staff. Now there aren’t any anxious humans hanging about, so I figure he’s had at least one meal.
Shaum just went through the agonizingly complex process of figuring out how to fold those long legs to lie down. The landing wasn’t very graceful, but he’s there and all those legs are tidily tucked in now.
ETA: Can’t see Magic too well, but what I can see is reassuring, she looks stronger and more comfortable than an hour ago.
PapSett - Indiana Horse Rescue isn’t too far from you and takes volunteers. Even without riding, you could get the smell of manure on your shoes, and help some horses, too.
As for age, I’ll be 49 in August, just a year younger than you. Age and condition shouldn’t be your stumbling blocks, but money would be, I’m afraid. But there have to be horse people in your area - it can’t be that different from Nashville, where there are horses both within the city limits and just outside. I think it would do you good, both physically and emotionally, to reconnect with the horse side of your life. Nobody expects you to become an Olympic rider. But I’ve seen some very large people on horses, and both the horse an the rider do just fine.
Maybe if your financial situation improves some day, or you make a connection with someone who would allow you to pasture board for just the cost of feed, you can get another horse. Irish only costs me $20/mo in grain ( and he’s a TB) plus hay in the winter and farrier trims. Nakota is proving to be more expensive. She was thin when I got her and I’m pouring expensive Triple Crown feed into her. But many horses are very easy keepers.
Good luck. Don’t give up on your dreams, because they only really die when you give them up.
^ This. This is wisdom. PapSett, I truly believe you will be able to find a way to get horses back into your life and heart.
Hey, StG, you feed Triple Crown too? I’ve been feeding their Senior for years and it’s great stuff. The Horse Journal did a survey of feed manufacturers a while ago, sending them a questionnaire to find out how they source their ingredients, with an eye to assuring the quality and avoiding contaminants. Only a handful replied, and Triple Crown was one of the very few who gave full strong answers to the questionnaire. I was highly impressed with their standards.
I love both of the Elements Arabian foals so much. I hope they keep them on camera for a little while so we can enjoy the cuteness. I’m surprised that Dream hasn’t done anything yet. She’s had people in and out of her stall all day watching her, plus 2 dogs.
Boy, that’s a question with so many variables, it’s hard to say. Among them: Worth of the mare, fame/record of the sire, part of the country, popularity of the breed in that area and in the purchaser’s area if different, intended use of the foal and popularity of that use in the area where he’s foaled and the area where the buyer resides – and that’s before you even start to look at the conformation of the colt himself, what quality he is. Is he a color that’s in hot demand? What age do you buy him – weanling? Yearling? Long yearling (18 months old)? Two years old? ETA: That foal of Pearl’s at True Colours was sold in utero!
I’m sure there are other factors, but those are what pop to mind immediately.
There are foals – of good quality – that are dumped at auctions for 25 bucks to the meat buyer. There are foals of comparable quality that sell for hundreds of dollars. There are foals that sell for thousands. Tens of thousands.
Interaction I just watched with Mandy/Barry/Large Lady:
LL, petting Mandy: “you’re such a good girl, aren’t you”
B: looks at LL
M: standing nicely, eating hay
LL: pets Barry “good boy, aren’t you a good boy”
B: looks at LL’s boob chomp
LL: “NO!” wags finger “No no! bad boy!”
B: I’M A BUCKING BRONCO, OBEY ME!!! rears up and attacks LL
LL: “NO! BAD!”
B: looks at fresh hay that M is eating kick kick thrash thrash
LL: “No!”
B: pees on hay
LL: … walks away.
Yeesh. It’s funny, yeh, but that is a big strong colt with a powerful personality who is going to grow up to be a big strong horse with a powerful personality. He needs to learn now, when he’s still a baby, that you do not transgress certain limits with the humans. Most especially you do not rear up and attack a human.
I hope to God they have a good trainer who will put some manners on that colt, and that those people don’t let Barry get away with all this “cute” crap.
Actually, this new job I started the first of March pays very well, once I get up to regular pay. I’ll be getting 3 raises a year, and the idea of getting another horse in a year or 2 has been running thru my head very strongly. I would love a nice calm draft cross; I have no desire to go endurance riding like I did when I was much younger (and thinner).
StgG- I actually did contact the rescue, filled out the application, but when I explained to them that I have arthritis in my spine and can’t do any really HEAVY work beyond cleaning a stall or 2, grooming and general handling, they never contacted me back. Also, a friend of mine was volunteering there and while he was cleaning a stall, the horse in it attacked him, broke one leg, left for a moment then came back and broke the other. He was very inexperienced with horses, and to me, that seems sort of poorly thought out, to put someone that doesn’t know horses with a horse that might have that aggressive tendancy, unattended.
I put an ad on Craigslist early last summer just looking for horse contact, got a couple of replies, only 1 real invitation, and she was almost an hour away from me. I went up once and spent a couple hours playing with her horses, tried to stay in touch, but we eventually lost contact.
There used to be quite a few stables in Evansville, but most are gone now. We used to have local level horse shows every other weekend at the 4h center… I don’t think there are ANY these days. Seems horses are an endangered species here now.
This is why I live thru you lucky ones who still have your horses. You will never know how eagerly I devour your stories and pictures. You fuel my soul.
sigh If only this ad came a little later for me, I would be ON IT. Just not in the position yet. I KNOW an Arab would be too small for me to ride, anything under 15.3 or so and I would feel cruel.
Peeked in on little Shaum and he was bouncing around in a tight little circle, it looked like he made himself dizzy!
Also, a friend of mine was volunteering there and while he was cleaning a stall, the horse in it attacked him, broke one leg, left for a moment then came back and broke the other. He was very inexperienced with horses, and to me, that seems sort of poorly thought out, to put someone that doesn’t know horses with a horse that might have that aggressive tendancy, unattended.