My horse of 5 years, Hello Again, better known as Holly, died in her pasture sunday afternoon. She seems to have had an embolism as she died suddenly in apparent excellent health. We buried her on the farm.
I think only phatlewt and crankyasanoldman ever met her but I know a lot of you knew of her. For those of you who didn’t, a few words of rememberance.
Holly was born in the mid-80s, right when I was in my horse-craziest middle-school years. She was my first horse and I bought her with my own money when I was 24. Holly was 16 hh (5’4" at the shoulder) and had a distictive “snowflake” appaloosa pattern on a coat the color of dark chocolate, and a star in the shape of a pentagon in the center of her forehead. In her younger years she competed in hunters on the B circuit in western Michigan.
When she met me in 2000 we began the transition to eventing. She liked some parts of that (cross-country jumping) better than others (dressage). In the five years I owned her, we never had a jumping fault (dropped rail, stop, or runout) in competition. She was always at her happiest going to horse shows, and was seldom seen with her ears pricked unless she was looking directly at a jump.
Over the years, we enjoyed lots of different things: eventing, trail riding, foxhunting, and we even tried jousting a couple of times. She was always up for a new experience and was a very confident horse that like to travel and see the world. Like many mares and most Appaloosas, she had a high opinion of her own opinion.
Holly was my teacher, partner and friend in all that we did together, and she will be greatly missed.
HelloAgain - I’m sorry for your loss. About 7 years ago I lost my mare, Phelan. She was rock-solid. She was a reposessedTrakehner, who I got for a $500 back board bill. She loved dressage and didn’t particularly like jumping, although she’d do it if I asked. She always took care of me. One day, out on the trail, I asked for a canter and she slipped in the mud and went down. She got up before me, and instead of heading back to the barn, she came right over to me and nudged me with her nose, like she was saying, “what’re you doing down there?” Like many grey horses, she had melanoma. I had her vet-checked and bred, and apparently the hormones released in pregnancy made the melanoma go from dormant to active. I tried to keep her alive long enough to have the baby, but I lost them both two weeks before I was to have the baby delivered by C-section. She was my first horse, too, and taught me so much. Three months after she died I bought a yearling TB colt, my Irish. (You’ll have to scroll down past the pic of my farmhouse) He’s a wonderful horse, but I still miss Phelan.
I just wanted to say, reading this paragraph makes me think she was really happy to be with you and you gave her all the love in your heart, and made her life a good one.
I’m sorry to hear of your loss. Love and sympathy.
Hello Again, i offer my deepest condolences. i know it hurts like hell to lose a good horse. cold comfort, perhaps, but at least it was quick and natural. it’s worse when you have to sit with their head in your lap, waiting for the vet to get there.
one of the best things ever is to see your horse being happy in what s/he does. i remember how my old hunter, Bright Promise, never seemed so alive and happy as when he was out with the hounds. that’s the memory to hold on to – how the two of you found your “place” together out there.
We recently lost my sister’s Arab who had lived with us for the past 21 years. Just because he was older doesn’t make it any easier. It hurt like hell that I wasn’t there to say good bye (I live in America now - my home is in England) especially as it all happened so quickly.
You will always miss her forever but at least you have good memories.
That’s what I thought when I lost my cat, Trouble, a couple of weeks ago after 15 years. Turns out not to be the case, since that screen name has become me, I don’t really associate it with him anymore when I’m online.
Hello Again, I’m so sorry about Holly.
I’m so very sorry to hear about your horse. When my dad’s last horse died (which was also an App) he decided that he couldn’t deal with that again and hasn’t owned one since. Thanks for sharing your story with us, it was very touching.
Hello Again I’m so sorry for your loss. Our pets are a part of our lives and families and it hurts no less when we lose one. I wish you peace and strength.
I also want to say how sorry I am for your loss. From reading your post, it is very clear she had a wonderful life. I am glad for both of you, that you were able to share her last 5 years together. Have comfort in knowing she died quickly and painlessly and was a great companion to the end.
Keep your chin up! I hope you feel better soon.