Lil' Horse Lover
Well-Known Member
Well I am posting this in loving memory of my very first miniatur horse "Spirit Thunders Portentos Smoke" a.k.a "Smokie".
: He died last year on December 23, 2005, when he was just ten months old. He died from colic, although we still don't know exactly why, the vet figured that his intestine was severely twisted. I got him when he was just two weeks old, he was born February 14, 2005 (yep on Valentines day). He was a surprise for my 15th birthday. I got him from Jessica Matheson of Spirit Thunder Miniature Horses.
Well I'll give you the quick version of how I got him and some of what went on during his short but fulfilling life, sorry if this is long, but its the shortest I could get it.
Well I was your average 14 yr. old horse lover and had just discovered a new breed of horse that I had fallen in love with and just HAD to have one. The only problem was that all I had to spend was the $150 that I had saved up from working. But I was determined to have one.
I had begun to search for mini ranches around here and see if anyone would sell me one for $150. Well I came across Jessica Matheson's website and saw that she had some cheap foals for sale for about $200 for a colt. Well I asked her if she would sell me one for $150, she said that she would so I went to ask my parents. My mom told me that I didn't have time to deal with a wild colt and school right now so I should just wait and see if I could get one in the spring. So I told Jessica that it would be best for me to wait and asked if she would have any foals that next year that she would let me buy for $150, she said that she would sell me a pet quality colt for $150. So now I just had to wait until she had a mare that would foal a pet quality colt without any major health or conformation problems.
A few months went by and her mares had started off with the foaling season. About four mares had foaled before I finally got the e-mail with the good news, one of her mares had foaled an all black pet quality colt. I was SO excited. She said that she would let me take him and his dam to my house when he turned two weeks old, I couldn't wait, I had already named him too, I had decided to name him Smokie. Two days passed and I got a very sad call. It was Jessica calling to tell me that she's very sorry but Smokie had died that morning, for no apparent reason. Of course I was crushed and didn't think I would ever get my mini foal. But I had faith and kept praying. A couple more mares had foaled and I was looking on her website and noticed that one of her mares had foaled on February 14 (Valentines day) a pure black colt and just out of curiosity I had asked her if that foal would be one that she would sell to me for $150. Well she e-mailed me back a said that he was a high show quality colt and had already been sold. I had almost run out of hope.
Well this was February and my 15th birthday was coming up in March so my mom came to me and asked me if I would like to go to Jessica's place to see her minis and go with her to deliver the black colt who was now two weeks old. Well we left early in the morning and got there close to noon. We spent about an hour walking around and looking at the minis, the majority of the time I spent there was getting pictures of the little black colt that would be going to his new home today, I thought he was SO CUTE and just had to get pictures of him before he left cause I probably would never see him again. Well it soon came time to leave to go deliver the colt so we loaded up the colt and his dam (CC) into the trailer and I went with Jessica and my mom went home. Jessica said that before we deliver the colt that she would like to see my place and the stall that I have set up for a foal, just to be sure that its foal proof. But first we had to pick up one of Jessica's friends that wanted to go check out my place too. Then we went to my house and just left the mare and colt in the trailer. Well they looked around and approve the stall and round pen then we started walking back to the trailer because it was time for them to leave. When we were close to the trailer it was time to say goodbye, so we hugged, I said thank you and then my mom says, "Anna could you help Jessica get the horses out of the trailer?" Well my first thoughts were "ok, so mom wants dad to see the horses before they go, ok" Then my mom says, "Anna, do you know why?" Then I thought for a second and said, "no" Then I looked over at Jessica and then at my mom and then I said, "OH MY GOSH!" My mom nodded and said, "yes Anna, he's yours!" I was shocked and couldn't think of anything else to say but thank you and oh my gosh. I was SO shocked!!! We went to the trailer and I was able to carry the colt all the way to the barn, he was mine! I got him to the stall and then was ready for an explanation. My mom said that after the first colt died that Jessica felt bad and decided to let me have this colt. I asked how we were to pay for him and Jessica and my mom had made a trade, my mom would train Jessica’s full sized Appy in trade for this colt. I WAS SO HAPPY! Well we got him in his stall, got some pictures, and then I was left alone with him, I just couldn't leave the barn! Eventually my mom made me come inside and go to bed, but I was up bright and early the next morning. I spent all the time that I could with him, which it was kind of hard because I was also in school, so I would go spend time with him early in the morning before I had to leave for school and then I would spend the whole rest of the day with him once I got home from school. I named him Smokie, after the colt that had died.
About a week passed and I was walking home from school and noticed that our vet had her truck parked in front of the barn, my heart raced and thoughts flew through my head about what could have happened. I saw the vet and my mom hovered around Smokie and I ran to the barn. When I got there he had an IV in his neck and was given fluids. The vet said that she expected that he was nibbling too much straw and was now backed up with it, plus he was VERY dehydrated. The vet said that if my mom had called any later then he would have been too far gone to save. Of course I was extremely worried and was constantly praying to God to save him. Well I spent that night with him in his stall and spent all day with him for about a week. My mom tried getting me to come inside and let him be but I just couldn't. He had to be given fluids about three times a day for about a week or until he was all better. With just a few days he was getting better so we started turning him out in the corral during the day, I stayed out with him all day and even fell asleep next to him on a blanket, and throughout this all we formed an unbreakable bond. He was all better within two weeks and was completely back to normal being the little stinker that he was.
When he turned three months old I decided that I wanted to bless others and take him to nursing homes, hospitals, and schools. Then I started bringing him in the house, I would just turn him loose and he would literally follow me around the house like a dog. I would put the movie Black Beauty on and he would just love it. He would trot around the living room and whinny! He never ceased to amaze me!
Freshly weaned and four months old we took him to his first school visit. He visited a local elementary school and went to each classroom. The kids were so surprised and happy to see such a little horse, he was only about 25" tall or so. We spent about 15 mins. in each classroom then moved on, we spent about an hour there altogether. Then it was time to load him back up in the back of the suburban and headed home.
After we saw how well he did here we decided it was time to visit the nursing homes. We set up times with about five or six different nursing homes and I would have to say that during our visits at each nursing home the patients there were not the only ones tremendously blessed, so was I. At our nursing home visits we met many elderly people and heard many stories of their childhood and before they came to the nursing homes, it was interesting to find that many of them had owned horses before; I had a great time talking to these people. Of course you will get some people who love to have a horse come visit them but then you get some that just seem to be totally against it, out of all the people at each nursing home there was only one who wasn't so happy about having a horse in her room, that is until she was able to get acquainted with Smokie, as a matter of fact after she got to know Smokie even she didn't want him to leave. It was clear to me that he had brightened up her day; even though she denied it you could see it in her face. Smokie touched many lives and blessed many people, including myself. I had hoped that he would be able to continue on doing this for many years.
I also took Smokie to our Bonner County Fair that we have in town every year and he was allowed to walk around inside all the buildings and everyone absolutely loved him!
Well that is the quick run down of his life here, now here is where things went totally wrong.
It was early morning on December 20th, 2005. Smokie was 10 months old. I went out to feed Smokie and when I looked in his stall he was lying down up against the wall and was obviously in a lot of pain. Right away I had suspected colic, because I had dealt with it before. I ran inside to get my mom and she came out after she had called the vet, we started walking him. My mom and I switched off and on. I would watch him from about 6:00 am to about 12:00 am that night and my mom would watch him from 12:00 am that night to about 6:00 am the next morning.
On the second day he seemed to be doing better but still was far from his normal self. Since he seemed to be feeling better I decided to just turn him loose out in the yard (no fences or gates, he has NEVER even attempted to leave the property before, he ALWAYS stayed home) for a while so he could walk around and dig up the grass that wasn’t covered in snow. I was only inside for about 10 minutes before our neighbor came to our door and said that one of our horses was down the road standing under some trees. I was shocked that he had run away and so I ran out there to get him. Like our neighbor said he was standing under some trees with his little head hanging low, I felt so bad for him, right then I thought to myself, “he must be running away to dieâ€. I brought him back to the house and we went to the barn and lay down. He slept for an hour or so then we just stayed in the barn, I just watched over him all day. Then my mom came out and told me to go inside and get some rest.
The third and last day of his life was the hardest and worse for me and Smokie. It was 9:00 am or so on the 23rd and I was walking Smokie around the house, he seemed fine, a little tired but ok. I was just walking in front of him when all of the sudden he collapsed. I couldn’t get him up; he just laid there and closed his eyes. His breathing was slow and heavy; I knew something in his body went terribly wrong. I ran inside and got my mom then we carried him into the barn and laid him down. I stayed there with him while my mom went inside to call the vet again. After about an hour or so I knew in my heart that Smokie was dying. I just knew it. Another hour goes by and now when I was to look in his eyes they were foggy and glossy and he wasn’t responding like he should. Right then I knew that he wouldn’t be with me for too much longer; he was in shock and dying. I kept trying to tell myself that he’ll make it through, he’ll pull through, but then I just had to face it, he was dying. That’s when I decided to cut a handful of his mane hairs to keep in memory of him. I took some scissors that were next to me and cut a handful of his mane off, for the next hour all I could do was sit there and cry, and praying that somehow he could live. About an hour later my mom came in the barn crying and told me straight forward, even though in my heart I already knew it. She said “Anna, Smokie’s going to dieâ€. I just told her that I already knew that and had already said goodbye, in words and in my heart. Another couple hours had passed and my mom came in and asked me if I just wanted our vet to come out and put him to sleep, just to end it now. I told her that I thought it was the best thing; I just didn’t want him to be in pain any longer. So I told her to call the vet back and we’ll put Smokie out of his misery, it’s what’s best for him. Another hour went by and during that time my dad and my brother were digging Smokie’s grave, I was sitting in the barn with Smokie holding him down because every time he got up he would just fall back down again, time after time. It was so hard for me to look into his eyes that were calling out to me to help him, to take the pain away, and I couldn’t, knowing that is what hurt me the most. I cried more in that hour than all the other times put together. That hour was Smokie’s last. Before the vet would have arrived Smokie had died with his little head resting in my arms. Before he took his last breath I whispered in his ear, “I love you Smokie, and I’ll never forget you, never, I love you baby, I love youâ€. Then he went, he was gone. My very first miniature horse was dead, he died in my arms. Although this was very hard for me and was very sad I am very thankful to God for the times that I had with him and I was very blessed for all the people that Smokie was able to bless with his short but fulfilling life. He is known around here as “the little horse with a BIG heartâ€. He will be forever missed and will forever remain in my heart, and will never be forgotten. In Loving Memory of Smokie, my very first miniature horse.
Right after arriving home~
An hour or so after arriving home~
2 weeks old, he's SO CUTE!!~
First time in town, 3 months old~
On our way to town, 4 months old~
At a nursing home, 4 months old~
At a nursing home, 4 months old~
6 months old, at the fair~
At the fair~
At the fair, little girls loved him!~
And so did the little boys!~
At a birthday party, 7 months old~
About 2 weeks before he died~
Well I'll give you the quick version of how I got him and some of what went on during his short but fulfilling life, sorry if this is long, but its the shortest I could get it.
Well I was your average 14 yr. old horse lover and had just discovered a new breed of horse that I had fallen in love with and just HAD to have one. The only problem was that all I had to spend was the $150 that I had saved up from working. But I was determined to have one.
I had begun to search for mini ranches around here and see if anyone would sell me one for $150. Well I came across Jessica Matheson's website and saw that she had some cheap foals for sale for about $200 for a colt. Well I asked her if she would sell me one for $150, she said that she would so I went to ask my parents. My mom told me that I didn't have time to deal with a wild colt and school right now so I should just wait and see if I could get one in the spring. So I told Jessica that it would be best for me to wait and asked if she would have any foals that next year that she would let me buy for $150, she said that she would sell me a pet quality colt for $150. So now I just had to wait until she had a mare that would foal a pet quality colt without any major health or conformation problems.
A few months went by and her mares had started off with the foaling season. About four mares had foaled before I finally got the e-mail with the good news, one of her mares had foaled an all black pet quality colt. I was SO excited. She said that she would let me take him and his dam to my house when he turned two weeks old, I couldn't wait, I had already named him too, I had decided to name him Smokie. Two days passed and I got a very sad call. It was Jessica calling to tell me that she's very sorry but Smokie had died that morning, for no apparent reason. Of course I was crushed and didn't think I would ever get my mini foal. But I had faith and kept praying. A couple more mares had foaled and I was looking on her website and noticed that one of her mares had foaled on February 14 (Valentines day) a pure black colt and just out of curiosity I had asked her if that foal would be one that she would sell to me for $150. Well she e-mailed me back a said that he was a high show quality colt and had already been sold. I had almost run out of hope.
Well this was February and my 15th birthday was coming up in March so my mom came to me and asked me if I would like to go to Jessica's place to see her minis and go with her to deliver the black colt who was now two weeks old. Well we left early in the morning and got there close to noon. We spent about an hour walking around and looking at the minis, the majority of the time I spent there was getting pictures of the little black colt that would be going to his new home today, I thought he was SO CUTE and just had to get pictures of him before he left cause I probably would never see him again. Well it soon came time to leave to go deliver the colt so we loaded up the colt and his dam (CC) into the trailer and I went with Jessica and my mom went home. Jessica said that before we deliver the colt that she would like to see my place and the stall that I have set up for a foal, just to be sure that its foal proof. But first we had to pick up one of Jessica's friends that wanted to go check out my place too. Then we went to my house and just left the mare and colt in the trailer. Well they looked around and approve the stall and round pen then we started walking back to the trailer because it was time for them to leave. When we were close to the trailer it was time to say goodbye, so we hugged, I said thank you and then my mom says, "Anna could you help Jessica get the horses out of the trailer?" Well my first thoughts were "ok, so mom wants dad to see the horses before they go, ok" Then my mom says, "Anna, do you know why?" Then I thought for a second and said, "no" Then I looked over at Jessica and then at my mom and then I said, "OH MY GOSH!" My mom nodded and said, "yes Anna, he's yours!" I was shocked and couldn't think of anything else to say but thank you and oh my gosh. I was SO shocked!!! We went to the trailer and I was able to carry the colt all the way to the barn, he was mine! I got him to the stall and then was ready for an explanation. My mom said that after the first colt died that Jessica felt bad and decided to let me have this colt. I asked how we were to pay for him and Jessica and my mom had made a trade, my mom would train Jessica’s full sized Appy in trade for this colt. I WAS SO HAPPY! Well we got him in his stall, got some pictures, and then I was left alone with him, I just couldn't leave the barn! Eventually my mom made me come inside and go to bed, but I was up bright and early the next morning. I spent all the time that I could with him, which it was kind of hard because I was also in school, so I would go spend time with him early in the morning before I had to leave for school and then I would spend the whole rest of the day with him once I got home from school. I named him Smokie, after the colt that had died.
About a week passed and I was walking home from school and noticed that our vet had her truck parked in front of the barn, my heart raced and thoughts flew through my head about what could have happened. I saw the vet and my mom hovered around Smokie and I ran to the barn. When I got there he had an IV in his neck and was given fluids. The vet said that she expected that he was nibbling too much straw and was now backed up with it, plus he was VERY dehydrated. The vet said that if my mom had called any later then he would have been too far gone to save. Of course I was extremely worried and was constantly praying to God to save him. Well I spent that night with him in his stall and spent all day with him for about a week. My mom tried getting me to come inside and let him be but I just couldn't. He had to be given fluids about three times a day for about a week or until he was all better. With just a few days he was getting better so we started turning him out in the corral during the day, I stayed out with him all day and even fell asleep next to him on a blanket, and throughout this all we formed an unbreakable bond. He was all better within two weeks and was completely back to normal being the little stinker that he was.
When he turned three months old I decided that I wanted to bless others and take him to nursing homes, hospitals, and schools. Then I started bringing him in the house, I would just turn him loose and he would literally follow me around the house like a dog. I would put the movie Black Beauty on and he would just love it. He would trot around the living room and whinny! He never ceased to amaze me!
Freshly weaned and four months old we took him to his first school visit. He visited a local elementary school and went to each classroom. The kids were so surprised and happy to see such a little horse, he was only about 25" tall or so. We spent about 15 mins. in each classroom then moved on, we spent about an hour there altogether. Then it was time to load him back up in the back of the suburban and headed home.
After we saw how well he did here we decided it was time to visit the nursing homes. We set up times with about five or six different nursing homes and I would have to say that during our visits at each nursing home the patients there were not the only ones tremendously blessed, so was I. At our nursing home visits we met many elderly people and heard many stories of their childhood and before they came to the nursing homes, it was interesting to find that many of them had owned horses before; I had a great time talking to these people. Of course you will get some people who love to have a horse come visit them but then you get some that just seem to be totally against it, out of all the people at each nursing home there was only one who wasn't so happy about having a horse in her room, that is until she was able to get acquainted with Smokie, as a matter of fact after she got to know Smokie even she didn't want him to leave. It was clear to me that he had brightened up her day; even though she denied it you could see it in her face. Smokie touched many lives and blessed many people, including myself. I had hoped that he would be able to continue on doing this for many years.
I also took Smokie to our Bonner County Fair that we have in town every year and he was allowed to walk around inside all the buildings and everyone absolutely loved him!
Well that is the quick run down of his life here, now here is where things went totally wrong.
It was early morning on December 20th, 2005. Smokie was 10 months old. I went out to feed Smokie and when I looked in his stall he was lying down up against the wall and was obviously in a lot of pain. Right away I had suspected colic, because I had dealt with it before. I ran inside to get my mom and she came out after she had called the vet, we started walking him. My mom and I switched off and on. I would watch him from about 6:00 am to about 12:00 am that night and my mom would watch him from 12:00 am that night to about 6:00 am the next morning.
On the second day he seemed to be doing better but still was far from his normal self. Since he seemed to be feeling better I decided to just turn him loose out in the yard (no fences or gates, he has NEVER even attempted to leave the property before, he ALWAYS stayed home) for a while so he could walk around and dig up the grass that wasn’t covered in snow. I was only inside for about 10 minutes before our neighbor came to our door and said that one of our horses was down the road standing under some trees. I was shocked that he had run away and so I ran out there to get him. Like our neighbor said he was standing under some trees with his little head hanging low, I felt so bad for him, right then I thought to myself, “he must be running away to dieâ€. I brought him back to the house and we went to the barn and lay down. He slept for an hour or so then we just stayed in the barn, I just watched over him all day. Then my mom came out and told me to go inside and get some rest.
The third and last day of his life was the hardest and worse for me and Smokie. It was 9:00 am or so on the 23rd and I was walking Smokie around the house, he seemed fine, a little tired but ok. I was just walking in front of him when all of the sudden he collapsed. I couldn’t get him up; he just laid there and closed his eyes. His breathing was slow and heavy; I knew something in his body went terribly wrong. I ran inside and got my mom then we carried him into the barn and laid him down. I stayed there with him while my mom went inside to call the vet again. After about an hour or so I knew in my heart that Smokie was dying. I just knew it. Another hour goes by and now when I was to look in his eyes they were foggy and glossy and he wasn’t responding like he should. Right then I knew that he wouldn’t be with me for too much longer; he was in shock and dying. I kept trying to tell myself that he’ll make it through, he’ll pull through, but then I just had to face it, he was dying. That’s when I decided to cut a handful of his mane hairs to keep in memory of him. I took some scissors that were next to me and cut a handful of his mane off, for the next hour all I could do was sit there and cry, and praying that somehow he could live. About an hour later my mom came in the barn crying and told me straight forward, even though in my heart I already knew it. She said “Anna, Smokie’s going to dieâ€. I just told her that I already knew that and had already said goodbye, in words and in my heart. Another couple hours had passed and my mom came in and asked me if I just wanted our vet to come out and put him to sleep, just to end it now. I told her that I thought it was the best thing; I just didn’t want him to be in pain any longer. So I told her to call the vet back and we’ll put Smokie out of his misery, it’s what’s best for him. Another hour went by and during that time my dad and my brother were digging Smokie’s grave, I was sitting in the barn with Smokie holding him down because every time he got up he would just fall back down again, time after time. It was so hard for me to look into his eyes that were calling out to me to help him, to take the pain away, and I couldn’t, knowing that is what hurt me the most. I cried more in that hour than all the other times put together. That hour was Smokie’s last. Before the vet would have arrived Smokie had died with his little head resting in my arms. Before he took his last breath I whispered in his ear, “I love you Smokie, and I’ll never forget you, never, I love you baby, I love youâ€. Then he went, he was gone. My very first miniature horse was dead, he died in my arms. Although this was very hard for me and was very sad I am very thankful to God for the times that I had with him and I was very blessed for all the people that Smokie was able to bless with his short but fulfilling life. He is known around here as “the little horse with a BIG heartâ€. He will be forever missed and will forever remain in my heart, and will never be forgotten. In Loving Memory of Smokie, my very first miniature horse.
Right after arriving home~
An hour or so after arriving home~
2 weeks old, he's SO CUTE!!~
First time in town, 3 months old~
On our way to town, 4 months old~
At a nursing home, 4 months old~
At a nursing home, 4 months old~
6 months old, at the fair~
At the fair~
At the fair, little girls loved him!~
And so did the little boys!~
At a birthday party, 7 months old~
About 2 weeks before he died~
