heartkranch
Well-Known Member
I put him down yesterday around noon. I guess I'll tell the whole story about him, while I'm crying, and wishing I could have him back just 20 years younger.
When I was 6 I got my first pony, who was a witch. I was hurt on my POA to the point I didn't want to get on another horse ever. Parents got rid of her after spraining my ankle from running away from POA while she was chasing me after I fell off of her bucking fits.
I had a pony cross that was about a year old, and my parents wanted me to have something that would take care of me since I was always outside with my parents horses. They gave me a 30 year old lesson horse from a farm I took riding lessons from.
Scotty was stuck by lightning about a month after I got him, took care of him until he was better, and ended up colicing about a year later, vet said he would get better, but passed away in the pasture the day after when I was at school, always haunted me that he suffered. I was so upset that I cried all weekend, and stayed in bed for that weekend.
Of course I was really upset and proven I could care for a horse, so my parents wanted me to have another, I wanted a buckskin, since Scotty was my Buckskin. Well I came home one day and see this drop dead gorgeous HUGE buckskin in the pasture, Named FoxyLeatherBritches
, he was bought from some reining farm, he was a cut olena grandson, and grew too big for his cutting career, but the farm was letting a guy use him, when he was renting a house from us and my parents got him, Britches was roped off of for about 4 years while this guy had him, I watched the horse when I was young at rodeos drag the big bulls out of the arena, I remember he pulled in one that was bigger then him. Of course I fell in love, Rode him almost everyday, big, strong, and everyone always thought he was too big of a horse for me(which he was). He was way too much for me but I was the happiest person in the world even while being thrown in the dirt. He hated play time, but he loved to work whether it was roping, barrel racing, or pulling trees to the burn pile. He always gave his heart to work.
Fast forward to me being 14, I got to ride him in the Mesquite pro Rodeo, did barrels with him, and everything you could imagine.
We ended up going to my trainers for reining training, winning youth in reining in AQHA, then went to barrel racing with friends for 6 years. I quit barrel racing him when he was 24, he won me 1st in pole bending, and 6th in barrel racing in the high school Rodeo my senior year. Won me about 20K before I was even 18, with that money I bought a truck, trailer, and a abused almost 4 year old colt that I fell in love with. They were best friends right from the beginning.
After high school I was basically homeless(sort) for about a year, parents were fighting, my Dad left to be with his gf. I always had my horse trailer hooked up and going to rodeos every other night besides weekends, which I was gone all weekend with him. Sometimes even going to a girls scout camp to teach kids.
After another year a lady wanted a companion horse to her older horse, and while Britches wasn't running any more I let her have him, under the terms that no one would ride him. I gave her to him, his arthritis was already setting in, and just wasn't a horse to run on, when he was bone to bone, in his knees, and hocks, which all four legs would swell with calcium deposits.I go to a Barrel race close to where that lady was, and found her running him.
I begged her to give me him back. She said 2000 since she could still get good times on him every once in awhile, for a 24 year old horse selling that much was crazy but I thought well it's my Britches. Paid for it and left with him at that barrel race, which I won the 2000 that night on that same horse that Britches bought me when I was 18.
I brought him back and he came back to retirement. Tried trails, and he would spook at everything (same places we went when I was young), tried a few things and he just told me it was time for him to quit being rode. He wasn't excited for work anymore he just wanted to be loved on. He only let his colt eat with him.
He got to be the horse that went to the FFA ag in the classroom every year so he could be petted on for a solid day with kids, and he was the one that was every one's favorite to see at the farm. He was always in your business and always keeping my other horses in line, esp Corona my problem child.
I love you Britches, you and Corona are my Once in a lifetime horses, and I owe you everything for keeping me safe through all my dumb ideas, and teaching Corona how to behave, and being his trailer buddy when I told you retirement is sleeping in the pasture everyday. I will miss seeing you at the gate waiting for your grain and making sure no one else was in your way. Walking by me with your ears turn back wishing for me to hurry up, but never being mean to me as much as I teased you. Of course being my shoulder to cry on during my parents divorce, my mothers break downs, and during all my hard lessons growing up. Being the horse that would buck off full grown men but only a few times with me. I wish I could have another just like you but won't ever happen, I wanted you to have a peaseful end and it was.
Corona was still standing by him until we buried Britches last night.
When I was 6 I got my first pony, who was a witch. I was hurt on my POA to the point I didn't want to get on another horse ever. Parents got rid of her after spraining my ankle from running away from POA while she was chasing me after I fell off of her bucking fits.
I had a pony cross that was about a year old, and my parents wanted me to have something that would take care of me since I was always outside with my parents horses. They gave me a 30 year old lesson horse from a farm I took riding lessons from.
Scotty was stuck by lightning about a month after I got him, took care of him until he was better, and ended up colicing about a year later, vet said he would get better, but passed away in the pasture the day after when I was at school, always haunted me that he suffered. I was so upset that I cried all weekend, and stayed in bed for that weekend.
Of course I was really upset and proven I could care for a horse, so my parents wanted me to have another, I wanted a buckskin, since Scotty was my Buckskin. Well I came home one day and see this drop dead gorgeous HUGE buckskin in the pasture, Named FoxyLeatherBritches
Fast forward to me being 14, I got to ride him in the Mesquite pro Rodeo, did barrels with him, and everything you could imagine.
We ended up going to my trainers for reining training, winning youth in reining in AQHA, then went to barrel racing with friends for 6 years. I quit barrel racing him when he was 24, he won me 1st in pole bending, and 6th in barrel racing in the high school Rodeo my senior year. Won me about 20K before I was even 18, with that money I bought a truck, trailer, and a abused almost 4 year old colt that I fell in love with. They were best friends right from the beginning.
After high school I was basically homeless(sort) for about a year, parents were fighting, my Dad left to be with his gf. I always had my horse trailer hooked up and going to rodeos every other night besides weekends, which I was gone all weekend with him. Sometimes even going to a girls scout camp to teach kids.
After another year a lady wanted a companion horse to her older horse, and while Britches wasn't running any more I let her have him, under the terms that no one would ride him. I gave her to him, his arthritis was already setting in, and just wasn't a horse to run on, when he was bone to bone, in his knees, and hocks, which all four legs would swell with calcium deposits.I go to a Barrel race close to where that lady was, and found her running him.
I brought him back and he came back to retirement. Tried trails, and he would spook at everything (same places we went when I was young), tried a few things and he just told me it was time for him to quit being rode. He wasn't excited for work anymore he just wanted to be loved on. He only let his colt eat with him.
He got to be the horse that went to the FFA ag in the classroom every year so he could be petted on for a solid day with kids, and he was the one that was every one's favorite to see at the farm. He was always in your business and always keeping my other horses in line, esp Corona my problem child.
I love you Britches, you and Corona are my Once in a lifetime horses, and I owe you everything for keeping me safe through all my dumb ideas, and teaching Corona how to behave, and being his trailer buddy when I told you retirement is sleeping in the pasture everyday. I will miss seeing you at the gate waiting for your grain and making sure no one else was in your way. Walking by me with your ears turn back wishing for me to hurry up, but never being mean to me as much as I teased you. Of course being my shoulder to cry on during my parents divorce, my mothers break downs, and during all my hard lessons growing up. Being the horse that would buck off full grown men but only a few times with me. I wish I could have another just like you but won't ever happen, I wanted you to have a peaseful end and it was.
Corona was still standing by him until we buried Britches last night.
