Andalusian- Is a romantic breed that was perfected in the 15th century and was cherished by the Spanish as a superior war horse. It’s docile temperament, strength, stamina and elegance are traits of the Andalusian that made it a desirable breed of it’s time. This was the horse Kings and Queens dreamed of owning. The Duke of Newcastle, in 1667, wrote of the Andalusian, “it is the noblest horse in the world, the most beautiful that can be. He is of great spirit and of great courage and docile; hath the proudest trot and the best action in his trot, the loftiest gallop, and is the lovingest and gentlest horse, and fittest of all for a king in his day of triumph.” In the 19th century the breed came close to extinction due to warfare, mixed breeding and disease. A small group of Carthusian monks helped to keep the breed alive. Even after the breed was out of the danger zone, numbers of Andalusians were still low until the 1960’s when they were finally allowed to be exported. To this day registries argue over the Andalusian study book and the pureness of the breed. Only a PRE (Pura Raza Espanola) is considered to be of pure Andalusian bloodlines. To own a PRE Andalusian is to own a part of history.
American Saddlebred- This is a newer breed of horse, bred in America during the Revolution and was primarily used as officer mounts. They caught on because of their “style” and the held up better than other breeds during brutal battles. They are tall and lanky and stand at attention at all times which emphasises their showy style. When the war ended they became a popular in the show ring and became known as the “peacock” of horses. It became known that these horses could be taught a 4-beat ambling gait which was a show stopper in the showring.
Lusitano- This horse is similar to the Andalusian in appearance and heredity. They both originated in the Iberian Peninsula and were considered the same breed for centuries. When the Andalusian was permitted to be exported in the 1960’s, the split between the Andalusian and the Lusitano horse was made. The difference was that the Lusitano was bred in Portugal unlike the Andalusian. Lusitanos tend to be bit smaller than its Andalusian ancestor, and they more frequently vary in color.
Mustangs- Mustangs are the wild horses of North America, but some people argue that they are not. Mustangs are descendants of domesticated horses brought over by the Spanish and other conquistadors that survived being on board sinking ships by swimming to shore, that escaped calvaries, and were released by owners. 10- 20 thousand years ago, however, there was a different species of wild horse that roamed this area that went extinct due to human hunting activity and changing climate. This wild horse is closely related to the Przewalski Wild horse of Mongolia, whom may have been used to create other breeds of horses.
Because Mustangs are descendants of domesticated horses, some people, particularly those in competition with the land the Mustangs roam, believe that the Mustang population should be heavily monitored. These methods to reduce numbers include capture and adoption, birth control, and due to the 2004 Burns amendment slaughter of a Mustang over the age of 10 years is now possible. The number of Wild Mustangs has dropped dramatically and now only 33,000 are left and the BLM plans to remove another 11,500. Numerous experts agree that at the present rate of decline, wild mustangs could be extinct by the end of the century.
Unicorn is a mythical creature and is spoken of in many cultures including European, African, and Asian. Much of history seems to document the unicorn as real creature that roamed the earth. It was hunted for its magical horn, which was said to cure sickness, and prevent effects of poisons. It was known that only a virgin woe and capture a unicorn.
The unicorn has been written about numerous times in the bible and even Leonardo Da Vinci documented the animal. It is very possible however, that the unicorn was not the animal we envision it to be today. Rather than being a small white horse with a horn and beard, and hooves and tail of an ox, it may have been a species of rhinoceros or an extinct species of rhino. Through the ages, language has changed and words and meanings have gotten mixed up, creating confusion about the Rhinoceros unicornis.
Zebras are in the horse family, but they are not horses. Unlike horses and donkeys, Zebras have never been truly domesticated. Rarely,with a good tempered Zebra and proper training, a Zebra can be trained for riding purposes. There are three different kinds of Zebras, and of those three, two are endangered species; the Grevy's, and the Mountain Zebra. They are predominantly endangered due to poaching for their striped furs. The Quagga is a subspecies of Zebra that became extinct in the 19th century. There are now efforts being made to breed back the Plains Zebra to recreate the Quagga.
This horse has a strong, untamable spirit unequalled in any female horse that I have known. She has an opinion about everything and freely communicates it, but she wasn’t always that way. When she turned 4 her human purchased a yearling filly who Ali deemed her full responsibility and that’s when Ali’s spirit manifested itself. Without a question Ali would throw down her life for this filly. If a horse, especially any dirty minded geldings who think little babies are cute, came near Montana, Ali would hurl herself in front of it, scream and bite and kick at it until it had learned its lesson. Easy behavior to mistake for possessiveness but really, it was all an act to keep Montana pure and innocent. Ali is a great protector- that is her soul. Her human then purchased Montana Cowgirl’s mother who was with foal. We were told this new mare was not capable of getting along with other horses and should be confined to her own space, and this became a big concern considering the high volume of horses in the small facility. Somehow though, Ali and this mare had a deep understanding and respect for each other. It was as though Ali had proven herself as a guardian with Montana Cowgirl so she took the role as guardian of the new baby and the mama as well. Although Ali has no blood ties to this family, she became a part of it, or should I say it became a part of her. It belongs to her. Any child of nature with an innocent heart is welcomed to be part of her family.
Fakher el Farid aka Blue – This is my boy. He has my heart wrapped around his hoof like I have his around my finger. I met Blue many years ago when I was only 13 and he was only 3. He came from West Virginia to Miami, Florida to be my horse, but I think he may have come from farther than that. It is too coincidental that through all the zillions of lifetimes that have passed, and dimensions there are in the universe, we have found each other here. Yes, luck places certain lives together, but Blue’s soul is a perfect compatibility match to mine and it seems as though we were meant to be in each others lives. We both have grown immeasurably from that first day we met, and we have shaped each other as individuals. I have blossomed into a strong willed, compassionate, free human being, while Blue’s ego has never lessened, but has learned to appreciate others like himself. Others with a romantic soul, whom are guided by the spirits within nature. We have had many journeys together, from Miami, to Los Angeles. On his back he has carried me from cold, dark tunnels, to the highest of mountains, where it seems as though you could touch the gates of heaven. Because of all these life changing events that we have shared together, we have become unified in our outlook and perspective of life. I just wish that more people could have this gift that I have fallen upon, which is to grow up seeing this world through the eyes of a horse. They talk about once in a lifetime horses, but Blue is my once in forever horse.
Halcyon is a big Percheron Thoroughbred cross but she looks all Percheron. The thoroughbred shines through in her personality, but thankfully not in her spookiness. This girl is a fat, entitled princess and that’s what makes her so great! Halcyon gets what she wants and if not, everybody better watch out because she’ll do something about it whether it’s bite, kick out, or swish her thick tail in your face. But Halcyon has her servants well trained so there are not a lot of these incidents. They know to bring her lots of carrots, and that they must take her out of her stall every single day, or for heavens sake, she could die! And her servants must know that when she is out and being ridden she cannot work too hard, because, well, she’s a princess! Halcyon knows however, that she is very lucky to have these servants and she loves and treasures them more than anything in the world. (Even more than her carrots.) She would carry her servants through battle any day and god help those who threaten her lady servant cause they are going down!
I’ve known this little fella long before he could walk the earth. I watched him grow inside of his Mama’s tummy. When his “Mama” first arrived at the stable she immediately became a favorite. Her name encompasses her spirit completely. She’s a mother spirit and was sweet to every human she came across. She’d spend the whole day with you exchanging neck rubs and appreciating them to the fullest degree. As she became heavier with foal, her comfort surely decreased as she waddled around, started breathing heavy and even making loud moans in her stall. Even through her discomfort, she was always comforted by the human touch. She’d let you listen to Little Sir Rain grow inside of her, and you could feel his little head pressing against the walls of her flank.
Finally, after days of expecting, Little Rain was born on a rainy California night, hence the name Rain. Of all the colors we were expecting him to be, he was none. He was a gorgeous Jet Black Prince, with all the potential in the world. He was rather fearless for a foal, happily investigating any furless, two legged creatures that came by his stall, but his mother, being an overprotective mare would not allow Rain to socialize with the potentially dangerous creatures and would promptly reprimanded him for doing so. After time went by, Rain became rebellious of his mother and became a pain in the butt to her, constantly bouncing off of her and running laps around her, so she quickly gave up her defensive position on the colt and welcomed the help of Ali as family protector. Like any child, Rain was annoying, rude and ill-mannered with his trusted family members (whom were all female). But when it came to Blue, the big version of Rain, Rain would stand enviously and watch Blue get saddled up and do his “big boy” stuff. Slowly he’d creep over and check us out, idealising Blue, as a little brother would. Although Little Sir Rain’s personality had yet to become original, it was special to experience a young colt like him because he is a blank canvas, like all young colts are, which makes watching them like going into a time capsule and reliving the beginning of any colts life.
This horse is the ideal horse, and what you would picture a horse to be. He is big, powerful, and majestic. He too is a romantic horse, filled with ideals and mannerisms. He carries himself with pride and reserve. He is well aware of his effect on people, and rather than allow his ego to grow, and become cocky, he is very humble, and believes in respect and tradition. I am not sure, but this may be due to the culture this horse came from. Hermoso was imported from Spain and had just been welcomed into the Spanish School of Riding Academy before being bought by his human. To be kept a stallion, Hermoso had to pass a variety of traditional tests because in Spain and in the Andalusian Registry, only the best of the best male horses are allowed the privilege to be kept a stallion and reproduce. It is clear he has a duty to be a legendary horse that inspires awe in every single person who meets him.
I do not think I have met a horse whose name is as suiting as Windwalzer’s. He is a Trakehner Stallion, who are known to have ill tempers, but Windwalzer has one of the nicest temperaments I’ve met in any horse let alone Trakehner Stallion. He is very obedient and is always looking to please, and he’s also very affectionate. After a ride he will push his head into your lap looking for a rub, and if you give it to him, he’ll tilt his head into it, close his eyes, his lips will twist and he’ll make deep grunting noises in pleasure. His temperament is not why his name is suiting however- it is suiting because of his talent. Windwalzer is a champion dressage horse, who has won numerous dressage shows. (Dressage for those who don’t know is the equivalent to horse ballet.) He was on the brink of making it to the 1998 Olympics, being the 13th best dressage horse in the country. Now Windwalzer is an old man, retired from his days of dancing with his human, but once in awhile if you are lucky, you might see them dance. When they do, it’s as if you have reversed time and you can watch two old souls become anew as they glide and waltz around the arena like they are floating on the wind.
A long time ago, when the earth was green
And there was more kinds of animals than you've ever seen,
And they run around free while the world was bein' born,
And the lovliest of all was the Unicorn.
But the Lord seen some sinnin', and it caused him pain.
He says, "Stand back, I'm gonna make it rain."
He says, "Hey Brother Noah, I'll tell ya whatcha do.
Go and build me a floatin' zoo.
Now Noah was there, he answered the callin'
And he finished up the ark just as the rain was fallin'. He marched in the animals two by two,
And he called out as they went through,
Ol' Noah looked out through the drivin' rain
But the Unicorns were hidin', playin' silly games.
They were kickin' and splashin' in the misty morn,
Oh them silly Unicorn.
Then the ark started movin', and it drifted with the tide,
And the Unicorns looked up from the rock and cried.
And the water come up and sort of floated them away--
That's why you've never seen a Unicorn to this day.
Daisies owners released her into the farming area of Southern Florida. She was found after a hurricane, standing in a narrow, flooded ditch where she could not lay down. It is unknown how long she had been standing in that ditch but judging by how skinny she had become, it's estimated she may have been down there for weeks. She was happy that she could pass away with food in her belly and laying down in a warm dry stall.
Bo Destin-e. May 6,1986-October 25,2012
I’d only known Bo a small percentage of his life. He was a kind, patient soul. He showed my good friend how fun trail rides are, and was praised for being a safe, comfortable ride. Bo was always a good man because he was always trying to make one particular person very happy. It didn’t matter if it was feeding time or not, Bo always had his eyes on his human. He’d watch her every move, he’d call for her when she was not with him. All this horse wanted in his life was her. He was the happiest creature on the planet when she took him out just to brush him. It was her job to brush many horses in the day, and Bo knew this. He also knew that when she did brush him, she brushed in a way different than all the other horses and that was a way filled with love. Bo and his human had been together for over 20 years when I met them. Bo was a huge part of his humans life, but she was his life. She was what Bo lived for. Bo developed laminitis, a condition which always results in crippling a horse. It was on and off for quite a while, but eventually it grew to a point where Bo could barely walk out of his stall and he was lying down often. This was a really tough time. Bo’s human knew what this meant, but Bo did not. In fact he was quite happy he was getting more attention from his human than normal. In time though, Bo didn’t want to get up. I’d find him rolling around in his stall, agitated and just trying to figure out a way to get out of the pain he was in. At this point he knew what was going to happen. I came into his stall when he was like this to try and comfort him, and I think I did. There was a direct connection between Bo and I, like his soul had opened and we could read each other’s thoughts. He wanted to die. He knew he had a great life, and he was appreciative of that. But he was scared. Not of what lied ahead but of leaving his human. He was scared of how much this would hurt her, and he never ever wanted to hurt her, and he wanted her to know that. I promised Bo I’d tell her that and I did. He seemed very worried that I wouldn’t tell her, but I think he figured out that I had. The next day Bo passed away as gently as one could go. He was surrounded by people who loved him. Flowers and cards were left by his empty stall. Friends adorned his stall with a giant heart made of flowers.
“ Faithful friend and companion for the last 22 years. Our lives were so intertwined - I can not imagine my life without you. I love you!!”
-His human.