My Adopted Horse

I think I was born on a horse practically. I rode and showed horses for most of my young life. When I wanted to own one again I needed a way from them to pay for themselves and so Bayberry Carriage Company was born.

Did I know how to drive a large carriage? No. So I went off and took lessons on the biggest horses alive. I think the guy who was teaching me got great pleasure handing me that hundred pound harness on a horse six foot tall. Of course I had to learn to ground drive before he would ever hook me up to a cart. I think he also got his jollys watching these three thousand pound animals drag me all over the dirt for an hour every week as well.

It was pure hell. I finally had enough of that and bought myself a Welsh pony and cart. I practiced and got the feel for it sold the Welch and bought a Morgan horse and an old buckboard. I owned him for approximately three months before he died of a huge intestinal stone. That was a large expense gone and my dream with it so I thought. But when you are out of money you get creative.

I read an article about how the harness track would let people adopt horses for $25.00. So I called and got on the list. Well I got a call one day they had a horse available. Loaded the trailer and made my 2 hour drive to the track. By the time my husband and I got there the horse had been adopted by someone else. I almost just sat down in the dirt and cried. I think the guy could see the huge disappointment on my face and said there might be another horse available but he would have to check.

A few minutes later he asked if I would like to see him. This horse had been stalled for over 6 weeks eating oats everyday and I noticed he kept trying to bite the stable hand. But they got him out of his stall and lead him around a minute, then the hispanic stable hand jumped on his back. No problem. Then they told me he had never been in a horse trailer and as a person who knows horses that is NOT good. So I said "Well if he will load I will take him". I was extremely doubtful he was going to walk in that trailer. I wasnt up for a two hour fight with a rank horse. Darn if he didnt walk right in that trailer.

A two hour ride home and we let him lose in the back when we got home. This is his first picture. Pretty isnt he? He had a blast running around,bucking and rolling in the dirt. We just let him be the first day home. What a change from being in an barn cooped up and teased by staple hands. The first thing on my list was to call the vet and get him gelded. And name him. Since he would be someday pulling a carriage for weddings we liked the name Tux. And if we ever got another we would call him Tails. Clever weren't we?