A Thanksgiving Message November 28, 2013

The beautiful Ferdinand, a Kentucky Derby winner who was slaughtered in Japan. I had the privilege of meeting Ferdinand when he was at Claiborne Farm. His coat truly did shine like a copper penny. No horse deserves his fate.

With it being Thanksgiving and this being my blog about Gwen I would like to say how thankful I am to all the rescues and shelters out there. Not the big, national organizations that talk a lot and collect a lot of money, but the small local humane societies, the local shelters, rescues and individuals. They spend countless hours, more money than they have, and untold heartbreak to save those left behind.

Thanks to the volunteers that help with these places and give of their time. Thanks to the networkers who spread the word about the animals. If it weren’t for them Debra and I never would have found Gwen.

Thanks to responsible breeders who only breed for high quality animals, who sell them responsibly and take them back when they have no where else to go.

And thanks to everyone who adopts an unwanted animal, be it cat, dog, horse, rabbit, guinea pig, bird or any other creature in need of a home. It breaks my heart that they can’t all be saved. I try to tell myself that I’ve given good homes to as many as I can, and I hope others will do the same.

May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends and family.

Steph and Gwen

Checking in on Gwen November 18, 2013

You may or may not have noticed that I haven’t blogged for a while. It’s because I haven’t seen Gwen. Personal issues such as selling our farm, moving and my mother’s poor health have taken priority. But of course Gwen is in the best of care with Debra. A week or so ago Debra mentioned that she was getting a bit fat. And when I finally got back there on Friday I saw (and subsequently felt) for myself that she has indeed gotten more “curvy”. Food is VERY important to Gwen and she hasn’t missed a meal. She spends her days standing at the round bale munching away. It’s a tough life.

Even though she hadn’t been ridden in weeks there was no problem hopping right on her and doing our thing. She was compliant enough to do what I asked, but she did get to puffing faster than normal for her. So we kept it short and sweet and hopefully the weather will be agreeable to get her back into a program. Debra would like to get her out on the trail. It’s one thing we haven’t tried with her yet, but I suspect, like everything else, she will be fine. In the meantime Gwen is quite content thanks to Debra’s attentive care. She has friends in the pasture, plenty of food and water, lots of turnout, her own stall, and (most importantly) undivided attention. She’s one happy horse and that’s as it should be.