This Old Horse
- Tar Heel Feedlot
- Jul 10, 2019
- 6 min read
Senior Horses! Often Overlooked! Needed by Many! So Much to Offer!
For those who have never had the pleasure, this is Diego on July 8, 2019. He is the official Tar Heel Feedlot mascot and a family member here. Diego was a feedlot horse and arrived here in January 2017. We knew he was over 30 then. He was sporting shaggy winter hair, he was thin, he was dirty, he had obvious tumors, and he didn't have an incisor left in his mouth. But once upon a time, Diego was a rope horse. In another life, he was an athlete and a successful one. We figured with his tumors and condition, he probably would have a few months and we would try to make them good months. Those months have turned into years and we wouldn't trade them for anything!
This old horse gives us more than I can type here. Suffice it to say that no amount of money could buy him. His patience when you stick a child on his back is endless, the company he provides as a babysitter for young horses is vital to their well-being, and the entertainment he provides to all with his "old codger" personality provides a much needed laugh at some point each and every day. When the day comes that he is laid to rest, his absence will undoubtedly leave a huge hole here. We don't focus on that day. We focus on what he brings to our lives TODAY.
Why a senior/retired horse? With age comes wisdom and experience, generally speaking. The widely accepted age to be considered "senior" was the age of 15 for as long as I can remember. But, like humans, with advances in care, diet, etc., horses live longer now than ever before and now that definition tends to be used from the age of 20 on up. Like the senior partner at the law firm, the 20 year veteran nurse at the hospital, and the farmer who is now teaching his grandchildren about crops, the senior horse knows his discipline in his sleep. He is a teacher. While plenty of senior horses have their "feeling good" moments, by and large the foolishness of youth is long gone. If nothing else convinces you, then this basic piece of practicality may help. Remember, the person typing this lives in this industry - I see thousands of horses per year - when a horse has lived to be 20 years old, he was likely good at something.
Her name was Lola, she was a.....show horse in her day and a great one! This mare came through auction in 2011. Despite her big scarred knees, it was obvious the moment I saw her that she was a western pleasure horse and a GREAT one once upon a time. I bought her. Troy rolled his eyes, not because he didn't like the horse - he knows the value of a senior horse as well as anyone. He rolled his eyes because he knew that the people who NEEDED this mare would overlook her time and again...also because he knew that I was bringing her home regardless and the argument was pointless. He was right (don't you dare call him and tell him I admitted that). Despite her ugly knees, surely people would see the talent and value in this mare! Sadly, I put too much faith in people at that time. She was a DREAM in every possible way and her knees, while ugly, didn't pose a problem. People with their hopeful little kids came to see Lola and then left, not because she didn't pack their kids around like a SAINT, not because she didn't stand there with the patience of Job while their kids crawled over and around her, but because she was a senior with ugly knees. "We want one just like this but 10 years younger with clean legs" (Same low budget of course though) I had lost all hope of Lola finding a home other than with me and I was perfectly happy to keep her. But then, a very astute horsewoman met Lola. She had a lesson program and the NICEST summer camp program for young ladies. SHE SAW LOLA! She saw Lola for what she was, not for her knees. And home with her Lola went where, to this very day, this grand old mare has built confidence and taught countless young ladies. Her name IS Lola, she is LOVED and HOME!
There are thousands of Diegos and Lolas in this world! All you folks who are novices or have kids that want a horse - you need a Diego or a Lola!
***You don't need a young horse to "learn and grow with" - horses aren't puppies and 1000 lbs of young/green horse coupled with a novice/kid will end with an ER visit (at best).
***You/your kid will not magically "grow into" a horse that is "too much horse" right now if you don't learn on a horse that is appropriate and safe. Want to keep your kid from ever riding again? Go ahead and "out horse" them. Put them on something wildly inappropriate due to age, training, ability. They won't enjoy it, I promise. Best case scenario, they decide they hate horses and walk away from them...forever. Worst case scenario, they'll get really hurt or God forbid, killed on one.
***"I don't want to get an old horse and have to bury it/have my kid get attached" Nobody wants to say goodbye to their horse. Why people insist on focusing on that when it comes to horses age 15 and up I will never understand. I guess that's why they walk by the senior shelter dogs and cats as well. Animals (and people) will all eventually die. Your 8yr old horse could break its leg in a freak pasture accident tomorrow. I could be hit by a bus this afternoon. And that 20yr old horse that is "perfect for my kid, if only he was 10 years younger" could easily live another 15 years. Do yourself a HUGE favor and when you start that quote above, end with "perfect for my kid" THAT is what matters! Your kids will eventually learn that death is the inevitable outcome of life. Farm kids learn this early.
***"Senior horses are more work/more expensive" Not necessarily. ALL horse are expensive, just in different ways! Your senior horse may need a senior feed that costs a few cents more per lb. than your 10yr old horse. You may need to soak his feed so it takes a little more time doing chores. Our Diego - all fat and glossy with no incisors - he gets a complete feed pellet that is soaked to a mash 3x daily and then he entertains himself picking at grass and hay (he doesn't really effectively graze but he enjoys going through the motions and decorating the lawn). Your senior will need his teeth done but so does your 10yr old horse. Arthritis comes with joint use, that's just a fact of life. My knees sure aren't what they were in my youth and I'm as far as it gets from being an athlete. Your retired show or performance horse WAS AN ATHLETE! Their joints are going to show it! I'll let you in on a not so secret secret - those 4yr old competitive horses.....they've already got arthritis too. That's the trade for that kind of performance. Professional human athletes have arthritic joints too. Maybe your senior horse needs joint supplements, a regular anti-inflammatory medication, or yearly joint injections. "OMG that's expensive!" you say. "Expensive" is a relative term. If you add up 3 years of those supplements, anti-inflammatory meds, and injections, it is STILL cheaper than the ER visit and broken limb repair you or your kid suffered from electing the "young but wildly inappropriate" horse over "old faithful" Priorities, folks!
***Budget, budget, budget! Everyone has a budget for everything, some greater than others. If I had a nickel for every time someone has told me they want "This horse right here but 10 years younger" and on the same budget, I wouldn't be typing this. I would be sipping a drink with an umbrella in it on my private island I bought with all those nickels! Psssst - that horse 10 years ago - YOU COULDN'T AFFORD HIM THEN! He's still that horse he was 10 years ago - maybe he isn't as competitive these days but he hasn't forgotten a thing. He also probably doesn't need to be "loped down" or longed for an hour these days either like he did back in the day!
The next time you see a senior horse that is "otherwise" perfect, maybe pause for a moment and drop the "otherwise" And remember, unlike with vehicles, high mileage beats low, and a used horse will serve the majority of families far better than a new one!
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