Where We Go From Here

The Bombardier Polo event with Heart of a Horse event yesterday was magical!! Our day started early with a whitening bath, a comprehensive grooming session and a big kiss on his forehead, Indy was bright and polished like a shiny, new penny! He looked so handsome! About 9:15am, Haulin Hooves arrived and Indy was loaded up and off we went.
We were met at the gate by Katie and Mimi and a camera crew. Hopping into the back of the truck, they helped us to find Indy's stall. Once Indy was unloaded, there was filming, interviews and pictures. Indy found the boom microphone and the camera items of interest and once he had checked them out, we had to keep him from batting them out of the way with his nose. With so many things to see and all the activity, Indy did a remarkable job. Mimi and all the little girls from Fieldstone took turns keeping him company, taking him for walks and keeping his water bucket full. I did realize something, new mother's carry baby botttles and binkys in their purse, and I carry horse treats and peppermints....hmmmm.
The Heart of the Horse tent was wonderful! Full of people who paid a considerable amount of money for the cause, enjoyed an afternoon of Bombardier polo, wonderful food, ice cold drinks and conversation with April Horowitz, Robert Davi, Allan Thicke, and a long distance phone call from Robert Duval from Spain where he is currently filming his new movie. There was a silent auction with wonderful things to bid on, a children's zone for the kids with games and prizes. All of this for the love of horses in need!
Later in the afternoon, it was time for Indy to make his appearance! Shiny and wide eyed, Dr. Kevin Smith and I made our way up to the stables and gave Indy a little medication to keep him calm as he had made his way to meet all of the people there in the the tent and the hundreds of spectators in the stands. The polo competition had just finished it's first two rounds and, did you know that all of those polo ponies are MARES? Well, Indy was calm while he was waiting, but once we had to walk past all of those newly bathed ponies, lined up along the field with their hind quarters pointed in Indy's direction, Indy responded as a healthy, Thoroughbred should and he became a bit of a handful! With Dr. Smith doing the honors of walking him in, Indy reared high into the air, came down and bucked, crow hopped in circles, and put on quite a show. Oooohs and ahhhs came from the tent as they watched a brand new Indy give each of them an idea of who he is now. Healthy, happy and full of life!
There was a beautiful storyboard made by Michelle Pacyna, Indy's trainer, that was viewed by the people in the tent, and there was a flood of emotion as they watched Indy carry on. The sad, skinny horse that they had seen in the pictures was not the horse they saw in front of them on this beautiful, summer day! Take a look...


May 4, 2011
We had really no idea how close to death Indy actually was.
Looking at this now, it is really kinda hard to believe.
This was one of the pictures shared at the Bombardier event.



This photo was taken 10 days ago, and when I get some of the pictures from the event yesterday, I will post those straight away.



August 18, 2011.
Indy loves to be the center of attention!
"Silly Boy!"







August 20, 2011.
He loves the cotton candy smell of his hoof polish.
Indy and Mimi are the best of friends!

So, now we are up to the next phase and a new start for the both of us. Tomorrow I am moving Indy and his best friend Dixie up to another ranch. They have nice big stalls next to one another. There, Indy will have the winter off to gain the rest of his weight and just be the happy, healthy horse he has become. Now, he knows that he will be fed regularly, he will see me, as always, everyday and he is loved and protected.
"Finding Indy". I think we have him back. It took an entire community of people to make this happen. Indy's trainer, Michelle Pacyna, said it best:

Rescue:      We brought Indy in and loved him, fed him and gave him a home.
Re purpose: Evaluated him once he was feeling better and had put some weight on and he was given a job
React:         His hocks were a source of concern and pain for Indy, and his physical condition was
reevaluated and he was treated accordingly.
Reward:      Indy was not only rescued, he is now successful! He is a working horse that has a happy,  useful life ahead of him.

Indy has gone from near death to being pain free, jumping, trail riding and learning that life, maybe, can be a little better than he thought. Thank you to all of you for all of your encouragement, love and prayers. It has been an interesting journey to this point and this is just the beginning! Please continue to follow Indy and...     Happy Trails! 





Life is an Adventure!

We are so sorry that it has taken so long to update our blog, but, boy, have we been busy! Indy has just blossomed. Having gained a tremendous amount of weight, pride and confidence! While we have been waiting for his weight to go up to get him back to work, he has been getting lunged three times a week and spends quite a bit of time in the turn out visiting with all of his wonderful friends, both two and four legged. It is apparent that Indy has changed his life. I wonder sometimes how he made it through? He is a tough guy and had the spirit and the drive to get through everything that happened to him. That is just the metal he is made of. He could have let go, but he never did and that is how he has handled his life changing efforts. I have the utmost respect and love for this horse! His strength, tolerance, desire and faith that his life is worth something, are all alive and well in Indy today! Full of confidence, pride and love, he and I have watched each other grow. Indy is bright eyed and ready for adventure.
Indy recently had his hocks injected, got all of his vaccines and dewormed. We are grateful to Heart of the Horse, April Horowitz and Dr. Kevin Smith for making this possible. Prior to this, I was concerned about why Indy, when standing, would rock from one leg to the next. He would do this for hours. Wearing away the shavings in his stall and mining a trench in the turn out. The rocking is a self soothing behavior, much akin to a child sucking it's thumb. Being no stranger to a belly ache from being hungry and being in pain, apparently from his left rear leg,  it is no mystery how he came to making this behavior his. Having his hocks injected and a donated adjustment from Equine Chiropractor, Kenneth L. Belsly, DC, this rocking behavior has completely disappeared. Whew! One more issue resolved! Indy, now, eats every bit of food that is offered him and will be happy to help you with anything extra that you might have.
 

                                Indy and I at the Fieldstone Home Show helping to raise donations
                                                              to help horses in need                                  

August 28th is the date for Indy's big reveal at the Santa Barbara Polo Grounds! The Bombardier West Coast Polo Finals is going to be a big event for Indy and The Heart of a Horse Foundation. April Horowitz, Founder and Director of Heart of a Horse, came out and spent the day with us out at Fieldstone Riding Club in Moorpark, also where Indy lives. We collected donations as Indy visited with participants and their families at the Fieldstone homeshow. Just a few months ago, Indy would have hidden himself away in the back corner of the turn out and hung his head in shame. Today, Indy loves having people pet him, eating treats and getting into every conversation, but, Indy and I always find time to have a quiet moment with each other. He always looks to see where I am and, believe me, I am very rarely, very far away. We rely on each other! I love him and he loves me and all of his angels and that is the way it's supposed to be, right?

We are grateful for all of our angels; April Horowitz and Heart of a Horse for saying yes and not letting Indy fall through the cracks, yet again. Green Feed Systems for their sponsorship. Dr. Kevin Smith for his his care and encouragement. Terry Pfankuchen  and Sound Hoof Products for Indy's healthy feet and legs. Michelle Pacyna and Fieldstone Riding Club for not making rescuing Indy just about getting him healthy, but more importantly, making him successful! Darren Lutz and Haulin Hooves for being Indy's limousine service. We couldn't have gotten to this point without all of these people and their time and donations. Yet, there are many people who have loved on Indy and encouraged all of through this.

Now, we are at the end of this. Indy was only planning on being with us until the 28th of August at which time Green Feed Systems would relinquish their sponsorship and Indy was to go up for adoption. Well, life has a funny way of moving things around. With a new lease on life and a new life at Fieldstone, I am planning to try and keep Indy here permanently. Now, you need to know that this is the biggest commitment I have ever made in my life! Indy and I have built a bond that I have never experienced, but it will all be fine. There are concerns and worries that keep me awake from time to time, but isn't life about living it? Isn't it about trusting that God has a plan and when presented with the opportunity to say "yes" to be part of it, it's a good thing? Well, Indy took a leap of faith trusting all of us when doing that in the past was so disappointing for him, and now it is my turn to take the same leap and trust God.

So, please join us on Sunday, August 28th at the Bombardier Pacific Coast Polo Finals and meet Indy and say hello. Please go to heartofahorse.org for all of the details. It's going to be a wonderful day!!!

Well, here we are again! Indy and I are off on another adventure!! Can you believe it? Another one!!!!! We'll keep you posted!

A Question of Self Worth

The horse, over time, has been considered many things. A beast of burden, a prized possession, a friend, a way of life, an integral part of ones livelihood. A character, a confidant, a wish, a dream and keeper of our hearts. The horse has been written about, had ballads, poetry and movies made to honor and revere his love, spirit and usefulness to us throughout history.
It's funny that with all the time we have spent revering the horse, there is still the option of mistreating and neglecting this magnificent animal. The question of self worth comes to my mind. Does the abuse, neglect and the refusal to care for and protect a living being come from lack of respect for the animal and,or the lack of self worth of the human being? I am not sure...and, I suppose, that is a question that has to be answered by the human being. What about the horse? I wish I could say I knew for sure what Indy was thinking, and, there are times, as most horse owners will agree, I have a pretty good idea, but I do know this, self worth in a horse is the whole ball game! Dagobert D. Runes once said, "You cannot train a horse with shouts and expect it to obey a whisper". Kinda rattles your cage a little bit, doesn't it?

    Still Skinny, But Looking Better

Everyday, since Indy came to Fieldstone, it has been an adventure. Over the last five weeks, he has gained 70 lbs.! His hives and thrush are both gone! He has been under saddle, no riders over a 115lbs, please, and he has been given a daily exercise program. He is weak and still needs a lot of walking and trotting. His left rear leg, the one that was so swollen when he came to us, has continued to present a problem. Dr. Kevin Smith, DVM, has evaluated it and has given us a few options in treating the problem. Once the physical challenges have been dealt with, we can continue to get Indy back to work and keeping him happy with the job he wants so badly. He has been telling us he is so wanting to get back to work. Indy loves being out with the other horses. In the turn out he rolls and then pops up and rears while boxing with excitement. He is excited to get out of the stall and has shown us some beautiful things while being lunged. Being worked with a Paseoa Lunging System, he has shown that he has quality strides, moving in the frame and just more than we had hoped for. He did brilliantly for about the first two weeks of having his shoes, probably because he felt so good. Then we started to see some of the physical quirks that had been there prior and that have slowly started to present themselves. No matter, Indy is still moving forward!
He loves spending the night out with Slim Shady and Princess Dixie and long walks in the farmland fields. Recently, the farm next door finished harvesting all of their root vegetables and left hundreds of carrots exposed in the dirt. On a walk one morning, Indy spotted all of the carrots about him and stopped, turned his head and looked at me. As if asking for permission, I told him to go ahead and help himself. He lowered his head and sniffed a few and looked up at me again. I picked up a carrot and dusted off the dirt and offered it to him. He ate it and that was all it took. I think we were the for the better part of ten minutes as moved about and feasted leisurely on the carrots at his feet.
Indy is having to regain his ground manners. I have to admit, I haven't really held him to it and all it is doing is getting him in hot water. The treats that he loves so much have made him mouthy and he has had to learn that that is not acceptable. So...no more treats. He has had to remember that I am walking him and he is not walking me.
The dark, cold winter of Indy's life has given way to Spring. It is time to be that horse that he has started to show to us. Who Indy is has slowly started to surface. He is healthy again, full of himself and becoming a horse that wants to work. We know that he is happy with a job and having a job makes him useful and raises his self worth and his dignity. That is the way it is intended to be. Indy is off on yet another adventure, regaining his honor, majesty and relearning the importance of his own self worth. 

When God created the horse, he said to the magnificent creature: I have made thee as no other. All the treasures of the earth shall lie between thy eyes. Thou shalt cast thy enemies between thy hooves, but thou shalt carry my friends upon they back. Thy saddle shall be the seat of prayers to me. And thou fly without any wings, and conquer without any sword. ~ The Koran