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Post by dismith on Nov 2, 2009 21:19:06 GMT 1
To Ally S - thank you - you have some idea of what we were going through as a family. We too are delighted at the perfect outcome of that night. His best chance has been realised - we can only hope that it all works out for woody. His owner - sorry ex! - is absolutely exhausted from all the emotion as we are. Thank goodness I talked to Heather because otherwise we were at a dead end.
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Post by Lisa in Plymouth on Nov 2, 2009 21:42:39 GMT 1
I was gutted that I couldn't go to this demo and it sounds like I missed a very interesting evening. Am glad to hear that Woody has been given another chance, fingers crossed he can overcome the issues that he has.
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tobyh
Grand Prix Poster
My horse of a lifetime!!. Magnus 1985 - 2005.
Posts: 1,616
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Post by tobyh on Nov 2, 2009 22:02:39 GMT 1
What a wonderful story, and lets hope it has a fantastic ending.
I am flabbergasted to read some of the responses on here though. I think Heather and his owners have done the very best for this horse and the horse is now safe and going to get the very best care available.
As a point, there is nothing wrong with putting a dangerous horse down, I think actually it is the responsibility of an owner to do so, if the horse is dangerous don't put them out as companions. Companions have no guarantee of never being passed on in the future, or someone trying to ride them and ending up with a nasty accident.
At the end of the 80s I worked for a very well known SJ and dealer, occasionally he had horses in that for one reason or another were booked in the abattoir.
One horse lets call him "J" was stunning, 100% to ride in the school didn't put a foot wrong, but out of the school would bolt, flat out, and would run into anything. Now please bear in mind, not many people had schools in those days, he decided the best thing was to have him shot, that way he could guarantee no one would be hurt by the horse.
To cut a very long story short, a few months past and after a newspaper article, it transpires J was never shot but sold on, then sold again to a young girl, J bolted on the road, came down and broke the girls neck. She is in a wheelchair for life.
Sometimes doing the hardest thing is the kindest, and you cannot put a price on human life.
Woody is very very lucky, and what great teamwork to secure his future.
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Post by Lisa in Plymouth on Nov 2, 2009 22:13:05 GMT 1
Tobyh - you've hit the nail on the head. I know the idea of a 'bullet in the head' is very upsetting but IT IS the responsible thing to do in some cases. If someone is unable, despite their best efforts, to get to the bottom of a horse's problem and that horse is dangerous then the only option is to have it pts. There are some people in an enviable position of being able to just keep the horse as a pet, but this is rare. I know that i'd sooner have a horse pts rather than passed on to an uncertain future if I wasn't able to guarantee a home for life.
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dptc
Olympic Poster
Posts: 557
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Post by dptc on Nov 2, 2009 22:25:43 GMT 1
And as stated not all horses are suitable to just be retired as companions either. Funny I was thinking of doing a post a few weeks ago about when do you call it a day with a horse that seems beyond help/is there such a thing as a horse beyond help!
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Post by portiabuzz on Nov 2, 2009 22:54:17 GMT 1
from reading the original story i was amazed and happy that a horses life has been saved....Heather did the right thing IMHO and i would have done the same in her position. I'm just glad that a horse has been given a new life and i hope Woody will be happy...
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Post by heather on Nov 2, 2009 23:09:17 GMT 1
Thank you all, tobyh, great post, Lisa, sorry you missed the demo! Would have been nice to see you again- come on up sometime!
Heather
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Post by gwenoakes on Nov 3, 2009 10:47:48 GMT 1
IMHO I think in this particular case 'the means justified the end'.
I can honestly say I dont know how I would have reacted, dont think anyone can unless they are IN the particular situation, but that is just MHO too.
I sincerely hope the outcome is good for Woody and he goes on to have a happy and productive long life. He sure deserves it.
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Post by handsonhorses on Nov 3, 2009 10:53:28 GMT 1
Hello everyone, I am new on here so am still figuring out how it all works, but I am going to try and post a photo of Woody for you all to see Dan and his wife Tracey, myself and a very lovely lady called Erica, all bought Woody on Friday and I can assure everyone he is now settled and extremely content at Dan's yard! He has taken it all in his stride and is so chilled out you wouldn't believe it - not really recognisable as the same horse we all saw on Friday! He is absolutely gorgeous and a total gentleman. I work as an equine therapist so the plan was that me and Dan would work together to sort out his physical and mental problems and get him back on the straight and narrow. He certainly has some pain that will be causing part of the problem - or at least, initially did, but now I definitely think it has become a massive mental block for him. Dan and I are taking it very slowly and going at Woody's pace, as we are in no rush to sort him out, we just want to make sure it is all done properly. My treatments are very gentle and Woody is already a fan, he goes to sleep and relaxes into them really well, which is a fantastic result I have not yet had time to read all of this thread but would like to say a massive thank you to the lady that we bought Woody from, as well as all the people that made it possible for him to be at the demo on Friday which meant that we could buy him. I certainly had no intention of coming home having bought a horse but I really think it was all meant to be and he is now in the best possible place. Dan is an amazing person and will work wonders with Woody like he does with every horse he meets, and once I have fixed Woody's physical problems, all that can start. It's very exciting and we are all very happy with the outcome. Woody has become a minor celebrity in the area but it hasn't gone to his head just yet - he is keeping his feet firmly on the ground (though no doubt that will all change when we put a saddle on him!!) Everyone involved in this has meant that Woody has the best possible chance now and I am very excited about his progress over the coming months - I will keep you all posted!! Ok, now to try and put the photo up........
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Post by handsonhorses on Nov 3, 2009 10:54:48 GMT 1
Here is Woody with Dan Wilson - this was Woody's first day at Dan's. Attachments:
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eden
Olympic Poster
Posts: 662
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Post by eden on Nov 3, 2009 11:01:06 GMT 1
Hi welcome handsonhorses, he is lovely so please he has good on to a brilliant home, looking forward to updates on him. Kate
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Post by gwenoakes on Nov 3, 2009 11:02:12 GMT 1
A very handsome lad indeed.
How big is he Handsonhorses?
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Post by handsonhorses on Nov 3, 2009 11:30:54 GMT 1
he is certainly a very handsome chap, already not sure that i will be able to sell him on so frantically saving up my pennies!! he is apparently 16.2hh though we have not measured him ourselves yet - it's on the list of things to do!! katharine
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Post by Catrin on Nov 3, 2009 14:22:31 GMT 1
Please make sure you keep a diary or a blog. It will make the book of Woody's story so much easier!
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Post by heather on Nov 3, 2009 14:39:53 GMT 1
Haha catrin!! ;D Handsonhorses, I would love to stay in touch with you down here in Devon too- I feel that Fate had a hand in this- Woody had only days to live, and with Monty and Kelly being down here, it was too good an opportunity to miss, to give him that second chance. I truly felt it was meant to be, when Linda said they could fit him in and to bring him for assessment.
Then with Dan and Handsonhorses coming up with the offer to take him on, I felt certain that I was literally led to bring Woody to Okehampton.
I think he is going to turn out to be a special horse, I had a grey not unlike him, Butch, the horse in the last photo in my book, only he was a rearer who went over backwards, and I rang the owners to ask about coming to see him, and they were engaged- ringing the knacker at that moment.
They were two ladies in their late fifties who were giving up their stud and had bred Butch, but were also having him put down, aged only 9, so as not to pass him onto other people, and end up badly. He had evented after racing and the rider they had sent him to, had ridden him with his pelvis out and a lot of back pain, but even with this resolved he still remember the pain and especially if pointed at a jump, or at a road junction too for some reason, he would go up to the point of over backwards and was very dangerous when this happened.
I have told this story here before but many of you wont have seen it, so to cut it short, the owners came over to my yard, then in Essex, that afternoon and liked what they saw. I went to their place next day and saw and tried him, and brought him home. Butch taught me a huge amount about non confrontational methods and he never, ever reared with me, in the 19 years I owned him, becoming one of the best schoolmasters I could ever have hoped for, teaching many students about classical riding.
I lost him 8 years ago with liver failure, aged 28, still cant bring myself to watch my first old video in which he featured. And Woody, also a tall grey ex racehorse reminds me of him in many ways, and is why I couldnt bring myself not to try to do something to save him.
Heather
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