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The Ultimate Rescue | A Scary Horse story Of A Saddlebred Colt
By: Christina Borsick(3)
It was pouring outside. I pulled the hood on my sweatshirt up and zipped my leather jacket. Jeff already had the kids in the car and was waiting for me. I trudged through the mud, which was already a couple of inches deep, up to the barn.
Indy, my little green broke Saddlebred colt, stood inside warm and dry.
“What a day we picked to do this, huh?” I stroked his nose, then saddled him up. I had just sold him to a friend a few days ago, and had scheduled today to ride him the seven miles to his new home. I didn’t really know the back way, but I knew of it, and I was sure it was a lot safer route to go. For one, the roads were all dirt, so traffic wouldn’t be speeding by. Besides, the back way might even be shorter. Jeff was going to follow me in the car and bring me back home.
I gave Indy a final pat, and mounted. We rode out of the barn up to the car.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jeff wanted to know.
“Well, we’ve come this far,” I joked. “Let’s go.”
The ride began wet, but well. We had gone almost a mile. Now was the time to decide for sure if I wanted to go the front way or not. The rain poured around us, running down my legs and his. A car roared up to the stop. Indy jumped a little, causing him to slide in the mud. I patted his shoulder, and decided the back way, while unknown, was definitely safer.
We turned east onto the old dirt road, and Jeff followed along behind us with his flashers on. At least no cars would come up from behind and hit us, I thought grimly. Indy kept his pace slow with his head down, and I talked to him. Was this to keep him or me company, I wondered. We had to go another mile or so down the road before our turn, and suddenly Indy stopped. He threw his head up, and spun around the other way. Surprised that we weren’t both laying in the mud over that one, I stopped. We were now facing Jeff. I waved, then turned Indy back the way we were supposed to go.
“What’s the matter, Indy?” I asked him soothingly. Finally it dawned on me. He had never seen a bridge before, and here we were, getting ready to cross a big one. I encouraged him for several minutes, but he just kept spinning in the mud. A car pulled up behind Jeff, and I waved him on past us.
“Now look, buddy,” I explained in my most reasonable voice. “Your feet are already muddy. See? Mine have been washed clean.”
This logic failed to work. However, I refused to get off and give in to this tantrum, well deserved though it may have been. Many circles later, we made it across the bridge. Indy was tense and tired, and the rain had not let up. At least he wouldn’t overheat in this weather, I thought. I brought him to a stop and hopped down to the ground. I hugged him and soothed him, then walked back to the car. Jeff had the thermos, and he poured me a cup of coffee. After a short break, we were off. Indy was calmer, and while we were both soaked, we were in good spirits. Only about five miles left.
I never knew that a horse would get upset when confronted by a cow. We were going along at a good pace, considering the mud, when we took an abrupt sideways detour. Once again, I thanked the powers that be that we weren’t lying in the mud. I could see nothing wrong, no bridge, nothing strange at all. Indy was shaking. His nostrils were flared and his eyes were so wide I could see white all around. I looked in the direction he was staring. There, before us stood a cow, placidly watching us. I started laughing. He had to be kidding. He was not. We were going no closer to the cow than we already were. Instead of starting an argument and going in circles, I decided to dismount and lead him past the terrifying bovine, careful to use my body to block his view. Thankfully it was over in a few minutes. I remounted, turned him to look at the cow, then rode on. I noticed he went quite a bit faster for quite some time after this.
It was still pouring, but at least we had turned onto Rd 17. Only a little longer. The rain was driving harder, and Indy was starting to sweat. The mud we were now slogging through was at least eight inches deep. I was concerned about Jeff. There was no way he would make it through that in a Subaru at the speed he was going. I turned around in the saddle. Jeff had stopped before the bog.
“I’ll back up and gun it through, then I’ll meet you on the other side,” he yelled over the rain.
Poor Indy. How much more could the little guy take. I dismounted into mud well up my shins, and led him off the road. There was a barbed wire fence on one side, and the road on the other. I was afraid he’d hit the fence if he spooked, so we stayed a lot closer to the road than I would have liked. I held his reins in my left hand and draped my right arm over his withers, then stood looking with him. Jeff had already backed way up, and when he saw we were ready he gunned it. At first, I thought for sure he would get stuck, but no, he careened by us, mud flying everywhere, over the hill and out of sight. In the meantime, Indy and I had gotten a massive mud bath, and were both coated with thick, gooey mud. Surprisingly, he hardly flinched. I guess this was no worse than anything else that had happened to him today.
I remounted, and we rode on several yards before we finally spotted Jeff. He was about a half mile up the road waiting. The rain had started breaking up, and on higher ground, the going was a lot easier. Another few miles further, and the road was almost completely dry. I encouraged Indy into a trot, and away we went. A car drove past us, then stopped. It was my friend Mez. He’d come out looking for us worried when we were so late. We rode the rest of the way to his house, and for the final time that day I dismounted. I unsaddled Indy, brushed him down, and gave him a hug.
“Here you are,” I said handing Mez the reins. “He was green when you bought him, but he’s come a long way since then.”
Tags: Emotional Horse Stories, great horse story, Horse 2 Heart, inspiring Horse Stories, rescue story, riding lesson, Scary Horse Stories
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