Page 9 - SophiesPonyTalesJuly10C

CHAPTER 3 THE LITTLE HORSE THAT COULDN’T

My new owner had wanted a horse all her such as pawing the floor and then turning and look-
life, and now that she was out of school and work- ing at her with my ears pinned back. When we lay
ing, she thought she could afford me. She didn’t our ears back against our heads, it is signal that we
have a place for me at her home, so I went to a about to fight or flee.

boarding stable. I had very limited training. When
For thousands of years our survival in the wild
we have had limited training, we are called “green”.
depended upon our fleeing from danger. Rarely did
My owner had never owned a horse and knew little we fight, as we could run so fast and far that a natu-
about us, so she also was “green”. She spent all her ral enemy could seldom catch us. When my new
extra money on my board and care, so she could owner would see me get unruly, she would put me

not afford to hire a trainer for us. Ours was a part- back into the pasture, so bad habits quickly devel-
nership that did not work. We were not doing well oped.
being together. With the result of my misbehavior, the fu-
ture was once again a bleak and an uncertain future
Horse trainers often end up being people train-
was making me lonesome and unhappy. Without
ers. We usually learn what is expected of us more
training, my value would be limited unless some-
quickly than do our keepers. I have never figured
thing other than avoiding work was learned. Going
out why we are sometimes referred to as “dumb”
back to a sale barn and ending up again on truck
because soon I had sized up my new owner. If I was headed for who knows where was likely to happen.
uncooperative, she wouldn’t ask me to do anything. Somewhere in my brief life, a barn name of
If she was brave and lucky enough to get hold of my Sophie was given to me. In Greek, the word sophia
halter brief cooperation would result. When as a means wisdom. It took a long time to live up to that
foal my birth owners had trained me to respect a name becoming wise instead of smart. That owner
rope and halter. did not tolerate me for long as she came to realize
that I was not her dream horse and so she placed
Anytime I had a halter with a lead rope on I
an ad the paper that read “Young untrained Mor-
would not struggle, but sometimes planting my feet
gan filly for sale.”
and refusing to move was the result, especially
Being a plain chestnut, undersized horse,
when she tried to load me onto a horse trailer. If
with a twisted front foot and an uncooperative atti-
she put a rope on my halter and headed for the
tude didn’t make my sale likely, except that the
barn that was o.k. as grain was usually the reward.
word inexpensive also appeared in the listing. Add-
When in the barn she would try to brush me and ing to those negatives was having a chip on my

soon it became apparent that if I stood for the withers and learning little beyond how to avoid re-
brushing then she would bring out the bridle and sponsibility. I was becoming good at that, fast ful-
saddle. She would expect me to be obedient. After filling what seemed to be my destiny, being of little
a few minutes of brushing, which was actually nice value.
and felt good, signs of my resistance would start

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