Horses wanted

[Paula C Gentry <pgentry@U.Arizona.EDU>]

I don't know if I should even post this. I apologize in advance to anyone
whom I might offend. I don't know any of you, so maybe I should keep my
mouth shut and will accept humbly all flames that follow.

I've been visiting and lurking at this site for a long time now. I'm
interested in endurance and we have a horse that's a real prospect. He's a
grade horse, a ranch horse that came up from Mexico, about seven years old
and a ball of fire. If you put him on a cow, by God, you better be willing
to work it! We use him a lot for hunting and have easily gone 50 miles in
a day on him (which is why I got the crazy idea that he would be a fun
horse to start my endurance career!), and we've done it several days in a
row. This was in the Gila Wilderness country of southern NM, which I'm
sure Lif and Paul Strand can verify isn't easy country (never met them but
have had fun reading their posts). We paid $700 for him because the people
that owned him thought he was possessed, he was so awful, and they were
glad to get that. It was killer price at the time. Well, it took a while
to get his trust, but he's now the best horse on the place and trust me,
he'll never, ever be sold. He can do anything, go anywhere, keep you safe
and come home sound. Yeah, you get what you pay for. And sometimes, you
get lucky, and sometimes, someone gives someone a break because he needs
it, the someone being a horse or a person!

I have read how endurance people were good sportsmen and help each other
out. I've seen that, lurking on this list. But I'm apalled at the tone
some people have taken. God forbid that someone want a horse for $200.
Someone mentioned being sure to check out the owners, if they only can pay 
that much for a horse. Well, darn it, that is good advice no matter HOW MUCH
someone is willing to pay for a horse! My fiance has sold people horses
for far less than the horse's worth because he wanted them to have a good
horse and he knew he was doing them a very great favor. Sometimes, a horse 
can't do a darn thing more strenuous than be someone's 4-H western pleasure
horse, but the kid that got it learns about horsemanship and
responsibility and all the other good things that come from growing up
with a horse. And there are horses waiting to be rescued and given a good
home. Those people were straight about what they could afford and they
opened up their search to a lot bigger area by posting.

My point in writing this is that it's easy to go off on someone like this
person who wanted a gold horse for nothing. It's easy to assume the worst.
And griping about the very real costs of breeding, raising, training and
owning horses is legit because we've all had to write that check to the
vet for coming out in the middle of the night or flushing the mare with
the infected uterus, or whatever. But at the same time, there are so very
many of us who would have never had horses if all the horses 
cost the full price of breeding, foaling, raising, training and owning the
horse up til the time we bought it. There's *always* more to a horse than
the price. And I don't ever want to forget my days in graduate school when
every extra penny, and some of the non-extra ones went to taking care of
my mare.

OK, I'm done, except to say thank you to this person:

From: peggy brush <psbrush@hotmail.com>
To: ridecamp@endurance.net
Subject: RC:  RC: Re: Horses wanted
Message-ID: <19990626134529.40690.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed

I was a 4-H leader for 8+ years and had many horses donated free (they did
get a tax write off) because people know that the horses were going to
good
4-h homes, would have lots of leaders helping with the wellfare of horses
and a great sport for our young teens (what a good way to keep them from
'hanging out' at the mall).  Many of these horses were very nice,
registered
and trained. Bottom line, lots of young people would love to have a horse
but their family can not afford $3000 (or $6000 for 2)....it sure doesn't
hurt to ask.  I have no problem with breeding, training and selling horse
for a profit, but not everyone has money as their primary motivation.  If
we
can afford to help some young people let's do it!!
                                                                               
----------------------
Paula C Gentry
pgentry@U.Arizona.EDU

It is not knowing a lot but grasping things intimately and savoring them
which fills and satisfies the soul. 

--St. Ignatius--






=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=