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Your Favourite Horse?

5K views 19 replies 13 participants last post by  SmallTownGypsy 
#1 ·
Your horse? A friend's horse? A famous horse? Is there a horse, living or gone, that is your favourite of all time (so far)? :) A horse whose memory makes you smile...or cry...

Mine is John Henry, the small, Kentucky born, humbly-bred, plain, crabby-to-the-end, throroughbred gelding who raced mostly in California until his tenth year! He died at the age of 32 at the Kentucky Horse Park in 2007. He overcame being passed around and so much more in his younger days to eventually become the highest earning gelding of all time (6-1/2 million in winnings). I think that only Cigar (a stallion) earned more.

He'd lived for 22 years at the Horse Park, where he was stalled in the Hall Of Champions, and he was much admired and much loved. His special treat was donuts! :) Sometimes you'd see him playing in his paddock, giving the other horses dirty looks. Other times you'd see him trying to stare down Cigar whose stall was across from his.

I was sooooo surprised to find him when I moved to Kentucky, assuming that he had passed away many years ago. But there he was! He was quite famous for his bad temper. But if I stood very still and very quietly in front of the bars of his stall, curiousity would eventually get the better of him and he would come over, lift his nose up to the bars, and say a brief, snorting hello...and I do mean brief! :D

I attended his funeral a the Kentucky Horse Park along with about 500 people from all over North America. There was music and flowers along with many tears. You can visit his grave which is located in a place of honour at the entrance to the Hall Of Champions, where his statue will greet you.

I also attended Eight Belle's and Barbaro's "funerals" at Churchill Downs, but John Henry's funeral was not only the largest, but the most touching. He was so very much loved by so many.

I miss you, John.
 
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#3 ·
horsechick139, here's a pic of Barbaro's magnificent statue at the main entrance to Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky. It was unveiled during his "funeral", and many of us teared up when they started to play "My Old Kentucky Home", the song that was playing the day Barbaro made his way to the starting gait before he went on to win the Kentucky Derby. Barbaro's ashes were laid to rest at the base of this statue. The artist, owners, and vet were all there, along with many others who loved Barbaro.


 
#4 ·
Eight Belles was buried in traditional racehorse style, in an area behind the Kentucky Derby Museum at Churchill Downs. The area is pretty and green with many flowers, and contains the graves of other famous thoroughbreds.

There was "standing room only" left by the time we got to her "funeral". A bell-ringers group played songs to honour Eight Belles.

Her grave stone is engraved with a poem:

She will live in our hearts
The magnificent steel gray
Who gave us her all
The first Saturday in May
 
#5 ·
my favorite horse tha I know is Zebs Suager Leo RG (Hercules) my current gelding, I realy like my marebut he is a better riding horse

my favorite famous horse would be the Peppy San Badger (Little Peppy) a great cutting horse and using horse.

I also like Bartender, he had a repuation of a good solid working man's horse.
 
#8 ·
My favorite horse is my TB, of course. I wouldn't trade him for the best racehorse in the world.

I do love Ruffian, Barbaro, and Eight Belles. I have a soft spot for racehorses. But I think my favorite stallion of all time is Fandango Del Sol, a non-fading black Andalusian. I've seen him in real life several times, and he's always a perfect gentleman. And gorgeous. :wink:
 
#11 ·
Besides my horse, my next favorite horse was a blue roan mare that I rode a couple of weeks ago. She was what I considered the perfect quarter horse. I was in love with her.
 
#12 ·
Thanks CANKLES for showing me the pic. I read the article on her funeral online. I have a poster when Babaro won the Kentucky Derby to bad he had a accident he was living in suffering. I LOVE the Andulsian pic. Andulsians are beautiful. My Favorite horse is Rags to Riches the filly who won the Belmont a few years ago.
 
#13 ·
<< Horse in my profile pic - Jess.. shes just amazing :)
Do we look like we have a good bond? :) BTW her ears were flickering bc an arabian gelding she is pastured with,among other arabs, was comming up to the left side of her...


ALSO whizards baby doll aka roxy, was an AMAZINGLY inspirational pair with stacy westfall, i hope to have a bond like that with Jess :D
 
#17 ·
In a long time of working with horses I have had the privilege of riding many top class horses - I have broken many top class racehorses, more for the jumping game than flat but several flat winners too.
I have also ridden many top event horses and show jumpers, talking about international horses too.
Of all the many horses I have had the joy of riding, the one I would want to clone would be a big old hunter by the name of Tom.
He was out of an Irish Draught mare by a Cleveland Bay - a big horses, standing 16.3, about 10 inches of bone, a front on him that gave you the impression that it went on forever.
He came to me to look after for the fox hunting season and then the fun began. He was one of the nappiest horses I have ever had through my hands. He would be trotting along the road and then stop dead, he would give a half rear and if he felt the tarmac was slippery he would trot on, if it was't then he would rear up vertical and swing to the right. If a car came along he would stop, allow it to pass and then continue.

I could haul with both hands on the left rein and he would still spin, the snaffle bit would be where his cheek piece should have been and the right cheek piece through his mouth. To stop this I put a drop noseband on and he just crossed his jaw and snapped it! That was his strength.
I was told he was impossible to clip (back then there wasn't the better dopes available nowadays) so, as he had a heavy coat he would seat greatly.
One day he refused to go through the village with me. I could have gone back the way we came, to the left, another way home, to the right up a one way street the wrong way but straight on NO!

As he knew his strength was greater than mine I decided not to fight but to sit him out. So, there I was in the middle of the village cross roads, traffic weaving around me for three hours. When he wanted to go I made him wait. That was basically the end of his napping antics, we had our moments but never anything that was not solved by me getting cross with him.

That horse had so much ability - I rarely ever opened any gates, we jumped them all. I had some fantastic days hunting on him and because I could never go to sleep on him, he always made me ride him correctly.

I had that horse for 8 years, I adored him because there was never any getting to the bottom of him. You would think that he was fine when he would throw in a buck, start to nap or just be a silly fool over passing a drain.
After the village incident I could clip him with no problem. He wasn't the easiest but if I asked his permission rather than being demanding then all was fine.
What I loved about him was his humour and never giving up trying things on even when he was well past his know better age.

When it came to jumping he could back off a fence or get in close. He cleared everything by feet but you could not get him to walk over a coloured pole!
A girl I was teaching who had spina bifida wanted to ride him. I told her she could if she could tack him up! She managed and came into the jumping paddock.She walked and trotted him around and then cantered. Tom never offered to buck try any of his antics. The child's feet barely came below the bottom of the saddle flaps. She then took him around the show jumps which he jumped like a pro! Never spooked or looked at anything. Jumped them all at the height they were without backing off or bucking on landing. He knew his responsibilities.

I admired him more than any other horse I have had.
 
#18 ·
As far as horses I've known, I loved a horse named Rocky. He was a QH, Morgan, Walker mix. I have never ridden a horse so smooth in all my life, ever. I loved jumping him.
Favorite famous horses, I have always loved the story of Man o' War.
And of course the immortal Lion King.

and His Majesty The King.
 
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