Your Turn: A very thankful Horse Nation

A number of readers sent us photos and notes about what they’re thankful for this year. Hint: It has an awful lot to do with horses.

Tiffany Morey writes: “This year I am thankful for the efforts of the Camelot Horse Weekly (CHW) Group on Facebook. Each week since November of 2009, their volunteers donate their time to take pictures of the horses that have sold to the kill pen at the Camelot Auction in Cranbury, NJ and post them on Facebook to help the horses find new homes. People who are interested in the horses can call the auction house to purchase them at the kill buyer price, and the horses are saved from being shipped to slaughter. Because of their hard work and dedication, they have saved the lives of thousands of horses and not a single horse has shipped to slaughter from Camelot since they started their Facebook group.

If it were not for CHW, a horse that is very dear to my heart would have met this grim fate. This past week, Martin, one of the horses that I used to ride on the Rutgers University Mounted Patrol, wound up in the kill pen at Camelot. He was a loyal and dedicated mounted patrol horse with a great work ethic and heart of gold, and never should have wound up at Camelot. Somehow, after being retired from patrol work, he wound up in the wrong hands. However, because CHW was able to get his picture on Facebook, I was able to spot him to give them more information about him and Martin was bought by a wonderful woman in VA who is giving him loving home for the rest of his life. I am thankful for the horse heroes at CHW and for all that they do to help horses like Martin get their happy endings!”

Martin

Paula Smiley writes: Oreo, AKA, “The Quickening” Straight Egyptian Arabian, gelding. I gave him the pet name Oreo because of his nose, looks like an Oreo cookie 😉 He was born with his show name, I didn’t give him that name.

Evelyn writes: I am thankful for my pony Hugz ( who’s usually very happy) and ear bonnets:)

Lisa Roddy writes: Happy Thanksgiving! I am thankful for my husband, who supports my daughter and I in our passionate love of all things horses!! We own and board two great horses, and we spend much time and money on our horsey hobby.

He actually said to me just the other day, “of course you need a new western saddle”, and he was not being sarcastic! And this past weekend he told me how much he loved watching my daughter and I ride out through the local apple orchard on a beautiful afternoon.

And he is allergic to horses!

We are very lucky:)

Caroline Sease writes: I am thankful for our special pony Dixie and all my dear friends and family members who have walked Dixie’s journey with us over this past year. Dixie beat ALL odds and survived a crushed jaw as well as a broken navicular and coffin bone after being hit by a car last December. Dixie showed us the true power of prayer as her Pony Prayer Warrior Cavalry covered her in healing requests. She proved that God heals His creatures. Dixie’s vets and her farrier are amazing. Through their tireless efforts and Dixie’s amazing will to live, here she is celebrating her 15th birthday last spring. And, now, almost one year after the accident, she goes out daily and gallops in the pasture with her friends! For a horse that was supposed to be euthanized one day after an accident, she is our miracle story! What a difference prayer, wonderful friends and family, amazing vets, the very best farrier in the world, and a year of healing makes! To say we are thankful for our special pony would be an understatement. There really are no words for the love our family feels for her.

Happy Thanksgiving!