Meet "Rocky"
Rocky is a 7-year old Palomino Appendix (Quarter Horse/Thoroughbred) gelding. I first met him when he was five months old and he had never been handled and he was very wild, scared and defensive. When I first saw him he had a rope halter on him tied so tight I had to cut it off with a knife once I got him to trust me a bit. It had probably been on him for months while he was growing. He also had a sticker with a number on it stuck to his hindquarters—Rocky was a PMU foal and that was what they used to identify him at the ranch he was from. PMU stands for Pregnant Mare Urine, which is produced and collected in order to create the drug Premarin. Certain ranches focus on keeping many mares pregnant at a time in order to produce the urine and then they usually sell the resultant unwanted foals to slaughter.
But that was not to be Rocky’s fate. Due to a program called FoalQuest and Open Gates Equine Rescue, Rocky was saved.
Rocky has taught me much about horses and horse training,
but it is what he has taught me about life and being
the best person I can be that I thank him the most for.
Rocky is now 7 years old and he and I have come a long way together, to the point where I refer to him as the softest, kindest and gentlest horse I have ever known. I have never had the level of trust with a horse I have with him. What I am happiest the most for Rocky is that he feels free to be himself and he is happy in all aspects of his life. His spirit is free and his movement is graceful and soft.