Winter

WINTER

Tonight I got one of those phone calls from my mom that told me something bad was about to happen. She called me and told me she needed me to help with one of the horses that we have at her house. Winter, our rescue horse, was down. She couldn't get up, the poor girl. When we bought her, the people told us that she was only twelve years old, but with her being a rescue horse, we really had no idea what to expect of her with no knowledge of her history. A few weeks ago we had her teeth floated so that she could eat better and found out, as we suspected, that she was around twenty years old. We have only had her for a little over a year so you do the math. So we called the vet and he came out to see what he could do for her. We thought perhaps it was colic, but it turned out that she had a severe heart murmur and that at least one of her vital organs was massively enlarged. After giving my mom a break and sitting in the field with her, she finally decided to try and get up. I pulled and helped her every way I could, but she fell back over on her side from the effort. She tried to eat and tried to move, but her body just wouldn't let her anymore. She had the will, but not the strength. So we had to make the ultimate decision that no pet own wants to ever have to make. We had to put her to sleep. Though we have only known her a short while, it was all good times. She was a gentle old soul who gave many rides to many kids and she was well loved. We gave her the best home we could while we could. But age and time caught up with her as it usually does during first cold snaps of the year. It breaks my heart to see an animal suffer and it even harder to decide to take their life. But the vet said that there was nothing he could do for her. She just didn't have any muscle left. I feel awful for her pasture buddy, Mister, who is lost and confused now that she is gone. He stood, ever faithful, by her side until the end. It makes me wonder what heartache he feels by her loss. Come spring, we hope to find a new friend for him. I have had so many of these moments in my life with animals. I have three cows, one who is very old (Daisy) and as winter comes every year, I dread getting the call from my mom telling me that Daisy is dying. But luckily for my three ladies, they are very fat cows and seem to hold up during the bitter cold nights. They are tough old gals and I love them. So it wasn't a great night, but I know that Winter is in a better place. She's running in the great, green pastures of heaven now.