In March of 2014, I was diagnosed with leukemia. I immediately decided I needed to bring a horse back into my life. Shortly thereafter, I began to search for my #RightHorse. I decided to seek a rescue horse because there is such great need. I found my Ted at Auction Horses Rescue. He was at auction at 5 years old and almost shipped to Mexico. There was something about him that spoke to me. I applied for adoption and awaited response…

Fortunately, Ted was a driving distance from my home. I immediately fell in love with him! Initially Ted was pretty shutdown. He had sat in a pasture for six months and needed to be slowly brought back to fitness and health.

Once feeling good, Ted became defensive. I could see the massive amount of trauma and for three years we had to work very hard at overcoming his past. He would use his size and defenses to keep humans away. As if a magical amount of training, love, patience, care and dedication had occurred, after three years Ted finally let me come in close. He even allowed me to start kissing his face. These days, his favorite activity is smooshy, kissie face time.

Since then, Ted has grown leaps and bounds! We have won a couple of buckles in trail obstacle events and our bond is deep, trusting and enduring. Sometimes, the trauma from his past pays us a visit and we return to our work with helping him let go of it. Ted is absolutely the #RightHorse for me. He has made me a better human being and horseman. I believe, he has helped keep my leukemia in molecular remission for the years I’ve had him in my life. Every horse is worth saving. Rescues are amazing beings! I’m beyond grateful for my #RightHorse! I look forward to watching my Ted blossom into the amazing horse that he is.

What #RightHorse means to me

#RightHorse to me, means partnership, dedication, trust and connection. All of these things can be achieved if the right horse is matched with the right person. A very important part of rescue or transitioning horses, is taking the time to successfully match horses with people. An improperly matched horse and human often brings horses to needing transition or rescue.