When my family and I decided that we were ready to get a horse again I knew I wanted an off track thoroughbred. I’ve always been an advocate for animal welfare and recognized many racehorses need a second chance at life after their career at the racetrack ends. I searched for a couple months for the right horse and a rescue called Win Place Home kept popping up in my searches. My dad and I decided to take a little road trip to meet some of their horses. I actually went there with a totally different horse in mind. In fact, Olive (Precious) wasn’t even on my radar when we were heading there. As we were making our way through the barn and meeting horses, Olive caught my eye. I still can’t quite put my finger on what it was but I felt like I HAD to have her. She was just so sweet and mellow and curious. I remember walking into her paddock and petting her and I was already asking CJ if I could adopt her right now.

I started getting a little nervous about making the right decision once we got home. My hope was that the horse we adopted would be one my children could ride when they were ready. The horse we had originally gone there to meet was more “ready” than Olive. And I liked the other horse a lot but I couldn’t shake the feeling that Olive was the right one for my family. Olive had broken a sesamoid when she was 2 and needed more training than the other horse but ultimately I felt she was worth the extra work. And she is! She has been amazing from the moment she got here. She has far exceeded my expectations and surprises me every day with what an incredible horse she is. She loves everyone and is so funny and curious. She constantly has me laughing. She’s the sweetest horse with my kids. She loves getting attention from them and I still can’t find anything that she’s afraid of. She’s brought so much happiness to my family. I’m grateful every day that she’s part of our family and I can’t wait to see what the future store for us.