Raleigh. An Epitaph
I'm not quite sure how to begin. Last week I had to say good bye to my boy Raleigh. He was ancient and his hind legs were no longer doing their job. I stood there sobbing, holding his head as my vet prepared the final act of kindness. I knew it was time, but also had hoped that I'd never have to make that call. No one wants to make that decision.
Raleigh was my first own horse, a beautiful bay OTTB with a fair amount of existential Angst, a host of soundness issues, and a charming enough personality to make up for it all. With a questionable history, he had been sitting in a 12 x 24 for months when I fell in love with him back in May of 2002. I had no business as a beginning rider getting a horse that couldn't even be safely led, let alone ridden, but my youthful hybris counteracted all those sensible arguments.
Raleigh had been fully retired for the past eight years, and the eight years prior were long rehab periods marked by brief interruptions of occasional riding. I did not have the knowledge and skills then to make the riding therapeutic. I was barely learning to get an independent seat. All in all it's quite remarkable that we survived each other's greenness.
Our relationship had some notable highlights. We made it to exactly one schooling show in the first year I'd had him at which we scored a 59 at Training level with several comments from the judge that read "leaping around". The week after that he injured himself in turnout, an open fetlock joint that need to be surgically repaired. Thanks to Dr. Schlachter and Dr. Yarborough, Raleigh not only survived this, but that leg also turned out to pretty much be the only body part he never had another problem with. The recovery was lengthy (6 months of stall rest) during which I read him books and taught him to pick up a cone and hand it to me.
Also, there was the saddle fitting incident. During a fitting with a very cute saddle fitter, Raleigh managed to buck me off twice (and pull a shoe while lunging). The first time he started bucking around the whole ring. When I finally stopped him, I thought, wow, nice saddle . That's when he put in another one that popped me right out. The second bucking and bolting spree rendered a visit to the ER. I was so whiplashed, I could barely walk for days. The saddle fitter refused to sell me a saddle. Apparently he thought we had bigger problems. But alas, we also eventually worked through that.
And then he got himself kicked out of his first retirement pasture. Everything was going great until a QH horse joined the herd. Raleigh didn't seem to like that horse much and reportedly forced it to jump out the gate. That horse wasn't exactly a talented jumper, so it took down the gate in the process, setting the herd free. Twice. We were asked to leave after that. But we found another lovely spot and Raleigh was never short of friends, especially girlfriends. Once he lived with a Friesian who was trained to touch his knee to his nose to ask for a treat. Raleigh picked that up in no time. He was also quite a good soccer player.
Raleigh loved to be groomed and pampered. He could stand around and chat for hours. He loved treats, including bananas. I had hoped he could have a career as a brand ambassador for a banana company. In his paddock, he'd wait for the first rays of sunshine to hit the far end by the gate. He'd leave his breakfast to go stand there, soaking up the sun. He also loved his grain so much, he always lifted one foot as a sign of excitement. His chiropractor adored him, as his eyes glazed over in ecstasy about his treatments. He'd point his nose to the body parts he wanted adjusted. Never since have I seen a horse so deeply engaged in his bodywork. For the vet and farrier, he was always a gentleman. And he loved to nibble on my hat (or my face), which of course I thought was the cutest thing ever.
Rest in peace, Raleigh. I hope you're running pain free on green pastures with your friends. Love you, always.
