Horse Behavior Specialist
Licensed 2 Star Parelli Professional
www.nancyslater.com
20 / Sport and Trail Magazine
Fancy All Day and Nite
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he was 2 years old, solid red, except for 2 white socks on both right feet, and a large star on her forehead. The tight yearling sized halter bore into her face and under her chin, it looked like raw meat. The dirt yard was filled with various discarded junk made up of wood boards, metal scrap, wire, and rope. A large lump of brown strawlike material sat nearby, that upon closer inspection, slightly resembled a round bale. The young horse peered over the fence, with bright, hopeful eyes, when we appeared around the corner.
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strawlike material sat nearby, that upon closer inspection, slightly resembled a round bale. The young horse peered over the fence with bright, hopeful eyes when we appeared around the corner.
The man had fetched an almost empty, dusty sack of feed from the garage. There were no other signs of horse food evident. He poured the rest of the feed into a bucket hanging on the fence and the young horse quickly devoured it.
"What's her name?", I asked. "We call her Peanut, but her registered name is Fancy Nite". She looked like a stocky QH, but she was a solid Paint. The man told us that he had bought the horse for his daughter as a yearling to be a 4H project, but the girl had lost interest. He said the teen and her friends would strap a saddle on the horse, jump down out of the rafters of the pole barn, and would unsuccessfully attempt to ride the young horse!
She was free, and we agreed to take Fancy. I brought my Standardbred gelding, Joe for company in the trailer, but as soon as he looked at the wide eyed filly, he pinned his ears at her! She loaded up in the stock trailer anyway, in spite of Joe's menacing presence. What a brave baby!
My old horse Minnie took one look at Fancy climbing down out of the trailer, and immediately decided it was her foal. She snickered softly to Fancy, and allowed her to eat out of her feed bucket. No other horse was allowed to do that! From that day on, Fancy stayed by Minnie, who taught Fancy how to be a herd leader.
Fancy wasn't afraid. If she felt threatened, she would just bite you! You couldn't touch her without caution, and a hug around the neck was cause for serious injury. The lady who fed my horses, was chased out of the pasture by the little firecracker. My husband decided to do something about the aggression, and walked into the pasture carrying hay. "Here she comes" I warned. She was headed from the back of the pasture at a gallop, teeth bared, ears flat. Just before she reached him, my husband dropped the hay, pulling his T-shirt up over his head, turned, and began dragging a foot and growling, while heading right for Fancy! She slammed on the breaks with a surprised look on her face, and quickly ran away. Then she turned, came back with a soft, questioning look. He pulled his shirt back down and they made friends. She never chased people again!
Fancy was a quick learner, and I was excited to see how fast she excelled in the Parelli Program. She learned to trust and respect me, and we became partners. I believed she would one day be my Super Horse; I dreamed I would do all kinds of things with her, showcasing her talents.
When she was 3, I was ready to take her on her first trail ride alone in the woods. She did well, surpassing my expectations. But something was wrong, she was limping when we got home. I gave her time off, thinking she might have pulled a muscle. After a week with no improvement, I took her to the vet.
Her x rays showed bone chips on both stifles that required surgery to remove. After surgery, the vet said she had bone on cartilage and bone on bone. This meant she would have limited service, and Fancy would let me know how much she would be able to do. And for how long.
I was heartbroken about her prognosis, but decided to see what she COULD do. The surgery had relieved her pain and I taught her to drive that year. We continued our ground work to a high level, as she remained sound. Her liberty advancement was exciting! I watched Parelli videos, challenging myself and Fancy to do what they could do.