tony bologna macaroni...marty's packer!..crazzzzyyyy little toot...class clown...and the
apple of all of our eyes
so, i think it was ms. cherry hill that coined the phrase that there are no problem horses...only problem riders...i think there is SOME truth in that there statement...marty seems to think there is
ALOT of truth in that statement.
i really don't care...cause whatever the case might be...we have a knack, as it would seem, for honing in on HORSES WITH A HISTORY!!! and the worse the history seems to be...or the worse that horses future seems to be...the more the reason we have found to bring em here...that's cause of marty--my marine cowboy!!! :)
first, let me set the record straight...we are NOT in the business of rescuing horses...im not touching that with a 10 foot pole...however, of the 4 we now have 3 would fit into that category...and there have been more than a few that were headed for an ill fated ending, which have come through our little neck of the woods and have ended up with a pretty sweet story book ending...
for the next few...however long it takes...our focus around here will be with tony...the
class clown! thought some of yall might enjoy the ride with us...should be quiet amusing from the outside looking in.
what we know: right before our move last year, marty spotted a surrey in a man's garage (small town, right on the hwy)...no for sale sign...nothin...so, we simply pulled up into the driveway...and asked the man if he wanted to
sell it....everything has a price, right? we had 2 weeks to move everything we could 5 hours across the ouachita mountains to a small leaking cabin with a leaking shop and what do we do...we see a surrey...and we decide to fall in love with a surrey..."oh, and lets look out back...ill show you who i was going to use to pull it...BUT..."he says...uughhh...THERE IT WAS...and i knew it then...that this was gonna be a new ride...cause i know my cowboy!
as we headed round back...i almost felt sick to my stomach...and felt sicker with each step...when we finally reached the end of the stretch...there was little peanut...in a 30 ft round pen...which he had been in for four years...tree stumps and scrap metal littered the little area...there was no room for peanut to lay down or move out from a walk with any degree of safety...there was no shelter...no other horses...just peanut back there...forest for his view in the back...out building for his front view...and for his side views...more scrap metal...and there was peanut...fat
enough, good straight back, hooves in decent enough shape...pretty little boy and well built, actually. "well, we got him," the man said, "he had problems...and just wasn't what we bargained for...we named him peanut, because when the grandkids come, they like to
feed him peanuts." so, i reached out to pet the poor critter...matted mane...wintered coat...really not that dirty, hell, he couldn't lay down...and he jumps to high heaven!!!
Dear Lord!!!
any way...after the three of us running around in that mess of a pen (well, mostly i was trying to hide behind whatever i could hide behind)...for about 20 min or so...marty finally had him caught and haltered...really, it was a pretty sad state of affairs...my heart was at this point, pretty broken...there was my cowboy...just standing there...watching...observing...there was this little man who had bitten off more than he could chew and a bit humiliated by it all, and a little halflinger...who would in that moment become a part of our forever family...cause i know my cowboy...and i know he knows horses...and i trust that...'time to go home' :)
somewhere, between that little town and our house...as we were now hauling a full blown surrey, and a new little halflinger, peanut got a new name...tony...from where that came, who knows...marty just renamed him tony...so, thus begins the saga of tony...tony bologna macaroni...marty's packer!..crazzzzyyyy little toot...class clown...and the
apple of all of our eyes.
upon being turned out, he, of
course, went nuts...and bucked and farted, and snorted, and just let off a whole lot of steam...cowboy, softly says, "he's got a lot of ghosts in his head." YA THINK???!!!???
we would have to uproot tony one more time in less than 2 weeks, but, he wouldn't be alone to face it...he would have his new family...and we were all headed to a new place, a new time, and lots and lots of new adventures!
which brings me to today...almost a year out...a year spent on groundwork...with a little halflinger...that would absolutely try to knock down the side of the barn to keep from being touched...twice a day...EVERY DAY...hands are on tony...now, we lead...he comes running when we come to the pen...many of his ghosts are gone...
cowboy says, "time to start."
hehe...let's begin...