In Memory of Buck ~1973 - August 25, 2001 (Part 1)

My “little girl” dreams began to come true in 1984 with a phone call from my Grandpa Fisher. He called to wish me a happy 10th birthday. What he said next made my heart race wildly. “I bought you a pony for your birthday. What do you think about that?” I was speechless. My own pony? Really? It was certainly a dream come true.

For as long as I can remember, I had been asking for a pony. Every birthday, every Christmas, every Easter…every day. My poor parents. I remember getting SO mad when they bought my oldest brother a computer. Surely if they could afford a computer, they could afford a pony! Of course, at that time we lived in the city and had no place for a pony; paying board was out of the question. It wasn’t until our family moved to Pike Road in 1983 that we actually had the acreage for a pony or two.

It would be a while before my pony, aptly named Buck as I would find out later, could come live with us. We had to put up fencing and build a barn. There were preparations to be made. The days dragged by very slowly waiting on my pony to arrive. In the meantime I took lessons at a local barn and rode with one of my girlfriends who was lucky enough to have several horses in her own backyard.

Buck lived with my Uncle Buddy, but was actually owned by Buddy’s neighbor, Arnold. The neighbor didn’t approve of Buck “chasing his cows,” so after he filled Buck’s behind with buckshot, Buddy said Buck could live with HIS cows. My uncle has a very soft spot for animals. It definitely runs in the family. During the time Buck lived at Buddy’s, they formed a great friendship. Buck was more like a dog than a pony and Buddy allowed him free range of his property. Buddy was in the process of building his house and Buck kept him company, even standing inside the house before the walls were finished. This meant extra work for Buddy, as he had to keep all the nails picked up off the floor! They spent a lot of time together. For fun, Buddy’s boys would saddle Buck up and take him out into the field. I’m not sure what Buck’s background was, but he sure could buck. Whether it was out of fear or fun, I’m not sure. But he could buck with the best of them. He even bucked one of my cousins off and broke his ankle.

I drove my parents nuts as we tried to ready our place for Buck’s arrival. Finally my parents gave in and took me to visit him in Chattanooga, Tennessee the July before he arrived. Buck was the cutest pony I had ever seen! He behaved very well with me, even though I drove him absolutely crazy. He didn’t have a minute to himself the whole time we were there. It was so hard leaving – I wanted to take Buck home then!!

It was October 1985 when Uncle Buddy called to tell my folks he was bringing Buck to Pike Road. Fence posts were in the ground, but there was no wire. Buddy promised to help Dad get the wire up when he arrived. That was a loooong day, waiting for that horse trailer to pull up. They finally arrived during the early evening, about an hour before dark. I could hardly believe it!

My pony was home! Since we didn’t have a fence up, Buck spent the night tied to Buddy’s truck. Amazingly he knew how to untangle his legs on a long rope, like he had been tied out on a long line before. I had NO ideas the dangers of this until a few years later when Maggie almost cut her foot off when I tied her out on a long rope. (Story for another day…)

So, Buck spent the night tied to the truck and I believe by the next evening the electric fence was complete. Finally Buck had a pasture to run in. He ran a lot and whinnied a lot. He needed a friend desperately. After a few days of Buck settling in, I began to realize this pony was NOT like the ponies in the storybooks I had been reading. Buck had been abused in his past. He was hard to catch, I couldn’t ride him because he bucked, he coughed, he hated dogs, and he was very lonely. I was beginning to not like this pony I always dreamed of having. When our vet did Buck’s vet check, he pulled my Mom aside and asked why in the world did they buy me a pony. A nice quiet Quarter Horse would have been the appropriate choice. We were told that judging by Buck’s teeth, he was around 12 years old. He also had sad news about Buck. My pony had CPOD. Chronic Pulmonary Obstructive Disease, also known as heaves. No wonder he coughed and wheezed! Mom’s response to Dr. Crum was that my Grandfather bought me this pony, he was my pony, and please talk to my daughter about what this pony needs. So, Dr. Crum did. He explained CPOD the best he could to a 10 year old. I listened the best I could for a 10 year old. Dr. Crum and I developed a wonderful teacher/student relationship that is still strong today.

Dr. Crum explained that Buck would need a special diet; I couldn’t let him get too fat, his hay had to be soaked, he couldn’t be in dusty conditions, he had to be administered Dexamethasone orally as needed, and he couldn’t be over worked. Wow, this was a lot to take in. The time that passed over the next year is a blur. I believe I rode Buck some, but it seems like he just kind of existed in the field on his own during this time. The next monumental event was the purchase of Maggie on March 22, 1986. I remember that date well because my friend owned Maggie and she decided to sell her to me. The transaction took place on this day and since my friend didn’t live too far away, we rode Maggie over to my house. Susanna decided she wanted to ride Buck to see how he would behave. Usually he did fine under saddle at the walk and trot, but when the pace got faster, he would buck. We decided to canter along the fence line of our property. As soon as Buck got fast, he started bucking. Susanna came off and couldn’t stand up. Later we would find out her ankle was broken so badly, she had to have the growth plates removed from BOTH ankles. This required several surgeries and a LOT of time in casts. She showed her horses, so she was not happy with me or Buck…I was mortified.

The next year passed and occasionally someone would try to ride Buck. My brothers rode him; their friends rode him; he bucked. Maggie became my sole mount. She was the nice quiet Quarter Horse Dr. Crum wanted me to have in the first place. I learned a lot riding Maggie. She gave me the confidence to begin riding Buck. He was getting too fat and needed to be exercised. I took a couple of lessons on him and learned how to control him. He bucked less and less and became fun to ride.

There was an Open Show put on by our 4H Club coming up in April 1988. Maggie and I worked hard practicing for this little show. I rode Buck in between rides on Maggie. The week before the show I had bathed and clipped Mags to get her ready. She looked like a million bucks. Then I tied her out on a long rope to graze in the yard while I cleaned tack and did other things. When I went to catch her, she turned towards me and the rope got caught around her right hind pastern. When it tightened, she sawed and sawed back and forth in panic. It was a nightmare. To this day I get sick to my stomach remembering this moment. Somehow I got the rope off her and she put her foot down. She could hardly put any weight on her leg the rope burn was so bad. It was so bad it didn’t bleed. It was just white. Dr. Crum came out as quickly as he could. The news was not good. Maggie would be out of commission for many long months; I had to doctor her pastern twice a day with different salves. However, this was a major turning point in my relationship with Buck.

I had been riding Buck often enough to have him in fairly good shape, so I decided to take him to the Open Show.

My Grandparents had all come into town to watch, so I couldn’t let them down!

We entered the Hunter Under Saddle classes and the small hunter over fences. Well, he did AWESOME. He received a lot of attention because he was so cute! The excitement of new horses and new sounds didn’t faze him at all.

He behaved like a perfect gentleman. He did not buck one time! It was a miracle! We didn’t take home a lot of ribbons because he was a 12.2 hand pony showing against horses and the pony classes were for children 12 and under. I was 14 at the time. The judge even told me she would have placed Buck first in one of the classes, but that since he was a pony she could not place him over the horses. The compliment was nice, but it was disappointing not getting a well-deserved ribbon. She had NO idea the accomplishments Buck made on that day. He also earned a new show name, “Hold on Tight.” My mother entered his name as such – I had no idea until I did get placed in an open class and they called out his name! It stuck.

I went on to take regular lessons on him with this marvelous lady named Toni. We put him on a conditioning schedule because of his heaves. We had to slowly build up to doing long, slow trot work to get him fit. We did tons of trail riding. Dr. Crum was totally amazed at how the exercise helped Buck’s breathing. His wheezing and coughing were minimal and he rarely needed Dex to breathe.

Working with Toni, we discovered Buck’s love for jumping. During one lesson, she set up a two stride in-and-out with small verticals about 2 feet high. She instructed me to trot Buck into it. I did.

The sucker jumped so huge, he BOUNCED it. This is not a safe thing, so we went through it several times. Toni couldn’t get over how high Buck would clear small fences. We worked the next few weeks on small courses and Toni signed her daughter and us up for our first Hunter Schooling Show on May 7, 1988.

This was so exciting! We were going to travel to north Alabama for a Hunter Show! Even if it was a schooling show, this was big time for me! I had not been to many shows, only the few local shows around our area. My Uncle Buddy and Aunt Sandra even made the trip from Tennessee to Alabama to watch Buck go. Buddy couldn’t believe Buck was going to horse shows and had to see for himself. Toni painstakingly braided Buck’s wild mane for me and we had a good warm up.

The second class we entered, we won!!! We earned first place out of 12 riders. Pretty good for a back yard pony that had really just begun training!

That day flew by. No more blue ribbons, but we placed in almost every class and had a wonderful time. Two people even wanted to know if he was for sale!

In June 1988 we went to our second Hunter Show held at Oak Mountain in Birmingham. Toni wasn’t able to go, so my parents borrowed a truck and trailer from a wonderful sweet friend and we headed out.

Uncle Buddy and Aunt Sandra came to watch this one as well!

No blue ribbons, but we ended up with two seconds (money classes – we won $25 for each 2nd place), one 4th, and two 5th place ribbons. It was definitely harder with Toni not being there, but one of the other hunter trainers took me under her wing and coached me for the day. She really liked Buck and wanted to know if he was for sale!

(Stay tuned for Part 2...)

How Ironic

You wouldn't believe what happened to me on Saturday, so I might as well just tell you. Saturday morning, as Tropical Depression Fay was bearing down on us, two men and a teenager showed up at my house looking for my husband. Of course my husband wasn't home; he was out shopping for suits at Belk's. He's the shopper in the family, not me.... :) Anyway, these men introduced themselves and said they were here to look at the Chevelle. Stunned and wondering if hell had frozen over, I asked them, "Is it for sale?" And of course they looked at me like I was completely crazy, because OF COURSE they were HOPING it was.

Well, the story behind this lovely, rusting, apparently worth a lot of money, falling apart 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle, is that it was my father-in-law's first love...er...car. He bought it brand new when "IT" was "THE" car to have. The love affair never ended and when it stopped running, he stored it behind his house for many years, until it found its way to our pole barn.

(This is sort of what it looked like when it was running.)

(Below is its current condition - sorry about the ladder so strategically placed...I cropped this from an old photo looking through the barn.)

It is my father-in-law and husband's DREAM to restore this car to running condition. Which will be a very costly dream...much like my horses.

Okay, back to the strange men. They ask if they can see the car that is now removed from the pole barn and sitting behind Brian's shed. I say sure and take them to check out the car. They study it from every angle, open the hood, peer into the windows, check under the bumpers and say, "Well, it really is only a shell. It would take a lot to restore it." To which I respond, "Yes, but they are hoping to be able to restore it one day. That is their one really big dream..."


Then one of the men asks me about our "pole barn in progress...." "What's up with the pole barn over there?" To which I respond, "That is part of MY one really big dream....to one day get that finished and bring my horses over here."


We move to the pole barn and they look it over. One of the men says, "Well, that's my line of work." He goes on asking me how I want it set up and what I want it to look like, etc., etc., etc. We discuss the stalls, feed and tack rooms, the overhang, the aisle, the sliding doors; then fencing. He makes the statement, "Well, if your husband is willing to trade the car and buy the materials, I can have this pole barn walled in and your fence posts driven into the ground in a matter of days. I'll even hang your gates." I respond in utter disbelief, "Who are you, angels in disguise?"


However, this is my father-in-law's car, not my husband's. Did I mention that this car was his first love that he has been hanging on to since 1970? That he wants to sell this car as much as he wants to cut off his right arm? As much as I want to sell my collection of somewhere around 400 Breyer model horses? As much as I want to get rid of my horses? Isn't irony a funny thing?

Quick Tonto Post

I longed Tonto yesterday for about 30 minutes. This time I started him off in his bridle so there was no tricky business (These photos were taken the other day when I attempted to longe him in his halter...). He still doesn't want to canter on the longe line and this is a frustration to me....how do you teach one to canter on the longe?? (and canter under saddle for that matter...he has never known how, even when I bought him). I would try to canter him under saddle, but with the saddle riding up his neck at the trot, I don't dare try the canter! I'm sure it would be easier if I had a round pen, but I don't have that luxury...

My friend K worked with cantering him on the longe last month, but I am not able to work with him consistently, so that doesn't help...I get to work with him only one to two days a week.

Also, I don't think he is sweating enough. For an out of shape pony, I believe he should be sweating enough to at least wet his chest, but he doesn't. How do I know if he possibly has anhydrosis? He pants heavily after working at the trot. I try to do 5 minute trot sets to keep from stressing him too much, but I'm not sure how much is enough to make him sweat. Drew hasn't ridden him in a while, but even when he has ridden him, he has not sweated under the saddle. He does sweat under his bridle. Do any of you have any advice (please)?

Fear...and Accomplishments

Today was a great day. My oldest son and I went to see Filly at my wonderful friend L's place. We are lucky enough to get up there once a week and in this case, it has been two weeks since we saw Filly last. The last time we were there, L was in Ireland visiting family, so we just longed Filly and bathed her, no riding. Well, today, L was home and was kind enough to give D and me each a longe lesson. D on L's horse Jack and me on Filly.

You see, I have this horrible fear of riding Filly. There is truly no reason for it, other than she is still very green at eight years old and can be a bit silly sometimes. She has bucked me off a couple of times, but luckily, I have not been hurt. I believe it is the fear of getting hurt that grips me. I still haven't written about Filly's story yet, but I will soon. She was a very green 4 year old when we bought her, but was quiet, yet very nervous under saddle. Due to a lot of life events, I have not been able to focus on her training, so her silliness is totally my fault. We are working through it though and this longe lesson was fabulous today. I started her out on the longe and worked her at the walk, trot and canter; working on her transitions and halting on cue. She was very relaxed today, so that was a plus. When L offered to longe me on her, I couldn't refuse, but boy, that tight feeling of anxiety was reeeealllly bad. After only a few circles though, Filly's back was swinging rather than humped up as usual, so I finally relaxed and settled into the saddle. We worked both directions doing simple walk-trot-walk-halt transitions. When the lesson was over, I felt like we had made a huge accomplishment. For me, it WAS a huge accomplishment...and Filly didn't do any of her silly scooting-out-from-under-me garbage she used to do so well.

Honestly, I should sell her and get something dead broke and quiet, but I have this hope that once we can work together on a regular basis (namely, when we are able to move her to our place), we may be able to accomplish some great things together.

The fear thing is so aggravating. This is not something I experienced very often when I was younger and I do not like it at all. Hopefully this fear thing can be beat and Filly and I can go on to bigger and better things, like riding with D and Tonto...

In Case You are Wondering...

My hubby added the Live Feed option to my blog. It is really neat to see where folks are from when they stop by. I hope you don't mind!

Stay tuned for my August 25th post. It will be a very sappy tribute to my beloved pony Buck. Lots of photos will be included.

"Lessons Learned" Longe Lesson

Today I went to my parents' house to help out with my Dad, but couldn't resist longing Tonto "for just a few minutes." Well, "just a few minutes" turned into 2 hours! Big help I was to my Dad today, and I felt a bit ashamed of myself for breaking that promise.




Stupid me didn't take into consideration that it is currently about 20 degrees BELOW normal right now. Instead of it being in the low 100's with high humidity, it is in the low to mid-80's with relatively low humidity. We are having glorious cool weather due to a cold front that brought much needed rain over the last 2 days. It feels like fall.

So, I'm not the only one loving the cool weather! When I stuck Tonto on the longe line today, the first mistake I made was NOT realizing he would probably be feeling his oats. The second mistake was attempting to longe him in his halter. I always longe him in either a cavesson or his bridle.

The third mistake I made was not wearing gloves. In Pony Club, we were taught to wear our gloves and hard hat EVERY time we longed our horses. I don't usually wear my hard hat (unless I'm longing Filly), but I almost always wear gloves. After Tonto ripped the longeline out of my hands TWICE, I marched back to the house and got his bridle and my gloves. (And my camera.) I turned him loose in the pasture to run and snapped some photos.

The fourth mistake I made was longing him an open field. I should have chosen a corner of the field or a smaller paddock to work him in.

The fifth mistake was trying to work him in a wet field. I am lucky he didn't hurt himself when he bolted those 2 times. He could have slipped and fallen or worse! It was so wet from all the rain, you can see water splashing up from his hooves!

I loved this photo of him stretching for grass as he ran around.

The shot above would have been really good had I not zoomed in so far, cutting his head off!!! It's funny how he flags his tail so much! As far as I know he is 100% Shetland...

You can see the longe line and whip leaning on the tree Tonto is running past...he was really enjoying his freedom after being stuck in the fat pen.

The shot below is one of my favorites from today. It should be labeled "Freedom" or "Liberty" or something like that... :)

He finally got tired and stopped to graze with Maggie.

He is now ready to put his bridle on and be longed like he should have been in the first place. :) Tonto went around like a perfect angel and we ended on a very good note.

Just wanted to share some lessons learned today. At work, we are reminded every day to practice safety, not just at work, but at home, too. So there's our safety lesson for today!