The Power of Animal Heroes

You often hear about a heroic dog who saved the life of his master.

I recall a story of a dog jumping into a pond in the middle of the winter to save a young boy who had fallen through the ice. Both the dog and the boy were saved because of the brave response of the dog and then the quick response of people nearby who noticed the dog.

And there was another story of how a dog fought off a much larger, vicious dog to save two children playing in the front yard. An adult noticed the fight and brought the children to safety, but the heroic dog lost his life from the wounds his poor body received.

These stories are both heartwarming and sickening. I often put myself in the place of the animal and truly feel his pain.

Struggling with Social Skills

But there is another way to make a difference in a life.

Let me tell you about my American Quarter Horse, Anne’s Britches and how she affected my life to the point that I had a life.

I was an awkward child with no social skills. The other children thought I was too weird to befriend me. Our family moved often since my father was in the Navy and I faced rejection every time I tried to make friends in our new hometown. My parents put me in Ballet, Brownies and then Girl Scouts to help me socialize.

This situation caused me to be depressed. At one point in my childhood, I decided that it was too hard to care anymore, and I decided to never cry over anything again. Believe it or not, that lasted for seven years.

But never caring or crying ever again did have its end.

A New Hope: A Special Gift

My dad had been away from the family for a year in Charleston, South Carolina. We did not move with him because he was only to be gone a year and then would be back to the same Philadelphia Navy Yard he was stationed in at the time. While away from the family, he spent his free time at a Quarter Horse farm and at the end of the year he came home with a sweet, almost two-year-old Quarter Horse mare!

I had several horses before her, and had taken plenty of lessons, showed hunt seat and began to do well in the show ring, but none of them had done for me what this little mare did.

She turned out to be my heart horse and I had her until she died a natural death at 33 years old.

But, back to the story…

Anne’s Britches was a granddaughter of King P-234 who is in the AQHA Hall of Fame and known to sire tremendous athleticism and cow sense in his progeny. She was a bay with absolutely no white on her, but her coat was magnificent. She had the blackest black legs, mane, tail and tips on her ears. The rest of her looked like a shiny copper penny, including a metallic shimmer to her coat. Her hair was so fine and smooth. In fact, she never grew a heavy, winter coat, so I had to blanket her in the winter.

It was her personality though, rather than her looks that was incredible. She and I learned together. I taught her to be a truly versatile riding horse and she taught me how to be human.

Learning Together

In the beginning, I took her to shows and just walked around the grounds so that she would get used to every strange thing around her. She was curious and after giving it a good look, would walk up to anything she didn’t know and sniff it, touch it and then never be bothered by it again. It was if she would file it away in the back of her mind and say, “been there, seen that, done that…”. Occasionally, someone would come up to me and ask me about “Britches”. She gave me something to talk about to people without sounding completely self-conscience.

The Lessons of Trust and Patience

At home we’d go on trail rides after every training session. One time I was riding her on the wooded trails near where we lived. My brother was with me on his horse when we walked across a network of tree roots in the path. John’s horse made it through just fine, but Britches somehow got herself caught up in the roots and couldn’t get her foot loose. I jumped off and tried to loosen their grasp, but her hoof couldn’t budge from them.

She was stuck!

As my brother quickly rode back to get something to cut the roots with, I stayed by her, and we had a conversation. It must have taken twenty minutes for my brother to get back home, find a hand saw and nippers, and get back to rescue us. In the meantime, she stood perfectly still, knowing that she in good hands and would be saved. She not only taught me patience that day, but also taught me that people could be reliable.

Another time on a trail, we were alone, and I decided to get off the trail and walk upstream. The stream’s current was easy, and meandering and the ground was sandy, with very few large rocks. I thought it was a perfect ride on a hot, summer day. However, it wasn’t long before the sand got a tight hold and started to suck us under.

We had found ourselves in quicksand!

I tried to escape out of the danger by looking for a level place along the riverbank, but she had her own idea. She apparently was a quicker thinker than me and with all her might she leaped for the bank. It was a lurch out of the quicksand over four feet high and landing about eight feet from where we started. It was an impossible jump! How could she have so much power? She got us both out of danger that day. Without her quick thinking and the belief that she had in herself, we’d both be dead. Another lesson learned.

The Bond Between Us

As Britches and I became the best of friends, I was still struggling with being human at school. I would come home every day and saddle her up for 35–45-minute training session in the ring (readying her for our next show) and then an hour-long trail ride after.

Learning to care brought tears and there were plenty of those once we found ourselves on the trail. I would pull the saddle off her, jump on her bareback and head for the woods. Once alone, I’d tell her of my day at school, lay forward to hug her neck and cry. Britches would listen to me as she steadily walked and told me everything was OK. I am here for you.

Recognition and Confidence

While things weren’t going better at school, they certainly were in the show ring. As a four year old we started catching the judges eye which resulted in numerous Grand Championships. I started riding her both hunt seat and western in pleasure and equitation classes, in-hand, and trail. A year later we added hunter over fences, hunter hack, working hunter, and versatile hack. One more year and we started reining. In the fall after show season we added fox hunting to our schedule. She could do it all and I gained a confidence I never had before.

One day I was at a horse show and a girl came up to me, started talking to me like I was a friend and called me by name. I sat there confused and asked her how she knew me. She smiled and said, ”Everyone knows you. You win everything.” At this point you’re saying to yourself, “Yeah…obviously”, but it wasn’t obvious to me. I was just playing with my horse. No one else really existed. But after that day I started looking around noticing things I hadn’t noticed before.

Because of my horse I started communicating with other humans. Once I started talking, people would talk to me. A lady came up to me and stated that she appreciated how, no matter how well or poorly my horse performed in a class, I always rode out of the ring patting my horse and smiling. I got other compliments from people and then people started coming up to me asking how I did this or that. Through the talents of my horse, I learned that I could be appreciated and valued.

Why Art Didn’t Connect Me to Others

I painted this tree when I was 11 years old

I was beginning to have a human life. It was a new experience for me and sometimes it was overwhelming and sometimes I blew it, but it was life after all.

Now, you’re wondering why didn’t I “Get It” with my art?

My family and those who I came in contact within the art world considered me talented. I won every art competition I ever attended, from first grade to my last year in college, but art was singular. I didn’t need to be human with anyone. It was the world I made it to be and I was comfortable in this world…not happy, just comfortable.

In college I wasn’t thought of as the weird one… I think I was thought of more as the stuck-up one. I had my horse at college with me and a private dorm room. I got mostly straight A’s and was still struggling with some social skills. I was uncomfortable around crowds…although ‘one on one’ my insecurities were not as easy to detect.

Back to the Power of Animal Heros

I’m sure I’m not the only child in this world who didn’t feel like they belonged, felt socially awkward, was beaten down by school bullies, ignored or shunned. There is power in the love of an animal, whether it’s a horse, dog, cat or any other critter. Animals are a gift from God. You never know how they can affect a life…your life.

My hero was a horse. What’s yours?

Do you have a story you’d like to share? I’d love to hear from you.

Conclusion: Gratitude to My Heart Horse

I found I loved to teach, mostly because I was talking about something that I had knowledge in and knew what I would say next. That brought me to the profession of an art teacher and spent my time on for 30+ years. I continued to do my own art and ride one horse or another, but I never found another horse quite like Anne’s Britches.

Thank you to the horse who taught me how to be human.