Yesterday I lost an old friend, and had to make one of those decisions that you just don’t want to have to make. I feel very strongly that when you take on responsibility for an animal, then that responsibility lasts a lifetime. Poor Oakley wasn’t blessed with good teeth, and when he lost his upper ones a couple of years ago, I never realised how well he’d adapt and thrive. When his bottom ones gave up on him, yesterday morning, I knew that his time had come, and the poor old fella just looked defeated.
So the end of an era has come, and the horses I brought with me from England are gone. In many ways Oak was a wasted opportunity – the best horse I ever had, but did little with. He had a good life though, and I’d like to think I did the best for him. He was a lovely soul, and I’ll miss him so much.
Now for the first time in 20 years I’m back to having just one horse – Sherafey, and with any luck I’ll be into my sixties before I have to make the same decision for her. One thing I do know though is that she’ll have the best life I can give her.
