Koper Equine

I first met Sunny when he was in a recovery program with a friend who worked at the same barn as me. This was many years before I ever even considered bodywork as a career. The first story I was told about him went something like this:

“Sunny was a successful Advanced Event horse in New Zealand. An American owner bought him for an American rider who wanted to take a run at the US team. Once Sunny was in America some transitional issues developed with the new rider. On a visit to assess progress, the owner noticed some unusual swelling in Sunny’s withers and in saddle area. Alarmed, she insisted on taking him to a nearby Vet clinic, who diagnosed him with torn ligaments all along his topline. He was brought home to heal.”

By the time my friend got involved, Sunny had already spent over 6 months in recovery on stall rest. Under his Vet’s guidance she carefully hand-walked and grazed him for months before starting his transition to mild exercise under saddle and turn out. My friend worked with him for the next 8 months and had just started a to add a few minutes of canter when she decided to accept another opportunity a few hours away. She handed the reins to me to continue his fitness and suppling work.

I had seen my friend work with Sunny before but never really paid much attention. Sunny wasn’t what I had expected at all. Most of the Advanced Event horses I’d worked with before had quite big personalities. They’re cooperative and put up with a lot but they’re also a little bit sparkly. Sunny seemed flat. He never did anything wrong, but he also never really seem like he wanted to be there. He did whatever you asked for, but no more. If he ever moved voluntarily, it was to lean slightly away from you. I asked my friend if he’d been like that with her. She said yes, he’s just like that. Hmmm.

I decided to use a little positivity and praise him every chance I got. I looked for activities he enjoyed more, like riding in a field instead of the ring. He began to brighten up. When I went into his stall, he would turn towards me instead of staring out the window until I put his halter on.

While Sunny seemed happier in his work, he wasn’t really progressing. He always started in the exact same way, with a stiff neck that got better as you rode but would be just as stiff when you started riding the next day. At his next Vet check-up I told the Vet about it and she decided to x-ray his neck. The first 3 cervical vertebrae were so arthritic that our Vet packed up her machine saying there was no point in taking any more. She was surprised that he’d been able to do even the low-level long-and-low work his other Vet had prescribed for his recovery exercise program. Sunny was retired to pasture immediately, hopefully to live the rest of his life in peace.

This is the 2nd story I heard about Sunny, shortly after his retirement:

“When Sunny was competing in Advanced Events in New Zealand, whenever he got to the centerline and was asked to halt, he reared straight up instead. As often as not, he was eliminated from the competition. It was attributed to nerves/excitement of the Event and was thought to be the reason he was for sale at such a reasonable price.”

Why was this information held from me?? It seems likely to me that he was suffering already from an earlier stage of his degenerative arthritis. Maybe the added pressure of the environment did make it too much for him to deal with. And, of course, who knows what was going on at home away from the public eye?

Horses will try to tell you something is bothering them, just as Sunny had tried. How many professional hands did this poor horse pass through before this Vet and I finally found the real problem? The ones that really want to please will suffer through and try to do their very best they can for you anyway. The better we educate ourselves and those around us about the potential signs of a problem, the better stewards we can be to these very special creatures.

When we take horses into our care and control they can either become honored, well-cared for partners or they become victims of their circumstance, subject to our whims and sensibilities. The line between happy and trapped can often be difficult to see.