Martina

As many of you know, I had to put down my Atwood horse, Martina, this past July. I know I didn't share too much about it at the time, and I would imagine that those of you who have lost someone close to you are understanding of why I might not have.

I believe things happen for a reason, and that we draw experiences into our lives for some reason, although most of the time we have no idea why we night be creating the experience we are having. Only later do we start to see why we might have created certain events.

In the spring of 2011 I was doing an internship down in Florida on the Parelli campus. I took my levels horse, Hank. He was 16 at the time. Hank had a hard life, being a dressage horse, living in a stall a lot of the time, which for him is very difficult. He cribs and gets emotional in small spaces. He had a very normal life for most of his life and then he found someone who does Parelli. With that being said, his body hasn't held up the way ones would if they were in a natural environment and treated in such a way that helps the horses body last rather than a lifestyle that promotes problems such as arthritis. I knew I wouldn't be able to play with Hank at the caliber of horseplay I would want over the next few years. I talked to my mentor on the ranch about it as well. He suggested having another horse to bring along and to have on the back burner is a good idea. That way you always have a back up.

So with that time in Florida began my thought process and my eventual purchase of Martina. I contacted Atwood in the fall of 2011 and Catherine was extremely helpful in sending on information, videos and pictures of horses I may be interested in. After looking at all of the information, I decided to fly out to California and meet Martina, a 2 yo filly being started by Maurice Thibault. I loved her right away. I spent a day with Maurice and Susan, getting to know Martina better. She was a lot of horse, but I could see she would teach me a lot and I would be able to accomplish a lot with her as my partner. I decided to buy her and had her shipped in January of 2012.

 I spent the next 6 months playing with her and progressing. We were playing online doing very well, liberty was progressing nicely, and freestyle too. She taught me a lot, as she was a very sensitive horse. She was extremely athletic, the most athletic horse I have spent time with. She taught me a lot about fast twitch muscles....I didn't know horses could move that fast that often. My feel, timing and balance improved tremendously with her, since she was so sensitive, I had to be spot on to not cause her to react rather than respond. I owe a lot to Martina in my ability to handle horses effectively and my confidence with a horse that has a lot of power and uses it!

In July, Steve and I left for our continued education on the Parelli ranch in CO. On our way out we stopped at our good friends place to play and hang out for a couple weeks. There we played with cows, went on trail rides, it was a great learning experience. One unfortunate day though, we were out playing with cattle in the pasture and I was riding Martina. There was electric fencing out in the pasture, and while circling the cattle, Martina touched it. Martina was in no way fond of electric fence, she would bolt if she ever touched it. So when Martina touch this fence which was extremely hot for the cattle, she bolted. She could move from zero to 60 in no time at all, with her fast twitch muscles in great shape, and I came off, and was unhurt. I was hoping she would head back to the barn, but unfortunately she headed for the high tinsel fence. She ran through the fence, and turned around with some wire around her legs. She kept running for a bit, and eventually tripped and fell. She had broken her hind right leg above the hock and it was just hanging by skin. There was nothing we could do to help her, so I had to have her put down. I was in shock, as anyone would be, and in disbelief that my new, young, beautiful horse had to be put down. I am very thankful I was around such supportive people and also that I had Hank with me to help me grieve.

I learned a lot from Martina, and she taught me everything she needed to. I am so very grateful for the time she shared with me, and happy that I was able to be part of her journey as well. I still think about her daily and know she was in my life for a reason. Thanks to Atwood, Maurice and Susan, Nate and Amy, and Steve for giving me the gift of a wonderful horse and being there for me through the loss of Martina.