Never too old or too late!

Red the standie...at 30 years of age.

Introducing Red the standardbred.......a grand old man, now aged 34 years! I've always loved standies, and I really think they are probably the most under-valued and under-recognised breed in the equine world. There's plenty of myths about them, but they are so much more than just a harness racing horse. Standies can indeed canter, jump, do dressage and in fact anything that any other horse can, just as well if not better! Most of them have an impeccable temperament, they tend to stop and think about things that worry them rather than exploding, it's a wonderful trait. Almost like a "pause" button!

Red has an interesting story. He came into his owner's life 30 years ago, and according to her he is the best horse a teenager could ever have wanted. He never put a foot wrong, and just took great care of her. They just "clicked," and developed that unique, unbreakable bond that we all recognise between a horse and rider, who know each other inside out.

Now, as we all know, life has a way of interfering in our plans sometimes. Unfortunately Red's owner became quite ill, and thought she wouldn't be able to look after him - so made the tough decision to lease him out until things got better. Sadly for her, the lease went bad and Red vanished.

But by some wonderful twist of fate, 6 years ago he was found - albeit in very poor condition. After 16 years without him, she drove past a paddock, saw a skinny red horse in there - and just knew it was him! No need to check his brands, the bond that they shared told her it was true. It's just incredible how fate can throw these things at us sometimes.

Red when found by his owner.

With lots of love and proper care he returned to health, and you would never guess his age to look at him now! He is a very good doer, and eats only a little more than his paddock buddies. He requires no particular special care, just the basics of good food, regular worming, and proper hoof and dental care. Even with little remaining of his front teeth, and the rest of them probably not much better, he still manages to eat his hay and carrots with no trouble at all! As you can see in the pic, he is in fabulous condition, and still hoons around with the young horses. (See, you can put weight on older horses! It's not that difficult.)

Red once again at 30 years, after his rehab, definitely disproving that famous catchcry "you can't put weight on old horses."

It was like a Lotto win for his owner to find him again, after thinking him lost forever, and he is now stuck with her for life. What a wonderful outcome for them both. Now that's a real Equine Miracle!