You've got a friend
Sterling’s adjustment to life on our Vermont farm was much more difficult than I’d imagined. I was ill equipped for all the emotional wounds he came with and despite the special care we gave him, there were days I wondered if he’d ever settle in. He didn’t trust humans; quick movements unnerved him and moving our hands towards his face caused him to shy away. He also had an incredible fear of enclosed places - including his stall.
Before Sterling’s arrival, we’d bought a pony named Libby for the girls to learn to ride on. She and Sterling never hit it off, (this happens, like people not all horses get along) and she was not the right pony for the such small children. At the time we rescued Sterling, we’d been in the process of searching for the right pony, and this is how we found George.
George was a Haflinger by breed; a fluffy, strong little guy was a lesson pony on a farm in Massachusetts. He spent his days taking care of little children who were learning the basics and was being sold because he had developed asthma. This is quite common for stall bound horses; he needed fresh air, which we had plenty of, so off to Vermont he went.
We have owned more than 20 horses over the past thirty years, and there has never been a bigger personality to jump off a trailer. George arrived on a bitter cold, January night in 2002. He was stout and looked like the ponies from story books. A chestnut brown coat as thick as a stuffed animal, a mane that stood straight up, and a long, silky tail. But it was the way he carried himself that set George apart - he had presence.
The first night we put George in the pasture next to Sterling so that they could acclimate to one another safely. Their attachment was quick and strong, and over the first few days we watched them form a bond that was to last for seventeen years - longer than most marriages. Sterling was scared, but George was strong. Sterling was timid, but George was brave. Sterling was wounded and George healed him.
George was a solidly built and aloof. He was smarter than most horses, sure footed and sensible, yet he made the girls work for everything. During lessons and afternoon rides there were many times they ended up tossed from his back because he wasn’t “push button.” He taught them the foundations of riding by making them earn his trust, and he always let them know when they weren’t riding well. However, once he was at a show, or a hunter pace — anytime he knew they were depending on him, he won them a ribbon. EVERY SINGLE TIME. He was the most reliable animal to ever come into our lives.
George gave and gave to all three of our daughters. As one outgrew him, the other climbed aboard, And, when they all outgrew him, we began a small lesson program at our farm for beginning riders. He knew his job and took it seriously, all the while making anyone who knew him laugh because his personality was bigger than his size. Ponies are known for being difficult and precocious and George could be both. Sterling on the other hand, was everything George was not. We were working on Sterling’s issues with professional help guiding us; a farrier who took extra time shoeing him, a vet who advised how we could build Sterling’s confidence; I even hired a “horse whisperer” who came a few times a week and worked 1:1 with Sterling on trust. But in the end, the magic pill was his friendship with George. George was everything Sterling is not. He was secure, had a huge ego, and wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone. By aligning himself with George, we all noticed a gradual change in Sterling’s nervous disposition that was heartwarming to witness.
The flip side to George filling this role in Sterling’s life was of course, that if George wasn’t there, Sterling was a mess. And I can’t understate this enough. George literally needed to be within Sterling’s line of sight at all times. And when he wasn’t, it was fairly miserable for anyone within earshot because Sterling would scream for him. For years, when our oldest daughter attended summer riding camp in Massachusetts and took Sterling with her, the only way to lure Sterling onto the trailer was to load George first. Every June he made the ride, two hours south to camp as Sterling’s trusty companion. He was given a special stall to “hang out” in while we unpacked Olivia and got her settled. And then we’d load George back on the trailer and head home.
Once we left our Vermont farm George’s asthma worsened because the large boarding barns had less ventilation. He developed Cushing’s disease, a problem with the pituitary gland common in older horses. But his achilles heel were chronic eye ulcers. When he was young it was one or two per year, and as he aged it was at least one per month. They required medication which was painful, and made him fairly miserable. In the fall of 2017, we could not get a grip on his eye or relieve his discomfort any longer. At his vet’s suggestion, we made the decision to remove the his eye, also extremely common in horses. All his caregivers (and by now he had a team) believed this would be the solution. Sterling went to the clinic with George, spent the night, and the next day we brought George home to begin recuperating. But what we’d hoped would be the cure, was just another stage in his fight. He never seemed to acclimate, was dizzy and unable to be outside his stall, and immediately the other eye fell victim to an ulcer. It was the hardest day of my life when we decided to end his suffering, and with Sterling by his side and a vet holding me up, we let him go.
This loss was huge and I feared Sterling might never adjust. And, there are days I get to the barn and still expect to see George. But Sterling surprised me, as animals always do, and I have to believe on some level he knew how sick George was. Not long after George’s death, we moved from Austin to Dallas, and Sterling started a new life. He is calm, happy and (for the most part) at peace. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of George and their many adventures together, and smile. He gave us the greatest joys, kept our girls safe, and I promised him I would always take care of Sterling.
