The italian trotter, called "Roo" was born in spring 2010. He was professionally trained to participate in trotter races and attended many events in Italy and Berlin, Germany. Unfortunately, his career ended when he was 6 years old. He could not make up enough money, so in the end, he was not worth to be kept. But this is the destiny of almost every racing horse in the world. In 2016 he was sold into private hands. Between 2016 and 2018 he changed hands multiple times. The owners were not able to get along with his energy and natural demands. In summer 2018 a former friend of mine was looking for a companion for her own horse. She found Roo online, and did not wait to take a look at him.
Meanwhile, Roo was in a poor condition, due to many inexperienced owners and bad husbandry conditions. You can tell by looking at his body language, posture, the condition of his teeth and his eyes, that he is not feeling very well. When he arrived he was underfed and suffered from pain all over his body. His body was tensed and did not allow him to enjoy being stroked. He did not trust anybody. All in all, there was no balance in his life. When my friend bought him, she moved him from a small stable to a big meadow. Without having any pressure to become a riding horse, he was supposed to recover and gain trust towards humans again. After the first weeks we realized, that there are many things, we will have to take care of. His teeth were in such a miserable condition, that he wasn't able to eat, without making a big mess. He could not keep most of the food in his mouth. He greedily consumed his new diet. We always had to clean his face with a wet flannel afterwards. Another problem was, that he had serious difficulties to get up after laying down. His muscle tenseness and pain limited him in his movement. Sometimes he had to fight really hard and was forced to try multiple times. We could hear his groaning from a distance. Nevertheless, we achieved one of the most important goals. Roo started to be comfortable in his new environment and made a friend!
A few weeks later, I was able to gain his trust. It did not take very long for him to realize, that we merely wanted the best for him and that those scratches feel reeeeeally good. He actually became addicted and started to follow us around, hoping that one of us started to scratch him in his favorite spots. In the beginning, he really enjoyed scratches on the top of the head and in the neck. I was more than surprised when he suddenly started to yawn. I was even more surprised, when he actually started to cuddle. There were many moments, where we slowly built a special connection.
A month later, he began to enjoy scratches on his shoulders and his back. Each day, he showed how much he appreciated it by opening up more and more. One day he came up with a language, we were both able to understand. He began to show me his itchy spots by pointing on them with his nose. He also started to position himself, so that I know where he would love to receive some scratches. One day, he kept placing his butt in front of me. In the beginning, I was annoyed by the rude behavior, until I understood, what he tried to tell me. A bit sceptical, I started to scratch his butt. Well, at least I am a great brush. I thought I finally found my true purpose of life. Then he suddenly started to lift up his tail and leg. I had to laugh and told him, that this should be enough for today. We should not exaggerate it. I earned looks full of disappointment.
The next three pictures represent freedom, recovery and joy of life.
And those three pictures represent childhood. A childhood, that was stolen way too early from this beautiful soul. The childhood, he can finally catch up on now.
It was magical, when he started to play with the ball for the first time. Meanwhile he received a horse dentist treatment and multiple farrier and osteopathy sessions. He did not suffer from any pain anymore. He gained more and more energy every day. With time he got bored and started looking for other activities more than ever. But you can watch all of it in the videos down below. I created a "best of" compilation, where you can watch the progress he made after only 3 months. Be a part of the time where he discovered how to play with a ball for the first time! I also created a "desperate search for a play mate" compilation, where he tried really hard to motivate one of the other horses to play with him. I hope you enjoy!
Best of October and November 2018:
Desperate search for a playmate:
Roo after 6 months at the new place:
...and they all lived happily even after...
...chasing every ball.
THE END
Unfortunately, the story of Roo won't be continued at this point. Shortly after I took the "chasing ball" pictures, the contact with the owner discontinued. Even though I would have loved to watch all of the horses to grow and unfold their own personality and inner beauty, it was the right step to take. Nevertheless, I am thankful for the six months I had with Roo and for being a part of his story. I learned a lot and I could not possibly have asked for anything more.
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