The Elderly Unicorn and His Girl

October 11, 2014 8:31 AM

Beautiful story and photos of a senior horse and the little girl he shared his last year with before returning to The Secret Forest. Part of Paper Horse Photography's Senior Horse Project.
posted by Glinn (16 comments total)

I'm not really sure I agree with putting him down just because he was starting to look (more) feeble, but good on them for taking the best care of him they could.
posted by DriftingLotus at 8:51 AM on October 11, 2014

What a loving story (and wonderful photos), thanks for finding and sharing this.
posted by HuronBob at 8:56 AM on October 11, 2014 [1 favorite]

His sheath had been so neglected that he has a bean the size of a Brazil nut.

I... does this mean what I think it means?
posted by fatbird at 9:31 AM on October 11, 2014

It sounds like more than just "starting to look more feeble"--she says the pain meds weren't working any more, for one thing. Quality of life at the end of life is a little different for horses than it is for cats and dogs, in part because horses live outdoors, stand up almost all the time, need to be able to get their thousand pound bodies back on their feet when they do lie down, and need to be able to move around in order to even digest properly. A horse that can't move around without a lot of discomfort isn't like a dog that can just lie around on a comfy bed 22 hours a day. An elderly, arthritic horse has a good chance of slipping and falling in a pasture, being unable to get up, and dying in a pretty unpleasant way if someone can't face the difficult decision of when to put down.
posted by drlith at 9:36 AM on October 11, 2014 [17 favorites]

The Sheath Cleaning Song
posted by drlith at 9:38 AM on October 11, 2014

Lovely pictures, but even lovelier parents able to spare the little girl's feelings and spare the horse more pain. So much better than a lame "going to live on a farm" -- but, mom, we have a farm!
posted by Made of Star Stuff at 9:56 AM on October 11, 2014 [4 favorites]

Boy, it got dusty in here all of a sudden.
posted by briank at 9:59 AM on October 11, 2014 [4 favorites]

We just re-homed our daughter's horse in August when she went out of state for college. The bond between a girl and her horse truely is magical.
posted by COD at 10:03 AM on October 11, 2014 [1 favorite]

Boy, it got dusty in here all of a sudden.

I felt like I was like super strong this afternoon for some reason, but the waterworks were everywhere when I read that letter.

Also, anyone else read Cheryl Strayed's Wild? (soon to be a movie w/Reese Witherspoon)

(Spoiler/Trauma Alert) : The way they killed her mom's old, suffering horse in that book still haunts me a month after I finished the book. DIY not knowing how to DIY is NOT the way to do it, holy crap.
posted by sweetkid at 10:40 AM on October 11, 2014

His sheath had been so neglected that he has a bean the size of a Brazil nut.

I... does this mean what I think it means?

Yeah, poor guy. Ouch.

Great post, thanks....
posted by Cocodrillo at 10:41 AM on October 11, 2014

sweetkid, that sounds dreadful and I shall avoid it.
posted by Glinn at 10:45 AM on October 11, 2014

Yeah, I don't think it was just that he was looking more feeble. Part of caring for an animal is understanding that, once the quality of life really starts to deteriorate and easing pain, etc., becomes more and more difficult, putting the animal down is the kindest, most loving thing to do.

Also, it is very, very dusty in here. ::sniffle::
posted by sarcasticah at 10:56 AM on October 11, 2014

That is an adorable story. What great parents. Also, the idea of the Senior Horse Project is neat. (Before I followed the link, I assumed it might be a project that paired little girls with senior horses -- alas, no such luck. But those are nice photos.)
posted by quiet earth at 11:02 AM on October 11, 2014

Those are really lovely pictures. And well done - it's refreshing to see real photographic skills take precedence over the overdone effects and post-processing that seem to be so common lately.
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:03 AM on October 11, 2014 [1 favorite]

My Arab is pushing 30 and though he's still pretty good physically, he has next to no teeth, his eyesight is getting poorer and we struggle to keep fat on in the winter. He's lived with me since he was 2 1/2 and I'm not looking forward to the day I have to make this decision. So no, I won't be looking.
posted by jgaiser at 12:36 PM on October 11, 2014 [4 favorites]

It's nice to be reminded that little kindnesses are being done in all sorts of places every day.

Prince was a great Prince and he was treated like royalty - is there a brighter crown than a little child's love? I'm sure he was a unicorn; I don't think he'd lie - it seems out of character for him.
posted by aryma at 7:27 PM on October 11, 2014 [1 favorite]