Dolce  






Holsteiner gelding
1994 - September 13, 2011



Just a few days ago, I said goodbye to the most magnificent animal that ever crossed my life. His absence is so wordless. Few people understand that the loss of a horse can be so hurtful, so they just say nothing. Thank you for having this tribute site so that I can say some words myself about my sweet friend.
 
Back in 2002, I was just coming off of a nasty, spiteful horse that would throw me, bite me, and kick me for sport. I wasn't even sure I wanted to keep riding. But in a last-ditch effort, I went to see some horses. When we walked into Dolce's barn, he stood in the first stall. He was snow white, tall, proud, arched neck, and big playful eye. I wondered if I would ever have a horse with that sort of beauty and majesty...and then they pulled him out. I couldn't believe this was the horse they were going to let me sit on. Everything about that ride was perfect. Nobody could be scared riding Dolce. His courage was contagious.
 
The day I brought Dolce home, I turned him out in an arena to stretch his legs. He pranced around a bit, held his head high, and let out a big snort. Then he started galloping around the rail. Finally, he cut across a diagonal and jumped right out!!! He ran up to the barn, walked into the nearest stall, and began eating the grain in the trough. There's no doubt he was telling us all, "I am Super-Dolch...get used to it, people!"
 
The next few years were the most successful of my riding career. Dolce was a horse that understood the concept of winning. Hitting rails made him mad. Being held back made him mad. He would buck and squeal. Inside turns and impossible distances were his specialty. People would shake their heads in disbelief. When he landed off the last jump of any course, he would simply take off galloping, even with me hauling on the reins. He wanted his victory lap, and he was going to take it!
 
Slowly, something began to change. He would refuse fences for no obvious reason. One day he pulled up lame. The vet couldn't identify the problem. We let him have six months rest. Still lame. A radiograph showed a torn interior ligament. Shock wave therapy, stem cell therapy, nothing was working. We put him on a friend's pasture for another year. Still lame, now skinny and bitten. I pulled him out immediately and never talked to my "friend" again.
 
That's when fortune led us to Dolce's second mommy, Kate. She would stop at nothing to optimize Dolce's health. The list of things she did for him would be far too long to list here. But I am convinced that there is a force of God in this universe, and that force sent us Kate. For all her hard work, Dolce improved enough to do flatwork under saddle. For four years, Dolce enjoyed an indian summer as her dressage horse.
 
In the meantime, I had two little girls. My oldest, Violet, enjoyed pony rides on Dolce. Who would've dreamed that this great champion jumper would someday gently walk around with a 25-pound toddler in tow. But that's just how he was. He was smart enough to know what his rider needed at that moment. We could set her on him with no saddle or bridle. He would just stand and eat grass.
 
Finally, this August, he could no longer carry anyone. His lameness had returned in full force. The vet assured us he would continue to degenerate. The choice was whether to keep him as a pasture ornament or euthanize him. Meanwhile, his very best horsie friend was scheduled for euthanasia on 9/13. I thought about Dolce living without his best friend, slowly deteriorating in a field, watching the other horses play and work and jump. I knew that was not right, even though I wished I could keep him in my own back yard. A long time ago, Dolce spared me before I was a lost cause...I guess I owed him the same kindness.
 
September 13th was a beautiful day. Not too hot or cold, just a light breeze. Dolce must've eaten a whole bag of apples and carrots that day. When the vet's truck pulled up, my heart dropped into my boots. I could barely talk to her. She was wonderful, though. So caring and kind. She cried right along with me. Dolce laid down quietly and peacefully. His last moments were not in pain, and he won't have to be in pain anymore. I keep trying to feel his spirit, but I think he is far away by now. Probably jumping the big fences in heaven, bucking and squealing and taking victory laps that are all his own. But I have a piece of his tail. And it still smells like him.
 
I love you Dolch-man, wherever you are. Thank you so much for the happiness and wonder you brought into my life. You touched everyone you met, but no one so much as me.

Heather














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