Tigger,
On that bitter cold day in February of 2005, from the first moment I saw
you, Tigger, and you came to me at the fence, I adored you and knew I had
to have you. This was funny because it was actually your sister, called Brownie,
that I came to see from an ad on the internet. She, however, wouldn't
come near the fence to say hello.
Walking back to my car, I asked the woman if she would consider selling
you and she said she would if I took you both. A few days later, I
came to get you. Neither one of you wanted any part of the trailer.
When I got the halters out of the truck and proceeded to pick you both up,
it was then the owner said, "You don't think you're going to get those on
them, do you?" It was then that I realized the two of you hadn't been
handled at all. She said you were, but not broke to ride, but if she
wouldn't let me halter you, then she knew you wouldn't allow it.
Well, we did back the trailer up to the fence that they had cooped you
into since they knew we were coming, but it wasn't easy getting you both
in. It didn't take too long, though, and we got halters on you while
you were inside. Once we got you two home, we got you out first, then
Brownie. By the way, we didn't like your names too much, so renamed
Brownie, Sassy, and tried to rename you, but Tigger just stuck with
you. Sassy got away from the handler as you came off the trailer, but
but he was able to catch her again without too much problem.
During the weeks that followed, I worked mostly with getting you both
used to humans; brushing, haltering, cleaning your hooves, catching, letting
you know I wasn't going to hurt you. My daughter even
sat on your back while you were tied up. You let us saddle you and lead you
around, but whenever we tried to get on, you moved away and it scared my
son-in-law to get on you then.
Sassy wouldn't let us get the saddle on or much of anything else, thus
why the name. She was a wild one and it even showed in her eyes. After several
weeks, Tigger, you softened up to us.
I had been looking around
for trainers to break you both. I had one come to the farm to work with Sassy.
She seemed to learn quick, yet still wouldn't find the trust necessary and
so I stopped having her work with her and did it on my own.
One day I decided to send
you away to a trainer since you were so sweet, and that was the most dreaded
decision I had ever made in my entire life. Sending you away meant coggins
tests. I felt everything would be okay, but when I saw my husband sitting
on the front porch that day when I came home from work, I knew something
was very wrong.
Your test result was positive
for EIA, Tigger. I was heartbroken. The state stepped in right away and
quarantined the place and tested the others. That was the longest 5 days
of my life waiting for the results. So much went through my mind as we had
5 horses at the time. Who else had it? I guessed it was Warrior for some
odd reason. Sassy, you came across my mind but I never believed it could
be you.
We never got the results,
just the dreaded phone call. It was you, Sassy. The 2 of you were sold to
me without a coggins and I wanted you so bad I didn't care it wasn't done.
I fought the state for 3 long months. I even found a place in Florida to
send the two of you that has all EIA positive horses. It's a haven for them
to live normal lives. I had 275 yards of the 300 necessary to keep you where
you were. The state wouldn't budge. I asked questions about statistics, etc.
and there weren't any. There was nobody to do research on you two to find
out what the disease is all about. Every horse with a positive coggins is
put down instead of doing anything to try to save you. I wish I could have
done more for you both. I wish I had never gotten that first coggins.
I couldn't drive you to
safety, but I could drive you to your fate. That day was the hardest day
of my life. I loaded the two of you in the trailer the night before because
I wasn't sure how you'd go in. I felt bad the next morning when I came to
see you for the last time and saw the mess in the trailer. I fed the two
of you and offered you water. I opened up the trailer vents and you both
stuck your heads out.
You trusted me, Tigger, and
I let you down. I drove away so fast that day after unloading you that I
didn't even hug you goodbye. I did say goodbye to Sassy and watched in the
rearview mirror as she looked with eyes asking, "Why aren't I going home
with you?". I just wanted to get away before you both went to the
"Rainbow Bridge" together as you had lived.
The other horses were tested and were all negative, so we know that you
both were inapparent carriers and maybe would have never gotten sick or even
given the disease to another horse. We will never know.
I made you 2 a website and
someday, Tigger, we'll have that first ride together! I miss you two, my
friends. Know in the last months of your life I cared a great deal for you
both.
I have a special page for you and have found Hoofbeats In Heaven and added their link to my pages.
I hope you're looking down and see the poem, Sue the trainer, wrote for the
two of you and me, of course.
Missing you always,
Marj
Tigger 
