If ever there was a horse who should have been a therapist, it's Max. He's
our rock - patriarch of the (equine) family, "father" to Cherokee, "mate" to
Arizona - and now sometimes-companion to Sweetpea, teacher and source of
discipline for everybody. When we had to move the guys/gal from their old
home to Dovel Hollow, it was Max who provided the stability for the others.
We were worried most about Cherokee - he'd only been in a trailer a couple
times when he was very young and we didn't think it was going to be very
easy with him. We led Max in, Cherokee simply followed him up the ramp and
stood next to him. Easiest horse-loading in history.
Most of all, Max is OUR teacher too.
.
our rock - patriarch of the (equine) family, "father" to Cherokee, "mate" to
Arizona - and now sometimes-companion to Sweetpea, teacher and source of
discipline for everybody. When we had to move the guys/gal from their old
home to Dovel Hollow, it was Max who provided the stability for the others.
We were worried most about Cherokee - he'd only been in a trailer a couple
times when he was very young and we didn't think it was going to be very
easy with him. We led Max in, Cherokee simply followed him up the ramp and
stood next to him. Easiest horse-loading in history.
Most of all, Max is OUR teacher too.
.
For my part, I'd only ridden a horse for a very short time in 1969, in San Angelo Texas. Max is so
understanding, he's always patiently worked through all my mistakes and taught me to ride again. It's
a joy I can hardly express in words.
I'll always remember the first time we came in contact with cows while riding him. He hates cows, but
he knows how to move them out of the way. From his mannerisms, we've always assumed he has a
background in team penning.
And then there was the barrels - this guy knows barrels. We set a few up one afternoon, several
years ago, just to see if we could teach him to go around them. Yeah, sure - we're going to teach Max
something. Dale started him off, and it was a case of "hang on TIGHT"!! Max took off like he'd been
fired out of a cannon, turned all 3 barrels so tight that Dale bumped his knee on all 3 of them, and
came flying back to the starting point.
There was nothing to teach him with barrels.
.
understanding, he's always patiently worked through all my mistakes and taught me to ride again. It's
a joy I can hardly express in words.
I'll always remember the first time we came in contact with cows while riding him. He hates cows, but
he knows how to move them out of the way. From his mannerisms, we've always assumed he has a
background in team penning.
And then there was the barrels - this guy knows barrels. We set a few up one afternoon, several
years ago, just to see if we could teach him to go around them. Yeah, sure - we're going to teach Max
something. Dale started him off, and it was a case of "hang on TIGHT"!! Max took off like he'd been
fired out of a cannon, turned all 3 barrels so tight that Dale bumped his knee on all 3 of them, and
came flying back to the starting point.
There was nothing to teach him with barrels.
.
Holly, due to her injuries with another horse, is barely able to balance herself while riding. Sue and I
are getting old enough that we have trouble mounting horses at all anymore (knee problems), and we had
the idea that we might see if we could teach the guys to drive. Of course, as always, Max is the horse
we learn with. Dale borrowed an old (very old) work harness from his family and we hooked it up -
using a fair amount of rope to fill in the places where the leather was too old/weak/broken to use.
"Gallery 3" and probably beyond, tells that story. And of course, Max knows all about it.
are getting old enough that we have trouble mounting horses at all anymore (knee problems), and we had
the idea that we might see if we could teach the guys to drive. Of course, as always, Max is the horse
we learn with. Dale borrowed an old (very old) work harness from his family and we hooked it up -
using a fair amount of rope to fill in the places where the leather was too old/weak/broken to use.
"Gallery 3" and probably beyond, tells that story. And of course, Max knows all about it.
Max's pages are mostly based on photo galleries. He's our "everything" horse - we found out very
quickly that there's positively nothing he can't do, at least, nothing that we've found out about. There
aren't a whole lot of pictures of him, we're usually too busy having fun with him to bother with a
camera. That's one reason you'll notice a rather large gap in dates in his photo galleries - it isn't that
he's ignored, we're too busy having fun with him.
.
quickly that there's positively nothing he can't do, at least, nothing that we've found out about. There
aren't a whole lot of pictures of him, we're usually too busy having fun with him to bother with a
camera. That's one reason you'll notice a rather large gap in dates in his photo galleries - it isn't that
he's ignored, we're too busy having fun with him.
.
|
| Title Page Cover |
Liz's Tribute To Max From a wonderful friend I've never even met |
Condolence Notes For Max From our wonderful friends |
Max's Intro 18 Feb 2002 |
Max & Us Our lives together |
|
