Suzi was setting in really well when I discovered she wasn't all sweetness and smiles. One of the riding students went out to get her one afternoon and came back in saying that pony had tried to bite her!
"She WHAT??"
Yes- there was most likely the reason that pony had ended up at an auction sale. She bit people. She worked her way from students to the husband and thank gosh, it was winter. Everyone had on big thick coats and there were no injuries.
She really hadn't even a proper name yet and here she was biting people Not a good way to make pals, I'd say.
One day the younger students and I had a meeting. We had to come up with a name for " That Pony" and figure out how to go about her biting us. She'd not bitten me yet, but she had to be choosing a good time. Turns out she never did try to bite me- perhaps I'd been the one person who'd been kind to her? She wasn't talkin...
We discussed what a good name was, and how to get her to not want to bite us every chance she got. One little boy said he kind of liked " joe" for a name until he learned That Pony was a girl... There were many names floating about for a while and all of a sudden someone blurted out " SUSIE!" That was it- but we had to make it an 'official name'. I can't remember how many times I've been asked " what is that horses' FULL name, Miss Kris??" I didn't quite know what to say so I just added my last name on the tail end of theirs. That worked fine... ''Susie".
Hmmmm.......I asked what if we made her name a very special spelling? How about "Suzi" ?? Short and sweet (that brought a lot of laughter) like she is. That seemed to please everyone under the age of 12, so "That Pony" became Suzi.
I had made an appointment with my equine dentist for early Spring of that year. As he was filing her teeth he asked me how old she was. I told him I'd been TOLD she was a 12 year old and he began laughing. I learned that day my pony was closer to being 25 years old! Alllllllllllllllright then!
That little gal knew how to drive, and she learned to be ridden easily. Many is the time I'd watch a student riding her only to watch her veer off to one side, and that student coming off. Suzi would trot back to the gate, I swear laughing the whole way.
Suzi became a favorite of so many kids. They all agreed that somewhere in her life, someone had been very mean to her. That was why she needed to show people she could hurt them. We learned about a big word "compassion" and understanding a pony who didn't speak English like we did. There were some who just wanted to groom her and 'make her beautiful'. I bought her a brand new halter that was all hers, and she did grow more beautiful as she aged.
Suzi also got so she accepted attention and yes, love, from we humans.
She surprised me constantly. From driving all over the place, on the roads around the farm to being in a play. A local theatre group was going to present "The Wizard of Oz" and she got to be "the horse of a different color". Thanks to the guy handing the lights- she really DID change colors. Suzi's part in the play was to deliver Dorothy to the land of Oz towards the end. That pony was so wonderful- she learned to trot up steep concrete stairs and wait for me at the top. She stood quietly off stage, waiting for the singing to begin and she knew it was time for Suzi to go into the bright lights! And she stood there as the audience clapped and cheered. I'd hear a gasp of little people and comments like " OH A PONY!!!" or "Mommy- look !"
I think Suzi realized it was her time to shine. She did, no doubt about it.
When I moved up here to Pennsylvania , I used her for a few riding lessons and she learned to canter and to not dodge the small jumps she was aimed towards. She was dressed up numerous times for Halloween and handled looking like a Princess or ballet dancer more than once.
When Suzi was around 48 yrs old (A guess on my behalf from what the dentist said long before) she needed to get her feed made into a gruel and she looked great. I remember one day, my old Appaloosa mare, Alli, and my younger one, Scarlet, and Suzi all romping about the barn area. They were so funny. Alli was blind in her right eye, so she kept swinging her head to see the others. Scarlet galloped and bucked - having a wonderful time. Suzi even tossed a few old lady bucks. I got some photos of them that day and cherish them because all three are gone now.
One cold day in December, Suzi developed a colic and even though the vet was out twice, we could get her past being so sick. When a pony or horse is so terribly ancient, one doesn't risk trying many things to get her feeling better. After trying a few different ideas, we decided to not try any longer. That Suzi had lived a long, contented life with me and to let her go in peace and love. She went to the Summerlands quietly and the other horses realized "our Suzi" had gone from us.
Alli- her best friend was very quiet for a few days and wanted to be close to me often. She grieved her little friends' death and was okay with it all eventually.
My little pony who wasn't what I'd wanted turned out to be Just what I'd wanted after all. She was friends with my Percheron mare, Lynn, when no one would be friends with her. She conquered her many fears, and taught us all so many things about old ponies who'd been abused.
That, yes, they can learn that not all people will hurt them, and old ponies can learn to trust again.
Suzi has an itch!
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