This is the Cinderella Story.......

My husband, Tim and I have received numerous emails from “friends of Cindy”. We thought it would be a good idea to put out updates of her progress.

First of all, thanks for the emails and support for Cindy; you all have been wonderfully supportive.

When we first saw Cindy in Cheyenne, she was so weak she literally couldn’t walk a straight line. But our lesson manager and good friend, Leslie, and I just felt she was sound – she didn’t limp or display any signs of lameness; we just thought she was on her last legs (so to speak). We spoke at length with the owner about the horrible condition she was in and she asked us to just take her with us. I refused to do this and paid for her because I didn’t want her to come back and say we “stole” her horse. Leslie, my mom and I rushed back from Cheyenne to our farm outside Denver and borrowed a horse trailer (we are working towards buying our own when we can). We then went back to Cheyenne that night with our friend Rick (he runs this great website), picked her up and headed for home, which is about 90 miles south of Cheyenne.

We were hoping the ride wouldn’t hurt Cindy and it turned out she traveled great.
Cindy’s first owner, Susie Miller, had obviously given her a great start and life before bad fortune came upon her because she loaded and stood so still on the way home. She arrived without a scratch.

On our way home we were able to locate Susie from Cindy’s papers. We called her and she was so glad to hear from us and was so distressed to hear what had happened. We arranged to pull off the highway in her hometown of Fort Collins and have a reunion. Well, there wasn’t a dry eye when we all met and Susie hopped into the trailer. We all knew Susie loved the horse and we were touched to see them together (Rick cried too although he may delete this from the update!) We had a nice visit and then headed for home.

In the past few weeks, Cindy has settled in nicely. She is such a sweet, loving horse and of course became an immediate favorite with all of the kids around Whistlepig Farms. Cindy is slowly gaining weight. We have increased her grain a little each week. We really worry about colic or foundering her so we are taking it slow. She always has a pile of hay in her stall. Unfortunately, because of malnutrition and a nasty case of thrush, Cindy’s front frogs have wasted away. Our excellent farrier feels she has a chance of growing them back but it will take about a year. We are now treating her thrush and keeping her stall extra dry with more bedding and cleanings. The good news is that she is not lame at this time and we have nice Nike footing in our arenas so she is pretty comfortable when she moves; she is a nice little mover.

Since we have had Cindy, the vet has visited her a few times. Our vet, Steve Long, is one of the best around. He will be floating Cindy’s teeth after she gains some weight (about 100 pounds) and she needs a good grinding but Steve wants more weight on her before any sedation. She is able to eat pretty well, though, so don’t worry – she looks better every day.

Here at Whistlepig we have a little corral and shelter we call “ponyland” where we keep our lesson ponies together. We had a sweet, shy, little POA mare out there who was just getting the stuffing knocked out of her and we knew she was too timid and we needed to move her. I remembered Susie stating that Cindy attached to other horses well so we introduced the two of them and now they stall together, eating side-by-side and sharing very well. They are already fast friends.

When Cindy is back in shape and able to carry people around (at least 4 months we think), she will become a lesson horse carrying beginners. She will also join our special needs riding program because of her calm disposition. We know she will be a great addition to that program. My husband and I always had the dream to open our academy to special needs children and adults. We have an NAHRA affiliated program with a very experienced and respected manager, Sandy Artichoker. Tim and I have started a non-profit organization, Whistlepig Special Equestrians, to help fund these riders and their special needs. It takes a special horse for these types of programs and Cindy seems to be a natural.

Well, that’s about all the news for now. We will be updating pictures soon (right, Rick?)

Due to Cindy’s previous poor care and condition, Cindy needs more care than an average horse. As many of you have asked us how you can assist financially, if you wish to contribute to Cindy’s care and/or a tax-deductible contribution to Whistlepig Special Equestrians, that would be wonderful. Please make checks for Cindy’s care payable to Whistlepig Riding Academy; checks for the special needs program can be made out to Whistlepig Special Equstrians. Our address is 14041 Aspen Street, Broomfield, Colorado 80020.

Thanks again for all the caring emails and all your support.

Jeanie Clifford

Click here for pictures!