For The Love of Horses (Pegasus Equestrian Center)

by Diana Vincent

  What was that man’s name? River could see him in his mind; the lines around his eyes from hours of squinting in the sun, a sandy-colored, long mustache on his leathery face, and his tall, lean frame with bowed legs from a lifetime spread around a horse’s back. He guessed he still lived in the area for he remembered seeing him at João’s funeral.

  He gave up after a short while of straining his brain, and turned his thoughts to Sierra and how good it felt to have made up. With images of her large, brown eyes gazing at him, and thinking of the softness of her lips and her skin, he fell asleep.

  At his usual time in the morning, River awoke and his eyes flew open. Ben Jeffers, that’s the man!

  *****

  “I bet that’s him,” Sierra said at the sound of a vehicle pulling into the stable yard and then the cut of the engine.

  “I’ll go see.” River dropped his grooming brush into the box at his feet, gave Cory a pat on the neck, and walked out the main doors of the stable to greet the arrival.

  It hadn’t been hard to find a contact number for João’s old friend. Once he remembered his name, Sierra suggested looking him up on the internet, and they found he had a local business training cutting and reining horses, working out of his ranch in an adjacent county.

  When he made the phone call, Ben remembered River right away as ‘the little tyke João used to look after’. When River explained his problems with Oberon, Ben agreed to come his first available free day, which turned out to be the Sunday after Thanksgiving. River offered to pay him a training fee, but Ben refused, stating it was something he could easily do for an old friend.

  “Mr. Jeffers?” River called out to the man standing next to a pick-up truck, looking around the stable yard. Hearing his name, the man looked toward River through squinting eyes. River got the impression he was sizing him up and taking his merit; causing him to feel shy and with a desire to retreat, the way he often felt around adults. But then a slow grin spread across the man’s face and he walked forward extending his hand. River relaxed and stepped up to shake, stating, “I’m River.”

  “I almost didn’t recognize you,” the man said, his eyes crinkling. “Put on a few inches since I last saw you. Call me Ben.”

  “Thanks for coming. Um, I have to put my horse away and then I can take you to see Oberon.”

  Ben nodded and indicated with his chin to lead the way. River turned back to the stable and led Ben over to the crossties where Sierra was finishing up brushing Fiel and Cory waited patiently in the crossties next to her.

  “This is Sierra,” River introduced her. “This is Ben.”

  Sierra turned from brushing and smiled at the man who offered his hand to shake. “Nice to meet you,” she said as she shook his strong, firm hand, and finding she already liked his friendly, weathered face.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Sierra. I’ve heard some pretty impressive things about you from João.”

  Blushing, Sierra smiled.

  “Fiel,” Ben said, now looking over at Sierra’s horse. “So you’re the lucky young lady who inherited this gentleman.” He stepped quietly over to Fiel, touched his shoulder gently, and stroked his neck. Fiel turned and lowered his head toward the man.

  “You know him?” Sierra asked, recovering her composure.

  “Oh yes,” Ben answered. “Me and this feller go back quite a ways.” He laughed softly. “I used to try to get João to bring him over to my place to work cattle. Used to tell him that if these Lusitano horses were bred for bullfighting, they sure ought’ta be able to face a few steers.” He stepped back from Fiel’s shoulder, still looking him over. “He actually did a few times. This old boy could maneuver through them steers as good as any quarter horse.”

  River watched how Ben’s eyes traveled over Fiel’s body, assessing his health and fitness. He felt a sense of relief when Ben at last said, “João would sure be pleased; he’s as fit as a fine-tuned fiddle. Just maybe he’s lookin’ on from somewhere with a smile on that ole Portagee face.” He laughed softly. River liked how quietly he spoke and moved. Yes, this man understands horses.

  “Who have we here?” Ben asked, shifting his attention quietly from Fiel to Corazón. He looked over the tall black as carefully as he had Fiel, studying his manners before he approached him. Cory stood with relaxed posture and eyed Ben curiously. Only when Cory stretched his nose slightly forward did Ben step in and stroke his neck. “Ain’t you a beauty,” he murmured, admiring the handsome and fit horse.

  “He’s the one I told you about first,” River said. He had told Ben about his success with Cory, and that the methods he had tried with him were not working with Oberon.

  “Not the difficult one,” Ben said knowingly.

  “No. I’ll take you to Oberon now. We’ll turn these two back out in their paddocks on the way.”

  Ben followed the two kids as they led their horses to the outside paddocks, and then turned them loose. He watched the relationship between the kids and the horses, and he liked what he saw. It was clear to him that both these horses trusted and respected their owners; happy, well-adjusted animals with very good ground manners. Yes, João, you’d be pleased.

  When they left Cory and Fiel, River led Ben to the last paddock where Oberon stood in the far corner, dozing with his head low. They all stepped up to the fence, leaning on the top rail and watched as Oberon, either hearing them or catching their scent, flung his head up, and with ears flat, turned his back to them.

  “Umhmm, not too fond of people,” Ben commented softly. “River, go ahead and show me how you catch him. I’ll stay here and just watch.”

  River picked up Oberon’s halter and the ground whip that he had left near the gate, and entered the paddock, closing the gate behind him. He called out to Oberon and walked slowly toward him. As usual Oberon flipped up his head and flattened his ears, but remained rigidly still, watching River approach. They had been through the ‘catching’ drill enough times that Oberon had given up trying to avoid being caught, but he still displayed his resentment. River came up to his shoulder, holding the ground whip in a neutral position since Oberon so far hadn’t turned away, and slipped on the halter. He led him back to the gate, popping the whip behind him a couple times when Oberon hung back, dragging against the halter; but also once stopping to turn into the horse when he disobeyed by stepping forward to crowd River’s space.

  “Not a gentleman,” Ben commented as he watched.

  Neither Oberon’s attitude nor his manners improved as River led him into the crossties and groomed him. It was clear to Ben that if given the chance, Oberon would love to take a hefty bite out of River or anyone else who came within range of his teeth. Ben also noted that River remained vigilant as he worked on the big bay; staying out of teeth and hoof range. The kid knows a thing or two about horses!

  But it broke his heart as he visually tallied the fine points of Oberon’s conformation; and realized that here was another quality horse ruined. With his obvious fine breeding, he could have been an exceptional performance horse. To Ben, it was the equivalent of taking a knife and slashing across a work of art such as the Mona Lisa.

  “You’re handling him well,” Ben commented, “all things considered. You might see if you can’t get him to keep his hindquarters out of your space.” He stepped in and showed River how to push Oberon away every time he swung his hindquarters in. “Even though he can’t swing around to kick while he’s in the crossties, he’s definitely saying that he wants to. We can’t allow that.”

  “I see what you mean,” River said as he watched Ben move around the horse, making him move his feet where Ben wanted him to put them.

  “With a horse like this, I start out defining his space and mine, and don’t ever allow him to cross the line.”

  “Uh huh,” River agreed.

  “What is it you hope to accomplish with him?” Ben asked, as he stepped away, keeping his eyes on Oberon.

  “I guess just to make him safe to be around and then to
ride him.”

  “Do you want to make a performance horse out of him?”

  “No, I don’t think so,” River said thoughtfully. “I think competing him so young has a lot to do with his attitude now. It might be too much to ask of him.”

  “What do you think?” Ben turned to Sierra.

  “I think River is right,” Sierra confirmed. She liked how Ben included her in the discussion, and warmed to him even more.

  “Smart kids,” Ben stated. “From what you told me of his history, this guy was pushed way too hard and too young. It’s too bad humans don’t realize horses have feelings and fears of their own. They are not machines. He seems to associate humans working with him as very stressful. I agree with you, River, that’s abuse. Then he gets sent off to a new owner, and now he experiences the opposite end of abuse.” He turned to Sierra and winked before he said, “Present young lady excluded from what I’m about to say, but it’s most often girls and even grown women who get a horse and literally love it to death if the end result is a dangerous animal that has to be put down. We have here a horse with an aggressive disposition and he’s learned to associate humans with stress. Now pair him with a girl who wants to treat him like a pet. She loves him and wants him to love her back, so she lets him have his own way, not wanting to discipline him because she’s afraid he won’t like her. What she doesn’t understand is if she wants a good relationship with him, she needs his respect, and only then can they become a happy team. This guy likes having the upper hand.” He pointed with his chin toward Oberon. “You put this guy with an owner who doesn’t correct him when he invades her space or exhibits aggressive behavior, and of course he gets pushier and pushier. Now, I’m sorry, but that is also abuse.”

  “Do you think he’s already ruined?” Sierra asked.

  “Oh, he’s ruined alright,” Ben said emphatically, “because I sincerely doubt he can be retrained any time soon to a level where he could be used to his full potential. Only time will tell if you can accomplish a safe horse that can at least be ridden for pleasure. If you can manage that, well possibly many years from now he could be asked to compete again.”

  River finished grooming and the three stood in silence a few minutes studying Oberon, who stood with stiff posture and flat ears, with one eye glaring at the humans.

  “All you’ve done is handle him on the ground, and you tried to lunge him once?” Ben asked.

  “Yeah, it was a disaster. He doesn’t ever relax and I don’t feel like we’re making any progress.”

  “I see; what equipment did you use when you lunged him?”

  “Just a lunge caveson; I didn’t want to try a bridle because I didn’t want to fight with him over a bit.”

  Chuckling, Ben agreed, “Yeah, don’t ever start a battle you can’t win. Do you have a round pen?”

  “No, we don’t.”

  “Hmm…do you have a small enclosed space anywhere?”

  “River, what about the paddock down by Manuel’s trailer? It’s smaller than any of the paddocks up here and pretty flat.”

  “Yeah, it’s half the size of the paddocks up here,” River agreed.

  “Sounds like it might do for now. Shall we take him down there and maybe I can show you some exercises to work on?”

  River led Oberon to the lower paddock with Ben and Sierra following. And then River gratefully handed over the lead to Ben.

  As he led the horse into the paddock, Ben said, “A horse like this, I think it’s best to start in a small space. A round pen is ideal because it has no corners where he can get stuck, but this still should work for what I want to try. All I want to accomplish at first is just to improve his attitude and manners.” Ben continued on to the middle of the paddock, insisting that Oberon walk without pulling back or dragging his feet, or crowding past Ben’s shoulder. Then he worked the horse by asking him to move away from him, then bringing him back in closer, to back up, and then step forward. “Just getting him to move where I want his feet to go, and rewarding him every time he gives me what I want, is all I’m asking,” he explained. “When he stands quietly with his ears relaxed, I turn away.” Ben demonstrated at a moment when Oberon dropped his head with his ears to the side. “But I’m watching him all the time,” Ben continued. He turned back to the horse’s shoulder just as Oberon flattened his ears, and made him step to the side away. “Every time he exhibits a sour attitude, I’m going to push him away.” Ben continued to demonstrate how every antagonistic expression from Oberon - flat ears, raised stiff neck, bared teeth, swinging hindquarters in – would result with Ben stepping in to make Oberon move his feet. Whenever the horse lowered his head, licked his lips, or let his ears relax, Ben turned away as a reward. “This may not seem like I’m doing very much, but I’m starting to teach him a relaxed attitude will get me out of his face and leave him alone.”

  Watching everything the trainer did with the horse, River could see how Oberon began to display more neutral behavior. It impressed him how quickly Ben responded to every little variation in Oberon’s manners, either positively or negatively. He didn’t miss a thing.

  “I’m not doing anything much different from what I saw you doing,” Ben explained. “I’m just taking it to another level of obedience. Much of his rudeness is just bad habits. With this kind of simple communication, I’m telling him that relaxed, soft manners are going to be more comfortable for him.”

  “Yeah,” River stated, very impressed as he observed Ben now standing next to a horse with lowered head and ears to the side. It was the most relaxed in the presence of a human, that River had ever seen the horse.

  “You can’t force a horse to be happy, but we can sure reward any behavior that shows a softening and giving attitude, and when he exhibits his bad attitude, make that uncomfortable for him,” Ben explained as he unhooked the lead from the halter. Oberon immediately started to spin away, but Ben had anticipated the move. He stepped up with the ground whip and brandished it at Oberon’s hindquarters to move him away. Oberon trotted off and as he kicked out with his back legs, Ben followed up with a snap of the whip, not touching the horse, but annoying at his hind end so that he took off in a gallop to the fence. As he approached where Sierra and River watched, Oberon snaked his head out at them with teeth bared, but Ben was right behind him to immediately push him on and away from the kids.

  The lesson consisted of Ben encouraging Oberon to approach him respectfully, but every time he laid his ears back, shot his head in the air, or tried to turn his hindquarters, Ben would push him away and make him gallop a few rounds; much the same method River had used when first trying to catch him. When the horse tried to stop, Ben always pushed him just a few strides more before allowing it. As long as Oberon remained ‘neutral’, Ben didn’t push. But the moment he flattened his ears or looked away, Ben pushed him on again. The entire time, he remained calm and talked soothingly to the horse.

  “Most important, never lose your temper, as much as he tries your patience,” Ben said to the kids, keeping his tone even. “I always try to divert my anger onto the humans who made him this way, rather than taking it out on the horse. River, you seem to have the ability to stay calm, in spite of how frustrated this horse can make you feel. There now, good boy,” Ben said as Oberon stood facing him with ears up and actually lowered his head and snorted, signs of relaxation. “You’ve got to be tired of galloping around,” Ben continued to soothe and took a step toward the bay. When Oberon maintained his posture, Ben ducked his head and turned away. “Turning away reduces the pressure on him. I especially want to reward this first sign of him actually starting to relax.” Ben turned back and took another step closer, and then waited for Oberon to make the next move. “If he drops his head again or takes a step in, I’ll turn away,” Ben explained. “If he acts rude, I’ll send him out again.”

  “Oh, good boy, Oberon,” Sierra whispered as they watched the horse drop his head and take a step toward Ben. As he had explained, Ben turned away, rewarding the good behav
ior.

  “I’m happy with that much progress,” Ben said as he turned back and this time, was able to go all the way up to Oberon without the horse moving or flattening his ears. He attached the lead and led him to the gate, and then they took him back to the stable for a quick brush down before returning him to his paddock.

  “Don’t get discouraged,” Ben advised after they had finished with Oberon, and they walked with him to his truck. “You definitely have been working on the right track with him. I think you’ll make progress if you keep up lessons like what we did today, and you should be able to start asking more of him within a month or two.”

  “Yeah, I think it’s a good plan,” River agreed.

  “I’ve gotta go down to Arizona for the Christmas holidays; stay with my daughter’s family for a few weeks. I take a couple horses with me for the winter sale down there. I’ll be back around the end of January and if you want, I’ll swing by again and see how you’re getting along with that fella.”

  “That’d be great!”

  “You’ve got my cell number now. Call me anytime if questions come up.”

  “Thanks again. I actually feel a little hopeful about him now.”

  They shook hands again before Ben got into his truck, and Sierra and River watched him drive away.

  “He’s awesome!” Sierra stated.

  With a deep breath, as if in relief, River agreed, “Yeah.”

  ******

  The weeks of December passed in a flurry. Preparing end-of-term papers and studying for final exams took up all of Sierra’s time, so that most days she didn’t even remain at the stable to help bring in horses. She and River only had time together commuting to and from school, and then during their work at the stable. Although River’s own schoolwork was not nearly as demanding, he understood how important it was for Sierra to maintain top grades, and he politely declined her half-hearted invitations to dinner. “I can manage until the break,” he told her. “Besides, both you and your mother are so focused on your studies you wouldn’t even notice I was there.”