Farewell to Rudy: 1968 - 2008

And the cycle of life on a Rescue farm continues. We love what we do, but rescuing horses is a bittersweet experience. Yesterday evening, we gently escorted Rudy out of this life. This elderly, much loved Appaloosa had lived the majority of his life with his former owners. He was surrendered to us in 2005, when he became totally blind and they were unable to protect him from the obstructions and steep drop-offs on his farm. Otherwise healthy, but with nowhere else to go, all he needed was a safe environment, though it took many trials before we found him companions that wouldn't pick on him (a problem all blind horses have).

Horses adjust to blindness in various ways, some better than others. Rudy learned to depend on his sense of hearing, doing the "blind horse tilt" when he was listening intently to something. He knew everything that was happening on this farm, all the time. His common sense, upbeat nature and confidence in his human caretakers enabled him to thrive, despite his loss of vision.

After the failed matchmaking attempt with Rodney, his best friends became Oreo, the ancient Welsh pony and Chamara, the blind Arabian mare who he liked to scratch over the fence. Two years ago, Rudy developed Cushing's syndrome, but with medication and a controlled diet, he continued to do well. He even managed to tolerate the two "mini monster mares" who also lived in the "Paddock for Blind and Foundered Horses." He enjoyed his regular meals of "soup" (senior feed with lots of water) as befitted a 40 year-old with the usual collection of missing teeth. As with Rodney, he had become a rescue fixture and seemed impervious to the advancing years.

Recently, though, we started to see some unsteadiness that was difficult to pinpoint. We initially chalked it up to "blind horse" movement, combined with an unfamiliar paddock, as we had started to feed him in a small paddock alongside his own to keep the "monsters" from bothering him. But we began to watch him carefully and we soon recognized an emerging and serious neurological problem. Throughout the past three weeks, we had seen a steady deterioration in his condition, and we began to realize that instead of talking about him having the odd "bad day", we were more and more looking for the "good days," and these were getting fewer.

The decision to euthanize is hard for any caretaker to make. At a horse rescue, when so many of our residents are aged, vision-impaired, medically challenged or unsound in other ways, these conditions are the norm. Reaching the conclusion that any or all of them have become too heavy a burden for a horse to carry becomes no easier with familiarity. To take a life, even for the most humane of reasons is still an awesome and humbling duty, and so it was this time.

On a beautiful summer evening, with a belly full of fresh grass from the previous week's rain and a handful of molasses cookies, Rudy took his last walk, accompanied by his friends. Confident in the hands of his people, Rudy was a gentleman to the end; he expected us to do the right thing by him, no more and no less. He was a kind and patient horse who served his family well, and who lived out his remaining years with dignity. He will be sadly missed.