Life with Horses (LWH), is excited to announce we have our first sponsor horse. We would like to introduce you to “All Pluck” AKA Ducky, he was retired in 2020 due to a tendon injury in his front left leg.
Ducky was born on the 20 August 2013; he is 7 years old – in human years he’d be around 30 years old. This stunning chestnut gelding stands about 16 + hands. His personality is special, with a touch of shy but cheeky but also a big fan of a few sneaky cuddles. Ducky is people oriented but also adores his horse friends. What you see is what you get with Ducky, he wears his anxiety on his sleeve, there is no brave face here – the cool thing with this is he tells you when he needs anything, you just need to listen to him.
Fun Fact: Ducky’s favourite treat is molasses, and we are working on transitioning this to liquorice.
When it comes to horses and especially retired racehorses, it is important to understand that sometimes the horse and human or the horse and location will not be the right fit. As the person responsible for the horse, it is important not to take it personally, instead be aware and recognise what the horse is communicating to you about your relationship and do what is right for the horse.
Unfortunately, Ducky had this experience after he retired. He was sent to a home who had all good intentions of looking after Ducky and his re-education but in around 14 weeks his weight, muscles and energy were fading and he was in a VERY unhealthy and unhappy state. It was hard to see this stunning horse losing his spark and shine. BUT he is now in a place he feels comfortable and happy again. In a month he has gained substantial weight and is getting his spark back.
So where is he staying?
Our fabulous trainer Kat Shearer (yes, another Kat AKA Kat2) is looking after him at her property in Yamanto. Ducky has perked up and is starting to have a taste of living a life that he deserves after his racing career.
Kat 2 will work with Ducky to help him get his strength back before she starts his re-education program. This will be a slow and controlled program. Over the last month Ducky has had a heap of groundwork like light lunging to build muscles and ground poles for coordination and strength.
He is learning to “cuddle”, as his confidence grows, and he gets bolder we will work on the “smile” and “bow”. He really needs to set his own pace; he is quite emotional and shuts down easily if the pressure is too much.
A week ago, we worked to make sure he has steering and brakes; the priority is keeping him calm and happy while continuing to gain weight.
Once Ducky is under saddle, we will work on accepting leg pressure without running forward, bending, and yielding. If he responds well to this, we will start taking him out for some trail rides.
The priorities for him are:
- Making sure he maintains his appetite.
- Everything is about low pressure, fun, and muscle building.
All this training along with housing, feeding and medical care is costly, we cannot do this without your help.
So how can you help?
LWH need 35 people to sponsor Ducky for $80 a month for the length of his journey to help cover the costs involved to look after and re-educate him in preparation of finding him his forever home.
What is involved with being a sponsor, you get to go on this amazing experience and journey with Ducky. Watch him gain his strength back, watch and help him on his re-education journey. I am sure you are wondering what I mean by “help him”. This is the best part as a sponsor, you can work with him as he moves through his education. You can come out and spend time with Ducky while helping with his training work, this could look like*:
- Grooming
- Washing
- Walking
- Groundwork
- Riding
*(Please note this is dependent on how he responds to his training and Kat 2 will determine what is possible at the time).
Most importantly, this is not just for Ducky, it is for you, the human! The horse and human relationship is an experiential relationship which allows the human to be aware of how they communicate, trust, show vulnerability and personal development.
This is what makes “Life with Horses” a unique not-for-profit. So please sign up as a sponsor and join us on this heart-warming and powerful journey – AND once you have done that tell your friends about Ducky and that he needs their help – THE MORE THE MERRIER!!
Racing Information:
All Pluck, Pluck (USA) out of Brief Embrace born in 2013. Trained by Tony Gollan and owned by A L Atkinson. All Pluck’s race record is 6 wins and 11 places from 38 starts with prize money of $130,375 races during 2016 – 2020.