Craig was trained to be a track horse. At some point when he was younger he fell either getting in or out of a trailer, which resulted in some chipping of his knee. It was not a serious injury, but enough that he would not be used on the track, so as far we know, he never ran any documented races.
Craig’s owner no longer wanted him, so put him up for sale or trade and a boy in Granbury traded for Craig. Eventually the boy went off to college, and left Craig in the care of someone who completely neglected him. Craig was starving and so weak he could barely walk when our daughter Kassi found out about him and begged us to help.
We took Craig home and the next few months were a total nightmare! Craig was weak and petrified of the trailer. Getting him to load would quite literally take hours, and getting him out was just as bad. He was so weak, he would constantly fall getting out, and as you can imagine, we were making several trips to the vet’s office for his continual care.
Craig was 5 years old when we got him. He is 7 now. So let’s fast forward – it’s been a long few years. Craig has gained wait, but is still very skinny and has very little muscle tone. When we got the clearance from our vet a year ago to start “working” Craig, it was time to see if we could put some muscle on him. For the first year, we eased into things, just riding around close, trail rides, etc. Craig was adjusting well. There was a lot he didn’t understand, but he took it in stride, with very little “attitude”.
We are now on our 2nd year of riding and WOW! I have starting riding him in playdays: barrels, poles, spur, pylons, flags, team events and such. We are still easing into it, and now that we have mastered things at a lope, we are working on adding some speed. He knows the patterns, and oh, you should see him in the pole events – he absolutely loves them! We competed in an Extreme Events Playday and placed 2nd, winning $31.50!
Gaining weight is a constant battle for Craig, so we have tried everything – wormers, vitamins, feed after feed after feed. Here is what FINALLY is working: our feed is 14% protein and 7% fat, and using EQUI-PRO as our vitamin supplement, because it is full of all the good fatty stuff, plus vitamins, plus stuff for ulcers and it calms the stomach.
Craig has an amazing heart, a strong will to live, is protective and eager to please. I will look forward to posting updates about this wonderful horse.
