by Charity Nicole Robertson

Created on: September 04, 2009   Last Updated: January 14, 2010

It was a cold, cloudy, winter day when we went to the horse auction. My sister had recently sold her mare and was interested in buying some cheaper, younger colts. Since it was late winter and there wasn't much grass for horses to eat, many owners were selling their horses cheap, especially the young ones.

As the horses passed through the auction, she found three that she liked and bought them really cheap. One was a little sorrel that sold as a filly, but we later discovered it was a little stud colt. He was approximately four or five months old and a mere skeleton. He was so skinny he could barely walk. Surprisingly, he had winter hair that was three to five inches long. Perhaps it was God's added protection considering his poor condition.

I really had not planned on buying any horses that day, but as I looked him over and realized he was on his last leg, I knew he was going to need some very special care if he was going to survive.

In my heart I knew my younger sister would not be able to give him the extra care he would need. I offered my sister double the amount she paid, and she accepted my offer. Right there at that auction I made a $100 investment.

We hired a man to take him home that evening and when he arrived, I named him Cochise. With his long hair, he really resembled a big teddy bear. The next morning when I turned him out to grass, he just stood there with his head down and did not move. At first I was quite worried, but before long he began to eat. After a few days, I gave him worm medicine. That got rid of the parasites, and he slowly began to put on weight.

As the days passed, I grew to love him a great deal. Soon he was gentle, and we became great friends.

The days turned into months and the months into years. During that time, I worked a great deal with him, teaching him the manners that all horses should know, especially with him being a young stallion. It seemed that in an incredibly short time he turned two years old, meaning it was time to actually begin to ride him.

He was already used to the saddle since I had put it on his back many times. Soon the day arrived for me to get on him for the first time, and he did terrific for me.

I soon learned that he had a natural talent and a great love for jumping, so I began to teach him to jump all kinds of different obstacles. He had a distinct form of jumping that always amazed me and others who saw him jump. Cochise always knew when he jumped well, and all by himself he would come up to me from behind and wrap his neck around me in a great big bear hug. He would not return to jumping until he had received a hug in return. Interestingly enough, he never came to me for a hug when he knocked a rail down.

Cochise became quite the handsome feller with his shiny, dark sorrel coat, three white stockings and a white stripe the complete length of his face. He grew to be about 16 hands tall at the withers, and even though he was a young stallion he was as gentle as a lamb.

On September 17, 2008, at the age of two years and seven months, he tragically died from an apparent poisoning while we were in town. Even though he is gone, I will always remember him with love and gratitude for the great lessons I learned from him, and the wonderful times we spent together.

Since I was fourteen, I have had the opportunity to rescue seven horses. Even though there are often disappointments and heartaches, the blessings that you receive from working with these great animals far outweighs the difficulties. I have greatly enjoyed rescuing horses that are uncared for and watching them turn into the amazing creatures they were meant to be.

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