Prince of Shadows

Prince of Shadows ~ 6" x 6" oil on hardboard panel

For sale on Daily Paintworks…bidding starts at $39.00

Click here to bid…the link becomes active the afternoon of Dec. 19

My love of horses has been with me since I was a child. I remember so vividly, a spirited Morgan/Arab cross that I was riding with a friend one day. She was a beautiful bay that looked very much like the horse in the picture I painted. My own horse was a placid and gentle quarter horse and was no challenge for my friend who hadn't ridden much. Being the experienced rider  we decided to switch and I got to ride that gorgeous Morgan. She was a dream, with a smooth gait and lightning speed. 

About an hour into our ride, five kilometres or so from the nearest house, the horse I was riding went down on her knees, and tried to roll, saddle and all. I didn't know her well, and thought that maybe she was just trying to dislodge the saddle. When I saw her eyes, though, they were filled with pain, and I knew she must be colicking. Colic is a painful intestinal condition, that can severely injure a horse, and is very very serious. If they don't get medical attention, they can die. 

I forced her to her feet, and we took off, at breakneck speed, through the woods. My only thought was to get her to a house where we could call a vet, as soon as possible. She would run, then stumble and fall…every time I had to jump off of her back before she rolled on me and then my friend and I would pull her to her feet, and I'd get back on and run more until, battered and bruised, we made it to a friends' house that had experience with horses, but she wasn't home. Only her young daughter was there. We called the vet, only to discover he was already out on another call, and it would be hours before he returned. We got a bottle of vegetable oil, wrenched the horses' mouth open and poured it down, and then took turns pulling her to her feet, and making her walk in circles. I was always told to never let a horse roll when they were colicking, as it could cause serious damage. At any rate, after a few hours we were exhausted, and still no vet. My friend finally came home, and said we should probably shoot her! I refused adamantly, as it wasn't even my horse! Finally an uncle showed up who had a pain killer for animals, and the horse calmed down. And then the vet came, and finally all was well. The vet commended us for saving her life!