An adopter for Empire?

Darling accepts her third place ribbon in Fitting & Showing

Little Em came home with us this past weekend when there were no adopters looking for fillies. "No mares", was the comment I heard over and over again. That's pretty disappointing when half the horses you've got are fillies. It was difficult to send Avalon and Willow back to the corrals, especially when little Willow had been giving me everything she had. She didn't have much, mind you, but she gave all that was there and it breaks my heart to see her returned. But as I'm constantly being reminded, "Tracey, you can't save them all!"

But I can save one, right? And Empire came home. Darling informed me she didn't want to work with her anymore, because it was too hard to fall in love and let go. She told me it wasn't fair that I always got to keep my competition horses and she was force to give hers up. But Empire simply is too small for our long legged family, and Darling wants a jumper...or Dibs (and hopefully, she says, they'll be one in the same.) So a new home for Em is a priority.

Darling & Empire also took third in In Hand Trail

One of our sponsors for the event, Elenbaas Feed, had donated several bags of grain for the yearlings as well as grain for high point prizes. I received a call from Ty on Tuesday wondering how things went, and then he proceeded to tell me that he was hooked on this mustang idea. We'd talked a bit about mustangs when I'd picked up the grain and he'd been intrigued. Over the weekend he'd started looking up information on them, and now he was telling me that they are approached by many rescues looking for help, but he thinks the mustangs are where it's at and he'd like to sponsor our efforts!

And me, I'm thinking "Cool Beans!", and saying how it'd be fantastic to get some grain for the horses. He pauses, then said that was easy enough, but he was thinking of donating a percentage of sales...

Okay, it's warm out and I think I've just fainted. Can someone lift me up, please? Did he just say they'd actually donate...m...m...money? To our little mustang project?

After I stumbled for words and thanked him, he said that he and his wife would like to come out and see the mustangs I had, because he'd always sorta~kinda~wondered if he should get one for a trail horse. Well, now we're in my world...and of course he can come out and of course he should adopt a mustang!

So we took a tour of Greenhill and visited with Steve Holt! and Sandy, then wandered over to Empire who was hanging out in the arena with a couple of her domestic friends. And being the curious, friendly sort she is, she was right there in our pockets and checking out the newcomers. I explained how she'd been passed by, most likely because she was a filly but also her small stature hadn't helped. Ty, he's a tall man, but his wife was standing there stroking Empire softly...and as I looked towards her face I saw it happening. Em had hooked this petite woman, and by the end of our visit she was asking for an adoption application.

So it would appear that our sweet little girl will have a home, pending application approval, by the end of the week. Darling is very happy; she'd liked how softly Empire's future mamma was touching her and running her fingertips over the filly's face. Em seemed to enjoy it, too. They should have plenty of happy trails together in the future.