On September 24, we brought a new horse into our home.

It was a little over six months since Pie passed away, and my mom finally felt ready to take care of another horse. The barn and the pasture were all for Pie, and it’s still hard to see another horse out there, but it was the right thing to do for Missy, and for Dewey, too.

All summer we tried to go to the horse rescue near our house, but every time we planned on going over, the rescue was closed for bad weather or a holiday.

So when the rescue was finally open on the day we planned on visiting in early September, and Dewey had just been returned by his previous adopters and was the perfect fit, we felt like it was meant to be, that there was a reason we weren’t able to visit the rescue sooner.

Missy is a very gentle, quiet horse. I remember my Aunt Anne commenting that she was always being moved to different pastures with different horses because she was always getting picked on. While Whimsical Equine Rescue has quiet a few older horses, most were too dominant.

Dewey was perfect. He was low in the pecking order, like Missy. And at 19, he was calm, gentle, and easy to handle.

The only thing that concerned us was the calcium deposit on his front left leg, about the size of a baseball, from an old racing injury.

His racing name is A.J. Jones, and he had 19 races by the time he was 4, with 6 wins.

Seeing his legs, I like Thoroughbred racing even less. His movement is awkward, and he can’t be ridden, but he walks around just fine and doesn’t seem to be in any pain, especially when food is involved and he trots to the barn.

When Karen and Lisa brought him over, I held Missy while they walked him through the gate, and as soon as she saw Dewey, she stood taller and straighter than I’ve ever seen her. When we released them, they trotted over to each other, rubbed noses, and then Missy followed Dewey around the pasture as he checked things out. No kicking, no biting.

We’ve had Dewey two full months now, and he was underweight when we first got him. He’s put on a lot of weight now, and is getting happier and healthier every day.