January-February 2010 PonyCare - Penny and PB
By Margaret Evans
Anita stared out of the school bus, willing the snow to stop falling and the heavy, grey clouds to lift. Normally she enjoyed winter but the past month had been so cold and snowy that she hadn’t been able to ride. It was ages since she had gone out on the trails with her friends. She sighed, heaved up her backpack full of books, and got ready to get off the bus.
“Phone me later, Anita,” said Jill. “If they’ve ploughed the roads, maybe we can all go to Blue Meadows tomorrow and ride in the arena.”
“Good idea!” Anita grinned. She was so glad it was Friday. “Anything to get on Penny for an hour!”
“Ditto that for Daisy,” grinned Meridy, Anita’s cousin who lived a few bus stops away.
“And Fanny,” smiled Sandie.
In the house, Anita grabbed a snack and a glass of milk then changed into her barn clothes to do evening chores and bring her pony in.
“Where’s Penny?” said Matt through a mouthful of chocolate chip cookies as he drifted into the kitchen where Anita was putting her glass in the dishwasher.
“In the paddock. Why?” replied Anita.
“Can’t see her.”
“She’ll be by the gate.”
“Nope.”
Anita glanced sharply at her brother then ran to the back door to look out.
“Penny!” Her voice was sharp, penetrating. Penny always called back, impatient for her evening meal. She waited. “Penny!” Her voice was more urgent.
Penny’s whinny was distant, excited. Shoving her feet into gum boots and dragging on her jacket, Anita raced to the paddock, yelling for her pony and wondering what was going on. She gasped when she saw the broken fence at the end of the paddock.
Grabbing the halter from the barn, Anita and Matt ploughed through the drifting snow as fast as they could. They could make out Penny but…
“There’s something with her.” Matt’s voice was wobbly.
“Don’t rush. Don’t scare them off.”
“I’m already scared…”
Anita started talking quietly to Penny to get her attention, but she was totally focused on her strange companion. Then Anita saw it more clearly. She groaned in dismay as she stared at the thinnest pony she had ever seen. The pony looked at Anita, backing into the brush and stumbling weakly. But it was too exhausted to run away.
“What happened?” Matt was equally horrified.
“Dunno,” whispered Anita. “This pony looks starved. Let’s catch Penny then see if it will follow.”
“We’re taking it home?”
“We can’t leave it here.”
“Dad won’t…”
“We have to find its owner.”
“Good luck with that!” Matt grimaced. “Maybe it needs a new home…”
Anita looked at the haggard gelding. It was shivering so hard all its bones seemed to shake. Its ribcage was visible and the hips hung like coat hangers. Its dull, matted coat was bare in patches where it had rubbed against trees and its mane and tail were a rat’s nest of twigs and burrs. There was an old wound on a hind leg. But it was the raw, hollow sadness in his brown eyes that melted Anita’s heart. Once, they must have shone with life and health.
“Anita!”
She jumped at the sound of Mom’s voice.
“Over here!” Anita called back. “Bring a halter!”
“What?”
Anita quickly flipped on Penny’s halter. “Matt, start leading Penny to the barn.”
Matt moved forward, stepping over the broken board into the paddock, as Penny followed obediently. He met Mom rushing in the gathering darkness to intercept them. She stared, shocked, at the sight of Anita with her arm around a bedraggled pony’s nose, slowly encouraging him to move.
“Penny found him,” Anita tried to explain. “The fence is broken. He’s in awful shape.”
“Yes he is…” Mom frowned as she looked the gelding over.
Moments later Anita was pulling towels and rugs from a storage chest. Matt fluffed up a deep bed of straw in the spare stall next to Penny and Mom filled a bucket with lukewarm water then put hay down for both ponies. Anita gently wiped the worst of the dirt from the shivering pony, warmed his ears with dry cloths, and then looked him over for wounds. The one on his leg was old but there was still a bit of swelling.
“This pony’s had good treatment in the past,” said Mom, watching him carefully.
“How d’you know?” asked Matt.
“He’s watching Anita. There’s still some trust in him.”
Anita continued to work gently on the pony with a soft body brush. He was about 14 hands high. As some of the dirt peeled away, she could see that he was a light bay with a tiny star on his forehead and a distinctive S-shaped snip on his muzzle. She got the worst of the mess out of his mane and tail then laid a blanket over his back. She covered it with another rug and fastened it securely. The layering would provide extra warmth.
“Shall we give him some grain?” asked Matt.
“No.” Mom shook her head. “Let’s just give him hay for tonight. It’s the roughage he needs.”
“He’ll need deworming and a vet check for his leg, and his teeth checked… and we need to know what kind of diet to put him on…” Anita stopped, knowing she was babbling about things that would cost money. She glanced at Mom with a guilty feeling. Dad had only just gone back to work after a layoff over Christmas.
Mom smiled, sighed inwardly, and gently led the gelding into the stall next to Penny. He immediately moved to the hay and started to eat. Penny pricked her ears and looked over the divider at him but he didn’t lift his head.
“I’ll call Animals in Distress in the morning,” said Mom later as they all sat down for supper. “Suzie might know something.”
But the next morning when Mom talked to Suzie Payne, the manager at AID, she was alarmed to learn that Suzie knew nothing about the pony, and that the shelter was full to overflowing with abandoned, seized, or donated animals big and small. In fact, AID was putting out an appeal to people with space in their barns to help house distressed livestock. Mom and Dad quickly agreed to keep the gelding for the immediate future.
Later in the day, their vet Colin Allanby checked the pony, recommended a diet to help him put on weight, and checked the wound low on his right hind leg. It had been an open tear which had healed with a lot of scar tissue. Some of the puffiness would be permanent but he would be sound.
By noon, Jill, Sandie, and Meridy had arrived to see him. They were horrified at his condition but Anita could already see a glint in the gelding’s eye. The warmth and the food were helping.
“You need to find out who owns him,” said Jill.
“You should advertise in the local horse magazine’s Lost & Found. And put up posters at the tack and feed stores.”
“Mom and Dad said to take it one step at a time. See how he does first.”
“Maybe he was abandoned…”
“Or got lost, wandered off…”
“Good job he wandered here,” said Meridy. “I bet he wouldn’t have lasted much longer in the bush. Exhaustion would have got to him or a wolf or something.”
It was a thought that had already crossed Anita’s mind. “If he was abandoned,” she said thinking out loud, “then no one owns him.”
“Looking for a second pony?” Jill grinned.
Anita smiled then frowned. “If he was abandoned, then the past owner shouldn’t have him back. Dad can’t afford to feed two ponies but he said he can stay here until…”
That was the problem: until. The girls were quiet, all wondering the same thoughts.
“He needs a name,” Sandie said, being practical.
“I wonder what it was.”
“He’s not going to tell us. He needs a backup name – a Plan B.”
“There you go,” grinned Jill. “Call him PB!”
“That’s awful!” Anita howled.
“Penny and PB,” laughed Meridy. “What’s wrong with that?”
Later that evening, Anita watered the two ponies. She gave Penny a special hug, grateful that her parents were able to feed her properly. She went into PB’s stall, grinning at how the silly name had stuck despite her howls of protest that he needed a real name. She hugged him gently and he turned his head toward her, sniffing her curiously.
Unanswered questions poured through her mind as she topped up the pony’s hay and water and picked manure before turning off the lights for the night. Where did he come from? Who owned him? What happened? What if they hadn’t rescued him? Thank goodness Penny had befriended him.
The questions continued to nag at her that night. She couldn’t get the thought out of her mind that somewhere out there was a girl just like her, pining for her pony. Imaging how she felt almost made her cry. Unable to sleep, she got up and went to the kitchen for a drink.
“You okay?” Mom looked worried.
Anita shrugged, not really looking up.
“PB’ll be fine,” said Mom
“What if we can’t find out who owns him? What if it’s someone who shouldn’t have him?”
“One step at a time.” Mom hugged her. “The first one is up to bed.”
Mom sighed, watching Anita climb the stairs. She shared her daughter’s worries.
Overnight the skies cleared and by morning the sun rose in a bright blue sky. Even the wind had dropped and the weather felt actually civilized. It was perfect for a short ride.
“Blue Meadows and back,” ordered Dad. “No trails.’
“I know,” Anita nodded, well aware the trails would be deep with snow drifts. “Zoe is letting lesson riders use the arena for 45 minutes at a time. Sandie booked us for 1:30 PM.”
“Tell Zoe about PB,” urged Mom.
“I’ve printed a poster to put on the bulletin board.”
“Good girl.”
Anita made sure PB had plenty of hay and water before tacking up Penny and getting ready to ride. She was almost ready when she heard the clatter of Daisy, Sugar, and Fanny coming up the driveway.
It was great to get out in the sun and ride their ponies. The roads had been ploughed but the girls took great care riding the quietest of streets to keep away from traffic.
Lots of other riders were taking advantage of a light workout at Blue Meadows and Anita and her friends wasted no time telling them about PB. Everyone asked Anita about him and she told the story over and over. But as much as they were curious, no one seemed to know anything about him. Zoe posted Anita’s notice on the board, fascinated by the pony’s mystery. She promised to do some checking of her own.
Riding home they all chatted excitedly about the coming spring conditioning for schooling shows and events. It was the time Anita loved best as there was always so much anticipation for the new riding season and new goals.
“There’s a new three-day-event being launched this spring near Cottonwood Heritage Ranch,” said Meridy. “It was on the bulletin board. We should do it, Anita.”
“Speaking of Cottonwood, are they doing a spring clinic this year?” Jill asked.
“Hope so,” grinned Anita. “That is such a cool place. I’ll check it out.”
After supper, Anita went online and did a search, where she found the information on the new three-day-event Meridy had talked about. Then she checked out the Cottonwood Ranch website for any information on spring clinics. The girls were in luck. They were offering clinics for dressage, jumping, and trail safety. Anita was printing up the registration forms for them when she noticed a link update on their ranching stock. Clicking on it, she gasped in shock when a picture of PB, looking sleek and healthy, jumped onto the screen. The link was an appeal to anyone who might have seen the pony.
“Mom!”
Reading over her shoulder, the family was stunned to learn that PB belonged to a girl who had gone on a trail ride at Cottonwood Ranch in the fall. PB had spooked, then bolted after his young rider had fallen off.
“I’ll phone Sally and get the name of the girl’s family,” said Mom.
Anita stared at Dad. “Cottonwood’s miles away. He’s been wandering for months!”
“Sally’s calling back,” said Mom as she rejoined them. “Was she ever glad to hear about PB! The rider had a concussion. They found pieces of tack and a broken girth where the saddle had come off, but the pony vanished. The ranch hands still look for him.”
It was an hour before Sally called back. Anita grabbed the phone.
“Anita! Your Mom told me about the pony. I’m so relieved.”
“He’s awfully thin but the vet said he’ll be fine. He’s with Penny. Here’s Mom.”
Anita handed her the phone as she wondered where this call was going. Suddenly she wished she hadn’t found PB on the internet. Deep inside, she’d hoped they could keep him. She slipped away to the barn, leaving her Mom in conversation with Sally.
Penny nickered at the sound of Anita slipping through the door. PB looked up, a tiny sparkle in his eyes as they rested curiously on her. It seemed funny how much Penny had taken to him. But then, so had she.
Too quickly, Mom joined her. “Well, we know a bit more. The rider was Caroline Michaels. Her family lives in the Creekside area on the south side and she was on a weekend trail riding trip with her riding club. Her pony is Joey, a Morgan cross. He spooked and bolted, and Caroline came off. It was pretty bad. She was in hospital for a while with a broken vertebrae and shoulder. She was devastated at losing Joey.”
“I bet,” said Anita.
“Then…” Mom hesitated.
Anita looked at her sharply. “Then?”
“Sally has a feeling something happened in the family. The last time she talked to them was a month ago. They had to go to Toronto on a family emergency.”
“And they’re not back?” Anita gasped.
Mom shrugged. “Whatever happened must have turned the family upside down. Sally left our phone number on their voice mail, in case they connect. But I can’t imagine…”
“…how Caroline must feel wondering about her pony.” Anita finished her Mom’s sentence. “Why do these things happen?”
“Life happens.” Mom sat wearily. “Caroline had an emergency. Then they had some kind of family crisis. They knew the ranch hands would keep looking for PB — or Joey. They likely figured they’d eventually get straightened around.” Mom sighed, then smiled. “When they do make contact, we’ll have some happy news for them.”
Anita slowly brushed PB, put his rugs back on, and then topped up hay and water for him and Penny. She looked at Mom. “What now?”
“We wait.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll see.”
It was a week before the call came. Somehow Anita knew immediately who it was. Mom picked up the phone. From what Anita could gather, they were still in Toronto, Caroline was much better, but the grandparents had been in an accident and were recovering in hospital. There was a pause and Mom was talking to Caroline.
“Here, I’ll put Anita on,” Mom said. “She’ll tell you all about PB — I mean Joey.”
Anita took the phone as her Mom gave her a wink.
“Hi Caroline.”
“Hi Anita!” The voice was young, excited, and full of warmth. “Thank you so, so, so much for all you’ve done for Joey. I can’t believe you found him. I was so scared.”
“He’s going to be just fine. Really.”
“Your Mom said he was thin and he hurt his leg.”
“Yes. But he’s eating really well. And our vet looked at the wound on his leg. It was a cut but it healed with some scar tissue. He’ll be sound. Penny, my pony, loves him. She found him.”
“That’s too cool. What’s she like?”
For what seemed ages, the girls told each other about their ponies: their funny ways, their habits, their likes and dislikes, their abilities, the competitions they rode in, and what they loved to do best. Mom and Dad rolled their eyes over their daughter’s head. This was going to go on all night. Dad gave Anita the family signal to wind it down.
“When are you coming back Caroline?”
“In a week, Mom said.”
“Well don’t worry about Joey. He’s great here. And he’s got Penny for company.”
“I’ll phone you in a couple of days to see how he’s doing. Will you hug him for me?”
“You bet! Every day!”
True to her word, Anita gave Joey a special hug that night. They would care for him. Caroline’s family would come home and they would be reunited. As much as Anita had secretly hoped they could keep Joey, she knew this was the best kind of happy ending.
Photo: Robin Duncan Photography