The morning dawned to yet another overcast sky. May was usually punctuated with sunshine and flowers and small showers followed by double rainbows. The past few weeks, however, had offered up unusual amounts of rainfall followed by chilly winds and cooler nights. The grass was unaffected by the cooler temperatures and carried out its Springtime march undaunted. This was agreeable to the mares with foals on their sides and they spent long days grazing the green pastures.
Spook was a recipient mare and she had given birth to the embryo belonging to another pair of horses about a month ago. She had carried the foal for 11 months and did not know that Audry was not her genetic daughter. She loved her since before she was born and had proven to be a nurturing protective mother to the muscular red filly. Audry's legs had grown long and strong drinking the large draft cross mare's rich milk. She towered over the other foals her age but then again, her surrogate mother towered over the other mares too.
Spook's past was a mystery to most everyone at the farm. Checkered pieces of history were tossed about here and there- she had been a nurse mare; she had been born in Canada at a Human Hormone Production farm; she had a tattoo on her left hip- these rumors could be neither confirmed nor refuted and her riddle grew in stature. One thing was for certain, she did not trust humans and was not interested in any of the things they offered.
On this day, Audry had a swollen front ankle and the humans needed to take a closer look at it. Spook had lost foals to the humans before and the memory was still fresh. She only knew that the people were interested in her foal and she wanted to keep her away from them. As they walked to her paddock, she instantly sensed that they came with a purpose. She snorted the scent of their intentions loudly and lifted her large head even higher into the air. They approached her and her powerful legs propelled her down the long hill. They followed her- some on foot and some of them in the green machine which moved nearly as fast as she. She was fairly certain as she galloped away that she had secured safety for her and her foal. Yet, they persisted.
As they advanced down the hill and toward her position alongside the swollen creekbed, she galloped freshly to the top of the hill. The small filly followed her obediently, running along her flank in perfect tandem. The humans marched up the hillside and soon were advancing on the pair yet again. This scene played out over and over as the hour progressed. Up the hill. Down the hill. Up the hill. And down the hill again. In due time, the filly was breathing heavily at her mother's side but the mare was too wary to be concerned.
With each scene of the drama- up and down- the people closed the ever smaller circle around the mare. Her freedom was slowly being stolen by their tightening human net. On her next trip up the hill, the mare found herself encircled by a group of five seasoned horsemen. Like a pack of experienced wolves hunting, they advanced on her step by step communicating in quiet hushed tones. In the age old dance of predator versus prey, she stood poised for flight and they held her confused and looking for escape.
In a moment, as she was deciding between flight or the instinct to fight for her foal, a loud snap echoed across the grassy knoll. SNAP. And the trap was closed. The lead rope connected to the large mare's halter and the game was over. She had been caught and her life of servitude to man beckoned her to walk quietly beside the man as he led her toward the gate.
The mare and foal walked into the barn and soon, the group of people were snapping x-rays of the foal's ankle. Then, they rubbed an offensive smelling ointment on the leg. As the lead rope released from Spook's halter and she dove greedily into the delicious smelling pile of hay in her stall, she vaguely remembered that she had been displeased about something. Forgetting what her uneasiness from earlier had stemmed from, she dropped her large head back into the waiting alfalfa and grabbed another mouthful.
Ah,a happy ending. Take care, spooky Spook! All is well.
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