Theo

In honor of Valentine’s day, we asked our volunteers to vote for their SAFE horse valentine, and to tell us why. While the majority of our herd has at least one heart in their corner, there was one stand out member who has clearly won over the bulk of our volunteer force. And that member is…

Theo!

When it comes to pre-purchase exams, Theo’s journey has left no stone unturned! What began as a routine exam for a potential adopter quickly evolved into a comprehensive lameness evaluation. Dr. Lewis from Rainland, our trusted vet, stepped in with her expert eye and the assistance of a lameness locator. She pinpointed the source of Theo’s discomfort to his left front leg, where X‑rays revealed an imbalance: a shearing effect on the medial side of his hoof, causing an eight-degree lateral difference.

In simple terms, Theo was wearing down the inside of his hoof more than the outside, leading to an uneven stride and additional pressure on his joints. Fortunately, our skilled farrier, Lisa Fite, was able to rebalance his hooves with corrective shoeing. Just a week after his first shoeing, Theo’s improvement was remarkable. He could comfortably pick up his left lead at the canter, and his hind leg lead-swapping issues disappeared immediately.

Throughout this process, Theo has undergone extensive exams, including X‑rays, flexion tests, and ultrasounds on his joints and hooves, all of which are available for his future adopter. The findings are excellent: all his X‑rays and an ultrasound of an old injury came back clean. Typically, buyers spend thousands on these types of exams for a new horse, but SAFE has already covered these costs, which will be a huge benefit to Theo’s future home. Whoever adopts him will be lucky to have such detailed and positive health records in place.

Since his corrective shoeing, Theo has been in light work, moving comfortably and consistently picking up his leads. His most recent pair of shoes was set in conjunction with the vet, meaning that he was able to get the most accurate trim possible for his balance, since Lisa was able to trim alongside his current radiographs as well as vet recommendation. Following this appointment, Theo received a clean bill of health, paving the way for a fresh start!

Theo is by far the most playful guy on the property right now, the perfect storm of a growing, goofy gelding. When he’s not napping (which is frequently) he is trying to engage one of his herdmates in a bit of roughhousing or a game of chase. Otherwise, he is finding something to get his mouth around — grain pans, fly masks left too close to the fence line, fallen sticks. You name it, Theo has repurposed it. And when there’s an actual toy around? It might as well be Christmas morning.

When first given a big red ball, Theo found endless delight in merely swinging it around. But then this little hooligan realized he could weaponize said ball and use it to increase his presence tenfold. Not too much of a change when encountering Artie, who is usually fairly quick to get out of Theo’s way, but Owen, the leader of their pack, was a bit more reluctant to be moved around. Still, he who has the ball moves the feet it seems, and for a glorious few minutes, Theo was on top of the world. Or his world, anyway. He seemed to know it too, swinging his prize with abandon, running his pals around with glee. But once the ball got dropped and the teeth came out, Owen was quick to reestablish dominance.

Sweet, silly Theo! We love this boy and his antics.

The little mark we made on the proverbial wall above Theo’s wither back in January is no longer accurate. He has officially graduated from a 13-hand horse to a 14-hand horse. Sure, maybe he just went from 13.3 to 14.0, but an inch is an inch. Plus, his high little rump is indicative of more growth to come! No wonder he spends so much time laterally sprawled out on the ground – growing boys need their rest! And their calories. Despite having gained over 100lbs since intake, this guy still has more beefing to do.

He sure is a handsome fella, even as a slightly gangly tyke, and we are excited to keep watching him grow – both in his education and his physique.

Theo wore a saddle for the first time at the end of February. It seems like just a handful of days before that, Theo was having his first groundwork sessions… and that’s because he was. The forward progress of this sweet guy has been swift and easy, making him somewhat of an anomaly amongst the horses we normally work with.

But Theo is a good representation of what a horse without much trouble looks like. He received no bad start, and therefore has no reason to fear or mistrust things like the flag and the rope and the saddle. He is able to look to humans for support, and with a clean slate, is able to start fresh here at SAFE. There are spots in Theo, sure — moments of uncertainty, a minor startle here and there, nothing that you wouldn’t expect in any horse with a beating heart, especially one who is just learning the ropes. But overall, Theo has taken everything we have thrown at him in stride, and is well on his way to becoming a very nice horse.

Theo’s future looks about as bright as the color of his coat, and we are so excited to continue helping this boy through his education!

We speak a lot about time here at SAFE — specifically as it relates to giving a horse the hours, weeks, months, years they needs to gain. Gain weight, gain confidence, gain the skills and tools they need to be successful going forward in life, be it as a companion or as a riding horse. This time varies between individuals, but it is tremendously reduced when the horse does not have a lot of trouble, or handling in general, in their background.

Such is the case with Theo, a relatively new addition to our herd, but one who is already showing a great deal of progress in our horsemanship program. Theo came to us as a stallion (since turned gelding) with a great temperament and without a lot of experience. This is really one of the best case scenarios, as it means that his slate is mostly blank, and free to be filled here at SAFE.

Take Theo’s first groundwork session here for example. Aside from the forced exercise following his gelding (30 minutes each day of trotting out loose), we hadn’t done any work with Theo since his arrival. But the beauty of a horse like Theo, who doesn’t have a whole lot of experience, is that his first foray into the round pen could be more about actual learning than about exploring and working to rewrite what he already knows. In Theo’s case, there was a great deal of opportunity for introducing new stimulus and ideas without a lot of drama or fanfare.

Theo’s first session in the round pen was also his first session with the flag, and the rope, and the pad. A rope around the belly or the legs can take some horses many times to get used to, but not Theo, who had barely anything to say about it. There are a few ‘wiggles’ in his cinch area, which you can see when the coils of the rope touch him there, but there is not much that bothers him. Terry bumps Theo up to the panels and gets him used to the idea of having a human above (and on!) him, and while yes, he’s a little bit away from a first ride, that ‘little bit’ is millimeters in the scheme of things, which is a nice change of pace when we are much more accustomed to feet or miles.

We show a lot of groundwork with horses who have a lot of trouble, who take time to work up to being pet with the coils so lackadaisically, who squirt out under the wave of a flag because they misinterpret its meaning, who take time to look like how Theo does in session number one. It is not often that we get a horse like Theo, and we are grateful for the opportunity to help one learn the ropes afresh, without having a whole lot of untangling to do.

Following a successful surgery this past Wednesday, Theo made the transformation from handsome stallion into arguably even more handsome gelding. The unseasonably warm weather made it a good day for the procedure, and the cushy footing in the arena made for a pretty good hospital bed. Theo was a great patient, and even had time post-procedure for a snuggle with Dr. Wollman as he woke up from his sedation.

Since the surgery, he has been doing great. He was easygoing as a stallion, and we expect that as a gelding he will be even sweeter — if such a thing is even possible!

This golden boy deserves a star to match his pretty coat for how well he did for his first trim this week! Given his gentle personality and sweet nature, we weren’t too worried, but having your legs handled can be a bit of a challenge for even some of our more seasoned veterans. But not for Theo! He hardly even blinked at the rasp and the stand and the nippers. He sure is a darling!