Our Teachers and Our Friends
Rocky
Tarpan 26 yrs
Rocky is a descendant from a lineage of Tarpan, wild European horses that are sometimes imported to this country to be in zoos. Due to some strange events, he ended up in the private sector, being sold as a Fjord.
Rocky is the Zen Master who gave Sharon the key to unlocking the door of Horse Speak.
Without Rocky, none of this would have been possible.
Dakota
Appaloosa/Thoroughbred 21 years old
Dakota is a little “firecracker.” When I selected her from the farm she came from, there were about 35 other horses there at the time. When a fellow horse-owner asked “Which horse did you buy?” her face turned from excitement to worry as soon as she found out it was Dakota. However, she was eager for me to take her home so no one there would have to deal with her antics anymore!
Even at 17, and blind in one eye, Dakota is my little engine that could. Don’t let the spots fool you, she believes she is a Lipizzaner.
Mama
Morgan 13 yrs
We like to joke that Mama Horse’s lowest speed is trot. She is notoriously hard to catch so students always feel a sense of accomplishment when they can catch her in a grassy field.
Mama was adopted from a rescue and, we have worked with her a lot to overcome her PTSD reactions and phobias. Mama used to be afraid of people, but she has made considerable gains in the past year, and now she is the example horse in workshops, classes, on trail rides and taking jumps. She manages to look beautiful no matter what and has the warmest heart and sweetest temperament.
Luna
Morgan 11 yrs
Luna is the baby of the herd. She has a special bond with Rocky. Luna is silly but also likes doing exercises perfectly.
Luna is very compassionate with small children and people with special needs. I call her the Joker of the herd, because she is always trying to make people laugh!
Jag
Quarter Horse/Thoroughbred 12 yrs
Jag is one of the most loving animals we have ever met! Her favorite thing to do is have fun! She loves racing Dakota with riders up the hill behind our house. Jag didn’t have an easy start to life. She was a PMU (pregnant mare urine) foal, and she was considered a byproduct in the production of Premarin. Laura adopted her shortly after and they have been best friends ever since.
Jag gets along very well with other animals and even lets one of our cats ride on her back! She loves people and likes to stand around a fire with us on summer nights while we roast marshmallows.
Zeke
Andalusian
Zeke passed away in May 2019 at the age of 33. We miss him every day.
Zeke ‘s long career includes performing as a circus horse, working as a school riding horse, and then later working as a therapy horse, Zeke did it all.
Zeke came to us to retire and his main job was to be beautiful. He loved people and was always one of the first horses in our herd to introduce himself. One of his favorite activities was to escape into the woods and blaze his own trails.
Parvati
“Vati” is no longer with us, but we will always be grateful for her contributions to the development of Horse Speak. The photo on the cover of Horse Speak is from Sharon and Pavarti’s first meeting.