1967-2007
Bentley was a rescued horse.
A friend of mine had gone camping by horseback in the mountains with her sister. Her sister worked with the rangers in the local mountains of Kern County. They maintained the trails and camp sites in the area while riding horses and pack animals through the rugged terrain.
Bentley was a well rounded pack animal. He was used for riding and training the new batch of horses. He was their go to horse when a crisis happened or a horse escaped. My my friend went on this trip Bentley was her transportation when another horse bucked her off.
She said that she felt safe on his back especially during the storm. She described how Bentley would dart in and out of the trail only for her to discover that he was dodging falling tree limbs. She said that he stopped in his tracks and would not let the other horses pass him. As they tried to encourage him to go forward … a tree fell directly in their path. Had Bentley gone forward, well I don’t think about that.
Another wonderful Bentley story describes how all of the horses took off because they were frightened from the storm. The only horse that stayed at the camp was Bentley. The ranger set Bentley free. Within two hours Bentley returned with all of the horses following behind him. For this very reason they called Bentley their “go-to horse” because he has fetched other horses on many adventures.
In 2000 the rangers had decided that it was Bentley’s time to retire. They sent Bentley and few other pack horses, including a large black and white paint, to an auction. When I got word of this I offered to buy Bentley. I bought him for $75.00 because the vet had informed us that Bentley would only survive 3 days, if we were lucky. We was weak with his bones protruding through his hide. His temples were concave and his head hung low. He was 30 years old at the time of purchase. My friend’s sister bought Walter, the black and white paint who was blind in both eyes and was covered in cysts.
My friend decided that she would board Bentley for me and take care of his feed in exchange for me tutoring her son with special needs. It was a sweet deal and she was kind to Bentley. This horse was allowed to do what he wanted when he wanted to do it. Even though the gate to the main yard was always open, he never once ventured out of the yard. He had his own corral that he didm’t care for. He enjoyed roaming around the yard and eating as much alfalfa as he pleased. He finally gained his weight back and survived well over the 3 days of expectancy. In fact, he lived to be 40 years old.
People ask me what I fed him or did that caused him to grow so old. All I gave that horse was love. He was loved by everyone. He taught all of us (the young people in my family) how to ride and care for a horse in a proper way. He played with us and the dogs. He actually enjoyed hide-in-seek around the cars and the bushes. He enjoyed campouts and baths, as long as the children were the ones giving him a bath.
He had some quirks though. He did not like apples but loved the apple treats made for horses.
He did not like sugar cubes but loved sweet feed.
He loved carrots and was very polite. Near his farewell I would chew up carrots, spit them into my hand, and offer them to Bentley. We always bonded in silence and groomed one another in quiet moments.
I tell people that Bentley saved me because I believe he did. I had a lot of health issues and not such a great family environment. Bentley rescued me when I needed a break. My migraines would fade once I had my hands on Bentley. I rarely rode him, just remained in his presence and shared his breath. When I would ride Bentley he would allow me to mount him from a step ladder but act frightened when other people would try to mount from the same step ladder. People would watch in amazement as he would walk one foot in front of the other in a steady motion while I was on his back. When someone else would ride him he was sloppy and zig zagged about. He knew voice commands and would respond effortlessly. He was the perfect horse for someone with a muscle disease (I have Myasthenia gravis). Sometimes I wouldn’t say anything out loud but would say a command silently and would shift just a little, always finding myself amazed that he ‘knew’ what I wanted.
This horse rarely ever spooked or jump at things, though he did not like alpacas or care for my youngest sister much. She thought it would be fun to run up to him and say “Boo!” Till this day I am not sure why she thought that would be a fun thing to do to a horse, but he never forgot about it. He tolerated her but at times found ways to annoy her like not picking up his hooves or stepping on her and shifting all his weight to the side where she was standing.
One of our funny stories of Bentley is the times he would sneak out of his corral.
We would often find Bentley in the yard outside of his corral with his corral gate closed. We thought someone had let him out. Then we thought that he was letting himself out, but did he close the gate and latch it after he got out? Perhaps he was jumping the fence? Then one day the neighbor came out to feed his horses and told us that he had a funny story to tell us. He said that he watched Bentley climb under the fence on his knees. This story still makes me laugh. A 35 year-old horse climbing under a fence?
Walter came by and stayed the week with Bentley. Bentley allowed Walter to eat his food first, guided him to the water, and would lead him around the yard. When the children would ride the two horses Walter would place his nose on Bentley’s rear and they would follow one another. the kindness that these two horses shared was very sweet and showed the children a great example of what friendship is all about. A month after Walter’s visit Bentley wouldn’t eat and hung his head low for two days. It turned out that Walter had passed away that day. Even though they were several hundred miles apart, Bentley seemed to know that his friend was gone.
In 2007, I said good bye to Bentley. He lived to be 40 years-old.
He was a Quarter Horse gelding but the ranger believed that he had some mustang heritage in him. I am not sure what his exact breed was all I know is that this horse was unique and had the kindest heart that I have ever known.
When I am able to purchase another horse I plan to buy a senior again for the wisdom that these animals carry is like no other lessons in life. What I gained from Bentley was purely honest love knowledge that I would never have learned from the environment that I was in. I like to blame my present life on Bentley, because of him I am working with horses in the EAGALA (Equine Assisted Growth And Learning Association) model helping people deal with life through the guidance of horses just like he had done for me.
Burns Art Therapy 