Morning Star
Morning Star is a loveable old grandma of a horse. She is a 32 year old Morgan Mare with the grace, beauty and style of any horse we have seen. The summer of 2011, the difficult decision was made to retire Morning from the program due to her age. She has been a favorite “ride” at the barn by so many of our kids, but she will always be around the Ranch as the stalwart grandmother that she is until she meets her final resting place.
Morning, as we call her, has no upper teeth as she came to us from a neglectful situation leading her to rub her teeth down to the nubs. We got ear to Morning’s plight in the Fall of 2006. After visiting the farm, we determined that Morning was in the worst shape of all the horses - she was emaciated because other foals in the field were still drinking milk off of her and draining what little energy she had left. Instead of waiting for animal control to intervene and take the horses, we offered the owner $150 for Morning Star and by God’s grace, they accepted. Within 24 hours, we pulled up with a trailer in the driveway of the neglected farm. Upon arriving, Morning glanced our way, and before we could encourage her to come to us, she practically jumped in the trailer, and off we went to the Rescue Barn.
Morning Star officially received her name once we got her to the barn and recognized her special gifts. We chose her name after the scripture verse Rev 22:15: "I, Jesus have sent an angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star." Morning quickly became a favorite to many of our children who enjoy adventure. What we discovered is that Morning is fleeting on her feet – and the kids like her swiftness. Sometimes Morning provides quite a challenge for the Leader - Morning may be OLD but she has some SPUNK. Over the years, Morning’s admirers have included a 14-year old girl who loved her so dearly that she didn’t want to leave Morning’s stall. Then there is a 10-year old boy who loved to test Morning’s speed and barrel racing skills, and a 10-year old girl who is enamored with Morning’s gentle spirit.