Former Horses
Clifford
This big & goofy horse belonged to one of our boarders. In the Fall of 2022 he became a part of the ELC herd. Just like Amber he missed out on a royal title, since he was already known to everyone as Clifford (the big red horse).
His bouncy trot makes him an excellent teacher to those students who are ready to learn how to post. His bumpy trot is offset by a really nice canter.
Clifford does like to take it easy. Therefore, it takes a little convincing to get him to work, but when he does you will find that this boy can move!
This is a horse with many talents: dressage; jumping; barrels; trail riding. He can do it all!
Over the Summer of 2024 Clifford developed mild lameness issues. X-rays showed bone deformation in his pastern. This is called ring bone and there is no cure. Unfortunately this meant the end of his career. He is now a boarded horse and living his best life here at ELC.
Date of birth: 2-7-2000
Weight: 1300lbs
Height: 15.2hh
Breed: Appendix (quarter x thoroughbred)
Color: Sorrel
Special markings: With stripe & small snip on his face; 3 white socks
Arrived at ELC: January 2016
Reina
“Reina” is the Spanish word for Queen and our Reina was definitely the Queen-bee in the herd. In her calm manner she ruled and all the other horses wanted to spend time with her. She was a chunky girl and it was obvious that some of her ancestors were draft horses (big work horses, that you would see pulling plows in the old days).
Due to her size and strength, she was best suited for teenage and adult students.
When Reina arrived at ELC she was still green, so she was not available for lessons right away. Over the Summer of 2021 she started to do some walk/trot lessons (at that time she still struggled with her balance at a canter in the arena). The students that have rode her absolutely love her!
On the 21st of February 2024 Reina showed mild signs of colic. Despite our best efforts her colic worsened. Huddled in horse blankets I stayed by her side all night. In the early morning hours the vet returned and we had to let her cross the rainbow bridge.
Year of birth: April 2010
Weight: 1300lbs
Height: 15.1hh
Breed: Mustang
Color: Bay
Special markings: Blaze on her face; socks on her back legs; mustang freeze brand on her neck (left side, under her mane) & freeze brand “2587” on her hindquarters.
Arrived at ELC: June 2020
Died: 2-22-2024
Sultan
Sultan was very skinny when he first arrived at the ELC. A few months and a lot of groceries later he was finally able to start his new job.
He instantly got himself a fan-base, as he is a very loving and gentle horse.
Under the saddle he tends to be a bit lazy, so it does take some convincing to get him to work for you. He does not like the bit, so he is ridden with a hackamore (which works with pressure on his nose). He is a great horse for the beginner and novice student.
By the end of 2023 we needed to reduce our herd. Due to the difference in riding style with the hackamore the choice fell on Sultan. Sultan was sold to one of our students and remained at the ELC as a boarded horse.
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 1999-2001
Weight: 1000lbs
Height: 14.3hh
Breed: Unknown, probably quarter horse
Color: Black, although he is a sun-worshipper, which bleaches him out and makes him look like a bay.
Special markings: A star on his face and a few white spots on either side of his withers (most likely caused by saddle sores)
Arrived at ELC: October 2021
Left the lesson program: December 2023
Tzarevna
The name Tzarevna (Za-ref-nah) is Russian and is means princess.
Tzarevna was an absolute sweetheart and loved to be groomed and loved on.
She was still relatively young and did not have much experience. So even though she was fun size, she was not the easiest under the saddle. Due to her size it was difficult to find volunteers who could work with her to get her to the next level. (The volunteers with the right skill set are usually too tall or too heavy to ride a pony her size.)
She did a few lessons with students who could handle her difficulties.
During Summer camp we did some ground driving with her and it was great fun for the kids to work with her that way.
Due to her size it continued to be a problem to find suitable riders for her, which made her very limited in use. Her stubborn streak was just too much to handle for most of our smaller students.
So we ended up finding her a new home
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2014-2015
Weight: 600lbs
Height: 12hh
Breed: Unknown
Color: Dark bay
Special markings: Few white spots behind her withers from an old injury (horse bite)
Arrived at ELC: October 2021
Left ELC: November 2023
Due to issues with my former website provider all the info on the horses listed below got lost. So all the information is recreated from memory.
Baron
Baron was an absolute fan favorite. This playful pony was always full of mischief. He was the perfect size for kids and small adults, although he wasn’t suited for beginners, as he had a lot of “go”.
This pony sure loved to work!
In the spring of 2019 he developed hoof-canker. We battled it for 3 years, which included surgery at Auburn. During his last flare-up he developed DSLD. Another condition, one that wasn’t treatable and very painful. We kept him comfortable on pain meds for 1 more week. In that week he had many, many visitors, including former students & volunteers. He was simply that popular and we still miss him dearly
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2006
Weight: 900lbs
Height: 14hh
Breed: Unknown
Color: Bay
Special markings: Star and snip on his face and a white sock on his left back leg.
Arrived at ELC: October 2015
Died: 11-17-2022
Duchess
Duchess was a fun little mare. She was a bit of a speed demon and could be a little bit stubborn. She did like the occasional jump (even when she wasn’t asked). As a lesson horse she had many fans.
In February 2021 we discovered that her cheekbone was changing shape. An X-ray showed a mass in her head, pushing the cheekbone out. We ended up taking her to Auburn to have surgery. They removed the mass and her prognosis was good.
Unfortunately her recovery did not go as planned and we took her back to Auburn. A new CAT scan showed that the mass had already re-grown in only 30 days time and it had caused several other issues.
Duchess came home, so students could say their goodbyes before we let her cross the rainbow bridge.
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2011
Weight: 900lbs
Height: 13.3hh
Breed: Unknown, probably Quarter horse
Color: Gray
Special markings: None
Arrived at ELC: April 2019
Died: 7-7-2021
Marquis
Marquis was a bit skinny when a arrived, so we fattened him up a bit first. When we started to work with him, he became more and more resistant. Between his behavior and some other physical signs we suspected that he might have had a form of PSSM. This is degenerative muscle disease. We didn’t get him tested, as it would not have made a difference to the outcome, which is that arena work (a small space with a sand surface), was just not going to work out for him.
So we found him a good home where his possible condition would not be a problem.
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2009
Weight: 1100lbs
Height: 15hh
Breed: Unknown, probably Quarter horse
Color: Buckskin
Special markings: Star and a tiny snip on his face and a white pastern on his right front and white fetlocks on both back legs.
Arrived at ELC: February 2021
Left ELC: November 2021
Nobleman
Nobleman was a stout build and strong horse. He just didn’t do well in the lesson program, with different riders.
He found a home with one of our volunteers. She boarded him here for about 2 years, before moving him to their own property.
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2007-2008
Weight: 1100lbs
Height: 15hh
Breed: Unknown, probably Quarter horse
Color: Palomino
Special markings: Fire-brand on his left hindquarters and white coronet on right back leg.
Arrived at ELC: Probably 2018
Left the lesson program: December 2019
Earl
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2003-2004
Weight: 1100lbs
Height: 15.2hh
Breed: Tennessee Walking Horse
Color: Palomino
Special markings: Star and snip on his face with 2 white pasterns on his front legs and 2 sock on his back legs.
Arrived at ELC: 2018
Left ELC: December 2019
Queen
Queen was an absolute sweetheart. The kind of pony everyone could ride. She took care of all our youngest riders. However, even small adults enjoyed her.
She had a smooth gait and canter and would speed up/slow down when asked. She never argued with her riders
On February 19th 2019 disaster struck. Lighting struck a tree she was standing close to and instantly killed her.
Her passing broke many hearts…
Year of birth: Unknown
Weight: 850lbs
Height: 14hh
Breed: Unknown, possibly Pasofino mix
Color: Black tobiano pinto
Special markings: Star (in the shape of a heart) and snip on her face, with white socks on back leg and stockings on her front.
Arrived at ELC: December 2015
Died: 2-19-2019
Duke
Year of birth: Unknown, estimated 2001-2002
Weight: 1000lbs
Height: 14.2hh
Breed: Unknown
Color: Tri-color tobiano pinto
Special markings: Scar on his face and right eye, with 4 white stockings
Arrived at ELC: 2014
Left ELC: January 2018