Auction Trip 5/24/19

My first auction trip did not nearly prepare me for the second trip.  We arrived in Sugarcreek, Ohio a little before 11:00 and already we were seeing such horrors.  A driver was dropping off a yearling to the auction who could barely walk, let alone stand in a trailer for hours.

"This one is coming home with us."

The first horse we looked at was an older tricolor paint gelding.  He instantly caught our eye.  He was kind and patient and took the bit like a champ.  He snuggled up with us and without even sitting on his back, Ashley said, "This one is coming home with us."  There were to be no if, ands or buts about it.  He was on the top of our list and there was no doubt about it that he would be ours.


We moved on with this guy in our hearts and came across the yearling.  The image of him standing in that auction stall will be forever with me.  His spine was curved upward and his back left leg was so swollen he could barely stand.  His opposite hip was sunken in.  There were half-healed burn marks on his face and neck.  Hair was matted onto his stomach.  The only explanation we had for his condition was that he was in a barn fire.  Instead of humanely putting him down when the initial injuries occurred, here he was, in a stall being left to die a horrible death.  Why didn't they just put him out of his misery?  But through all of his pain, all he wanted to do was be with us.  He wanted us to love him and clearly starved for attention.  We all knew that if this guy came home with us, it might just be a mercy buy and there might not be anything we could do for him.  So we moved on.

Throughout the morning, we tried out several horses.  There were many riding horses to try and choose from.  We looked at the minis because we need a new one for the petting zoo and an older pony mare who was so wild, we couldn't even come near her face.  Luckily, there weren't too many horses that were in devastating shape.  Just that little black yearling who kept sticking in our minds.

The morning never really hits me as a slaughter auction.  These horses are all for grabs.  Their fates aren't sealed yet.  The actual sale is what really makes me upset.  Every time a horse we wants go through the ring, my heart feels as though it is going to pound through my chest.  They were using hard sticks this time to prod them through when a simple hand wave might have worked.  One of our choices went for $1000 to a private buyers so we weren't as upset.  All of our choices went through right in a row and the one we missed out on but we were able to buy him from the meat dealer.  We even bought that tricolored paint.

The sweet yearling

We watched a six year old girl without a helmet ride two broke mini horses in the auction ring.  One went to Baker, the meat dealer.  We can only hope that he plans to sell the mini as a riding mini which would be more profitable for him than sending her for meat.  That mother should be ashamed that she is using her daughter to promote such a horrible agenda.  What if that little girl learns of what goes on that auction? She might have to live with that for the rest of her life.

The yearling passed through and for $40, we saved his life.  We don't know what his future will hold but we couldn't leave him there to die such a horrible death.

Sometimes at auction, we have our surprise buy.  When I went the first time, it was big Jake, the Belgian.  At this auction, we bought a beautiful little chestnut mini horse mare.  She is only two years old and joined our family to go to petting zoos and to be loved on by the kids on our farm.

The one thing that gets me every time at these auctions and from reading all sorts of articles is that the meat dealers don't care.  To them, that auction is a pay day.  They have no sympathy for such beautiful living creatures.

So at the end of the day, we came home with six vibrant lives.  Jagger is a large 8-year-old gelding has no clue what he is doing.  Axl, the old gelding that was definitely taking a place on our trailer, has such spunk to him and was so excited to be getting back to work.  Slash, named for the sword marking on his neck, is 5 years old and is willing to learn.  Carly, covered in snots at auction, is an unfailable beginner ride.  Page, our sweet mini, will be gracing family photo albums for years to come.  And Bruce, our yearling gelding, who captured our hearts and will have a happy and comfortable ending, no matter what that ending may be.  This is why I go to auction.  This is why we save these horses.