Good morning!
Before you assume anything, let me clarify the title to this morning's blog post: It relates in name only to the great film "The Lion in Winter" starring Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn. There is no Machiavellian-like holiday coup being attempted at the boarding stable among my horse's friendly herd mates. Nothing that I know of, at least. There's no dark-corner nickering, no glowering or suspicious glances, unless the grain cart trundles by without stopping, and the last time I checked, the Irish thoroughbred still was best buds with the Hanoverian; the Swedish mare and the retired hunter-jumper still shared the same pasture; and my paly mare still enjoyed an over-the-fence wither scratch with the bay in the next paddock.
No, the title relates to the voluminous haircoat my horse sprouts in the cold-weather months. In short, during the winter she’s a fluffy fur ball with four puffy legs, and also being that she’s a color breed, her luminosity changes season-to-season.
Luminosity, you say? For a horse?
Sure, and that’s not the half of it.
The business of hair-coat sheen is big in the horse world. “Chrome” and “bling” are not only descriptive, but aspired to. Peruse the supplement aisle at a nearby farm supply store and you’ll see what I mean. Rice-bran oil, black-oil sunflower seeds, paprika-infused feed dressings, and old-fashioned corn oil are among the many tricks that owners use to bring out a brilliant shine.
And I’ll be the first to admit to being seduced by their collective powers and tempting advertising claims.
My mare is high-maintenance. She’s got thin-soled feet, a grouchy nature once per month, and sensitive skin. She’s sort of like me. But she’s also a palomino, which to my eye is one of our Creator’s best color combinations.
There are few things more breathtakingly spectacular to me than a dark, rich, shiny gold-coin hair coat combined with a sparkling creamy white mane. Sure, a golden buckskin comes close, but the black mane reduces the contrast. A brilliant bay is striking, too, but it’s not as rare as the elusive dark palomino. And I’ll allow an argument about a steel gray with a white mane and tail, but that color lasts only for a few short years during a horse’s youth, and then, alas, it fades.
If you ever get a chance to attend a palomino show, there are a couple around the area during the summer, or even the World Palomino Show in Tulsa, Okla., you’ll see some jaw droppers. Who cares if the horse is ridden hunt, western, snaffle-bit, or is just a photo prop, there are some palomino coats that will change your life perspective.
Watching a horse like that move, with its muscles rippling under its skin while the sun glistens off that glorious golden hair, will change your DNA, if only for a moment. It’s like aromatherapy for your eyes. Or a deep-tissue massage for your soul. The moment will be quick, it’ll pass in an instant, probably because a show-ring ready palomino isn’t allowed to work in the fade inducing sun for long, but nonetheless, you’ll savor its brilliance in your mind’s eye for a long time.
All of this brings me back to my mare, the Furball in Winter. She’s near white during the cold months; she can’t help it, she turns color. She’s a fuzzy light blonde that bears little resemblance to her stunning summer color. But, and here’s the whole point of this story: She’s shedding.
It’s February, and a slow but steady shower of dingy blonde hair floats around me as I groom her. She stretches her neck and lifts her upper lip while I curry her back and gently scrub her belly. Soon, on her neck, a dark patch will appear. And then her chest color will deepen. Then, over the next six weeks, she’ll magically transform from a pale, one-color-note wonder to a stunning contrast of rich, golden brown body combined with flowing cream-white mane and tail.
This transfiguration will take a while. I mentioned that she has sensitive skin and she’s high maintenance. Lucky for her she employs a groom, an exercise rider, kitchen help and a maid.
Ah hem, that would be me.
But all the supplements and the work are worth it in the spring when the winter hair is just a drain-clogging memory and my mare glows like rare bullion in her pasture.
If you get a chance, as winter disappears (or at least I’m told it will) and spring takes hold of the countryside, as a bulwark against stress, or the panicky feeling that your life is screaming by at a horrifying pace, take a soul-nourishing moment to seek out a palomino.
For me, it’s most soothing to stumble upon one in its natural state. That is, to observe one calmly grazing in a field, with the wind ruffling that gorgeously full mane and tail (my palomino); or, prancing under a gleaming show saddle in a parade (other palominos who possess a much stronger work ethic than my mare.)
Either is rare, but delightful.
If neither is possible, try attending the Midwest Horse Fair in April in Madison, or even search for one online. Brew a hot cup of coffee, get comfortable near your computer and savor the eye-candy that is a spring palomino.
Tally ho!