Gibraltar PRO
June 14, 2005
Urgel III by Franqueada
Gibraltar's Photo Gallery
Please enjoy the story of "Gibby" in his new home with his new owners Lani George and her two daughters.
"I am writing to tell you about how wonderful Gibraltar is. He is, of course, beautiful. He is still very dark at three years of age, and stands about 16h tall. We think he will grow at least an inch or two more before he is done. He is also a beautiful mover – but again, I knew this would be the case after meeting his sire and seeing video of his dam.
"What I was unprepared for was the depth of personality and intelligence that Gibraltar has. Having met him as a yearling, I knew he was friendly and affectionate, as he had abandoned his other yearling herd mates and followed my daughters and me all around the paddock, nudging us constantly for pats. (He still does this, by the way.) But nothing new escapes his observation. Not ever.
"For instance, all winter and spring I had worn the same pair of knee-high rubber boots when walking around the paddock area. One day, when the ground was dry, I wore a pair of sneaker-like shoes. Gibraltar came trotting up to greet me, and immediately noticed those shoes. His head snapped down and he sniffed and nibbled all over them. I have never had a horse that looked at footwear before. Needless to say I was astounded.
"He has bonded very closely to my two daughters and me. When my husband was visiting from Iraq, the girls talked their daddy into letting them drive the lawn mower. I went inside to get the camera, and when I came back out they were driving around the backyard, shrieking. I decided to go pet Gibraltar while the girls were careening around. When Gibraltar saw me walk up to his paddock, he nickered at me urgently. I was a little surprised, as he only nickers once in a while. When I went in, he charged up and started tossing his head. He stuck his nose between the gate and the fence and tried to open it. He nudged me and then looked at the girls, who continued to shriek. He pawed. He trotted up and down the fence line. He came back and tried to open the gate with his teeth. He nudged me some more. He paced more and strained his head over the top of the fence. I tried to soothe him, but he would have none of it. HE knew the girls were being attacked by the man-eating lawnmower and he HAD to go rescue them!! And I was clearly NOT getting the message. Of course, I did not let him go after them, as I could not see that leading to anything but trouble.
"He is afraid of nothing. Not loud, unexpected noises or animals of any kind. The first day he arrived our older, and very obnoxious, dairy goat, Heidi, came into his paddock under a gate and 'challenged' him. Gibraltar half-reared and charged. I think Heidi saw her life flash before her eyes, and seeing that it had been filled with mischief and trouble, decided she was definitely not ready to leave this earth just yet. She bolted for the other gate. Gibraltar cut her off from the gate in a few strides and she wheeled and ran back towards the first gate. Gibraltar pirouetted neatly on his hindquarters and in a few strides had her cut off again. He proceeded to cut her back and forth between the two gates for about 30 seconds before she finally was able to dive under one of them. It would be months before she would enter his pasture again, although he does not bother her unless she wanders too close to either my daughters or me.
"Just the other evening, at dusk, I was pulling the hose out of his water trough. It was deep dusk, the 'spooky' time of day, as all horse people well know. As the hose came out of the trough, it clanged loudly. Gibraltar really jumped. I expected him to canter away a few strides, stop, think and settle down. What I did NOT expect was him to snap his head towards what had made the noise and then charge TOWARDS me, looking intently at the writhing hose as I coiled it, with his ears pricked forward. When he got close enough that he saw it was just a hose, he stopped, made eye contact with me for a moment, and satisfied I was not being attacked by a giant anaconda in disguise, began to graze again.
I could tell Gibraltar stories for pages and pages. I have owned both a Thoroughbred (now deceased) and still have my old, kind Tennessee Walker. But I never thought I would have a horse that would be my best friend and prefer my company to anything else. I never thought I could find a stallion that was possessed simultaneously of fire and endless courage, but would listen to me and show no meanness, even to my daughters who are much smaller than I. And I never thought I would find all of these things in a horse that was so beautiful in body and movement that it takes my breath away every day just to be with him."