First some numbers:
We started the Showdown with 20 horses and trainers
1 trainer needed to pull out a little over halfway through but another trainer stepped up and took over the horse: 20 horses, 19 trainers.
1 horse had some weirdness in the hind and when that improved her trainer unfortunately had an unrelated injury. Both withdrew from the Showdown at that time. 19 horses, 18 trainers.
1 horse had an injury early on with tying but the trainer treated it and kept going. Unfortunately about 2 weeks prior to the Showdown some potential vision loss was noted and she was withdrawn and will come back to Gentle Spirit Horses to evaluate and see how she's adjusting. 18 horses, 17 trainers.
1 horse and trainer pair had difficulty arriving on time and was unable to compete the first day and unfortunately the Board of Directors had to make the difficult decision to pull them from the competition. Heartbreaking for all involved. 17 horses, 16 trainers.
1 horse was diagnosed with an aggressive form of malignant cancer about 3 weeks prior to the competition. Her trainer has stood by her and is providing amazing care - including massage and BEMER treatments. While they did compete the first day, it was too much for Sugar physically so they did not compete Sunday - a decision we support 100%. We will keep everyone updated on Sugar's cancer journey on the
Gentle Spirit Horses Rescue page.
So that left us with 16 horses/ponies and 15 trainers who competed this weekend.
So how many were adopted at the end of the Finale day?
8!! 6 through the auction, 1 by early evening after the auction, and one other will be staying with her trainer after all of this.
And it looks like at least 2 of the Little Hooves ponies have significant interest this morning!
Of the other horses, 2 of the trainers whose horses were adopted took home 3 of the horses who were not to continue their training. Watch for more info on them and adoption. The others have returned to Gentle Spirit Horses. The goal is to find homes within 30 days so stay tuned for information about who gets homes! The trainers will receive a portion of the adoption fees if adopted in the next 30 days!
Without further delay, here are the 8 horses who found homes yesterday!
Tahni
Toluca
Terra
Rue
Hazel
Comet
Diamond Dave (Little Hooves)
Daisy
As always, a HUGE thank you to Spenser Pederson for the FABULOUS photos. Her generosity and talent is a huge reason the world can see how beautiful these horses are.