Trudy & Erin

Today I have received my candle holders and oh my goodness they are so perfect. I cannot wait to give my daughter hers.

I have been following your page for years and having two quite old horses I knew it was you guys I wanted to make my girls shoes into something I could keep forever. I knew that you actually cared about the shoes you work with, this was really important for me. It did take a few weeks before I could even let them go but there was no one else I would trust.

Last November I found myself in that deep despair of having to have my beautiful girl Erin put to sleep suddenly. She was 28, a big black strong horse who was never sick or sorry in the 16yrs I had owned her had lost feeling & functions in her back end. She couldn’t sleep in case she lost balance standing up, she couldn’t lay down because I think she knew she wouldn’t be able to get back up, she couldn’t even wee. So I had to make the decision that many of us dread and sometimes wish it could be made for us.

Beloved Erin. She was my everything. The reason for having two jobs, my reason for getting out of bed in the mornings. At an age of 54 I had my horse of a lifetime. She had the kindest heart. She was a machine at hunting and cross country, hated dressage & anything that didn’t involve jumping something – unless she could deliberately jump over the nice white dressage boards making out an arena! She was super safe for my daughter to compete and hunt, you had to trust her though, she knew what she was doing albeit faster than we wanted! Erin just did not know how to walk – unless she was eating?! As soon as she had tack on that was her signal to jog as a minimum! For hours, for miles! No matter if you’re on Salisbury Plain hacking, on a road, jogging was her best thing!! My daughter had some difficult times at school, Erin was her best friend, she would turn to Erin rather than turning to me (because as a mum of a teenager you have no idea what they are going through!!) Erin always managed to absorb the stress and keep my daughter going. Always just a field away. It was my duty to give her a nice life, whether that be going out or providing a nice field, shelter, stable and the best farrier at home it was always the best that I could give her.

Here we are, all these years later, I have a pony mad granddaughter who is now 10, who would ride my big black 16.1hh donkey (Erin) she knew when either myself, my daughter or my granddaughter were riding her behaviour would change accordingly. Always safe, always kind because she knew us so well too.

In the last 6mths I have come to realise the true meanings of such phrases like ‘horse of a lifetime,’ ‘living on borrowed time,’ ‘you did the kindest thing,’ all throw away things you say to friends who have gone through the same experience. All these phrases actually hurt my heart and reduce me to tears now.

My Donkey, My Erin, she truly was my life and you have given me another precious momento that every time I look at it I hear of her huge ‘duck’ feet jogging down the yard!

I really cannot thank you enough

Trudy xx