Tipper and I pretty much grew up together. He saw me become a teen and then a woman in my mid twenties. I watched him start as a young goofy green three year old and grow into a bold show jumper that let nothing stand in his way. He made it through injuries that would have ended the careers of other jumpers and always kept a positive attitude. He was such a goof and a joy to be around. In the end he was a horse with literally one good leg to stand on.
He started as a racehorse in Oklahoma then Texas but was apparently incredibly slow. He was bought and sold, bought and sold, bought and sold, and finally ended up in South Carolina with a dealer where I bought him and turned him into an Equitation horse and then a jumper. He then went to California while I went to school in New Hampshire and then to college. He became my uncles horse and was successful at eventing. A true all around horse. Jumping was his passion. The higher the better and the more the merrier. He would find his own distance and never refuse;
you just had to hold on.
The only problem was his body. It just couldn’t keep up with him. He had to have a major hoof surgery, a ligament surgery, and various other non-surgical procedures but eventually he broke beyond fixing. His suspensury ligaments all but completely gave out, he had a hole in another ligament, his hind end became weak and
he was in pain.
It was the hardest decision I ever had to be a part of but it was the right one. It was his time. His good days were behind him. To watch him fall to the ground dead will always be with me but so will the good times that we shared as we both grew up. If I could have paid every dollar I ever earned for the rest of my life just to keep him happy and alive I would have but, alas, that technology does not exist yet. At least the knowledge that he is in heaven running free and painless is comforting and I know that I will see him, and all the pets I have lost over the years, once more when I cross that bridge.
I know he would not want me to cry and mourn but I can not help it. It is my human nature. I cry still even though it has been over a year. He was like a brother to me. No other horse will ever be as special or hold such
a place in my heart as Tipper.
I love you and miss you dearly Tipper A.K.A Tip Your Hat.