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Tobi
Thoroughbred mare 10 yr old aprox 15 hands very sweet easy to handle
and gentle under saddle she has a bone chip which limits her to walk
trot and no jumping. Awarded through
McLean, Hearn, Lloyd Fund
to a child in need
Ashley & Ernie
Thank
you:
I want to thank you, everyone at Another Chance 4 Horses, our
wonderful “horse-finder” Nikki, and the very kind and generous
people responsible for the Kate McLean Fund for enabling my daughter
Ashley to get Ernie, the horse of her dreams. Please let me tell
you a little about my daughter, and why getting a horse like Ernie
has been so important for Ashley. You see, Ashley is a special
needs child in that she is high-functioning autistic, and getting
horse fills a very special therapeutic need for her.
Dear Nancy,
I'm so glad Christy sent me your email! I've
been wanting to thank you and meet you since we got Ernie. I
don't know if I can adequately express in words our sincere
thanks to you for donating Ernie! Ernie is Ashley's dream
horse! I don't know if Christy told you about Ashley, but she
is my only child, and she's now 6 and half years old. Ashley
has Asperger's Syndrome (aka "high functioning autism"), and
mainly because of that we had her take horseback riding lessons
since she was 4 (excellent therapy). She is still very much a
beginner, but loves horses and absolutely loves Ernie!!!
It is really amazing to see Ernie and Ashley
together. Ernie seems to know that Ashley has special needs,
and he really, really takes very good care of her! Ashley has
absolutely blossomed since getting Ernie!
I don't know how much you may know about symptoms
of people on the autistic spectrum, but typically there are lots
of major tantrums and aggression issues, and we've had serious
problems along those lines with Ashley. No medication or
behavior therapy seemed to help, and we've tried everything. We
did notice that Ashley was much calmer and non-aggressive around
horses which is why we decided to get one for her. I don't
understand it and I'm not sure anyone does, but somehow it is
common knowledge to those therapists that work with people on
the autistic spectrum that there is something about riding a
horse that signals the autistic rider's brain to become less
aggressive. Well, this worked in a major way with Ashley -
since getting Ernie she has become progressively less aggressive
to the point where now she hasn't had an aggressive episode in
weeks (it used to be daily)!!! When I say aggressive, I really
mean it, she has beat up me and my husband pretty badly for
years now, so we are so very, very glad that seems to have
stopped! I was really worried that if that behavior continued
as she gets older that she may not be able to live with us, and
that thought is something I don't think I could ever really
bring myself to do no matter how bad it got.
We haven't been riding since early January now
because of the weather, but we see Ernie all the time since he's
boarded right next to the trailer park where we live. That
sweet little guy gets lots and lots of apples and carrots on an
almost daily basis! He seems very happy, and he always neighs
out a hello and comes right over to us and nickers and lets us
pet him (and of course feed him treats!!!). We all love him so
very much! I've attached a picture of Ashley riding Ernie in
the round pen, and that's me behind her on Adam (a horse I got
because I need to accompany Ashley on her rides). Adam is a 20
something years old Percheron, and he and Ernie apparently are
best buddies!!! It is so nice, Adam is the boss of the pasture
(there are 3 other horses in the pasture besides Adam and
Ernie), and he hangs out with and takes care of Ernie!!! Those
two are always together, it is so sweet!
Another problem besides aggression that is
quintessentially autistic is the lack of social skills. There
is a difference in this aspect of friendship for Aspergers kids
(high functioning autistic) compared to the lower functioning
autistic kids. Unlike lower functioning autistic kids who don't
"seem" to care if they have any friends at all, Aspergers kids
want friends (albeit not maybe more than a few) but they
really aren't very good at figuring out how to make or keep
friends. People with Aspergers have real problems with
loneliness. I mention this because Ernie has helped Ashley in
another way, and that is in making a new friend. I know another
mom who has a 10 year old daughter (Anna) who also has Aspergers
Syndrome and is also horse crazy. Her mom can't afford to pay
board for a horse for Anna, so we got Anna and Ashley together
and they became great friends! Ashley is also learning to share
by letting Anna ride and help groom Ernie too. So your very
generous donation had helped two special needs children!
I'd like to talk now about how I felt when I read
about the Kate McLean Fund. It ripped my heart out to realize
that Kate was just 6 years old and had passed so recently. You
dear people, I hope you are somehow getting through this
incredibly difficult time. I want to express my very deepest
sympathy for the loss of your dear child. I am so very sorry
this happened. I hope you are alright but this must still be a
very difficult time for you. My heart truly goes out to you,
and you are in our prayers. I really am so sorry, you must be
devastated. I hope you can find some comfort spiritually, that
often may help a little. I'm sorry, I really don't know your
pain since I haven't experienced anything like it. Please
believe me, it makes me cry to realize that your daughter was
the same age as Ashley. Someday when Ashley is a little older
and better able to handle hearing about Kate I will tell her how
Ernie came to be donated to her. I think it will mean quite a
bit to Ashley. I don't dare tell her now because she is
extremely sensitive and would probably get totally freaked out
by it, she'd be so sad. I hope you understand. Without knowing
Kate, I'd still guess that she might be happy to know that Ernie
went to another 6 year old like herself who will love him
forever. God bless you and your family, dear Nancy.
We would love to meet you and have you come to
visit Ernie any time! Please feel free to contact me! I hope
you know you can visit Ernie any time you'd like, if it isn't
too painful for you. I would really love to hear from you. I
would love to know more about Kate if you ever want to share it,
but if not of course that's perfectly understandable.
Again, thank you so very much for such a generous
donation! As you know, Ernie is absolutely wonderful, and
we'll love and tenderly care for him forever. God bless you.
Elaine Dryden
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