Following Mark's move to Aiken with his 5 horses, Tom and I were left with only 2 horses. This meant that there was an empty stall in the main barn. One rule of thumb for horse owners is that all stalls should be filled with a horse. Why waste perfectly good space, or heaven forbid, put money aside to do things like paint the house, or go on vacation! There is a horse rescue a mile from our farm Bay State Equine Rescue which periodically looks to place rescued horses into foster homes until they can find permanent placement. We had the stall space, so why not give fostering a try. Merlin arrived during the week before Thanksgiving. Now, I had met Merlin before, and knew he was tall, but when he backed off the trailer I was astonished at his size. He is a Thoroughbred-Percheron cross, measuring 17.3 hands high. I can't even imagine what he must weight! Fortunately he has very good ground manners, and even lowers his head for his halter. He doesn't even mind that I need a step ladder to brush his back, and being white in color, he needs frequent grooming! The above photo is of Merlin with my sister, Emma. Emma is 5'8" tall, and she is dwarfed by Merlin's presence. So if anyone is looking for gentle giant, contact me, or the rescue.
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