We’ve had a very trying ten days on our farm. Starting at the beginning of May a Paso Fino owner , Ovidio, leased our upper barn. He has a trainer, Luis. Both men are from Columbia.

A week ago Thursday a Paso Fino arrived from Niagara. The horse’s name is Tobasco. I was told it was here for training. Later that day Luis arrived with a man to help him with the training. A horseman was on the property was on the property and he saw the “training”. He came to the lower barn and told the two women preparing to go up to the arena where the training was taking place to wait about ten minutes (he didn’t want them to see what he’d seen). He said, “They’re torturing that horse.”

The women went to the arena a bit later and all they could see in the darkened arena was a horse with its head to the ground, steaming.

The next day (Friday, the day Kimberly Garvis was arriving for the Working Equitation Clinic) I saw the horse in its stall. Its face was swollen, its legs marked and swollen at the ankles, there was a wide band across the bridge of its nose that was open, oozing and raw. Under his chin was also raw.

When Ovidio arrived I asked him about the horse (Ann Clifford was with me). Ovidio said the horse needed training because it was angry. I asked him who owned the horse and he didn’t answer me. I asked again. No answer. The third time he muttered something that might have been, “It’s mine.” He also said his horse, Mango (that’s its original name when bred and raised by Camilla Willings) was angry and needed training. Mango was bought by Ovidio last August and you can see that “something” happened to the bridge of his nose. He probably mentioned that to show me his horse has no ill effects from the training.

On Sunday Camilla Willings and several other Paso Fino people were here for the clinic. Three Pasos were shipped in. Camilla almost broke into tears when she saw the horse. She learned from Sonya, the person who ran the boarding place where Ovidio had his horse “trained” by Luis, that her Mango had the same treatment while at Sonya’s barn.

I’ll forward the email Camilla b.c.c. to me which was addressed to Ovidio and to the man she sold the horse, Tobasco, to.

Bill and I met with Ovidio this past Thursday and gave him his 90 days notice to leave our property…in writing. This is in agreement with the contract we signed a month ago. We also said that his trainer and the man who helped him are not welcome on our property. Ovidio left the meeting saying, “I’m confused. I’m calling my lawyer.” Today he, Luis and his lawyer were at the upper barn. The lawyer said that Ovidio can bring anyone he wants onto our property because he’s leasing the upper barn. I find this impossible to believe that we can’t remove a person who abused a horse.

Obviously we need some help!!!! Any suggestions?

Christi McQuaker saw the horse the Wednesday following the incident. The swelling was down, but the marks were even rawer.

Lindsey Hunt, an animal communicator, saw Tobasco and reported that he said, “They hurt me.”

Ann Clifford took photos on the first Friday and perhaps twice after that.

The first few days the horse stood in one spot in the stall and did not move a foot. He hurt too much. I can’t believe that he didn’t colic. The poor thing wasn’t eating or drinking.

Ciara McKnight saw him and said to Tobasco, “I’m so very sorry.” She also said that she’s never seen such horrible marks on a horse.

Sonya said that Mango is broken physically and mentally.