Stormy, The Wonder Pony

Stormy is an older 13.3 hand leopard appaloosa pony. I have had her for four years now. Stormy has always been a sweet pony, but as we competed more, she was refusing to jump and sometimes would run away with me. Then, our lives changed when my mom met Suzan Franz at a Pony Club clinic two years ago. Dr. Linda Harmon-Dodge did an evaluation of Stormy and found that she had some back trouble. She explained to us that her back was hurting when she was jumping, and recommended several things we needed to do IF we really wanted to have a happy and willing pony. Well, we did for sure because Stormy is my best friend.

Dr. Linda Harmon-Dodge gave Stormy chiropractic adjustments. Stormy was so out of alignment, she had muscle spasms in her croup! Then Suzie did ultrasound on her muscles to allow them to relax and heal quickly. Suzie also did laser therapy and ultrasound on her spine where she had arthritis to remove the calcium build-up. We just had a couple of adjustments and a couple of treatments, found a saddle that fit her properly and then we had a NEW PONY! That's all there was to it. It didn't cost that much but it made a huge difference in Stormy's attitude and ability and in her value as a H/J pony. There is no stopping us now. I can feel such a difference in her when I ride her, and I don't have to fight her or convince her to jump anymore. I wish we had known Suzie sooner. Stormy now jumps 3'9 with ease, we exhibited gymkhana at Equitana last year, and we play gymkhana fast and furious and travel all over the country doing so, as well as compete Novice level in Eventing. Stormy won Pony Jumper Grand Champion in January at the St. Louis MASCUP and she will be exhibiting gymkhana at Horse-capades at the Illinois Horse Fair Saturday evening.

If you are serious about your horse or serious about your competitions, there's nothing better you can want than to have a happy, healthy, sound horse. Drugs and surgery are not the answer to a better horse and should be the last resort. Are you like us? We did not have a clue there was anything wrong with Stormy. We thought her bracing and run-outs were a behavior problem. Well, they were because she was not feeling her best, and misbehavior under saddle we now know is a very good sign that a horse has something wrong and hurts. Minor problems can become major problems, so if you think there's a minor problem, get it checked out now before your horse suffers anymore and before it costs you major bucks to fix it later. You will be glad you did, and then you will have a horse story like mine to tell.

Beth and Bryttany Buenger, C-2
Sangamon Valley Pony Club
Dorsey, Illinois
USCTA, AHSA, USEGA, USPC member/competitor