Green Pastures (Please Read, It means alot to me!)

[Bratterratt]

I started this a while ago, and finished it tonight. Please tell me what you think...

Green Pastures



It was warm and bright, the day my life began. I was healthy from the start, a tall, gangly colt, full of energy and life. Master called me Sky, because my fluffy cream colored tail reminded him of the clouds, and my golden coat of the sun. I could sense I was his favorite right from the start, and each day, as sunrise began, he came to play with me and mother. My life was good and always full of new discoveries, like when I met the mares and foals from the nearby pastures. Everything was wonderful, until I reached my second month.

The day started as it always had, with Master coming to tend to us, giving mother her grain, and stroking my smooth coat. But as noon approached, mother began to act strangely, rolling about on the ground and nipping at her stomach. When I asked her what was the matter, she only gave me a pained look and tossed her head. I became worried, and called for Master, but he did not hear me. As night began to arrive, Master finally came to see us, but by then mother could no longer stand from the pain. Master called others to come and help, as I stood, scared and trembling, above mother. One of Master’s stable hands grabbed and pulled me away from mother, but I wouldn’t let him. They tried dragging me, and I would have fought back, if it weren’t for the look on mother’s dark face. She whispered, to let them take me, and she said, that she’d see me again soon. Reluctantly, I followed the stable hand, to where he put me, in a pasture far away. I waited there, for hours, waiting for mother to return, and for Master to tell me goodnight. But neither happened. Soon it was dark, I could not see, and I was frightened. Had they forgotten about me? I stood near the gate throughout the night, and when it began to rain, I stayed there still, waiting for Master, instead of taking shelter in the trees.

When morning came, I was soaked, and shivering from the cold. Then, did they seem to remember me. It wasn’t Master who came for me though, only one of his stable hands. I was taken to the barn, where they put me in a stall, thick with straw. I felt weak and without energy, a hacking cough bursting from me ever so often. The stable hand gave me cool water, which I drank eagerly, its feeling soothing to my throat. When hunger began to ebb at my stomach, I cried for my mother and her milk. Neither was given to me. Instead, the stable hand brought a metal pan of replacement and set it in the corner of my stall. The liquid was bitter and distasteful, I only drank what little I needed. The Master appeared at the door of the stall, speaking quietly with the stable hand. They were talking about my mother. The Master said she had something, he called it Colic. I demanded for them to tell me where she was, but they only looked at me, not understanding, their faces grim. Exhausted, the bed of straw appeared inviting now and I turned my back to Master, lying down, closed my eyes, and fell into a light, unpleasant sleep.

The next few months passed, and I healed quickly, though I did not grow as rapidly anymore. I rarely saw Master, and when I did, it was only a glimpse of him. I was no longer his favorite, I was just another of his horses. He had a new favorite, a three month old chocolate bay filly called Star. All of the Master’s attention went to her, and day after day, I looked longingly over towards Star’s stall as he came to stroke her soft coat. No one pet me anymore or slipped me treats. I was taken from the stall to the pasture and back each day, by a stable hand I did not recognize, that was it. Each night as I lay in the paddock or in my stall, I thought of my mother, missing her terribly. She would know what to stay to soothe me and to comfort my feelings. But I was alone now, on my own in the big world, unsure of where my fate would lead me.

The day of my first year came before I knew it. I waited at my stall door to be led out to the pasture, patiently as always. A surprised nicker came from me as I saw Master coming to lead me instead of a stable hand. He slipped my halter over my ears and buckled it quickly. Opening the stall door he let me out, and I nuzzled his arm softly. He pushed my nose away and led me out to the stable yard. A big white trailer sat hitched to a red truck sat parked nearby. Master led me over towards the trailer and a bald man in overalls got out of the truck, walking over towards us. The man and Master exchanged a few words, then the man handed Master a fat white envelope. My rope was handed quickly over to the bald man, and he led me over to the trailer’s door. Master came up behind me and smacked my withers hard, and the large metal door was latched shut. The trailer shook as it rattled down the driveway and onto the road, headed towards my new home.

It was a long ride, and my legs grew stiff from the bumps of the trailer. When we finally stopped, I was filled with excitement, and pawed eagerly at the floor. It seemed to take forever, but the bald man opened the trailer door and sunlight flooded in. I whinnied excitedly, and I felt the rope on my head being loosened. The bald man took my halter and led me slowly out of the trailer. I stepped out and looked around my new surroundings curiously. There was a big barn, and lots of pastures surrounding the yard. I sighed happily, for I was sure that this place would be the start of a better life.

I was taken immediately to a paddock with a large chestnut mare grazing inside. I whinnied a greeting to the mare and trotted through the gate as it was opened for me. The man slipped off my halter, and I twisted in a half buck at my new freedom. After my hooves returned to the ground, I walked over to the mare, nickering softly. What happened next I did not expect at all. The mare lay her ears back and rushed towards me, snaking her long chestnut neck forward. I felt a sharp pain on my withers and jumped back, shocked. The mare snorted loudly, then returned to grazing, her rump turned towards me. Surprised, I took a few steps away and lowered my head to graze as well, watching the mare out of the corner of my eye. She never did really accept my presence, but soon enough, as weeks passed, I got used to her silent presence and occasional nips or kicks. I settled into my new life, and though it wasn’t perfect, it was enough.

The day came that my new Master decided I was to be trained. At almost two years old, I was still as tall and gangly as ever, though my mane and tail had grown full and my coat supple. I was a beautiful yearling colt, and Master got many complements on my appearance. The bald man came to get me that morning and he took me out to an arena. The man cracked a long whip at me, and I skittered forward, unexpecting. He continued to lash at me with the whip, the leather tip striking me several times. I ran the perimeter of the arena fence, trying to escape from the pain of the whip, but I was trapped. So I ran, and ran, all the while, the man cracked his whip in the air. I don’t know how long I ran for, but as time passed, my legs began to tire, and my muscles grew stiff and sore. I wouldn’t stop though, and galloped on. Suddenly my front knees buckled, and my sweating, foaming body fell onto the sand. My sides heaved heavily as I struggled to stand, and the man whipped at me once again. My body was too tired though, and my legs gave way, bringing me back down to the ground. I felt the whip’s painful slashes, over and over, as the man tried forcing me to stand, but I could not. I closed my eyes, exhaustion and weakness overcoming me, as I slowly drifted out of consciousness.

My next training sessions continued in the same manner, the whip striking over and over, leaving raw, red marks on my golden hide. Master did not like the way my training was going, he said I was stubborn, and unbreakable. He brought others to try to train me, with their different ropes and whips, their different methods to break me, though none seemed to succeed. One day, the master stopped his attempts to train me, and he let me alone, in the pasture each day. I enjoyed this new style of life well enough, it was peaceful, and my burns from the whips were able to heal, though they left scars on my once unmarred coat. So I lived this new life, until the day came that yet another trailer arrived, to take me away once more.

My newest home was different than the others. There were three of us horses, all together in a pasture. We did not have a barn, only a lean-to for shelter from the roughest weather. The fence was of barbed wire, and I learned quickly to stay away from it. There was no grass or forage in our paddock, only a thick, mucky ground that grew worse when it rained. The other horses were both geldings, a tall grey, and a stocky bay. They took me in, accepting me.

Our master we did not see often, only once a day, when he brought us several flakes of hay. He did not pet us, or give us attention, he only fed us. Sometimes, our food did not come for days at a time, it seemed as though he had forgotten about us. But we learned to wait, and eventually, he and the food would come. Then the time came when we waited for days, and days longer than ever before, and he did not come. The sharp pain of intense hunger became almost unbearable at times. It kept us from sleeping, from being able to rest. We tried eating what we could, the wooden fence posts around the wire, the lean-to shack, anything, but nothing we did helped. Our coats were dull now, thin and patchy. Our ribs, spine and joints were all sharp, and visible. Our bodies were covered in thick muck, our manes and tails were thin, ratty.

Before long, the winter winds began to come, followed by snow, and sleet. Our thin coats were not much protection from the cold, so we huddled together for what warmth we could get. One night, the wind blew exceptionally cold, and a heavy rain pelted us, even through the leaks in our shabby lean-to. By morning, the rain had turned the mucky pasture ground to a slick ice. Our long, unkempt hooves slid as we stepped out into the chilly, foggy morning. Suddenly, without a warning, the bay, whom me and the tall grey had grown to love, buckled at the knees and fell to the ground. His motionless body slid across the ice, and finally, came to a stop. We were by his side, in only an instant, but it was no use. Our poor, good friend, was gone, the cold, and starvation, finally catching up to him. That was when the sickening realization hit our stomachs. We would be close behind the bay.

Several weeks passed, with me and the grey, fighting to stay alive. One day, when I felt as though I could not go on any longer, the familiar sound of a vehicle pulling into the drive reached my ears. People came for us, from an organization that sheltered neglected and abused animals. The grey and I were taken to a facility, in a large, metal stock trailer. There, we each got a stall, one lined with wood chips, and kept warm from the cold. Each day, we were brought hay and a bucket of oats, often more than we could eat. Before long, improvement could be seen in both the grey and I. I thought to myself, each day that I stayed at the facility, perhaps, just perhaps, this would be the start of a new and better life for me.

My hopes were not to be my fate though, I soon found out, not more than a month after being taken from my last home. A day came, when the grey, I, and others from the facility, were loaded once again onto a trailer, and shipped far away. When unloaded, we were brought to a large arena, surrounded by loud and noisy bystanders. I whinnied as my rope halter was untied and I was let loose in the arena with the other horses. I was confused and frightened, the noise did not help. For merely hours we stayed there, before one by one, we horses were separated, taken by different humans, our new masters. I called panicked, after the grey, as one came to take him, but it was to no prevail. Before long, he was gone from my sight. My new master came for me not long after, and I was loaded, along with a dozen or so other horses, onto a cattle trailer.

The ride was longer than any other I had taken before, and along the way, one of the others that I traveled with fell, dead from dehydration and the over-crowded trailer. It took all of my strength, to keep me on my feet. But I knew, with a determined mind-set, that if I lay down, there would be no chance for me. We made it to our destination and the large trailer door was swung heavily open revealing our new home.

There were fences, closing in all of the land in sight. Inside, a sea of horses, all different colors, shapes, and sizes. The noise was deafening, a sound that made my body quake with fear. The smell was another thing, worse than I had ever experienced before. These horses lived up to their knees in a putrid muck, and now, I was to be one of them. A large, looming building, ware house-like sat, an unwelcoming site, amidst the many fences, plumes of smoke pouring from its top. A man yelled at us still in the trailer, and then in single file, we were each haltered and led to an already full fence. I was shoved in, amongst the many crying horses. I had never felt so small and lost before, as I did now, in this over powering place. My heart beat wildly against my chest, and my breath came heavy. What was to become of me now? Where did I go from here? I could not know.

I stayed in this place for several days, and soon noticed a routine. Each day, dozens of the horses I shared a pen with entered the building, spooked in by a team of men. I never did see any leave the building, but it didn’t take long, for me to realize, that none ever did. Every hour passed slowly, as if it was really a year, not only an hour. I stood, with the others, but unlike them, I did not whinny and carry on. There was no use in it, I knew that. So I would stand, silent, and wait until the time, where it would be my turn.

That time came ever so quickly it seemed, when the team of men came for me. I was chased, into a narrow chute, that entered the smoking building, only wide enough for two horses to stand shoulder to shoulder. I was crammed in there, with so many others. A large, metal door lowered, to cover the beginning of the chute, where we had entered, and as it hit the ground, the very last rays of sun disappeared, and we were left in a dimmed light. I remembered those last few shinning rays, for I knew, with an ever sinking feeling, that they, would be the last ever seen by me. I waited, along with the others, in the chute, it seemed as though nothing was happening. A high pitched cry, or squeal would come from the other side of the metal door to the front of us, and it echoed hauntingly around us who waited silently. Finally now, it seemed as though the line of us in the chute seemed to move forward, ever so slowly. Every step I moved closer to that door, the one that through my fate, had already been decided, my breath quickened and my heart beat harder.

A familiar snort sounded from beside me, and I turned quickly to see a familiar face. The tall grey, whom I had been through so much with, was here now, beside me. A strange sense of calm suddenly came over me, and I sighed, letting my once tense body relax. The grey rested his large head on my withers, and I, the same. We stood in this way, both calm and reassuring, for moments, our eyes closed, breathing in each other’s familiar scent in a strange place.

Before I knew it, we stood side by side at the door. The grey was let in first, and with a final look over his shoulder, he was gone, and I stood alone once again. But I was not scared. I was not frightened. I heard nothing any more, and I feared nothing, for soon, it would all be over. The metal door soon creaked loudly open, and with a final sigh, I took a step through, for I knew, with a surety, that I was going home.

The Lord is my Shepherd:
I shall not want:
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters:
He restoreth my soul.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil:
For though art with me…

Please Critique!

Bratterratt

[KCcutepup]

Wow! This is really amazing! You are a great writer! Awesome job!

[shaggydoggy]

This is great! Yet sad. Are you going to write somthing else?

[Bratterratt]

Aw, thanks guys! I enjoyed writing it! Um, I'm working on something else right now Shaggy, but it's totally a different style!

Bratterratt

[kyleedj]

WOW!!! i have read alot of stories but never somthing like this! what was your inspiration?

[Bratterratt]

Well, I've always been horrified by the thought of horse slaughter, because I own a filly myself. (well, she's actually three now, but that's beside the point). I didn't really have much inspiration, but I researched horse slaughter and learned a little bit more about it, so that I could write this piece. I guess my own horse was my inspiration, in a way.

Bratt