Freckles was one of my favorite horses in my life. He touched me in a special way and taught me many things about life and myself. I knew Freck for about 10 yrs before he became mine. He belonged to an older man for yrs. They were quite a pair and well known at the horse show circuits. Mac & Freckles did really well at the horse shows and were magnificent in the local parades.

Freckles owner passed away and Freck was then taken care of by close friends for a time. Another friend of mine adopted him but was unable to manage him after he began to lose his sight so I adopted Freckles in March of 1997. We went thru alot of adjustment as I had never owned a horse with vision problems.

Freckles and I seemed to make an incredible connection. I was his eyes and quickly figured out a routine to make him feel comfortable and safe. Soon I was able to ride Freckles and we developed a way of communication that I never had with any other horse. Our bond grew stronger and the trust between us was like none other.

Freckles & I participated in many activites such as parades, trailrides and we even barrel raced in the Big Lake Trailriders 2000 Horse Show Season. It is a 10 month circuit and Freckles finished up in 8th place in our division for the year. They award only the top ten horses in each division.

I am very proud of him that he came in the top ten!! Freckles enjoyed the shows sooo much!! He had been shown before he went blind and when he heard that loud speaker he knew where he was and would start prancing around! He knew we would get to run! They always let us run first so he would have a flat level arena. After he lost all his sight this was his only safe place to be able to run.

I have many wonderful memories of camping trips with Freckles. Many wonderful trailrides! I guess about the end of the second year Freckles was with me, his vision was about totally gone. But this did not slow him down as by that time our trust in each other was very solid.

We camped often at a beautiful reserve with 21,000 acres of marked trails. Freckles and I rode many miles of trails. Fallen logs, ditches nor water were ever a problem for my boy. He was patient and listened to my ques to lift his feet to step over logs.....and not be afraid when we needed to cross a water ditch. He loved water! :o) To walk up a bank was no problem....we had ques for that too!

Freckles was a wonderful horse and taught me compassion, patience, trust, and not to throw in the towel! I did not listen to the negative remarks from people that saw Freckles as a worthless animal. Our trust in each other blossomed into a beautiful friendship and we shared 5 wonderful years that I will never forget! I am so thankful that I listened to Freckles and let him show me that he had so much more to give and we had so many things to share and do!

I lost Freckles to cancer November 11th of 2001. He was about 27 yrs old. I miss my loving friend very much and will always treasure our time together. Thank you for letting me share Freckles memories with you and hope that you take something with you from my story.

Join the "Owners of Blind Horses" Group

I want to share with you that there is help on the internet for owners of blind horses. The first two years I had Freckles I felt very alone in that hardly anyone was supportive or understood the relationship I had with Freckles or that he was worth my time. I was even told that he was dangerous. I almost listened to that but decided to give him a chance and am so glad I did because he showed me that he was worthy of my trust.

I found a group for owners of Blind Horses on the internet! There were about 58 members that had a wealth of information to share about managing a blind horse. I can't tell you how happy I was to find someone else to talk to that understood my bond with Freckles. They were so helpful in helping me get him more comfortable and relaxed with his surroundings.

Once you start to "see" for them it comes so naturally from then on. Keeping his water bucket in the same place....tying and grooming in the same place. Talking to him as I approach or move around him. Learning the proper fencing to use with a vision impaired horse. Giving him his own space....and perhaps a calm, kind stable mate can make all the difference. Once Freckles became accustomed to our farm and learned his pasture he settled in just fine.

Then is when we were able to think about riding. When I took him on I never intended to ride him but after I saw how confident he became that thought grew each day. My husband thought I was nuts when I first mentioned it but was supportive. We began in the arena and worked there for about a month and soon was heading for the trails with other riders of course. Very soon Freckles and I were able to go off by ourselves with no problems.

If you are interested in learning more about blind horses visit or join the Blind Horse group by clicking on the link below. Thank you for visiting Sunset Dreams and Freckles tribute page.