"Shiloh"  was our first Arabian horse.  I saw him for the first time as he trotted across a pasture with his tail over his back.  I stopped the car and held my breath as I watched.  There was a sign on the fence that said "Horses for Sale."  I knew I had to have a closer look at him.  Little did I know how special he would become to us.

Shiloh is registered as Lucky Friday, a name that came to him because he was born on Friday the 13th.  He is of *Raseyn, Indraff, *Cytrus and *Witez II bloodlines.  He was 7 years old and almost "green broke" when he joined us in 1980.  Shiloh has taught us a lot over the years, much more than we ever taught him.  

Shiloh is a talker.  He has a lot to say and doesn't hesitate to express himself verbally.  He whinnies when he first sees me in the morning.  He calls to me if I am late in going out to deliver his breakfast (the Chestnut Alarm Clock).  He lets me know with a loud whinny that he is glad to see me return from the grocery store.  He responds to my questions with answers I can only guess at.  Shiloh usually has something to say about everything.

At our last farm one of our nearest neighbors, a block or so away, would often work at his workbench in his garage that faced our property.  Shiloh was fascinated by the interior of his garage and would stand watching the neighbor for hours.  The neighbor would stop by now and then to say he wanted to ask Shiloh if he knew where one of his missing tools was.  He said Shiloh was always so intent on watching him work that he knew Shiloh would remember where he set his tool down.  I expect he was right, Shiloh did remember where it was and maybe even how to use it as well!

Shiloh had a brief show career.  He was mostly shown in trail after we learned he was very handy at navigating obstacles.  He soon learned that opening gates by himself was more fun than letting me open them for him.  We lost points with the judge for this but Shiloh preferred to listen to the spectators who thought he was very clever.  He would not let me get close enough to reach the gate but would work the latch with his nose, open the gate, walk through and sometimes even give it a shove to shut it.  Shiloh with a big grin on his face thought himself quite the proper gentleman.

Horseshows also gave Shiloh an opportunity to learn about the joys of exotic cuisine. Shiloh is a bit of a gourmet.  He loves bread and considers a sandwich a great treat.  He is not above carefully stealing hamburgers from little children.  A horseshow announcer on a lunch break gave him a bite of his burrito.  Shiloh thought it was one of the best things he had ever tasted and carefully watched the announcer from that moment on hoping for another tasty handout.  When his Western Pleasure class was called for he happily entered the ring to get a better view of his new best friend.  Previously he had viewed Western Pleasure as a fun race and there was always someone ahead of him.  That bite of burrito changed all that.  Each time the announcer spoke Shiloh slowed and turned his head hoping to be called over for another bite.  He would slow suddenly from a canter to a walk when the announcer spoke which did wonders for his ribbon opportunities.  Several times he stopped in front of the announcer's stand making pleading eye contact with him.  He never looks more intelligent than when he is begging for a treat.  Although he never received a second handout, Shiloh always looked for and remembered that announcer for the rest of his short show career.  

One summer night Shiloh was turned out in the backyard to mow the grass  while we were barbecuing.  The phone rang and Bruce left the barbecue to come inside and take the call.  Several minutes later Shiloh had walked up onto the patio and was noisily bumping his nose on the dining room window glass.  We looked past him to see that the barbecue table was on fire!  

Shiloh likes working cattle.  He learned to play with cows many years ago when a friend was teaching her Quarterhorse mare to cut cattle.  Shiloh and I worked as turnback.  Shiloh thought cutting cows was great fun.  He learned he could also cut people and all it took was someone to slightly crouch in front of him and sway from side to side to get him to lock on.  Many a farm visitor experienced Shiloh playing his cutting horse game.  Recently a new boarder arrived, a pinto miniature horse mare named TC.   I was leading TC to her stall in the senior barn when Shiloh who was grazing in the barn pasture spotted her.  He charged up, his eyes shinning bright, and dropped into his cutting horse crouch about 10 feet ahead of us ready to resume his exciting old game with this new "Holstein calf!"

There is a richness that comes with a long relationship.  There is a special wisdom that comes with time, as well as a soft patina that covers the little surface imperfections.  Discovering character takes time as does developing close relationships.  We are very fortunate when time allows us these priceless opportunities.  I hope that I will be greeted by Shiloh's welcoming whinny for a long time yet.