The "Mini" Experience

Bobbi's Story
by: Dona Neargarder

I first met "Bobbi"  when she was six years old. Her grandmother had called and wanted to know if she could bring her granddaughter to see my minis... and being a "proud parent" type, and always eager to show off my "babies" to everyone remotely interested... I said "Of course, come on out!" When they arrived, I was expecting to see a bright-eyed, excited little girl. I was not prepared for what I saw when the door of the car opened. There was a "small for her years", very quiet, expressionless child.   She had the biggest, brownest eyes that sadly didn't even show a hint of excitement...and, oh yes, ...crutches.

You see... Bobbi has Spina Bifada. My heart went out to this tiny slip of a girl as she struggled, very determinedly, to cross the lawn to my barn along side her grandmother.

After asking Bobbi several questions to get acquainted, and only getting blank stares in return, her grandmother quietly confided in me that Bobbi has not spoken since her beloved grandfather (with whom she was very close) had died. I was so touched by this beautiful, sad little girl, I wanted to hold her... but knew she would only resist such familiarity with a virtual stranger. So, with tears welling in my eyes, I continued to talk to Bobbi and explained to her and her grandmother all about the Miniature horse breed and introduced them to all my horses by name. For some reason, Bobbi took an instant liking to my 27" yearling silver-dapple stallion, "Kickapoo's Nickelodeon".

When I brought "Nick" out of the stall for Bobbi to see him better, she released her grip on one of her crutches and reached out with one tiny, pink polished finger and proceeded to touch his spots, one by one, as if counting them. Her eyes were as big as saucers as she ran her shaky hand over his long silvery mane... then up to the points of his ears, over his eyelashes, and down to his velvety soft nose. All the while, Nick remained motionless as if in a trance. Then all at once, Bobbi surprised us by dropping her crutches and taking Nick's lead from my hand. By leaning against the stalls for support, and literally dragging each foot, inches at a time, Bobbi proceeded to lead Nick up and down the aisleway in the barn. I quickly searched Bobbi's grandmother's face for a sign of worry... but found a look of surprised delight instead. Nick was intuitively gentle with this quiet little girl, who was acting as if she had all the strength and power in the world... but actually could barely stand.

Bobbi's grandmother and I were truly amazed at what we were watching, and finally (for fear of Bobbi tiring too much) convinced her that Nick had been walked enough, and it was time to put him back into his stall. I reached for the lead, but Bobbi would have none of that. She stared into my eyes with a look of stubborn persistence, and pulled the lead away from my reach. She continued to support herself against the walls, and not only lead Nick back into his stall, but also unsnapped the lead from his halter, shut his stall door and made sure it was latched... all by herself! By this time, I felt almost "privileged" to be witnessing a very unique and personal "bonding" between my little stallion and one very special little girl.

After that day, Bobbi and her family became regular visitors to my farm, coming to see each new foal as it arrived in the spring, and followed me and my horses to local shows and parades whenever they could to cheer us on. I anxiously anticipated each visit and the possibility of maybe hearing Bobbi speak for the first time. As she would make her way through the barn to Nick's stall, I would repeatedly ask her questions... always searching her cherub face for any indications of forthcoming speech. But, she always remained silent, preferring to "speak" with her eyes. (she had a way with communicating with her grandmother with her eyes and hands, and it amazed me how her grandmother always seemed to know what Bobbi was "saying". But once in a while, I thought I could see a hint of a smile on that little stone face... especially when she stopped by her little buddy, Nick. Or was it just my imagination?

Eventually, they decided to breed their 40" pony, Cindy, to my Miniature stallion to possibly get a mini-sized pony for Bobbi. This was no small feat, by any means, and required digging a hole to stand the mare in so my small stallion could reach her. After several attempts, we accomplished it... and to Bobbi's delight, the following spring Cindy foaled a beautiful little sorrel filly with a large star and (4) white socks. Bobbi decided on the name "Honeysuckle" for her filly (because she was the color of honey) Bobbi works with Honeysuckle daily by supporting herself on the fence with one hand as she leads with the other, and maneuvers her un-cooperative feet in between! And... she is already asking when they can get a baby from Honeysuckle!

Yes... I said "ASKING", because just recently Bobbi began talking again! Only to people who are very close to her, and most times it's just a whisper into her grandmother's ear... but it's a start! I know there is probably some technical, psychological explanation for this, and I feel that Bobbi's very loving and supportive family had a lot to do with it. But I also choose to believe that the Minis played a significant part in reaching Bobbi's emotional hiding place and bringing her out of her sadness so she could again smile and enjoy life and all the joys of just being a little girl.

Bobbi, so far in her short life, has endured countless operations to help her be mobile, and not restricted to a wheelchair... and she takes them all in stride, like a little trooper. In fact, she has now started riding lessons on her pony, Cindy; and she is hoping to someday be able to show Honeysuckle by herself. Bobbi is a very determined and courageous little girl that I feel very lucky to know, and I wish her a life filled with smiles, happiness and of course... little horses.

What are they good for? To quote a famous author...

"THE OUTSIDE OF A HORSE, IS GOOD FOR THE INSIDE OF A MAN" (and little girls!)

"In 1998, a local paper did a follow-up story on Bobbi & her love of Miniatures.   She is 10 in these photos , and they show that she has gone on to show her pony Cindy in leadline classes & driving.  AND, she is doing her fair share of winning!  Her grandmother said she was scared to death the first time she watched Bobbi go into the show ring all by herself...but was so very proud of her determination & subsequent accomplishments!"