PARDEEVILLE – Mox Sandhill Tiny, aka Toby, was the perfect all-around horse. We first saw him in February 1996 when we met Gary Olson for a trial ride near Spooner. As we pulled into the driveway, there was Toby, tied to his trailer, ears up and as cute as could be.
Once in the arena, we discovered that Toby was a spunky little boy because he crow-hopped a little from the first to the second barrel. That didn’t scare us off, and Toby came home with us. Originally, we bought him for Yael , and though he was a bit too strong for her, he was a great fit for Darci.
That spring, Toby and Darci did very well in the Badger Horse Show Association and National Barrel Horse Association. Toby had been running high school rodeo, and at 14.3 hands high, gave the “big boys” a run for their money. He always gave his best and was anxious to run.
Darci and Toby qualified to participate in the NBHA State Finals many times, and they also competed several years in the NBHA Great Lakes National Championships in Gifford, Ill., and in Wilmington, Ohio, as well as the Barrel Bash in Waterloo, Iowa.
Darci’s grandma often called Toby the “cleanup” horse, because if Darci’s fastest horse tipped, she could depend on Toby to come through with a clean run. Toby’s consistency helped Darci win many high-point year-end awards, trophies, ribbons and cash.
Toby also did well with other riders. Darci’s friend Rachel and I both rode him in Gifford, and he won money for another friend, Bridget, at the Barrel Blitz just three months before he left us. He enjoyed giving children rides and was trusted with inexperienced friends and relatives when they visited.
Toby unexpectedly had colic and was put to rest on Dec. 31, 2008. He was 28 years old, and happy and healthy until that day. Toby was a part of our family for 13 wonderful years.
We have many fond memories of Toby. He loved to eat and would whinny and squeal for his grain at feeding time, even though he only got a handful because he was such an easy keeper. His love of eating carried through to trail rides when he would sneak bites of grass. He was very spunky in the spring, and it took a lot of riding before he wouldn’t buck when we loped. Toby hated paste dewormer and getting shots.
Rest well, beloved Toby and eat all you want of those lush heavenly pastures. We miss you and know we were blessed to have you in our lives.
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