Such a Trooper- Overcoming a Lifetime of Obstacles
By: Brittany Bevis
Taylor DeVaudreuil first started taking horseback riding lessons when she was eight years old at Camelot Farms near her hometown of Versailles, Ohio. To help offset the cost of lessons, Taylor asked the owner if she could help by feeding and cleaning stalls. Over next four years, she spent all her free time with horses.
“During the summer, my mom would pack me a lunch, drop me off for the morning feed, and not see me again till dinner,” she says. “During the school year, she would drop me off after dinner and pick me up by 8:30 pm. Those hours were spent learning everything I could about the daily running of the barn, care of the horses, and riding lessons. Being around the horses was amazing, and I loved every minute of it!”
At the age of 12, Taylor received her very own horse, a 3-year-old Appaloosa named I’m Chips Affair, aka “Trooper.” Because her family couldn’t afford money for a trainer, Taylor taught him everything she’d learned from her time spent at Camelot Farms. “We continued to successfully compete throughout my high school years- perfecting our skills and competing against horses that were professionally trained. I have a lot of pride knowing that we grew up together and worked hard to accomplish all that we did.”
After high school, Taylor went on to work as an assistant trainer for Missy Thyfault Performance Horses. That’s when she was introduced to the AQHA show circuit. She also worked with Jessie Townsend Performance Horses and was able to compete at the Quarter Horse Congress for the first time. But before she accepted either of those jobs, one condition that was non-negotiable was that she could bring Trooper along. “I just couldn’t imagine leaving him behind!”
An Odd Beginning
After purchasing Trooper, Taylor wanted to learn more about his backstory, so she contacted his breeder in Alberta, Canada, and learned the amazing tale of how he came into the world. Trooper is what’s called an “accident foal.” His mother, Ima Dream Affair, and father, Dream Chips, are 3/4 brother and sister. One night, Dream Chips escaped his stall and got into a pasture with Ima Dream Affair. Because, the owners didn’t want a foal with that close of bloodlines, they gave the mare Estrumate in order to prevent pregnancy. It didn’t work. Eleven months later, Trooper was born.
The next hurdle for Trooper came when he was just ten days old. While out in a pasture, we was pinched between his mother and a fence post, causing him to be lame. “They ran tests, took x-rays, and determined that the blood flow to his growth plates had been pinched off,” Taylor says. “Trooper was put on stall rest for over a month, and his breeder was told he might never be sound. Being the little Trooper that he was, he pulled through with flying colors.”
Overcoming the odds, Trooper went to his first horse show as a weanling and was named the 2000 Alberta Appaloosa Reserve Champion Weanling Stallion. As he grew, so did his fire for competition and slightly stubborn personality. “We fought many battles during the training process, and there were lots of tears. My mom just kept telling me that we were learning things together and to have patience. Trooper was very forgiving of me when I would get frustrated with him, but we eventually came to an understanding and were able to make a lot of progress. We showed at every horse show and in every class that we could, and you could just tell he loved it as much as I did.”
The Next Obstacle
After Taylor got married and started a family of her own, she didn’t want Trooper’s talent to go to waste, so she leased him to a family who planned to have their little girl show him in 4-H competition. During this period of time, Trooper encountered his next obstacle in life.
“Unfortunately, during his lease, he sustained an injury to his right eye that left him blind,” she says. In 2015, Taylor brought him closer to home to be boarded at Lynne Puthoff Performance Horses. In 2019, Trooper’s left eye began showing signs of moon blindness. The damage was irreversible and left him completely blind.
“It was hard to watch him run into things or get hurt when he hit his face on a stall. Once, he hit it so hard that he had to get staples in his face. I had no idea if I was going to be able to ride him, let alone be in a show ring with him again. It was just devastating. After the initial shock and sadness wore off, I was determined to get us back in the show ring. I just told myself that I was his eyes, and we started our re-training from there.”
Re-Training
After Trooper lost his sight, Taylor spent time slowly desensitizing him to the everyday objects and routines that he had once been accustomed to. “I wanted to see if he would spook when he heard random noises or having things touch him. He seemed to handle everything I did with ease. Over time, you could see that he was adjusting well to his blindness. You could see that he was using his hearing, smell, and even his whiskers to let him know if he was getting to close to something.”
Another part of Trooper’s recovery was getting him accustomed to horses that he could hear and touch, but not see. “Lynne agreed that it was a good option for Trooper not to be confined to a stall. We set up a round pen outside and one of the older retired show horses, ‘Ernie,’ soon became Trooper’s best friend.”
In order to help Trooper get out excess energy, but still keep him safe, having him on a longe line was essential. However, an unforeseen challenge arised. “I learned that having him go in too many circles messes with his equilibrium, and I need to give him a break to find his footing from time to time. We have worked hard on voice commands with the word, Whoa, being the most important. He knows that if I say, Whoa, that means I’m stopping him from running into something. I knew we were ready to start showing again when I felt he had complete trust in me and was acting like he did before he lost his sight.”
Taylor was eager to get Trooper back in the show pen, and she thought the easiest, and safest, place to start would be in Showmanship. “He knew all the basics, but I had to use a lot more vocals and give him a heads up of what was coming next. As for showing, the 2021 season was filled with trials, errors, and successes. We noticed that he gets nervous in new places, so if it’s possible, we will go to a show the night before to give Trooper time to acclimate to his new surroundings. But he’s still the horse that falls asleep in the warm up pen waiting for the next class.”
Before Trooper lost his sight, Taylor’s favorite class to compete in was Trail. “We were good at it, back in the day, and won the County Fair Trail class three years in a row. He just had the finesse it took to be graceful yet crisp when working his way through the different obstacles. We haven’t done Trail since Trooper lost his sight, but it’s on my goal list.” Another discipline the team tackled in 2021 was Ranch Riding. “We had worked on ground poles a few times at home, but we still need to do some more work. Trooper nicked the first log, but cleared the remaining logs. Ranch Riding is definitely in my top three favorite classes!”
Now, at the age of 21, Trooper still has a fun loving personality and enjoys showing off his many tricks to kids. “He knows how to park out like a walking horse. He counts with his front feet. He will lay down on command. He knows how to bow. He will drop his head and play dead when I squeeze and say bang. I feel like I’m the luckiest person to have Trooper, and now my kids are able to ride, compete, and enjoy him as much as I have over the years.”
Taylor’s 7-year-old son, Russell, won his first Showmanship class with a completely blind horse, and 2-year-old Maria recently was crowned the Reserve Champion in a Leadline class aboard the gentle giant. Russell understands Trooper’s condition and has learned that he must be Trooper’s eyes in the show pen. “He has to be very careful about traffic and always be planning ahead. He even showed in an Open Walk Trot Ranch Pleasure class with 11 other riders in the pen. He navigated Trooper around the arena perfectly. Needless to say, I’m one proud Show Mom!”
“I love watching Trooper put up with the kids riding bareback, laying all over him, standing up on him, and sliding off his butt. Trooper has always been a bombproof horse, so kid safe and quiet. The fact that he’s still this way, even though he can’t see, just amazes me every day. My kids love him just as much as I do!”
Horses are incredibly resilient creatures. Most of the time, they just have to be given the opportunity to succeed. However, all too often, there are owners who won’t put in the time, resources, and patience to give them a chance. Taylor did.
“I’ve learned that Trooper is happiest when we’re with him and doing the same things we’ve always done. His blindness took an adjustment period, but he has met the challenge and is able to still get out there and compete. He still earn ribbons just as good as a horse with their sight.”
“It would’ve been a tragedy to just give up on him and leave him in a stall. Watching him make the needed adjustments and using the senses he still has to navigate his stall, pasture, or arena is amazing to watch. He’s living a wonderful life full of love and affection. He deserves every bit of it and more for all the joy and happiness he has brought to my life and my kids.”
If you have a great story to share with Equine Chronicle, email B.Bevis@EquineChronicle.com.
