The Adventures of Pony Boy Book Two: My First Year

By K. L. Stock

Pony Boy and his new best friend, Little One, take us through their lives as seen through the eyes of a child. Little One’s mom is injured when she is born and has to go to the hospital. Pony Boy adopts her. So, not only is he a child, himself, but he becomes Little One’s teacher. So the adventure of learning and discovering about life begins for the two of them. The two of them are lovingly overseen by his mom and the other mares of the herd.
“It is our job”, said Sunshine, “To instill in each foal, a love so deep, that no matter what they have to face in life, they will survive and be okay. That is a mother’s job, to teach their child to love themselves to such an extent that they can handle anything. Life is full of challenges and it is our job to make those challenges easier for our children.”

• Language: English
• Publisher: K. L. Stock
• Release date: Feb 20, 2012
• ISBN: 9780984920150

K. L. Stock

K. L. Stock, better known as Ms. Kitty to hundreds of children and adults, has been riding, teaching children, and training horses since 1984. In 1988, she built the Naples Riding Academy which has trained three generations of riders. In 1989 she hosted the 1989 Sea Horse Open Horse Shows and formed the Tees Dressage Club. She also sponsored the Miracles in Motion for riders with physical challenges who participated in the Special Olympics. She was one of the people selected as The Face of Hope by the Naples Daily News. She has always loved being involved and teaching children. She currently resides in Naples, Florida. She has three children and one granddaughter whom she has enjoyed sharing the stories of Pony Boy through the years. Pony Boy, the Halflinger Pony, still lives with her at the Academy and is now 28 years old. She also has her other horse, Penny and two dogs Jake, a German Shepherd, and Knuckles, an American Bulldog. “Though it is very hard work and long hours, I wouldn’t change a single event or moment of my life. The joy of being with the horses and their families melts away the strenuous labor involved. To be greeted every day by the roar of the horses neighing, “good morning”, makes my heart and soul smile. Isn’t that what life is really about, finding an occupation that makes your heart smile? To get up each morning looking forward to the adventures that lay waiting for you with joy and anticipation in your heart. Each day I start with a five minute happy to be a live dance, grateful for the gift of life. To start each day; surrounded by the beauty of nature and all the animals, feeling the warmth of the sun shining on one’s face, and the gentle breeze blowing. There is no amount of wealth that can match experiencing the awesomeness of nature in all her glory.” – K. L. Stock

Book preview

The Adventures Of Pony Boy

Book Two: My First Year

By: K. L. Stock

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2011 Katherine L. Stock

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the author.

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Cover andIllustrations by Denali Rose Grace

Back Cover Photograph by Ashley Ingersoll

Editing by Adel Pauline

Design Graphics by Kathy Stick

Library of Congress Control Number:

ISBN 9780984920150

I dedicate this book to Yahweh and to my parents

Doris and Mike Egan who without their loving

support and guidance my life would not have been what it is.

I also thank all the ponies, horses and their families for

the honor of caring for them and the lessons they taught me.

I have been able to rescue many horses over the 25 years that I

have been in the equine business. All the horses who taught at the

Academy were rescued horses. It is my dream with the Pony Boy books

to be able to continue to do so. Also to establish an equine facility

dedicated to the care of my senior equine friends. Though they no longer

may be ridden, deserve to live out their lives with love and devoted care.

They are magnificent creations of the Divine.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1- An Adventure

Chapter 2-Danger Lurking on the Pasture

Chapter 3-The Humans’ House

Chapter 4- Manners

Chapter 5-The Storm

Chapter 6- Penny Leaves

Chapter 7- A New Herd Order

Chapter 8- Ms. Kitty, The Boss Mare of All

Chapter 9- The Big Race

Chapter 10- Separation Time is Here

Chapter 11- Splash

Chapter 12- Mom is Back

Chapter 13- Panther Attack

Chapter 14- Best Friends Forever

Chapter 1: An Adventure!

Penny, Mom, Little One and me took off trotting. I paused in mid trot as I wondered who was going to watch over the others.

Mom who’ll watch over the herd?

Pony, you think too much. Don’t you think that Penny has already taken care of that?

Mom was right, of course. I just paid attention to where and what we were doing. It was not my job to worry about the herd. We trotted for a while and then we cantered. When I stopped thinking, I realized how much fun this was. I wondered what Penny had planned?

She started walking and when I looked over at her, she had a twinkle in her eye. I had never been here before and in the distance I could see and hear lots of trucks going by.

Penny stopped and said, Well are you ready for your jumping lesson? First we will practice how it’s done correctly and then we will try going over some things on the ground. Ready? When you jump, you must push with all your might with your back legs and tuck your front legs up against your chest. Watch.

Penny leaped through the air. Her front legs were tucked in tight against her.

See? Now you try.

Little One leaped right off the ground. You didn’t have to tell her twice! I’m surprised that she didn’t leap at the same time as Penny. Mom leaped and I leaped. Mom was very good at it, too.

Your legs must be tighter or else they will hit whatever you are jumping over and if one of your legs hits or gets caught, you could crash. It will definitely hurt either way. Just keep doing it.

So Little One and I just kept leaping through the air time after time with Mom and Penny telling us what to try and do better the next time.

Now we will play follow the leader and you will do and go where I go. Ready?

Penny took off trotting and then Little One, me, and finally Mom. She leapt over a branch on the ground and we all leapt after her. Then we leapt over another one, and a tree that had fallen over, then a big rock, and a bush. Suddenly she stopped and told Little One and me to stand over to the side. She had Mom stand out in the middle and then she leaped over Mom. I couldn’t believe how high in the air she went and through it all, she didn’t even come close to touching Mom. Wow, that was amazing! She just laughed and said that she could jump much higher than that. In fact, at the horse shows she would jump eight fences in a row much higher than Mom. She said that the fences at the show were closer to Reed’s size, than to Mom’s size.

That’s enough for today. We need to head back soon but first, I think Little One needs to nurse, and both foals should nap. Then we will go.

Little One nursed from Mom and it was funny to see her with her legs bent down real far so she could just get under Mom. Penny and I grazed while we waited. We took our naps and then just walked back to the herd. I could see Torrey was watching. She yelled out to us when we got closer. Penny yelled back and then we rejoined the herd.

Did you enjoy that?

Oh, yes, Penny that was a great adventure. Thank you! It was so much fun!

I hadn’t noticed how sore my back legs actually were from all that leaping until we got back. I was certainly glad to see the sun was getting close to the trees again. Then it was my turn to nurse. I had my milk and realized that for the first time I had gone all day without any milk. I didn’t even think about it before now. Little One and I were the first foals to fall asleep. As I was drifting off, I could hear her saying adventure as she fell asleep.

Chapter 2: Danger Lurking on the Pasture

I wasn’t even awake when I heard the sounds of the humans coming. Both Little One and I jumped up quickly to see what was happening. Up pulled the truck and trailer and out of the trailer popped Reed and Rose. Then, just as quickly as the first time they came, they loaded up Torrey and her foal and then they were gone. Little One ran right over to Reed and Rose and was just leaping all around them because she was so glad to see them. We all went over and welcomed them back. Those humans were up and about pretty early this morning. They’d been here and gone before the sun was just a little bit higher than the trees. Reed went over to Tenney and CD and said something to them, but I didn’t hear what they were talking about. Mom and I just started grazing and I didn’t mind at all that Torrey was gone .She had never been nice to me.

It seemed like no time had passed before I heard truck sounds again. Are those humans coming back again? What for? There they were coming back across the pasture and right up to us. They swung open the trailer door, loaded up Tenney and her foal and CD and her foal, and off they went. Now I knew what Reed had been talking about. She must have told the other Moms that they were leaving today. The herd was pretty small now. It was just the six of us left in the pasture. Then I realized that Mom and I were the only mare and foal that hadn’t been swooped away in the trailer.

Mom, the next time they come, will they take us away like the others? I asked.

To tell you the truth Pony, I don’t know. Only the humans know what they’re up to. Maybe or maybe not. Instead of thinking about that, why don’t you just go and play with Rose and Little One?

So I did. Of course Little One was showing Rose how she could jump through the air, and each time she did it, she went higher and higher in the air. Penny came over and said something to Mom and Reed. I noticed that they were walking and grazing, almost like that day when Mom and I traveled here. I get it now. Penny is moving the herd, but at a walk. That way we could keep playing but be moved at the same time. Any time there was anything on the ground we jumped it. Then Rose showed us what she had learned and starting jumping with her front legs moving from side to side just like I had seen Reed do that day with the cows.

I asked, How do you do that? She began to teach the two of us.

First you have to rock back and get all your weight on your back legs so that you’re light in the front end, she explained. Then it’s easy! Just jump side to side."

You know, Little One got it right away and almost did it perfectly the first time she tried. As for me, I