My 8yr old Thoroughbred gelding Boston Mac was given to me by one of my closest friends. Unfit and scrawny he came to me from a pasture where he had spent more than a year. His training began and in about a year he had transformed into a model hunter, placing in all our classes at our first show with two thirds and a first. His name was the first thing I spoke when I was taken to the hospital and his barn was my first trip out of the hospital.

I think that if he had been afraid of me then things would have been different but the first time he saw me after the accident his face lit up and he literally hugged me with his head. He sniffed all over my legs, almost instantly knowing what the problem was and nudging them with his nose in an attempt to make them move. I have never seen a horse display such affection before and there wasn't a dry eye in the barn as he gently pulled on my thumb and tried to pull me up out of my chair. He knew I hadn't changed, I was still me and he didn't care that I wasn't standing.

With my broken arm and the restricting back brace that I had to wear for three months, the most I could do in the beginning was feed him carrots and lightly run a brush over him. My visits were few as I was mentally and physically weak, trips to the doctors and therapy were the most that I could handle. As time passed I was able to visit him once a week and progressed to giving him a bath. He would stand completely still as I wheeled my chair around him, always watching where I was so he could be careful. The visits once a week were great but they weren't enough, Mac was visibly getting depressed and that was starting to bring me down too. My Mom decided that we could both handle going to see him everyday and it worked. Once again he was my happy, contented Mac and I began to understand where I was heading.

I am lucky, Mac is a smart horse and a quick learner. I had already installed his respect for me and it didn't change because I was in a wheelchair. I lead him from my chair by hanging the lead rope over my shoulder and holding it in one hand as I push my chair, he instinctively takes small steps and doesn't try to push ahead of me. His head always seems to be at my level now, and he drops it extra low so I can take off his crib collar. I can lean forward in my chair to pick out his feet and put his wraps on and I only have to touch his side and say, "shift over," and he moves in the direction I want. Voice commands have been helpful in getting him ready for me to ride again, I will not be able to use my legs so he must totally rely off my voice.

His new training is a slow process and one which I need help with. My friend has started his new training with my instruction by reinforcing the voice commands on the lounge line, during his first session he was very well behaved. Only a little squirt when asked to trot on his stiffer side but that was to be expected and wasn't the full blown, all out protest that he is capable of. He seems to know that he has to behave so I can ride him and he is trying his best. In his second session the bucks came out a bit, something that will stop as he loosens up and his muscles start to build again.

I'm finding ways to curtail some of his energy. Even though he is a hard keeper I'm cutting back his pellets and increasing his hay in an attempt to help eradicate the extra energy that we don't need. As soon as his muscles build a bit more we will start teaching him to accept a rider with no use of their legs, something that will be hard for my friend to simulate, and we will face new challenges of mounting, securing my feet in the stirrups and many other things I'm sure we haven't even thought of yet.

It is a rocky road to travel that must not be rushed or taken lightly, and we have only just begun our new journey together.

Boston Mac with his best friend Claire

My friend is riding him regularly now. His initial enthusiasm at being ridden soon turned to testing his new rider, feeling out the command chain and perhaps hoping to find he could be the boss. It didn’t work that way, my friend is as assertive as I am and Mac likes it that way. He has no respect for a person that doesn’t put him in his place. He is responding very well to the voice commands and is grasping the concept much sooner than we had hoped. My friend gives the voice command from the saddle and I also give the voice command from outside the ring so that he still listens to my voice and connects the tone with the action. His trot is almost down to a western "jog" but his canter will probably never be a "lope" !! Its too springy and collected, that’s what made him such a good hunter!! I still can’t help but love his canter, its just so full of life.

Our newest challenge is the building of my ramp. When on top of it in my chair I must be level with the saddle on Mac and he must learn to stand still as I scoot over onto him - which is not as easy as it sounds !! There must also be room for someone to assist me on top of the ramp and someone to stand at Mac’s side to ensure that he won’t swing away and leave me kissing the ground !! The debate of being secured in the saddle continues. While my balance is very solid a fall would put an end to this project. A system of velcro may perhaps be the best course of action, securing my legs to the saddle and my feet to the stirrups yet giving me the option to bail out in an emergency. A velcro strap attaching my waist to the saddle may also help. It is a controversial issue. Whilst able bodied people do not support attaching ones self to the horse it has been done by disabled people that compete. It is a situation where the risks must be weighed and a decision reached that is right for each individual person. It seems that for now our quality times are spent on the ground together. Although I can’t wait for him to be my "legs" I’m enjoying the new found connection that we are making and I know all of this has made us closer. We have reached a new level of understanding together.