Summary: Adam and Joe go to a horse auction.
Rated: K+
Word count: 1239
Adam Cartwright and his youngest brother Joe exchanged a look as they approached the stock corrals. It was the last Saturday of June, and they had ridden just across the California border to Mystic in the hopes of finding new breeding stock for their horses. The advertisement had claimed that all the best breeders would have horses there, but from the looks of it, they had been grossly exaggerating. There were a number of horses from a ranch in southern Oregon that seemed promising and some draft animals that would be beneficial for their timber crews, but the vast majority of the stock in the pens was no better than the horses the Ponderosa already had.
The brothers stood at the railing watching some of the Belgians and Clydesdales mill about in their corrals. Most of them seemed to have the typical warm-blood calm temperament. But there was one mare that Adam kept having his eye drawn back to. “Joe, you see that one?”
He glanced at his brother before turning back to the horses. “Which one?”
“The one with the flaxen mane.”
Joe dropped his hand from where he had been leaning his chin against his fist and tried to find which horse Adam was talking about. “Ok, yeah. What about her?” The horse seemed pretty average to him. She wasn’t all that large, her ears were two different sizes, and she snapped at another horse that got too close.
“She’s more spirited than a normal draft horse. I think there’s more to her than meets the eye. Like whiskey in a teacup.”
“I dunno. I think we rode all this way for nothing, Adam.” Joe leaned back against the railing again. “I mean, it’s not that they’re terrible. Those two blood bays, that grey, and the tall sorrel. They were all balanced and sound. And aside from that one, these all seem to be pretty even tempered. I just don’t see how they’re any better than what we have back home.”
“Alright, Joe. Pull in your horns. Maybe we’ll have better luck with the stallions. Come on.” The older of the two nudged his younger brother and together they walked down the road to the next area. As they turned the corner, a horse squealed in pain and the smack of a whip could be heard. Joe took off in a dead sprint. Adam cursed and followed him.
A grimy man with greasy hair stood facing off with a spirited silver dapple bay. The horse’s ears were pinned back and he stomped his front hoof in warning. A streak of blood ran down from his withers where the whip had cut into his skin. The man raised the whip again and was about to bring it down when Joe ran full tilt into him.
Both men tumbled to the ground and the horse shied away from them. They both recovered their balance then the man shouted in anger and swung at Joe who lashed out and struck the man on the right side of his face. He kicked the whip away when the man dropped it and Adam snatched it up before he could recover it.
The man sneered at them both. “If you knew what was good for you, you’d give that back and mind your own business.”
“There’s no reason to be treating an animal this way.” Joe’s eyes flashed in anger.
“There is when I spent good money on that jughead and he can’t be handled! The damn nag won’t take a lead and is so barn sour that it can’t be ridden.”
“Just because you can’t handle him, doesn’t mean he’s a bad horse.” Joe turned away from the man and approached the stallion. He was a gorgeous animal, nearly 16 hands high and flawless in conformation. The horse watched Joe warily and backed up a step as the young man walked closer. Joe held both hands out to the side and murmured to the horse. The stallion kept one ear back, but flicked the other forward, obviously listening to Joe’s calming tone. He stopped and let the horse get used to him before resuming his approach. Soon he was able to get close enough to run his hand down the horse’s neck. The silver bay tossed his head up and rolled his eyes but let Joe touch him.
Adam sighed. He knew exactly what was coming. Either they leave the stallion with this man and who knows what he would do to the animal, or they buy it off of him and end up with what seemed to be a temperamental and potentially dangerous horse themselves. He had to admit though, if there was anyone who could tame such a spirited horse, it would be his youngest brother. “What did you pay for it?”
“Huh?” The irate man turned to face the other man.
“The price. What did you lose on this horse?”
“150 bucks. And I aim to get at least some of that back. I don’t care if it gets shipped to slaughter or if-”
“We’ll give you $75.”
The man stopped talking and weighed the benefits. If he sold the horse to go slaughter, he’d probably only get $20, maybe $25 for it. And he certainly wasn’t going to be able to sell it to anyone local; everyone around here already knew the horse’s history. If he sold to these two, at least he wasn’t entirely put out. “You really want this horse?”
Adam shrugged and handed the man back his whip in a show of good faith. He’d calmed down now and it was obvious that he had let the fight go. “Let’s just say my brother likes a challenge.”
“Sold.”
*****
They picked out two other horses aside from the silver dapple bay, both Belgians to improve their draft teams.
Joe had corralled the stallion for the night and they came the next morning to retrieve all three horses and begin the ride home. Adam watched his younger brother attempt to get a halter on the horse for a while before leaving to pick up the two Belgians. He was surprised not five minutes later when he turned and saw Joe leading the horse just as calm as it could be. The stallion followed Joe with just a rope looped around his neck as tranquil and quiet as a shadow on a still pond.
“How’d you do that? I thought that man said he wouldn’t take a lead at all?”
“Oh come on, Adam. That man was so dumb he couldn’t pound nails into a snowbank. He just doesn’t like the halter. I don’t think anyone ever worked with him.”
Adam huffed a laugh at Joe’s description of the man from yesterday but found he rather agreed with his youngest brother. He handed Joe the lead ropes to both Belgians and mounted Sport before taking the leads back.
Joe swung up onto Cochise and the brothers headed home.
***The End***
Author’s Note: Written for the 2025 Ponderosa Paddlewheel Poker Tournament. The game was 7-Card Stud and we had to use at least five of the seven cards dealt, each of which represented a word or phrase. My words/phrases were:
Pull in your horns.
She’s like whiskey in a teacup.
He was so dumb he couldn’t pound nails into a snowbank.
Barn sour.
As quiet as a shadow on a still pond.
I enjoyed your story very much. As others have said, it certainly lends itself to the possibility of a followup story on Joe’s further adventures with this horse.
As a horse person, I loved this story. Little Joe was correct ,it wasn’t the horse that was dumb but his first buyer.
The guys are spot on from the morals to the sass!
Wonderful story of how horses seem to be able to read a person and react accordingly. Well done!
I really enjoyed this horse focused story! Joe certainly has a special bond with understanding horses.
Some very good things come in small packages. I enjoyed the way you revealed both Adam’s and Little Joe’s characters through their actions. You used your phrases effectively in this believable Joe and Adam story. Well done! DJK
I enjoyed this story very much. I love watching Adam and Joe with horses because each one has a different strength with them. Has someone else said? I feel like I was right there beside them, watching everything. Your writing is very good and I would love to see more of this story. Your words and phrases fit perfectly into the story.
This was a very nice fun story. Thanks
This was a very nice short story. Thanks
Horses know who will be kind to them and who would rather whip them into submission. That horse knew what he was doing when he chose Joe.
The stallion was a puppy dog in the right hands. Hopefully Cochise won’t be jealous of Joe’s new friend. Your story reminds me of the banter in The Hayburner about Adam being the best judge of horseflesh but it seems Joe knows temperament better. I enjoyed this. Thank you for contributing a story!
Not a bad story, could have more to it. Maybe focused on how Joe and the stallion get along once they’re back ont he Ponderosa?
A nice little glimpse into an excursion for the Cartwrights – though I’d like to see a part two to find out what happens next!
This was so much in character for our Cartwrights that I felt like being a bystander next to these two young men, hearing true to character dialogue, and outstanding understanding of the situation. Great piece, I loved it.
A short but excellent story! Your deft use of the phrases is impressive and that is our Joe and Adam we love so. Thank you for writing and sharing!
I love this story! Horses are my favorite animal and you captured the Stallion’s behavior beautifully!
A very likely scenario for these two brothers, especially Joe’s empathy for the horse. I see the beginning of a beautiful friendship. 🙂 Great use of your phrases in a concise story, a solid tournament entry. Thanks for writing!
Great use of the phrases! I loved how Joe calmed the horse, and the tranquil as a shadow on a pond reference. Beautiful poetry!
A city raised girl, I didn’t know much about horses except that I liked the kind of men who rode them (ahem!) but I have become additcted to the horse reels on Facebook (Katie Van Slyke) have learned so much about their traits, temperament, habits, etc. that I was totally sucked in to this story and understood Joe’s posture and the comment about conformation. The phrases you were dealt fit this story so completely, it’s like those cards were just waiting for you!
Short and sweet, a very nice way to begin reading this year’s tournament entries. You made effective use of your phrases in a believable excursion for the Cartwright brothers.