Man as guardian, caretaker, and steward - What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Enter the Zorse. I met one. Just one. That was enough. There is a humorous story about the Zorse in our Hometown Parade. Well, humorous to everyone but the owner-and-creator of this Zorse. Suffice it to say, he had a terrible day in public and walked his mighty charge home before the Parade even started.
Months later, when every veterinarian and farrier in the County knew of the Zorse and its reputation for havoc, the owner-and-creator built a “shoeing chute.” This Zebra-Horse mix, living in captivity, had no way to naturally wear down his hard hooves and had to have them trimmed or be in pain when walking which guaranteed he’d be more irritable and unhappy. Blood stains, obviously human were everywhere around the outside of his corral did not put anyone at ease and the latest farrier required the animal be restrained. Sedatives and tranquilizers did not have the desired effect on the Zorse because he was half wild and half domestic - a horse of a different color - they all learned that the hard way. No time for THAT ugly story here.
So the owner-and-creator built a fenced enclosure only 6’ tall, only 3’ wide and 7’ long, made of 3” steel pipes spaced no more than 12” apart. This structure was as secure as any bucking chute I have seen at bull riding competitions. Jurassic Park strong. There was just enough space for the animal to stand and the farrier to angle the hoof through the pipe slats and trim the hoof safely from the outside. Sound fool-proof? Note the words I chose. The day of the next trimming, the owner-and-creator got his Zorse into the chute, picked up the first hoof to be worked on, slowly handed it to the man with the tools, then went to the front of the Zorse to stroke his neck and calm him. The owner-and-creator immediately broke his arm. How quickly? Immediately. How many times? Twice. Once when the Zorse reared up and once when the Zorse went back down. No one knows what happened to the Zorse after that but, he was gone within a week. Just gone.
My personal opinion is if Horses and Zebras, running side by side so to speak, for millions of years, were going to intermingle and breed; they’d at least have started dating by now.
