Joe is Aunt Mel’s little brown pony. Joe has a white blaze down his face, but it’s a little crooked and ends over his left nostril. He has four white feet and a thick blonde mane and tail. In the summer, he is dark brown with darker dapples. In the winter his hair is three inches long and he looks like a Yak.

Joe was rescued from negligent neighbors. The neighbors bought Joe for their grand children to ride. Aunt Mel first saw him one spring day with six little kids pulling him around the pasture by a lead rope. He was wearing a little western saddle and a small bridle. A while later, Aunt Mel saw Joe run past her front yard with one of the little kids screaming on his back. A few minutes later, Joe ran back past without the screaming kid. That was the one and only time Aunt Mel ever saw anyone ride Joe.


After that, Joe was just left in their pasture. No one ever gave him hay or grain. He only had grass to eat. There was no water tub; he had to walk through the woods to the shallow creek to get a drink. He would stand along the fence near Aunt Mel’s horses, looking very sad and hungry. It broke Aunt Mel’s heart to see him neglected and alone.

That Christmas, Aunt Mel received a bonus at work. She called the neighbors and told them she was taking the pony and leaving a check in their mailbox. They said that was fine, they didn’t want that mean pony. They cautioned that it would be hard to catch him. Determined, Aunt Mel climbed over her fence into the neighbor’s yard.

As usual, Joe was standing near the fence trying to be close to her other horses. As soon as Joe saw Aunt Mel, he ran straight over to her. His hair was matted and dirty. His feet had never been trimmed. They were too long and curled up on the ends like elf feet. It had rained the night before and he was covered in a sheet of ice. She kissed his pink nose, gave him a carrot and slipped the halter over his head. Joe walked quietly out of his old pasture and into Aunt Mel’s yard. And that’s where he’s been ever since.