Bibb County horse farm provides extra TLC for aging horses

“God forbid that I should go to any heaven in which there are no horses.”

-- Robert Bontine Cunninghame-Graham, “Letter to Theodore Roosevelt”

There’s hardly been a time in Nancy Kaplan’s life when she didn’t work with horses.

As a former U.S. and Canada champion for show horses, Kaplan knows well the level of care a horse in its prime needs to stay healthy.

For aging horses or ones that have had health issues, care becomes even more critical. That’s why Kaplan started Merrifields, described as a “sanctuary for horses.”

Because her barn is small -- she keeps no more than 10 horses at a time -- each horse gets a special level of attention, which can be a huge factor in extending its life.

“These horses deserve it,” Kaplan said. “They do so much for us. We owe them special care as they age or as they face illness.”

Kaplan, 63, convinced her husband, Mike, nearly 25 years ago to move from downtown Macon to the outer fringes of Bibb County, even though there was little out there at the time. They bought 12 acres, where her horses could move freely.

“It’s just the spot for horses to get extra care and attention.”

Kaplan said she didn’t originally set out to provide such a special service.

“It’s just kind of evolved,” she said. “Over the past 10 years, I’m not doing as much (showing). Originally, (the barn) was just for my horses, but then somebody needed help. I’m not doing breeding anymore. I enjoy this more. I’m not doing it on a large scale.”

Susie Sutton appreciates the extra attention her daughter’s horse, Missy (short for Miss Management), receives at the barn. Sutton’s daughter, Mary Lynes Sutton, an eighth-grader at First Presbyterian Day School, finished third in the nation in 2014 during the American Saddlebred Horse World Championship horse show, and rides Missy for fun, not in competition.

“(Nancy) is the reason that horse is there,” Susie Sutton said. “Mainly because Nancy takes care of everything. The care she provides is above and beyond anything you can dream of. ... For older horses, their best care is if Nancy is the provider. She worries if it’s cold outside or a storm. It’s whatever’s best for what the horse needs.”

Mary Lynes, who is ranked No. 1 in the state and the region by the American Saddlebred Horse Association, said it’s reassuring to see the extra level of care Missy receives at Merrifields.

“To me, it’s like a spa for horses,” she said. “It’s so luxurious. (Missy) gets the best care you could ever ask for. (Kaplan) cares for them like they were her own children. ... It’s so pretty out there.”

Though horses remain Kaplan’s primary focus, she loves animals in general, including her five rescue dogs and one cat, all of whom hang out in the barn with the horses.

SPECIAL CARE

Kaplan said horses, as they get older, can face a wide range of ailments. It takes a lot of training to discern the symptoms of a possible ailment in order to treat it.

“Horses are actually very fragile,” she said. “One has to be aware of the signs, which are not always so obvious. A horse can go from flared nostrils (a sign of pain or impending illness) to pawing, a more advanced sign of pain, to lying down (a very advanced sign of pain). If the caretaker does not observe these signs or does not know how to interpret these signs, it can even mean the demise of a horse who could have otherwise been saved with a simple injection of Banamine with a call to the vet.”

Kaplan provides care to horses dealing with a variety of ailments, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, corneal transplants and colic. Much of that care involves giving the horses special diets and exercise as well as hooking up IV bags, caring for wounds, wrapping up the horses -- or anything else the horse might require.

“Horses are grazing animals inherently,” she said. “They are meant to be grazing most of the day and night. Their stomachs secrete acid all the time, so many are predisposed to ulcers, which are a common cause of illness and colic, which can lead to an unhappy, unhealthy horse and can even lead to colic and resulting death.”

The most minute details don’t seem to escape her.

“Horses like mints,” she said while giving Missy a mint after washing her. “They don’t eat apples or carrots.”

Kaplan’s own personal horse, Red Alert, isn’t just a resident of the barn but a client as well. Red Alert had a failed corneal operation some time ago and requires special care.

Red Alert was Kaplan’s horse when she twice was Canadian Reserve National Champion, and the horse itself was also United States National Champion National Show horse as a 2-year-old. Kaplan also was United States Reserve National Champion several times at the Arabian Horse United States Nationals.

Kaplan’s love of horses passed to her three daughters, Merrie, 41, Lily, 35, and Shannon, 30. Shannon followed in her mother’s footsteps as an American and Canadian champion, while Lily eventually passed up competition in favor of soccer and track. Merrie took hippotherapy when she was growing up, a way of physical, occupational and speech therapy in which the movements of a horse are used to improve sensory input and motor function.

With her daughters now grown, Kaplan has the time to lavish attention on her horses.

“Each horse is an individual, just like people,” she said. “And, as you know, I believe they deserve our best care.”

For more information about the farm, www.merrifieldshorsecare.com.

To contact writer Phillip Ramati, call 744-4334.

This story was originally published February 8, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Bibb County horse farm provides extra TLC for aging horses ."