I ignored this when I first read it because of a truly awful experience I had once with horse logging, but here goes:
A friend called me to ask if I could come up to their place to look at a horse that been injured in a horse logging operation up on the mountain above them. The vet had been called, but he was attending a difficult calving somewhere else in the county and wasn't going to get there any time soon. Some real woodsy looking guys ( long hair and beards) were logging with a team of draft horses and a grade pony. A log had broken loose and caught the pony full on the leg. They had it wrapped tight and were just standing there sadly in the cold waiting for help. We waited forever, and finally I asked if they would unwrap it so I could see the injury. Unwrapped, the leg was swinging freely in space between the knee and the fetlock. It was awful. I asked them about their investment in the pony ($50) and their finances (none). It was getting colder and darker and finally I had to leave to tend to my family. When the vet got there, he shot the pony. The only folks I have known who horse-logged thought of their horses as an alternative kind of tractor. Now - I am sure there are some who do not feel like that - just my experience. Nancy
