The Horse Whisperer

It is week nine and we are nearing the end of the semester now. This week Kelsey and I worked on a story about abandoned horses (which for some reason I always want to spell as "abondoned", but I guess that is a little off topic). This story was SO much fun to work on! Being from the Washington D.C. area I have never had the opportunity to spend a lot of time around horses, until now. We had some good weather and were able to spend a few days with some very hospitable and knowledgeable horse owners. The best part was by far the horse from Erika Harvey's stables that followed us around everywhere we went. This horse acted like a dog. A 1,000 pound dog that was taller than I was. You could be taking a photo and all of the sudden he would put his face right in front of the camera. I was asking Harvey some questions one time and when I turned around the horse was right behind me, which was a little creepy but still very entertaining.

More importantly than being fun and entertaining, this story gave me some new journalistic experiences. We spent so much time at some of the horse stables and farms that for the first time I felt that I had actually just become a fly on the wall. I felt that the subjects of the story became very relaxed around me and were able to just be themselves, which is usually what makes for the most honest and true to life story. Perhaps this was made easier because I was working around so many children. Children seem to be very relaxed and open around new people and do not change their behavior very drastically because of the presence of reporters. Although it took a little bit of time for the children to get used to me and Kelsey's presence, once they did they almost forgot we were there completely.

Kelsey and I put a lot of work into this story. We went to four different stables and private farms to talk to equine experts and take pictures. We knocked on doors and did some dirty work, literally (If you've ever been to a horse farm you understand). We talked to local, state, and national figures who had authority when it comes to the issue of horse abandonment. We collected so much information that the hardest part about the story was sifting through all of it to craft a well written story that really captures the heart of the issue. I think we succeeded.