05/27/2026
With hearts both heavy and light, today we say goodbye to Gus.
Gus joined our herd in 2013, and he quickly and enduringly became a one-of-a-kind therapy horse. His quiet and steady demeanor with all kinds of clients led to a common experience…when you were with Gus, you could finally take a deep breath.
And…at the age of 27 he was unavoidably feeling his age. The cold winters and hot summers got a little harder. There was off and on discussion about retirement. But Gus was unique. He just loved the work. He loved the kids. We Can Ride was unquestionably his home…a place he would never leave.
A visit to the University of Minnesota last week revealed that his current health condition was not one he could recover from. So he came home.
It’s never easy to say goodbye. But we are so honored that we got him to this beautiful perfect day, where his closest friends, both human and equine, were there to hold him physically and spiritually as he transitioned to the other side.
If you knew Gus, you knew that he was an old soul. Our guess is that he will never truly be gone. We fully expect that familiar spirit to visit us from time to time, maybe when we least expect it…or maybe when he knows we need it.
