RTT mourns death of popular horse at Windham facility

By Ed Pierce

Officials at the Riding To The Top Therapeutic Riding Center in Windham have announced the death of Babe, a popular horse at the facility.

Babe, the oldest horse in the herd at the Riding To The 
Top Therapeutic Riding Center in Windham, died
Nov. 17. She had been with Riding To The Top since
2012 and was one of its most gentle and popular
horses. COURTESY PHOTO

Babe died Nov. 17 and was the oldest horse in the herd at Riding To The Top, which offers therapeutic riding from its 50-acre farm just off of Route 302 in Windham. It is an inclusive community where people of all abilities are challenged with positive learning experiences through equine assisted activities and therapies and a safe, supportive environment that fosters respect, innovation, and diversity.

“We cannot count the number of lives she impacted. Babe was an exceptional horse for so many here at RTT, and as a lesson pony at another barn before she came to RTT in September 2012,” RTT officials posted on its social media pages.

From RTT’s perspective Babe was the quintessential therapeutic mount, steady as the day is long, with a wonderful set of gears with two speeds at the walk and trot and in her younger years a great canter, moving at quite a fast but easy and comfortable speed.

The horse always loved a good roll in arena dirt at the facility, so much so that she dug a hole in the far end years ago that the facility had to patch and repair.

“She’d been to the beach, gone to a rider’s home whose mom had ALS and couldn’t get to the farm to see her daughter ride anymore, visited nursing homes and been a subject for veterinary tech students, all of this on top of being such a steady force for RTT’s clients,” RTT officials said.

For years even after Babe was retired, she continued to assist participants in RTT’s walking program and served as a role model and a symbol of what RTT means to the community simply by being a constant source of calm and affection for anyone who visited with her.

As it turned out, Babe was a horse who helped participants at RTT to realize who they really are and if anything, that will be her greatest legacy at the facility.

In its social media post announcing the horse’s death, RTT officials expressed their deepest thanks to all who cared for and loved Babe over her long life from RTT clients, volunteers, and staff to all the equine professionals who provided care over the years and to all from the community who spent the last week of her life showering her with all the love she deserved. <