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.When that tactic failed, the horse eventually moved closer, tense and jumpy, but determined to get the treats.It took Zach nearly an hour to get Tornado to bump his nose against the tennis ball accidentally.Click.“Good boy, Tornado, good boy,” Zach said, picking up a package of sliced apples.He gave the stallion three tastes and then zipped the bag closed.The idea was to keep the stallion wanting more so he would remain eager to work.Zach’s goal tonight was to get Tornado to touch his nose to the halter hanging on a hook inside the stall.From day one, Tornado had exhibited an abhorrence of halters.Hoping to desensitize the stallion to the sight of one, Zach had hung the headgear there when Tornado first arrived.Sadly, it hadn’t worked.Tornado simply avoided that side of the enclosure.Zach didn’t know why the animal despised the leather straps.The only way Zach could put gear of any kind on the horse was to confine him in a box chute, call in help to run a rope under the animal’s chin to force his head up, and then ear him until the halter was on.Earing a horse, twisting the ear until it caused pain, was a practice Zach detested, but with Tornado there was no choice.To Zach’s relief, the stallion began cooperating quickly.So far, so good.He had been working with the stud for almost another hour when Cookie spoke from somewhere behind him.“Don’t you pussy out on him,” the older man said softly.Zach twisted to look over his shoulder.Cookie stood about fifteen feet from the stall entrance.“Pussy out? You should try this.My arm feels like it’s about to fall off.”“If you give up, that stallion’s days are numbered.”A chill washed over Zach’s scalp.“You think he’s loco, Cookie?”The older man sighed.Judging by the sounds, he was scuffing his boot heel in the dirt.“Sometimes a horse is born with a screw loose,” Cookie finally replied.“Ain’t no denyin’ that.I had me a horse like that once.Raised him from birth.Never mistreated him or gave him any cause to be crazy.” Cookie made a choked sound.“Lord, he was a beauty.But he was plumb loco, and there wasn’t no fixin’ him.”“You have to put him down?” Zach asked tautly, dreading to hear the answer.“Nope.He died in an accident, broke his neck.Maybe it was a blessin’ in disguise, as they say.”Zach hadn’t raised Tornado from birth, but he still felt an overwhelming sorrow when he thought about having to end the stallion’s life.Tornado was only five, and he was physically amazing.If only Zach could turn him around, the horse could live to be thirty.Trying to ignore the cramp in his shoulder, he said softly, “If some people are born with a screw loose, I guess the same thing can happen with horses.”“True,” Cookie agreed.“But I have to say, in all my years of trainin’ ’em, I’ve only seen it that one time.That ain’t to say Tornado ain’t loco.Way he acts, he’s crazier than a loon.But when you bring an animal into the fold from another ranch, you’re never really sure what happened in its past to make it quirky.”“His previous owner, Pat Jones, checked out,” Zach replied, rubbing his upper arm.“He’s got a reputation that would make Mother Teresa look like a mugger.Otherwise I’d never have bought a horse from him.”“Sometimes the way things seem ain’t the way they really are.”Zach knew that was true.Despite Cookie’s warnings, he lowered his arm.“I’m due for a break.”Cookie inclined his head at the wand.“Just so you know you’re not finished yet.Before you call it a night, you need to make him touch that halter.”“I will,” Zach assured the older man.Cookie knuckled the brim of his hat.“Have fun.I’m headin’ upstairs for a shower, some supper, and a little kickback time in my recliner.”Zach drew Tornado’s stall gate closed.“I’ll see you in the morning, then.”As Cookie started up the stairs, Zach headed for the stable office to get a cold soft drink from the fridge.After gaining the landing, Cookie hollered, “Don’t take too long a break.Continuity is important
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