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Gerry Broome / AP
Megan Chance and her son Alex visit with Burma. left, and Lulu in Washington, N.C., Jan. 31. Megan rode Burma as a child in New Jersey and planned to bring her to North Carolina where she was starting a new stables. But, after leaving her on a year breeding contract, Burma vanished. For years Megan searched in vain, eventually deciding her horse must be dead. Last summer, Burma was rescued from the "kill pen" at a New Jersey auction and test facility and the two were recently reunited.
Gerry Broome / AP
An old portrait of a young Burma is shown in the home of Megan Chance.
The mare was tall and spirited and a joy to behold, galloping across the pasture with her head high. Everyone thought Burma was a beauty — no one more than Megan Chance. For six years, she and the thoroughbred she received at 16 were inseparable. But after college, Chance needed to board her beloved horse while she went away for a few months. That proved a turning point in Burma's life, which then followed a twisting path from a breeder's barn to an equine medical lab and even to the "kill pen" at a horse auction, from which a Connecticut rescuer spared her just in time, then posted her picture online. "Oh my God, she's alive," exclaimed Chance when a friend sent her the photo. Last month, after years apart, they were reunited in North Carolina. And now, said Chance: "I intend to spoil her and love her and pamper her and watch her grow old."
-- Reported by the Associated Press
Related content: Animal Tracks
Gerry Broome / AP
Megan Chance rides Burma for the first time since the two were reunited, Jan. 31.
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My daughter has had a horse since she was 2. I can't explain it but there is a different bond there. Not like a boy and a dog.
no doubt there must be a bond between these two but please don't diss us boys and our hound dogs!I had dogs all my life and some times I thought mine where the only ones that cared truly about me!
I cant tell you how many times my dog got me through some of the most terrible of times even through the abuse! No matter where i went,they were there, no matter how annoying i was or sad they never left my side!!!
I will always remember all my dogs not as pets but family!!!!!!!!!!!!
I hear ya Willy! I understand both a boy and his dog and a girl and her horse! I have had both (well I was a girl and the dog and horse)! It is just the pure bond of love! Boy's are supposed to be tough! But with their dog they can let their guard down and not be judged!! I love all creatures great and small!
My dog is my best friend. I can talk to him, cry, yell, be mad and all he does is sit there and listen. Mind you a horse can do that to but they don't show affection like a dog.
Awww, Willy...I love your boy & dog story. I am a "girl" but my dogs have always been family. We have four rescues right now and I wouldn't trade a one of them. They are such genuine creatures.
I love horses too but they can be more fickle than dogs...my dogs like me if I'm having a bad hair day, stinky & sweaty, whatever...my horses snub me if I'm stinky :-)
Nothing like a girl and her horse...they are like an extension of our soul. And once lost can seem like a dead spot in your heart. So happy they are reunited ! Love lives on!
One horse.. two horse's a$$es
yes you are
Absolutely. What a desolate soul to make a comment like that on a story like this. I see a bitter, lonely, mean spirited jerk. Go find a puppy to kick.
Trash talk from cactuscat TRASH!
@Agdoc - I understand what you were trying to say - but you missed the mark! "Go find a puppy to kick"??? great thing to say to someone who doesn't appear to have a high regard for animals...
I think what you were going for was something along the lines of "...cactuscat - you're probably the kind of lowlife that would kick a puppy"
- just sayin'
This story actually made me cry at 58.It brought back my own memories as a youngster and how I loved my horses.
I have had horses since I was around 5. There is a bond with a horse that I could never achieve with a dog or a cat. When my horses have grown old and their time to go has come I have sat in the pasture with them in under 20 degree weather to that they know that they are loved and it is o.k. to let go. Each horses has a different personality and they just make you laugh.
It is the Holy Spirit who whispers through the Horse Whisperer.
What a wonderful story, and a reminder why horses should not be slaughtered!!
We need to have horse slaughter in the US. Without it the horse market has bottomed out. Unwanted horses have no place to go. Instead of being sent to slaughter were they are given a humane death overseen by the USDA, they are left to a slow death of starvation. I love my senior horse dearly but some people are not able to provide for their horses (especially if there livelihhod depends on the bottomed out horse industry).
Realistw/commonsense - where does this humane horse slaughter take place?? I doubt that you love your senior horse dearly if you are ok with horse slaughter. You obvioulsy have a computer so why don't you check out some of the articles about slaughter and I am sure you will see that there is nothing humane about it.
Better yet-- go visit a horse slaughter facility.
There have been far more cases of horse abuse and neglect since the slaughter ban came about in the US. What people do not realize is that there needs to be an outlet for unwanted/dangerous horses, otherwise these horses are left to starve or killed in a worse manner than what slaughterhouses provide. Not to mention the various issues that can arise about how to dispose of a horse on one's property (many places do not allow horse burials on private property). Since the ban, horses are now just being shipped for longer periods of time- to Mexico or Canada. They travel via commercial trailers that are designed for cattle rather than horses. The trailers do not accommodate a horses naturally higher posture, and they are crammed with multiple horses that they do not know. These horses will be slaughtered regardless, but because of the ban that we 'thought' would do them good, they are enduring more pain for longer periods of time. Americans may disagree on whether or not horses should be viewed as companion animals or livestock, but slaughter is necessary in order to decrease overall abuse and once again place a value on horses.
Slaughter is absolutly necessary! I grew up on horses and love them. If you don't get it, you are very uneducated. Find another hobbie and get out of our lives!!!
After months of BS a good story for the soul.
I've never owned a horse, but for me, there is something magical about them that I can't explain. I get goosebumps just watching them.
This story, along with these comments have made my day. Thank you. Bless you Ms. Chance and Burma. I hope all your rides are smooth and all your jumps are clean. And when the time comes for Burma to make that trip to the great pasture up above, I know you will be there to see her off.
Wonderful, heart warming story....
Glad this story had a happy ending. So many animal stories do not.
I think there is a lot unsaid in this---it did not make me cry so much as ask questions---if the owner was boarding the horse and paying rent, how did the horse get sold or taken to a medical lab? So many kids dump thier horses when they go to college or get married that it is sickening. So, was she paying the rent and visiting her horse? Or was this a case of notification for n rent paid?? If you are going to post this story-give us all the facts.
There is something missing here.
Please read the article again, she just wanted to leave her there for a few months and plus Burma was being used as a breeder. I don't know the particulars but if a person is using another person's animal as a breeder do you or should you have to pay for boarding? I think this is a case of the person that she was boarding her horse with as being an assnine hole. Under the first picture you will see it written that she was under a year's breeding contract.
after doing a little bit of digging, I found out quite a bit about this Kim Martin aka Kim Keenan aka Martin Keenan Luyster:
quoted from the business alert at her old site kimberleemartinkeenandressage dot com
the individual Martin Keenan Luyster has scammed several vendors such as hay farmers, farriers,grain suppliers,vetenarians,shavings and equipment companies, trainers as well as clients for an amount exceeding $20,000.00 based on records since filing for chapter 13 bankruptcy. Alone for the month of May of 2011 three different vendors reported $10,450.00 in damages related to check fraud..
and this is just a small example of the stuff listed there.
Finally a real positive story to enjoy. This is the kind of real stories that are real newsworthy as well as refreshing. All we are used to reading are negative and ridiculous news items about koran book burnings, which I tear off pages and use for toilet paper to how this president goes around kissing and bowing down to everybody in the middle east. Enough is enough. God bless and best of luck Megan and many more happy memories with your family to enjoy with Burma. This is one reason why America is the best.
Very nice story. What a beautiful animal. It's very difficult to think of the horses that aren't rescued. Slaughter houses are terrible places.
Cactuscat, tell us why they are horses' a$$es. Such an intelligent comment, can you back it up? Or do you just enjoy calling people names and then taking off? Kind of like flipping someone the bird in the car and speeding away.
Good comment, Katherine. I was also wondering about Cactuscat's nasty post. Seems some people are so negative that they don't even recognize a heartwarming story when they read one!
i rode a horse for awhile then we got a divorce
Similar story, I rode a dog for a while after my divorce
I have to agree that it's nice to hear a good story, as a horse owner I say there is that bond. You walk out to brush them and the afternoon is gone when you just get caught up in the time and love they share with us. My wife broke her leg and couldn't get out to work with them so I brought Gambler to front door to see Mommy, and couldn't wait when the door opened he walked in so excited to see her, the bond is so amazing.
To all the horse lovers and vets that help us, Doc & Martha Huck, Eric, Thanks for loving and caring for God's gift to us to enjoy.
It's great to see a story like this for once instead of yet another spaced out clueless dog owner who left the gate open or was too stupid to leash their animal who then ran off.
I don't care what anyone says, horse meat is delicious!
You are a dork!!!
What a beautiful, beautiful story. Just made me cry. They will have many many wonderful years ahead of them. Horses have a memory like an elephant, they never ever forget
Loved this story. I had a horse who was my best friend. No one can tell me he did not love me. I got him off the track where he was abused and had hoof problems for 3 years. They mistreat horses on the track. He bucked all the jockeys off although I was not told that. Anyway I had him 9 years and had to sell him for his own good after my husband left with all our money. I have tried to find him since but have not been able to. I think of him every day of my life and that was 15 years ago. More than likley he is dead now but I still search in what ever way I can.
My kingdom for a horse.
What a sweet, sad, but ends well… at least for some; story. The fact is, there are many fine people in the horse world, but there are some cruel, ruthless folks as well. I’ve come across a few, just waiting for opportunity and yes, horse thieves will unfortunately be around, as long as there are horses to be taken. I’m a horse lover from way back and empathize with Meghan’s struggle to be reunited with her beloved best-friend, and can relate to her heartache over losing such a beautiful companion. My 1st horse was my 16th B-Day gift. I was led into a run-down stable, where I found some stalls housing at least 2 horses each. These apparently were headed to auction or slaughter-house, and this stable was a holdover. The old, one-armed caretaker didn’t seem to care much. I was just entering the horse world and didn’t know about bad horse folk (traders) yet, who cram horses into 1 stall; for them it’s all about money. I was offered a fine horse, (there were a few) but fell in love with a scrawny, grossly under weight albino with very bad feet. My mother was stricken, that I wanted the one that she declared, “looks like he’s dying!” His head hung down almost touching the floor. I wouldn’t be swayed, I was in love… After 6 mos. of (TLC) extra rations, regular hoof-care, etc., he was healthy, spirited and gorgeous. I rode him bare-back, as we couldn’t yet afford a saddle. He turned out to be a great trail horse. That next year, I lost my equine (best friend), over lack of enough funds to keep him, my mother’s words, “I’m so sorry, but we cannot afford to keep your horse any longer, we have to sell him,” tattooed on my heart. That was one of the saddest days of my young life. My eyes burned with tears, watching the horse trailer pull out of the stable, where I shared many, wonderful days with Sir Silver King, my 15h albino, bluest eyes I’d ever seen. His soft neighs seemed to say, “Don’t cry, I’ll see you again some day…” During that year, I learned more from him than he could ever have learned from me. Four years later, I was able to locate Silver, the bond we shared was manifest in his running toward me, nickering, greeting me as he always did before. I found him again and knew; a bond between a girl and her horse is not easily broken by miles or years of separation. I’m glad Meghan found Burma, but would like to know what happened to Burma’s friend Anna, and am curious to hear how Haley’s handling having the horse she wanted, basically pulled out from under her.
I was 12 when I got my rescue. A riding stable had been shut down for neglect. Many of the animals had to be put down. Mine was one of the few that were considered savable. My parents picked her up and brought her to my friends house where I was waiting, and my friend's father took one look at her and exclaimed, "She not good for anything but bear bait!". And the sad thing is he wasn't far off from right. You could see EVERY rib and both hips. Her hooves were splayed and cracked. Even now I find myself wondering if she was one of the healthier ones, what condition had the others been in.
Well, we took her home, corralled her, fed her and she came back like gang busters. Come spring we had to test her for pregnancy because she had put on so much weight - lol. Nope. Just fat and sassy. She turned out to be the best horse a beginning rider could ask for - if you didn't know how to ride, she wouldn't break a trot. If you DID know how to ride, she'd throw fits. Got to be I could handle anything she could throw at me from her bare back. I miss her dearly. Lost her to colic, otherwise she would have had a forever home.
RE: Burma - I see she has a freeze brand on her neck. Left me wondering if she was a mustang.
@AnotherOpinion .. if you are referring to the white lettering on her neck, that was the test number she was branded with at the testing facility.
This is a nice story, but not all of it can be true. When Megan could not contact Kim Martin, she didn't need money (read the full story) she needed Kim Martin's name, and the address where the mare was kept. The police would have taken care of the rest. Lend/lease/broodmare agreements are biding contracts-IF there really was one. My guess is Kim is right-Megan gave Burma to her, and Kim Martin, right or wrong, can do what she wishes with her own horse.
Yes because the police ALWAYS catch the criminals, right? Besides; they couldn't afford to hire an investigator.
This is a sad but all too frequent story. The horse industry is tough and full of master manipulators and con men/women. All too often the horses pay the tab for our failings as a species. Greed, dysfunction and arrogance are also well represented in the industry. One learns to be careful and to listen to their gut instincts. People lie but they may also believe the lie. They will tell you want you want to hear or need to hear to get what they want or feel good about themselves. Someone young, dealing with a difficult time or decision is easy prey for these predators so cut her some slack. Look at the mare that most of us would never have touched being ridden by Meghan and you have a pretty good insight into her character. She is one of the good ones and I’m glad this has a happy ending.
I’ve rescued a fair number of horses and ponies and found them homes over the years. I once rescued a very pregnant pony, kept her until she had her foal and gave her to a trainer friend for a child. I thought she had a good home and could relax but I was naïve. I came across her not too much later at an auction. The buyer refused to sell her to me at a profit so who knows (I can guess) where she ended up. Horse people are crazy but the keepers are the ones who truly love and would die for their animals. Unfortunately, we are not the best financially and tend to not think long term or make arrangements for when we are no longer financially up to it or get sick. I bought a farm to have a place for my old horse to live out his life. As I’ve aged, the need to include my animals in my estate planning has become more pressing. One of the last horses out of Camelot/Carper’s auction is living at my farm. She had supposedly been rescued several times and sold/given to “forever” homes. Her reality was different. While she is one of the sweetest, kindest horses I’ve ever known she is also one of the saddest and most depressed horses I’ve seen. She is still in the food anxiety stage (eat while you can or someone takes it) but doesn’t play or kick up her heels. Who knows what she thinks or feels but based on her scars she has had a rough time. While I can’t promise that she will ever be carefree I can promise her a home with food. When the time comes (hopefully many years from now) that live is more pain than pleasure (and they let you know when that is) a good death. Horses live in the now, while they remember and respond based on their past experiences I doubt they spent much time projecting past dinner or worrying about the future.