this is a VERY SAD, but true story

On Thursday, September 4th around 9pm someone randomly showed up at the ranch.  It was a guy that was passing by on the highway pulling a horse trailer. He had been on the road for about 5 hours.  Some people behind him had been trying for at least a mile to flag him down to let him know that something was dragging from the trailer.(we heard this part after the fact) He pulled over to discover that one of the horses in the trailer, he had two inside, was dragging!!!  The floor of the trailer had rotted through and broke!  Cell phones don't work out here so he walked into the ranch and stopped by our house hoping to use the phone.  (the turn out to the ranch is one of the rare stopping points on this end of the highway) He really had no idea what he was going to do.  It just so happens that because we do live on a ranch we have a corral.  Dave offered the use of the corral for the guys healthy horse.  Dave also went out with the man to his truck to help.  Once he got out there to see the situation he said it was not a nice scene.  The horse that had been dragging was extremely injured and needed to be put down.  They drove the truck and trailer into the ranch, put the healthy horse into the corral, then had to put down the other horse right there in the field.  Next they drove the truck to the back field, Dave drove the 4WD Bronco too.  They had to tie a rope around the body of the deceased horse to pull it out of the trailer with the 4WD.  It was going to have to stay out there until it could be disposed of properly.  By this time the kids knew the story of what was going on and were waiting to hear the gunshot.  Thankfully it was quiet enough that all didn't hear it, just Nicole and I.  There were some tears and much explanation was needed on the way things work with horses and injuries.  The man who had the horses drove his truck and broken trailer another hour to his home promising he would be back the next day.