🌺 This Memorial Day, Remember Them Too

They did not enlist.
They were not asked.
And yet they went—head held high, hearts pounding beneath tack, into the chaos of human conflict.

As we honor the brave men and women who gave their lives in service, we also pause to remember the silent heroes who stood beside them—the war horses. These four-legged soldiers carried courage, supplies, and sometimes even salvation into the chaos of combat.

Their sacrifice is a humbling reminder of the bond between human and horse—even in war.

In the Line of Fire, Without a Voice

They came from farms and fields, from noble breeding barns and humble paddocks. Drafts, Thoroughbreds, mules and Morgans. Some were young, barely broken. Others were seasoned carriage horses, redirected to war.

They carried generals and gunpowder. They pulled the dead, the wounded, the hopeful. They stood steadily under fire, unflinching as artillery shook the earth beneath them. Some refused to fall until their riders were safe. Some lay where they dropped, eyes still wide with loyalty they never had the words to question.

A war horse never asked “why.”
He only waited for the next command.

Stories History Forgot

There was Reckless, a little mare who carried wounded Marines to safety again and again in Korea, even as shrapnel ripped the air around her. She was given two Purple Hearts.

There was Comanche, a mustang-mix, the lone survivor of Custer’s final stand, brought home and buried with full military honors.

There was Warrior, a WWI hero dubbed “The Horse the Germans Couldn’t Kill,” survived shellfire and mud for years alongside the British cavalry.

There were thousands more—unnamed, unburied. Lost in mud and smoke. Remembered only by the trembling hands that once gripped their manes and whispered thanks into their ears before the charge.

The Cost of Their Courage

Over 8 million horses, donkeys, and mules perished in World War I alone.
They died of bullet wounds, poison gas, exhaustion, and starvation.
They gave everything, yet received no medals.
They carried our fears into battle—and too often, carried our bodies out.

Why We Remember

We remember not because they were horses—but because they were brave.
Because they didn’t run when they had every right to.
Because they became soldiers, not by choice, but by trust.

And in a world broken by conflict, their quiet loyalty became something holy.

A Moment of Thanks

This Memorial Day, place your hand on your horse’s warm neck. Listen to the soft rustle of hay, the stomp of a hoof, the snort of calm in the morning sun. And remember the ones who never came home. The ones who never saw paddocks again. The ones who gave everything—without ever knowing why.

We remember our fallen heroes.
Let us also remember the hooves that carried them into history.

For the horses who served and the souls they carried, thank you.

#MemorialDay #RememberTheHorses #HoovesOfWar #EquestrianHistory #TheyServedToo