A New Life for Bud

About the Book

Bud is a Chicago Police horse who works with his partner, Sergeant McNair. One day, Bud finds out he must retire. He worries about what will happen to him. Sergeant McNair finds a perfect new home for him. Read about Bud’s new life in a stable that helps disabled children. Following the story are two appendices that will add to the readers’ understanding of the two very different lives that Bud has led.

About the Author

Six years ago, a desire to learn to ride horses with my daughter ended up leading me to a whole new life. Our riding instructors happened to run a riding program for the disabled, and I decided to sign on as a volunteer. I spent many hours at the barn learning all aspects of the job, from taking care of the horses to participating in the lessons. Two years ago, I wrote and illustrated a children’s book to help raise funds for Horsefeathers, our therapeutic riding program. “A New Life for Bud” was about a retired police horse who started a second career as a therapy horse. His character was based on a real horse in our program. “A Tale of Two Ponies” is about two ponies that I also worked with. They were adorable and made me laugh, and the children all loved them. In both my books, I’ve tried to show with words and pictures that horses are very special animals. They have feelings and needs and deserve to be well-cared for and treated with respect.