# The Cheque



## Divus (Jul 29, 2012)

*The  Cheque*
Our postman delivers to the house early in the afternoon and mostly these days there is little mail worth going to collect from the postbox which is  mounted on the fence down by the gate.  The Saturday delivery is rarely anything  but junk mail advertising  things my wife and I shall never  buy.      So it was early evening before I even bothered to check the box.     For a change there was no junk mail only one single letter.    On the back of the envelope was the address of the sender, namely the company with whom my very sick horse, DiDi has been insured.   

The insurers have been very good and they supported all of the  treatment suggested by the vet.    Yes, I had to pay some of the cost, but the insurers  settled the bulk of the invoices even the final charge for the disposal of the carcass       The paper trail was sometimes a puzzle to follow but invariably it was the veterinary practice who was slow or lax with the paperwork required by the system.   However the key thing for me was that DiDi received all of the treatment which was needed to identify and possibly cure her health isssue(s).         Sadly there is no effective treatment for lung cancer in horses.

Under the British system the horse is insured for a named value - in DiDi’s case, what I had paid four years ago to buy her, almost $8000.       There are  several exclusions  but there is a clause in the policy under  which compensation would be  paid  for ‘loss of horse‘.     The key factor is usually that the vet proscribes : ‘PTS’ - in words: ‘put to sleep‘.          Right at the very beginning of  DiDi’s treatment I had re-read the policy document and I had wondered whether in the fatal event I would be due for re-imbursement under this clause.        It seemed I was eligible, for there, inside today’s envelope, was a cheque for the equivalent of $8000.      The insurers had paid the vet’s bills and now were paying me for loss of use.  I have to commend them for their service for not all insurance companies in the horse industry pay out in this exemplary way.    I have absolutely no complaints about DiDi’s insurers and would recommend them heartily.

As I walked up to the house, the memories leading to her demise all came back to me.     My jaw puckered up, I revisited mental images of her last moments with me.    I remembered some of those moments of despair.      Slowly the tears formed in my eyes and I lost temporarily the ability to both see and speak.        In the house my wife asked if there was anything in the post but I simply could not answer, so I passed the envelope over to her.   She could see that I, a grown man of pension age, had to turn away and hide my face in embarrassment.   I didn’t really want the money in lieu; I wanted my horse back.     I didn’t want someone else’s horse; I wanted mine.    I can‘t have again the relationship which I had with the mare.   DiDi was something very different.    What good  to me is a cheque?   It is a small scrap of paper.   

I’ll pay the money in to a special tax free savings scheme. I’ll promise not to draw the money out and at the end of a year the bank will credit my account with about $200.       DiDi was worth far more to me than $200 lousy dollars.        

Actually she was costing something near $8000 a year to keep in the splendour  to which she had become accustomed.     There were costs for livery, feed, supplements, shoeing, chiro-massage, training, teeth  and the odd item of new tack, which she simply had to have.    There were diesel and transport charges, vet’s bills, insurance costs and medications for those odd little ailments which a vet cannot be bothered to treat.  There were also competition fees and membership fees.             And I must not forget the cost of travelling over the toll bridge to her stable yard.   Keeping a competition horse in the UK is an expensive business, if it is done properly.

DiDi was to be my hobby in retirement.   She was my equine companion.   She was the cornerstone of my day.   She was a talking point and a constant topic of conversation.       She was a never ending conundrum.     She was a worry.   She was a joy to watch and a pleasure to handle.       Everybody said how beautiful she was.   Some even knew  how sensitive she was to ride.  And she was mine

So I sat down and sent an email back to the insurers.   I thanked them  for the cheque and I asked  if there was any way I could have my horse back instead.           But I can’t see that as an option in the policy document.


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## bazz cargo (Jul 29, 2012)

Hi Divus,
A good horse is a better person than I will ever be. 

I'm sad to lose a furry friend, but I'm always happy to have known them.
Pay it forward.
Bazz


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## The Backward OX (Jul 29, 2012)

I'm as much an animal lover as the next man, but even so the question has to be asked: why was the insurance taken out in the first place? Or have I missed something in the infinite facets of human nature?


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## Divus (Jul 30, 2012)

Ox, Such policies have several benefits, some of which are fundamental.

For me the biggest risk is paying for medical treatment - the cost of which can run into thousands of pounds

Other risks are theft of tack, and damage to third party owned property.

Some policies include personal injury - or rather the cost of medical treatment to the rider.

The fundamentals of the policy are to a certain extent established by the purchase price which is declared at the time of taking out the policy.

To cover DiDi was costing over £50 per month.  The benefits included the potential loss in case of unavoidable euthanasia for the loss of capital value. 

My attitude has always been that I would not want to be put in the position where there was treatment for an ailment from which the horse was suffering  but the cost of that treatment was beyond my financial ability to afford.    In several respects the medical service offered by a specialist
equine veterinary practice offers the horse better treatment than available to humans in the UK under the NHS.  However the National Health Service is free but mostly the patient has to queue up, sometimes for months, to receive it.

In a way your question suggests to me that my article does not make my point in the way that I intended.    $8000 is a lot of money, especially during a recession, but I would much prefer to still have my horse.

DV


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## Lilly Davidson (Jul 30, 2012)

Dear Dv 

That is a very engaging, indeed informative and touching account of how it feels to lose a beloved horse. I have always admired horses from afar and thought of their beauty and grace but after reading your work I realise what they really mean to their owners. Your love and devotion is clear and your heart-break equally so. I know that until your dying breath you will never stop thinking about her. 

I can see this could be developed into a biographical novel of DiDi's life with you. It would be fascinating for me as a complete outsider to read about what goes into the care of a horse, that unique closed world. The only parallel I have is that of dogs, I adore dogs and fully appreciate their incredible relationship with humans.  

I enjoyed this account of yours. It is clearly written, with a practical yet emotion-laden streak throughout. It leaves me knowing your lingering sense of loss, your yearning just to see DiDi again. 

I am not very good at critiquing other's work so I hope it is ok just to give your my personal impressions as I feel them, as best I can.


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## Divus (Aug 4, 2012)

Lilly, the books have been written, not only about DiDi  but another who was quite a character.    But I doubt if they will be published -
Anna Sewell stole the market.


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## Lilly Davidson (Aug 4, 2012)

Hi Divus, 

Have you submitted them to publishers may I ask?


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## Divus (Aug 4, 2012)

Lilly, the answer is: 'Not really'. 
-The old fashioned publisher - even of horsey stories' - appears to have gone into hiding.      The market for horsey books is thru the feed and tack distributors and not necessarily the book shops.    Maybe I could self publish, but then how do I sell the book and collect the cash?

Amazon's Kindle tablet is turning the book market upside down.      I'll wait and see.

My writings mostly appeal to the private horse owner - for that is what I have been.  Whereas most books on horse riding are written, even ghost written, by the well known trainers or competitors.  

Despite my having a strong following on two horse forums, I can't see a way in to publication - especially at my age.
But thanks for asking.

DV


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## tinacrabapple (Aug 5, 2012)

Divus, Again, my greatesy sympathies!  It is heart-wrenching to read these.  I cannot help but sob as I read these entries.  I am a great animal lover as well.  I have a dog that I love sometimes too much, but what can you do when an animal completes you-  mourn heartily when they pass.  The beauty is that nothing can replace the animal, it's a rare dynamic, this sort of companionship.  May you find peace with your beautiful memories.  I am always glad to read more entries.


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