Maggie Ann Browns was born March 23, 1969 sired by Walkers Merry Lad out of a daughter of Walkers Merry Lad, out of a daughter of Walkers Merry Lad making her a triple Walker's Merry Lad mare. Now that is about as close to Walker's Merry Lad as I have ever seen without being Walker's Merry Lad.
It has been my experience that many horses of this line, with given proper care, have held up extremely well into their late 20's and 30's. We personally know of several of these older mares still being ridden at 29, 30, 31, and Mags at 33. These are well cared for mares and are given the benefit of regular health checks and attention. They are ridden or exercised lightly which helps to keep arthritis at bay, the heart strong, and the body healthy. Maggie Ann Browns is typical of her breeding.
Maggie is a short stocky dark liver chestnut rabicano mare with a flaxen
mane and tail, one white foot, and a 
"squaw
tail." A "squaw tail" is the what old timers called a horse with
which had white angel wings at the base of the tail where tail joins the
body. According to traditional folk lore, a squaw tail was and is
a sign of good luck and a good horse. Certainly both have proved true for
Maggie.
Maggie
has always been young for her age. She is very gentle and would never
hurt a soul, but even at 33 she is not a dead head, and when she hears
the music of an organ start to play her first thought is the show ring
and knows exactly where she wants to be!
I think not all horses should be show horses, not because they aren't good fox trotting horses, because I have seen those that have never shown but are as good as, and maybe better than, many of those in the ring, but their hearts aren't in showing off and they just don't enjoy working in a ring. On the other hand, of the horses who do show, the BEST show horses are the ones who WANT to go out and perform and are "natural" in their gait and desire to please a crowd. They stand apart from others in the ring because of their stylish fox trot and attitude that says, "Look at me!" and, of course, everyone does. Maggie is such a horse with that natural fox trot, headshake, and that "show off" attitude and desire to be noticed in a crowd!
Maggie was raised by Wendell Mc Curry and those who knew her when she was young have told us that she was known to many who showed against her simply as the "Mc Curry mare." We were told that in her day when she came to a show there were people who loaded their horses and left. Apparently it was hard to beat Maggie Ann Browns, but she didn't travel a lot and was mostly shown and known only locally.
Maggie finally got to travel when she was owned by Connie Bacon, now
Connie Jenkins, who said that Maggie was 
one of her favorite riding mares. Said Connie, "I loved to ride
that mare! She had so much natural rhythm and shake she was fun to ride."
Connie saw Maggie's potential and when Maggie was 12,not a spring chick
even then, she took Maggie to Ava to experience the "big time" at the Missouri
Fox Trotter Celebration. This was in 1981, and the class she chose to enter
with Maggie was the Ladies Side Saddle Costume class. Maggie's ability
in the show ring held up even at Ava, and she left with the Ladies Side
Saddle Costume Class World Champion title.
What happened to Maggie after that is skimpy, but we do know that she was used mostly as a brood mare for years. She raised some excellent colts, among which was her favorite son, our senior stallion.
When we got Maggie at the age of 27 she was showing the effects of severe founder. We have always had a soft spot for our senior horses and have never minded giving them the extra care they require. Bob's goal was to make the horse comfortable during her remaining years and when she foundered again due to a hormonal imbalance two veterinarians advised that we put Maggie down.
It was Maggie, though, who seemed to say, “Give me one more chance. I want to live!” Her desire and drive to live caused Bob to decide to do the unthinkable for a horse her age. Being a farrier who specialized in founder, he decided that if Mags was willing he would fix her and so began a long process resectioning her hoofs and of shoeing and reshoeing and all kinds of special care and treatment. Though the process itself was long, Maggie was made comfortable during the process. With her special "shoes" she could get around in comfort and enjoy her life some as her hooves grew out. For pictures see Correcting the Effects of Founder
Then came the day she was at last sound and could be lightly ridden again. Throughout all the effort and hard work Maggie gave genuine affection, friendship and loyalty in return to her care givers. The sight of Maggie pain free, founder free, and enjoying her old age like a young horse made all the time spent worth every second, minute, hour, day and year of the time spent.
Even after Maggie was pronounced free of the effects of founder, none of us ever realized what was in the cards for Maggie's future and what potential she would be able to reach until I was elected to the Board of Directors of the MFTHBA. It was not even until mid summer that I realized how important Maggie would be in my life. That was when the BOD voted that we should ride out to be introduced to the members at our 2002 "Celebration."
As I reluctantly raised my hand in consent, I realized I had nothing to ride. I had 2 breeding stallions which we were still breeding and I did not consider myself an accomplished enough rider to attempt riding a breeding stallion into a show ring of mares, even though I have ridden them on the trail. We had several mares, but they were all nursing colts. We had entertained the thought of me possibly riding Maggie if the BOD voted for us to ride out in the ring to be introduced, but I had been reluctant to take her off the farm. Now my only choices were to ride Maggie or borrow a horse.
I put off deciding what horse I should ride for as long as I could, but when I would go outside Maggie would come up and nuzzle me it seemed more so than ever. Everywhere I went there was Maggie. Maggie, fox trotting down the road, acting young and kicking up her heels, Maggie doing all the things a 33 year old mare usually can't do.
About a week before the Celebration began the vet was out to give us a health paper and coggins on a mare we had at our place for breeding so that she could be returned to her home out of state. As an after thought, Bob turned to the vet and said, why don't you give that old mare over there a complete physical and tell me what you think of her. Our vet agreed, checked all her vital signs and gave her as thorough a physical as could be given, turned to Bob and said that everything checked out to be that of a typical horse in her late teens. Bob said, "Pull her coggins, Maggie's goin' to town."
For the next week Maggie seemed like a youth again. She knew something was coming off and it was definitely good for her or she wouldn't be getting all the attention she was getting. Friday night we left the show early so we could groom Maggie. We washed and braided her mane and tail and clipped her some. We didn't give her a body clip because she was already starting to grow her winter coat and we didn't want to do anything to jeopardize her health this winter. We did clip her a bridal path (Bob wasn't going to, but he said that Maggie told him that if she was going to make a comeback at Ava for her 21st anniversary of her 1981 Celebration win he could at least let her do it in style.) She had been excited about what was happening all week!
On Saturday morning Bob drove her in her royal chariot to the show grounds so she would have time to adjust to her surroundings and get settled in. She stayed with our truck and trailer which were behind the versatility arena. She must have been the most visited mare at the show! Even the kids showing in the versatility classes had to go meet "Maggie Ann," and of course Mags loved every bit of attention she got.
That afternoon was a busy one for me, and I got out of a meeting and back to get Maggie just minutes before we had to go into the ring. As we were changing saddles the organ began to play and Maggie's ears went straight up! She nickered for me to hurry up and not make her late! Maggie was highly animated from there on out. On the way down to the ring Maggie called out now and then to see if there were any horses she knew there. Some answered her, and she would talk back to them. She seemed to be saying "I'm BAAACK! and I've still got it takes to show you youngsters what a real fox trot looks like!" I'm sure they were quaking in their boots! <Grin>
First stop was at the DQP station where the VMO's checked Mags.
She passed inspection clean and sound. No one could believe she was
33. We were complimented for taking such good care of her. We were so proud
because of the compliments we received on Maggie's feet. All
the diligent work Bob had put in as a labor of love to restore Maggie's
soundness had not only allowed her to live out her last years in comfort
and without pain but that night that it made it possible for her to go
back into the show ring where she obviously loved to be.
A lot of the veterans of our breed remembered Maggie and also had to come by to see her. Those who knew her and couldn't make it back to the back of the grounds to see her made sure they got to the ring early just to see this old mare fox trot out in the ring one last time. Before we went in to the main arena Maggie even got to be reunited briefly with Connie Jenkins, the lady who had ridden her to her championship.
Maggie got into the warm up ring and I tried to keep her from warming up. She was not youngster. I thought she needed to conserve her energy for the show ring. Maggie had other thoughts. Finally, Mags wouldn't take "no" for an answer so I took her for a ride around the warm up ring a few times before we went in. I was nervous. I was thinking, "Mags, remember to take care of me and don't do anything foolish in the ring that we both might regret."
I had not been in that ring since 1992/3, but when we went into that
ring it was like something magical happened! Mags and I were both young
again. Mags knew what to do and went to popping her head to the rhythm
of her own fox trot, and I relaxed. A grin came on my face and I
couldn't stop smiling, Mags was happy, I was happy and the crowd cheered.
I thought, "Mags, you've got to take it easy on these corners and tried
to slow her down some." Mags was saying "Turn me loose and let me strut
my stuff, old lady, that guy behind us is about to pass me!" 
We got to the center of the ring and parked. Maggie looked up and down the line eyeing her competition as if asking, "And this is it? The judges are going to make their decision already?"
When it was our turn to step forward Mags took a step and just as I raised my hand to wave to everyone, she dipped her head as pretty as you please almost in a bow knowing that she was really who everyone wanted to see, anyway.
It was all over way too soon for both of us and out of the ring we went. The plan was for me to get off and we would walk Maggie back, but neither of us wanted to stop this ride. Maggie walked and talked and fox trotted, all the way back to the hill. Only at the trailer did I reluctantly dismount.
We gave Mags water, hay, and her special pellets which she requires at her age and she seemed totally satisfied with herself. I couldn't have been prouder of her! I hugged her saying, "Oh, Mags, you were wonderful.. You really did take good care of me.. and gave me the best ride ever!" Mags just blinked and gave me one of her knowing looks.
After our ride, I had people I didn't even know come and ask me if it was really true that my horse was over 30 years old and did many fox trotters live this long? They were impressed with her natural fox trot, shake, and rhythm, and the fact that we both obviously enjoyed that ride so much. They wanted to know more about fox trotters, and, so Maggie's participation in the festivities had made her a true ambassador for her breed.
Maggie was a perfect ambassador, too, because Maggie has 3 gaits...a walk, a fox trot, and a canter. She is ever bit a fox trotter in the truest sense of the word. I never have to worry about Maggie pacing or hard trotting, and maybe that is the secret as to why many of these old time foundation mares can hold up to an active life all their lives.
Maggie was escourted home in her chariot long before midnight and got out of the trailer talking to all her equine friends who had gathered to listen. You could almost hear her say to the others "You should have been there! The old lady's still got it!" Then she turned and walked up the drive as she usually does to see her favorite son and tell him all about what mama did that special night when she got to go back to Ava and the Celebration!
An interesting observation is that Maggie was 12 when she won her World
Championship and it was the reverse of that, 21 years later, that she
made her comeback at the 2002 MFTHBA Celebration at Ava, MO.
Epilogue
This story as all stories in life does has an ending. Two months
after her glorious day at the Celebration Maggie suffered a mini stroke,
but seemed to recover from it before the bad winter months came.
Our vet checked her in the spring and she was healthy and doing fine, though
not quite as strong as she had been just a year before. She celebrated
a happy and healthy 34th birthday on March 23, the day before mine. This
was something else Maggie and I shared, the same birth month and birth
days just a day apart. We had already retired Maggie from riding
by then, but she was still getting around well. Hundreds of people
on the Internet read about Maggie's birthday with interest. These
people were not only fox trotter people but those with horses of various
gaited breeds. We got e-mail cards and letters for Maggie from all
over the world. I read them to her and Maggie seemed to know that
the words being read to her were special, especially, with her name being
mentioned so often.
In April Bob wanted to do one last thing for Maggie. We learned that there was to be the oldest living fox trotter contest and Bob wanted to enter her. He didn't think she would actually be the oldest fox trotter, but he wanted to enter her anyway. Our vet sent in a letter stating that Maggie was alive and well, and Bob sent her picture and her entry in to the office. But the clock ticking inside of Maggie had other plans. Little did we know that that clock was running down. On the evening of May 11, 2003, Maggie had another stroke and this time something in her eyes said she wouldn't fight this one. She died the following day in her stall peacefully, no thrashing, no pain, her heart just gave in to the internal clock that measures the years each creature is allotted.
We were and are heartbroken, though we knew that we all knew it was time for her to go. She had stayed much longer than most, given of her self much more than most, done much more than most, and now she will be missed much more than most by those who loved her most. It is hard saying good-bye, but Maggie lives on in the hearts of all who knew her and knew of her.
Maggie Ann Browns was and will ever be the image of the fox trotter past and present, the embodiment of the fox trotter spirit that perseveres in eternal courage, in strength of heart, in loyalty of soul, in trusting love, in grace of style, in smoothness of gait, in passion of competition, and always as a member of the family who will never forget. Good-bye, my Mags, my friend.
Forever with love,
Char
In Loving Memory of World Champion Maggie Ann Browns
Foundation Missouri Fox Trotter Mare-- March 23, 1969 to May 12, 2003
©Copyright by Charlotte Blackwell. All rights reserved.