Northern Creek Farm

12/23/2025

💞💞

This is what many people don’t want to deal with: aging, the slowing down and the extra steps it takes each day to keep an older horse going. It’s sitting in the barn long after the rest of the chores are done, waiting patiently while they work through their warm mash, knowing their teeth aren’t what they used to be and their body needs more time than it once did. It’s listening to the steady sound of them chewing while the world slows down around you. It’s realizing that what used to take minutes now takes patience.

It’s watching joints stiffen on cold mornings and standing there longer than planned, giving them time to loosen up before asking anything of them. It’s layering blankets just right, checking weather reports more closely than ever, adjusting and readjusting because comfort matters now more than convenience. It’s scooping supplements, soaking feed, scheduling farrier visits more carefully, and noticing every small change, because the small things matter most.

It isn’t always easy. Some days it’s exhausting. Some days it hurts to see the years written so clearly on a body that once felt unstoppable. But they gave you everything they had. They gave you their best year, their strength, their soundness, their heart. They carried you when they didn’t have to. They trusted you without hesitation. They showed up on days when you didn’t deserve it and forgave you when you made mistakes. They taught you patience, courage, and humility long before they ever needed it in return. They gave without question or complaint.

So when their steps slow and their needs grow, this is where we show who we really are. This is where love looks like time, like consistency, like choosing them even when it’s inconvenient. Love looks like staying late, spending more, doing more, and asking for nothing back.

The least we can do is give them patience, kindness, and dignity in their twilight years. To make sure they are warm, comfortable and safe. To let them age without fear or neglect, surrounded by the same care they gave us so freely.

Because they carried us.
Because they earned It
Because they deserve nothing less.

01/26/2022

Bay State Navigator 🐴🌈

A sad day at the farm today. We said farewell to Navigator and helped him cross the rainbow bridge. About 10 weeks shy of his 30th birthday, I think it’s safe to say he lived a long life! He was such a kind, soft soul. Afraid of lots of things - especially the windows and shades in the indoor at UMass- but never a mean thought or action to any person. (And rarely other horses… he and Patriot had some disagreements, but I blame Patriot!!) I met Nav (also known as Gator) when I was a high school student taking college classes. He was 5 yrs old and already full time in the lesson program. That’s a good pony!! He played schoolie until he was 18, when he was retired to live out his next 10+ years at a fabulous backyard with Juliette and Oasis (who passed 6 or so years ago). I was honored to be his final caretaker for the last 15 months. It’s never easy to loose them, no matter how short a time they were yours💔 We will miss him dearly but take comfort knowing he is reuniting with all his old buddies. Run free my dear friend!

01/04/2022

Hoping to help others understand why I have the oldies I do 💗

I see you out there, and I love you for every sacrifice you have made.
I've mentioned it before--I adore shooting elderly horses. Not so much for the actual horse--i love the grumpy dudes and dudettes who are stingey with their ears, of course--but my absolute adoration comes from the people behind every single grey hair. Every single dropped back. Every single ridge in a carefully managed foot.
I see you, old horse owners. I see the promise you made your old friend--that he'd never leave your side again, that he'd never have to worry about a next owner. That he'd never load on a trailer bound for the unknown.
I see the expense it takes in dollars and worry. The careful diet you obsess over, the careful turnout buddies and just the right pasture with the perfectly not-too-big rolling pit.
I see you beaming at your old horse--proud and happy they are still proud and happy, despite not having sat on their backs for sometimes decades.
I see you-sometimes barely scraping by with two horses, sometimes barely scraping by with one. I see what you've done--the bills you've paid month after month because your old friend is still happy to live.
I see the joy your old friend brings you when he tilts his head just this way, and the way he stands just inches from your hair-both of you breathing one another in.
I see your impending heartbreak for the day you may have to make that final decision. I see your internal struggle--is he happy? Is he ok? Am I keeping him around for him or me?
I see your tears thinking about that day, and the tears of joy reliving his youth.
To everyone with an old horse, I see you, and I respect and love you. 💕

12/31/2021

Good folks on the BFD!
…we know the guy IN the water with the horse… nice job Nate!

05/31/2021

Bay State Juliette
We let her cross the rainbow bridge today. 🌈💔
33 years is quite the lifetime for a simple school horse. I can’t even begin to count the number of lives she’s touched. Born in 1988, she’s seen decades of eager college students come in the barn doors to learn about equines. From birth through passing, she has been cared for by UMass students and alum. I’m enormously saddened by her passing and honored to have been her final caretaker.
Rest easy my friend. Thank you for sharing your gentle soul with so many. Run free.

03/17/2021

Welcome to the Northern Creek Farm family little mare!!
This is Desi, a 15 yr old Morgan mare! We’re excited to start working with her! 🐎

02/25/2021

We hear it all of the time: “I don’t make any money off of boarding, its a business of love.” And we as the boarders shake our heads in frustration, wondering how our hard earned …

11/18/2020

10/30/2020

We brought these lovely ladies home last weekend! We’ve already started riding them, as they are just so sweet! They get their feet done today and then will get a proper sale listing... but for now, enjoy their pretty little faces! ☺️🤩