I don't want anyone to take this in the wrong way. My family has always had "horse people" in it. I'm a horse people, have always had one since I was about seven. I never showed. I just loved to ride on the farm. If you're like the elder Ws though, you've got to know your market, breed the right bloodlines, have someone show your lineage at these shows, and win ribbons in the top categories to make your horses valuable. That's what makes your horses more valuable. I've a feeling someone has done that for the elder Ws. Horses require massive acreage. They aren't like cows. They have upper and lower teeth so they will snip your pastures down to mud if you can't rotate them. This is why you see folks on the t.v. who've had their horses hauled off to the animal welfare programs. They get it in their head that they can do this but don't realize that the grass won't come back. The hooves destroy the turf also. Horses are extremely expensive to feed too. I've had no more than three at a time, and one was a foal. I was so happy to get the foal sold I never wanted to breed my mare again!!! I have only one now and wonder what I was thinking with buying the other. They are more work than folks think and much more expensive to care for. Same with any animal. I've helped with the cattle on the farm, and in the winter it kinda sucks. I've had lots of critters that eat, and if they eat, they... Anything that eats has to be cared for, and in the winter, especially. Vet visits are pricey. People get into these unique animal breeds and then everybody gets one, and they're stuck with a whole herd and nowhere to sell them, pasture that gets worn down, expensive hay during the winter months, don't have time to break the properly, and boom. There they are. What do they do? Send them to the yards? Horses with super lineage go to dog food? Or keep hoping? Same with pot belly pigs, they're everywhere. Goats and llamas too. Folks who jumped on those are trying to get out from under that. If the elders already had lots of wealth that's different, but starting up a farm with unique animals, that's very iffy. All I'm trying to say is that it could have been several things that were putting strain on the Ws, and then when S's momma was murdered, it tapped him out (and possibly put a $$ strain on his parents too). It's not a flop for everyone. Some do well if they get in early and manage it well.
