We often were left alone out there and I was treated like one of the animals. Most of my time in the barn was spent literally being pulled around by my hair, to “get my attention.” Like a dog, my nose would be rubbed in whatever mistake I made. I was sprayed with hoses, locked in dog kennels, kicked, choked, and often left alone to tame animals three times my size. I don’t mention these things cavalierly, but they were done with such regularity that they don’t even register as the traumatic events they were.
