01/31/2026
Yesterday morning, John and McClain sent the one that started it all onto greener pastures. Chief began his life as a racehorse, as he was the grandson of the famous Triple Crown Winner Seattle Slew. “Chief Partner” on the track, he finished his racing career with 31 starts. Chief came into our family as McClain’s first horse, and he proved to be not only an incredible first horse but a true “family horse”. He loved every Suelthaus he ever met, and boy did we all love him. To say that Chief changed our family forever would be a huge understatement; he taught all of us the tremendous responsibility that comes with the true privilege of caring for horses.
We would all agree that the first night we realized this was 10 years ago when Chief turned up with a dangerous bout of colic that involved a complete colon twist. Chief was not a surgical candidate so after a long and difficult night, the decision was made to euthanize him and the vet was contacted at 3 AM to end his suffering. McClain laid her head on his while she said goodbye (2nd photo) and we waited for the vet to arrive. At 12, she had a full understanding of the difficult and selfless decisions we make when we love our horses as much as we do. After the vet filled the syringes, brought Chief to stand, we walked him outside. There, he began eating grass, and miraculously he made a full recovery.
To sum it up, none of this amazing, crazy, and beautiful journey that we have been on with our horses the past 11 years would have happened if not for him. So thank you Chief, for being our first, showing us what unconditional love from a horse means, and for being a part of our family. People often say how lucky horses are to end up with us, but we truly were the lucky ones to have Chief in our family.
We would like to especially thank Jennifer Moritz for caring for Chief and loving him as her own throughout his retirement.
Rest in peace sweet boy, you will live on in our hearts forever.
