PINE BUSH – He still has his winter coat on, and he'd been having a nice roll in the soft mud that we've all been coping with since the ground thawed out last week, but November Rain, or "Dux" as he's more commonly known, was looking fit and happy in his new quarters in Orange County.

This horse has been around the world — he has an Australian passport. He's competed on four continents in a career spanning his 22 years. At his peak, in 1998 he competed in the World Equestrian Championships in Rome.

More recently though, he was stuck in a muddy field in Pennsylvania, with cows and goats for company. He was in poor condition, ribs showing and doomed, it seemed, to a miserable end.

Then, Colleen Segarra of Pine Bush Equine Rescue and Resource stepped in. "We saw him on the internet, and we went out there and got him. He's been on a premium feed for the last few weeks and he's already looking much better."

Dux started out as a thoroughbred foal in Argentina, destined to race for a living. After a few years there, he was sold to some Australians and shipped halfway around the world. In Australia, his racing career came to an end; he was too slow. But someone had noticed that he was strong and lively and they turned him into a show jumper. He did well in that sport, and in 1998 he went to Rome for the World Equestrian Championships.

After that he was sold and wound up in America. He competed in Florida for years, slowly wending downwards on the ladder of competitions. In his last outing, he came in second on the first day, but was then ruled medically unfit to continue. From there he went into the world of horse traders and wound up in that dismal field in Pennsylvania.

Now, he's been rescued and will spend the rest of his days in the care of Colleen Segarra, who runs Pine Bush's Equine Rescue and Resource. For more information about this organization, visit their website at www.equinerescueresource.com or call 744-6462.

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