Politico

Is a retired Thoroughbred. Although Politico is lightning-fast—really a blur when he runs—he wasn’t a moneymaker. To our knowledge, he never won a race. When his owner realized he wouldn’t see a return on his investment, Politico was not treated well and was sent to auction. He almost certainly would have been slaughtered if not for a compassionate horse-lover who rescued him and asked if we could take him at the Funny Farm. Politico is sleek, beautiful and obsidian black. He’s also balky and short-tempered—in horsey parlance, “hot-blooded.” Politico has calmed down a lot over the years, in large part because of a “widowed” mare named Jelly, whose longtime mate Peanut Butter died of asthma. Though Jelly is an older woman—about twenty-seven, to Politico’s twenty—they’re a devoted pair.