Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Playing With Lukas is the extraordinary account of Karen Murdock and her horse Lukas. In 2002, when she purchased the nine-year-old chestnut gelding, a former Thoroughbred and now a sorely neglected yard animal, neither had any idea how both their lives were about to be transformed. Using her experience as a neglected child and a psychiatric nurse, employing the traits of patience, appreciation, kindness, compassion, and humor, she formed a deep bond with Lukas and trained him to perform many tricks. Today, he is listed by Yahoo and Google as the "World's Smartest Horse" and is considered one of the top liberty horses in the US. Karen and Lukas share their mission of providing happy futures for former Thoroughbreds. Pet owners and others will see that animals are intelligent and deserve humane treatment and "kind" training. The 83-page book is available for download as an e-book or as a paperback. Upcoming will be a training manual with details of Karen's special methods.
Synopsis
"Find your four, now look for the two," Karen Murdock tells Lukas. For the World's Smartest horse it's a simple task to identify the numbered plaques before him. In fact, it's that trick that earned Lukas his recent Guinness World Record. It's hard to believe that just a few years ago this Thoroughbred ex-racer stood starving and neglected in a yard. It was only after purchasing this "project horse" that Murdock discovered Lukas' extraordinary capacity to learn, which lead her to expand his tricks to include discrimination tasks. Lukas' story has been heard world-wide and the beloved gelding is heralded as an ambassador for all creatures in need. His touching journey from a race-track reject to an Internet sensation gives hope to all who feel abandoned or misunderstood. Lukas and Murdock, once a homeless teenager herself, will forever change the way you see the animals in your life. Find out how Lukas' story turned from tragedy to triumph, even in the face of nearly overwhelming odds.