Groveport, Ohio: Statue of the Horse Whisperer

There's parking right in front of the Horse whisperer. Pretty neat sculpture set!

According to the plaque in front of this monument, John S. Rarey (1827-66) was the original "horse whisperer." His humane training method involved talking to the horses and using a gentle but firm touch. Horse owners would bring their unruly horses to John for training and he became famous. His greatest success was training a very vicious and unruly British horse named Cruiser (1852-75), owned by the Earl of Dorchester. Cruiser would begin kicking and screaming in his stall whenever anyone approached him. Rarey calmly entered the stall, and three hours later he emerged riding Cruiser. The Earl was so impressed that he let Rarey buy Cruiser and they went on a worldwide tour showing Rarey's training techniques. Rarey later returned to Groveport with Cruiser, who lived to be 23 years old. Cruiser is the mascot of the Groveport High School athletic teams and is featured on the town seal.