By Oliver Crocker

At Mount Vernon High School, pets are considered very important to many students. Junior Alanah Malone has had her two pet horses in her life for about as long as she can remember. It was after daycare that she came home to find her first horse, Ivy, standing in her driveway. She was just two years old, and the sight made her very happy because she had wanted one ever since her grandma told her about them.

Since Ivy, Malone has had two dogs, nine cats, and her other horse; a male Morgan Friesian named Tryton that her grandma bought just two years ago. She was 14 when her and her grandma were looking for a new horse and came across Tryton. He had looked nice enough, however Malone’s grandmother wanted to test his “kid-friendliness”. Her brave granddaughter didn’t hesitate to step up to the task. Although he at first showed no signs of aggression, once Malone mounted the horse, he got on his knees and tried to force her off. Even though Tryton and Malone didn’t quite get along at first, their relationship soon got better as he became a part of their family.

Like many other students at Mount Vernon, Malone finds her pets to be a very important part of her life.  “They help me relate to my grandma. Trail rides really helped us connect and they were a huge part of my childhood.” Ivy and Tryton are clearly very important to Malone, but this is true for many students and their pets at Mount Vernon High School.