Photo Finish Read Online Free PDF Page A

naturally.”
    “Just like Prancer,” Lisa said.
    “Right,” Judy said. “But unlike Prancer, this colt is allbusiness once he steps onto the track. He’s got a real drive to win. When he’s not racing, though, anyone would think he was some old coddled saddle mare—he loves people, and he’s very gentle. You can pet him if you want.”
    Eagerly the girls reached forward to pat the colt’s soft nose. Monkeyshines snuffled at each of them in turn.
    “He’s wonderful,” Stevie said. “Lisa, you should definitely get a picture of this.”
    “Good idea,” Lisa said. She raised her camera and peered through the viewfinder. But after fiddling with the lens for a moment, she lowered it again. “It’s no good,” she announced. “It’s too dark here. And I left my flash attachment back at the hotel—I didn’t think I’d be able to use it here. It might spook the horses.”
    “Don’t worry,” Max told her. “You’ll have plenty of photo opportunities tomorrow.… Hey!” Suddenly he jumped forward, looking startled.
    “What is it, Max?” Carole asked.
    But Judy was laughing. “I know,” she said. “Look.”
    The girls looked where she was pointing. There behind Max, gazing up at them and chewing thoughtfully on Max’s sunglasses, was a small white goat with brown spots.
    “That’s Blackie,” Judy explained, reaching down and gently prying the glasses away from the goat. “He’s Monkeyshines’s best friend.”
    “Really?” Lisa said dubiously. “A goat?” She had heardof horses becoming attached to individual animals—cats, dogs, even chickens. But she had never met one who had adopted a goat.
    “Sure,” Judy said. “It’s really not that uncommon. The great racer Seabiscuit had a goat as a companion. Some horses pick even stranger creatures—for instance, War Admiral, a very famous racehorse from the 1930s, had a pet rabbit. It traveled everywhere with him, and even followed him into retirement. These companion animals keep the horses happy—and if the horses are happy, they’re likely to run better.”
    That made sense to all of them. The girls watched as Blackie strolled over to the tall Thoroughbred and looked up. Monkeyshines lowered his head and touched noses with the little goat, then let out a soft whinny.
    “Hey! Did you hear that?” Stevie said. “It sounded like he just said hello!”
    “Don’t get carried away, Stevie,” Max said. “You know horses don’t understand English, and they certainly can’t speak it.”
    “True, Max, true,” Judy said with a grin. “But I think I may have to side with Stevie on this one. That sounded like a hello to me too.” She turned to the girls. “That’s why they always leave Monkeyshines’s door open like that, with just the webbing across it. They want to make sure Blackie can get in and out of the stall.”
    “That’s really neat,” Lisa said. “I have just one question.”
    “What’s that?”
    “Why is he named Blackie?” Lisa asked logically. “There’s not a speck of black on him.”
    Judy laughed. “Good question,” she said. “Actually, Blackie is a nickname. His full name is Black Hole.” She gestured to the goat, who had wandered over and started nibbling on a corner of Lisa’s camera bag. “It’s because everything disappears into his stomach. He’ll eat anything and everything he can get his lips around. I lost a perfectly good ham and cheese sandwich to him yesterday when I set it down for half a second.”
    “I have to get a picture of him!” Lisa pulled her camera bag away from the goat and pointed the camera at him before she remembered the light problem. “Oh, rats. I guess it’ll have to wait until tomorrow too,” she said. She bent down and patted the little goat on the head. “Don’t worry. I’ll take a picture of you first thing tomorrow, I promise.”
    “Hey, Judy, who are all these strangers hanging around our goat?” a playful voice called out from behind them.
    The girls