Stayin' alive: The Little Current story By Jay Hovdey INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The Louvre has the "Mona Lisa." Picasso's "Guernica" hangs in Madrid. Michelangelo's statue of David is at home in Florence, while New York's Museum of Modern Art can lay claim to "The Starry Night," the masterpiece of Van Gogh. But as far as Drs. Mark and Ann Hansen are concerned, those places have nothing on their Maverick Farm, located about 40 miles north of Seattle, where a living piece of equine art named Little Current celebrated his 29th birthday on April 5. The racing world gave Little Current a measure of attention last year, saluting him as the oldest living American classic winner and marking the 25th anniversary of his victories in the 1974 Preakness and Belmont Stakes, not to mention his championship of the 3-year-old division. And you can bet there are publications poised to give him another plug in 2001 when he hits the round- numbered age of 30. But Thoroughbreds are not supposed to live this long. At 29, Little Current deserves a headline every morning just for waking up and a sign on his stall door that reads, "I'm still here." Time takes a fierce toll on these heavy-bodied animals supported by thin, fragile legs. Arthritis sets in. Their spines sags, and their circulation goes haywire. They go blind. Little Current, on the other hand, takes his cue from Dick Clark and Dorian Gray. There must be a Richard Stone Reeves portrait of the champion, stored in an attic somewhere, depicting a frail, boney, slack-jawed version of Little Current looking every one of his 29 years. In the meantime, out there in his paddock at Maverick Farm, the flesh and blood version continues to whistle and stomp whenever a mare wanders by. "He still thinks every mare belongs to him," said Ann Hansen, who operates Maverick Veterinary Services with her husband. After buying a few of his foals, the Hansens became Little Current fans long before they brought him to Washington. Ann Hansen recalls the first time she set eyes on him in his stall, while he was in residence at the Lexington, Ky., farm of breeder Doug Arnold. "They're all magnificent when you tour the farms back there and see all the stallions," she said. "But there are only a few of them who really stand out. And that was when he was 19, a mere child. As horse veterinarians, we see horses day in and day out. Little Current has a tremendous presence. He looks you right in the eye and really interacts with people. "He also exhibits very strong likes and dislikes, and he makes them known," Hansen added. "There are some people he definitely does not like." No one would blame Little Current if he still held a grudge against the guy who allowed 23 horses to contest the 100th running of the Kentucky Derby in 1974. As a stone-cold closer who could inhale horses through the last half-mile, the chestnut son of Sea-Bird was at a horrible disadvantage from the moment they drew the entries. The Donner party had a better trip to California than Little Current had that day in Louisville, and still he managed to finished fifth, beaten about six lengths by Cannonade. When Little Current came right back to win the Preakness by seven and the Belmont by the same margin, there was a stampede of regret that the controversial size of the Derby field had prevented a legitimate Triple Crown winner from being crowned. Trainer Lou Rondinello gave the colt a break, then brought him back in August to run well but lose narrowly to Holding Pattern in both the Monmouth Invitational and the Travers. Little Current chipped an ankle in the subsequent Lawrence Realization and was retired to stud at his birthplace, Darby Dan Farm. His record as a stallion was solid if not spectacular. Little Current can boast such stakes winners as Prize Spot, Aspen Rose, Current Blade, Our Captain Willie, and Current Hope, who ran like his dad, won the 1983 Flamingo, and split a big field in the Kentucky Derby that spring. The Hansens bred Little Current for a few seasons - they have a 3-year-old colt on the farm from his last crop, named Current Miracle - but primarily they cherish the old horse as the world's classiest pet. Mark Hansen grooms him daily, and together the Hansens have devised a feeding program that has kept Little Current free from the more common maladies of old age. "Little Current is on a special senior feed," Ann Hansen said. "No matter how much dentistry is done for them, the teeth just don't chew as well. We give him a feed that breaks down easily and has a high calorie and high fat content. He's been fortunate in not having any significant health problems." Old guys can be grouchy because they have fallen arches, bunions, and corns. Little Current has a special program for his feet and wears glue-on shoes. "That's one time he's mellow, when the blacksmith works on him," Hansen said. "He's got his own grassy area, and he enjoys being outside. But if you interviewed him, he'd probably tell you he preferred to be anywhere there were mares."