FINISH LINE
The Mini-Palooza BY ANN GLAVAN
W
hat’s with the trend of top sport horses and their miniature buddies? Some minis are rescues, while others are companion animals, first ponies, barn mascots— or maybe they’re around just because they’re so darn cute.
Napoleon and Fairy
Sometimes it’s just fun to have a cute couple of minis around the barn. That’s what Louisburg Farm owner Beth Johnson thought when she picked up Napoleon and Fairy from the Northeast Miniature Horse Club, a rescue based in New Hampshire. But the duo have not been idle in their time at Louisburg Farm—along with starring in a photo shoot Napoleon (left) and Fairy featured in with Louisburg trainer an adorable photo shoot Louisburg Molly Ashe Cawley; her Farm trainer Molly Ashe Cawley did with her two children, Taylor and two children, Taylor Connor, and her mother, Sue Ashe. and Connor; and Molly’s ISABEL KUREK PHOTO mother, Sue Ashe, the two also learned a new skill. “We actually used to have a groom who had some driving experience, and she taught them to drive,” said Paul Butterworth, also a trainer with Louisburg.
Cooper
Candice King couldn’t resist snapping a selfie with the Bellissimo family’s Miniature Horse, Starsky, when he rolled over for a belly rub in her lap. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BELLISSIMO FAMILY
Starsky and Hutch
Paige Bellissimo and her family’s Far Niente Farm in Wellington, Fla., have welcomed two Miniature Horses into their herd—dubbed Starsky and Hutch. Both are rescues Bellissimo got through The Peeps Foundation, a Miniature Horse rescue group founded by show jumper Alex Granato. “Hutch was really badly abused. His spine and hips were just sticking out of his little body, and his teeth were so long he could hardly eat,” Bellissimo said. His partner in crime, the shorter Starsky, was born at The Peeps Foundation and has been the life of the party from Day 1. “He’s like a little king; he’s just Mr. Personality and has such a little attitude and is so cute,” Bellissimo said. Starsky and Hutch share a stall at the Bellissimos’ farm, complete with a half stall door so they can poke their heads out and look up the aisle like their bigger barnmates. Starsky even met the world famous Budweiser Clydesdales and was not at all intimidated by their size or star power. “He just walked up to the huge Clydesdales and bit their noses,” Bellissimo said with a laugh. 88 The Chronicle of the Horse
“I’m actually his cool aunt. I don’t own him,” Kama Godek said of Cooper. “Haley Schaufeld is the owner, and I acquired him when I started renting their barn. She was on the road, and he stayed home with us.” Don’t tell Godek’s grand prix horse, Air Force One, or “President,” that the mini isn’t theirs to keep. He’s grown quite attached to the little fellow. Kama Godek’s grand prix horse “President saw him Air Force One is absolutely [while we were schooling], smitten with Cooper the mini. PHOTO COURTESY OF KAMA GODEK and he freaked out like it was a mare and a foal that had just been weaned. He was so excited to see him he could hardly contain himself,” Godek said with a laugh. Cooper is a little stud, but stallion or not, Godek said he’s on his best behavior when it counts. “He’s actually really good with the kids and stuff; he has just enough character that he’s not dangerous or annoying,” Godek said.
