Mini Horse Madness

The Mini-Palooza

BY ANN GLAVAN

What’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.

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.

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 with Louisburg trainer Napoleon (left) and Fairy featured in an adorable photo shoot Louisburg Molly Ashe Cawley; her Farm trainer Molly Ashe Cawley did two children, Taylor with her two children, Taylor and and Connor; and Molly’s mother, Sue Ashe, the Connor, and her mother, Sue Ashe. ISABEL KUREK PHOTO 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

“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 Air Force One is absolutely smitten with Cooper the mini. “President saw him [while we were schooling], 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.

Moon Pie was a long time coming for Alise Oken, as she’s always wanted a Miniature Horse friend to hang around HiHopes Farm with

her jumpers. PHOTO COURTESY OF ALISE OKEN

Daisy

It’s hardly a surprise McLain and Lauren Ward’s 1-year-old daughter, Lilly, has already found her way into a saddle a few times. The tot has her own Miniature Horse, Daisy. “I thought I was crazy getting a pony for my 8-month-old,” Lauren said with a laugh. “But we actually get a lot of use out of her.” Lauren found Daisy through Kate Kocher-Bechtel, a Lilly Ward is getting an early start at following in her parents’ footsteps— she’s pictured here with her mother, Pennsylvania-based horsewoman who Lauren, and her Miniature Horse, sells minis specifically Daisy. DEBRA JAMROZ PHOTO for small children. Daisy has a slew of gear—fly sheet, fly mask, stable sheet and blanket—all in miniature, provided by McLain’s sponsors, Triple Crown Custom and Horseware Ireland. Lauren also got a set of tiny brushes.

“She likes to brush the pony and pick her feet out, and the normal-sized brushes are too big,” said Lauren, of Wellington and Brewster, N.Y. “She can’t quite hold them with one hand, so we got kids’ brushes. And she walks out, and if I say, ‘Where’s Daisy?’ she knows, and she goes walking out to the field to look for her pony. It’s fun. It’s really fun.”

Moon Pie

Alise Oken has been biding her time for the perfect opportunity to add a Miniature Horse to her string of show jumpers at HiHopes Farm in Wellington and Matthews, N.C., and it’s finally arrived.

“Now that I have a couple of retired jumpers I thought it would be a good idea to get a companion for them,” Oken said.

While Oken, 25, was in Wellington for the winter, she adopted her rescued mini, a recently gelded horse named Moon Pie, through The Peeps Foundation.

“I went over to the farm to meet him, and I knew right away,” Oken said. “I mean all of their minis are adorable, so I actually wanted to take more than one home with me, but I know my parents would kill me, so we brought him home, and he’s been great.

“He doesn’t act like a stallion at all,” Oken continued. “When we first got him, he was a bit head shy, but we’ve spoiled him to bits. Honestly, he’s our new mascot.”

Elvis

Trainer Kim Barone, of Raven Ridge Farm in Watertown, Minn., and Wellington, was on the hunt for a companion pony for her young hunter, Easy Street HU, when she found Miniature Horse Elvis.

“ ‘Easy’ was afraid of other horses, and a great horseman named Don Coulter told me if Easy had a pony that he could be in charge of, that might help his confidence,” Barone said.

“So the first pony I put him with was a medium pony, and the medium beat him up, and that did not help his confidence,” Barone continued with a laugh. “So we opted to go smaller, and that’s how we got Elvis.”

Elvis was listed on Craigslist in Minnesota. He has a very shy personality that proved perfect for buddying up with Easy, and the two share a stall and paddock at Barone’s farms.

“The [former] owner had contacted me about three weeks ago. They wanted to come visit him, and I said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry he’s in Florida right now with me,’ and she was like, ‘What?! He’s in Florida for the winter, and I’m in Minnesota?’ ” Barone said.

Easy Street HU and Elvis are inseparable. They get turned out together, share a stall and even ship together. ANN GLAVAN PHOTO