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ACHIEVING RIDING DREAMS ONE-HANDED, PG. 18 plus HOW HORSES COMMUNICATE PAIN, PG. 14 ®

JULY 2021

Summer’s TOP 9

DANGERS TO AVOID MEET MULES That Help Fight

WILDFIRES Unravel the Mysteries of the equine gut

HORSE ILLUSTRATED US $ 4.99 • Vol 45 No. 6 • Issue code: 2021-07 July 2021 • Display until 7/20/2021

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ILLUSTRATED

JULY 2021 | VOLUME 45 | NUMBER 6

features

30 Top Dangers of Summer

Here’s a rundown of what to be on the lookout for as the weather heats up.

36 The Invisible City Billions of tiny helpers teem within your horse’s gut to digest his food and help keep him healthy.

42 At the Crossroads Follow the stories of three horse owners whose equine “Mr. Right” was no longer right for them, and how they decided what to do next.

48 Equines Fighting Fires

54

Horses and mules provide support for fire prevention, mitigation, and active suppression efforts.

Help for HardWorking Equines Brooke USA teaches compassionate care for many of the world’s hardest-working horses, mules and donkeys.

COVER PHOTO: MORGAN STALLION BEN’S RHAPSODY, PHOTO BY HOWARD SCHATZBERG THIS PAGE: © FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 1 ]

ILLUSTRATED

JULY 2021 | VOLUME 45 | NUMBER 6

10 18

22 60 departments 4 Editor’s Letter

10 Summer Loving

18 Dressage with Differences

Emily makes a vow not to complain now that winter is finally a distant memory and everything is ... damp.

Holly Bergay was able to overcome a physical disability because of her positive mindset and determination.

12 Project Rehab

22 Prepare to Pivot

A pair of feral ponies need a good dose of care in this month’s Vet Adventures.

Nail the most challenging maneuver in showmanship.

14 Communicating Pain Since they can’t tell us what’s wrong, we must be alert to subtle signals horses give out.

[ 2 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

26 Going Sideways A look at the leg-yield from the rider’s point of view, and how to troubleshoot three common mistakes.

8 Notebook 60 Breed Portrait: The Morgan Horse 72 Parting Shot

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: ADAM RECK/SHUTTERSTOCK; JANELLE SCHROEDER; ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT; ELMA GARCIA

6 What’s Online

columns

The Professional’s Solution

exhibitorsequine.com

Cornelia Dorr’s By-The-Sea aka Percy- SAS Photography

editor’s letter Editorial EDITOR: Holly Caccamise DIGITAL CONTENT EDITOR: Sarah Evers Conrad ART DIRECTOR: Cindy Kassebaum PRODUCTION MANAGER: Vipin Marwaha DIRECTOR OF SALES: Rima Dorsey (949) 370-1437 rdorsey@egmediamags.com SALES REPRESENTATIVES: Darien Boughrum (707) 280-1074 darienb@egmediamags.com Ken Murrell (213) 425-5802 kmurrell@egmediamags.com Jana Robinson (904) 234-5732 jrobinson@egmediamags.com

TOM WERNER

On the JOB his month, we have a unique perspective for you on working equines. Horses, mules and donkeys were traditionally used as beasts of burden, although that’s not how we think of them today.

Most of us consider our horses more like companion animals—a luxury, to be sure, but not the animal you depend on to provide for your family. However, in many parts of the developing world, people still absolutely use horses this way. Kim’s article on Brooke and BrookeUSA on pg. 54 provides a look into this charity focused on education and aid to these equines and their owners.

Here in the U.S., there are still a few working animals to be found as well. In “Equines Fighting Fires,” Stacey follows the life of pack mules bringing fire supplies to hardworking crews out West. While they don’t generally come close to the actual flames, their work is invaluable for reaching areas where trucks and even ATVs can’t go.

Finally, don’t forget to tune into our first podcast, released May 25.

Interviews include a rider with the ultimate dream job; a western horsemanship clinician with life advice for all riders; and an equestrian fiction author with books you won’t want to put down. Listen in by downloading on your favorite podcast app, or by going online to www.horseillustrated.com/podcast.

Happy listening, reading and riding!

T

Holly Caccamise Editor editor@horseillustrated.com

[ 4 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

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EG MEDIA INVESTMENTS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER: Sandeep Dua CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER: Kevin Isaacson CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER: Ajay Sharma GENERAL COUNSEL: Julie Robinson SUBSCRIBER SERVICES (844) 330-6373 Mon - Fri, 9 a.m. - 8 p.m. Central customerservice@egmediamags.com HORSE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE (ISSN 0145-9791) IS PUBLISHED TEN TIMES IN A YEAR – MARCH, APRIL, MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER AND JANUARY/ FEBRUARY BY EG MEDIA INVESTMENTS LLC, 4635 MCEWEN ROAD, DALLAS, TEXAS 75244. CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS IS LOCATED AT 4635 MCEWEN ROAD, DALLAS, TEXAS 75244. EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENCE MAY BE DIRECTED TO EDITOR@HORSEILLUSTRATED. COM OR P.O. BOX 3945, LAGUNA HILLS, CA 92654. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT DALLAS, TEXAS 75244 AND AT ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES. POSTMASTER: PLEASE SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO HORSE ILLUSTRATED, 4635 MCEWEN ROAD, DALLAS, TEXAS 75244 ©2021 BY EG MEDIA INVESTMENTS LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION OF ANY MATERIAL FROM THIS ISSUE IN WHOLE OR IN PART IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. FOR SUBSCRIPTION INQUIRIES OR CHANGE OF ADDRESS: HORSE ILLUSTRATED, P.O. BOX 74660, CHICAGO, IL 60675-4660. TEL: 844-330-6373. EMAIL: CUSTOMERSERVICE@ EGMEDIAMAGS.COM. SUBSCRIPTION RATE IS $21.95 FOR 10 ISSUES, $36.95 FOR 20 ISSUES. CANADIAN AND FOREIGN SURFACE, ADD $21.00 EXTRA PER YEAR PAYABLE IN U.S. FUNDS. SINGLE COPY PRICE IS $4.99. PLEASE ALLOW 6 TO 8 WEEKS FOR NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS TO BEGIN. WHEN CHANGING ADDRESS, GIVE 6 WEEKS NOTICE AND ADDRESS LABEL FROM LATEST COPY AS WELL AS NEW ADDRESS WITH ZIP CODE. OCCASIONALLY, WE MAKE OUR SUBSCRIBER LIST AVAILABLE TO CAREFULLY SCREENED COMPANIES THAT OFFER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES THAT WE BELIEVE WOULD INTEREST OUR READERS. IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO RECEIVE THESE OFFERS AND/OR INFORMATION, PLEASE WRITE US AT PRIVACY POLICY, EG MEDIA INVESTMENTS, LLC, 4635 MCEWEN ROAD, DALLAS, TEXAS 75244 OR SEND US AN EMAIL AT PRIVACY@EGMEDIAMAGS.COM. TO VIEW OUR PRIVACY POLICY, PLEASE EMAIL PRIVACY@EGMEDIAMAGS.COM. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40612608. REGISTRATION NO. R126851765. RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO: IMEX GLOBAL SOLUTIONS, P.O. BOX 25542, LONDON, ON N6C 6B2, CANADA. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.

C L O S E R TO G O W A D DR

DOWN on the FARM From her horse farm in Nebraska, Cara Whitney—wife of Dan Whitney (aka “Larry the Cable Guy”)—shares humorous and touching stories featuring her horses, cows, and rascally dogs. In Fields of Grace, Cara shows us that it’s always a good time to share the love of Jesus with your neighbor.

AVA IL A BLE W HER E BOOKS A R E SOLD

ARTHORSE/SHUTTERSTOCK

WHAT TO DO

DOG DAYS OF SUMMER

IF YOU NEED TO SELL

Before you head out to the barn for those long summer rides, make sure your horse is in tip-top health for all the fun you have planned. With the hottest months now upon us, nail your summer horse care steps as easy as 1, 2, 3.

Our vet expert, Anna O’Brien, DVM, shows you how at www.horseillustrated.com/summerhorse-care.

Hundreds of thousands of horses are bought, sold, adopted or rehomed each year. It can be either an exhilarating and fun process, or a frustrating and exhausting one that leads to finding your new equine partner. Cultural stigma leads us to believe that horse sellers are not trustworthy, but if you ask anyone who has sold a horse, they will tell you that horse buyers come with their own individual set of quirks. And yet we can all agree that faux pas just lead to bad sales.

This month, we have an in-depth look at three stories of women who found themselves at a crossroads when their “Mr. Right” turned into “Mr. Not-so-Much.” If you find yourself in a similar situation, don’t miss this guide to the dos and don’ts of selling a horse by Carleigh Fedorka, Ph.D. Carleigh put herself through grad school by selling off-track Thoroughbreds she carefully selected and retrained for show horse homes—but not for just any buyer that came along. Read more at www.horseillustrated.com/the-dos-and-donts-of-buying-and-selling-horses.

Connect

[ 6 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

DENNIS W DONOHUE/SHUTTERSTOCK

STAFF PICKS

TRY CAMPING WITH HORSES Spending time in nature is an exciting and healing experience. Add a horse to the mix and you get to see the world through different, far more astute, eyes. In fact, the United States’ wilderness areas were defined and established with pack trips and equine travel in mind. Camping with your horse, whether in developed campgrounds or off the beaten track, is an unmatched way to get back to nature and test that relationship you’ve been working so hard on back home.

“It’s such a satisfying feeling to be in the wilderness with an animal,”

says Aniela Gottwald, the intrepid young woman behind the @riding.wild Instagram account, where she shares her backcountry horseback adventures.

Continue reading at www.horse illustrated.com/camping-with-your-horse.

GROOMEE/SHUTTERSTOCK

MUST-READS @ HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM THIS MONTH

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Join Horse Illustrated on social media for the latest information from the horse industry and be in the know! And don’t forget to like and share your favorite posts with your friends with share buttons.

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DON’T MISS OUT Get all the most timely seasonal and how-to horse advice delivered weekly to your inbox with our free email newsletter.

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july LAND ROVER RESULTS

JEN EMIG/MACMILLAN PHOTOGRAPHY

After grassroots fundraising efforts by competitors, fans and sponsors, the 2021 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event was saved from certain cancellation again this year due to COVID. Although there were no spectators in attendance, riders were grateful to have the big event back on the schedule to get their horses some five-star experience, especially with the Tokyo Olympic Games looming on the horizon this summer. HI

[ 8 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

JEN EMIG/MACMILLAN PHOTOGRAPHY

ALLEN MACMILLAN/MACMILLAN PHOTOGRAPHY

Boyd Martin (USA) and On Cue were the highest-placed U.S. pair in the five-star, earning the Land Rover/ USEF CCI5*-L Eventing National Championship Presented by MARS Equestrian™ for the second consecutive time.

This year brought the addition of a four-star division. Alyssa Phillips (USA), just 24 years old, and Oskar were the winners in their Kentucky debut.

SARAH E. MILLER/MACMILLAN PHOTOGRAPHY

Tim Price (NZL) and Xavier Faer moved up from 11th after dressage to second place in the five-star after superb double-clear rounds in cross-country and stadium jumping.

Oliver Townend (GBR) won the five-star event for the third time in a row. This year he triumphed aboard Ballaghmor Class, who was originally pointed for the five-star at Badminton, but that event was cancelled this year.

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your horse life

summer

LOVING Emily makes a vow not to complain now that winter is finally a distant memory and everything is ... damp.

BY EMILY BOGENSCHUTZ his winter, while I clenched my horse’s freezing metal bit between my thighs to warm it up for her, I made a promise. I lifted my eyes skyward and telepathically swore to equestrian higher power Beezie Madden that I would neither whine nor wail about the heat and humidity this year if she would only hasten the arrival of warm weather and make the riding gods bring back summer.

The cool weather is a welcome break here in Texas, but four weeks into the season, the bloom is off the rose. It’s dark at 4 p.m., everything is dry, everything is dusty, and I yearn for green grass, turnout, and the end of dragon-longeing season.

So this year, I’m not complaining, both because I promised I wouldn’t look the gift horse of summer in the mouth again, and because there are quite a few points in summer’s favor. That said, I did take a quick peek inside the horse’s mouth, and I have a few, um, notes.

T

Short work of all the cleaning I’ve been postponing. I can spray everything down, because guess what? It’ll dry!

Except, ahem, that it’s not “warm.” It’s hot.

‘Tis the season to down an electrolyte packet dissolved in a full water bottle before I even don my breeches. Forgetting to hydrate is an inconvenience in the fall, winter, and spring.

In summer, it’s a one-way ticket to my heatstroke-riddled shell of a body being shaken awake by an alarmed spouse, who has found me asleep on the floor where I sat down for a quick second to take off my boot socks.

And it’s sweaty. It’s sweatier than an adult amateur who just realized she memorized the wrong course at her first rated show. Has anyone ever been this sweaty? Short sleeves, no sleeves, fully nude, it doesn’t matter, I’m going to leave the barn icky at a minimum, and more likely soaking wet.

HORSE BATHS THE HEAT IS ON First, you must allow me to tell you how ardently I adore the warm weather. I don’t care how much I sweat. The heat is so deliciously soft on my exhausted winter skin.

Short hair coats on the horses! Short sleeves! [ 10 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

Next, it would be impossible for me to overstate my appreciation for the ability to (finally!) bathe my horse. Baths! Baths forever! And the months ahead are full of them.

No more currying until my arm is sore, hot toweling, and minding a giant fleece cooler-

ADAM RECK/SHUTTERSTOCK

wrapped mare for an hour while I wait for her to be dry enough to blanket. A quick spritz! A quick scrape! And we’re off! To graze! In the 7 p.m. sun!

On the other hand, I know I said “baths forever,” but baths forever? And it won’t be a quick spritz and scrape, because my horse is sweaty in ways and places that cannot be erased with a quick anything. She needs an actual bath, which she resents, with actual shampoo, which she loathes. And damp legs mean fungus, and fungus means special soaps, and special soaps means more baths, and more baths mean more fungus. And now my mare’s mad. Apologize.

WET EVERYTHING In addition, let me assure you I really love the enthusiasm with which you tackled my moaning about the lack of moisture in the air all winter. The dry air is gone! The dry hands are gone! The dry hooves are gone! The horsey dandruff is gone! The rubbed-raw tops of dry horse tails are gone!

But also: the dry air is gone. The dry hooves are gone. And now my horse is rubbing the top of her tail because she is irritated from merely existing in the putrid atmosphere. And now

she’s showing a full white corner of her eyeball as I slather her with potions to prevent her from balding in the muggy, sticky heat.

Since the summer started, everything in my horse life has been running a low-grade fever of “moist.” It doesn’t matter how many desiccants and deodorizing packs I cram into my drenched helmet and steamy boots. My helmet liner is going to be wet tomorrow. My boots are going to mildew. And in the end, I will beg for blanket season.

SAVING DAYLIGHT Finally, whomever stepped up and made summer days last longer—you’re my hero. There are roughly 39 hours of sunlight in every day, which means maximum hours to spend at the barn after I leave the office.

And I have nothing to add here. Extra summer daylight hours are a heaven-sent apology from Beezie herself for the five seconds of civil twilight we have to ride in every day during the winter.

And even I wouldn’t dare complain about that.

Happy hydration. Happy trails. Happy summer. HI EMILY BOGENSCHUTZ is a freelance writer, attorney, and professional sneaker of saddle pads into the washing machine.

She is based in Texas. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 11 ]

vet adventures

Project

Rehab A pair of feral ponies need a good dose of vet care and an even bigger helping of TLC.

BY COURTNEY S. DIEHL t was obvious that the two little ponies wanted absolutely nothing to do with humans. They huddled together at the far end of the paddock watching us warily. Lonnie sighed and rested her hands on the wooden fence.

“It wasn’t like I wanted two ponies, but I couldn’t leave them there, Dr. Diehl. They would have ended up on the meat truck for sure.”

I

INITIAL ASSESSMENT Lonnie had just come from a large horse sale outside of Denver. She’d been looking for a driving team but came home with two feral ponies instead. While I admired Lonnie’s good intentions, I also knew that she or I could be seriously injured trying to handle them.

Lonnie’s son tossed some hay into the pen and the ponies began to eat, never taking their eyes off of us. We entered their pen slowly and spoke to them in calm voices, but they immediately crowded against the fence, almost climbing over each other in an effort to escape us.

I studied them. They were on the thin side, although the smaller mare had a potbelly.

Their long manes were tangled and their coats dull; their feet were very overgrown. The larger mare had deep sores on both of her hips and a swollen hind fetlock. They still had their hip numbers glued in place, which somehow made them look even more pathetic, and I felt a rush of affection for Lonnie, who was going to have her hands full. [ 12 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

“Let’s get them on a good feeding program and we’ll test their manure for parasites and start a deworming protocol,” I said. “Maybe they’ll come around with some good food and handling, and then we’ll be able to do more with them.”

Lonnie nodded, and I could already see the wheels turning in her head. She was an excellent horsewoman, and whatever had previously happened to these little mares, they’d landed well and at least would have a chance for a new life at Lonnie’s place.

WORMS CONFIRMED That evening I took the manure samples to the small lab in my basement. I mixed the manure with fecal solution and spun the individual containers in my centrifuge, then let them sit for a few minutes with a glass cover slip on top. I lifted off each cover slip, placed them on glass slides, and peered at each through my microscope.

Both slides were a veritable who’s who of the parasite world—each was teeming with a selection of tiny parasite eggs, ranging from tapeworms and ascarids to large and small strongyles.

I chucked the slides into the medical waste container and called Lonnie. Since the ponies would be quarantined for 14 days, there was no risk to the other horses on the farm, but I wanted to start them on a deworming protocol right away. Lonnie promised to compost

the contaminated manure properly, and we’d retest them after treatment.

Two weeks later, I was on a call near Lonnie’s place and on a whim and decided to stop in and check on things. I started laughing as I pulled in, because Lonnie was sitting in a chair in the middle of the pen reading a book while the ponies munched their hay nearby. She looked up as I got out of the truck and waved happily.

“Grab a chair and come on in!” she shouted.

I spied a folding chair, picked it up quietly, and practically tiptoed over to Lonnie. I gingerly started to unfold the chair, but Lonnie grabbed it and gave it a shake, and the chair snapped open loudly. The ponies jerked their heads up for a minute but soon returned to their food.

“Sit down, Doc! You’re walking around like you’ve peed yourself!”

Lonnie reached in a paper bag at her feet and pulled out two apples, handing me one.

“What are we doing?” I asked.

Lonnie bit into her apple loudly and gestured for me to do the same. She leaned back in her chair, waving the bitten apple around, and one of the little mares took a step toward her, then another. Lonnie pretended not to notice as the pony snatched the apple and retreated quickly, then she winked at me.

BONUS SURPRISE When Lonnie was able to reliably get halters on the mares, I did check-ups and shots. The littlest mare flinched but held still as I listened to her heart and lungs. She fought me when I tried to check her teeth and turned into a demon when I vaccinated her.

The second mare was also uncooperative for the shots, but soon I was tossing my used needles into my sharps container and pulling off my exam gloves.

They were about 8 and 15 years old. The older pony needed X-rays of the bad ankle, but her sores were healing, and Lonnie had been able to remove the hip numbers and cut off some of the worst tangles from their manes.

They both had lice, and because they came from an unknown situation, there were other things that also needed to be investigated.

“Lonnie, did they say anything at the sale about the possibility of either mare being bred?”

Lonnie frowned. “No, I don’t think they did.

They couldn’t be pregnant, could they?”

I shrugged. “Who knows. But we better check them.”

ANNA KRIVITSKAYA/SHUTTERSTOCK

GETTING ON THEIR GOOD SIDE

It was several more weeks before I was able to safely sedate the mares and ultrasound them, and sure enough, the smaller one was about seven months pregnant.

Lonnie was able to track the former owner down, but the man had insisted that the mare couldn’t possibly be bred because the only stud horse around his place was a 17-hand Percheron.

Lonnie and I looked at each other in dismay.

A 13-hand pony mare bred to a draft horse? I’d never heard of such a thing and had no idea what to tell Lonnie. I decided to call my mentor, Dr. George Platt, and ask his advice.

To be continued next month … HI COURTNEY S. DIEHL, DVM, has been an equine veterinarian since 2000. She is the author of Horse Vet: Chronicles of a Mobile Veterinarian and Stories of Eric the Fox, first-place winner of the CIPA EVVY award. She is currently working on her third book. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 13 ]

horse behavior

communicating

PAIN

Since they can’t tell us what’s wrong, we must be alert to subtle signals horses give out.

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY SHAWN HAMILTON esides not being able to talk, horses are flight animals and have an instinctual ability to hide pain. So how do horses tell us that they are in discomfort? Obvious signs such as biting, bucking suddenly, not wanting to be saddled, reluctance to go forward under saddle, or short strides we can often interpret, but there are times when we have to dig a little deeper and keep our Spidey senses alert for other signs of pain.

B

[ 14 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

CASE STUDIES My three horses have all communicated their pain to me in different ways, some obvious and others harder to detect. Bailey Girl, my American Paint Horse mare, is extremely thin-skinned—a field of long grass tickles her belly and makes her uneasy.

She is typically girthy, but at one point she tried to bite me when doing up her girth. In addition, when I lifted her front legs to pull the skin out from under the girth, she reared.

I touched her girth area, she was fine; ran my fingers down her back, no response. Was she just being cranky? Did she not want to be ridden, and if so, why?

An appointment with my equine massage therapist revealed she had sore shoulders, a place I didn’t even think to look. Her saddle was custom made for her, but as she aged, her shape changed. But arthritis in her knees was the No. 1 culprit.

The diagnosis from my equine masseuse, in consultation with the veterinarian: Due to Bailey Girl’s arthritis in her knees, and lack of flexion in them, she has to lift more from the shoulders (trapezius and rhomboids) to clear the ground with her feet. This resulted in very tight shoulders and lower neck, which in turn caused rearing when the front feet were picked up too high and the knees flexed too much. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 15 ]

A follow up with my equine chiropractor revealed the following: Musculoskeletal variations, spinal misalignments.

Tight bilateral pectorals. Decreased lateral flexion of the cervical spine right. Sternocostal ribs restricted left 4 and right 3.

PAIN UNDER SADDLE

Sudden girthiness is a sure sign that something is going on and your horse may be experiencing pain.

My Appaloosa gelding, Bailey Boy (yes, I ended up with two horses named Bailey), had a completely different way of telling me he was sore. On a typical day on the trails, Bailey wouldn’t mind if the herd was quite a distance ahead of him. Yet all of a sudden, he began to get anxious when they were more than three horse lengths away.

It turns out he was very sore in the spine and neck, an injury caused by a previous trailer accident. Now when he starts to worry about being with the herd out on a trail, I know it is time for his massage and/or chiropractic appointment, depending on the severity of the soreness.

Then there’s my big-boned guy Major, a Paint/Belgian-cross. Nothing seemed to bother him. He is thick-skinned and never cranky as long as his belly is full.

One day while being groomed, he began to nip or head-butt me whenever I walked in front of his chest area. I knew he was trying to tell me something, but I couldn’t figure it out.

After a visit from the massage therapist, it was revealed that he was sore in the sternum area. We had recently started him on small cavalletti training and cross-rails, which was causing muscle strain in that area.

The diagnosis from my equine masseuse, in consultation with the veterinarian: Major’s snappiness around his sternum originated from the pectoralis and belly muscles being torn slightly from jumping. Due to his size and conformation, these muscles were over-taxed when he stretched out to clear the jumps.

[ 16 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

This made me think about how many other ways horses communicate pain. Signs under saddle, like tail swishing, head tossing, skin twitching, hesitating or refusing fences, trouble bending in one direction, or trouble picking up or holding a lead can be construed as stubbornness, but perhaps we need to slow down and take a deeper look.

Linda Hauck, a lifelong horse woman and designer of the patented Spursuader Spur and Tapestry Comfort Girth, took pain in horses seriously.

“I invented the products to make horses more comfortable when being ridden,” she says. “They are ‘talking’ all the time about what we do with them and what we put on them. I thought about how to make the spur kinder but still effective, and how to make the girth more comfortable than a tight, leather belt so it could breathe with the horse but hold the saddle on securely.

“When a horse dances at the cross-ties or mounting block, he is anticipating pain,” Hauck continues. “Holding his head and neck higher than usual helps with the discomfort. Choppy, uneven movement throughout the ride, holding their breath at a canter, and having difficulty picking up a lead are all signs of pain or discomfort. Rushing is often a key that they are running away from the discomfort of a saddle or girth.”

KEEPING AN EYE OUT When not under saddle, horses can communicate pain by pacing, pawing, rolling or kicking at their sides, but less obvious signals, such as an unusual posture, depressed facial expression, pinched nostrils, sunken eyes or blinking or staring at a particular area can all be signs of pain.

In order to realize your horse’s early attempts to communicate pain, it’s a good idea to study his daily activity and normal routine.

If your horse stops rolling in his favorite dirt pile, stands in the paddock with a lowered head, and decreases his normal activity, these can all be early signs of discomfort.

Go online for exercies to help sore or girthy horses with a certified neuromovement trainer at www. horseillustrated.com/working-with-pain. HI

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horse people

Dressage with differences Born without a left hand, Holly Bergay was able to establish her own training program because of her positive mindset and willingness to overcome setbacks.

BY HEIDI NYLAND MELOCCO itting squarely in her black dressage saddle, Holly Bergay picks up her reins and prepares to train a young horse at her Sedalia, Colo., riding center. Holding the soft leather with the fingers of her right hand, she carefully places a loop around her left elbow.

Bergay has achieved world-class riding levels, but not without challenges and the grit to overcome them. Born with her left arm ending just below her elbow, riding could have been too much. Instead, Bergay persisted with the mindset that she must “figure it out.” On her riding journey, she lost a horse to lameness and another beloved mount to cancer. No matter the obstacle, she powers on, knowing that with hard work, you can make your dreams a reality.

“Dressage has taken me all over the world,” Bergay says. She lists her many show titles and achievements without bragging and while acknowledging the work—and consistent learning with notable dressage trainers—that it took to reach each milestone.

“I was the first disabled rider to compete in the North American Young Rider Championships and the Festival of Champions, and I have competed on the small tour as a professional against only able-bodied riders,” she says. “After

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ELMA GARCIA

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Overcoming challenges, being overlooked, and heartbreak have made Bergay into the resiliant rider and trainer she is today.

LINDSAY YOSAY MCCALL

moving to Denmark to study with Morten Thomsen, I decided to move home to Colorado and start my own dressage training business.

Now, I work with able-bodied riders and, when I can, children with limb differences.”

TRAINING QUEST Bergay’s journey started at age 8, when finding a trainer wasn’t easy. Bergay knew she wanted to compete. The dressage trainers her parents approached dismissed her and suggested she try therapeutic riding.

Finally, a family friend helped her get to her first schooling shows. It was then that Bergay found Pat Baker, a dressage judge and trainer who was eager to help.

“After a show, Pat talked to my mom and had some ideas about how I could do the free walk, then pick up the reins again. It was tricky for me to get the reins back onto my arm.”

Mary Bergay listened to the suggestion then asked if Baker would teach Holly. She agreed.

“She was the perfect trainer for me,” Bergay remembers. “It was never, ‘Why can’t you do this?’ Instead, it was, ‘How can we do this?’

She would tell me, ‘You have to be better than anyone else and we’ll figure out how to do that.’ She instilled in me that if you work hard and put enough time in, you can get there.”

Getting there was the easy part. But Bergay says she attended her first big shows and was overwhelmed—and not just because of her arm difference.

At a Junior Young Rider Championship in Virginia, Bergay saw fancy horses arrive in huge semi trucks.

“Not only was I the only disabled rider, there was a caliber of horse I had never seen before,” she says. “Riders were coming with unbelievably expensive equipment. It was so foreign to me, coming from a small program. Others had grooms and teams of people. I had my mom and Pat. I thought, ‘Am I supposed to be here?’

Pat never coddled that. She just said, ‘OK let’s ride better.’ That was really important.”

At that first big show, Bergay placed first on her team and was fifth overall.

“After my ride, Pat said, ‘You’ve proven that you belong here,’” Bergay remembers. “When she said something like that, you knew she meant it.”

The Hanoverian stallion Rubino Bellisimo was Bergay’s mount heading into the para dressage selection trials for the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games.

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Bergay’s father was the one to design a working rein setup with a series of loops for Holly to hold with her left arm.

LINDSAY YOSAY MCCALL

SETBACKS MAKE YOU STRONGER Bergay kept proving herself, but setbacks kept popping up. This time, her horse’s health thwarted her forward momentum.

“I made the [FEI World Equestrian Games para dressage team] in 2010,” Bergay says. “But if you want to talk about setbacks, my horse sustained an injury six weeks before the Games.”

Bergay was also a top contender for the 2014 WEG in Normandy, France. After years of work with the Hanoverian stallion Rubino Bellisimo, Bergay could tell that he wasn’t feeling well.

“I was competing on the small tour as an able-bodied rider, but also trying for the WEG in para—it was awesome,” Bergay remembers.

“We flew to the East Coast. After we got there, he was showing signs of neurological problems.

You could barely tell that something was wrong, but I could tell because I knew him super well.

A veterinarian suggested it was just stress from traveling. But he got worse. They found he had a tumor in his pelvis. It had become inflamed enough to press on his spinal cord and cause neurological problems. The day before the selection trials, I had to put him down.”

Bergay was heartbroken.

“Every person who is trying to succeed in this sport is dealing with constant setbacks and challenges,” she says. “If you focus on the challenge, you’ll have a miserable time. But if you focus on the journey and learning from your horses, this can be a rewarding life. By [ 20 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

focusing on growth, I have been able to do a lot and will continue to do more.”

MAKE IT HAPPEN Bergay was determined to keep going—even through the grief of losing her talented mount.

“I’ve always had the absolute best support system. If I had doubts, my parents wouldn’t let me for long.”

Her parents, Mary and Steve Bergay, taught her to have a positive mindset and “figure it out”—whatever “it” was—from an early age.

“They signed me up for all youth sports— softball, rock climbing, swimming. Those are two-handed sports!” she says with a laugh.

“I could have just done track, but nope! I was pushed to do what was deemed unrealistic. I’m grateful for that.”

When it came to riding, Steve Bergay was the first to figure out how Holly could hold the reins.

He created a loop that chained onto her reins.

“I have 3 inches of arm below my elbow,” Bergay says. “I have my elbow joint. On my reins, I have a series of loops, so I hook my arm through and hold them with my elbow. Morten Thomsen, who I worked with in Denmark, gave me my most current set of reins. The reins have loops all the way down so I can adjust as much as I need.”

Bergay’s recent education with Thomsen solidified her mindset that she could make her dreams of training happen. Thomsen, a

former Olympian and trainer to top dressage riders, sought an apprentice. Bergay submitted her riding videos. Thomsen offered her a plane ticket to Denmark.

“The biggest and coolest thing was that he looked at my difference as a training opportunity,” Bergay says. “He said, ‘If you can’t do something with two hands, then you train the horse well enough that you only have to do it with one.’ It was exciting for him to figure it out. It was an opportunity to train the horse better. That mindset that he has is really a gift. I think a lot of people would succeed more if they could think of challenges as opportunities.”

COLORADO HOME Home from Europe, Bergay now focuses on training her own horses and helping clients.

She would also love to give back and help riders with limb differences.

“It’s nice to step out of the world competition for a bit to focus on my students and horses,” Bergay says. “I have a client who’s a young rider.

She’ll be trying for the North American Junior Championships, which is what I did when I was her age. She’s doing that on a horse that I trained, so that will be cool if that works out.”

Bergay says that while she coaches able-bodied riders now, parents of children with limb differences have reached out to her.

“Parents see me and think, ‘Oh, she can ride, so you can probably ride, too,’” Bergay says. “I think that’s important for kids to see what can be done. It’s important for anyone who feels different to learn the attitude of ‘whatever I want to do, I’ll figure out how to do it.’”

Sharing what she has learned from her challenges drives her to keep training.

“There are so many highs that come with developing your own horse. That’s why I will continue to do this, no matter the setbacks.

The competitive part comes second to the horse. If competitive highs come first, you’re going to burn out pretty quick. Those highs are few and far between. But if you can find highs in everyday work with horses, then you can keep going for a long time.”

Holly Bergay trains horses and riders for FEIrecognized competitions from her family-owned Ambition Equestrian center in Sedalia, Colo. Follow Bergay on Instagram @hollybergaydressage. HI HEIDI NYLAND MELOCCO is a photographer and journalist based in Mead, Colorado.

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western training

Prepare to

PIVOT Nail the most challenging maneuver in showmanship.

BY ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT howmanship at halter is a class that showcases the harmony between a horse and his exhibitor, and the pivot is a key point in your performance. It’s a maneuver that requires precision and cooperation as you guide the horse to plant his hind foot and rotate his body 360 degrees. Learn how to master this move with AQHA Professional Horseman, judge, and allaround trainer Bruce Walquist’s advice.

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GOAL FOR SHOWMANSHIP To win the class, Walquist says you need both horse and rider in sync and performing each maneuver correctly—with a dash of style.

“The goal is for a horse and exhibitor to be in concert with one another,” says Walquist. “Both

The pivot is a tricky maneuver because your horse’s foot position can make or break your score. [ 22 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

horse and handler should be on the same page— thinking the same way, reading one another’s minds so that they can stay connected.”

A way to set yourself apart in showmanship is to achieve balance between you and your horse, and also in your horse’s body.

“A lot of people think it’s just about the exhibitor, but it’s about [your] ability to show the horse to his best ability,” says Walquist. “By being balanced with both horse and [handler] locked in with each other—one not too far ahead of the other or dragging behind—then you can perform all the maneuvers to a higher degree of difficulty.”

WHY THE PIVOT IS TRICKY It’s challenging to do the pivot correctly, says Walquist, and in AQHA competition, the pivot carries a high penalty when it’s done incorrectly.

“The pivot can make or break you in a lot of ways,” says Walquist. “If the horse’s right hind foot comes off the ground, it’s a 3-point penalty. If he picks his foot up and moves it to a new location, that becomes a 5-point penalty. If he does it more than once in a turn, it’s another 5.”

Showmanship is scored on a scale of 0 to 100, and the score starts at 70. Each of the seven to 10 maneuvers receives a score ranging from -3 to +3 in half-point increments.

THE PIVOT, DONE RIGHT

ABOVE: To excel in showmanship, especially the pivot, you and your horse need to be in perfect sync, with a dash of style.

In a correct pivot, your horse is balanced with his legs square, staying in a straight line from poll to tail throughout the turn. Avoid allowing your horse to overbend toward or away from you. The right hind should be planted, and the left hind should step forward and around as needed to stay square. The front left leg should cross over the right, not go behind.

“The more fluidly both horse and exhibitor move, and with speed, the higher the degree of difficulty,” says Walquist.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Walquist suggests practicing in the middle of your arena on good footing. Outfit your horse in a well-fitting halter and a lead shank with a chain.

He says when actually practicing, his clients loop the chain through the halter’s nearside lower ring, under the chin, through the right side ring and up to the upper ring to snap back on the chain. (When leading to the ring and not actively practicing, the snap is clipped to the middle ring under the chin.)

He recommends practicing showmanship at least two or three times a week to keep the two of you working in unison. But don’t drill endlessly.

“If we practice for 30 minutes, we must have really had a problem,” says Walquist. “It’s usually about 15 minutes.”

Bruce Walquist recommends threading your chain through the halter as shown during practice and showing. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 23 ]

Stand near your horse’s eye, and cluck to begin the maneuver.

Ask your horse to move away from you laterally.

To practice the pivot, stand near the horse’s eye—or at his nose, depending on your horse— with your shoulders square and parallel to the horse’s body. You will be walking a circle and looking in the direction of the turn as your horse pivots to the right.

You’ll start the maneuver with a clucking voice command, and in response, you want your horse to start to move laterally with his shoulder. If he doesn’t, you can follow up with a couple of different responses to teach him to cross over the left front leg while his body stays straight as he pivots.

“You can use your hand held up high to encourage him to pick the left shoulder up and step over,” says Walquist. “You can use a crop to tickle the shoulder and encourage movement.”

Throughout the turn—and your pattern— you want your horse to respond to the position of your right hand on the lead.

“We’ll teach them to follow our hand up or down with their head and neck,” says Walquist.

“It’s important that the horse hooks up with your hand for every command.”

Start by working on a quarter turn at a time, and gradually work up to a 360-degree turn or more.

TROUBLESHOOTING If your horse starts stepping too quickly, Walquist recommends stopping and standing the horse up straight. His shoulder position The front left leg must cross in front of the right, not behind.

Square your shoulders toward your horse and walk in a circle, guiding your horse in front of you as he pivots.

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MEET THE TRAINER Bruce Walquist is an AQHA Professional Horseman and judge located in Cleburne, Texas.

He specializes in training, sales and lessons for AQHA all-around horses. His clients have earned more than a dozen AQHA World and Reserve world championships in all-around events.

controls his feet. Practice slowing down and increasing speed as you turn to keep your horse in tune with your cues.

“Pay attention to the horse’s balance—don’t let his neck bow out,” says Walquist. “Keep him square.”

Your shoulders and body dictate the circumference of the circle you’re on. If your left shoulder is too far back—with you facing the outside of the turn—it’ll be harder to stay on the correct circumference.

If you’re turning and looking at the pivot foot, your shoulder position will cause your horse to back up. Just glance at your horse’s feet while keeping your body square to your horse.

You may need to walk your horse out of the pivot to encourage him to move forward if he starts sucking back or crossing his front left leg behind the right. Stop, then ask for the turn again, and keep working at it until your horse is turning correctly. It’s very important that your horse steps forward, not back, during this lateral turn.

Special thanks to Bruce’s daughter, Whitney Vicars, for demonstrating these moves with Southwestern Gunman. HI

The horse’s right hind foot must remain on the ground to avoid a scoring penalty.

Your horse should remain straight from poll to tail, not bending toward or away from you.

english training

LEG-YIELD SERIES: PART I

Going SIDEWAYS A look at this useful suppling movement from the rider’s point of view, and how to troubleshoot three common mistakes.

BY ALI CALKINS WITH JENNIFER MELLACE / PHOTOS BY AMY DRAGOO useful training tool for both horse and rider, the leg-yield supples the horse through his hips, croup, lower back, and shoulders.

Leg-yielding teaches the horse how to move away from the inside leg to create bend in the body and step under his center of gravity.

The U.S. Equestrian (USEF) Dressage Rule Book describes the leg-yield as follows: The horse is kept almost straight, except for slight flexion of the poll away from the direction in which he moves, and the inside legs pass and cross in front of the outside legs with the forehand slightly in advance of the quarters.

You can use the leg-yield in many types of exercises to establish a better connection from inside leg to outside rein. Lateral work improves connection, balance, and suppleness. It also gives you more insight on where your horse may be struggling with tension in his body. The leg-yield is typically ridden at the walk or trot.

This movement is introduced in First Level dressage and is an important prerequisite for both the horse and rider before moving on to advanced lateral work.

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HOW TO RIDE THE LEG-YIELD When performing the leg-yield under saddle, I prefer to start in the trot since the exercise has the tendency to compress the horse, so the for[ 26 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

ward impulsion helps keep him moving sideways more steadily. With a more forward and sensitive horse, it may be better to start in the walk.

Sitting slightly more on your inside seat bone, keep your shoulders level and pointed in the direction of your horse’s shoulders with your hands parallel to each other. Your eyes should be looking straight ahead with the destination of the leg-yield in your peripheral vision.

Beginning on a straight line—either the quarterline or centerline—first ride straight and forward before beginning this move.

Keeping your horse straight through the neck on the outside rein with a little inside flexion, press with your inside leg slightly behind the girth in the rhythm of the trot.

Be sure to keep your outside rein contact steady, as you may need to half-halt if your horse begins to rush or his shoulders drift too far over. Your outside leg does not come off, but stays on softly as what I call a “forward guiding leg” to prevent your horse from falling abruptly sideways. The inside flexion encourages your horse to stay soft in his jaw and poll throughout the movement.

When you are first learning to leg-yield, give yourself plenty of time to reach the wall.

Moving on too steep of an angle may cause your horse to lose straightness and balance.

Ali Calkins demonstrates a correct leg-yield on Emma, an 18-year-old Appendix Quarter Horse mare owned by Nancy Biglin. In the leg-yield, the horse travels with their body mostly straight (without bend) along a diagonal path.

Incorrect: The mare’s neck is turned and she pushes out the opposite shoulder, running through it.

I recommend beginning the leg-yield about a quarter of the way down the line you start on and finishing on the wall before the next corner. For example, starting the leg-yield between D and L, and finishing at H or M. When you arrive at the wall, your outside leg closes and your outside hand comes into the neck to ask your horse to travel straight and then prepare for the bend in the next corner.

You may feel that the corner becomes easier to ride as the leg-yield pushes the inside hind under your horse’s center of gravity, creating a greater degree of bend.

TROUBLESHOOTING RIDER ERRORS Here are three common errors when riding the leg-yield and how to fix them.

Incorrect riding position: During the leg-yield, it is important that you remain balanced in the center of the horse’s back. Commonly I see a rider swinging or rocking her hips or dipping one shoulder. The leg-yield is a relatively straight movement; you must continue to think of traveling a straight line with your body to help the horse maintain balance.

Often the reason for the position issues is that your horse is not responding to the leg you are trying to yield away from. In this instance, I would recommend carrying a whip

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or wearing a small spur to assist and reinforce the aid, if needed.

A good visual is to picture that you are leg-yielding to multiple lines close together; travel on one line straight and just move a few feet over to the next line, and the next, until you have finished at the wall.

The horse’s neck is crooked or pulled in the opposite direction of the legyield: In this case, the horse does not leg-yield, but rather pushes through the opposite shoulder and falls sideways.

You must remember to keep your hands parallel to control your horse’s neck position and to keep his shoulders from drifting. I often tell my students to glance at their hands and use the front of the saddle pad as a reference to keep their hands parallel.

It’s an easy visual for you to see from the saddle if one hand or the other wants to drift forward or back. By keeping your hands in this position, the contact of the outside rein prevents your horse’s neck from overbending and gives him a steady connection to push his inside hind leg into.

The horse turns on a diagonal line rather than moving sideways: For this issue, I like to set up pairs of poles or cones parallel to the side of the arena. You should only need about three pairs when leg-yielding from centerline.

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Depending on the length of the arena, place the first pair about a quarter to a third of the way down the arena somewhere between centerline and quarterline. Set them a comfortable width apart to trot your horse in between them, maybe 4 to 5 feet.

Set the next pair another third of the way down the arena the same distance apart, and the last pair on the track at the far end of the long side before the corner.

To ride this exercise, begin your leg-yield from centerline to the first pair of poles. Close your outside leg and send your horse straight through the poles. Leg-yield again to the second set and proceed straight through the poles again. Finish the leg-yield between the last set of poles at the track.

By breaking up the leg-yield, you’ll understand how to use your outside leg to guide your horse straight in the leg-yield to prevent him from turning to a diagonal line.

Next month, we will revisit this movement from the horse’s point of view. HI

ABOVE: A quick glance down to check that your hands are parallel and in line with the front of the saddle pad will prevent overbending your horse’s neck.

BELOW: Pulling on your outside rein too much will bend your horse’s neck, allowing the opposite shoulder to pop out.

Ali Calkins is a USDF bronze medalist and owner of Forward Strides, LLC, in Maryland. She is currently preparing for FEI levels with a client’s Andalusian cross.

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[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 29 ]

horse care

TOP

DANGERS of

summer Here’s a rundown of what to be on the lookout for as the weather heats up.

BY CYNTHIA MCFARLAND “The No. 1 heat-related issue that we see in our practice is dehydration colic,” says Christine Staten, DVM, a large animal veterinarian with Adobe Veterinary Center in Tucson, Ariz. “The GI tract is the lowest priority organ, so when your horse is even slightly dehydrated, the body sends the fluid to the highest priority organs first, which leaves the GI tract super dehydrated. When that happens, it slows down and doesn’t work to move the food and gas. This can be incredibly uncomfortable, and in the worst cases, can progress to a displacement if not addressed.

“The most important and effective treatment for these horses is water, either through a nasogastric tube or through an IV,” Staten continues. “Water is more important than any medication we could give.”

hen it comes to summer, hot weather has its own brand of risk factors for horse health. Knowing what can possibly go wrong will allow you to take steps to guard against these dangers.

Pay close attention to very young and very old horses, both of which are more at risk in hot weather.

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DEHYDRATION The average 1,000-pound horse drinks a minimum of 5 gallons of water a day, often much more during hot weather. Your horse needs 24/7 access to cool, fresh water, which may require relocating water sources into the shade.

OVERHEATING

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During hot summer days, horses may drink much more than their average 5 gallons of water per day. [ 30 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

“Horses that are overheated tend to have higher body temperatures and respiratory rates,” says Staten. “If your horse is not exercising and he is breathing faster than 20 breaths per minute or his body temperature is higher than 101.5 degrees, he is likely overheated.”

Call your veterinarian immediately if your horse shows any of the following signs: ◆ Elevated respiration even when at rest (normal range is 10 to 15 breaths per minute) ◆ Continued elevated pulse when at rest (normal range is 30 to 44 beats per minute) ◆ Irregular heartbeat or “thumps”

CLIX/SHAWN HAMILTON

If you suspect your horse has become overheated, move him to a shady spot and stand him in front of a fan while contacting your vet.

Check your horse’s temperature and respiration rate if you suspect he may be overheated.

VPROTASTCHIK/SHUTTERSTOCK

◆ Body temperature 103 degrees Fahrenheit or higher ◆ Profuse sweating or no sweating ◆ Dehydration ◆ Depressed, listless attitude While waiting for the vet to arrive, get your horse into the shade. Allow him to drink as much cool water as he wants.

Using a hose, run cool water over the large blood vessels along the inside of his hind legs, belly and neck. Pouring rubbing alcohol over his back and standing him in front of a fan can also help lower body temperature.

ANHIDROSIS

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MOSQUITO-BORNE DISEASE Eastern and western equine encephalomyelitis (EEE, WEE) and West Nile virus are the main mosquito-borne diseases that affect horses.

Fortunately, proven vaccines are available to prevent them.

These are considered “core” vaccines, meaning all horses should receive them. In regions with heavy mosquito populations, veterinarians often recommend horses be vaccinated against these diseases twice a year.

“We have cases of EEE in Florida every year, which serves as a reminder that this disease is not gone and is not more prevalent only because of vaccination,” says Hughes. “Enceph-

FRANK60/SHUTTERSTOCK

Horses living in regions where hot temps are combined with high humidity are more at risk of anhidrosis, which is the partial or total inability to sweat.

Signs of anhidrosis include panting, rapid breathing with noticeable flaring of the nostrils, elevated temperature even at rest, decreased energy, and sparse, dry hair coat, sometimes with scaliness or thinned hair on the face, neck and shoulders.

“Anhidrosis is seriously dangerous for a horse’s life, and we do not have a cure for it.

It’s primarily about managing their environment,” says Faith Hughes, DVM, DACVS, who has been with Peterson Smith Equine Hospital & Complete Care in Ocala, Fla., since 1991.

Management includes using sprinkler systems and fans, not exercising when it’s hot, feeding during cooler times of day, and making

sure the horse always has cool water available.

You’ll find a variety of supplements on the market designed to help manage anhidrosis.

The good news about mosquito-borne diseases is that equine vaccines are extremely effective against them.

SOPHIA FLOERCHINGER/SHUTTERSTOCK

Flies are not only irritating, but may also transmit pigeon fever and equine infectious anemia.

alomyelitis vaccines are more than 99 percent effective at preventing the disease when administered effectively.”

In addition to vaccinating your horse, use repellents labeled for use against mosquitoes.

Cut down on mosquito breeding areas by eliminating standing water and damp vegetation.

FLY PROBLEMS Fly control—both on-horse and in the environment—is important, not only because flies are irritating, but because they are responsible for transmitting a variety of diseases, including pigeon fever and equine infectious anemia, to mention only a couple.

House and stable flies also play a role in summer sores (cutaneous habronemiasis), weeping skin lesions caused by the infective larvae of stomach worms.

“Summer sores are very treatable, but they’re uncomfortable for the horse and annoying for the owner,” says Hughes. “Pay attention to any scratch or wound and keep them clean, since summer sores need an open sore to start.”

HOOF CONCERNS Flies can also spell trouble for your horse’s hooves.

“I’ve seen horses pop clinches and loosen new shoes in just a couple days from stomping their feet at flies,” says certified journeyman farrier Jason Maki of the College of Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital at Texas A&M University.

“With continued stomping on hard ground, barefoot horses can bruise and chip their feet.”

White line disease can also increase during the summer in both barefoot and shod horses.

“As the humidity goes up, that fungus tends to proliferate,” says Maki. “Keep an eye out for separation and any gray powder along the white line and dorsal cracks at the toe.” He says the problem is treatable with a topical chlorine dioxide product and proper trimming.

Dry, hard hooves are more susceptible to cracks and chips.

“Providing an area with moisture will help minimize the damage of excessively dry feet,” says Maki. “A classic solution is to overflow the water tank enough that there’s a place for their feet to get damp every day.”

Hooves tend to grow faster during warm weather, so you’ll likely have to shorten your trimming or shoeing cycle.

POISONOUS PLANTS Weeds—some of which are poisonous to horses—grow quickly during the summer.

CHECKING HYDRATION Do a quick dehydration check on your horse: ◆ Lift his top lip and look at his gums. They should be pink and glistening. Dry or pale indicates dehydration. ◆ Pinch a section of skin on the flat area of his neck. In a hydrated horse, skin will flatten back immediately once released. If skin stays “tented” more than one second when released, the horse is already dehydrated. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 33 ]

Horses will usually avoid poisonous plants, but if grass is drying out in summer, they may be more drawn to these weeds.

Find out which ones are common in your area.

BRITTANY MASON/SHUTTERSTOCK

Generally speaking, horses will avoid eating poisonous plants, but if they are hungry (or young and curious), they may eat plants they wouldn’t otherwise.

Your local university extension office will have a list of poisonous weeds in your area.

Walk turnout areas and fields regularly to identify and remove any poisonous plants.

PAM PHILLIPS PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK

FEED SPOILAGE Feed and hay can grow mold and mildew quickly when it’s hot and humid, so buy smaller quantities. Use your eyes and nose to check for off-smelling feed and hay.

If you wet feed and hay (including hay cubes or pellets) for older horses with dental issues, realize that dampened feed products spoil quickly in the heat. Discard any leftovers promptly and clean feed tubs daily.

EXERCISE IN HOT WEATHER Many people ask when it’s too hot to ride.

“Overheating is dependent on both the temperature and the humidity,” says Christine Staten, DVM, a large animal veterinarian with Adobe Veterinary Center in Tucson, Ariz. “A heat stress study done by Kentucky Equine Research said that if you add the outside temperature [in degrees Fahrenheit] to the humidity [percentage] and the number is over 150, it is difficult for your horse to lose an appropriate amount of heat. Every horse is different, so you should talk with your veterinarian about your specific horse and your specific climate.”

The horse’s average temperature ranges from 97.5 to 101 degrees Fahrenheit. Know what is normal for your horse so you can tell if his temperature rises above his normal range. [ 34 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

Many areas have diamondback rattlesnakes in the summer.

A bite to your horse requires swift veterinary attention.

SNAKEBITE If you live in a regions with western or eastern diamondback rattlesnakes, your horse can be at risk of snakebite.

Rattlesnake venom has a necrotizing effect because it starts killing and “digesting” tissue around the bite. In addition to damaging tissue, the venom also affects the victim’s circulatory system, destroying blood cells.

A rattlesnake bite is always an emergency and requires prompt veterinary treatment. HI CYNTHIA McFARLAND is an Ocala, Florida-based freelance writer, horse owner and avid trail rider. The author of nine books, her latest is The Horseman’s Guide to Tack and Equipment.

horse health

PROKURONOV ANDREY/SHUTTERSTOCK

the Invisible

CITY Billions of tiny helpers teem within your horse’s gut to digest his food and help keep him healthy.

BY DAVID RAMEY, DVM any of the mysteries of the equine gastrointestinal (GI) tract have yet to be solved.

Still, we can say with confidence that the horse’s GI tract has worked pretty well for millennia. But what makes it function smoothly?

Let’s take a look inside.

M

HOW IT WORKS Horses evolved to extract a remarkable amount of nutrients out of relatively poor-quality feed. [ 36 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

In the wild, they walk around all day, eating for the majority of a day’s 24 hours. Here’s how the system works. ◆ First, the food passes through the mouth and gets mixed (chewed) with a lot of water and enzymes in the saliva; enzymes help speed up the chemical reactions that occur when food is digested. ◆ Next, the food goes into a tub (aka the stomach): a fairly small tub, actually, given the

TAMI ZIGO ILLUSTRATIONS

size of the horse. In the stomach, the food gets mixed with more enzymes and acid, and proteins in the feed start to break down. From the stomach, the feed gets released into a long tube. ◆ The small intestine of the horse is long.

Really long. Seventy feet long. But the food moves through quickly, biologically speaking.

It travels about a foot per minute and can get back to the hindgut in as little as 45 minutes, depending on how much and what kind of food. In the small intestine, carbohydrates, fat, and protein get digested (by more enzymes and absorbed. ◆ The horse’s hindgut is where the things that make the horse’s digestive system so unique happen. The hindgut (cecum, large colon, small colon and rectum) isn’t nearly as long as the small intestine, but it can handle a lot more feed.

In the hindgut, the horse has countless numbers of microbes (bacteria, protists, fungi, even viruses) that help break down the stems and woody parts of the horse’s forage. The microbes do the important work of fermentation, which in addition to producing fatty acids, amino acids, and B vitamins for the horse, also make the horse gassy.

It’s in the hindgut that a great deal of water is absorbed, as well.

Stomach

Small intestine

Cecum

Large colon (all pink)

Small colon

Rectum

An averagesized horse’s digestive system takes up a lot of space— comparable to the volume of a 55-gallon barrel, all told.

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 37 ]

An artist rendering of the bacterial colonies (shown in blue and green) that live among the cells in the gut, shown in pink.

These fingerlike projections, called villi, increase the surface area and absorption in the intestine.

THE EQUINE MICROBIOME The microbiome breaks down food to release energy—but that’s not all. It also protects the horse against “bad” bacteria; is involved in the horse’s immune system, helping keep the animal from getting sick; and even produces many of the vitamins that the horse needs.

It’s an area of current research because understanding the equine microbiome is critically important for understanding the horse’s health, as well as for understanding what we can and cannot do for the horse.

Before you can effectively try to modify the equine microbiome, it’s important to know what’s in it. Using genetic sequencing of bacteria (instead of trying to grow them), scientists

[ 38 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

are finding out that the horse’s GI tract has many more kinds of bacteria in it that was initially thought, especially those that live without oxygen (anaerobic bacteria).

As it turns out, the microbiome of most horses is actually quite similar. The microbiome of a Quarter Horse in Texas is about the same as the microbiome of a warmblood in Connecticut.

For the vast majority of horses in different seasons, on different diets, and in different locations, there seems to be something of a normal range for the bacteria in the horse’s GI tract.

WHAT ALTERS THE MICROBIOME? Certain things can rather predictably alter the equine microbiome. For example:

MAREK KOCAN/SHUTTERSTOCK

The first step of digestion is chewing, where food is mixed with the water and enzymes in saliva. Saliva also provides a natural acid buffer in the stomach, so the more chewing your horse does, the better.

ALPHA TAURI 3D GRAPHICS/SHUTTERSTOCK/SHUTTERSTOCK

Nutrition: When horses eat large amounts of grain in their diet, their microbiome changes.

Veterinarians have long known that large amounts of grain are associated with all sorts of diseases, including laminitis and colic.

One reason is that large amounts of grain change the bacterial population. As long as a horse gets enough forage (fiber from hay or pasture), giving him some grain doesn’t seem to affect the microbiome. It’s at high concentrate levels—such as are fed to racehorses— that the microbiome changes.

While changes in the horse’s microbiome probably also changes some of the physiologic processes of the horse, it’s too early to say if this change directly causes disease. In many

other species, it’s been shown that the microbiome is slightly sensitive to things like diet, season, and acute changes in diet; however, these changes aren’t necessarily associated with disease. This is food for thought and future research.

Antibiotic use: Antibiotics kill bacteria. The gut is full of bacteria. Antibiotics can affect the microbiome, and different antibiotics affect different bugs. That’s easy to understand.

Perhaps less easy to understand is why antibiotic-induced diarrhea isn’t more of a routine problem in horses.

Disease: When there’s intestinal disease, e.g., colitis, there are also big changes in the microbiome. It’s been shown in at least one study that the microbiome of horses that colic is different from the microbiome of horses that don’t colic, but it’s too early to say that a change in the microbiome will always cause a horse to colic. It’s another area for future research.

To make things even more complicated, all disease-caused changes to the equine microbiome are not created equal. For example, horses with diarrhea caused by Salmonella bacteria appear to have a different microbiome from horses with diarrhea caused by antibiotics. [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 39 ]

Very high levels of grain in the diet, such as those fed to racehorses, alter the gut’s microbiome.

OLGA_I/SHUTTERSTOCK

Although “supporting,” “improving,” or “protecting” microbiome is a goal of equine digestive products everywhere, giving such products—for example, pre- or probiotics—doesn’t magically make a horse’s GI tract safe, secure, and efficient.

While the relatively few bacteria that are in equine probiotic products may provide some benefit, they do not “normalize” the equine GI tract. There are a few other things that are known. ◆ The horse’s stomach is, among other things, a vat of acid. Acid is one of the worst things you can run into if you’re a bacterium, and there’s a lot of question about how much, if any, bacteria can survive the stomach if you squirt some in a horse’s mouth. ◆ Probiotics are not drugs, and they aren’t regulated as drugs. This is to say that you really have very little idea what you’re giving when you’re giving a horse a probiotic. ◆ There’s also the problem of content. Various products may not contain the bacteria that are said to be in them, the bacteria in the product may not be alive, and the cell count (the colony forming units, or CFU) may not be as advertised. ◆ There’s the question of dose. In humans, products may have as many as 900 billion CFUs, and humans are about 10 percent of the size of most horses. While equine products vary, the doses are usually much, much smaller. Even if a product were to be effective, a dose of 2 billion CFU (or even 25 billion) isn’t like to go very far in a horse.

When it comes to the equine microbiome, scientists don’t yet know enough about what’s normal to go about making any strong recommendations or having any firm conclusions about what to do when things are abnormal.

Happily, horses seem to do pretty well without any help, even though there’s certainly a lot more to learn. HI

If that’s the case, it may be possible to develop a microbiome index to see if it’s possible to tell what might have caused the changes. Such efforts are underway.

THE QUESTION OF PROBIOTICS People with GI disease, such as Crohn’s Disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and the like, have different microbiomes than healthy people. However, it’s not yet known if that’s the case in horses.

[ 40 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

YEVGENIJ_D/SHUTTERSTOCK

Although many probiotics are available on the market, they have not been well studied in horses.

DAVID RAMEY, DVM, began veterinary practice in 1984 in the Los Angeles area. He specializes in the care and treatment of pleasure and performance horses. His clients particularly value his no-nonsense approach, his compassion for horses, and his ethical approach to the practice of veterinary medicine.

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ANNAELIZABETH PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK

[ 42 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

AT THE

Crossroads Follow the stories of three horse owners whose equine Mr. Right was no longer right for them, and how they decided what to do next.

F

BY SARAH E. COLEMAN

inding your perfect horse can seems like fun at first, then quickly becomes hard work. You spend hundreds of hours poring through ads and talking to friends who offer hot leads.

When you finally pinpoint Mr. Right, it’s like the clouds part and the sun shines down. But sometimes, when the shine wears off and you’ve settled into your normal routine, you realize that your perfect-foryou mount is no longer the steed of your dreams. How do you come to terms with selling the horse you waited so long to find?

HINDSIGHT 20/20

EBRA ANDERSON/SHUTTERSTOCK

Samantha Whited was a barrel racer looking for a horse to take her to the next level when she came across an ad that made her heart skip a beat: A gorgeous, jet-black Quarter Horse gelding, Dash, who was also a finished barrel horse.

Whited bought the gelding, excited for all the adventures she was planning with her new partner. A lifelong horsewoman, she wasn’t just interested in the accolades the two could rack up; she also loved spending time with Dash and creating a partnership and connection. Though they were fast friends on the ground, the translation of that trust to undersaddle work just never came, no matter how hard Whited tried.

Your perfectly good horse may not be perfect for you, but perhaps he is for someone else.

PROMA1/SHUTTERSTOCK

Desiring a highperformance horse and finding yourself with one that can only perform a light job can be a heartbreaking situation.

For seven years, she tried, trained, struggled and experimented with Dash to find something that would make the two of them click. She even went on a TV show with the gelding seeking the root cause of their issues. But nothing worked.

“I loved that horse and he loved me—we had an amazing relationship out of the saddle,” says Whited. But after years of riding him, she knew something had to give. “I finally realized that this was an incredible horse that I was holding back from reaching his full potential. So the decision was made to let him move on to a more confident and better-suited rider for his ultimate success.”

Once the decision was made, there was no relief—just sadness. One thing that helped assuage Whited’s anxiety about finding Dash a good home was placing him on a lease-to-own trial.

“This made me feel like I had control if things didn’t work out,” she explains. This arrangement comforted her; she knew she

[ 44 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

was sending her beloved friend to someone who would watch over his wellbeing. Whited remains in contact with Dash’s new owner.

“He seems so happy with a person better suited to his natural demeanor,” she reports.

Looking back, Whited says she should have made the decision to sell Dash much earlier, but admitting her “dream horse” wasn’t for her took a lot longer to work through.

“Selling a horse is a responsibility I don’t take lightly, but if you can put the horse in someone else’s hands where things fit more naturally, everyone is happier in the end— especially the horse,” she concludes.

SOUNDNESS CHALLENGES Growing up in a decidedly non-horsey family, Lydia Davis took every opportunity she could to ride, finally purchasing her first horse during her senior year of college.

After a decade together, however, Lydia Davis’s dreams of having a horse to go on adventures with were coming to a halt, as Invy was having ongoing soundness issues.

Working in the nonprofit world, Davis’s ability to afford intense management strategies was limited.

“I was pretty particular about what I was looking for,” Davis explains. “I was specifically seeking a young, registered Quarter Horse with no pre-existing injuries.”

Davis ended up purchasing Invy’s Little Star in 2011, with hopes that they could dabble in everything from western events and trail riding to eventing.

“I wanted to learn with her,” Davis explains.

After a decade together, however, Davis’s dreams of having a horse to go on adventures with were coming to a halt, as Invy was having ongoing soundness issues. Working in the nonprofit world, Davis’s ability to afford intense management strategies was limited.

“Ultimately, I decided that I needed to rehome her because her soundness issues were becoming too financially costly to manage and were inhibiting her from performing physically at the level I sought.”

It’s important to note that Invy stayed sound in lighter work and enjoyed having a job. The decision to find her a more suitable home wasn’t one Davis took lightly; she considered selling the mare for over four years before finally making the decision that was best for both of them.

“Although she was (and still is) a very special horse to me, our paths were simply moving in different directions,” Davis explains.

Davis enlisted the services of the Re-Ride Quarter Horse Adoption Program, which placed Invy with the Miami University equestrian program in Oxford, Ohio.

“Once I ultimately decided to part with Invy, it was certainly heartbreaking, but there was a sense of peace about the decision as well,” Davis shares. “I had wrestled with what to do and wondered what the best decision for her was for so long that making a decision—albeit a really tough one—brought me solace.”

Davis remains in contact with the staff at Miami and is updated regularly on how the mare is doing.

THE HARDEST CHOICE OF ALL Unfortunately, some dream horses turn into nightmares. Horses can become so quirky—or outright dangerous—that rehoming them

would be too fraught with danger for both the horse and his new owner.

These horses can be the ultimate test of a horse owner’s mental fortitude. Though making the decision to rehome a horse can be stressful, making the decision to euthanize one instead of selling or rehoming brings with it an intense rollercoaster of emotions.

Often horse owners in this situation beat themselves up, wondering what they could have done differently or what other methods exist to try to “fix” the horse.

Hannah Smith grew up spending hours on end at the farm where she took lessons. A true barn rat, she particularly enjoyed shadowing the veterinarians and farriers who came to the farm.

“I’m thankful they actually let me be annoying because they nurtured my love for horse health early on,” says Smith, who obtained an equine science degree and is now an assistant broodmare manager on a prominent Thoroughbred breeding farm.

Once settled on the farm, a coworker told her about a retired racehorse named Heavy in need of a job. Having broken and trained multiple horses, Hannah was excited to get back in the saddle with one of her own.

At first, Smith enjoyed working with the gelding, beginning to teach him the ropes of his new career as a jumper. He was kind, sweet and willing. She became more enamored with his personality during every ride.

“When things went wrong, it took me by surprise,” she explains. “During a routine mounting, something we had done a million times before with no problems, Heavy lost his mind.” With one leg in the stirrup and no way to scramble aboard or dismount rapidly, the event landed Smith in the emergency room with a fractured neck and back (C2 and L1), a potentially devastating injury.

“I’m lucky to be walking, much less riding again,” says Smith. “I was baffled by what happened. While I was recovering for three months, Heavy sat in a field. When I was cleared by my doctors, I decided to completely start him over to [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 45 ]

Owning a dangerous horse with no identifiable cause can be the toughest position in which to find yourself.

VACLAV VOLRAB/SHUTTERSTOCK

see if I had missed a step and if that was causing the issues. We started with groundwork and then prepared to transition to riding again. Up to that point, everything had gone perfectly; he was a gentleman for each of our sessions.

“But the second my foot went in the stirrup to mount the first time, I saw his eye change. I will never forget the feeling of being 9 feet in the air and thinking, ‘You got lucky once, you won’t get lucky again,’ and thinking this was where it ended for me,” she says. That time, Smith was hospitalized with a broken pelvis.

SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS “I had him scoped and evaluated by vets and he was deemed healthy and happy—multiple times,” she says. The clean bill of health left Smith with no explanation of why Heavy would explode when she went to mount.

Broken once again, Smith was left disheartened and confused. She began weighing her options.

“How could I live with myself if I sold him, even with everything fully disclosed, and he hurt someone else with no warning?” she asks.

Not everyone has the financial means to turn out a horse for the next 20 years, and there was no guarantee that whatever Heavy was experiencing wouldn’t eventually trickle down into behavior issues on the ground. [ 46 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

“I spent six months pondering the decision I ultimately made,” Smith says. “After consulting with multiple vets, my trainer and many friends I trusted, I made the gut-wrenching decision to put him down. While it took six months to decide, it took six seconds to see the relief in his eye and feel the weight literally lift off my shoulders. It wasn’t easy, but I loved that horse and I wanted him to always be safe and loved.”

For Smith, it was the right decision.

“It’s not an easy situation, but what is best for the horse will always be the right answer,” she says. Smith feels the decision to euthanize a horse is complicated, and because everyone’s situation is different, there’s not one right answer.

Likewise, selling a horse you thought was Mr. Right can be deeply distressing; it can feel like all of your dreams are lost and make you question your abilities, both as a rider and an owner. But horse owners are a tenacious bunch.

Concluding that a new home or euthanasia is best for the horse can feel like admitting defeat, but it’s important to remember it isn’t: You’re offering the horse a great kindness by finding the best situation for his physical and emotional needs. HI SARAH E. COLEMAN is the Executive Director of the Kentucky Horse Council. Her stress relief comes in the form of a quirky, red OTTB named Chisholm who makes her laugh every day.

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Each mule can haul up to 200 pounds of supplies.

Horses and mules provide support for fire prevention, mitigation, and active suppression efforts.

BY STACEY MCKENNA

O

n August 31, 2020, the Trinity Alps Pack Mules were preparing to hit the trail in Northern California’s Six Rivers National Forest when the wind kicked up, spreading a nearby spot fire toward camp. The team, which was scheduled to resupply firefighters battling the Red Salmon Complex, shifted gears. To ensure the safety of equines and packers alike, they quickly broke down their gear and relocated. But within hours, they were back on the trail en route to the fire line.

The Forest Service and other agencies have been managing wildfires on federal lands for more than 100 years. For most of that time, horses and especially mules have played an essential role, ferrying everything from food to fuel (for saws) into the wilderness. And while the need for stock animals in these roles is on the rise, their use is declining, notes Guy Zoellner, wilderness trails supervisor for the Spotted Bear Ranger District in the Flathead National Forest.

COURTESY GLACIER NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 49 ]

According to the Pack Stock Center of Excellence, in the early 1900s, the U.S. Forest Service’s Southwest Region alone had roughly 2,000 stock animals and more than 100 packers. Today, that number has dwindled to roughly 120 animals, although the designated wilderness land has more than quadrupled.

Not only is there more land, there’s more fire.

In recent decades, wildfires in the U.S. have been growing, not necessarily in number, but in size. In the two-decade span from 2000 to 2020, fire seasons torched an average of 7.1 million acres annually, more than double the typical 3.3 million acres that burned in the 1990s.

If 2020 is any indication, that trend is unlikely to reverse itself any time soon. It was a record year, with 10.3 million acres affected.

A number of wilderness areas throughout the U.S. continue using equines in fire suppression, mitigation, prevention, and even rehabilitation.

WHY EQUINES WORK In a world in which advanced technology has become ubiquitous, the use of horses and mules to support wildland fire work may come as a surprise. Surely, trucks or ATVs would be a faster way to deliver supplies? And anybody living near a recent wildfire likely knows that aircraft are frequently made available. The

[ 50 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

COURTESY PACIFIC SOUTHWEST FOREST SERVICE, USDA

Being especially surefooted, mules can traverse terrain that would be impassable for most motorized vehicles.

decision—and yes, on many levels, it is a decision—to use animals in fighting wildfires is multifaceted, but it has two key components: wilderness and circumstance.

“The thing about federal wilderness is the emphasis on primitive tools and primitive modes of transport,” explains Randy Rasmussen, Backcountry Horsemen of America’s director for public lands and recreation. Indeed, the 1964 Wilderness Act prohibits all things mechanized, from bicycles to chainsaws. Although there are provisions that allow exceptions in the case of wildfire, most agencies hesitate to apply for them unless safety is at stake.

Using mules and horses to support fire crews isn’t always just about preserving the character and intent of the wilderness. Often, it’s also the most practical choice. Mules, famously surefooted and sensible, can traverse terrain that would be impassable for most motorized vehicles.

In the steep, rugged mountains where the Red Salmon Complex fire burned, they made sense. What’s more, when heavy smoke (as often seen in California) or weather conditions hinder flight of planes and helicopters, the equines can still manage. In addition, using the mules frees up helicopters to do other jobs, such as transporting crew or dropping water on the flames.

COURTESY PACIFIC SOUTHWEST FOREST SERVICE, USDA

HOW EQUINES FIGHT WILDFIRES Regardless of the wilderness area they serve, most stock teams consist primarily of mules and a handful of horses. The mules are typically, although not always, used only for packing, while packers may ride horses to lead and bring up the back of the string.

When doing fire-related work, at least one person from an official fire crew typically travels with the equines and packers to ensure their safety. Despite the fact that wildfires typically operate under a federal management structure that allows resources to seamlessly go where they’re needed most, the work done by the equines is heavily location dependent.

It’s key to understand that much wildland firefighting is defensive in nature. Teams spend a lot of time digging fire lines—spaces free of grass, brush or other burnable fuel—and protecting structures with a fire-resistant wrap or cutting down nearby trees to create a “defensible space.”

That’s not to say that the teams never confront flames—they light fires that could burn back toward the wildfire, stamp out embers, and directly apply water, dirt or retardant to hotspots—but it is highly unlikely that the equines ever would. Their jobs on active fires range from defensive to strictly supportive in nature.

The most obvious job the horses, mules, and their packers do is to bring supplies to firefighters camped in the wilderness. This might be as simple as food and fuel. But it could also be pumps or wrap to protect a historic structure.

This is the work that the Trinity Alps Pack Mules were engaged in when their work was delayed. And it is impressive. Each mule typically carries between 120 and 200 pounds; with approximately seven to nine mules on a string, hiring a helicopter to transport the equivalent would cost thousands of dollars.

DIGGING TRAIL LINES In the Flathead National Forest, Zoellner and his team occasionally use their trail plow to help with fire-related efforts, from clearing a line around a prescribed fire to protecting a structure.

“It drops the manpower to make this stuff super easy, and speeds it up,” says Zoellner.

“We still have crews out there pulling out brush, but the mules smoke the people when it comes to digging trail.”

In Montana’s Glacier National Park, stock teams only support an active wildfire every three to five years, largely because they rarely see large fires. However, equines do support four staffed

Shasta-Trinity National Forest in California is one site where pack mules bring in supplies to firefighters camped in the wilderness.

These can include food, fuel, pumps or wrap to protect a historic structure.

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 51 ]

JIM FLINT / COURTESY SPOTTED BEAR RANGER DISTRICT

A crew uses a fireline plow, preparing to burn a safety perimeter around the Spotted Bear Ranger District’s historic ranger station.

ing, most roam free in a 3-mile radius around the main backcountry work center, then pack out for shorter stints in the wilderness, even overnighting at the firecamps.

Others, like the Trinity Alps team or those working in Glacier, are hauled to trailheads and typically complete their supply trips in a single day.

fire lookouts throughout the summer, hauling supplies in and trash out every two weeks.

“These lookouts have been on these mountains since the 1930s, so we’re keeping up those traditions in historic places as part of our fire program,” explains the park’s Fire Management Officer Jeremy Harker. “We’re still using the old methods and the ways that we supply them. We could fly with a helicopter, but it’s expensive and it doesn’t fit the tradition or the wilderness portion of the business.”

Stock teams’ day-to-day routine also looks different depending on the type of wilderness they’re protecting. In Flathead, Zoellner’s approximately two dozen animals spend the summer in the wilds. When they’re not work-

NEED FOR EXPANSION

COURTESY GLACIER NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

A big reason there aren’t more teams in use for fire areas is a lack of experienced equine handlers who want to help manage public lands. [ 52 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

Despite the incredible utility of equines for fighting wildfires, and the rising need for them, they remain an understaffed and underused resource. A big part of the challenge is a lack of experienced and willing handlers.

“It’s really hard to find folks who want to manage public lands in the wilderness setting who also have the skillset to safely and productively manage horses and mules back there,” says Zoellner.

To begin overcoming this challenge, the California-based Pack Stock Center of Excellence supports backcountry fire programs via training and education. In some areas, “fire-use modules” are emerging, in which small, skilled stock crews are dispatched to where they’re needed most. For now, these programs are still limited in size and area covered.

Zoellner stresses that growing and supporting stock programs is crucial to protecting and maintaining wilderness areas.

“As the Forest Service starts to address this work, we’re going to have to build those resources.” HI Colorado-based writer STACEY McKENNA covers travel, lifestyle, science, and all things equine. After a lifelong obsession with OTTBs, she’s recently become a mule convert.

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Hel� fo�

Hard-Working

Equines Brooke USA teaches compassionate care for many of the world’s hardest-working horses, mules and donkeys.

BY KIM MACMILLAN

A

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“The only thing that matters to me is that my animals have enough food for the summer; that season is hard and it’s extremely difficult to find food for them,” says Elba.

A family in Kenya keeps a small male donkey. He hauls water, food, and supplies and helps them till the soil. Without him, the family will be severely challenged, and they don’t have the money to purchase another equine.

They wake one morning to find their donkey gone—likely stolen to be slaughtered for his hide, which will be traded on the black market in Asia. The family is devastated beyond words.

These and hundreds of thousands of similar stories are a way of life in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. While working equines in the U.S., Canada and Western Europe are more of a novelty than the norm today, there are still many areas of the world in which humans rely heavily on their four-legged helpers to earn a subsistence living.

An estimated 100 million working horses, donkeys and mules around the world support approximately 600 million people. These animals toil under the harshest conditions in some of the poor-

© FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/ COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

Pakistani man pours jet-black lumps of coal into oversized sacks strapped to the back of his little white donkey as they prepare to haul coal out of a mine.

He shares how much he depends on his equine partner: “If I lose my donkey, I lose everything.”

Elba, a wife and mother living in a village of Guatemala, owns two donkeys, Joaquin and Seforina. Since there is no water in her community, Elba walks with her donkeys 45 minutes to a stream to gather water and carry it home.

The area has one of the world’s highest drought levels, and Elba and her husband struggle not only to feed their children, but also to grow enough forThis donkey is just one of tens age for their of thousands of equines who donkeys. work in the brick kilns of India.

© FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/ COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

A horse owner in Nepal; many working equines in Nepal earn a living for their owners by transporting goods to remote villages in the mountains.

est countries on the planet. The international equine charity Brooke and its affiliate organizations, including Brooke USA, have been helping these hard-working animals—and the humans that depend on them—for over 80 years.

THE ORIGIN OF BROOKE Brooke, which is based in Great Britain, is now the leading global welfare organization for working equines. It was established due to the efforts of the charity’s namesake, Dorothy Brooke.

© FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/ COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

A member of the Brooke West Africa team examines an undernourished mare and foal in Senegal. [ 56 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

COURTESY OF BROOKE/BROOKE USA

RIGHT: Dorothy Brooke, circa 1930s.

COURTESY OF BROOKE/BROOKE USA

LEFT: When Brooke and her husband arrived in Cairo in 1930, they found around 5,000 remaining ex-British Army horses suffering from overwork, malnutrition and ill health. She went to work raising funds and buying back these horses, and by 1934, founded the Old War Horse Memorial Hospital in Cairo.

In 1930, her husband, British Army Major General Geoffrey Brooke, was sent for duty in Egypt. She accompanied him, and they arrived in Cairo to find hundreds of ex-military horses from the British, Australian and American Armies had been left behind after World War I. These horses had been sold to locals and were enduring incredibly difficult working conditions, with most being of advanced age, emaciated and infirm.

Brooke set out to buy back these horses so that they could be either rehabilitated or humanely euthanized, depending on the individual horse’s best interest. In 1931, she raised the equivalent of 20,000 British pounds in today’s money (about $28,000 USD) through public fundraising spurred by writing a letter to the editor of The Morning Post in London (now The Daily Telegraph). By 1934, she had purchased the freedom of 5,000 ex-war horses.

Realizing that there were still thousands of other working horses, donkeys and mules in Egypt, that same year she established Old War Horse Memorial Hospital in Cairo (later called the Brooke Hospital for Animals), with the promise of free veterinary care. Brooke also worked to establish shade shelters and watering stations for Cairo’s working animals, and by 1938, the hospital also had a motorized equine ambulance.

Over the next 80-plus years, Brooke expanded their mission to many other countries and opened more hospitals and shelters,

although they do not set up traditional clinics now. Today they continue to provide training and support to animal owners and equine industry service providers.

Additionally, Brooke and Brooke USA assist during national disasters such as floods, droughts, earthquakes and wildfires. In 2016, Brooke passed the milestone of reaching two million working equines thus far.

They have also expanded into university research and community projects, as well as working to influence governmental policy. In the summer of 2019, Brooke was officially recognized by the United Nations as an accredited UN Environment Program.

HELPING ANIMALS & THEIR PEOPLE The overriding principle that guides Brooke and Brooke USA charitable work is to teach the people in a particular country the value of keeping animals healthy, and to help those human caretakers understand that healthy animals work better, live longer and thus can support their humans in a more sustainable way.

This often requires doing away with traditional practices, which are ineffective and occasionally cruel, and unlocking the underlying human compassion for animals that can be lost in the difficulty of subsistence living and geopolitical struggles.

Rather than just handing out money and leaving an area, Brooke provides education,

NOTABLE AMBASSADORS A number of top equestrians from many disciplines work as Brooke USA ambassadors; three shared why they decided to join: Olympic dressage rider Allison Brock, champion show jumper Hannah Selleck, and five-star eventer Allison Springer.

Brock rode the stallion Rosevelt on the bronze medal-winning U.S. Olympic Team in 2016.

ALLISON BROCK “I became involved with Brooke USA through my employers, who are huge contributors and advocates of Brooke USA. It’s a charity that any equestrian can get behind wholeheartedly, because when you take care of donkeys, you take care of people.”

Selleck, who competes in top-level jumping and breeds sport horses, shares her story.

“I was introduced to Brooke HANNAH USA by a friend, SELLECK and I immediately fell in love with the mission of helping working equines in the developing world and the people who depend on them.

More importantly, I thought I could help by bringing awareness to their projects.”

Springer, who with long-time partner Arthur served as an alternate for the U.S. Eventing Team for the 2012 London Olympic Games, also believes deeply in Brooke USA’s mission.

ALLISON “I joined forces with SPRINGER Brooke USA as a celebrity bartender for an event at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in 2017. This gave me an opportunity to learn more about the mission. Many of my friends are deeply involved too. I was very honored when asked to become a Brooke USA ambassador.”

TOP TO BOTTOM: ALLEN MACMILLAN; ELENA LUSENTI; MACMILLAN PHOTOGRAPHY

© FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

A boy in Senegal, Africa, with the donkey that his family uses in agriculture work.

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supplies and assistance not only to animal owners, but also to locally based veterinarians, paraveterinary workers (veterinary technicians), farriers, feed suppliers, and those who make and repair tack and horse-drawn vehicles.

By utilizing these in-country professionals, who are known by the local population, positive change is more likely to take hold and last in the lives of working animals and their owners. It’s a win-win for everyone; not only do the equine owners earn a better living and the animals lead happier lives, but industry service providers learn new, valuable skills. Brooke has also learned that targeting education about animal care toward women and children in a community is an effective tool.

HOW TO HELP If your interest is piqued and you’d like to find ways to further Brooke USA’s mission, here are some ways you can help. ◆ Donate to the cause. Donations to recognize a loved one, favorite equine or business are a fulfilling way to gift and give back at the same time. ◆ Host a fundraiser. Brooke USA will provide brochures, donation boxes and ideas for hosting an event. ◆ Spread the word in the equestrian community and beyond. ◆ Be an advocate for Brooke USA’s mission to legislators. ◆ Teach humane treatment for all living creatures to the next generation.

Visit the Brooke USA website at www.brookeusa.org for more information on ways to support their efforts to help the world’s working equines. [ 58 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

© FDOWSONPHOTOGRAPHY/ COURTESY OF BROOKEUSA

RIGHT: A Brooke Pakistan vet; this veterinary team from one of Brooke Pakistan’s mobile veterinary clinics is treating the harness wounds of a working donkey.

PHOTO BY ELENA LUSENTI FOR BROOKE USA

LEFT: Brooke USA Board of Directors Chairperson Katherine Kaneb with one of her adopted Miniature Horses, Starsky.

Starsky was an ambassador for the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon, North Carolina.

THE LAUNCH OF BROOKE USA In 2008, Brooke USA was originally chartered as American Friends of the Brooke and then relaunched in 2015 as Brooke USA. With their main offices in Lexington, Ky., Brooke USA’s mission is to help equines in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Americas and the Caribbean.

Katherine Kaneb, current Brooke USA Board of Directors Chair, feels it is their responsibility to make sure funds received from donors are put to good use, and explains they are careful in the selection of programs to fund.

“We know that healthy, cared-for equines lead to a better life for humans,” says Kaneb.

“In addition to our ability to initiate and fund our own programming and advocacy efforts within the Americas, our business model focuses on granting funds to nonprofit organizations that are already making a difference so we can magnify their impact, or supporting nonprofits that present us unique, well thought-out programs that creatively reach underserved communities.”

One current project is fundraising to purchase small plots of land in Nicaragua that will serve as training units for forage production and storage.

In addition to work in other countries, Brooke USA has recently worked in the U.S. on COVID-19 relief funding and helped with natural disasters in Texas and on the West Coast. HI KIM MACMILLAN has been reporting on equestrian sports, agriculture, science, travel and history for over 35 years. She and her husband, Allen, who is a professional photographer, have covered multiple World Equestrian and Olympic Games.

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breed portrait

the

Morgan Horse Personable, beautiful, and versatile, the horses of the UVM Morgan Horse Farm are ambassadors for Vermont’s native breed.

BY LESLIE POTTER he small town of Weybridge, Vt., is home to a scenic gem for horse lovers and history buffs alike. Known for its picturesque beauty in the Green Mountains, the University of Vermont (UVM) Morgan Horse Farm is a popular stop for leaf-peeping tourists and city dwellers in search of some authentic rural ambience. But the farm is more than a postcard-ready historic landmark.

For the first half of the 20th century, the UVM Morgan Horse Farm was home to a government-run breeding program for U.S. cavalry horses. And while the federal government no longer breeds horses, the farm preserves the bloodlines of those exceptional Morgan horses to this day, producing strong, sound, and versatile Morgan horses that are appreciated by riders and drivers of all disciplines.

T

athleticism are secondary to that. Whether a horse is going to be a dressage horse or a park harness horse, or whatever it goes on to do in its career, it needs to be conformationally correct and have athletic ability. Those are the three most important traits that we try to produce here at the farm.”

The qualities that make Morgans a great ambassador at a public-facing program like the UVM farm also make them an ideal fit for riders seeking a truly companionable equine partner.

“Morgans are incredibly versatile. They’re truly an all-around family horse,” says Demars. “The slogan for the American Morgan Horse Association is ‘The horse that chooses you,’ and that is so true with our horses here. They really find their person and become part of the family. They’re just a really cool breed.”

A VERSATILE COMPANION

CAVALRY HISTORY

“Tractability is really the No. 1 characteristic we’re breeding for in our setting,” says Kim Demars, Farm Manager at the UVM Morgan Horse Farm. “They need that positive attitude. Conformation and

The property that is now the UVM Morgan Horse Farm was commissioned in 1878 by Col. Joseph Battell, who is recognized as having been instrumental in saving the breed from near extinction at that time.

[ 60 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

JANELLE SCHROEDER

The Morgan stallion Caffeinated displays the beauty, athleticism and kind eye typical of the breed.

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 61 ]

The University of Vermont’s iconic grounds and breeding program have been a huge supporter of the Morgan breed for decades.

TRACEY BUYCE

“Col. Battell created the first Morgan breed registry,” says Demars. “He resurrected the Morgan bloodlines and the Morgan breed.

From there, the U.S. Government took over the farm as a cavalry remount station.”

At first glance, the connection between a breeding program intended to produce battlefield-ready cavalry horses and a modern program known for its personable pleasure horses and show-ring stunners may seem unlikely.

But the Morgan’s war horse traits from that chapter in its history are part of what makes it a sound, reliable, and athletic partner for riders across many disciplines today. “[The cavalry] horses needed to have copious amounts of stamina. They had to be very sturdy, very thrifty,” says Demars. “They had to have [ 62 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

a horse that could carry soldiers for as long as they needed, and the Morgan really fit that bill.”

After the government ended its horse breeding programs, the University of Vermont took over the iconic Weybridge farm in 1951, and the University has maintained ownership ever since.

APPRENTICESHIPS & INTERNSHIPS Education is an important part of the UVM Farm’s programming, and is achieved through its apprenticeship program, internships, and integration with UVM courses at the University’s main campus in Burlington.

“The apprenticeship program is our longestrunning educational program with close to 300 graduates,” says Dylan Burguard, Equine and Academic Coordinator. “The goal of this

JANELLE SCHROEDER

program is to allow any individual interested in the equine industry an opportunity to spend a full year immersed in it.”

Apprentices are often recent high school or college graduates, although the program is open to all applicants age 18 or over, regardless of their educational status. The Morgans’ ver-

satility, along with the expansive nature of the UVM Farm’s programs, offer a truly comprehensive experience for aspiring equine professionals that want to determine what aspect of the horse industry they’d like to specialize in.

“Apprentices live on-site and work full-time at the farm,” says Burguard. “They assist with [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 63 ]

TRACEY BUYCE

Morgans are the original Jack of all trades, excelling in English, western, trail and driving.

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK

@HORSEILLUSTRATED

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every part of the operation, from breeding and foaling to training and sales of horses. They assist with events and demonstrations we put on for the public and for UVM students. They have the opportunity to ride, drive, and train horses and assist with veterinary procedures.”

An internship program allows current college students to earn credit while getting hands-on experience at the farm in one of three specialty programs: training and handling; equine sales and marketing; or reproduction and foaling.

While these internships are primarily targeted at UVM students, interns are accepted from colleges and universities across the country.

The farm’s collaboration with the University extends to coursework, bringing Vermont’s official state animal into its state university and introducing more students to this wonderful breed.

If you’ve decided the farm belongs on your equine bucket list, it is open to visitors from May through October.

Visit www.uvm.edu/morgan for more information about tourism, education, and breeding at the farm. Follow facebook.com/uvmmorganfarm for farm updates and adorable foal photos. HI LESLIE POTTER is a writer and equine photographer. She and her 32-year-old Morgan gelding, Snoopy, make their home in Lexington, Ky.

FAST FACTS SIZE: 14.1-15.2 hands on average COLOR: There are no color restrictions on registered Morgans. The most common colors are solid bay, black and chestnut.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA. The foundation sire of the breed, Figure, was foaled around 1789.

The first Morgan breed registry was established in 1909.

USE TODAY: Morgans are excellent carriage horses and can be found winning combined driving events at the highest level of international competition. At Morgan breed shows, hunter pleasure, western pleasure, classic pleasure (saddle seat), and pleasure driving are among the most popular divisions.

The breed has long-established working western lines still found on ranches today. Their hardy composition, stamina, and soundness make them popular trail mounts, both in competition and as pleasure horses.

LEARN MORE: Visit the American Morgan Horse Association at www.morganhorse.com to learn more about the breed and find a farm near you.

100% old ranching bloodlines ranch and performance horses young breeding stock available

westwind otto

westwind eldorado

(Sweet's Baybarry × Westwind Eyelash) In training with Zane Davis. Zane Davis Performance Horses, National Reined Cow Horse Association.

(W A R Justin × Sweet's Dixie Daisy) 2018 Morgan Horse Association Distance Champion and Best Condition Morgan.

Mary Coleman, owner & rider.

The Morgan...America’s oldest breed & original stock horse

westwind classy lad

Morgan Stock Horse Association

(Sweet’s Baybarry × Westwind Carmelita) Gary Winckler, owner & rider.

CALL FOR INFORMATION

Farm directory on website

www.morganstockhorse.com

Bryan Blatt • Sheridan, MT • bblatt@endophytics.com • (406) 451-9311 photos © Cara Danielson, Wanda Clowate

Miner Institute ships Paid intern eg ll for co e students!

Educational opportunities for students, professionals, and enthusiasts centered around the Heart’s Delight Morgan Horse breeding program on a historic farm in the Champlain Valley of NY. Young stock available For Sale Karen Nevius Lassell | Equine Manager lassell@whminer.com | 518-846-7121 x120 www.whminer.org

GALLERY

[ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 65 ]

Photos © Benton Boyd, Blue Moon Images, Chris Campmans, Dave & Andy, Denlore, Alyssa Dumblewski, Greg Ferguson, Nick Goldsmith, Andy Illes, Meaghan Martin, Heidi Osgood-Metcalf, Pics of You, Howard Schatzberg, Scott Trees

OE N DNL EES S PBO S RS I BEI L IET I EDS

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CA N M O R G A N

Find a Morgan • Take a Lesson • Visit a Farm Facebook: Deb Mgonigle

ARIZONA BESPOKE MORGAN HORSES A L T Apache Junction, AZ • (520) 450-0773 Facebook: Bespoke Morgan Horses

CALIFORNIA DEER CREEK MORGANS, INC. A L Rancho Cucamonga • (909) 261-3696 www.royalgriffithfarms.com GRAND FINALE STABLES A L T Grass Valley • (916) 812-1144 www.grandfinalestables.net MAGGI STABLES A L T Gilroy • (408) 857-1822 www.maggistables.com RUSHTON STABLES A L Lake View Terrace • (323) 365-2035 www.RushtonStablesLA.com SUTTER KIRBY RANCH A L T Temecula • (951) 290-9034 Facebook: Sutter Kirby Ranch

CONNECTICUT LINGERING HILLS STABLE A L T East Windsor • (607) 343-3324 www. lingeringhills.com WINDFIELD MORGAN FARM A L T Litchfield • (860) 567-0785 www. windfieldmorganfarm.com

FLORIDA

WEST COAST MORGANS A L T Odessa • (813) 920-9870 www.WestCoastMorgans.com

GEORGIA

IDAHO CREAM RIDGE MORGANS A T Lenore • (208) 476-7221 www.creamridgemorgans.com NYBORG RANCH/NR MORGANS A T Pinehurst • (208) 682-5249 Facebook: NR Morgans

FEATHER SHOE FARMS A L T Numa • (515) 989-8830 feathershoefarms.com HACKBERRY MORGAN FARM A T Oskaloosa • (641) 660-0805 NORDIC HILLS MORGANS A Decorah • (563) 380-7842

MINNESOTA BELLE CHEVAL TRAINING A L T Belle Plaine • (952) 412-3756 Facebook: Belle Cheval Training

KANSAS

KENTUCKY BLUE WILLOW AT GREY RIDGE A L T Versailles • (829) 351-1781 Facebook: Grey Ridge Farm

ILLINOIS MOHAWK FARM/FORSITE MORGANS A L Woodstock • (815) 347-5649

BROOK HILL CLASSIC MORGANS A T Dayton • (207) 499-7189 Facebook: Brook Hill Morgans POND BROOK FARM A T North Waldoboro • (207) 615-2824 www.pondbrookfarm.us

A Assistance with locating first Morgan horse

DUSTIN FREIHEIT PERFORMANCE HORSES A L T Lonsdale • (507) 259-5092 www.dfperformancehorses.com SUNSET RIDGE RANCH A L T South Haven • (320) 558-2980 www.sunsetridgeranch.com WHISPERING MEADOWS MORGAN FARM A T Buffalo • (612) 210-3012 whisperingmeadowsmorganfarm.com

DOUBLE A EQUINE SERVICES, LLC A L T Hollywood • (814) 404-5687 Facebook: Double A Equine Services SWEET ROCK STABLES A L T Manchester • (410) 374-3870 Facebook: Sweet Rock Stables

MASSACHUSETTS

CRYSTAL FARMS EQUESTRIAN CENTER A L T Marshall • (269) 317-3910 www.crystalfarmsonline.com

STRAWBERRY HILL MORGANS T Charlevoix • (231) 588-6301 strawberryhillmorgans.com

KANSAS BLUE STEM MORGANS A L T Westmoreland • (758) 410-7526 kansasbluestemmorgans.com WICHITA RIDING ACADEMY, INC. A L T Derby • (316) 651-0876 www.WichitaRidingAcademy.com

HIGH MARK STABLES A L Lanesborough • (518) 450-3115 highmarkstables.com SEBRING STABLES A L T Richmond • (413) 448-5300 sebringstables.net

MICHIGAN

SERENE TYME MORGANS A L T Hastings • (269) 270-4956 Facebook: Serene Tyme Morgans

IOWA

MAINE

GALT’S VALLEY FARM A T Canton • (678) 232-3352 www.GaltsValleyFarm.com

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INDIANA INDIAN CREEK MORGAN FARM A L T Columbia City • (260) 414-5450 www.indiancreekfarm.net STARDUST MORGAN FARM A T Goshen • (574) 825-9065 Facebook: Joe Zehr

MARYLAND

CHERI BARBER STABLES A L T Reddick • (352) 591-3225 www. cheribarberstables.com

TOWNSHEND FARM A T Bolton • (978) 875-0914 Facebook: Nancy Caisse

MISSOURI BLUE RIBBON MORGANS A L T Liberty • (816) 298-3553 www.BlueRibbonStablesLlc.com PRAIRIE SCHOOL ROAD FARM LLC L T Luebbering • (636) 629-1476 Facebook: Friends of PSR Farm

MONTANA CROSS COUNTRY MORGANS A L T Billings • (406) 690-1237 DIAMOND C BAR RANCH / CESNIK STABLES A L T Billings • (406) 690-1237 Facebook: Kristen Hutchison TRUWEST MORGANS A T Roberts • (406) 445-9802 www.truwestmorgans.com WESTWIND MORGANS A T Sheridan • (406) 451-9311 www.2WMorgans.com

L Lessons

T Tours

NEVADA STOLEN ACES FARM A T Las Vegas • (702) 274-5900 www.stolenacesfarm.com

NEW YORK AMERICAN HERITAGE MORGANS A T Lyndonville • (585) 735-5322 Facebook: American Heritage Morgans COBBLESTONE CREEK MORGANS A L T Conewango Valley • (716) 640-3385 cobblestonecreekmorgans.com HILLROSE MORGANS A T Honeoye Falls • (585) 314-4972 Facebook: Hillrose Morgans JOGLENN FARMS A L T Caledonia • (585) 245-3952 Facebook: JoGlenn Farms MINER INSTITUTE, HEART’S DELIGHT MORGANS A T Chazy • (518) 846-7121 x120 www.whminer.org

NORTH CAROLINA CARPE DIEM FARMS, INC. T Highlands • (828) 200-9725 www.carpediemfarms.org

OHIO BRODHAVEN FARM A L T Wooster • (330) 347-5500 Facebook: Brodhaven Farm VANTAGE POINT STABLES A L Wadsworth • (330) 495-7117 vantagepointstables.com

OKLAHOMA COTTONWOOD CREEK RANCH A L T Oklahoma City • (405) 888-7379 www.cottonwoodcreekranch.com LARICA PERFORMANCE HORSES, LLC A L Norman • (405) 826-4987 laricaperformancehorses.com

OREGON AKIRA MORGANS A L T Lebanon • (541) 740-8656 akiramorgans.com AUTUMN TWILIGHT MORGAN FARM A T Rogue River • (503) 851-1950 www.dressagemorgans.com SILVER MESA MORGANS A L T Monmouth • (971) 600-8933 Facebook: Silver Mesa Morgans

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SUNCHASER MORGANS A L T Hermiston • (541) 571-8274

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WHERE TO MEET THE MORGAN CA N M O R G A N

PENNSYLVANIA

PROMISE FARM A T Vader • (360) 295-3338 Facebook: Promise Farm Morgan Horses

IDLE CREEK STABLE A L T Murrysville • (412) 956-1199 Facebook: Idle Creek Stable

TIMBER CREEK STABLES A L T Maple Valley • (206) 200-2099 www.timbercreekstables.biz

WEST VIRGINIA

SPIRIT RIDGE STABLES A T Quarryville • (717) 786-2678

FIGMENT FARM A T Harpers Ferry • (304) 405-4991 www.figmentmorgans.com

SOUTH CAROLINA SUGAR SHACK FARMS A Mountville • (864) 804-7510 Facebook: Sue Suber

WISCONSIN AESTHETIC EQUINE, LLC A L T Ettrick • (608) 865-0451 www.aestheticequine.com

TENNESSEE KYALAMI FARMS A L T Lewisburg • (615) 476-8342 Facebook: Kyalami Farms

BARONCREST LIPPITT MORGANS T Rubicon • (262) 623-2697

TEXAS HORSEFEATHERS EQUINE FACILITY A L T Midlothian • (240) 529-3066 HorseFeathersEquine.com MORGAN SAFENET FOUNDATION INC. A L T Midlothian • (240) 529-3066 MorganSafenet.com

COPPER LEAF STABLE A L T Green Bay • (920) 450-2924 www.copperleafstables.com HYLEE FARM A L T Mount Horeb • (608) 435-5530 Facebook: Hylee Farm JERICHO CREEK FARM II L T Eagle • (262) 470-3299 www.jerichocreekfarms.net

TINDO MORGANS A T Cibolo • (210) 394-4264 www.tindomorgans.com

VERMONT

KOHLER STABLES A T Kohler • (920) 452-3984 www.kohlerstables.com

EAST OF EQUINOX FARM A T Manchester Center • (802) 362-2286 Facebook: East of Equinox Farm

MOSSROSE MORGANS A L T River Falls • (715) 821-2647 www.MossroseMorgans.com

MORMAC ACRES A T New Haven • (802) 545-8181 www.schiehallionnicholas.com

SINGING WINDS FARM A L T Tigerton • (715) 203-5401 singingwindsfarm.com

NEWMONT FARM A T Bradford • (802) 222-7122 newmontmorgans.com

WINGAIT FARMS A L T Mazomanie • (608) 963-2828 Facebook: Wingait Farm

WEATHERMONT FARM T Springfield • (802) 546-7136 Facebook: Joy Smith

CANADA BLITZEN MORGANS A L T Jasper, Ontario • (613) 880-4110 www.blitzenmorgans.weebly.com

VIRGINIA CHESTNUT HILL FARM A Fredericksburg • (540) 752-4763 Facebook: Chestnut Hill Farm Morgan Horses

WASHINGTON

BUTTE MORGAN HORSES GUIDED BY EQUUS A L T Picture Butte, Alberta • (403) 382-8110 www.buttemorgans.com

OKAN MORGANS T Oroville • (509) 560-0252 www.okanmorgans.com

THOMAS FAMILY MORGANS A T Union, Ontario • (519) 633-2390 Facebook: Bob Marge Thomas

A Assistance with locating first Morgan horse

L Lessons

T Tours

THE GAITED HORSE ASSOCIATIONS Walkaloosa Horse Association The SMOOTH RIDE choice for people with a preference for beautiful coat coloring!

The Walkaloosa Horse Association was founded to preserve the history and pedigrees of these fantastic pleasure, work and performance horses. We invite you to learn more about the unique and wonderful Walkaloosa Horse.

CONTACT US TODAY! contact@walkaloosaregistry.com www.walkaloosaregistry.com

Photo credit : Dani Renggli

Part Walking Horse Registry For versatility choose PART WALKING HORSE Our Mission: To register and record part bred Tennessee Walking Horses with accuracy and integrity. We are dedicated to preserving the historical attributes of the breed, while encouraging ongoing improvement in the quality of the Tennessee Walking Horse.

Our Registry is open to one half, three-quarter and up to purebred Tennesee Walkers whose dam or sire was not bloodtyped. We require one parent to be TWHBEA, IPWHR or CRTWH registered.

CONTACT US TODAY! contact@partwalkinghorse.com www.partwalkinghorse.com 4055 Villa Creek Road Cayucos, CA 93430 • PH. 805-995-1894 FIND US ON FACEBOOK! • Facebook.com/walkaloosa.associationandregistry

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GALLERY

BREEDER ADVERTISING CRIOLLO HORSE The only FICCC Criollo breeder in the USA. Weanling, yearling and two year old prospects available.

Freio de Ouro performance bloodlines, bred from imported Uruguayan stock.

Call: (605) 430-3968 gravitascriollos@outlook.com

GYPSY HORSE/ GYPSY VANNER HORSE BLARNEY STONE ACRES — The place where a solid foundation gives birth to eloquent beauty, athleticism and intelligence. www.blarneystoneacres.com

MORGAN HORSE THE MORGAN REGISTRY DNA Testing • Registrations Transfers • Lease Recording Online Registry Access For forms and information on programs, go to morganhorse.com/registry

THE AMERICAN MORGAN HORSE ASSOCIATION — Our mission: To preserve, promote, and perpetuate the Morgan breed. Learn more at morganhorse.com (See our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds)

TENNESSEE WALKING HORSE

MINER INSTITUTE — Educational opportunities for students, professionals, and enthusiasts centered around the Heart’s Delight Morgan Horse breeding program on a historic farm in the Champlain Valley of NY. Young stock available for sale. Karen Nevius Lassell, Equine Manager. 518-846-7121 x120; lassell@whminer.com; www.whminer.com (See our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds) MORGAN STOCK HORSE ASSOCIATION – Our goal is to promote the traditional western using Morgan for Vaquero horsemanship, Cowboy Dressage. and pleasure trail riding. More information on our website: www.morganstockhorse.com (See our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds) WESTWIND MORGANS — Located in Montana. We breed foundation ranching bloodline Morgan Horses.

Contact Bryan Blatt at 406-451-9311 (See our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds) MAPLE RUN SOUTH — Learn western, hunt, saddle seat or driving as a casual sport or skills for competition in a safe, professional, fun atmosphere. (See our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds)

Register or Transfer your Tennessee Walking Horse© Today www.twhbea.com/registry • 931-359-1574

CLASSIFIED DIRECTORY BOOKS & PUBLICATIONS

MORGAN HORSE BOOKS For All Reading Levels

HORSEBACK VACATIONS BUTTE CREEK OUTFITTERS, INC.— Ride good horses through wild country! Unsurpassed scenery, unlimited riding, wildlife and experienced staff will make this a special family vacation. buttecreekoutfitters@gmail. com; www.buttecreekoutfitters.net

MODEL HORSES

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MODEL HORSE SUPPLIES AND KITS — Put real tack on that Breyer or Stone horse. Free catalog!

620-668-5421; www.riorondo.com

REGISTRIES AND CLUBS Use coupon code HI to get 20% off any size order at

www.willowbendpublishing.com

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES Helping horse owners earn extra income from home. www.AffordThePony.com

GREENHOUSES

WALKALOOSA HORSE ASSOCIATION – The smooth ride choice for people with a preference for beautiful coat coloring! 805-995-1894; contact@walkaloosaregistry. com; www.walkaloosaregistry.com; www.facebook.com/ walkaloosa.associationandregistry (View our display advertisement in Gallery of Breeds)

SCHOOLS & INSTRUCTION FIND OR BECOME A CERTIFIED RIDING INSTRUCTOR OR ACCREDITED EQUINE FACILITY. Certified Horsemanship Association (CHA): www.CHA.horse

TACK & GEAR PONY & MINI HORSE TACK – 58" and under is our specialty, many custom and one-of-a-kind items. Allen’s Pony Express: 618-273-3101; www.4ponies.com

VISIT US AT WWW.HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM

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DarienB@egmediamags.com | 707-280-1074 [ JULY 2021 | HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM 71 ]

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CALLIPSO/SHUTTERSTOCK

[ 72 HORSEILLUSTRATED.COM | JULY 2021 ]

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DreamWorks Spirit Untamed © DreamWorks Animation LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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© 2021 Purina Animal Nutrition LLC. All rights reserved. Feed shown is Omolene® 200 Horse Feed. Other feeds may vary.