SPOTLIGHT
NATURAL E UINE ESSENTIALS
With homegrown horsemanship and personalized care, Isabel Sempe is changing the supplement game WORDS: APRIL BILODEAU
WITH SO MANY supplement companies available to horse owners, it
can be difficult to choose the right one for your horse. To make that decision easier, Isabel Sempe, owner and founder of Natural Equine Essentials, has spent several years researching and developing which all-natural supplements work best for common equine ailments. Sempe descends from a multigenerational horse breeding family from Honduras. Her father bred Quarter, Andalusian, and Peruvian Horses and is one of the founders of the Peruvian Horse Association of Honduras. “My dad was one of the first to import world class horses from South and North America into Honduras, for breeding and competition purposes,” Sempe tells The Plaid Horse. “He was very involved in the daily care, making his own bran mash and growing his own grade “A” Alfalfa hay for the horses.” She spent her childhood on their 2,000-acre equine breeding, agriculture, and dairy farm. She observed and learned the inner workings of the farm and gained firsthand knowledge of the many issues regarding raising, breeding, and
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caring for horses in the family business. With 80 horses on the property, their vets were always there, and their farrier lived on the property. With this set up, she was able to absorb information from experts in their field through out her early years. Sempe has been riding horses since she was six years old. Competing internationally in show jumping, dressage, eventing, and Peruvian Paso Horse competitions. At an early age she learned English riding through her aunt, Titi Mills, a well-known trainer who represented Honduras in the Central American and Caribbean Games in show jumping, winning two silver medals. “Titi showed me horsemanship, discipline, and how hard work and attention to detail pay off in the long run for your horse and yourself as a rider,” she says.
STRICT AND DISCIPLINED Sempe married and, through her husband’s job, moved and lived in four different countries in the span of 15 years. She was able to make friends and train with various Olympic trainers, well-known veterinarians, and farriers who are still close friends and parts of her vast equine network. This network and experience in different regions has expanded her knowledge and provided support from accomplished equine professionals around the world. “One of my trainers, Oswaldo MendezHerbruger (three time Olympic rider) was really intense,” says Sempe. “He said to me: I am going to train you and take you to the Central American Games on your mare in three years.” Sempe describes herself as disciplined and strict, but Mendez-Herbruger’s training program was one of the most intense she had ever gone through—and almost wore her down. “I was crying all the time,” says Sempe. “It was very hard work.” But that hard work paid off and in 2013, she was a member of the first eventing team to represent Honduras in the Central American Games. “At 35 years old, I learned that it is never too
