Occasionally, I like to have a day in Q-Talk that only features “feel-good” stories. I came across three this week that I really enjoyed reading and thought I would pass them on.
Today’s items all have to do with youth and their love of Quarter Horses. We were all young at one time and I’m sure y’all were like me, living and breathing horses – no matter if we rode daily or just dreamed of one day having one we could call our own.
I hope you enjoy these stories as much as I did, and, please, click on the links to read the full articles. It’s well worth it.
Not Just Horsing Around
Laura Rico of the Ionia (Michigan) Sentinel-Standard wrote recently of 12-year-old Chelsey Slotsema of Saranac, Michigan.
“A love of horses is just one thing that Brenda Slotsema has passed on to her daughter, Chelsey. The talent for showing them at competitions is another.
“Chelsey has been riding in competitions since she was 9 but has ridden horses at home since age three. Last year, she was second in the nation for her class with a horse her family no longer owns. Her current horse, Native Chocolate, or ‘Hunter,’ as she calls him for short, is a tall, lean Quarter Horse.
“The Saranac eighth-grader has been training him since February to compete in the hunter under saddle youth class, which includes walking, trotting and cantering. She trains him for approximately one hour daily.
"’I work on getting him more steady in his movements,’ Chelsey said. ‘I try to get what he's supposed to do into his head so he won't forget it.’
“Brenda, Chelsey's mother, has ridden and shown horses since she was 10 years old. She shows World Show finalist Golden Perpetualism, or "Rusty," in the halter class.”
Cowgirl is a Cut Above
At this year’s Youth World, I had the privilege of interviewing Kylie Knight after she won the working cow horse class. This petite 16-year-old was still a little shocked by her win during my interview but it was obvious she is a very accomplished rider and worthy of the championship honor.
Charles Kelly of The Arizona Republic talked to Kylie after she returned home to Peoria, Arizona.
“Those Texas cowpunchers have nothing on Kylie Knight.
”The young woman from Peoria and her American Quarter Horse, Leroy, showed their stuff so well Aug. 8 that Kylie won the working cow horse in the American Quarter Horse Youth World Championship in Fort Worth.
”Kylie, at 5 feet 1 and 110 pounds, was far from being the biggest of the 42 young men and women entered in her category in the contest. But agility and training count more than size in this event, and Kylie's experience showed.
“When she first started to ride in horse shows, Kylie competed in English and western events. When she was 12, she began training in more aggressive events, such as working cowhorse, reining and cutting.
Kylie likes the working events more than the more placid horse-show events.
"’They are a lot more fast-paced, and you have a lot more thinking going on,’ she said. ‘And I prefer these horses. They're much more athletic.’
“The events in which she competes are not familiar to many people. When she talked about them with schoolmates at Sunrise Mountain High School, they were puzzled.
"’It's kind of funny, because a lot of them don't understand what I'm doing,’ Kylie said. ‘It's like, 'Do you race them (the horses)?' They'd think that I race, or that I jump or run barrels, things like that. I kind of have to explain it to them. But all of them who have seen videos of it are like, 'I didn't know horses could do that.' "
Girl Wins Her Dream
Finally, this story was just too good to pass up. Carol South of the Grand Traverse Herald in Traverse City, Michigan, writes how a local teen unexpectedly won ownership of a horse she had come to love.
“During the Northwestern Michigan Fair this year, Kelsey Leonardi tried to be tough. Having bonded with Woody, a 3-year-old Quarter Horse she had been riding for months, Leonardi knew he would be going to a new owner soon.
“Donated to the Northwest Michigan Fairgrounds Enhancement Fund by breeders in Clare, the Traverse City West High School sophomore had shown Woody at 4-H events all summer around the region. The duo was part of a campaign to raise money to upgrade the 4-H facilities at the Northwest Michigan Fairgrounds, which last year were used by more than 1,400 kids.
“Raffle tickets to win Woody went for $100 each to drum up funds for these renovations and Leonardi, on the horse, was the traveling ambassador of the effort.
“As the drawing date of the 4-H awards ceremony approached during the fair, Leonardi tried to distance herself from Woody, with whom she had bonded closely. When her name was read on the winning ticket, purchased and donated in her honor, she could not believe Woody would be hers.
"’I was like, 'Am I dreaming?'" she recalled.
“Mike Zerbe, a local farrier and the 4-H leader for the Windsonnet Wranglers, remembers a little more drama: ‘When we called her name, she collapsed!’
“Five of the 60-65 tickets sold were purchased by Steve and Lori Randall who put Leonardi's name on them, Zerbe said. One of those tickets was the winner but some others who had bought tickets knew of the special bond between horse and girl.
"’The people who had seen her and saw the rapport, there were another 10-12 people who bought tickets and had every intention of making sure she got the horse if they won,’ Zerbe noted.
— Tonya Ratliff-Garrison
America’s Horse is out this week and is packed with several good features.
My personal favorite? The story of how ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” built the Barrett family of Peyton, Colorado, a new home.
America’s Horse featured the Barretts in the July/August 2004 issue. Anne and Billy Jack Barrett have two natural children and adopted four others who once were considered unadoptable.
AQHA member Teresa Larson, who attends church with the Barretts, was amazed that the large family lived in a 101-year-old, 2,000-square-foot farmhouse.
“There were never complaints about their teeny home,” Larson told America’s Horse assistant editor Holly Clanahan. “They all get along so well. They tend to just hang out together, and everything they do is together, so their little house was never a problem, except that if they all wanted to watch TV, they didn’t all fit in the living room.”
Larson let ABC in on the Barretts story and they were chosen from hundreds of thousands of applications (the show gets 4,000 to 6,000 applications a day) to have their home redone. But to find out more, you’ll have to check it out in the latest issue of America’s Horse. If you don’t get the magazine, it’s free for all members. Just join up and we’ll deliver it to your mailbox.
Equine Affaire Kicks Off Tomorrow
Equine Affaire will present its third horse exposition of the year, this time in Louisville, Kentucky, at the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center.
The event starts tomorrow and will run through Sunday. Featured are more than 45 clinicians including Clinton Anderson, Monty Roberts, George Williams, AQHA Professional Horseman Lynn Palm, Shawn Flarida, Cleve Wells and Jeff Cook.
There will also be a trade show, breed exhibits and a youth pavilion. Pfizer will put on “Pfizer Fantasia - A Musical Celebration of the Horse” Friday and Saturday evenings in Broadbent Arena. Separate tickets are required. Prices range from $16 to $24.
Tickets for the expo are $13 daily for adults or $34 for a three-day pass and $7.50 daily for children 7-12 or $20 for a three-day pass. Children under 7 are admitted free.
A Hands-On Look at the Rescue of Hurricane Katrina Horses
The Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine has been busy rescuing horses in the Bayou State. On the U.S. Equestrian Federation Web site, there is a hands-on look at what it entails to rescue so many horses.
“There are hundreds of little interest stories that have or will come out of this thing,” writes Ky Mortensen, director of advancement for the equine program at LSU. “Some will be remembered for a long time, written down and shared nationwide. Others will only live in the memories of those immediately involved.”
The detailed reports on the horse rescues are well worth reading. For more information on the efforts of the Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association, click here.
NCHA Futurity Purse Receives Big Boost
The 2006 National Cutting Horse Association Futurity will feature half a million dollars in added money. At its September meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, the NCHA Executive Committee voted in favor of the 67 percent increase in added money for the sport's showcase event.
"With the upward trend in participation and purses at our Triple Crown shows in recent years, this is an ideal time to sweeten the pot,” NCHA Executive Director Jeff Hooper said. “We anticipate that the total purse for the futurity will exceed $3 million."
The NCHA Futurity, which is at Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth each November/December, is for 3-year-old horses that have not been shown before. The nomination payment for the 2006 NCHA Futurity is due October 1.
2005 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity to be Webcast
The 2005 National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity, slated for September 20 to October 2, will be Web cast live by Galloping Video and Waltenberry Inc. and may be seen at www.gallopingvideo.com or www.waltenberry.com.
Although the Web cast will work with dial-up Internet connections, the best picture quality will require a high-speed connection. The live Web cast is made possible by the sponsorship of Carol Rose Quarter Horses.
For a complete schedule of events, click here.
— Tonya Ratliff-Garrison
Sometimes it takes tragedy to bring out the best in someone.
It’s not that horse people aren’t always willing to lend a hand, but their generosity has really become evident with the latest devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Several organizations like AQHA, the American Horse Council, the U.S. Equestrian Federation and many others have set up recovery funds, databases for stranded animals and found volunteers to provide food and housing for horses.
The racehorse industry has always joined in.
The Lexington (Kentucky) Herald-Leader reported this weekend that “aid to horses and racing industry victims of the hurricane is rolling in and rolling out.
“One truck is full and on its way to Hattiesburg, Mississippi; another is almost ready and will be heading for Louisiana Downs soon.
“So the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association is working on getting another truck. The association will be collecting items from 7 a.m. until noon Saturday at the Kentucky Horse Park.”
Feed and animal supplies are needed but so are household items for racetrack workers who lost their homes in the hurricane. Besides the normal toiletry, bedding and cleaning items, donations of helmets, boots, flak jackets, exercise saddles, bridles, saddle pads and girths are also being requested.
Also, AQHA and USEF are asking for help in assisting ALL horses and horse owners who have been impacted by Katrina.
If you have space, can assist with transportation or have licensed veterinary expertise to help equine refugees and fellow horse owners, click here to complete a brief form.
Both AQHA and USEF will be posting a state-by-state listing of these facilities for horses on our Web sites. The list will serve as a master list to help horse owners in Katrina's path find help. Access the list (pdf file) here or visit www.usef.org and click on the Hurricane Katrina Equine Relief icon.
AQHA and USEF request that equine supplies or financial donations be sent at this time. The organizations are working on supplies, such as feed, buckets, blankets and medicine, via other avenues.
Failing to Vaccinate Horse for West Nile Proves Costly
David Gale of KTVB-TV in Boise, Idaho, recently reported about the consequences of not vaccinating a horse against the West Nile virus.
“In Canyon County (Idaho), one woman's failure to vaccinate her horse has proved very costly.
"’He was our gold and now he isn't worth a nickel,’ said Anita Gellerman, a horse trainer.
“Her palomino named Corona was once a majestic show animal valued around $20,000. But last week the Nampa-based horse trainer was told her horse had been infected with West Nile virus. It's had a neurological effect causing the horse to stumble as he walks and sometimes fall over.
"Corona is one of about 70 horses in Idaho to contract West Nile this year.
“And even though it only costs around $20 to vaccinate a horse, Gellerman said she didn't understand the severity of the virus.
"’Because when you are told you get West Nile virus, they say you get flu-like systems. Well, we all live through the flu. It's no big deal, right?’ Gellerman said.
“But even if Corona survives, Gellerman says she'll never be able to sell him, which has taught her a hard lesson.
"’Always vaccinate, definitely,’ she said.”
NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity Sales Online
The National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity kicks off on Tuesday in Reno, Nevada, but for some it’s the NRCHA Futurity Horse Sale they wait all year for.
But you don’t have to wait until the sale, which is September 29-October 1 at the Reno Livestock Events Center, to get the catalog. You can find it online now.
Managed by Dave Hammonds, the sale will feature around 350 cow-bred horses that will go through four different auctions during finals weekend. All sale horses are available for viewing in the sale barns, and buyers watch for horses with their lot numbers painted on their hips being ridden and working in the practice pens. There is also a round pen for watching yearlings being worked.
Quarter Horse Takes His Meals in the Kitchen
No. The headline is not wrong. There really is a Quarter Horse in Comstock Park, Michigan, who eats his meals in the family kitchen.
Kathy Bush of The Grand Rapids (Michigan) Press wrote this week about Majors, a 970-pound Quarter Horse who has been invited into the home of his owners, Tina and Louise Mast.
“The horseplay started about two weeks after the Masts brought Majors home in July 2003, and it hasn't stopped.
“Louise Mast said her daughter Tina left Majors in the back yard to go into the kitchen to mix the horse's supplements with cereal and fruit – just the way the horse likes it.
“Majors, who stands 14.3-hands tall, saw the open door as an invitation.
"’That horse just walked in all by herself,’ Louise Mast said. ‘We had just spent all this money to put in new carpet and here stands this horse. Every day after that, she knew her food was getting ready, and she would come to the back door and walk right in.
“Thinking of the carpet, Louise Mast tried to be firm about saying "no" to a horse in the house, but she caved in.
"’She's got the cutest personality for a quarter horse ... a real sweet character,’ Mast said.
“Now the family puts fruit and carrots on the counter for Majors to eat.”
