Hayes Horsemanship

Horse Slaughter Legalized in The United States

2011-12-01T09:19:00.002-05:00

As many of you have already heard, President Obama passed a bill to legalize horse slaughter for human consumption over the weekend. There has been a lot of backlash and misunderstanding about the move. This is a great article a friend of mine found and shared with me. Please read!

AVMA Unwanted Horse FAQ

What a Deal!

2011-11-29T12:20:00.002-05:00

AWESOME HOLIDAY DEAL! As we head into 2012 we have a lot to be thankful for and want to share our gratitude with YOU! Gift Certificates will be available for HALF PRICE from now until January 1st. That means current lesson students can get an extra ride for $25! New students can also enjoy a lesson at 50% off, only $25! Please email, call or inbox us on Facebook to purchase now!

Fundraiser

2011-11-28T10:12:00.005-05:00

The grand total for Coco's veterinary expenses. This doesn't include the endless supplies we used in the barn to nurse her, nor the additional expense of keeping her in a stall for the winter because she's not healthy enough to live outside as planned.

Good thing we have a phenomenal amount of support!

We've already accepted $791.44 in donations! Our fundraiser with Pecocksie and Patrick was a hit last weekend. Thank you to everyone who came out to show their support and especially to Faith Patrick who has volunteered to generously donate 10% of all sales from Loco.eleven Apparel to Coco's vet bill for November and December on top of her donation from October's sales!

We'd also like to take a moment to remember, "Gabby", owned by George Smallman and deeply cared for by Teresa Corrigan. Gabby was the mother of, "Georgia" who many of us have the pleasure of knowing. A generous donation was made to Coco's vet bill by Teresa in Gabby's memory as she makes her way to Horsey Heaven.

The good news is Coco is continuing to progress, albeit slowly. Her nose is totally healed now. Her ears are scabbing and where the scabs are coming off she is left with small bald patches along the tips of her ears. She's bright, active and eating well. We look forward to the next step of fundraiser, coordinated by Nicole Van Esch, Monique Hoffer and Cathy Coish which will include a visit to see Coco and some super gift baskets that will be raffled off! Details to follow...

Trunk Party!

2011-11-16T09:50:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone!
As many of you already know, my show horse, "Peanut", gave birth to a beautiful baby in April of this year, "Coco". Coco was diagnosed with a very rare bacterial infection in the beginning of October that threatened her life. She fought through it, as well as a number of other awful side effects and conditions that developed as a result of her weakened immune system. She is a fighter and her story is beautiful.

Two amazing Hayes Horsemanship supporters have offered to host a trunk party with their "hostess benefits" to go towards Coco's monstrous vet bill. Pecocksie and Patrick, the business that runs the house parties, also jumped in and offered to bump the "hostess benefit" up to 10% of everything they sold in October and at the trunk party this Saturday at the Coish residence. They even put up a picture of Coco and Peanut on their Facebook Fan Page!

Consider this your invitation to browse the website for Pecocksie and Patrick: http://www.wix.com/shoppandp/parties#!product-gallery or to "Like" them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/LocoElevenApparel Or to attend the party on Saturday! Can't make it Saturday? That's ok, you can place an order with Faith on the website above. Below is the information for Saturday's trunk party. Hope to see you there!
Thank you for your continued support of Hayes Horsemanship and Coco!

FUNDRAISER for COCO - 10% of all sold
Peanut’s foal, Coco, has been very ill. As a fundraiser to help pay for the mounting vet bill, I would like to extend this invitation to all of Hayes Horsemanship students/supporters. Faith is generously donating 10% of ALL her sales in October to Coco. She is creating/acquiring as much in “horsey” T-shirts/bling etc. as she can for the party.
Please Come!

You are invited
to an in-home “trunk” party
Saturday, November 19, 2011. 1pm-4pm
619 Commissioners Rd. E. 519-668-6613Refreshments will be served

Looking for something unique for a Christmas gift or an upcoming Christmas get-together?
Do you like to support local artists and fair-trade, environmentally-friendly policies?
Or maybe you just like to shop!
Please come by at any time during this Open House style shopping experience.
The artists who have founded this business create and buy for all ages in your family. Faith’s t-shirts and hats are for both genders. Her handmade products can be found in local stores as well as stores on the east coast.
Desi Pecoskie is a graduate from Fashion Merchandising at Fanshawe College, and Faith Patrick is attending Art Globalization & Business at The University of Western Ontario.
Check out their website below for pictures and some of the products they sell.

Please RSVP if you can but if you end up just dropping in unannounced, that’s fine too.

Cathy Coish
519-668-6613catherine.coish@sympatico.ca

As I am now hoping for more people than originally planned, please be aware of the extra parking at the Starbucks and Shopper’s plaza’s 3 doors east of my home.

Pecoksie & Patrick is a traveling business founded by Canadians Faith Patrick & Desarae Pecoskie. The Pecoskie & Patrick clothing, accessories, and home décor trunk shows offer shoppers a unique in-home shopping experience. Pecoskie & Patrick bring the environmentally-friendly and fair-trade clothing line designed by Faith Patrick and the boutique style products developed by Desarae Pecoskie to you, creating a refreshing and comfortable in-home shopping environment. With new inventory arriving every month, Pecoskie & Patrick bring stylish and chic products to shoppers at affordable prices

□ Clothing & Accessories
- our brands include American Apparel (below their retail prices), Loco.Eleven Apparel, & Various Designer brands from Los Angeles California
□ Jewelry
- our brands include Wired Style Jewelry, Fake Minds Jewelry, Pecoskie & Patrick Jewelry, among other brands from L.A.
□ Canvas Shoes, Gladiator Sandals, Sheepskin Boots (for babies as well)
□ Handbags/Purses/Wallets
□ 1500 Thread Count Bed Sheets
□ All Natural Vegan Cosmetics & Body Care

I Believe in Miracles

2011-11-06T17:02:00.018-05:00

It's been five weeks since Coco was diagnosed with a rare bacterial infection called Lawsonia Intracellularis. The infection targets weanlings primarily between 4-7 months but has been diagnosed in older horses in very rare cases. It's considered a new diagnosis in horses and is seen most commonly in pigs. The bacteria is very difficult to culture, and since it usually infects weanlings and is quite rare, the research has been limited on the treatment, recovery and long term effects.

Coco was doing exceptionally well before the diagnosis. These pictures were taken a few weeks before she presented with symptoms. The research I have done indicates that it is almost impossible for horse owners to observe the infection early on. The horse doesn't show any symptoms until the infection is developed to a dangerous degree. You can see in these pictures that Coco was well muscled, had a shiny coat and no swelling on her chest or along her underline.

Unfortunately I don't board Coco at one of the farms I visit daily. I had checked on her on Friday, September 30th. She had lost some weight since being weaned, one month ago. She was a bit overweight before she was weaned, so I wasn't worried about that. I was more concerned that her coat looked a bit dull. I made plans to deworm her during the coming week just to be sure. I got a phone call from the owner of the farm where I keep her who is an oustanding horseperson and friend. He called on Monday, October 3rd to let me know she had a bit of diarrhea. He had given the horses some salt with their grain and wondered if maybe she had gotten more than her share from the common feeder.

When Jessie and I arrived to check her on Tuesday morning, she had terrible diarrhea, a rough, dull coat, an edema (swelling) along her underline and was listless. The skin around her eyes was blotchy, white and black. She urinated and her urine was white. We called for the vet immediately.

While waiting for the vet, we haltered Coco in a foaling stall with the other colt she has been turned out with. She had only been haltered once before this and had struggled and fought for about half an hour. That day she didn't make any fuss, just tried to back up and sit down. She stood with her head low, as if it was hard to keep herself up and her eyes looked dull despite all the commotion of being in the barn and the other colt calling out to the herd outside.

The vet showed up in a matter of minutes and immediately set Coco up with a catheter (the tube in her neck) for intravenous fluids. She was fairly dehydrated from the diarrhea but was still making an effort to drink periodically. He inserted a 14 gauge needle (thats a big one!) for the catheter and Coco didn't flinch. My stomach dropped as I realized just how sick she must be.

He gave her some Banamine to help her feel a little better so she would try to keep herself hydrated. He also gave her 2 bags of I.V. fluids, 40cc's of antibiotic and a dewormer. He took a blood sample and a fecal sample to be sent away to confirm his suspicion of Lawsonia. He showed me how to use the catheter so I could flush it regularly throughout the day and administer more Banamine if she showed signs of colic. He thought she may have salmonella, an extreme case of parasites or "worst case scenario; Lawsonia". The treatment plan at this time included 40cc's of the antibiotic "Chloramphenicol", three times per day approximately eight hours apart. The vet took the samples to the clinic to be analyzed and promised to get back to me as soon as possible.

Here you can see the edema along her underline. It was about the width of her chest, it started by her pectoral muscles between her front legs and ran the length of her belly.

These pictures were taken the day after she was diagnosed. We took her outside to be in the sun and move around a bit. Her ankles had both rocked up in this awkward position. She was moving with a lot of discomfort but showed some interest in eating the little bit of grass growing in the sand ring. She showed no signs of distress being alone without her pasture mates.

Here you san see the swelling between her front legs. The edema is a classic sign indicating low protein.

When the vet called back he had a pretty good indication from the bloodwork that she had been infected with Lawsonia Intracellularis. It would take approximately one week to get the results back from Gueph to confirm the diagnosis but her total protein was very low and her Albumin was dangerously low. It was so low that it didn't register on the test and threw the machine into an error. He said my options were to treat her with at least 6 bags of plasma transfusions. He said each bag cost about $400. She would also need an intense course of antibiotics, which was about $150 per bottle. Each bottle would last for about 4 days, and she would need 2-3 weeks of this. He said without treatment she would have about a 20% chance of surviving on her own. He said I could think about it for a while if I wanted and that he would euthanize her if I decided not to treat her. He said there was nothing that could have been done to catch the illness sooner, that this is usually how it presents. He said the farm where she was boarded would be a very low risk for this so it was just an unfortunate, rare incidence and that the other foal may be at risk. We had the other foal tested and his bloodwork came back normal.

I asked the vet while we were on the phone if it was better to get the plasma treatments started immediately and he said yes so I asked him to come back to the farm to start treatment as soon as possible. He said it would take an hour or so to thaw the plasma and he would be back once it thawed. I got off the phone and had a mental breakdown and melted into a puddle on the ground. Well, not really...but I was upset.

I have been so fortunate to have good luck with my horses. I had never had to make a decision like this before. I had made a difficult decision to sell my first horse when I graduated from Meredith Manor. I had been scared when my dog Sofie had a lump on her neck that could have been cancerous but turned out not to be, but other than that I had never been asked if I would prefer to turn down treatment and have one of my animals euthanized. I've sat with a friend while her horse writhed in pain until she could make the decision to put the horse down and felt at peace when other people have made that decision for their animals to end the pain. I've understood when other professionals just could not justify the expense of keeping a horse alive with a poor quality of life and made the decision to have their horse euthanized.

In the back of my head was one of the phrases I heard over and over at Meredith Manor, "If it doesn't make money, it doesn't make sense". I knew that spending $3,000 minimum on a weanling that was out of a mediocre mare (in terms of her ability to compete as an Open reining horse) didn't make sense. I also wrestled with the fact that I feel so strongly about responsible breeding. I believe that breeders need to be prepared to take care of the products they produce and that if they did, we wouldn't have nearly as many issues with the slaughter of horses due to overbreeding.

I thought about all that Coconut's dam, Peanut, had done for me and my career. She was the bargain of a lifetime at $800. I decided that my choice to treat Coco was justified by the fact that I had so little invested in her and Peanut so far, she was so strong and robust before falling ill and that the vet didn't seem like he had given up on her. I decided I didn't want to be the kind of person who doesn't give a baby animal a chance to fight for life and that being present for her birth and life so far was well worth the hole in my bank account. It wasn't really something I had money for at this time because I had just purchased a show horse a year ago and spent a lot of money on my show season, with hopes to build my business in a new direction. I was also hoping to purchase a reining horse to be a permanent part of my lesson program and she was going to be a major expense for me. Oh well, I decided money was just money at the end of the day and that my life would be richer if I gave her a chance to live. I didn't even think at this time that things could get worse.

The vet had said there was no guarantee that even with the treatment she would survive, but that if she did recover, she would recover fully. I felt confident in the care that I could give her and had a lot of faith in the vet despite his response to a lot of my questions: "well that's the million dollar question".

By the time he returned with the plasma, I had picked myself up and brushed myself off and was ready for whatever we were going to face. I had Googled Lawsonia and was ready to ask some questions about the treatment and prognosis. The vet brought back a copy of the bloodwork for me to see. I didn't understand much of it, except that it showed that she was fighting off something, the numbers were all over the place and that her protein was dangerously low.

Here you can see the figured in red showing abnormalities, and in the picture below the Albumin (ALB) is below 1. The first column of numbers shows the value in Coco's blood, the second shows the normal range. Her total protein (TP) was also below the normal range.

The plasma would help replenish some of the albumin in the blood and some of the protein. The bacteria had infected the small intestine and caused it to thicken into big loops. The small intestine had just about shut down and wasn't digesting the nutrients she was getting from the food she had been eating. The vet said that she would start to feel a little better pretty quickly but that she would be sick for 2-3 weeks before she really started to get better. He also said that she would look worse before she started to get better. She was already dehydrated and as the antibiotic started to work and the small intestine started to return to normal, the fluids would be drawn from her muscles and her skin. She was going to lose more weight. At this point she looked like she had lost about 40 pounds in the past three days.

The antibiotic (pictured below) was administered orally.

When the vet returned to give Coco the plasma he noticed some teeth grinding and suggested we medicate her for ulcers as they can be a problematic symptom. In further independent research I noted that several of the case studies had died of ulcers.

This was the saline solution I used to flush the catheter system with every time I medicated Coco with the antibiotic. She had some dried blood in the tube every day.

We administered two bags of plasma the first day, and two bags the following day as well as one bag of synthetic plasma. The synthetic is about half the cost of the plasma but Coco reacted to it by balking back and sitting down, then laying down. We weren't sure if this was a coincidence or if it was a reaction to the synthetic so we backed off.

The flush, four bags of plasma, one bag of synthetic plasma and two bags of I.V. fluids from day one.

Coco started to look a bit more lively within a few hours. She showed some interest in eating the hay in her stall and drank about 2 inches down from her water bucket. I got her a salt lick which she licked profusely and I was pleased to see her bite it and paw at it a little. I left that day at 5:30.

When I came back at 11pm to medicate her she was very uncomfortable. She wasn't writhing or fighting, she was standing still rocking back and forth on her back legs and I could see her flank seizing up in spasm. She wasn't comfortable standing on either of her back legs and there was some swelling in all four ankles. She had her tail forced between her legs and her hindquarters were quivering. She had extremely loud and unusual gut sounds.

I exploded into a million frustrated, sad, anxious pieces (not really, but that's what I felt like doing) and wondered if I was going to have to make a decision to end Coco's pain. If it was only going to get worse for a little while and she was this bad now, was it humane what I was doing or was it selfish to want to keep her alive?

I felt awful calling so late at night but I wanted to confirm how to administer the Banamine through the catheter and the dosage. I gave her 3cc's and she seemed more comfortable within minutes. Exhausted and feeling defeated, I went home to try to sleep for a few hours until the next dosage wondering what I would find when I came to the barn in the morning. It was a stark contrast to seven months ago, driving out to the farm anxiously to see if Peanut had gone into labour yet.

In the following days I noticed the swelling on her stomach shrinking slowly. The swelling on her ankles remained for about a week. It went down first in her front legs and took almost 5 weeks to come down in her back legs. Most times when I came into the barn she was lying down. For the first 5 days I had to encourage her to get up.

It was an exciting day when I came into the barn and she was standing, and another exciting milestone when she was up and alert standing with her nose at the bars of the stall.

I saw her lose more and more weight, a total of just over a hundred pounds within about two weeks. Her ankles became so swollen that the skin broke open and scabbed. We covered her broken skin in baby rash cream when she started going outside for small amount of time. She also developed dime-sized sores on her hindquarters and a number of small round sores on her muzzle that the vet guessed were ringworm. The fungus had taken advantage of her weakened immune system. The sunlight would help kill the fungus. The first day that we turned her out, we left her for two hours. I had to chase her and clap my hands to get her to walk slowly. When I caught her to bring her in she was breathing heavily and had some blood in her nostrils. Her breathing settled back down to normal once she was in the barn standing still. She had blood in her nostrils and was breathing heavily again the second day that she was turned out even though she barely covered any ground during the two hours. She was still lethargic enough that she walked right under the electric fence.

Again, I panicked a bit that it was awful what she was going through. Was she going to develop any other conditions with her weakened immune system? Were her ankles going to have permanent damage from the awkward position they had been forced into? Her eyes were bright and she was trying to eat. That was what I went on for days. I drove to Lucan every morning for 6am to medicate her and check on her and also after a days worth of teaching and riding, for her last daily dosage at 11pm. I did hours of research during the first week and found out that Coconut water has been used in humans as a substitute for plasma. It was used in the first and second world war and has been used since then in tropical areas where blood was not readily available. It's also been used to rehydrate and to rebuild albumin levels. I read that it has incredible healing powers and kills the fungus that causes ringworm. I confirmed this on some medical websites, asked the vet and decided to give it a try. It wouldn't hurt her and maybe it would do some good. I didn't have the guts to give it to her intravenously, which is what they had done for humans to subtitute for blood, but I did give her about 100cc's three times each day orally. I also made a dramatic appearance at the grocery store in my muddy boots to buy as much plain yogurt as I could find to offset the antibiotic.

Some swelling here in her front ankle and it's tough to see but under the hair the skin was all broken open.

Below you can see the ringworm that started to break open on her nose during the first week.

Pictured below is Coco, down about 70 pounds on the third day. She's standing in front of the electric fence that she walked right through, very slowly. You can see the rest of the herd looking at her. Her coat had become really rough and dull with patches.

Here you can see her ribs, her sunken hip and jutting shoulder. This was the end of the first week and both ankles were rocked forward, although not quite as badly as the first couple days.

Below you can see that the swelling was almost entirely gone with just a little tiny bit left sitting closer to her legs than the middle of her pectorals.

After 8 days the ringworm started to look like it was going away. It seemed like a long time for it to start to clear up. Maybe the young coconut water helped...??

Here Coco's feet are covered in Desitin to prevent moisture and infection in the scabs from the broken open skin. By this time Coco had been sick for two weeks and I had to get ready to leave for Congress. Thank goodness for good friends. A friend and nurse who rides with me and happens to live in Lucan offered to help out with medication while I was away. Jessie would medicate her for the first two days I would be gone and continue walking her for a small amount of time each day (the weather had turned this week and we couldn't turn her out) and then my friend would pick up where we had left off in the afternoons while the barn owner picked up mornings and evenings.

There were a lot of medication charts that went around making sure she got all the medication and keeping record of her progress from day to day.

Her blood had been checked after two days of two bags of plasma each day and registered at 1.4. This was still well below the normal range but a marked improvement. After two more days with only one bag of plasma each day it registered at 1.2. The vet asked me if I wanted to give her some more plasma. Another tough decision. By that time she was looking brighter and the swelling was staying down on her belly and front legs. I opted to wait and see how she progressed and if anything changed for the worse I would give her additional plasma to the six bags she'd already had.

Here you can see how sunken in her hindquarters were becoming.

When I returned from my trip to Congress I found Coco looking like she'd lost a little bit more weight. This was to be expected because she still wasn't absorbing all the nutrients from her feed and she still wasn't eating as much as she should be. She wasn't expressing any interest in grain at that point. I did notice that her belly looked bloated. She was eating enough grass to have a big grass belly by the end of the day and without any muscle tone, she looked quite pot-bellied and wide. The vet said this was a good thing and that she would look like this for a while but should start to look like she was putting on weight, albeit slowly.

I noticed she had a few really dry patches of flaking skin. They seem to be starting to heal this week.

They are hard to see in this picture but she also developed some sores on the tips of her ears. They have scabbed and are starting to heal now also.

After being sick for one month, things seemed to be evening out. She was now eating as much grass as she could and was turned out for 8 hours during the day in which she covered a lot of ground and was usually found along the back fence of the pasture. She was drinking significantly and her manure was regular and healthy. She had smelt awful since her diagnosis. Apparently humans also give off a sweet, tangy odour when they are low in protein. It was enough to make your eyes water when you walked in the barn during the first three weeks and faded slowly in the fourth week. She finished her antibiotic treatment at the end of the third week at the recommendation of the vet and consistant with the research I did. The ulcer medication finished up about 3 days later and we stopped giving her the yogurt and coconut water but did give her some coconut oil with the grain that she was starting to pick at a little. She had some blood work done and her albumin was up to 1.7. I wanted to have a party to celebrate. I wanted to have another party to celebrate the day that Jessie and the barn owner couldn't catch her in the field because she was trotting away from them.

I figured Coco had a total of 2,880 cc's of Chloramphenicol (anitbiotic), 7,200 cc's of yogurt and 7,200 cc's of young coconut water, and was medicated orally 648 times.

Although Coco seemed stable I was concerned now about her ankles. Her right ankle dropped back down into it's usual place after 3 weeks. Her right ankle was still rocked up awkwardly at 4 weeks. I was starting to worry she would develop a clubbed foot. If this was the case she would never make a show horse or a lesson horse for me. She may not even be rideable at all.

It took four weeks for the sores on her hindquarters to scab and peel off.

Her hooves had developed a sharp ridge from the dramatic change in her health. It will go away as the hoof grows out but we may have to rasp it down as it starts to grow out because it is so sharp.

The dry patches of skin have started to heal but the hair had fallen out in a few small areas.

Finally, Friday November 4th, Coco's left ankle also dropped down into a healthy position. We had been wrapping her legs for 12 hours on and 12 hours off. I wanted to have another party and shout from the rooftops that her ankles were ok!

We appear to be out of the woods now. I did some more research and it appears that the only studies concerning athletic ability and body score in weanlings with Lawsonia have been done with thoroughbreds bred to race. It appears that they did not recover in body score enough to be considered as big and healthy as their siblings who had not been infected, as yearlings. They did, however, compete and race at an equal level as two-year olds. The conclusion of the study was that they may take a year or so to fully recover in coat condition, musculature and size but that in the long term the athletic ability is not affected.

I owe a lot to everyone who helped Coco and I through this ordeal. I'm thankful to have a skilled veterinarian who diagnosed her right away. The reading I did showed that a lot of vets did not make the diagnosis right away and as a result the condition continued to worsen. I'm thankful to have a group of students who were understanding on that Tuesday when the diagnosis was made and I had to cancel lessons in a hurry. I'm thankful to have a great friend in Lucan and an exceptional barn owner to monitor any changes and administer medications. I'm thankful for a super friend who has worked for years with standardbreds and has seen several cases of Lawsonia who gave me valuable advice and encouragement when I needed it most. The support online and daily at lessons was amazing. It's handy to have a boyfriend with some horse skills too... Thank you everyone.

And then there's Cathy and Olivia Coish who have been an amazing support group. They have offered to open up their home to host a trunk party with some friends as a fundraiser for Coco's vet bill. Check out "Loco Elevel Apparel" and "Patrick and Pecocksie" (Click Here). They have some beautiful things and have generously donated 10% of all their sales in October to Coco!

Everyone is invited to the trunk party at the Coish residence November 19th (please RS.V.P.). Below is a copy of the flyer.

FUNDRAISER for COCO - 10% of all sold
Faith is generously donating 10% of ALL her sales in October to Coco. She is creating/acquiring as much in
“horsey” T-shirts/bling etc. as she can for the party.
Please Come!
You are invited
to an in-home “trunk” party
Saturday, November 19, 2011. 1pm-4pm
619 Commissioners Rd. E. 519-668-6613
Refreshments will be served
Looking for something unique for a Christmas gift or an upcoming Christmas get-together?
Do you like to support local artists and fair-trade, environmentally-friendly policies?
Or maybe you just like to shop!
Please come by at any time during this Open House style shopping experience.
The artists who have founded this business create and buy for all ages in your family. Faith’s t-shirts and hats are for both genders. Her handmade products can be found in local stores as well as stores on the east coast.
Desi Pecoskie is a graduate from Fashion Merchandising at Fanshawe College, and Faith Patrick is attending Art Globalization & Business at The University of Western Ontario.
Check out their website below for pictures and some of the products they sell.
Please RSVP if you can but if you end up just dropping in unannounced, that’s fine too.
Cathy Coish
519-668-6613
catherine.coish@sympatico.ca
As I am now hoping for more people than originally planned, please be aware of the extra parking at the Starbucks and Shopper’s plaza’s 3 doors east of my home.
More information on the back ....
Pecoksie & Patrick is a traveling business founded by Canadians Faith Patrick & Desarae Pecoskie. The Pecoskie & Patrick clothing, accessories, and home décor trunk shows offer shoppers a unique in-home shopping experience. Pecoskie & Patrick bring the environmentally-friendly and fair-trade clothing line designed by Faith Patrick and the boutique style products developed by Desarae Pecoskie to you, creating a refreshing and comfortable in-home shopping environment. With new inventory arriving every month, Pecoskie & Patrick bring stylish and chic products to shoppers at affordable prices
□ Clothing & Accessories
- our brands include American Apparel (below their retail prices), Loco.Eleven Apparel, & Various Designer brands from Los Angeles California
□ Jewelry
- our brands include Wired Style Jewelry, Fake Minds Jewelry, Pecoskie & Patrick Jewelry, among other brands from L.A.
□ Canvas Shoes, Gladiator Sandals, Sheepskin Boots (for babies as well)
□ Handbags/Purses/Wallets
□ 1500 Thread Count Bed Sheets
□ All Natural Vegan Cosmetics & Body Care
http://www.wix.com/shoppandp/parties

Roscoe

2011-11-06T16:52:00.002-05:00

Our official photo from Kirkbride Photography

Coco Update

2011-10-22T12:14:00.002-04:00

Well, the vet called this morning and they had taken some blood. It looks like Coco's albumin is UP to 1.7!!!!!
He said this was, "VERY good", and we could expect to see some weight gain over the next few days.
She's been bright and active, she's been eating up all of her oats and almost 2 flakes of hay per day. The swelling has stayed down on her belly and ankles. One of her ankles still isn't sitting quite right. Hopefully we'll get some good weather and she can get outside to stretch.

Congress '11

2011-10-21T15:43:00.002-04:00

We had a great time at Congress! Roscoe was a gem in and out of the show ring. We rode with some of the top individuals in the industry, human and equine. We're still waiting on the results and score sheets but all goals we had were met and or succeeded. All the hours in the saddle, the long drive, the special shoeing, the borrowed equipment, the torn slinkies, the shows when we weren't feeling our greatest, the extra care from everyone around the barn, the good luck wishes and the congratulations on a job well done (despite knowing the placings!) are what it's all about. What a great year for us, thanks to everyone who contributed!

It's Crunch Time!

2011-10-18T00:52:00.004-04:00

Hello from Columbus!

The draws were posted this afternoon and Roscoe is draw 32 in the Senior Western Riding. We are guessing it will be late afternoon/evening in the Celeste Center.

Roscoe rode really well tonight. He is stalled out in a tent with hardly any other horses in it and seems quite happy. We got his stall organized with the help of our friends from South Florida Equestrian Center last night. He was out for a walk and a light lunge. Tomorrow we ride in the morning again, bath, clip, band and get ready to do our thing with the best in the industry!

Coco has been doing well. She bucked in her stall yesterday and dove into her alfalfa!

2011-10-14T12:17:00.001-04:00

Coconut is still progressing slowly but surely. She's in good hands for the weekend while we head off to the All American Quarter Horse Congress to compete in the Senior Western Riding!

Click HERE for more information and for a link to watch what's happening at Congress LIVE!

Coco

2011-10-13T09:49:00.003-04:00

Coco's albumin level was down to 1.2 when we checked it yesterday. We really need it to get up to 2.2 to be in the low-but-safe range. She is, however, behaving better. She's eating more of her hay, interested a little bit in some grain, she's harder to catch in her stall and last night at 11 even tried to steal some hay when we took her for a little walk down the aisle in the barn.
Her ringworm is clearing up nicely and the sores on her ankles seem to be clearing up also. The swelling has stayed down on her belly and front legs, there's still a little left on her hind legs. She did have her back ankles tipped up akwardly, likely partly from the swelling and partly from being weak and uncomfortable. Yesterday her right ankle had dropped down into it's natural position.
We've still got a way to go but I think we're headed in the right direction...

Come on Coco!

2011-10-10T14:02:00.003-04:00

Dear, sweet Coco came was diagnosed on Tuesday of last week with Lawsonia Intracellularis .

The bacterial infection causes her protein to be dangerously low. She was showing all the symptoms and when we had her bloodwork done, it didn't even register in the test. Through the week with antibiotic treatment and plasma transfusions her Albumin has increased. On Thursday it registered at 1.2 and on Saturday at 1.4. The normal range is 2.2-3.7. We're hoping Tuesday morning it will still be at 1.4 or maybe even have climbed. She has not had any plasma for 3 days now. Her weight is way down and she has developed some ringworm on her muzzle and hindquarters.

Everything is being treated in the best possible way so we are hoping she has now turned the corner to the road to recovery. What a scary week! Thank you to everyone for their support. I have documented her symptoms, progress, daily routine and medication, and taken several photos. When Coco is a little more stable, I will post some more of this information. The link above describes the condition. The other colt was also tested and was clear.

Shedden Fair Triple C Saddle Club Horse Show

2011-09-19T12:08:00.005-04:00

Lori and Wayne Brown of Browns Photos have caught some of our favourite memories from the Shedden Fair Triple C Saddle Club Horse Show. Check out their work, and ours!

And the Top Six Name Choices Are...

2011-09-05T10:15:00.002-04:00

1. HHDunitSmartNPerfect

2. HHDunitQwikNPerfect

3. HHCoconut Jac

4. HHJacked Up On Jac

5. HHDoubleJacOnTheRox

6. HHCrackerJacDunit

The names have been submitted so now we just wait to see whether our top picks have already been used!

Thanks everyone for your input!

2011-08-23T14:32:00.002-04:00

Congratulations to Hayes Horsemanship riders on an outstanding performance at the Melbourne Fair Midwestern Ontario Horseman's Society show Aug 13th.

Nicole Van Esch
2nd place Open Reining

Katie Frost
3rd place Jr. A Horsemanship

Lindsay Hayes
1st place Adult Horsemanship
3rd place Adult Western Pleasure
6th place Adult Showmanship

2011-08-22T10:43:00.002-04:00

Congratulations to everyone who participated in the Triple C Saddle Club Horse Show August 7th!

Reece Martin
1st place Halter Mares
2nd place Walk/Jog on a Horse
3rd place Jr. B Showmanship
6th place Jr. A Keyhole

Kendall Monden
1st Walk/Jog on a Horse
3rd place Halter Mares
4th place Jr. B Showmanship
4th place Jr. A Keyhole

Haley Clark
1st place Jr. B Showmanship
1st place Jr. B Western Pleasure
1st place Jr. B Trail
1st place Jr. B Horsemanship
2nd place Jr. B Keyhole
2nd place Jr. B Barrels
2nd place Jr. B Down and Back
2nd place Western Riding
4th place Jr. B Flag

Stacey Martin
1st Adult Walk/Jog on a Horse
4th Adult Showmanship

Lindsey Tapp
4th place Adult Horsemanship
5th place Adult Western Pleasure

Olivia Coish
1st place Jr. A Western Pleasure
2nd place Adult Horsemanship
2nd place Command

Katie Frost
3rd place Command

Amy Cantelon
1st place Halter Mares
1st place Jr. B Command
2nd place Jr. B Western Pleasure
2nd place Jr. B Horsemanship
2nd place Jr. B Keyhole
3rd place Jr. B Polebending
3rd place Jr. B Down and Back
4th place Jr B Barrels

Julia Cantelon
5th place Jr. A Polebending

Steph Casey
1st place Adult Showmanship
1st place Adult Command
2nd place Adult Western Pleasure
2nd place Adult Trail
4th place Adult Horsemanship

Jacqui Davies
3rd place Adult Western Pleasure
5th place Adult Trail
5th place Adult Horsemanship

Lindsay Hayes
1st place Adult Western Pleasure
1st place Adult Horsemanship
1st place Adult Trail
1st place Open Western Riding
3rd place Adult Showmanship

Triple C Saddle Club Horse Show July 31st

2011-08-08T09:08:00.003-04:00

Congratulations to everyone who participated last weekend on your fabulous performances!

Olivia Coish
1st Place Junior A Western Pleasure
3rd Place Open Horsemanship
1st Place Command

Haley Clarke
2nd Place Junior B Trail
1st Place Junior B Showmanship
1st Place Junior B Western Pleasure
1st Place Junior B Horsemanship
3rd Place Junior B Command
1st Place Junior B Polebending

Kendall Monden
4th Halter Mares
2nd Junior A Showmanship
2nd Child Walk/Jog on a Horse

LeeAnne Hannaford Monden
1st Place Adult Walk/Jog

Stacey Martin
2nd Adult Walk/Jog
1st Halter Mares
Amy Cantelon
2nd Place Halter Mares
2nd Place Junior B Western Pleasure
1st Place Junior B Command
2nd Place Junior B Horsemanship
2nd Place Junior B Keyhole
3rd Place Junior B Polebending
4th Place Junior B Barrels
3rd Place Junior B Down and Back

Julia Cantelon
5th Place Junior A Polebending

Raechel Broadfoot
6th Place Adult Western Pleasure

Vanessa Henry
2nd Place Open Command

Lindsey Tapp
3rd Place Open Command

Steph Casey
3rd Place Open Command
2nd Place Adult Showmanship
5th Place Adult Western Pleasure
2nd Place Open Horsemanship
4th Place Adult Trail

Nicole Van Esch
1st Place Reining
2nd Place Adult Western Pleasure

Lindsay Hayes
1st Place Adult Showmanship
1st Place Adult Western Pleasure
1st Place Open Horsemanship
1st Place Adult Trail
1st Place Open Western Riding

Vote for a Registered Name!

2011-08-02T14:07:00.002-04:00

New Meredith Manor Promotional Video

2011-06-30T09:31:00.001-04:00

To watch click HERE

Moving!

2011-06-27T10:03:00.002-04:00

We're excited to announce that we have grown so much this spring that we've grown right out of our current digs! July 1st we will be making a move (just a hop, skip and jump from our current location) to Bridgecreek Stables.
Bridgecreek Stables is less than 5 minutes away from our current location. From Westdel Bourne you need to head West on Sharon Road (Sharon Road is North of Wesminster Drive and the 402 overpass, and South of Longwoods/HWY 2). Follow Sharon past the Teen Challenge Farm and over the 402. As you come over the bridge you will see the farm on your right. Turn right onto Bells Road and the laneway is on the right.
Bridgecreek offers a lighted, indoor arena, a large tack room, a spacious outdoor arena, trails beside scenic Sharon Creek and a great group of owners and boarders.
We're looking forward to making this transition and will do our best to make things smooth and consistent for our weekly students. Please contact us with any further questions or concerns.

Horse Show Schedule

2011-06-15T10:40:00.003-04:00

8:30 Arrival: Fill out entry forms, pick patterns, payment $45 per person (please note that there is a trailer in fee of $10 per horse. Riders bringing their own horses do not pay a "horse" fee) walk patterns and open riding for riders bringing their own horses.
10:00 Stacey Martin Misty
10:10 Lindsey Tapp Promise
10:20 Victoria Gordon J-lo
10:30 Teresa Corrigan Georgia
10:40 Kendall Monden Peanut
10:50 Katie Frost J-lo
11:00 Reece Martin Misty
11:10 Rachel Turner Promise
11:20 Mary Ellyn Karlson Wyatt
11:30 Emily Joudrey J-lo

12:00 Group Picture/Egg N Spoon (for all exhibitors, friends and family - no charge)

12:30-1:30 Lunch Break
We will be offering water and coffee, wraps, sandwiches, granola bars, cupcakes and freezies for sale.
(open arena for riders bringing their own horses)

1:30 Emily Ponte Wyatt
1:40 Olivia Coish J-lo
1:50 Noelle Carey Wyatt
2:00 Rachel Broadfoot Leroy
2:10 Juliana Pierotti J-lo
2:20 Julia Conrad Wyatt
2:30 rider change and warm up
2:40 Shayna Prince Wyatt
2:50 Amy Cantelon Hope
3:00 Julia Cantelon Quicksie

3:30 Ribbons handed out
4:00 Clean up crew

The First Triple C Saddle Club Show of the Year!

2011-06-14T10:49:00.003-04:00

Congratulations to Julia and Quicksie for their 5th place in Down and Back and to Amy and Hope for their 4th place in Keyhole!

Congratulations to Nicole and J-lo for their first place ribbons in the Reining and the Command class, their second place ribbon in Horsemanship and their fourth place in the Western Pleasure Class!

Congratulations to Roscoe and Lindsay for placing first in the Halter, Showmanship, Western Pleasure, Horsemanship, Western Riding and Trail classes!

J-lo showing off her side-passing skills.

Roscoe doing his thing.

Congrats to Kendall and Peanut on their third place ribbon in the Walk/Jog class and fourth place ribbon in the Showmanship class!

Congratulations to Steph and Maisie on their third place in the Command class and sixth place in the Western Pleasure class at Maisie's first show!!!

Congratulations to Reece and Misty on their first place ribbon in the Walk/Jog class and third place ribbon in the Showmanship class!

Congratulations to Haley Clarke for her first place ribbons in Showmanship, Western Pleasure, Horsemanship, Trail and Pole Bending, her second place ribbons for Barrel Racing, Down and Back and Keyhole with her pony Dusty and her first place ribbon for Showmanship and fourth place ribbon for Command class with her horse Cruise.

Congratulations to Stacey Martin for her first place in Adult Walk/Jog with Misty.

A huge THANK YOU goes to the members of the Triple C Saddle Club who volunteer their time to put together and run such a fun show.

Congratulations Helen and Kevin!! (..and Jackson!)

2011-06-14T10:32:00.003-04:00

This is Jackson, a horse that I have been working with for quite some time now. When his owner got engaged over the winter, she knew immediately she would like to have some wedding photography done with her handsome buddy. Knowing that Jackson can be a bit of a handful, it was decided that we would purchase a wedding dress to practice with. Off to Value Village I went and came home with this lacey, feathery dream come true. Jackson continued with his routine workouts while I wore the dress, and we began walking the majority of the property swinging the layers of the dress in the wind with us. In no time Jackson was quite comfortable with the idea. The standardbreds next door were less than impressed.
This past weekend, when it finally came time for Jackson to play his part, he was great! He stood quietly for pictures to be taken with Helen in her dress. He walked politely beside the groom Kevin, who had no horse experience. He even stood like a champ in the long grass while Helen climbed aboard and walked around.
Congratulations to the bride and groom, and thank you for inviting us to be a part of this special time in your lives.
These were some sneak peaks the photographer (Heather from HRM Photography) posted for us...

What's the Hold Up?!

2011-06-14T10:05:00.002-04:00

Dear, sweet Coconut has officially hit "that awkward stage". She's shedding her foal coat and looks to be a different colour underneath. We haven't forgotten about voting on registered names, we're just waiting to see what colour she looks like she's going to be before we make our choices! Stay tuned...

Thanks to everyone who came out to meet Coconut and brought food donations. We raised another 72 lbs of food for the London Food Bank!

For those of you who weren't able to make it, here is a picture of the donkey that was born at the farm who ALMOST stole the show from Coconut.

Almost 2 months old already!

2011-05-25T10:08:00.000-04:00

See You There!

2011-05-23T22:04:00.002-04:00

Rain or Shine!
2-5pm (time has been extended from 4pm to 5pm) at 8386 Observatory Drive to meet Coconut and visit with Peanut and Dunnit.
Don't forget to bring your donation for the London Food Bank. Everyone is welcome so bring your friends and family!
Directions:
From West London, follow Hyde Park Road North to Highway 7 (Elginfield Road) and turn right. Follow Highway 7 through Elginfield, past the turn off to highway 23, to Clarke Road and turn left. The farm is on the corner of Clarke Road and Observatory Drive (on your left if you're coming from Clarke Road). Park near the barn and come on in!

Horse Show on Sunday!
Come on out to see the goings-on at the first Triple C Saddle Club horse show of 2011.
The show will take place at the Shedden Keystone Complex at 35921 Talbot Line. Classes will start shortly after 9am and run until mid-afternoon.

Upcoming Events

2011-05-11T22:17:00.000-04:00

Please note the following events and dates:

May 28th Meet the Foal!
-Your opportunity to meet Coconut, Peanut and Dunit!
-8386 Observatory Drive, Granton (Jessie's barn)
-2pm-4pm
-no charge, please bring a non-perishable food item for the London Food Bank!

June 18th Horse Show/Exhibition!
-Schooling show for Hayes Horsemanship riders only
-Briarquest Farm, 5225 Westdel Bourne, London (home barn)
-9am-4pm
-entries and pricing info available at your regular lessons

Any further questions, please contact us at info@hayeshorsemanship.ca
Thanks!

Registered Name Suggestions

2011-04-27T10:33:00.011-04:00

Here is a sample of what Coco's registration papers would have for pedigree information.
When choosing a registered name, the owner/breeder has the choice of which names of sires and dams they would like to use.
It is common to choose bits and pieces of the most commonly known names. For example, Coco's paternal grandmother, Genzana, was named partly after her sire genuine Doc, and partly after her mother, Zan Parr Jetta (Gen+Zana).
It is also common for the owner/breeder to name the horse after a specific characteristic that the foal may display within it's first few hours or days. For example, Hollywood Dun It would get "Hollywood' from his sire, and the "Dun" part from his colouring (he was a buckskin coloured dun).
If you take a look at (Peanut) Smart Like Jac's sire, there is one name in brackets. The formal registration papers that a horse has for identification would be it's American Quarter Horse Association papers. If the horse was a Paint, it would be it's American Paint Horse Association papers. In this case, the horse is a quarter horse and registered under the name Sugar Bar Buckaroo. The horse was also shown with the National Reining Horse Association where a competition license is required. Most owners choose to have the same name on both papers but in this case, the horse was named Jac Be Quick for it's NRHA competition.
Larger breeding operations often opt to include their intitials or brand in the name, (ie. HH Coconut Jac, HH could stand for Hayes Horsemanship and/or be the brand). The initials and brand serve as an advertisement wherever the horse is seen or wherever the name is announced.
Sometimes a foal can be named something totally different than it's sire and dam, grandsires and granddams. Often times, popular celebrities, song lyrics or movies are incorporated into the names. Owners can get quite creative with their name choices and turn them into a play on words.
When applying for a registration, the name choice must be 20 characters or less including spaces, and with no punctuation. The application paper has space for 6 name choices listed by priority from one to six. If none of the name choices are suitable, or if they are all in use, AQHA will name the foal.

The FUN Part:
We are looking for name suggestions!
Remember: 20 characters or less, preferably a name that is derived from one or more names on the pedigree chart or specific to Coco's colour and characteristics.

So, make your suggestions, and we will check to verify whether or not they have been used already. We will have a vote to find the top six choices which will be sent out on the registration application. From there, we will have to wait anxiously for AQHA to send back the official papers and reveal the official name choice!

Suggestions so far:

Dun it Quick and Perfect (will have to be modified, exceeds 20 characters) DunItQwikNPerfect

Dun it Smart and Perfect (see above) DunItSmartNPerfect

Jac Dun it (not available)

Cracker Jac Dun It (not available)

Dun It Like I'm Smart (see above - no punctuation) Dun It Like Im Smart

DoubleJacontheRox

Gens Smart Like That

Jacked up on Jac

Cracker Jac Smartie

Smart Like CrackerJac

Genz Gone and Dun it

Coconut Jac

Been There Dun That (not available)

You Don't Know Jac (not available)

Lightly Dun (not available)

Git R Dun (not available)

Zebra Jac

Jac Dun It Perfect

Hollywood Jac It

Dun Smart

*Names marked with, "not available," are names that have been taken already in the AQHA database.

Tell us your name suggestions and we will post all of them on this page as well as on our facebook page.

Happy Naming!

Babies Week 1 - 2...

2011-04-20T10:53:00.002-04:00

1 Week Old

2011-04-14T09:48:00.000-04:00

And the name choice is...

2011-04-11T09:36:00.002-04:00

Thanks to everyone who voted and suggested names for Peanut's baby last week and over the weekend. The final tally was 32 voted for ButterCup and 67 for Coconut. Coconut it is! Celebrate with us at the lesson barn during weekly lessons with Coconut Chocolate Logs and Peanut Butter Balls! Pedigree for registered name suggestions still to come...

Colic

2011-04-08T08:42:00.004-04:00

Just a heads up to horse owners and horse care takers that the vets in the London area are overwhelmed with the number of colic in horses right now. For those of you with horses please be extra careful over the next few weeks and especially this weekend. Remember that any change in temperature more than 10 degrees is very stressful for the horses. Many horses haven't had good quality of turn out and mobility over the past few weeks due to the mud, ice and snow. Although we will be inclined to turn into "Weekend Warriors", (a term used for horse and rider combinations that don't get much exercise the rest of the week and then work out too hard on the weekend) with this heat wave, remember that your horses are already under an enormous amount of stress with the change in weather. Some things to keep in mind: - An extra water bucket hung in your horses stall isn't much trouble and helps ensure your horse doesn't run out of fresh, clean water before you get a chance to refill it -The warm weather can be used for other things than long rides, which will be stressful for your horse. Use the warm weather to give your horse some grooming attention and to clean your tack -Take your horse for a walk in hand rather than a trail ride and check for holes and debris that may have collected on the trails over the winter -Mineral Oil can be found at most pharmacies and grocery stores and is an inexpensive but crucial part of your first aid kit

No Name

2011-04-08T08:38:00.002-04:00

Thanks everyone for your name suggestions! We are down to two final names based on the suggestions we've had and the votes on those suggestions on the website (here), on our Facebook page, and in person during lessons this week. The two final barn name choices are: Butter Cup (as in Peanut Butter Cup) and Coconut ("Coco" for short). Please let us know your oted before the end of the day TODAY! We hope to have a name for the little one by the weekend! We will post the pedigree for those of you putting together suggestions for registered names. Please note that names will have to be checked against the AQHA registry. We will take the top six name suggestions. Thanks again!

And then there were TWO!

2011-04-05T22:32:00.003-04:00

Sunday late morning, only hours after Peanut had given birth to her filly, Peppy gave birth to a colt!

The video above is of his first steps...

Name suggestions

2011-04-04T09:19:00.003-04:00

We're looking for barn name suggestions and registered name suggestions. So far the barn name suggestions have been:

Pistachio

Almond

Pecan

Brazil Nut

P2 (Peanut 2)

Lacey

Lacey Shades

Arti

Coconut

Blondie

Dunny

Cupcake

Walnut

Acorn

Have another suggestion or a suggestion for a registered name? Let us know!

Baby I was Born This Way

2011-04-02T20:21:00.002-04:00

It's a FILLY!

2011-04-02T10:44:00.003-04:00

Born April 2nd at 1:30 am. Both baby and mare are doing wonderfully! Updates and more pictures to come!

Still Nothin'

2011-04-01T09:05:00.001-04:00

A little bit more milk dripping now...over the weekend would be ideal, Peanut.

Nothin' Yet

2011-03-30T08:59:00.002-04:00

As you know, Peanut is ENORMOUS. Her entire pregnancy has seemed to progress very steadily so far, with no suprises. The last sign we are looking for is for her teats to produce some wax to stop the milk from flowing out. The vets suggest this is a sign that labour is only 24-48 hours away. Peanut has started to get some little tiny droplets of wax over the past few days that have fallen off. Once the wax starts to stay and cover the teat, it will be time to count down the hours. It's not unusual at all for mares to wait for the warmer weather, or to be several days early or late from their due date. We've had so much support and some SUPER name suggestions. Name suggestions will be posted once the baby is born. Our guesses for a filly are up to 38 and for a colt up to 35. We even had a few people predict colours and dates! GOOD LUCK PEANUT!

Due Date

2011-03-28T09:12:00.003-04:00

Thanks to everyone for your prayers and for keeping your fingers crossed for Peanut thus far (343 days today since she was bred!). The due date is tomorrow but as of today there are no impending signs of labour. The vet was out to the farm yesterday to check on some other mares at the same farm who were on a drug therapy to rush the heat cycles for breeding purposes. All four mares had been a bit slow to respond to the medication, possibly due to the extreme cold over the past week. As many of you already know, mares have the ability to prevent the onse of labour if they feel threatened, or that the foal's life could be at risk. Peanut, like the other mares at the farm, may be holding off for some warmer weather. Keep the prayers comin'! We'll keep you updated the best we can!

Are You Interested?

2011-03-22T09:45:00.002-04:00

The Equine division of the University of Gueph is offering a unique experience for horse enthusiasts. Check out this link for more details. Please let us know if you are interested in attending.

CLICK HERE

2011-03-15T15:01:00.009-04:00

Genzanit

Buckskin stallion, NRHA money earner and AQHA point earner by Hollywood Dun It (offspring have earned over $6 million) and out of Genzana (Genzana is by Genuine Doc)

Smart Like Jac

2000 sorrel mare, NRHA money earner and AQHA point earner by Jac Be Quick and out of Smart and Perfect (by Doc Quixote)

=

(Oct. 2010)

(Dec. 2010)

(Jan. 2011)

(Feb. 2011)

(Mar. 6, 2011)

(Mar. 14, 2011)

Any day now Smart Like Jac, affectionately known as "Peanut", will be giving birth to the newest member of the Hayes Horsemanship Team!

Keep your fingers and toes crossed and keep the good luck wishes and prayers comin'!

So far the tally of guesses for the baby's sex is at 31- filly, 23 colt. Haven't made your guess yet? Let us know!

Don't forget to get your creative juices flowing. Once the baby is born healthy and happy we will be looking for suggestions for both barn names and registered names. Keep the above pedigree in mind...

Customer Appreciation Celebration Photo Collage

2011-02-27T09:35:00.003-05:00

A sampling of the goings-on at our Customer Appreciation Celebration in January. Thanks to everyone who sent in their photos! SSSUUUUUUPPPEERRRR ROSCOE!! In his "snow suit".

Expecting Mare/Foaling Management Workshop

2011-02-27T09:13:00.002-05:00

Saturday, February 26th marked ten months into Peanut's pregnancy and our Expecting Mare/Foaling Management Workshop. Ten of us braved the cold weather to view the first signs of swelling in the udder, protrusion of the milk vein, and the overall size and shape of the mare's barrell.

Dr. Kendra Boehnke gave us a jam packed lecture and some demonstrations. Participants viewed ultrasounds of the entire growth process from conception to birth. We learned about normal temperatures in the foals vs. adult horses, birth defects, colustrum, meconium, normal and abnormal behaviour in the foal and the mare, how to milk the mare in case of emergency, the procedure for giving the foal an enema and much, much more!

We owe a HUGE thank you to Dr. Boehnke for her time and effort - we'll see you when there is a happy, healthy (our fingers are crossed) foal on the ground!

Expecting Mare Workshop

2011-02-22T10:05:00.003-05:00

Interested in learning more about expecting mares and foals?

Hayes Horsemanship students are invited to participate in this workshop with Dr. Kendra Boehnke from Ilderton Equine Services. Dr. Boehnke will be administering yearly vaccinations, an ultrasound and she will be teaching us about signs to look for when the mare is ready to foal out. We will also cover how to be prepared if there are any difficulties during labor.

Spaces are limited due to the nature of workshop. Please confirm your spot with us as soon as possible. $15 per person must be paid in advance to reserve a space. Also, we ask that any non-participants (siblings, parents, drivers etc.) remain outside the barn area during the workshop to keep traffic and noise to a minimum for the horses.

Directions to the farm in Lucan will be provided upon confirmation.

Customer Appreciation Celebration!

2010-12-09T12:34:00.002-05:00

Thank you for your support and business in 2010!

We'd like to invite you to join us for snacks, fun "Horse-Birthday" themed activities for the kids and a riding demonstration! The celebration will take place between 1 and 4pm - feel free to drop in as you like, January 2nd, at Briarquest Farm. The address is 5225 Westdel Bourne, Lambeth/London (our home farm).

Everyone is welcome, so bring your families and horsey-friends!

AQHA World Show Final Runs

2010-11-23T09:46:00.003-05:00

The American Quarter Horse World Show wrapped up on the weekend in Oklahoma City.

Click the event to see the winning run below:

Senior Cutting

Senior Working Cow Horse

Senior Tie Down Roping

Senior Barrel Racing

Senior Pole Bending

Senior Reining

Senior Western Riding

Senior Trail

Team Penning

There are also results for all of the Amateur events, English events and Open Junior events. For more results check out the AQHA World Show results page HERE.

Nic Update, In the Boots of a Horse Trainer - 4, and Roscoe's "first" show!

2010-11-16T10:04:00.003-05:00

Things have been busy at the farms this month. A few highlights:

Nic, the very first lesson horse we used as Hayes Horsemanship, is now living North East of Toronto on Rice Lake. Photos of her, "Vacation Home" and her loving buddy Marilyn, can be viewed on our facebook page. Marilyn's home overlooks Rice Lake and offers 75 apple trees in the pasture which Nic takes full advantage of!

Click Here to see Nic

Unfortunately, we've just heard from the vet that Nic is no longer in foal for 2011. She's doing just fine but somewhere along the line has absorbed the baby (still in the very early stages).

Our 4th session in our "In the Boots of a Horse Trainer" series was a great success. The "trainers" worked really hard once again with new horse assignments this time. Each trainer worked with one horse in the morning and then observed a demonstration with the yearling gelding about leading and ground manners. They helped out around the barn with cobwebs and sweeping and then tacked up for a trail ride around the corn field just across the laneway from the farm. Pictures can be seen on our facebook page CLICK HERE.

Roscoe, the newest horse to join the Hayes Horsemanship team, had his first show with Lindsay this past weekend. We were so busy banding, grooming and learning the ropes of the Western Riding stuff that we forgot to get pictures (sorry!!!). Roscoe was awesome throughout the whole show and we ended up with 3rd place under one judge and 4th place under the other judge in the Western Riding class. Now it's back to practicing before the next show in February!

Welcome Roscoe!

2010-11-04T13:50:00.002-04:00

Welcome new horse ROSCOE to the Hayes Horsemanship team! Roscoe is a 15 yr old Quarter Horse gelding with over 250 AQHA points on his show record. He has successfully competed in Western Pleasure, Horsemanship, Western Riding, Shwomanship, Trail, Halter, Hunter Under Saddle and even one Barrel Racing class!

Due to his age and the amount of wear and tear generally incurred by a heavy show schedule, we asked our vet to perform a thorough pre-purchase examination (something we encourage all our students to invest in). Roscoe passed with flying colours.

We look forward to some type of Meet n' Greet with Roscoe at Briarquest Farms so everyone can get a better look at him!

Pictures of Year End ORHA Show

2010-11-04T13:43:00.002-04:00

Thanks to Riverbend Deisngs for capturing "Shorty" in action! Shorty's mother is our lesson horse J-lo! Can you see the resemblance?

Pictured in the Ladies class is Peppy (aka Twist). Peppy ended up with 3rd place in the Ladies and 2nd place in the Rookie Professional class.

Last Show of the Year

2010-10-22T10:55:00.003-04:00

Ontario Reining Horse show this weekend at the Agriplex in London!

For show schedule CLICK HERE

See ya there!

Video Clips from Congress Freestyle '10

2010-10-15T10:13:00.001-04:00

CLICK HERE to link directly to our video page on Facebook and watch some of the clips of the 2010 Freestyle Reining at Quarter Horse Congress

Peanut's Baby Bump - half way there

2010-10-12T13:35:00.002-04:00

About halfway to the due date now and the bump is growing! Barely visible from the front...
Pretty obvious from the side!!

Congress '10

2010-10-12T13:10:00.004-04:00

We've adding some pictures of our fabulous trip to Congress. We were lucky enough t meet up with our friends from South Florida Equestrian Centre for the Freestyle Reining, yummy eats and lots of shopping!

Fun Day!

2010-09-27T12:08:00.005-04:00

Saturday, September 25th marked our youth Fun Day. Participants took part in a serious grooming session in preparation for our bareback riding and painting horses!

Hand-led bareback riding was a huge hit. First-timers got an opportunity to get balanced and comfortable while in the capable hands of our volunteers. Experienced bareback riders (and some brave first-timers) experimented with the balance exerises we often start our lessons with. Some riders were even testing their skills to the maximum when asked to close their eyes and say out loud which legs of the horse were moving and when.

We gave the horse a quick break while the participants lined up and learned some of the basic rules of the event called, "Showmanship". The young ladies learned how to present their horse to the judge from all angles and how to switch from one side of the horse to the other smoothly and gracefully.

Then it was time for some fun! The paints were laid out carefully and the participants got to work painting their horses. Lesson horse Wyatt was covered in every colour hand prints, finger prints and splatter paint. Lesson horse Jane was painted with a beautiful combination of pink, yellow, green and blue polka dots. Student horse Molly was a true masterpiece in stripes, handprints and a face mask. Student horse Promise was painted with white and light blue fairy wings, a rainbow across her hips and a big red heart on her shoulder. Some of the horses manes, tails and forelocks were carefully braided as well.

Thanks for participating everyone! We had a great time!

Intro to Working Cows

2010-09-27T11:56:00.002-04:00

Friday night we drove up to Granton for an intro lesson from Jess Cofell about working cows. Nicole and Lindsey gave their horses a solid warm up before their first attempts at, "tracking" the cows. Lindsey rode a 4 yr old palomino mare who Jessie has been showing this year at some AQHA and NRHA shows. Nicole rode a 3 yr old bay mare who is just beginning her show career. Recognize the bay mare? That's because she's J-lo's baby, "Shorty".

Lindsey and Nicole took turns with the cows and practices tracked them around and learning to anticipate where they would try to move next. Then we split them up on either side of the arena and each rider's job was to keep them apart and behind their designated line.

By the end of the lesson the girls had practiced tracking the cows, "boxing" a horse and rider as well as each of the calves. They were successfully moving each individual calf to a designated spot in the arena as well as up and down the long side of the arena.

Thanks to Jessie for providing horses, cows and some great instruction!

We're in The RIDER!

2010-09-24T10:13:00.003-04:00

Be sure to check us out in the September issue of, "The Rider - Ontario's Horse Industry Newspaper" along with Ian Millar, Amber Marshall and some of the great equine associations in Ontario.
The article is on page 10 and is titled, "The Next Generation of Great Horsepeople Starts Here!", and includes a brief summary of our clinic in July, 5 Days in the Boots of a Horse Trainer. You may recognize Victoria Gordon riding Misty, Emily Ponte leaning over Sprite's back, and Katie Frost's boots and helmet behind Peanut in the pictures selected for the article.

6th Day in the Boots of a Horse Trainer

2010-09-24T10:00:00.002-04:00

September 10th we held our first follow up to the clinic, "5 Days in the Boots of a Horse Trainer", at Bridgecreek Stables. The girls quickly got right back into working with their assigned training horses and picked up right where they left off. After riding outdoors in the sand ring (leading for Karen and Jordan) we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and take the horses for a little ride down the road.

The girls also did a refresher class to brush up on their Showmanship skills, worked their second horses (hooray for Sister whose trainers were Katie and Julianna for mounting and being backed for the first time!) and then dewormed all of the assigned horses.

Once again, the horse trainers did a phenomenal job and had some fun! Thanks to the Bridgecreek Stables gang for sharing their facility and horses!

We HEART Justin Bieber!

2010-09-24T09:47:00.003-04:00

To celebrate Justin Bieber's London appearance at the JLC, we had a JB themed lesson! Presley and Promise got right into it with sparkly paint, JB T-shirt and wristbands. We even carried on with our lesson plan to ride to the different beats in the music with Justin Bieber's CD! Watch for these photos on the Justin Bieber official fan page!

CONGRATS NICOLE AND J LO!!

2010-08-26T14:40:00.001-04:00

4TH
Open Reining
At the Ontario Quarter Horse Association show in Ilderton Aug. 21st.

Your fill of horsey stuff

2010-08-26T14:24:00.002-04:00

Click here to watch the video

"Just a Horse"

Thanks to Stacey Martin for sharing this website with us:

Colour Calculator

Enter the mare and sire's colours and see what the likelihood is for each possible colour for the offspring!!

Don't forget our annual trip to All American Quarter Horse Congress is coming up. We will be collecting money for Freestyle Reining tickets by September 1st for the performance October 9th in Columbus, Ohio. Tickets are only on sale for a couple weeks and then will only be available the day of the event if they are not sold out. Order your tickets through Hayes Horsemanship for $30 Canadian to sit with our growing group!

5 Days in the Boots of a Horse Trainer

2010-07-26T11:51:00.012-04:00

Six of our most advanced riders participated in a clinic from July 19-23 involving many aspects of horse training and care. Participants were assigned two training horses for the week that they were responsible for riding or working with each day. Participants were also expected to manage routine barn care including: feeding, turning out, mucking stalls, watering and sweeping. The ladies also helped out with unloading the hay wagon and dragging the arena with the harrows on the ATV. Activities varied from sidepasses and softening while mounted to ground driving, lungeing, leading, sacking out, saddling and mounting work for the horses with less or no previous mounted training. The horses ranged in ages from 1 yr to 20yrs and included paints, appaloosas, quarter horses, a shetland pony and two halflingers. The girls practiced their trailer loading skills and were witnesses/assitants to the vet while she gelded the yearling colt.
Below are some of the pictures taken throughout the week, as well as the practice "sale pictures" with a few of the horses who participated in the clinic.

Weather and HST

2010-07-06T10:53:00.002-04:00

Just a quick note to let everyone know that lessons are still a go for this week despite the heat. Inside lesson plans are in place, we can even stay cool in the viewing area for those of us who can't stand the extreme heat (and for the horses sake).

Also a reminder that our prices will remain the same with the introduction of HST. The HST will be absorbed into the current fees, the amount you pay for lessons will NOT change.

Thank you and keep cool!

Surgery and Phone

2010-07-01T16:27:00.004-04:00

Thanks to everyone for your support and positivity over the past few weeks. My surgery was June 30th at 10am and I'm pleased to report that all went well!
It was quick and painless. I'm at home resting (or trying to...) for a few days and should be back to teaching on Monday. I'm still unsure of the length of time off I will need from riding, but should have a better idea after the stitches are removed July 12th. The results from the tissue that was taken should be in around that same time frame.
Thanks again for your flexibility and support through all of this!

Please accept my apologies for anyone who has not received a response for any messages sent from June 26th to June 30th. My phone went on the fritz on Friday and I have been unable to retrieve any messages during that timeframe. I have a phone on loan right now and can accept calls, voicemails and text messages. Emails are still accessible from my computer.

Happy Canada Day and I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Hayes Horsemanship welcomes South Florida Equestrian Center!

2010-07-01T15:55:00.008-04:00

Thursday June 25th marked the start of the first leg of our International Exchange 2010/2011!
Teresa Belanger, coach, trainer and owner of South Florida Equestrian Center, and 6 of her riding enthusiasts participated in the four day long weekend in CANADA!

Riders of all ages and levels of experience enjoyed our "cool" summer weather, great horses and fantastic facility.

Friday night after a long day of riding lessons and a trip to Port Stanley, we relaxed on the hill beside the arena to watch a reining demonstration and Teresa try out a potential show horse "Baylee".

We had to make a little stop to see the momma and baby that were being boarded there temporarily until the mare was re-bred for next year.

Sof made everyone feel right at home back at Briarquest on our second day of lessons. Saturday morning we had been in Strathroy to watch a horse show. We made a quick stop at Crinklaws for some real maple syrup. Later in the evening we dined at the Great Canadian Steakhouse and went to one of our gracious host families homes to make smores at the campfire.

Sunday morning we packed up the rental cars and drove to Niagara Falls for the day. We took a walk down the white water rapids and an unbelieveable ride on the Maid of the Mist. We also checked out the caves behind the falls and a 4D experience illustrating the creation of the falls.

Monday morning we did our last riding lessons. Everyone did a fabulous job in their lessons and made significant improvement over the four days that seemed to fly by. Thanks to our host families and thanks to our gracious guests. We hope to see you soon for the second leg of our exchange when we visit Fort Myers, Florida during March Break 2011!

We Welcome South Florida Equestrian Center!

2010-06-23T12:09:00.002-04:00

This weekend we are thrilled to be hosting 8 riders from South Florida Equestrian Center as part of our 2010/2011 International Exchange! The riders fly in Thursday night and will be staying until Monday afternoon. They will be taking part in riding lessons at our home farm each day, and staying with volunteer host families each night. We also have planned a trip to Port Stanley for lunch to see the lake, a riding/reining demonstration in Granton, a daytrip to Niagara Falls and of course a meal or two at Tim Horton's!
The second leg of the exchange will take place during March Break 2011 when we fly to Fort Myers, Florida to reunite with our guests for a week of riding in the sunshine!

A huge thank you to our host families for opening up their homes for 4 days.

Scheduling for June/July

2010-06-14T10:21:00.002-04:00

As many of you know, last week I was diagnosed with a melanoma on my left calf. My appointment today with the plastic surgeon confirmed that I will need to have a border of tissue removed from around the original incision. The good news was that the melanoma seems to have been caught in the epidermis (the top layer of skin) and there isn't any worry at this point that it has spread to the dermis, the muscle/fat or the lymph nodes. The rest of the cancerous cells will be removed along with a 5mm border of healthy tissue.
The surgery is booked for Wednesday, June 30th.
I should be able to walk and stand to teach lessons regularly by Monday of the following week. Nicole will be available to teach the regularly scheduled lessons on Wednesday, June 30th, Thursday, July 1st and Friday, July 2nd as discussed.
Thanks for your understanding and flexibility with all of this. If you are concerned, or interested in finding out more about melanomas and skin cancers my doctor recommended www.mayoclinic.com.
Thanks again and please contact me with any further questions,
Lindsay

Horse Show on Sunday

2010-05-28T11:33:00.003-04:00

Anyone interested in coming out to a horse show on Sunday?? We will be dong some schooling and coaching at the Triple C Saddle Club show in Shedden this weekend. The performance events like western pleasure, trail and horsemanship will all take place throughout the morning. The gaming events like barrel racing and pole bending will be in the afternoon. The reining will be somewhere in the middle of the day.
The Triple C Saddle Club has a website www.triplecsaddleclub.com as well as a Facebook page where you can find a more specific class list.
The address for the show ground is 35921 Talbot Line, Shedden ON.
See you there!

If you are not able to come out this weekend to the show, there will be plenty of other opportunities this season. Ask us about our plans and check back to the website and Facebook page regularly.

CONGRATULATIONS!!

2010-05-26T11:25:00.002-04:00

Hooray for everyone who participated in our Spring Horse Show/Exhibition May 16th!!!
Exhibitors did a fantastic job and learned some great lessons!

An extra special thanks to the volunteers and sponsors. Heritage Country Gardens came through for us again with some flowers for our beautiful winner's circle. Teresa Corrigan very generously donated sunglasses for every exhibitor! Thanks to Cathy and Olivia Coish for their prize donations, as well as for their help in the kitchen with the food booth. Thanks to Karen Pratt for her prize donations and for her help all day until the very end. Thanks to Legg's General Store in Lucan for their generous prize donations, and to Cathy Haggarty for her leg work for these prizes. Thanks to Keith Hayes for providing some fabulous gift card prizes for our Egg n' Spoon challenge as well as to the Ferguson family once again for their great horsey-prizes. Thanks to the Karlsons for use of their karaoke machine and for the special snacks they brought for the volunteers at the end of the day. Thanks to Simply Candy for some yummy treats. Thanks to everyone who pitched in and helped out: Monique Hoffer, Emily Ponte and Martha Zimmerman, Lindsey Tapp etc etc etc.
Another congratulations and thank you to Presley Delellis and Sydney Karlson for their fantastic rendition of OH Canada to start out our day! Great job girls!
A HUGE thanks to Nicole Van Esch for her help and support all day and throughout the week leading up to the show.
Thanks to our photographer, Teresa Gilroy for her hard work the day of the show. Teresa has got pictures ready for us to view at the barn, in a photo album. Teresa has given us some very special rates for this show, and the photos look great! Please make sure you get a chance to view these at the farm before the end of June to make your orders.

Once again: thank you, thank you, thank you!!! And Congratulations!

Speaking of babies...

2010-05-26T11:16:00.002-04:00

Jlo's filly Shorty is now 3 years old and will be shown for the first time this year! She's proving to be very much like her mom, but a little stockier.

We don't have any pictures of Blondie's yearling yet, but here is the 2 year old by Mr. Boomerjac. This filly has been handled a little bit, lunged and had a saddle on. She will be coming in for more training in the next couple weeks.

Peanut UPDATE!

2010-05-26T11:03:00.002-04:00

6 weeks have gone by with no signs of heat so...

PEANUT must be PREGNANT!!!!!

In the next few weeks the vet will be out to do a little check up and check to see if everything is happy and healthy and hopefully not twins! Keep your fingers crossed for us, and let's hear some name suggestions!

In case you've been out of the loop: Peanut, my show horse from last year was bred in the middle of March. The first breeding wasn't successful as she had a cluster of eggs. Fertility of a cluster of eggs is inprobable, so we took the safest bet and put her on a drug that would do two things. The first was to decrease the chances of aborting a possible pregnancy (even though unlikely). The second was to regulate the heat cycle and increase the chances of fertility from a second breeding. The second breeding took place and as of right now all systems are go!

We decided to breed Peanut to a stud called Genzanit. Genzanit, or "Dunnit" as we call him around the barn, has an extensive show record, a fabulous mentality and hopefully some physical attributes to offset some of Peanut's weaknesses.

We are waiting for the appointment with the vet before we start an official countdown...stay tuned!

Remember Twist?

2010-05-26T10:38:00.005-04:00

The ORHA Spring Thaw Horse show at Fletcher's Horseworld on May 8th and 9th was the beginning of a brand new season on a brand new horse!

"Twist" or "Peppy" as we call her around the barn is a bronze winner at just 4 years of age. Due to very petite bone structure, Peppy was given most of her two year old year off. Training for any horses, and especially for young reining horse can be very stressful on young bones, so in this case it was decided to let Peppy have an extra year to grow up.
Look kind of familiar? Yes, Peppy was in training with me as a yearling. Now, three years later, I have the opportunity to ride her and show her!
The show at Fletcher's HorseWorld was a great experience for us. Peppy got to see all the sights and sounds of the horse show, LOTS of riding (even through the torrential downpour and high winds...), and got to be in the ring by herself in the Rookie Professional class.

Other than a few minor distractions, we had a pretty good run. A few more shows are lined up for Peppy and I this season, we will keep you updated on her progress!

Click HERE to view video!

2010-05-06T19:50:00.002-04:00

Check out this video from Congress '09. Think out horsemanship patterns in preparation for the horse show coming up are complicated????? Think again!

CALLING ALL HOST FAMILIES!

2010-05-06T09:53:00.002-04:00

Our group of riders from Florida will be here June 25th-June 28th for their first trip to Canada! We will be hosting riding lessons, some fun horsey-events and a trip to Niagara Falls. We are looking for a couple of volunteer host families to give these girls a place to stay for a couple nights. Got an extra room? A pull-out couch? Please contact me if you are interested in finding out what would be involved.
Thanks!!

Reining Clinic

2010-05-01T10:59:00.002-04:00

The reining clinic last weekend was a huge success. Jordan Larson, NRHA's youngest Million Dollar Rider, who also holds an NRHA judges card was a fantastic clinician. We got to see a little bit about how Jordan coaches his non-pro riders, and watch him ride a horse owned by the facility owners who had a first place finish at Congress last year!
Guess who was participating in the clinic?????
Blondie!! And her new owner Lisa! Blondie is doing very well and so is the baby, we are hoping to get some pictures soon...

Spring Horse Show/Exhibition

2010-04-19T10:50:00.002-04:00

We have confirmed the date for our Spring Horse Show/Exhibition! May 16th we will host a show just for our own students at Briarquest Farm (our home farm).
Classes will be run the same as last time, youth in the morning and adults in the afternoon. There will be a lunch break with fun events, food and an opportunity for riders bringing their own horses to warm up in the ring. Each competitor will enter the ring individually and perform a rail class and a pattern of their choice for the judge. Score cards will be made up by the judge and available the week after the show for each rider to review with their coach.
This is a fun, low key event! The idea is to get the opportunity to practice the riding skills you have learned in lessons, in a show setting. For riders with green horses, the idea is to start to expose the horses to some different surroundings and get to know them better by testing them with a rail class and pattern.
Riders are expected to wear appropriate show attire, and ideally practice once or twice in lessons in their "show clothes".
Supporters, fans and observers are invited to this event as well. Anyone who would like to volunteer their time for the horse show please contact us. Prizes were a huge hit last show and we would love to offer them again for this show. Please let us know if you have something you would like to donate.
More details to come!

Anyone have $1.3 Million? CLICK HERE!

2010-03-31T09:55:00.002-04:00

The tour for this beautiful facility was sent to my email with a request to post on my website for potential buyers. Have a peak when you get a chance, it's pretty spectacular!

YEEEHAW! Pictures from Ropin' Day!

2010-03-16T20:01:00.004-04:00

Directions to Roping Day!

2010-03-03T10:16:00.002-05:00

Hi All!
The address for the Roping event is 8386 Observatory Drive. The barn entrance is actually right off Clarke Road.
If you are coming from the West end of town the best route is to take Wonderland Road North. It ends at Elginfield Road/HWY 7. You will need to turn right and follow Elginfield Road through Elginfield (set of lights and a gas station). Look for Clarke Road (after Adelaide and Highbury) and turn left onto Clarke. The farm is the first farm you see on the left, you actually pass Observatory Road and look for the horse trailers parked on the other side of the arena.

You could also take Hyde Park Road, Richmond, Adelaide, Highbury or Clarke Road all the way out from London, depending on where you are coming from.

Remember the event starts at 10:30am, ends at 1pm. From Oxford Street, it takes about 35mins to get out to the farm. Please bring old clothes that you don't mind getting dirty.....really dirty!!! Leather riding gloves or cotton gloves/liners would also do the job. Your hands will get pretty sore with the ropes if you don't wear gloves.

Payment of $25 per person can be made at the door! See you then!

Ropin' Day!

2010-02-25T09:32:00.003-05:00

We're all set to Rock n' Roll for our Ropin' Day Saturday, March 6th from 10:30am-1:00pm. No experience necessary, there will be no riding involved. Participants need to be prepared to wear old clothes and get dirty! Leather riding gloves or cotton glove/glove-liners will be best for avoiding blisters. We've got plenty of ropes for everyone to get some instruction and hands-on practice. Once we've mastered roping stationary objects, we can move on to moving objects and then try our skills at roping calves out of chute from on (pretend) horseback!

There is an observation deck for observers (please bring your own chairs). The farm is located at 8386 Observatory Drive, Granton. Also at the farm are some baby sheep, donkeys and a bunch of horses including J-lo's baby "Shorty"!!

Bring your friends and family, please confirm with us if you plan to attend. See you there!

What's with all the white stuff??!!?

2010-02-09T20:20:00.001-05:00

A friend of mine has a farm in Virginia, where they have seen record snowfall this past week. Here are some of the pictures she took of her horses when they were first turned out in the snow!

Pictures from the weekend

2010-02-08T13:28:00.004-05:00

At the horse show at Michigan State University hosted by the Michigan Quarter Horse Association.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-08T13:21:00.001-05:00

March Break Training Sessions

2010-01-19T10:04:00.004-05:00

Just a heads up that we will be offering a series of Training Sessions for students the week of March Break (March 15-19). The Training Session Package offers one private lesson each day for one hour. What a great opportunity to ride five days in a row, with individual instruction! Most students notice a dramatic increase in their learning curve and horses progress when riding consectuively, even for two lessons in a row. Get a taste of what it would be like to own your own horse and ride over the break OR bring your own horse and let's get him/her in shape for spring! Special rates for regular (weekly or bi-weekly) students only five lessons throughout the week booked at your convenience (a value of $225) for $200. Spaces are limited so call ahead!
Regular lessons will continue the week of March Break and if you can't make it out every day, we still have space for a few extra lessons.

2010 Pricing effective March 1st

2010-01-19T09:58:00.003-05:00

Our new pricelist is up and will be effective March 1st. Please make yourself familiar with the new pricing as well as new time committment. Lesson fees are increasing slightly for 2010, and will include HST as well as GST. Fees will be collected for regular weekly or bi-weekly students during the first week of the month for the remainder of the month to ensure lesson times are reserved and to ease our paperwork load! Please note that the 5 lesson bundle price we previously offerred, is no longer available for 2010 but you can look forward to some other breaks in prices for regular group students. Please also note that our 24 hour cancellation fee will continue to be in effect. We do appreciate your notice well ahead of time, which makes scheduling a make-up lesson much easier. Thanks to everyone for your cooperation during this transition.

It's C-C-C-C-COLD outside!

2010-01-08T09:34:00.003-05:00

The 2009 Photo Recap You've Been Waiting For!

2010-01-01T23:47:00.002-05:00

Some snapshots of our holiday/musical rides!

2009-12-30T09:53:00.007-05:00

Weekly lesson students have been working hard preparing their choreographed, musical rides for friends and family. Costumes and props were carefully prepared and practiced well ahead of time with the horses.
Check out some of the pictures from the rides including themes like: "Mele Kalikimaka: A Hawaiian Christmas" , "Jingle Bells", "Winter Wonderland", "Jai-Ho!", and "Wanted: Dead or Alive". (If anyone has additional pictures or video they would like to send in, please send to lindsay.hayes@hotmail.com)

Updates for 2010

2009-12-14T12:21:00.004-05:00

With the new year quickly approaching, we've got an awful lot to look back on, and an awful lot to look forward to!

You can look forward in the next few weeks to a slideshow of some of the highlights of 2009.

Holiday rides start this week, and they are shaping up to be better than ever. Let's hope the weather holds out for us!!

There will be no regular lessons from Dec. 21st to the 27th. However, Nicole will be available to book some lessons/supervised riding time during that week. Please call or email for availability.

New student forms and a new waiver from the OEF will be made available online and at lessons over the next few weeks. Please also note that our rates ad programs will be changing slightly in the new year. January and February will be transitional months where anyone with an existing package can finish up, and so everyone can continue to enjoy our current rates for another few weeks. Rates will be increase (slightly) and riders will be encouraged to commit to lessons one month at a time and prepay for their rides at the beginning of the month. The option to be refunded a portion of the lesson fee, with 24 hours notice of a lesson cancelation will still be in place. Also look out for special rewards and breaks on lesson prices for riders with perfect attendance.

Our website will be under construction (hopefully still fully functional) over the new few weeks. Please check back for updates! Also, big news! Our business name will change over from Lindsay Hayes Equestrian Coaching and Training, to Hayes Horsemanship in January. A new logo is in the works with our very talented graphic designer, Sheri Houston at End of the Line. Shortly thereafter we hope to offer clothing with the brand new logo (I know, I know, not in time for Christmas...).

A horse Birthday Party is also in the works for the beginning of January.

Horse ground-work sessions have been requested, so we will look into planning some type of clinic or workshop.

We will be looking forward to hosting our second horse show in the spring, (most likely the end of March). This may coordinate with a UWO Equestrian Team horse show.

That's it for now, further information will be posted in the new few weeks.

Team Peanut!

2009-12-03T11:28:00.003-05:00

For everyone wondering what the Sofmeister was doing while we were away in Oklahoma, she was at Hotel Nicole supportin' the team! Here she is Sunday watching the live feed!

Some sad news

2009-12-03T10:14:00.002-05:00

Some sad news to report today. For anyone who remembers Tequila, my first horse, she was put to sleep this past weekend in Fort Myers, Florida.
I adopted Tequila from a horse rescue in Lindsay, Ontario called "Heaven Can Wait Equine Rescue" and a very nice lady named Claire. Tequila was just a yearling at the time and cute as cute can be!
I originally went looking at another horse, but it was very shy and not sociable. Tequila on the other hand was very sociable and I took to her right away. She was delivered to me on her first birthday to Bridgecreek Stables. I worked with her on the ground, grooming, saddling, picking up her feet, touching her ears and face for about a year. She helped me through some tough times too. I started to ride her halfway through her 2 yr old year and it was the first time I had the opportunity to start a young horse all the way through the groundwork and then mounted work. She had a few tricks she liked to play, like sneaking out of her halter in the crossties by snapping her head to the side and undoing the quick release, and then just standing there.
With all the coaching I was doing by that time, I moved her over to the farm I was working from and she made a whole bunch of new pony friends. I applied for Meredith Manor International Equestrian Center and planned to take Tequila with me.
Tequila quickly gained a reputation for having a very outgoing and quirky personality. She was very opinionated and a few times, just threw herself into the ground to protest whatever the rider was asking for! No one was ever hurt by her, and she sure gave the students who did ride her some good stories!
Eventually graduation came about and I had a job offer in England I was seriously considering. My roommate had a facility waiting for her at home and desperately needed some good lesson horses to get her started. She bought Tequila from me and I was thrilled to be able to keep in touch with her and have the opportunity to visit her. I knew she would receive the best care at her new home.
I graduated, and 3 months later Tequila set off for her new home in Fort Myers. She got quite sick for the first little while and we later laughed that both she and I had problems with the heat! I was having heat stroke problems regularly that summer, and the vets in Florida couldn't figure out what was wrong with Tequila, other than an adverse reaction to the strong heat waves. I visited with Tequila twice since graduating in '05 and had to laugh at the bond she and her buddy from Meredith Manor, Gus shared.
Tequila started to recover from the heat issues and just this past summer was sold to one of Teresa's students at South Florida Equestrian Centre. The deal was made that Tequila would stay at Teresa's farm and remain part of the family. Tarin, Tequila's new owner, became the centre of Tequila's life. Regular baths, riding, treats and even showing in the gaming classes at the local shows became the routine. Tarin and Tequila made a great team and I got to hear some of the stories first hand from Tarin's mom Amy when we did our trip to Congress in October.
Unfortunately, just weeks before Tarin's big plans to show Tequila at the local fair, she was kicked by another horse. The kick shattered her leg and left no choice but humane euthanasia.
Tequila was buried underneath her favourite butt-scratchin' tree.
Although she was only ten, Tequila's life was considerably extended from what could have been a very early end as a yearling before she was rescued by Heaven Can Wait. I am indebted to the people that loved her and enriched her life, especially Teresa, Tarin and the whole family at South Florida Equestrian Centre.

Promo's Promo's and more Promo's

2009-12-01T12:24:00.005-05:00

A big part of the NRHA Futurity and North American Affiliate Championship is the advertising and promotional opportunities. Vendors include everything from tack, tractor, feed and supplement dealers to individual trainers to huge breeding and training facilities. Stalls are decorated with flat screen tv's and boxes of candy are readily available to invite passersby in to have a look. Most breeding stallions have their own "business cards", one page glossy ads with a picture on the front and all their earnings, offsprings earnings and pedigree on the flip side. Advertisements for farms for sale in the million dollar and up price range were posted across the grounds, and there were free samples of the newest products on the market.

A stallion "business card" with a picture on the front. The horse's name is Wimpy's Little Step, the name of the breeding farm that is selling his services, Green Valley Ranch is at the bottom.

A 4 page booklet advertising this farm for sale.

The Equine Chronicle, a large publication geared to the quarter horse community.

The official program for the NRHA Futurity.

Another quarter horse publication.

A free dvd promoting the joint supplement called "Adequan".

And a horse lovers gift guide for 2009, just in time for the holidays!

All of these publications and more will be available to view at Briarquest during your regular lessons! See you there!

Home safe and sound, with a top ten placing!

2009-11-30T20:45:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone, we are home!!
Everyone is safe and sound, 25 hour drive on the way home was long but uneventful.
Yesterday we showed 48th out of 65 competitors in the Adequan Championship Arena and scored a 203.5 to take home 10th place! Peanut tried her very best and it was the best run we have ever had, what a blast.
I'm told show pictures will take about 2 weeks to be posted online, so hopefully we can get those up A.S.A.P.
Looking forward to seeing everyone this week for lessons, I've brought back all kinds of publications and bits and pieces to show you. Thanks again for all your support!

Your tour of the Oklahoma State Fair Grounds

2009-11-28T22:49:00.009-05:00

The warm, sunny weather continued today as Peanut settled into her stall in Barn 8.

,
We even had the opportunity to ride outside....in t-shirts! Notice the red dirt?

SUPERSTAR SIGHTING! There's Peanut in her sexy leopard print slinky checking out her new surroundings.

Here we are riding in the Adequan arena where we will show *gulp tomorrow!

Here is one of the warm up rings.

And this is the Coliseum arena where the Futurity go rounds are being held until the finals next weekend.

The bar...

Almost looks like a hockey arena doesn't it?

This is a pretty neat trailer. It hosts some of the prominant equine health care specialists and equipment. Almost anything that can be done in a vets office can be done in this trailer.

Here's the warm up ring outide of the championship arena. The major sponsors and leaders of the reining horse industry are stalled around the warm up ring.

And you thought they went crazy with stall decorations at Congress? Check some of these out...

Hey girls who attended the tack makeover: remember the dvd we watched advertising the ranch? This was their stall set up.

A considerable part of the farm, stallion and trainers promotion is the freebies they offer to passersby. Coffee and bottled water with the farm name or stallions name we quite popular. Candy, keychains, twine cutters, tire pressure guages... all personalized and set out to encourage people to come over and have a look.

Here is the huge wall of results (printed in size 10 font...seriously?).

Trailer sales

And finally the prizes for the winners: a saddle, vest, bronze trophy, belt buckle, ring, ribbon...what else could you want? Oh yeah, a trailer?

That's all for now, tomorrow is the big day! Time has flown by, I hope to give everyone a full update next week. See you soon! GO PEANUT!

OKC here we come!

2009-11-28T00:09:00.004-05:00

Part one of the trip to the Adequan North American Affiliate Championship 2009 starts with the 24 hour drive to Oklahoma City! We got off on time on Wednesday at 4pm from London. We had one horse to pick up on our way and all went smoothly in Windsor with that pickup. We drive through a lot of rain through Michigan.... and Indiana......and Illinois and finally when the sun started to come up the cloud disappeared. Missouri was the sunny and the landscape started to change dramatically.

Here's Peanut wondering what the heck she's doing at a gas station... "Are we there yet?!"

I'm not sure why Indiana is called the "Crossroads of America" and Oklahoma is called "America's Corner"......???

This is about all I saw of Chicago...

Finally in Missouri, the sun!

A terrile picture of the Oklahoma sign! See it?

And the State Fair Arena!

The trophy trailer...

That's all so far....promise to write in ASAP with more pictures and info from Friday and Saturday. Hope all is well at home, thanks Nicole for taking care of everything!

Thank YOU!

2009-11-25T10:19:00.002-05:00

Thanks to everyone who supported the trip with sponsorships and t-shirt purchases. The absolutely overwhelming amount of support from clients and students have been phenomenal and made the experience even more amazing for me!

Special thanks to the Ferguson family for use of their trailer, a monetary sponsorship AND purchase of t-shirts. Thanks to the Levin family, Teresa Corrigan and family, Bob Hannaford and the Bridgecreek Stables crew for their additional sponsorship. These sponsorships will go a long way in covering the enormous expense of this trip.

I promise to post pictures and information as soon as I am able.

For now you can visit www.nrhafuturity.com

It looks like the live feed is set up and at no charge! I will be showing in the Adequan Arena on Sunday Nov. 29th in the Rookie Professional class.

Check out "2009 North American Affiliate Championship Qualifiers" for a list of people who qualified for this show and their designated affiliate. Or check out "Futurity Draws and Go-round Schedules" to see who will be competing. My class is listed under "Limited Open". I am draw number 48, and my class starts at 8am (Oklahoma time). So I should compete around noon (Oklahoma time).

The plan is to leave today at 3:30pm after my afternoon lesson, pick up one horse in Sarnia and drive 24 hours straight through to the show grounds to drop off Peanut and get her settled in her new stall before heading to the hotel to crash. Peanut will need lots of walking over the next couple days to stretch out sore tired muscles from the long haul. I will ride her in the arena that I will be showing in as much as possible before showing her on Sunday. We plan to let Peanut have a short rest after we show and then loading up and heading back home. A bit of a whirlwind trip, I know!

Thanks again to everyone,

See you next week!

Nov. 25th To Dec. 1st

2009-11-25T10:14:00.002-05:00

I will be away from Wednesday, Nov. 25th until Monday Nov. 30th. Lessons scheduled between those days have either been rescheduled or scheduled with Nicole. If you have any questions or comments regarding lessons, or CANCELLATIONS, please contact Nicole at (519) 476-7712. I will be answering emails periodically for urgent messages, anything non-urgent I ask that you please wait to contact me on Monday or Tuesday.

Thanks and have a great week!

Holiday Rides

2009-11-25T10:10:00.003-05:00

Holiday ride preparation has begun! Regular group lesson student (students taking lessons weekly or bi-weekly) are invited to create a pattern to perform for their parents, friends and family. It's not a horse show, just an individual presentation for whomever the student wishes to invite. Students are welcome to add props, costumes and music provided we have ample time to practice with the horse.
Holiday rides will take place during the normal lesson time the week before Christmas holidays unless otherwise requested.
Any further questions please be sure to ask. There is no additional fee to the regular lesson fee for this ride.

Come and get your T-shirts!

2009-11-17T13:06:00.004-05:00

T-shirts are in and they are GLORIOUS!

Check em out in the pics, or out at the barn and order yours before we run out!

The picture is from the Eastern Canadian Affiliate Finals (the show that we placed fifth in, to earn our invitation to the North American Affiliate Championship).

The writing on the back reads:

Where in all the world is nobility found without conceit?

Where is there friendship without envy?

Where is there beauty without vanity?

Here one finds gracefulness couples with power, and strength tempered with gentleness.

A constant servant, yet no slave.

A fighter, ever without hostility.

The horse.

H.H. Eisenbart

T-shirts are being sold for $20 and any proceeds go to the expenses of the trip to Oklahoma (stall fees, registration, trailering etc.)

******special rate for Lindsay Hayes Equestrian Students of $16******

Sizes range from youth small to adult xxl, please send us your order so that we can ensure you get the correct sizes and before we run out!! 85% of t-shirts are sold already!

Thanks to our VERY generous sponsors, please stay updated for more information on the show and results.

Off we go...

2009-11-05T10:15:00.003-05:00

It has been confirmed, entry forms are in, plans are being made - WE ARE GOING TO OKLAHOMA!

Our show package arrived this week for the North American Affiliate Championship, which is run concurrently with the NRHA Futurity. The Rookie Professional class that we qualified for will be run in the morning on November 29th. That means leaving some time on the 25th for the 24 hour drive, so that we can get there in time to let Peanut's little legs rest, ride a few times in the show arena, and maybe tour some farms in the area! Those of you who were around last time I went to this show, in 2007 as a spectator, may remember some of the sights I reported. Well I'm hoping to keep a picture diary of the trip this year for everyone to see when we return.

More information about the show can be found at http://www.nrha.com/

For the very generous people who have offerred their support, and for anyone else looking for an opportunity to be involved in this fabulous experience, I will have T-shirts for sale to support the trip. I'm hoping to get T-shirt info out in the next few days, but if you are interested in purchasing one please let me know what size, youth or adult you would like. Thank you so much for all your support throughout the show season, I'm looking forward to sharing this experience with everyone!!