CURLY HORSES AT H3 IN BRANDON, MANITOBA Christina Southwell

Hi Point Horsemanship and A and K Curlies both located in Manitoba, Canada brought three horses to Horse3 in Brandon, Manitoba April 12-14th to showcase the curly horse and give demonstrations. People fell in love with their bone structure, wonderful temperaments and conformation. Hi Point brought a 2012 colt by Prairie Pharoh, and a 2009 gelding by Elko Nevada. A and K brought a 2009 Mare by Elko Nevada out of Hi Point Horsemanship's mare Buck Mt's Darky. All of the horses have been trained and were handled and ridden by young ladies from the Dacotah 4-H Equestrian Club.

(4-25-2013)

BIG SUCCESS AT THE OHIO EQUINE AFFAIRE 2012   Tom and Carol Baldwin

My husband Tom and I have owned curly horses since 2005. It has been a dream come true in so many ways!! Wanting to learn as much as we could about horses, we attended the Ohio Equine Affaire in 2008. Wow!!! What a place to be if you are a horse lover! The Affaire presented top clinicians, top equine vets and researchers, world class performances and an endless array of horse tack and bling! The four day event fills the Columbus, Ohio area with thousands of horse lovers, rigs, cowboy hats, boots and sparkle!

In 2011 we returned to Columbus to once more enjoy the world of the horse. Making our way through the arenas, breed pavilion, horse and farm barn, rig displays we noticed that there were no curly horses to be found….anywhere! HMMM….we thought….here is an opportunity to help folks learn about the curly. Both of us were educators for over thirty years so bringing curlies to the Affaire was put on our agenda.

Planning and preparation to attend the 2012 Affaire began at the 2011 Affaire with a visit to Debbie Putnam, Breed Pavilion Coordinator for the Equine Affaire. She was so excited to learn we wanted to bring curlies to the Affaire. With her guidance and her expertise, we successfully filled out forms, met timelines, etc. On April 11, 2012 we loaded up three of our curly horses and headed to Ohio to participate in the 2012 Equine Affaire.

Over the four day event, our horses were on display in the Breed Pavilion at the Voinovich arena and in the Gilligan Complex at the Horse and Farm Exhibit. We were able to take our horses to three breed demos (two in the Youth Pavilion plus one riding demo in the Voinovich arena) and one of our horses was a model for an anatomy presentation! We answered hundreds of questions about our horses. So many folks had never even heard about the curly horse. Our curlies still had much of their winter coat and visitors enjoyed petting and touching their soft curls and waves. They marveled at the dreadlock manes and the fact that some horses lose their mane and tail only to grow it back over the winter. Visitors loved on our extreme curly Warrior as they asked if he ever grew a mane or tail.

It was a fabulous, extremely busy 4 days. We educated so many about the curly horse. Melinda Martino, Dave Martino and Daryl Lang were there to help and support us. It was an opportunity for our horses to grow and adapt to a new environment. They did so well! It was an opportunity for the American Bashkir Curly Horse Registry to spread the word about the curly horse, let people see them, touch them and learn. Next Ohio Equine Affaire is April 11-14, 2013. Tom and I have committed to return to the Affaire in 2013. So as it is said….the good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise…..we will be there. Put the date on your calendar and join us!

(5-10-2012)