May 2023 Issue

EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN May 2023 Page 35 By Ellen Weisfeld and Mary Alice Goss On Saturday, April 1, 2023 volunteers from Garden State Horse & Carriage Society and their very small equines, ponies and horse held a free Emergency Horse Handling clinic for first responders at the Horse Park of New Jersey. Thirty-six people including police, fire fighters and County Animal Response Team volunteers attended. The partici- pants learned to make emergency halters, lead horses, tie horses First Responders Learn Horses at Free Clinic using a quick release knot, safety around horses, a little bit about horses in general and safety in and around horse trailers. Thanks to a grant from the New Jersey Equine Advisory Board, partic- ipants received an emergency halter rope. Later that day, storms including multiple tornadoes hit New Jersey possibly giving clinic participants a chance to use their new skills as loose horses due to downed fencing were reported in nearby Ocean and Monmouth counties. Get FREE copies of East Coast Equestrian to distribute at your event! Email steph@eastcoastequestrian.net at least 8 weeks before your event with the name and date, and we will ship you copies to distribute to exhibitors at no charge. Dr. Diane Simoncini DVM demonstrated loading and unloading a horse using her horse Appy. Photo by Frank Sperandera Volunteer Eileen Pirolli answers questions from a clinic partici- pant on the steps involved in making an emergency halter. Photo by Frank Sperandera During the clinic a number of tornadoes destroyed horse fencing in the region, like this fence in Allentown, NJ. Photo by Diane Simoncin