December 2020/January 2021 - Out of Tragedy, New Film and Organization Cement the Legacy of the Urban Cowboy Erin Brown’s love of horses has taken her far, but not far from home. She’s a Philly girl, with all the “baggage” Philly girls carry. Proudly. She’s loyal to her friends, kind to horses, not afraid to speak her mind and always ready help others. On top of all that, there’s the movie thing. Concrete Cowboy? Read full article >>
December 2020/January 2021 - Behind Prison Walls, Inmates Learn Skills and Horses Thrive They advertised it as “a horse show like no other,” and it lived up to its billing. Actually, it surpassed its promise and provided an authentic, heartfelt demonstration of horse/human relationships built on trust, respect and the wonder of discovery. Read full article >>
December 2020/January 2021 - From Dark Days to a Bright Future Mark Garner had been on a couple of trail rides as a kid, but he never had a lot of actual, meaningful contact with horses until he arrived at the Central Maryland Correctional Facility (CMCF) in Sykesville. He soon realized that horses could change his life. Read full article >>
December 2020/January 2021 - Horse Books From Regional Authors are Perfect for Holiday Giving For most of us, the Christmas shopping rush has begun. But what do you get for your horse-loving friends and family members? To that we say, you can’t go wrong with a book. We’ve gathered a collection of suggestions – horse books from authors who live in our coverage area - Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. We hope you find, the perfect gift! Read full article >>
December 2020/January 2021 - Virtual Showing Earns a Blue Ribbon During COVID In 2017, a new association called East Coast Ranch Riding Association, or ECRRA, proved itself to meet the needs of equestrians and the growing popular discipline of Ranch Riding in a struggling industry. The association spread from its simple beginning in three states; in just three years it progressed to three regions which included over a dozen states, even hosting the first ever Regional Championship in conjunction with the Keystone International Livestock Exposition, KILE, at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in the fall of 2019. Read full article >>
November 2020 - Are Historically Black Colleges and Universities Ready for Horses? Twenty-four United States colleges and universities have equestrian teams. Seventeen of those teams are in Division I schools. Only one represents one of the country’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): Delaware State University in Dover, DE. That fact is both a challenge and an opportunity, according to Jennifer Ridgely, the team’s head coach. Read full article >>
November 2020 - Maryland Crowns Champions in the Family Sport of Jousting Knights and fair ladies and horses galore... Even though crisp, October 4th blossomed into a beautiful fall day in Knoxville, MD - perfect weather for jousting. The 80-yard track had been raked and rings were hung. Three 10-foot-tall arches, 30 yards apart, awaited riders, with the flag of Maryland fluttering in the breeze above each arch. Read full article >>
November 2020 - The Keystone Challenge: Exploring Pennsylvania on Horseback When Covid cancelled one of their popular events, employees at the Pennsylvania State University extension office put their heads together. Equine Extension Associate, Bethany Bickle took the lead, and a ride – of sorts - across the state of Pennsylvania was planned. Read full article >>
November 2020 - PSPCA Seizes Horses from Lancaster County Rescue A Lancaster County woman is facing felony animal cruelty charges after humane officers found emaciated and injured horses on her property, including an eight-week-old foal who had to be euthanized. Joanna Fleming, 45, who operates Red Rock Horse Rescue Rehab and Blue Starr Horse Rescue Barn in Peach Bottom, was arrested on Oct. 8 and charged with 10 counts of cruelty, four of them felony charges, according to the Pennsylvania SPCA. Read full article >>
November 2020 - Regional Morgans Bring World Titles Home from Oklahoma City The 2020 edition of the Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show was a great success during the year of the pandemic. It all happened because of the extra hours put in by the show committee and officials, and all of the stables followed the rules and regulations established by the US Equestrian Federation. Read full article >>
October 2020 - Mid-Atlantic Horse Farms Are Selling Like Hot Cakes The pandemic-era real estate boom is no secret, with houses selling at a rapid clip in most markets. But low interest rates and a desire to live in the country is also fueling a surge in horse farm sales across the mid-Atlantic region. Read full article >>
October 2020 - Media Complaint Spells the End for Plantation Field International The 13th Annual Plantation Field International Three Day Event held in September in Unionville, PA, will apparently be the last following controversy over its name. The owner of the property cancelled the lease with the organization that runs the event after an eventing publication charged the word “plantation” has “painful and racist connotations” for people of color. Read full article >>
October 2020 - Horseracing Reformers Are Hot to Trot It was heralded as a moment of bipartisanship in these troubled and polarized times—the Horseracing Integrity Act (HIA) won approval in the House Energy and Commerce Committee in early September by a 46-5 vote. Not long afterward, Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced a Senate version of the bill, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), and promised to push for its passage before the end of this year. Read full article >>
October 2020 - In 2020, Summer Horse Camp Came in a Box With Covid restrictions on gatherings in place throughout the summer, horse camps across the country went virtual in 2020. Days End Farm Horse Rescue in Woodbine, MD offered Camp-in-a-Box, a fun alternative to their annual summer horse camp. Read full article >>
September 2020 - ‘Indoors’ Move, Then Cancel, But Some Championships Will Be Held The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the 2020 horse show season and the fabled “indoors’ are no exception. Of the three fall indoor shows, the Washington International Horse Show (WIHS), the Pennsylvania National Horse Show (PNHS) and the National Horse Show (NHS), only the NHS will be held at its traditional location in its entirety. Read full article >>
September 2020 - Baltimore Disbands 132 Year Old Mounted Police Unit The nation’s oldest continuously operating police mounted unit is set to disband, a victim of Baltimore City’s budget cutting and efforts to redirect police department funding. But some community leaders aren’t ready to give up, saying the groundswell of support from residents may yet save it. Read full article >>
September 2020 - Barbara Matthews Succeeds as a Breeder, Trainer, Amateur Exhibitor Growing up in Colts Neck, New Jersey, almost halfway between Manhattan and Philadelphia, Barbara Matthews (nee Woodruff) was dreaming about horses. At the age of seven, she entered a contest sponsored by the Edsel Car Company and won a pony and a saddle. Read full article >>
September 2020 - Getting Through the Pandemic: Advice from Six Top Equestrians Dressage at Devon is honored to have a highly talented and knowledgeable Board of Directors. Many have trained and worked with thousands of riders and horses, helping them all to reach their potential. Some have worked in the business end of the equestrian industry. All bring years of experience and a keen perspective on our industry. But none of us have experienced anything like the last six months. Read full article >>
September 2020 - At Serenity Show Stables Yoga and Riding Go Hand-in-Hand From the riding and show schedule to everyday life in the barn, Covid-19 has upended many things we counted on. Yet, it has brought forth remarkable changes. At Serenity Show Stable at JT Farm in South Salem, NY, barn owner Ruth Nicodemus has named yoga as one of those silver linings. Read full article >>
August 2020 - USEF, Other Equestrian Organizations Strive to Reach Riders of Color The nation is grappling with the challenging questions of addressing racial injustice in the United States and the equestrian world is no exception. The conversation is lighting up on social media and websites, dominating message boards and opinion pages. Read full article >>
August 2020 - Zebras Rescued from Texas Feedlot Now Call Pennsylvania Home It isn’t every day you see a zebra in Pennsylvania, but now there are two living in Mechanicsburg, PA. Speranza Animal Rescue takes in all kinds of animals, caring for them for the rest of their lives. Farm animals, including alpacas, pigs, horses and cows have been rescued by founder Janine Guido and Speranza volunteers and supporters. Read full article >>
August 2020 - For Mental Health Therapy, Just Add a Horse “All of a sudden,” Saly Glassman says, “we are horses.” She’s explaining how the convergence of COVID 19 and the consequent strictures squeezing people’s lives today have profoundly altered the way people see the world. “But what is most interesting about it to me is that if you think about the world of the horse—the horse is a prey animal. Read full article >>
August 2020 - For Imani Uzzell, Pushing Limits Brings Great Rewards Ask Imani Uzzell, 19, how she knows how to ride, and she answers by sailing over 2’6”-2’9” obstacles on her new 17-hand, OTT thoroughbred, Coraggioso, whom she calls C.J. It’s not that she is staying silent. It is because in the whitewashed equestrian world of eastern Pennsylvania, her goals as a young woman of color have to rise above being bullied by a judge or competitors who approach her trainer, Leah Saltzman, 21, with questions such as, “How does she own a horse?” Read full article >>
August 2020 - Switching Horses in Mid-Stream: Color Your Dream Farm Who says you can’t switch horses in mid-stream? Carla DuRand proves that’s not only possible, but it can also be a lot of fun. Carla purchased an old goat farm in Gettysburg, PA in November 1997. She and her two paint mares moved in, naming the farm Color Your Dream. Not long after, her mom, Linda Palmer bought Carla the stud she had always dreamed of and Zip’s Super Cowboy came home. Read full article >>
July 2020 - Positive Pandemic News: Horse Adoptions Surge Auction Prices Rise, Fewer Ship to Slaughter In calendar year 2019 Last Chance Ranch in Quakertown, PA placed a total of 37 horses. By mid-June 2020 they had placed 41 horses, half of them during the COVID lockdown. Small pet shelters have experienced a surge of adoptions of “pandemic puppies” over the last three months as many working people, now sequestered at home, decided it was a good time to bring a cat or dog into their households. Read full article >>
July 2020 - Police Horses Bridge the Gap Between Cops and Citizens Throughout the world streets are filled with people demanding change. The pictures of flag-and-banner-waving throngs have become something like a Rorschach Test. Are the protests the first draft of a revolution that will cause irreparable damage to society, or are they a logical and necessary answer to seemingly intractable problems? Read full article >>
July 2020 - Talon Ted - From Amish Cart Pony to USEA Horse of the Month Eran Murray was looking for a pony for her daughters that would be a perfect Christmas gift they would enjoy. That Christmas pony turned out to be much more for the entire Murray family. Around August of 2008, Murray was looking through Craigslist with the thought of finding a pony for her daughters. Read full article >>
July 2020 - Crossing the Line is a Book for These Times Kareem Rosser has lived a lot in his young life. Born into poverty in a violent West Philadelphia neighborhood, the Work to Ride program, where he learned to play polo, gave him a chance at a far different life than most of his schoolmates. Read full article >>
July 2020 - World’s Largest Standardbred Breeder, Hanover Shoe Farms Sets the Standard With 886 horses on 3,000 acres, including 400 broodmares, 110 retired horses, 12 studs and a yearling population, Hanover Shoe Farms in Hanover, Pennsylvania has wrangled with a lot this year. Through it all, this family farm has consistently put their staff and horses first. From the Covid outbreak to scandals in racing, the largest breeding Standardbred farm in the world leads the way by example and deed. Read full article >>
June 2020 - A Vet Recommended Euthanasia. She Instead Became a Star Last summer a Maryland veterinarian recommended euthanizing a 10-year-old quarter horse cross mare named Delilah for aggression. She was unable to be handled, rearing and striking out at anyone who came near her. The toll of a life fighting for food and water, with no medical care or human contact had been too much. Read full article >>
June 2020 - Stoney Creek Chincoteagues Steers Prospective Owners to Suitable Wild Foals In 1947, the world was introduced to Chincoteague Ponies through “Misty of Chincoteague,” Marguerite Henry’s novel for children. While reading about Paul and Maureen Beebe’s efforts to purchase a wild pony foal, readers across the nation learned of the tiny island off the coast of Virginia and its wild pony roundup, swim, and auction. For many, a dream was born. Read full article >>
June 2020 - EQUITANA Returns to the US in September The world’s oldest equestrian expo, EQUITANA, will return to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY September 25-27, 2020. The new EQUITANA USA brings with it education and programming of many names and topics not seen at other trade events, highlighting trends and changes in the industry, a panel of Olympians, representatives from all disciplines, and much more. Read full article >>
May 2020 - Commercial Stable Owners Make Tough Choices During Shutdown For commercial riding stable owners in the mid-Atlantic the arrival of COVID-19 quickly turned into a struggle to navigate vague and evolving state rules, while keeping customers happy and safe, their horses fed and their stable doors open. Read full article >>
May 2020 - Horse Shows Grapple with the Impact of Covid-19 Riders and trainers with horses at all levels and disciplines are hoping competitions will return soon, but at this point, no one is able to say exactly when horse showing will return to normal. The best strategy is to follow developments on the official websites of horse showing governing bodies, particularly the US Equestrian Federation. Read full article >>
May 2020 - Therapeutic Riding Programs Adjust to a New World of Social Distancing The coronavirus has shredded just about every safety net that exists in America. With stunning efficiency, this deadly contagion has killed thousands, and upended the nation’s health care system. In most states, citizens have become all too familiar with the pandemic’s mantra: social distancing, wash your hands, don’t touch your face. Read full article >>
April 2020 - Rescued Standardbreds Become Movie Stars in “Little Women” With so many Standardbreds flowing from Amish farms and racetracks into auction house kill pens each week, life can seem like an endless series of crises for those dedicated to rescuing the popular trotting horses. Read full article >>
April 2020 - New Regulations Proposed for PA Horse Auctions Representative Liz Hanbidge (D-Montgomery County) has introduced legislation aimed at providing a layer of protection for horses being sold at auction. HB 2193 amends legislation from 1983 which established licensing and regulation requirements for auctioneers who sell horses. Hanbidge’s bill would place additional regulations on these auctioneers. She says her bill is “an attempt to slow down the slaughter process.” Read full article >>
April 2020 - Pony Racing Season Kicked Off March 14 Before Season Halted Pony racing kicked off the spring Saturday, March 14th at the Aiken Trials in Aiken, South Carolina. But first, a pony racing clinic was hosted the prior evening, March 13th, at the Whitney Polo Field in Aiken to ensure all participants knew the drill. Read full article >>
April 2020 - Equestrian Events Slam to a Halt as Coronovirus Pandemic Spreads It started with a trickle on March 12 as news of the severity of the novel coronavirus 19 outbreak began to sink in and restrictions on daily life began. Cancelations of equestrian events began with almost apologetic explanations, only to turn into a torrent days later. Read full article >>
March 2020 - 18th Annual Horse World Expo Features World Class Shopping, Exciting Competitions, Family Friendly Entertainment, Top Clinicians, Theatre Equus The world of horses comes to the 25-acre climate-controlled Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center in Harrisburg, PA Feb. 27-Mar. 1. Horse World Expo, the mid-Atlantic region’s largest equestrian expo, features four days of non-stop education, entertainment and shopping. Scores of horses of all breeds and types and the nation’s leading equestrian clinicians and entertainers draw tens of thousands of horse enthusiasts from across the eastern United States. Read full article >>
March 2020 - Not Ours, Sold for Her Meat Price, Is Now a Top Young Event Horse On New Year’s Eve, fresh off a sensational year on the eventing circuit, Not Ours was getting readied at her Chester County barn for a 6 a.m. departure to Aiken, SC for the winter season competitions. In 2017 she was headed in a very different direction. Read full article >>
March 2020 - Wicomico County Strengthens Abuse Laws After Pilchard Verdict In March 2018 a news helicopter flew over a horse farm in rural Wicomico County, MD. The WBOC-TV helicopter had been dispatched after a tip about abuse and neglect of horses on the farm. The footage captured by that news helicopter was searing and horrific. Dead horses with buzzards feeding on them, skeletal remains of horses, emaciated horses standing in mud and manure. Read full article >>
March 2020 - Ella Doerr Receives USEF Sportsmanship Award Seventeen-year-old Ella Doerr recently received the USEF Reserve Junior Sportsmanship Award. This is the most recent of several major awards Doerr has to her credit, including the USHJA Youth Sportsmanship Award presented at the US Hunter Jumper Association Annual Meeting in December. In 2016, she was chosen for the USHJA Youth Leadership Award. She is the only rider to be chosen for both these awards. Read full article >>
February 2020 - Horse World Expo Sneak Preview - New Clinicians, Performers, Rescue Horse World Expo returns to the Farm Show Complex, Harrisburg, PA for its eighteenth year February 27-March 1. The mid-Atlantic region’s largest equestrian expo features over 160 hours of non-stop seminars and mounted clinics, over 350 vendors filling nearly 600 booths and ample family friendly equestrian entertainment. Read full article >>
February 2020 - Horse Ambulance Headquartered at Fair Hill Available for Emergencies Accidents and emergencies with horses involved can’t be scheduled for convenient times and places where help is immediately available. Thanks to ERA (Equine Rescue Ambulance), a horse ambulance with trained personnel is on standby at Maryland steeplechases and other equestrian events. Read full article >>
February 2020 - Ranch Riding on Steroids: Charles to Run HWE Trail Champions Challenge My novel Spurred to Justice has presented me with many new opportunities. This past November, I was privileged to attend Equine Affaire in Massachusetts after Jean McWilliams, the owner of Taborton Books, invited me to a book signing. I was elated because the Affaire ranks as one of North America’s top equine events, with education, entertainment, and some of the best shopping the horse world has to offer. If anyone addicted to horses needed a fix, the Affaire was the place to be. Read full article >>
December 2019/January 2020 - From Humble Beginnings to Filly Champion: A PMU Success Story Sometimes, our best horses come to us from unusual places. For Mary Ann Luke of Earleville, MD, fate intervened at many points along the way to bring her a very special mare that would produce three premium foals. Read full article >>
December 2019/January 2020 - A Horse with No Name Becomes a Cause Celebre Things can get pretty wild on the roads in Grantville near Penn National Race Course. Just ask Julie Rish who lives about five minutes from the racetrack. “I tend to notice animals as I drive, anyway,” Rish explains. “I am always on the lookout, especially back along the mountain. Read full article >>
December 2019/January 2020 - Mystic Strike Wins the 85th Running of the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup The first and second place finishers from the 2018 Pennsylvania Hunt Cup were in the field for this year’s 85th running of the $40,0000 Timber Stake in Unionville, PA on Sun., Nov. 3, but Upland Partner's entry Mystic Strike topped them both. Read full article >>
December 2019/January 2020 - East Coast Morgans Take on the World The 2019 Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show® was held October 12-19 in Oklahoma City, OK. The show attracted about 950 entries from across the United States and Canada. More than $250,000 in prize money was awarded. Read full article >>
