Smudge!

Equine Business Management Student, Katie Ballard, chose to write about Smudge for her blog post.

In every barn, no matter what the intention of the owners or the purpose of the horses that dwell within its stalls, there is always that one horse.  The horse that is used to baby-sit the younger ones or the newer ones or the ones that just need a hint of calm. The baby-sitter. In the St. Andrews Hunt Seat barn, that horse is Smudge. This elderly Thoroughbred has been a staple in the SAU barn for some years, first as a lesson horse and then as a companion. Though, it wasn’t always Smudge’s job. Barn managers at SAU did try and find him a home where he could be happy to live out his days. However, like in all good things, this did not come right away. After multiple failed placements, the staff decided that the best place for Smudge to be was in the SAU barns and there he has remained, happy as he could be.

In addition to his current duty as the lesson barn babysitter is to be the perfect stable management horse, which he does very well, Smudge is always there with a kind eye and a willing ear. When new horses arrive, Smudge goes to the isolation area with them, spending making their first two weeks of separation from the herd much easier. Keeping them company and showing them how to do things the right way and providing a calming influence.  

In my personal experience, every barn needs a horse like Smudge is for us at SAU.  Some horses need that extra bit of calm that an old timer like Smudge provides.  I know that when I need to hug a neck or pet a warm velvety nose, Smudge is always there for me to go to. Smudge is a sweet heart and, despite the fact that his lesson and competition days are behind him, he is a very important part of the St. Andrews family and one of my favorite horses.

All pictures were taken by Jordan Belanger and used with permission.

 



Smudge enjoying the sunshine



Smudge with Jordan his Stable Management Lab student Fall 2014



Smudge on Final Horse Presentation Day

Stable Management Lab.

As part of the Equine Business Management class this semester students are required to write one blog post about some aspect of our program. Shannon Hahn chose to write about Stable Management Lab. 

With the start of the new spring semester here at St. Andrews, we are pleased to see the new students in the stable management lab here at the barns.  The first class meeting was a nice chilly 30 degree day.  The students were assigned their horses for the semester and participated in a silly ice breaker that involved many laughs and creative descriptions of common horse items such as a side rein (or dog lease/belt/miniature pony lead rope/etc) and a grazing muzzle (spaghetti strainer).

The second class meeting was met with slightly warmer weather.  The students were able to work with their horses during the class for the first time!  The instructors set up a mini obstacle course with four obstacles to take their horses through: weaving the horse through a few cones, walking their horse to a stall and backing them in, jogging in an arc to a mounting block, and then finally walking to a gate, opening the gate, walking through, and closing the gate when they were finished.  Many laughs, and sighs of frustration, were had when some of the horses refused to be backed into the stalls.  The same feelings were felt again when some of the horses refused to stand at the mounting blocks, pointedly telling us that they did not want to be ridden at that point in time.  It was a successful exercise and also told the students how well, or not so well, their horses stood in one spot waiting for their turn.

The students have also learned a lot about the feeding that goes on at the barns.  They discussed in length the different types of hay that are fed and why the horses receive what they do.  They also learned about the different types of feed that are available, the nutritional value of some of them, and how different mashes are mixed for feeding.  They were also taught how to clean the sheath of their gelding, and spent part of a class period doing that.  They will get to spend many hours working with their horses and caring for them throughout the semester.

by Shannon Hahn

Great Presentation!

Adequan representative Allyn Mann gave a great presentation last night. Allyn brought pizza to the meeting for the approximately 70 students present. His PowerPoint included some great graphics and animation showing how healthy joints function and the disease process caused in 95% of cases by work load. Allyn shared that good conformation was important for soundness in the long term but also emphasized that working a horse can lead to stresses that result in degradation of the cartilage. Allyn answered the many questions with great stories, examples, and information on research studies.

Tomorrow the western team leaves for the 16 hour drive to Springfield Missouri to compete in their Semi –Finals. Good luck to all the westerners!

At home it is another busy weekend with Scott Evans here this weekend to give a clinic to the ANRC squad.