Bright Lights, Big City – This is Haymanot “Hemi” Kebedes’ first Ford Youth World.

The 2010 Ford Youth World was the first time Hemi Kebede had ever been to a show larger than a county fair, but that did stop him and Mr Be Counted in the yearling geldings.

He was wide-eyed when he saw the Jim Norick Arena at State Fair Park in Oklahoma City for the first time on Friday, July 30. Not only was it his first time at the Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show, it was also his first time at any horse show larger than a county fair.

Haymanot “Hemi” Kebede, 16, can’t believe his luck that he’s competing at the 2010 Ford Youth World.

“It’s a really, really cool experience,” he says. “I’ve never been to something so big. I’m used to going to little state fairs. I’ve never been here before and I’m really excited – I hope we do good.”

Hemi and Mr Be Counted, a 2009 sorrel gelding by Count This Kid Cool and out of Downtown Sunshine by Mr Be Downtown, were finalists in yearling geldings.

Even though he has designs to move into western pleasure and other riding classes, Hemi has a profound respect for the halter horse and sees himself showing halter horses for a long time. He especially likes the conformation and form of the halter horse.

“They have to be really nice horses. I like the muscling of really nice horses. It takes a really special horse to win a class,” he says.

To prepare for his halter class at the Ford Youth World on Saturday, July 31, Hemi banded his gelding, “Sammy,” on Friday night . Knowing that Sammy likes to get dirty, Hemi blanketed him, too. When he arrived at State Fair Park at 4 a.m. on Saturday, Hemi fixed any displaced bands, blackened hooves and brushed off his equine comrade. He had help from his “pit crew” — fellow Texas youth competitors Carey Nowacek and Amanda Brightwell.

Read the rest of this entry »

Let the dreams begin.

Hannah Blaeser, of La Mesa, New Mexico, and Look At This Asset were crowned the performance halter geldings reserve world champions at the 2010 Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show.

“Way to go!” and Jim Searles gave his daughter, Taylor, a high five as she sat aboard her gray mare, Rip N Zippin Goodbar, while mom, Deanna, smiled up at her.

Taylor, from Cave Creek, Arizona, just finished her western riding prelims go, 89th in a field of 103 at the 2010 Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show. The field included seasoned horses and riders and past world champions, including 2009 western riding world champions Ali Papendick and Harley D Zip.

As of this posting, the finalists haven’t been announced, but Taylor’s parents – longtime trainers and exhibitors themselves – are proud no matter what. The 11-year-old had a world show-worthy pattern in world show company.

There are 859 exhibitors with 1,208 horses making up this year’s 2,402 entries, all competing for 35 world champion titles. The American Quarter Horse Journal interviews all the new world champs fresh out of the arena. Winning run interviews are posted online within the hour along with reruns of the winning goes. Read the rest of this entry »

As the unwanted horse problem continues, responsible breeding is a must.

To combat the unwanted horse issue, horse owners should only breed the very best to the very best.

By Dr. Thomas R. Lenz in The American Quarter Horse Journal

The unwanted horse continues to be a major issue in the U.S. horse industry. The economic downturn has only served to make the situation worse, as many people can no longer afford to keep their horses or find qualified buyers.

AQHA and the Unwanted Horse Coalition are focused on finding homes, alternative careers and additional options for horses that are no longer wanted. But if we’re going to solve the problem, we must also decrease the number of unmarketable horses we are producing through responsible breeding practices.

Read the rest of this entry »

July’s Facebook contest is all about fly control and some great prizes from AQHA Corporate Partner Farnam.

Win a huge Farnam prize package, including two SuperMasks!

Just in time for summer, AQHA and Corporate Partner Farnam are giving away some great prizes to help your horses beat those pesky flies.

Up for grabs to all AQHA Facebook fans is a huge fly-control package worth $175, including:

• 1 – Endure Quart
• 1 – Endure Roll-on
• 1 – Repel XP Quart
• Read the rest of this entry »

Five problems you should always call the vet for.

While mild colic can just be sand in the gut, if it isn’t and is allowed to go on, the result can be lethal.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

Most horse owners don’t call a veterinarian for every little scrape on their horses. Most horse owners can handle cuts, bruises and bumps with supplies they have on hand.

Dr. Julie Dechant, an assistant professor in the clinical equine surgical emergency and critical care portion of the University of California-Davis, offers five examples of injuries that need immediate veterinary care. Don’t try to handle these on your own. Get help right away.

Read the rest of this entry »

The 2010 Adequan Select World Championship Show is right around the corner — get the facts on the Farnam All-Around Amateur Award.

The 2009 Farnam All-Around Amateur winners Susan K. Johns and Majestic Scotch.

AQHA Corporate Partner Farnam, a company dedicated to horse care, has teamed up with AQHA as the title sponsor of the Farnam All-Around Amateur Award this year’s Adequan Select World Championship Show. The Adequan Select World Show is August 29 – September 4 in Amarillo.

The Farnam All-Around Amateur Award goes to the top Select amateur exhibitor-and-horse team earning the most points in three or more events in two categories during the Adequan Select World Show. The winner of this award receives $10,000 cash, plus $1,000 of Farnam product and a WeatherBeeta blanket; the reserve all-around amateur receives $2,500 cash, plus $500 of Farnam product; and the third- through fifth-place finishers each receive $1,000 cash and $250 of Farnam product.

Read the rest of this entry »

AQHA announces the beta launch of the redesigned aqha.com. We want your feedback!

AQHA’s Web team is pleased to launch the public beta release of the new-and-improved aqha.com, located at beta.aqha.com.  This is only a preview of the future site and is in the public testing phase.

Please note that much of the functionality is still in progress. To conduct regular AQHA business, please continue to use aqha.com.

AQHA members and users are encouraged to take a moment to visit the beta site at beta.aqha.com, and use the comment feature at the bottom to tell us what you think about the overall design and navigation.  Or simply e-mail us at beta@aqha.org with your comments and suggestions.

Read the rest of this entry »

AQHA Professional Horsemen talk about the five errors non-pros make in halter.

In the halter ring, don’t let your nerves get the better of you and help you to make the biggest mistake of all: over-showing your horse.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

When it comes to showing horses, we all make mistakes. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a pro or a novice amateur, you’re going to mess up every once in a while.

But if you know how to keep your eye open for mistakes before they happen, maybe you can prevent them.

The Journal asked a few AQHA Professional Horsemen what the top five mistakes are that most halter amateur exhibitors make, and how to avoid them.

No. 1 – Set Up the Horse Improperly

Know the conformation of your horse and how to show her so she will look her best.

• For a long-backed horse, bunch the horse up a little bit in the set-up, which will round her back. Don’t set your horse up too wide, which also hollows out the back.
• Don’t set your horse’s head too high. Look at where the neck comes out and present the horse’s head so that it doesn’t dip the back.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Ohio Quarter Horse Association pulls together to help one of its own.

Trey and his roping/speed-event horse, Bar Dee Boy 036, aka "Scooby." Photo courtesy of Tow Pal Inc., which sponsors Trey.

By all accounts, 14-year-old Trey Schwab has a wonderful, supportive family. But outside of his biological family, he also has an amazing network of unrelated kinfolk – connected by a common love of horses – who have rallied around him in the wake of a terrible accident. At the AQHA Region Four Championship in Columbus, July 15-18, this family was kicking it in high gear.

May 22, Trey and his family had been driving to a horse show on Ohio’s Interstate 71 when their left front tire blew out. As Paul, Trey’s father, slowed down to pull over, the truck shot abruptly across the median and into some trees. The trailer disconnected from the truck, and one horse ended up dying. Cindy, Paul’s mother, bled profusely from a severed carotid artery, and Paul sustained head injuries. Cindy also suffered several broken bones and is now in a wheelchair, although a full recovery is expected. Trey remains hospitalized, and the extent of his brain injury is not yet known. He blinks to answer “yes” or “no” questions, and he knows that his best horse, “Scooby,” survived.

At the accident scene,  “there were angels everywhere,” says Ohio Quarter Horse Association youth director Kelli Diaz – from a passerby who stopped and helped stanch Cindy’s bleeding, to another one who happened to be driving by with an empty horse trailer; she transported the horses to a nearby vet clinic.

Today, it’s Kelli and others at OQHA and neighboring affiliates who are filling that role. Read the rest of this entry »

AQHA’s Facebook fan page has reached a milestone, and everybody gets a prize to celebrate!

Check your Facebook to see if you've won this saddle bag or a Journal subscription!

If you’ve been to AQHA’s Facebook page lately, then you know what a busy place it is! AQHA’s Facebook page is bustling with activity, from the latest industry news to tips and tricks to help you enjoy your horses to the fullest.

AQHA’s Facebook page offers:

• “Guess That Horse.” Each Wednesday, enjoy this fast-paced game with a great prize up for grabs to the person who is the first to correctly guess the horse in the photo.
• Monthly contests with AQHA corporate partner prizes. AQHA’s generous corporate partners provide a hefty prize package each month.
• Read the rest of this entry »

Tom and Margo Ball share their method of halter breaking, based on good, old-fashioned horsemanship.

Most foals are a little hesitant to come to you. If you work around your foals on a daily basis, such as cleaning stalls, they'll start coming to you.

By Christine Hamilton in The American Quarter Horse Journal

Tom and Margo Ball use old-fashioned horsemanship in their halter breaking, approaching it with patience, an earned trust and the belief that every foal is an individual. The steps Tom and Margo go through might take one day or three weeks, and they might spend longer on different steps with different foals. The Balls might start a foal at 30 days of age, or they might wait longer. It all depends on the personality and needs of each foals.

“We wait until our babies are ready to break,” Tom adds. “We don’t want to fight with them.”

The Balls like to start working with the foal in a roomy run, with the foal’s mother close by.

Read the rest of this entry »

Roping, poles, barrels and jumping wrap up the Region One Championship.

By Randee Fox

Courtney Pearson of Langley, B.C., bends around a barrel for her second winning run at the 2010 Region One Championship. Scroll down for more photos by Journal special correspondent Randee Fox.

July 25 was the final day of the wildly fun Region One Championship in Langley, British Columbia. It started with roping and ended with jumping with poles and barrels in the middle. There was plenty of athletic action from 8 a.m. until noon.

After finally finding my momentum chasing stories and photos, I accepted the fact that I could not be at two places at the same time. As the days progressed so did the heat factor as summer finally planted its roots deep into the Pacific northwest so ‘hoofing it’ with water bottle and hat on the 85-acre property, didn’t always allow me to catch each event. Next time I’m bringing my bicycle with a basket so I can zoom from event to event and carry my cameras and note pad.

One thing that I am coming away with is a deeper appreciation for family, community and Quarter Horses, and that extends beyond blood. Read the rest of this entry »