Don and Michelle Hecht know the terrible feeling of hearing ambulance sirens and knowing they’re coming for your child.

Sunni Hecht and her parents, Don and Michelle, at the 2010 Region Two Championship. Scroll down for the Journal slide show.

At the 2009 Region Two Championship, their daughter, Sunni (then 16) went into their show tack stall for a piece of yarn to braid her horse’s forelock for the halter. Sunni stepped out just as two horses in the aisle – one tied, one walking by – started kicking at each other.

To this day, no one knows exactly which one hit Sunni in the face.

“I was on a horse two days after my accident,” Sunni says, in a matter-of-fact manner. The Journal spoke with her in between classes at this year’s show. “And my dad wasn’t very happy about that.”

“Or the doctors,” Don pipes in. Read the rest of this entry »

Reining’s Team USA wins first gold medal of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games

From left are teams Belgium, USA and Italy, with the chefs d'equip in front.

The powerhouse team from the United States took the gold medal at the FEI World Reining Championship presented by John Deere, making it a three-peat, with team wins in every World Equestrian Games in which reining has been included.

Belgium won the team silver medal, while Italy earned the bronze. The order of finish for the remaining top-10 teams is: Austria, Canada, Germany, Brazil, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Mexico.

Read the rest of this entry »

Team USA leads after Day 1 of the team reining competition at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

By Holly Clanahan of America’s Horse

U.S. rider Craig Schmersal and Mister Montana Nic lay down a 223.5 -- currently the second-highest score.

With roughly half of the rides completed in the team reining competition of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, Team USA is on top.

Here is the team ranking so far:

• Team USA – 444
• Team Austria – 432.5
• Team Brazil – 425
• Team Belgium – 424.5
• Team Netherlands – 422
• Team Mexico – 420.5
• Team Australia – 420
• Team Great Britain – 404.5
• Team Italy – 224
• Team Germany – 220.5

Read the rest of this entry »

Lisa Hamilton believes in second chances, just ask Creepy Junior.

Lisa Hamilton and her second chance horse, Creepy Junior, with their Montana Silversmiths 2010 Regional Championship buckle. (See more Journal photos from the show below.)

The dubious moniker belongs to the honest barrel horse that she calls “Big Brown” or “Brown.” Lisa’s only had him just over a year. She wanted to run barrels again and stumbled across the gelding through a friend.

At the time, he was 20 and in need of a new home.

For most people, that might not be what you’d have in mind for a new barrel horse. But Lisa works with troubled teens for her day job in Billings, Montana, and she knows the blessings of giving someone a second chance. Creepy Junior’s story fit the bill.

“His owner was my friend’s relative, and he’d been trying to give him away for a year,” Lisa explains. “He didn’t want him to go through a sale because he’s too much horse for most people, and he didn’t want him to go to the canners.

“I didn’t even look at him first,” Lisa says. “I just drove to Cody (Wyoming) with (my friend’s) trailer and picked him up. I said I’ll take him; I couldn’t leave him there. I didn’t even ride him.” Read the rest of this entry »

Reining kicks off the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games with the first horse inspection.

By Holly Clanahan of America’s Horse

In Friday morning's horse inspection, Pierre Barret of France leads Whizard Star, an 8-year-old Whizard Jac stallion bred, owned and shown by Pierre.

Sixty-three horses from 21 countries are gearing up for team reining competition at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. Reiners are the first ones to perform in this all-out event, the largest equestrian competition in the world and the largest sporting event of any kind in the United States this year.

Friday morning, the reiners were put through their paces in the FEI horse inspection, which asks riders to lead their horses at the jog before a ground jury that inspects them for soundness. Three horses failed the test and will not be able to compete. All Team USA horses were deemed ready for competition.

Team USA’s team has a slightly different configuration than first planned. Team member Craig Schmersal will be riding Mister Montana Nic instead of Boom Shernic, because of concern for his soundness. Team Chef D’Equipe Jeff Petska said that Boom Shernic likely would have been fine to Read the rest of this entry »

When did your little girl first fall in love with horses?

Maggie Frederickson (left) and her mother, Chari, at the 2010 Region Two Championship. Scroll down for more Journal photos.

Chari Frederickson knows just when her daughter, Maggie, began the love: “She came out of the womb whinnying.”

Maggie’s first horse was a bona fide barrel horse named “Patch,” a painted barrel fitted with a stick horse head. Now she’s 15 and riding The Docs Gitgo, a 2001 gelding by Dee Bar Boy and out of The Doctors Cricket by Doctor Dooley.

An experienced 4-H competitor from Banner, Wyoming, Maggie came to the 2010 Region Two Championship “to learn and practice” AQHA in everything from halter to the all-around classes, western and English.

And AQHA’s onsite member services helped to make sure the novice youth’s paperwork was in order.

That’s “perfect” to Debbie Holmes, Region Two Championship committee chair. Those are “the stories of the show’s payoff,” she says. Read the rest of this entry »

September’s contest is all about AQHA’s road service, EquiPass.

Take care of your best friend - even on the road.

Be ready for Fridays in September, AQHA Facebook fans!

One lucky fan will win a free year of road service from EquiPass. To be eligible, the winner must be an AQHA member and be a resident of U.S. or Canada.

How to Play

• Become a fan of AQHA on Facebook.
• During each Friday in September, watch for a post on AQHA’s wall containing “EquiPass.”
• Be one of the first three fans to comment, and you’ll be entered to win the grand prize package.

Read the rest of this entry »

Starting a breeding program from the ground up is no simple task, but JB Quarter Horses thinks it has some answers.

Miss JB 055, one of JB Quarter Horses' winning foals.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

This is the last in a two-part series. Need to review Part 1?

Marketing a Product

Even with proven bloodlines, impressive show careers and rodeo money earnings, Dee Braman says she has struggled at times marketing her stallions. Surprisingly, it was the two decorated rope horse stallions that were the most difficult to market. Read the rest of this entry »

Shock wave therapy is helping horses heal quicker from various injuries.

Shock wave therapy uses pulsating waves.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

Your prized futurity prospect is enjoying a romp in his paddock after a particularly good training session. When you head out to bring him back in, visions of perfect turnarounds dance in your head. Until you see him wandering your way.

“Oh, no,” you think to yourself. “Is he off?”

Maybe it’s a suspensory injury, bowed tendon or just a bucked shin – injuries that happen to equine athletes all the time. Not career ending, they can mean long lay-ups and the loss of precious training time. A new treatment, however, could change that recovery time from months to weeks. Read the rest of this entry »

Horses need travel agents, vaccinations and blood tests before heading overseas.

Most airline cargo containers can easily accommodate American Quarter Horses.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

Note: this article is meant to create awareness of issues surrounding exporting horses from the United States. If you plan to export a horse from the United States, please visit with your local Animal and Plant Health Inspector Service’s area vet in charge for the latest regulations regarding export.

Many of these numbers represent horses shipped across borders for international competitions, but sales denote the majority. As American Quarter Horse disciplines such as reining and cutting expand internationally, trade will follow, and sales are likely to rise. And with the 2010 Alltech World Equestrian Games just days away, horses have already started arriving from across the globe. But how does it work? What are the steps needed to ship a horse overseas or across international borders? What does it cost? Read the rest of this entry »

A quick overview of dates and times you need to know regarding the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

By Holly Clanahan of America’s Horse

On NBC:

• On Sunday, September 26, live coverage from noon to 1:30 p.m. Eastern will feature team reining competition.
• On Sunday, October 3, from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern, individual reining will be covered, although the footage will be pre-recorded.
• And on Sunday, October 10, from 4 to 6 p.m. Eastern, reining will be featured as part of the overall WEG recap.

Read the rest of this entry »

Help your young horse learn to accept – and respond to – the bit.

There's no replacement for a horse respectful of the bit.

By Dr. Jim & Lynda McCall in The American Quarter Horse Journal

The Problem

I have been riding my 2-year-old gelding for about three months, but I still can’t seem to get him responsive to the bit. I had his wolf teeth removed before placing the bit in his mouth, so I’m sure that isn’t the problem.

Each time I pull on the reins, the colt gaps or opens his mouth. Of course, with his mouth open, the action of the bit is reduced, and I have less control over the young horse.

Why won’t this colt accept the bit, and what can I do to correct this problem? Read the rest of this entry »