The most adorable minute you will enjoy all day long, guaranteed.
Congratulations, Horse Nation — we made it through another week and it’s Friday afternoon. Kick off your weekend with this little dose of adorable in the form of a Rocky Mountain Horse colt named CCF The Force Awakens — known to his friends as Sheldon — romping around his pasture with his oversize soccer ball.
Reader Myranda Grace Elliot sends us the video:
Go out and play, Horse Nation! Happy Friday, have a great weekend, and go riding!
The Intercollegiate Horse Show Association’s National Championships took place May 5-8, 2016 at Lexington’s Kentucky Horse Park — catch the recap here.
Looking to adopt a new rescue horse? Want to volunteer or make a donation? Look no further!
The Jodhpurs Company has put together an interactive map showing the location and description of America’s horse rescues. This is by no means a complete list — new rescues are being added every day, so bookmark this link for future reference!
Any dedicated horse rescue may be listed on the map — rescues are not required to be listed as 501(c)(3).
Each Friday, Horse Nation teams up with Ovation Riding to spotlight an individual or organization doing good work in the horse world. Today, we’re recognizing Warhorses for Heroes, an equine program for service men and women.
Horse Nation is so proud to say / that we’ve worked on these poems all day / to make readers smile / (at least for awhile) / because that’s the Horse Nation way.
A camera mounted on the inside of the starting gate gives us a cool new look at Nyquist, winner of the 2016 Kentucky Derby.
Nyquist won the 2016 Kentucky Derby last weekend as the heavy favorite, and there’s little doubt he’ll go into the Preakness Stakes with the same short odds. Trainer Doug O’Neill constantly describes Nyquist as a professional who hits the track for workouts or races with a professional attitude — but it didn’t really hit home what “professionalism” looks like in a racehorse until I saw this video.
This unique camera angle offers us a view that few have ever seen as we watch Nyquist load into the starting gate at Churchill Downs:
Nyquist is clearly on a hair trigger, ready to launch out of that starting gate and thunder his way to victory, and yet he walks politely into the gate and waits, well, as patiently as we can expect. Respect for the assistant starters, who have an often-overlooked but incredibly dangerous job in loading and then standing each horse in close quarters in the starting gates!
Keep it locked on Horse Nation for more updates from the Triple Crown trail!
Morgane Schmidt Gabriel takes a close look at a recent noseband stress study that’s all over the equestrian news to decide if there’s really a case to ban crank nosebands from use.
The only thing better than a cat riding a donkey? TWO cats riding a donkey.
I mean, let’s be honest — how much else do we really need to say? There are cats, the cats are riding a donkey, and everything is adorable. Seriously, I can only aspire to be as cool as these two, lounging on the back of my most noble steed, taking in the afternoon sun.
Happy Thursday, Horse Nation. Let’s make it a good one.
This Wild West-style robbery might have gone a little better if storefronts still had hitching posts.
It took a few years of real-life horsing around in my youth for me to realize that the personalities assigned to TV horses like Trigger and Silver were tricks of showbiz. My horse would not unilaterally decided to chase down bad guys for me or be my sidekick in a fight. Apparently, this would-be robber hasn’t learned that lesson yet, because the only thing he and his steed have in common is a good flight instinct.
Taken from security footing from a convenience store in Joao Pessoa, Brazil, the man appears to ride up to a convenience store on his horse a few minutes before midnight, and the two together enter the store, where the man confronts a clerk, shaking the poor guy down for his cash. The horse apparently has his own assignment, inspecting the refrigerated goods and keeping an eye out for the cops. But as you might expect, the horse gets lodged in a dodgy area of the store, spooks, and takes off for the exit, whether his partner in crime is coming or not.
According to reports, neither human nor equine have been caught or identified. But if you happen to see a man enter a store with his horse in northeastern Brazil, I’m going to go out on a limb and guess it’s probably the same guy.
Dr. Joyce Harman presents a four-part series to help horse owners better understand the increasingly-common but often misunderstood Lyme disease. In Part I, she introduces us to the basics.
Ride along for an exhilarating drive of the iconic white Camargue horses through the brush!
Who hasn’t fantasized about galloping down a wild trail on the back of a snow-white steed, listening to the thunder of hoofbeats as other horses run freely around you? Thanks to a helmet cam video, you can now get at least one step closer to making that dream a reality — ride along for this exhilarating drive of a herd of Camargue horses in France!
(Note: must be logged into Facebook to view.)
The Camargue is the iconic breed of southern France, often photographed in the marshes where their gray coats stand out among their background. Contrary to popular belief, the Camargue herds aren’t truly wild but have semi-feral status, with a registry helping to organize the breed. Horses to be registered in the main studbook must have been born outside in one of the recognized semi-feral herds from a registered dam.
Camargue horses are popular mounts in southern France for livestock herders, and are also becoming increasingly popular as sporthorse mounts.
With her first trip to the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event under her belt, Ainsley Jacobs shares her tips for future first-timers — as well as the big lesson she learned while browsing the vendor village.
Stephen Curry is to basketball what Ruthann Smith is to show braids. And she’s been kindly helping me out because apparently Ruthann is a glutton for punishment.
Need a helping hand this spring shedding season? How about a helping beak instead?
Many of us leave our horses’ shedding spring coat out on the muck pile or set aside in a location where the birds can easily take what they need to line their nests. These birds are going one better and eliminating the need for the middle man — they’re getting their hair direct from the source.
(Note: must be logged into Facebook to view.)
Is your spring shedding season for the birds? Show us your photos and videos in the comments section!
