.:EQUUS:.

So I was flicking through the current (August) edition of the Royal Auto and was drawn to an article titled, ‘Her True Calling‘ by Alistair Smith.  Focused around Victoria Shaw, the piece gives a small insight into Australia’s first female race caller.

What is a race caller?  Perhaps others might refer to them as commentators - the person who (very quickly) enlightens listeners and watchers to the position of horses throughout the duration of a horse race.

At this point in time, race calling is a male dominated area so I found this article to be of particular interest.

Perhaps you have an interest in pursuing such a position as well as a passion and knowledge of racing horses, be it trotters, pacers or the gallops.  Take a look at Talk the Talk and Profile On: Travis Stone, Race Caller.

Sometimes breaking into a particular field can be daunting - especially if it hasn’t been done before with regards to a particular gender, age or country.  But who’s to say it can’t be done?

tag: self education, networking, racing, racecalling, racehorses, thoroughbreds, career

***Know that you want a career with horses but not sure what exactly?  Check out the Vocation 100 page for a growing list of possible vocations with horses and relating posts.***

Lynn Baber of Amazing Grays Ministry took the time to answer some questions about her involvement in an equine ministry.

Have you always been interested in horses and how long has Amazing Grays Ministry been in existence?
When I was four years old I rode my first full size horse; fell off… got stepped on… and I’ve been in love ever since. I’m not sure what that says about me, but horses have been a life-long passion even though I didn’t get to really concentrate on them until I was over thirty!

The ministry itself developed as the publication process for Amazing Grays, Amazing Grace began in the summer of 2009. If you had asked me about a ministry before that I would have been quite surprised!

What exactly does Amazing Grays do?
Amazing Grays Ministry is a non-profit Christian lay ministry dedicated to sharing God’s messages of Grace and Victory through Jesus Christ to all the family of God, in particular the equine community, as convicted by the Holy Spirit, through written, spoken, and broadcast word, music and images.

We are always looking for opportunities to speak to groups as well as conduct hands-on horse clinics.

Due to being a non profit organisation, where do the funds come from?
One of the goals of Amazing Grays Ministry is to offer something to those we meet rather than to ask for anything from them. Contributions to the ministry are tax-deductible, but we do not solicit direct donations. We sell the book and study guide, and are adding to our list of titles and products that may bless others as we move forward. At times the ministry is given a donation when we do a program or clinic although it is not a requirement. When offered, we do accept. Other funds are made by private donors who support the ministry’s work.

How much of your day or week is spent on this amazing ministry? How much of this relates to hands on with horses?
The ministry is pretty much a full time job although I continue to write both articles and books. Promoting and marketing are a big part of a ministry just as any organization that is trying to get a message out to the right audience in a world already filled with noise and input.

The hands-on part is growing. We will be taking horses into neighborhoods with church-operated summer programs to offer a really unique way to show the children how trust and confidence in a leader can change our lives. Additionally, we are booking horse-rider relationship clinics and I go to other equine ministries to do programs.

I go wherever I’m invited for the most part. If anyone would like to visit about an opportunity to hear our message, please ask them to contact me.

What do you do to earn an income alongside Amazing Grays Ministry?
This is it. We are officially retired, though I am a writer. Can’t say I plan on making a fortune that way, but even if I did I would give it to the ministry. We were blessed to be successful in both our business-world and horse-related careers and now share with others.

Any advice for those eager to pursue an equine related ministry?
Christian ministry of any kind is an assignment from the Lord. There needs to be a calling first. Whenever there is, the Lord is always faithful to make a way. But specifically, I would simply tell folks that the Bible tells us we are not to teach what we have not first mastered. I think only experienced horsemen and women should lead equine ministries. As a horse trainer, judge, and professional, I always put safety first. That hasn’t changed.

Is there anything else with horses you’d love to learn about or try?
There is one thing left on the list – to ride my own horse on a beach somewhere. We’re hoping to do that soon, but just haven’t ever had the opportunity. Other than that, every day with horses is both a blessing and a learning experience. As long as I keep going out to the barn I will keep learning.

Favourite horse memory?
That is so difficult. I have had so many wonderful horses. Winning World and National championships wasn’t bad, but each time a new horse looked at me and offered me their trust – it was a great day.

Future goals?
There will be more books. Other than that we just take one day at a time. I really look forward to working with people and including the horses in more appearances. We just hope for invitations to come and share our message.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
My relationship with the Lord. That is the foundation of everything. After that, being able to take the decades of experience gathered as an equine professional and use it to serve Him, his family, and the horses.

“It is the difficult horses that have the most to give you.” - Lendon Gray

Tags: Equine Ministry, Lynn Baber

We’ve been covering horse condition scores and equine welfare in class with the students and watched a piece on the show Can We Help? which is run on the ABC, here in Australia.  Some of that night’s episode focused on Second Chance Horse Rescue, run by a young woman in her mid twenties.

As someone that age who has huge aspirations for the rest of my life, I was amazed to see that at 23 years of age she started on this dream to give back to the animals who had given her so much.  Negative words were spoken over her with regards to her lack of experience, age, finances and facilities.  Thankfully, they made no difference!

The end result is Second Chance Horse Rescue, an organisation set up by Jessie Barbour in July, 2006.  Based on the short segment featured on Can We Help?, it takes an average of $5,500 to rehabilitate a horse.

Obviously this would depend on the condition they first arrived in, but doing sums on the 75 horses mentioned that had passed through Second Chance Horse Rescue, this comes to in excess of $400,000!

If I had access to those kinds of funds, I’d eagerly be stepping towards my dream of 300 acres to house horses and educate people.  However, because they are lacking at this point in time, I’m sitting quietly - well, working towards the land in other ways!

A lack of funds didn’t stop Jessie, however and they don’t stop her today.  The large majority of funds utilised to support these gorgeous animals and restore them back to health is donated.

If you have a particular dream or goal for your life - especially one that involves making the world a better place for animals and humans alike - don’t let a lack of funds pull you up!  You may just need to take a different approach to get the desired outcome.

“All I pay my psychiatrist is the cost of feed and hay, and he’ll listen to me any day!”

tag: equine rehabilitation, horse goals, horse welfare, equine organisation

So I’ve been thinking a bit of late of all the things I’d like to achieve in life - many equine related!  A firm believer in lists, I have a book that has all of these plans written down.  With that in mind, I think all equine lovers should have horse related dreams and goals to work towards - I even took the liberty of listing in an article some that you may consider worthwhile to add to your own list

For myself they vary greatly although many are horse related:

• Ever spotted a horse in a magazine, on a website or at a show or race and thought - man, I have to have the progeny of that mare or stallion?  For me, a Shatoor filly fits this situation.
• I’d love to acquire a Friesian somewhere down the line, also - and perhaps a Gypsy Vanner!
• I want to learn so much more about different jobs and disciplines and to take part in a Jackaroo course



• I’d love to learn to barrel race and try polocrosse
• Trek over the Snowy Mountains, travel to see the Lipizzaners in Vienna, Austria and visit an estancia in Argentina to learn about polo
• Do a chiropractic or equine massage course

• Finish my Degree in Equine Science
• Run my own agistment property

So, that’s the majority of the horse related ones - though I can’t say they will be achieved in that order - and that’s fine by me!  Life is so much about relationships and learning and it’s wonderful to know I’ll never stop learning about these gorgeous animals or experiencing different things with regards to them.

So!  What’s on your bucket list?

“If I had a horse, I’d ride off in the sunset, where dreams, and shadows lie. To a life, where pain and sorrow don’t exist, and to where hopes, and dreams become reality.” - Lindsay Turcotte

tag: horse goals, horse riding, Vienna, Spanish Riding School

So study for my Horse Management subject at uni has me going over the anatomy and physiology of the stallion currently.  Upon looking at artificial insemination I realised I’d planned to do a piece with regards to Equitainers and after a quick search on this blog, it appears that I haven’t!

Those familiar with transporting semen with regards to breeding the mare, will be familiar with Equitainers.

For those who aren’t, an Equitainer is a container used to courier semen to mare owners so that the mare can be artificially inseminated within a particular time frame.  If the mare isn’t inseminated within this short time frame, chances are she will not conceive.  Consequently, the lining up work of the vet as well as expenses with regards to collecting from the stallion and the mare owner having to dish out a reasonable amount of money would all be wasted.

For those interested in the artificial insemination breeding side of horses, Equitainer.com of Hamilton Research Inc. provides information with regards to:
- reproduction courses
- different products to assist in the ease of preparing mares to be inseminated
- articles relating to transported semen, collection and general reproduction issues

In an industry where reproductive technologies are advancing at an impressive pace, someone stepped into a niche area, providing a product that is now recognised as one of the best for “equine cooled shipping semen containers,” says Paul Loomis of Select Breeders Services.

In the equine reproductive world, those making use of such technologies available may find themselves jumping ahead in the products and services that are able to be offered to equine breeders.

tag: artificial insemination, transporting semen, equitainer, breeding horses

“Breed the best to the best and hope for the best.” - Breeder’s axiom