Drew: They aren’t isolated. They see mares and babies when they work. Mares get tacked up in the stallion barn.
WT: How do you organize the stallion’s competition life so he is available for mares? Natalie: It’s a balancing act. April, May and June are the peak breeding months. You may not want those to be your peak competition months too. The planning is based on the individual and the goals for the year. For example, for a stallion who might get tired or body sore as the breed- ing season progresses we might show earlier in the season. Some stallions are better if you don’t collect right before a show. Some are better at the show if they are collected right before they get in the trailer. How heavy his bookings are versus the competition plans depends on the horse. It’s important for the mare
owners to know early in the season when the stallion might show, so they can manage their mares accordingly. We put the show dates in the breeding pack- ets and on our website. Mare own- ers need to be sure and pass that information and dates on to their vet or the person managing the mare for breeding. The mare owner has the option
during the times we don’t collect to take frozen semen ahead of time or breed the next heat cycle. Or they can switch to an alternative stallion.
Drew: We came to the conclusion that we manage stallions first, and work in the events (competitions) as we can. Com- peting in Florida is show after show after show, but when everyone goes north for the summer, we stay home and do a lot of breeding. We might go to shows near- by and just do the weekend, leaving the farm at 10 a.m. Friday, but essentially we have a winter com- petition season and summer breeding season.
WT: At a show, who is responbible for safe behavior between the boys and girls? Natalie: The stallion owner has to be aware of the stallion and everyone else’s horses in the vicinity. Stallions are very aware of changes in their environment and the show atmosphere if filled with unexpected distractions such as mares in heat, ponies (some stallions find those fascinating), etc. So it’s very important that they stay tuned in to the rider’s/handler’s aids even while they are aware of everything else going on. Any- one handling a stallion has to stayed focused at all times and manage the situation and environment so that it is a positive one for the stallion and everyone else around them.
40 January/February 2015
Drew: It’s the stallion handler’s responsibility to be the most aware person at the competition. My stallions warm up like a normal horse in the group, but I’m always watching out for the kid on the little white pony that is out of control. People are pretty cooperative. I’ll say, “Just so you know, this is a stal- lion,” and I may ask for more space. People pretty much run away when you ask for that. What we do at home prepares them. Going to a show is just another day. I don’t want the show to be the first time they see something. We take new stallions to schooling shows so the number of horses isn’t overwhelming. There we slowly integrate them into the group. We try to stimulate them in a safe, controlled environment.
WT: Do you run into stabling complications? Natalie: Always. Show secretaries try to be accommodating because they want everyone to be safe, but their idea of a far enough distance away may be different than ours. Or you get to a big show and someone missed the fact that a mare is on the backside of the wall, or people have decided to switch stalls and not told the show management. We always check stabling
charts before unloading the stallion. We don’t want to get a horse settled and then notice he is surrounded by mares. We travel with portable panels that we can add to stalls to create a solid wall if needed.
Top: Top: Barb Ellison of Wild Turkey Farm. Bottom: Wild Turkey’s stallion Liocalyon rid- den by Mandy Porter.
Barb: It is more of a problem with the young stallions who are just beginning competition and breeding. I think once they learn that the show grounds are for work and home is where the breeding is done, it helps to lessen some of their excitement over being at a show with all those horses. Our farm is pretty quiet, so going to a horse show can be quite overwhelming. After a few days, though, they gener- ally settle down and get into the routine.
We try to check out who is on the other side of our stal-
lion and, if it is a mare, we do politely ask if the mare could move—or we move our stallion. And we do bring hot wire in case we need it for the top of the stall.
Drew: At the farm, we stable the stallions according to their egos. We have two, six-stall shed rows that look out over the farm. This way, they can see everything that’s going on, rath- er than in a center aisle barn where they stare at each other and get aggravated with each other. A stallion with a big ego
Kimerlee Curlie
JumpShot Photography
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