Letter From the Publisher


As we put this 314th issue of T e Equiery to bed and prepare to celebrate T anksgiving, we have much in the equestrian community to celebrate.


2017’s Exciting Numbers! We welcomed in the new year with a report from the Sage Policy Group, releasing the results of a 2016 analysis indicating that


Maryland’s horse industry had grown by 23% since 2010 (read more on equiery.com archives for December 29, 2016 “Latest News”). T e Feed Fund is also a good indicator of business in Maryland. Simply put, if the Maryland Horse Industry Board’s feed fund


revenue increases, it is because Maryland has more horses to feed! For 2017, the feed fund showed an increase of horse feed sales of 20% over 2016!


And what does the Maryland Horse Industry Board do with that money? MHIB turns the Feed Funds into grants. T is past year, $29,000 was awarded, one of the highest amounts in MHIB’s history.


(Watch equiery.com in late December/early January for the announcement of the next round of grant recipients.) T e Board also uses our Feed Fund contributions to promote and grow the horse industry, as per the directives of the Maryland General Assembly (our elected offi cials). One of MHIB’s key marketing initiatives is HorseLand at the Maryland State Fair. De- signed to introduce people to horses (a percentage of which will then become riders, owners – or fans and spectators), HorseLand is interactive and family oriented, allowing kids to pet horses, groom them, dress up in jockey silks, jump around a miniature course, color, make stick ponies, and more. Eighteen stables participated, and over 50,000 people visited. Timely, as another survey showed that 51% of Marylanders who currently are not involved with horses would like to be! T e Horse Industry Board also launched the “Horses for Courses” School Curriculum for grades 4 – 8, developed in partnership with the Maryland Ag Education Foundation. Start ‘em young, right? Meanwhile, Maryland stables lead the nation in grassroots marketing, and you can read in this month’s News & Views about the


two that won $8,000 because of their creative and eff ective marketing projects. Let’s not forget our State breed, the T oroughbred, whose numbers are rebounding. In May, the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Two-


Year-Olds in Training Sale set a new record with the $1.5 million sale of a Curlin colt. T e 2017 Fasig-Tipton Fall Yearling Sale in Timonium had the greatest number of entries in six years. Last year, 268 horses sold for almost $6.5 million. THIS year, 312 T oroughbreds sold for over $7.8 million, a 22% increase. Meanwhile, the University of Maryland Equine Studies Program, which features a breeding component, continues to grow, with an enrollment increase of 17%.


New Chapters & New Beginnings T is is a huge feather in Maryland’s cap: in 2017, Fair Hill was awarded the coveted preliminary approval for the next International 4*


T ree-Day Event, one of only seven such events in the world. T e international oversight body, the T e Fédération Équestre Internatio- nale (FEI), is making its fi nal decision as this issue goes to press, so check out equiery.com and Equiery Facebook for the fi nal decision! Meanwhile, the Maryland Horse Breeders Association (publishers of the Mid-Atlantic T oroughbred) made a historic move, relo-


cating their headquarters to the Goucher College campus and entering into an innovative internship program. Goucher, which now off ers an equine studies minor, is currently developing an 18-acre state-of-the-art intercollegiate equestrian center to be anchored by MHBA and is future museum and library. T is year, the Baltimore Police Department’s Mounted Unit made a commitment to relocate to the lovely grounds of the B&O


Railroad Museum – perfect partnership! Marylander Dr. Mike Erskine took over as the Jean Ellen Shehan Professor & Director of the Marion duPont Scott Equine


Medical Center – we just love it when Marylanders run Virginia institutions! It should be noted that EMC is also funded by the University of Maryland and your tax dollars. As you will read in this month’s News & Views, Cargill has acquired Southern States’ animal feeds division. Meanwhile, the Maryland Horse Council, the umbrella association for ALL Maryland horse organizations, farms, businesses and individuals which serves as the industry’s Chamber of Commerce and which represents the industry on state-level legislative and regulatory issues, has likewise entered an aggressive phase of growth it has dubbed “Go Pro.” MHC’s long range plan includes 3 distinct “legs,” each leg fundamental to the stability and growth of the organization. MHC has established an alliance with Grow & Fortify, a lobbying, PR and event management fi rm that represents burgeoning


agricultural production businesses and industries, such as vineyards, wineries and farm breweries, at the county and state level. On the equine care and welfare front, MHC is launching a charitable entity christened “Maryland Equine Transition Services,” which will provide direct, on-site outreach to those who own unwanted, unsellable and/or unusable horses and are looking for options or solutions. You will learn more in upcoming issues. More immediately, however, is the third phase (or leg) of MHC’s business plan: the acquisition of this publication. On November 14, the Maryland Horse Council signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire T e Equiery, and will become the new owner in 2018.


6 | THE EQUIERY | DECEMBER 2017 800-244-9580 | www.equiery.com


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