The Castle Rock MARE-TERNITY WARD
Message Boards => General Discussion => Topic started by: 5Keenes on April 28, 2016, 12:08:20 PM
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Greetings!
I have three little munchkins that I homeschool here in Southwest Florida. We are exploring the possibility of showing miniature horses. Is there anyone in the area with a teacher's heart that would consider letting us take a field trip to your farm? We would love to be able to hug & kiss some horses, maybe do some leading, minor grooming, etc. My goal is to make sure this is a good fit for my family before taking the first steps to ownership. I would be willing to sign a release if liability is a concern. Their ages are 8, 10 and 12. Thank you all so kindly for even considering this request!
Blessings,
Stacey
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Hi Stacey and welcome to the forum. That sounds like a great way to start getting you kids into horses and hopefully you will find someone near where you live. Good luck
Renee from Italy
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It's not a strange request, but a good one. Shows good planning. I don't have any horses here anymore, my pasture ornaments are ornamenting a friend's pasture, and everything is overgrown here. But I'll try and contact some people for you. Where are you located?
~~Diane
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Oh my goodness - thank you!
We are in Parrish, which is northeast Manatee county. I would be willing to drive a reasonable distance for the right situation though.
Thanks!!!
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Welcome to the forum :D
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Im not in the states but welcome to minis anyway! Just a word of warning, you will need one for each kid, a friend for each horse and then a few spares xD
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:D That is so true, minis are like potato chips, one is just never enough! lol
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Welcome!!
I also home schooled my kids, they are grown now :)
I am in Texas or would love to have you visit...
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I homeschooled my first 2 children, and then after my divorce, I found a Christian private school, where I kept all the kids and taught there myself, until I couldn't afford it any more. My oldest was going into 11th grade when all the kids were moved into public schools. But I sure enjoyed homeschooling them and working in the private school. But teachers don't make enough money for all they do, and I had to go out and get a job that paid enough $$ to get all my kids through college. I was fortunate in finding one, thank goodness, because I had 3 kids in college at the same time!
I'm in Florida, less than an hour inland from your location, and have checked on all the farms I knew of, back in the day around our area, but most are gone now. There may still be a few in up in Lakeland County -- I don't know them, but I think their name is Encore Farms -- or in the Ocala area. There's one I just can't think of the name for, and they were also trainers and showed one of my stallions, but I only used them for a year, and it was more than a decade ago! I know plenty of farms outside of Florida, but that won't help you. There was a mini farm in Sarasota, but I think they changed to Shetlands, and I don't see them still in business when I do a google search. Sorry I can't be more help.
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Not sure where they are located in Florida, but perhaps Alaqua animal rescue would be of help, I know they rescue horses in addition to cats and dogs, so perhaps a bit of volunteering in the barn to learn some horse husbandry, if they do that. I'll see if I can find information on them, I follow them on FB, so that's the only place I know how to contact them, but I'll see what I can find.
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Oops, got sidetracked and almost forgot.
Website for Alaqua: http://www.alaquaanimalrefuge.org/
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Haven't heard back from 5Keenes?
If she was closer to NC, I'd have her family here in a heartbeat! I LOVE having folks out to do that type of stuff with our foals and youngstock.
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Sorry I haven't updated. We befriended a local lady with a mini and have started leasing (in exchange for work instead of money!) I adore her so much! She is already five years old and spoiled as all get out. We've done a lot of leading & brushing, bathed her, learned to braid her mane and tail, and done some work in the round pen. I'm not sure if this is normal, but this girl follows us around like a puppy and nuzzles us when she wants a hug. I can't believe how affectionate she is! Her owner is going to buy us a book on trick training and gave my kids homework on things they need to research about horses. How awesome is that? My oldest is twelve and she is more interested in the big horses. This lady also has two BLM mustangs and an andalusian cross. Plenty of opportunity here!
Here is a link to a video I took after her bath. She was so frisky and was teasing the dogs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB9EHrtvW1g
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Yeah! Sounds like you found a good fit.
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VERY pretty!!! And homozygous for pinto with those paw prints, I would bet!!
She's beautiful and yes, they can be MOST affectionate! One of the things I love most about them!
Congratulations on what seems to be a perfect fits, as Chanda says!!!
Great video, too!
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I am so glad you found such a wonderful solution. She is a very pretty girl and I bet you will have lots of fun with her.
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Thats wonderful you have been able to find someone to learn and grow with, Your kids already look to have fallen in love with her, enjoy :)