Nicholas and Flash
On Sunday, the Merrickville Fair was the scene of a Miniature Horse Show. Miniature horses are a fairly recent addition to the horse scene. It was only in 1978 that the American Miniature Horse Association (AMHA) was founded to establish minis as a seperate breed of horse. The American Miniature Horse Registry (AMHR) was established a bit earlier, in 1972, as a division of the American Shetland Pony Club. In the AMHA, Miniatures cannot exceed 34 inches at the withers, the point at which the mane ends at the back. In the AMHR, there are A and B divisions, for Miniatures under 34 inches and 34 to 38 inches, respectively. Are Minatures really small horses or ponies? Some certainly are more horse-like than others. Wherever you might stand on that issue, one thing can be agreed upon: they sure are cute!
I met Nicholas and Flash not long before their class. Nicholas made his show ring debut in the Junior Showmanship 10-years-old and Under class at the Merrickville show. Nicholas did a fine job! He and Flash won fourth place in their first outing.
It’s easy to see the appeal of Miniatures. Many horse owners have limited interest in riding. They just love horses! A full-sized horse requires a significant amount of space for proper maintenance. Of course, everything else is proportionally large as well: a large amount of hay, a large horse trailer for transport, a large amount of cleanup! With minis, everything is more easily managed. Take transportation, for instance. A medium-sized truck can easily transport a whole herd of minis. This gives a whole new meaning to the term “minivan”.
You don’t have to be a child to enjoy a Miniature horse, as was demonstrated by the turnout for the Miniature Single Cart class. Here is one contestant being harnessed up.
It was clear that the owners of minis derived a lot of pleasure from their charges. Look at the smiles on the faces of these competitors.
There were twelve entries in the class. Here they are lined up for the judge.
The winner of the class was the white mini, Minibrook’s Native Dancer, with Golddust placing second.
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