BARNMICE

For horse people everywhere
Interviewed by Elisa Moes

Practically everyone has heard of social websites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. In 2008, another such website was launched, but this one was created with equestrians in mind. If you haven’t heard of Barnmice, the social networking site that has attracted horse lovers from around the globe, now is the time to hop online and check it out (after you finish this article, of course)!

Barnmice is a true online equestrian community, featuring the ability to view and upload videos and photos, chat with others on discussion forums, join themed groups, read and post blogs, and much more. It gives all equestrians — from recreational riders to Olympians, and jumpers to gymkhana riders — the chance to learn, laugh, and share their love of the horse.

Barnmice is the brainchild of Barbara Fogler, a Toronto, Ontario native, dressage rider, and media relations specialist. She recently sat down with us to discuss more about the website that is taking the equestrian community by a storm.

Can you share with us your inspiration for Barnmice and how Barnmice came to be?
I wanted to find a way to bring together riders from every background in an international community, where everyone could make new friends and have lots of fun sharing horsey experiences and learning from some of the most respected experts in the equine world.

It occurred to me that if I could somehow bring together the video sharing of YouTube with the social networking of Facebook and combine it in a community just for horse people, I would be able to realize my goal. Pretty ambitious for a dressage rider with no previous Internet experience. Let’s just say, I never learned about anything faster in my life!

By sheer luck, I was discussing my idea with a friend who directed me to a design team that helped me get the ball rolling. Our membership literally started with my buddies in the barn, along with some family and friends who knew nothing whatsoever about horses! The early weeks seem like a blur, but before I knew it, word about the community started getting out and we had a hundred members. Now thousands of members are on board with visitors from 176 countries and territories, including Antarctica!
 
Improved coordination and communication between all the equestrian disciplines was one of the goals of Barnmice. To what degree has this goal been reached?
Our incredible Barnmice members very quickly achieved that goal for me! When we first launched I could tell which of our members were dressage riders, reiners, and eventers. Now I have no idea who’s who! Everyone just gets right in there and we all blend together. Another very exciting element of Barnmice is that there is no barrier between our grassroots riders and our Olympians. I often receive messages from members telling me how appreciative (and surprised) they are that they can so easily chat and make friends with such luminaries as Australian Olympic medalist Megan Jones or Canadian Olympian Belinda Trussell.

One of the most memorable examples of improved communication took place during the fires in Australia several months ago.  One of our Australian members with horses in the fire zone was posting hourly updates while thousands of us waited anxiously for word on whether (and how) she was going to move her horses to safety. Riders around the world were holding their breath and then collectively sighing in relief. That’s what “community” is all about.

Of course, sometimes riders from specific disciplines want to “talk shop” and for that we have over 200 social groups that everyone is welcome to join.
 
The other goal was horse welfare. How has this important equine issue been tackled on Barnmice?
My “ulterior motive” in creating Barnmice was to give a voice to respected equine charities throughout the world. It is a very important part of our mandate and we are just beginning to scratch the surface in terms of ways we can make a difference in the lives of horses in desperate need. We currently showcase a number of outstanding organizations in our community, including World Horse Welfare, U.K. based SPANA (Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad), Habitat for Horses in the U.S., and Triple R Equine Welfare out of Australia. World Horse Welfare and SPANA regularly post news updates and videos about their activities, Habitat for Horses posts featured horses for adoption, and Triple R Equine Welfare was instrumental in bringing news updates to the community during the Australia fires. I am just beginning to discover the many substantial ways in which Barnmice can help charities with their profiles, their fundraising, and their membership goals. Social networking is a fantastic way for non-profits to get the word out and recruit volunteers and I am always willing to lend a hand.
 
How have your expectations of the website changed since its inception?
That’s a great question! I really didn’t know what to expect at the beginning, but I certainly had high hopes. My goal was always to create a community filled with horse people around the world who would socialize, learn from one another, and share their horsey lives and experiences. I also really wanted to create a positive environment where everyone would immediately feel welcome to participate and make new friends. Now with Internet technology advancing so quickly I am able to give my members all that and much more. The biggest change in my expectations? I expect to be regularly adding fantastic new community activities and features that didn’t even exist when I launched. For example, we have been carrying a live stream from an eagle’s nest over the spring and summer. I have a lot more new technology that I want to incorporate over the next couple of months.
 
Have you observed a predominant breed or equestrian discipline?
Barbara: I would say that most of our members come from a very broad array of English disciplines, although the Western riders are catching up. I personally hope that our Western membership grows by leaps and bounds, as I am anxious to learn as much as I can — and hopefully try some reining down the road!
 
Many countries are represented on the website. From your perch at Barnmice, how similar or different are the values across the global horse community?
I have found that there are really no differences at all in terms of how riders from different countries think about their horses. The differences I do find are mainly in the variety of topics that groups of people like to talk about. For example, we have an active “Quality Horse Breeders” group where topics of conversation would be completely different than those in our “Coaches Corner” group. If you were to follow any of our Barnmice discussions, you would have no idea which country anyone came from, unless they happened to mention it.
 
What has been the most surprising or unexpected result from Barnmice?
The most surprising thing was how down to earth and generous with their time the top equestrians in the world can be. Our regular bloggers include some of the luminaries of the horse world: Jane Savoie, William Micklem, Chris Irwin, Julie Goodnight, Tim Stockdale, Megan Jones, Belinda Trussell — to name only a few. Each is happy to chat and make friends with other members, as well as share their wisdom on a regular basis. They are so relaxed about their fame I think my members were initially surprised as well: recently one of our members left a message for Megan Jones asking if she was in fact the real Olympic Silver Medalist. Megan sent back a very friendly reply assuring her that she was indeed! Another surprise is the number of photographs that we have in the community. Last time I checked we had over 14,000! Our members have made our photo slide show one of the most dynamic and fun areas of the community; they have definitely inspired me to bring my camera to the barn with me more often!
 
Is there anything else that you would like to add or share with us about Barnmice?
Yes, I would like to invite everyone to join us at www.barnmice.com.
  

Photo 1: Barbara Fogler walks with her horse Donnie. Fogler has been successful in achieving her goal of bringing together riders of all types from around the world through Barnmice. By Justin Ridgewell.
Photo 2: Barnmice creator Barbara Fogler on her horse Donnie, who she has trained up to Prix St. George in dressage. By Janet Bone.