Interviews & Profiles

racism in horse industry, discrimination horse industry, black horse riders canada, canadian horse industry diversity, margaret evans

Let's Talk - On May 25, 2020, 46-year-old Black American George Floyd was killed while in police custody, after it was alleged he passed a counterfeit bill. A Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes while Floyd lay face down, handcuffed, and pleading repeatedly that he couldn’t breathe. Floyd ultimately succumbed. The tragedy struck a chord and protests flared against police brutality and racism — I can’t breathe their rallying cry, leading to an ongoing resurgence of the global Black Lives Matter movement.

World War I horse named Bunny, bunny the brave war horse, Elizabeth MacLeod, 1914 horse named bunny

In 1914, just over one hundred years ago at the start of World War I, Bunny, a strawberry roan gelding from the Toronto Police Mounted Unit, was called upon to serve his country. The Canadian military needed suitable horses to send overseas and the City of Toronto offered to donate mounts to the Canadian artillery. Major McDougall, the officer commanding the 9th Canadian Field Artillery, inspected all their horses and picked 18 of the best. Four of the unit’s officers, including Constable Thomas H. Dundas, enlisted with what became known as the Toronto Battery.

Nijinsky horse, Remarkable Horses, Northern Dancer, Flaming Page, Nijinsky II, Charles W. Engelhard, amazing horses

In the July/August 2017 issue of Canadian Horse Journal, we celebrated Canada’s 150th anniversary with stories of 20 exceptional horses that have reflected our values and fired our national pride. One of those horses was Nijinsky.

Animal Behaviour Expert Dr. Temple Grandin, Temple Grandin, livestock handling, animal fear vs animal aggression, understanding equine behaviour, Animal Sciences at Colorado State University, Teresa van Bryce, Grandin autism, Grandin animal behaviour, horse psychology

A professor of Animal Sciences at Colorado State University, Dr. Temple Grandin is a world famous expert in animal behaviour and livestock handling. While renowned for her innovations in the design of handling facilities and improving animal welfare in the livestock industry, Dr. Grandin is perhaps best known for overcoming her personal struggles with autism. She continues to teach and pursue her research while lecturing around the world on autism and livestock handling.

sandy hawley jockey, queen's plate winner, tribal chief racing horse, canadian horse racing, canadian jockeys famous

Desmond Sanford “Sandy” Hawley was born in April 1949 in Oshawa, Ontario. While hot-walking horses at a Toronto racetrack when he was just 17 years old, the future Hall of Fame jockey decided to abandon thoughts of being a plumber and follow a career as a jockey. According to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame website, Hawley was employed as a groom and hot walker for trainer Duke Campbell who coached him along carefully. Sandy still credits Campbell as one of his greatest sporting influences. In those days he earned just $73 a week. In just a few years he would be earning $250,000 a year.

Canada’s dressage team Christilot Boylen retirement from international team dressage christilot boylen the Howdy Doody Show

Six-time Olympian and longtime member of Canada’s dressage team, Christilot Boylen of Schomberg, Ontario, announced her retirement from international team dressage competition on July 8, 2020. Christilot Boylen was born in 1947 in Djakarta, Indonesia, and, with her family, moved to Toronto in 1951. According to the Eurodressage website, she bought her first horse at age 10 with savings she earned acting on the children’s TV series The Howdy Doody Show. She trained her first Olympic mount, Bonheur, and at just 17 years of age she received special permission to compete for Canada in the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.

mara coote freeman passing, in memorium mara coote freeman

Mara's love for the horse and volunteerism within the horse industry was legendary. For six years, Mara was Vice President on the Canadian Equestrian Federation Board responsible for Breeds and Industry, founding member of the Canadian Horse Council, initiator of the Horse Industry Association of Alberta, regional representative and Board member of International Arabian Horse Association Half and Anglo Arabian Registry, and more.

Bishop family business, Wild West performer Bishops, Tom Bishop Wild West Show, Thomas W. Bishop, Buffalo Bill's Wild West, Sally Bishop, 4B Productions

Ordinarily, when you’re talking about a family business that has been passed down through the generations, with the parents eventually handing the reins over to their children, the “reins” are figurative. But then, the Bishop family business – consisting of daring feats on horseback, fancy roping tricks, and knife throwing – is anything but ordinary.

horse rider flexibility, horse rider-specific yoga, equestrian flexibility, yoga Louise Sattler, yoga for horse riders

For this article, I interviewed yoga for riders specialist Louise Sattler of Galloping Yoga. We discussed various concepts and exercises that come from the yoga tradition and align very nicely with sport and conditioning practices for developing flexibility. For a busy rider, the exercises below are accessible and easy to do almost anywhere.

tani zeidler horse farm zeidler breeding horses, zf bloodlines, julia tops show jumping

Tani Zeidler was 14 years old when she first discovered a farmer’s Quarter Horses living behind the lake cabin where her family spent its summers. Soon after, she began to frequently visit her four-legged neighbours. Before long, spending time with the horses had progressed to riding, and by the end of that summer, she was jumping over hay bales in the farmer’s field.

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