Youth
Horse of the Month Winners - 2008
Sponsored by Breyer Animal Creations
May
GENESIS AAMBROSE
I think Ambrose should be horse of the month because he is 27 years old, the kindest and gentlest, still showing and loving it, very versatile and to me, he is the BEST horse in the world!
Genesis Aambrose, Ambrose as we call him, was born in Kansas in 1981. He is 14.3 hands high. When Ambrose turned 24 we started leasing him from a friend. When we first started leasing Ambrose, he was very unfriendly towards us. He would go to the back of his stall and turn his butt to us, but after a few weeks of seeing us every day, he decided that he liked all of the attention and treats he was getting and he was soon waiting by his stall door for us.
Ambrose took me to my first show. We had a great time! It was soon after our first show that his owner decided that Ambrose and I belonged together. Not long after Ambrose was mine, we moved him home so I could go out to the barn to see him and ride him whenever I wanted to. It does not matter where Ambrose is, in the barn or out in the pasture, when I go outside and he sees or hears me he calls out to me.
Ambrose always knows when we are going to a show. He prances out of the barn and is blowing and all excited. Ambrose shows in Showmanship, Halter, English Pleasure, English Equitation, Western Pleasure, Western Horsemanship, Dressage, Gymkhana & Trail. His favorite is the Gymkhana classes. You name it, he does it, but the most important part is that he LOVES doing it. As soon as we go into the show ring, his ears perk up and he moves so smooth. It's like he is saying " Hey, everyone, look at me!" And everyone does.
Ambrose is the kind of horse that you can ride out with just a rope halter and a bareback pad and know that you will be safe and that he will take care of you. I have ridden Ambrose while I am holding my puppy, my cat or my little brother. He is very careful so they will not get jarred around or fall off. There is just no other horse that is as careful and kind as my Ambrose.
I have put my Bantam chickens in the stall with Ambrose and he puts his head down and watches where he is stepping so he does not hurt them. I have even put my chickens on his back and he just stands there eating or sleeping. Ambrose is very gentle with everything! My 3 brothers ride him all over the place. He is the calmest horse anyone could ever imagine!!!
Ambrose has taught me so much. Ambrose has taught me patience when we were learning Trail, how to get correct leads for Western and English. Ambrose has also taught me responsibility and what it means to own a horse.
Ambrose is my first horse and whenever I am having a bad day he is always there for me. I can go out to the barn and talk to him and he nuzzles me and makes me laugh and feel better. He is very special to me and I love him more than anything! I would love for others to know what a wonderful horse he is! I ride other horses, but at the end of the day, there is no other horse as special as Ambrose and I feel very fortunate to have him in my life.
Winning AHA Horse of the Month would be an honor for this great horse!!!
Katy Shearer, 14, Ashland, Ohio
April
VALHALLA CEASAR
Valhalla Ceasar, Ceasar as his friends refer to him, is a 1977 bay Arabian gelding with quite a fascinating story. Born in Meade, WA, Ceasar was kept a stallion until the age of seven. He has sired thirteen Purebred Arabians and one Half Arabian. Ceasar's children and Grandchildren have gone on to produce very successful offspring both in AHA and out. But Ceasar has not only produced champions, he is a champion himself. Ceasar was Top Ten at the Canadian National Championship in 1982 and at the Us National Championship in Purebred Gelding Halter in 1983. Ceasar was also a Regional Champion in Western Pleasure and Halter.
Ceasar may be very successful both in the show ring and out, but perhaps his greatest achievement was teaching a little girl to ride. My family bought Ceasar when I was five and Ceasar was twenty-two. He was the first horse I ever rode on a trail ride, rode bareback, fell off of, and the first horse I ever showed. Ceasar carried me through my first two years of 4-H shows, but sadly bowed a tendon three years ago when he was attacked by another horse in a pasture. We thought his injured leg and the gaping wounds that covered his body may have killed my first horse. He recovered and was retired to our friend's pasture a year later.
Walks down the road turned into me being allowed to ride him down the road in a halter. Next came the bridle, then a bareback pad, and now Ceasar is able to wear a saddle, go on trail rides, trot, and even canter a bit. Despite the stereotype that Arabs are spooky, he now walks over wooden bridges and past bulldozers, cars and roadblocks. Now at the age of 30, he doesn't limp anymore despite the bowed tendon and ringbone. Even after a two hour trail ride, he tries to trot home. Oh, that feisty little Arab!
Ceasar is the most proud, independent, and intelligent horse I have ever met. He is so versatile and still beautiful at the ripe, old age of 30! (He will celebrate his 31st birthday this year on the 16th of April.) I will always love him for his patience and for teaching me to ride and show. Being the AHA's Horse of the Month would be yet another honor this wonderful horse deserves.
Christina Frost, 16 , Issaquah, WA
March
AN SIDRA
An Sidra, Buddy as I call him, is a Spanish/ Polish Arabian. He was bred by Tom Chauncey Arabians in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was shown and used as a ranch horse. He was retired to a ranch in Wikenburg, AZ when he was 18.
My mom purchased Buddy for me for Christmas when I was 8 years old. Buddy taught me to ride and always took care of me.
We purchased Buddy from the slaughter truck. He was due to be slaughtered the Thursday before Christmas 2004. He was skin and bones. My mom cleaned him up and put a big, red bow on him for me. I have never been so excited! I have ridden hin English and Western Pleasure all over the Arizona desert. I have also taken him to trail clinics. He has never refused to do anything.
We were able to track down his history because he had a tattoo on his neck!
He has a lot of life in him and I love him a lot. I hope he wins Horse of the Month so other people will realize that there are great older horses out there. I hope that more horse can be saved from going to slaughter.
Ashley McKinney, 11, Tucson, Arizona
February
RIVER CHIEF
I have owned River Chief for about 4 years now. When I first got him, I didn't expect him to be such a wonderful horse! I was finally able to convince my parents to let me get a horse, and I couldn't have gotten a better one than Chief.
Chief is a 28 year old Arabian who loves to run! Starting out, I never had given one thought of showing. But then, my riding instructor was a barrel racer and she got me started on it. Also, the barn I keep him at is a big western pleasure group. So Chief and I ended up showing in western pleasure and doing a lot of barrel racing and pole bending. Let me tell you, Chief's age could fool anyone once he starts running! He's won quite a few ribbons and trophies for me and was even awarded Hi-Point for games this past year.
At home, Chief is just the biggest lover ever. He is always the first one you hear when you walk into the barn. He would do just about anything for me. He's actually gotten my cousin and sister into showing. I don't think we could love him anymore than we already do!
I just cannot believe that God has blessed me with such a lovely boy! I would love to be able to award him Horse of the Month, and I will still love him no matter what!
Lisa Northagen, 16, Thompson, ND
January
HEARTS ADRIFT
My Horse Hearts Adrift, or Sunshine as she's known around the barn, deserves to be Horse of the Month for one main reason: She jumps! I looked back on the previous Horses of the Months and none had a picture of them jumping, and VERY few mentioned jumping. Arabians are extremely versatile, and Sunshine definitely shows that! Here are a FEW of the things Sunshine can do besides her main talent, jumping:
Endurance, Dressage, English Pleasure, Western Pleasure, Trail Riding (her favorite pastime), and much more! If that doesn't show the versatile Arabian, then I don't know what does!
The other reason Sunshine should be Horse of The Month is her ability to "heal" people. Back in February of 2007, before I got Sunshine, I made a difficult move from Virginia to Tennessee. I left my friends behind, my school behind, and the barn I took lessons from behind. I spent my friendless days looking up horses for sale online, knowing I could never get one because my parents thought they were expensive and time consuming. One day, I came across an online ad about an Arabian for sale in a town less than 20 minutes away! I couldn't believe it! Not only was this horse my favorite breed (Who DOESN'T like Arabians?), she was within my reach!
It took some convincing, but my parents agreed to let me try her out. I think we all knew that they were only letting me because I was lonely. When I got there, I saw Sunshine. She was as beautiful as the pictures. I went into the stall with her and she immediately came over and put her head to my chest. I couldn't wait to get on this magnificent mare.
When I began riding her, it was like floating on a cloud. I couldn't believe how wonderful she was! Some Arabians can be high strung, but not this gentle mare! What impressed me the most was her ability to trot jumps without speeding to a canter right before it, and her ability to canter the jumps without going at a full gallop. We were a match made in heaven, and my parents knew that. A month later, Sunshine was all mine!!
Sunshine doesn't have a ton of show experience, she doesn't have the best bloodlines, and maybe she wouldn't be the best barrel racing or rodeo horse, but Sunshine is one thing that will NEVER change: My best friend.
Katie Jevin, Franklin, TN
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