Last night in an effort to find horses representative of Cielo Celeste Farms fabulous program, I posted a wrong black and white tobiano cob(as we look at tobiano/overo in the past you should be familiar with the tobiano markings) that was not Huston as I thought. This magnificent creature is Cielo Celeste Farms, Huston. Our British readers maybe be more familiar with the breed as it was used to develop what today is known as the Drum Horse, used to carry the Regimental drummer during Ceremonies of State.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Apologies to Celeste Huston and Cielo Celeste Farms
Posted by
Wade G. Burck
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10 comments:
Wade, over here cobs are usually known as gypsy or Irish cobs, used for draught purposes and traditionally for pulling gypsy caravans. They are often kept as ride and drive by hobby owners, or bred to thoroughbreds to create an all-round hunter/hack type. Apparently there is a growing export market shipping cobs to USA
Last year Kentucky Derby photographer John Hockensmith released abook titled"Gypsy Horses and The Traveler's Way". It showcases the Gypsy Vanner (Cob) breed and the Appleby Fair. The fair is in Appleby of Westmorland and is a festival for gypsy horsesport and horse trading. Great book with fantastic photos of those ornate gypsy wagons with Vanners in harness.
Don,
They are using them over here in the Colonies also to cross with other breeds for colored sport horse. The color is the great attraction, and they are beauties, and, as you stated, were historically bred by Gypsies for their calm nature and flashy look.
A friend of mine,Ian Garden, who used to own Garden Bros. Circus in Canada, imported 6 of them from England 3 years ago, and trained a liberty act for a circus in Mexico. I went with him to Mexico last winter, to check up on them, and it is sure a beautiful, unique liberty act. The black and white horses with matching red and yellow harness with yellow plumbs were a great attention grabber.
The unique colors that Celeste Huston is breeding(no easy task) are sure to become popular, which will add to the uniqueness and growing popularity of the breed.
Wade
Joey, I try to go to Appleby when I can, will send some photos if I can manage to go this year. Its quite a spectacle, and the trotters are incredible (for many reasons!!!)
I have never seen such a beautiful horse. When he jumped in the air at the start of the video I was shocked at how breathtaking. I have never heard of this kind of horse. Are there a lot of them in the United States?
Marsha Combs
Don,
I would like to know more about what make's your trotter so much more incredible?
Wade
Wade, it's nothing to do with the quality, although there are some very good horses. Imagine tiny country lanes full of hundreds of pedestrians, with hedges on both sides. Now, you hear the rattle of hooves and the crowd scattering into the hedges and 2 trotting rigs coming tearing through the lot, knocking people over, hitting stationary vehicles, you name it!! I will never know how nobody gets killed!! Some of these horses are expected to go up and down at high speed for hours if they are for sale, and are whipped hard to encourage this. Never mind joint damage from pounding along hard roads non-stop. You must see it to believe it. I will try to take some video for you this year, but you will have to wait until june!!
Don,
Do they have an association, with a standard of acceptable, or unacceptable? Or is it just a bunch of people, doing what they want, setting their own standard, because they own the horses, and have done it that way for a hundred years. Sounds like an other animal industry going in the crapper at the moment. I am sure it is a great time, but unless I am in the market to buy a trotter, that is all it would be to me. Right or wrong, with it's faults, you should thank your lucky stars for the EMA. It may keep you in business for a while.
Wade
Wade, gypsies in UK live pretty much outside the law in all aspects of their lives. Some of the old guys, and many of the girls, seem really good with the horses, it's the 15-35 macho a*****S who are the problem. They are unregulated (RSPCA won't get involved as it's a political hot potatodue to the ethnicity of the gypsies) and the police have bigger fish to fry. We do have organisations for trotting horses but I don't think they would get involved with these people in anyway!!
Don,
In an unregulated society, with now animal standards, where anything goes, animals are going to get mishandled and abused.
They probably don't think they are going anything wrong, because all they do is ask, and talk to each other. It is interesting that you, a person who works with animals didn't approve of what you saw. I have asked many people in my profession who claim they know what the people, "how do you know?" How many people have stood in the back yard before, between, and after a show, looked and disapproved, as you did Don, only just never said anything, and walked away forever. That is what happens when a closed society, who only talks amoung themselves, and to each other never know. They end up blaming their demise on any number of things. None of them the actual cause.
Wade
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