Good news!
The Arkansas Equine
Foundation, Inc., and the Arkansas Horse Council, Inc. have now
raised enough
money to pay for the Black Stallion Literacy Program (BSLP) in Newton
Co. There are four schools in this county and it is the most
economically disadvantaged in the state. The schools are Deer, Mt.Judea,
Western Grove and Jasper.
Terry L. Cochrane, owner of
the Shady
Oaks Campground, 960 Hwy.206 E, Harrison, AR 72601, hosted the "Tiger Ride
In" the weekend of June 11. The "Tigers", a motorcycle group, wanted
to help a local charity and Terry suggested the BSLP for Newton Co. This
was like a dream come true as we had received some funds earmarked for the
county a few months prior to the ride in but we still needed much more to
complete the project. The Tigers total donation was $810 which brings
the total Newton Co. BSLP funds to $1010. That should cover the costs for
all fourth graders with some left over for field trip expenses or
possible some for the first grade program.
We are deeply indebted to
Terry for
suggesting the BSLP to the "Tigers" and hope that this will be
repeated annually. AHC assisted the ride in by
preparing some
breakfast treats for the "Tigers" and are looking forward to doing the same next
year. Mary Criddle, Treasurer of the AHC, was on hand to
accept the
donation from Jerry Moffett, representing the Tiger Ride In.
The AHC had good attendance at the AHC
booth at
the Elk
Festival in Jasper the latter part of June. Several new
volunteers signed on to assist with the upcoming horsemanship seminar to be
held in August at the Newton Co. fairgrounds.
Other news that is not so good comes from the Animal
Welfare
Committee. There are several court cases ongoing in the state
that have required legal intervention and the fate of the horses is still
in question on some of them. Susan Whitman of Ashdown was convicted
on four counts of animal cruelty, fined $2,000 and put on supervised probation
for year. Twenty seven horses were involved in this case and they were all
ordered returned to her after the judge ordered cleaning and repair of her
facilities. She is expected to appeal the verdict. The Glen
Hild case in Hot Springs is still not resolved as care of the horses (over 70 of
them) is also being monitored and was unsatisfactory at the last report.
The Steve Page horse problem (over 50) in the Ozark area has been worked out
with the help of friends and law enforcement. All cases still have some
factors which are unresolved at this point and the horses will continue to be
monitored to assure that they are cared for properly. There are numerous
other cases including the two horse dragging cases that are still pending.
One is in Camden and the other in NW Arkansas.
It would be helpful if the horse community would keep
abreast of
problems that our fellow horsemen are having to see if they could
be solved before it reaches a point where law enforcement has to step
in. The Equine Industry needs to take care of it's
own. It's easier to fix problems when they are in the early stages
than to wait until they get so seriously out of control.
The AHC
committee urges all clubs and associations to step in and lend a helping hand to
those in need. Horsemen are proud and independent folks and sometimes it's
not easy to address these issues early on but it's something we all need to work
on for the good of our animals. It is much easier to keep the horse in
good shape than to try to bring it back after it's gotten down.
The Arkansas Equine Foundation, Inc.'s "Second Careers for
Horses"
Program, has several horses that will be ready for adoption in the next
month. Sixteen horses have been placed in wonderful homes since it's
inception in 2003. Amy Johnson of the Horseshoe Canyon Ranch has offered
to set up a website where we can post pictures of horses that are ready for
placement and we thank her for her generous offer.
The Animal ID Program proposed by the Federal Government is
moving
right along with the cattle industry and we expect to see the horses coming into
the project in the next few years by way of microchipping. In addition,
the Premise ID, is the numbering system for farms is numbering all types of
farms now including the horses. Worth mentioning here is another project
devised by the United States Animal Health Commission which develops programs
for the USDA. This is a regionalization program whereby the United States
will be divided into five groups determined by the incidence of EIA cases.
Of course, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas will be in one group and we
will be the Class C region; that is to say, the lowest on the totem pole.
Movement between the class A and B states will not be as difficult as for us
(Class C). This is a program in the making with no definite time
line. This is an item on which all the associations will need to be well
informed and will definitely need to meet and discuss the ramifications of this
proposal.
Officials from the U.S. Forest Service have asked
representatives
from the AHC to participate with them in a planning effort to
produce
educational programs on trails care and maintenance. They are also
interested in having their people certified to verify Coggins papers.
Livestock and Poultry Officials have indicated that they will be willing to
provide the training not only for the Forest Service but for the National Park
and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission as well . We are grateful for
their ongoing schedules to make sure that this job gets done. Lewis Wray
is the EIA Educational Officer in charge of training and our hat is off to him
for the great success of this program. Anyone wanting to attend a class
can call AL&P in Little Rock and find out the dates for the classes 501 904
2400 or check out their website.
The newly developed
Louisiana Equine Council has asked for
help in
finding places for equine that might have to be evacuated if they experience a
major disaster. If anyone has a facility that would be willing to offer
assistance in this area they should contact Bonnie Clark at 888-784-8760 or
225-721-1571. We will be working with them on the proposed
"Regionalization Plan" for the states in the coming year as well as networking
on disaster preparedness.