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Category Archives: Mini Horses

Aug 05 2010

All the Pretty Little Horses: M & M Lucky Hooves

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to visit Mary Gallant in Bloomfield, PEI and her fabulous minis Prince, Gidget, Fidget, Bartoya and 7-week-old Chakyra. They were so well trained I was inspired to try to work more with my horses. I have lots to learn and Mary was wonderful in sharing her knowledge with me. Her horses are awesome. This lady knows what’s she’s doing! Mary runs M & M Lucky Hooves, a non-profit organization promoting the love and awareness of Miniature Horses through therapeutic healing in the community. This involves bringing the horses into senior care facilities, hospitals, schools for the special needs, to the homes of learning and physically disabled individuals, and anywhere that therapeutic healing of minis is needed. I love minis and have worked with therapeutic riding organizations but never knew that minis could be used in this way. Seven-week-old mini Chakyra was very affectionate with me and I posted a fun little video on my facebook page of her trying to sit on my lap and give me kisses during the shoot. And yes… I loved every minute! Visit M & M Lucky Hooves at www.mandmluckyhooves.com to find out more about the magic of minis. Enjoy!

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Posted in Horses, Mini Horses

Jun 07 2010

Grazing Muzzles

Our pretty little mini May has laminitis. We have been very diligent about doing all we can to take care of her feet. There was much to learn about laminitis and founder. One thing was to try and keep May off the grass, to keep her weight down, and a low sugar diet. Grass is very sweet and yummy, but the fructose in it can cause a horse to founder. We decided to try a grazing muzzle on her. I’d never heard of them, but am so thankful now. May’s losing weight and eating 80% less grass. She can drink water with it on and gets hay and a little soaked beet pulp in the barn at night. She wasn’t thrilled about it the first few days, but too bad May, we’re not going to let you founder again! Now she’s like a little lawn mower, or vacuum cleaner out there. She’s almost happy to see me coming with the muzzle in the morning because it means she’s going outside. Now catching her to come in at night is the next hurdle!

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Posted in Mini Horses

May 30 2010

Pretty Little Horses

Here is the first series of photos for my mini horse project! I have been waiting for the good weather and it’s here at last. I have been in touch with many mini horse owners over the past few months and have a bunch of sessions planned for this summer. I’m so thrilled about it. I have always been horse-crazy, but when my mini May showed up I fell head over hoof. I never knew how wonderful minis are. I’m crazy for them now.

Minis are everywhere on Prince Edward Island. These four minis live across the road from me. They are HILARIOUS. I was laughing and giddy the whole time. The followed me all over the place so incredibly curious about me and what I was doing in their field. Luckily three of them lost interest in me after a while so I was able to get some shots, but there was one who just wouldn’t stop following me and snuggling… I can’t wait to go back for more!

Miniature horses are not ponies. While miniature horses are usually less than 34–38 inches, they are considered “horses” by their respective registries because they retain horse characteristics. (Ponies have different characteristics altogether.) Minis have various colors and coat patterns. They are very funny and friendly and are often kept as family pets and primarily serve as a companion animal. They can be ridden, pull carts, and are also trained as service animals for people with disabilities. Yes, you heard me. I was quite surprised. One of my sessions this summer is with a woman here on PEI who uses minis as service and therapy animals. While miniature horses can be trained to work indoors, they are still real horses and are healthier when allowed to live outdoors with proper shelter and room to run. They are generally quite hardy, often living longer on average than some full-sized horse breeds; the average life span of miniature horses is from 25 to 35 years. They are very wonderful little beings that will fill you up with joy.

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Posted in Horses, Mini Horses, Photographic Styles

Mar 17 2010

Calling All Minis

It’s been quite the winter. Our first here on our little hobby farm with our dogs and horses. I learned a lot about owning back-yard horses this winter. My only experience was with stabled horses, but having them in your backyard, with you and you alone to care for them, is not the same game, baby! I couldn’t have got through it without my wonderful husband and some very generous horsey friends who shared their time and knowledge with me. Thank you to everyone!

My biggest surprise however, was falling head over hoof for a little miniature horse who came to live with us this winter; May. We have known May for many years and having her here has been a dream. She and my horse Katie lived together for years and are back together again. Another ‘happily ever after’ here on the farm. I am now in absolute love with minis and lucky for me, Prince Edward Island is full of them. So this spring and summer I am embarking on a very special project and looking for miniature horses to photograph. I want to share information about minis and show people how wonderful they are. Sessions are free for this project. I will be booking sessions throughout spring and summer. If you know of anyone who may be interested in participating, please let them know. Contact studio@heatherogg.com to book your session!