Meet Our Horses at

Sundance A solid bay Quarter Horse Arabian cross, Sundance was raised by a friend of a friend. She trail rode him, used him for lessons and showed him. She sold him, then bought him back.

When he returned at 14, with all his ribs showing, he had become a "cribber." Cribbing is an obsessive-compulsive disorder prevalent in Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds, often prompted by anxiety or the boredom of being left in a stall. He braces his teeth against wood and sucks air, making an odd noise. It creates endorphins and becomes an addictive behavior. While some products claim to stop cribbing, nothing works for Sundance, including hot sauce where he wants to put his lips.

Sunny is a good horse for beginners. He is very laid back, prefers to follow the others at a very low-key pace. At 15.2 hh and nearly 1,000 pounds, he can carry a rider up to 200 pounds. It took Sundance about eight weeks to understand the concept of candy, now he nickers and begs for it after every ride.

Missy, a 15 hh strawberry roan Appaloosa, came to us as a trade through dreamhorse.com in August 2008. It's a very fun website to cruise looking for your dream horse! In Shelby County, Ky., she was a 4-H horse and did trail riding, regularly winning blue ribbons. She even pulled a sleigh!

Her owners were experienced horse people with daughters who wanted to jump, so we traded Idaho, who needed more cantering and jumping than he got with us.

At about 12 years old and 1,000 pounds, Missy is very friendly and sweet, as well has having beautiful coloring -- and about twice the mane and tail as Ginger. She loves to canter and is very responsive.

Her hooves were in bad condition. A farrier had set nails too deep and not trimmed her hooves correctly so she receives hoof supplements to strengthen and increase hoof growth. It takes a full year to grow a new, healthy hoof.

Blue Romeo I said I'd never have another 3 year old on the farm again, but Blue Romeo convinced me to bring him home from London, Ky. in August 2008. He's a fairly rare "blue" roan, with black and white hairs intermixed (that won't fade to white as the majority of grays do.) A Morgan/Quarter Horse cross, he's not quite 15 hands tall and only 925 pounds, but we're feeding him lots and are hoping he'll grow a bit more over the next several years.

Idaho and Sage both gained more than 100 pounds in their first year here, so we hope Blue Romeo will too. While he's very quiet and gentle, he gets confused by riders who cue him inconsistently, so we'll keep experienced riders on him for a while.

The family of rodeo riders who raised him the last two years are real horse people; they'd lead him around the farm as a yearling, trailered him, and taught him everything a horse needs to know. They wanted him to be a barrel racing horse, but he's too low key for that. He came to us with the best manners and training of any horse we've ever bought.

A very sweet people-oriented horse, Romeo would sometimes rather hang out with people than the other horses. His beautiful head-set and carriage make him look very regal as he learns dressage.

Sage is a Heinz 57 of the horse world. We were told the little grey gelding was 12 years old and part Mustang, but our farrier says he has Thoroughbred hooves. His size of 13.2 hh belies that. Another horsey friend is sure he's a Kentucky Mountain Horse with his sneaky smartness, speedy walk and effortless fox trot.

A very easy going horse, Sage is very responsive and forgiving. After a year with us, he's no longer jumpy and fearful of being hurt. Nor is he as bossy and pushy to ensure he got enough to eat as he was when he arrived, now that he knows there will be enough.

Sage came from the mountains and doesn't have much education, but as Susan (his owner) says, we hope to at least get him a G.E.D… He's learning dressage and how to respond to consistent cues. His canter is so smooth and controlled enough that he can canter while the other horses trot.

Sage is a smart, scrappy little guy who looks out for himself. While he wasn't thin when we brought him home, he's gained well over 100 pounds in his first year with us. He loves Bode and will stick to him like glue.

"Yesterday will be a day I will always cherish - the very best trail ride though the woods on Sam who is the best trail horse I have ever been on.   My husband will ride him the next time we visit.   He is a golfer, but Sam will be perfect!" Johnstown, OH

Sam is the obnoxious teenager in the herd, never accepting his place in the hierarchy, always pushing or attempting to push the others around. A black and white Tennessee Walker, Sam is a Cadillac in terms of horse gaits. His running walk is effortless and smooth, tho as lazy and stubborn as he is you'd think doing it for 10 strides was like running a marathon.

At 15.2 hands and 1,200, Sam was starved so badly when he arrived that we had to feed him yogurt for a week to get his digestive system back in balance. Now 12 years old and well fed for 7 years with us, he still assumes he's near starvation and will snack every chance he gets with a rider who's not paying constant attention.

A real personality, Sam will eat anything from banana peels to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches offered in an outstretched hand. More intimidated by men, Sam needs a rider who is assertive enough to make him mind his manners. We ride Sam in a Western saddle. He neck reins well.

"Thank you for a giving us a well needed escape from reality on our one year anniversary.   This was a wedding gift that I think will turn into an anniversary gift from us to us.   It was nice to get on horseback again.   Sam was such a gentleman and Storm kept us on our toes!   All of your 4-legged family members were a joy."

Ginger, a registered Appaloosa, is the queen of the herd and a former Western Pleasure show horse. Her sparse mane and short "rat tail" are natural Appaloosa traits.

At 13, she's a brown roan with spots, 15.3 hands tall and 1,200 pounds with nice conformation and horsey manners that make her very easy to ride. Trained with a lot of violence before she came to us, she can be easily frightened when out of her own environment or away from her herd.

Ginger is the perfect slow and easy going horse for a rider who is timid or nervous. She can be ridden English or Western and has some done some dressage and jumping. Having been with us for 9 years, Ginger has had lots of beginner riders and needs some pushing to get moving.

In the summer of 2008, Ginger was diagnosed with arthritis in one front ankle and the other knee and also is stiff in her hind joints. Now on glucosamine and MSM, we are looking for a new home for her.

She can only be ridden once a week or so by a lightweight (under 170 pounds, though less would be better…) rider, but not daily as she was for seven summers.

Extensively trained in English and Western pleasure as well as jumping, Ginger is a great horse for someone who wants a pet that can be ridden occasionally. Please inquire if you know of a good home for her.

Bodacious (Bodie) , is a very cute registered Spotted Draft. Though he looks larger, he’s only 16 hands and about 1,400 pounds. At 9, he ought to have more training than he does, but evidently he’s used his size to intimidate previous owners. A big baby, he’s friendly and easy going.

His coloring, bright orange spots on white, is called tobiano. His mother was a paint and his sire was a Belgian, from whom he inherited his huge (but cute!) head with a white blaze. A long thick mane and “feathers” on his pasturns make him even cuter! As you can tell, we’re mesmerized by his cuteness!

Bode is a lot of fun for riders who aren't intimidated by him. His strides are huge and a bit more comfortable if he is "collected." He knows he's a big boy, but is very willing to do what is asked of him. He's learning dressage. Bode is very sweet and responsive. Anyone who isn't intimidates by his size can ride him.

Seven's Tiger was every inch a Thoroughbred as his lip tattoo indicated. Getting him neck and neck with another horse at a canter guaranteed a race that didn't stop until he believed he'd won, despite his 30 years. Very sensitive to everything around him, he wwas always on high alert, caring for his herd, particularly the mares.

When first given to us, he bounced around in all directions like a popcorn kernel in hot butter during the entire ride, an exhausting effort for both horse and rider. Astute guests in the counseling profession tuned Jen into his need for constant conversation to get comfortable with his rider.

A little bay with a star, Seven was only 15.1 and 1,000 pounds. Due to failing health, including eyesight and hearing, we finally put Seven to rest in November 2009.

Idaho Dancer - This little guy's previous owner told us he was five years old and his name was Idaho Dancer. At 14 hh and 900 lbs., Idaho is a very smart, responsive horse for a small, sensitive rider. He's half Pony of the Americas as indicated by his "snowflakes" or little white blotches intermixed in his light bay coat. From a distance he looks nearly buckskin with his black mane and tail. Like most of our horses, he loves attention and is very affectionate.

Idaho loves to jump and canter, and needed to be challenged more than he was here. Through a horse trading website, some people looking for a compact hunter-jumper found him, and we traded him for Missy. Now living near Louisville, he is in training to build up his hind legs to be a jumper for a 10-year-old girl in a horsey family.

Kismet is a 13-year-old Oldenberg gelding imported from Germany to become a dressage horse. Nearly 17 hands tall, he was likely overfed as a youngster causing the cartilage in his shoulder to grow inappropriately. That's left him with pain in his shoulder if he makes tight turns in one direction. Trained extensively in dressage, Kismet is sweet and friendly and loves attention.

While we had hoped constant turnout would help Kismet's shoulder disability, he had developed some behavior problems that made him unsafe to ride or be around. He has been moved elsewhere.

Ebony came to us lame from being locked in a stall for six months and wearing built-up weighted shoes to show as a "Big Lick" horse. He still expected to be hit in the head with a 2x4 yet again. It took two years to convince Ebony that it was safe to take carrots and apples from our hands. Despite eight years of corrective hoof trimming, walking on legs deformed by his built-up shoes, he still stumbled and tripped constantly. His ankles showed lumps and discoloration from chains and chemical burns. The lack of pigment on his cannon bones evidenced flailing chains hitting his legs. That "training" is now outlawed on the Tennessee Walker show circuit, but many still do it.

Tatiana was four when Ebony came to us and became her jungle gym. She rode him alone at 5 when her feet didn't reach below the saddle blanket. After years of being isolated and not understanding herd hierarchy, Ebony's huge grain consumption need partnered him with old Don Diego. They became great friends in their last few years. Don's death brought Ebony flashbacks to his previous home and his fears returned.

At at least 25, with the terrible 2007 drought, he began losing weight mid-summer. Despite constant dental care, he wouldn't eat enough to keep his weight up. To prevent further suffering as the drought worsened and his arthritis exacerbated, Ebony was euthanized in July.

We hope learning about how horribly little Ebony was treated and meeting him taught many about the viciousness humans can inflict on horses, intentionally and not.

Please do not remain silent if you attend Tennessee Walker, Saddlebred, or any other shows and see horses being abused. If you see horses being starved or abused, report it to your local animal shelter, your state veterinarian or 911. Follow up the next day and make sure action was taken. Animals cannot speak for themselves. Please have the courage to speak for them.

Shadow Evidently bone from the tiny v-shaped break in Shadow's sesmoid (small bone in the back of her hind ankle) migrated into her muscle, reducing the chances she'll ever be ridable again. Our beautiful grey mare, the personification of Merrylegs, has moved to Cleveland to be a pasture companion for another mare. She may even have a baby or two under the supervision of a former jockey and his wife who are long-time horse lovers and owners. She'd been with us since she was a month old, tho we met her the day she was born jet black with a white star on her forehead. As a yearling she began to grey and each year became lighter. It was a fluke accident that evidently happened when she was goofing around in the field in April 2007. She was on stall rest with Ebony as a babysitter, but she still reinjured it.

Sweet old Don Diego our little bay Arab, died Dec. 10, 2005, at 33. He'd had a long and happy life, but was blind, deaf and very arthritic. He was one of the happiest horses we've ever met, always eager for any kind of attention. Poor old Ebony, who likely had never had a friend before Don, mourned him terribly, guarded his body until we could get it taken away, stopped eating for weeks, and still isn't the same.

Ginger's Coriander, who was born at First Farm Inn at 5 A.M., Sunday May 5, 2002 so guests could watch her stand for the first time. She moved away in April 2006. After four years of constant handling, supplements and training, she still had an odd unpredictable streak that made her unsafe for guest riders. A month at "reform school" and two years under Jen hadn't helped, so we found an experienced rider who wanted a good trail horse and moved her away from her mom. Cori immediately took over as the queen of the herd and gave up her old tricks from all we've heard. We traded her for big Bode who had gotten rather full of himself and was pushing his weight around in his old barn.

Stormy, a big bay Tennessee Walking Horse we had for years, was lots of fun to ride with great gaits and plenty of go, but headstrong, hard-mouthed and barn sour. He was an expert at removing and hiding his grazing muzzles so he could eat unlimited quantities and risk making himself sick. While he was a fun horse for a strong rider, he took a very big rider on a fast spin back to the barn and convinced Jen he wasn't safe for guests to ride. He's now living in Eastern Kentucky where he is climbing mountains for a woman who had breast cancer and was told she should only ride a Walker. We traded him for Bella.

Bella, the sweet little 14.2 hh strawberry roan Appaloosa-Quarter Horse, who had come to us with a back swayed from a too-heavy rider and shoes nailed sideways on hooves that were incorrectly trimmed, was never accepted by the First Farm Inn herd. Chiropractic, lots of back strengthening exercises, shoe removal and corrective trimming, brought her back to looking like a 12 -year-old mare. With winter coming and her being the outcast who was forced to stand outside the barn, we found her a home with an experienced rider a bit up in years who was looking for a small, quiet trail horse. When Bella joined the new herd with a strawberry roan pony and two elderly descendants of Secretariat, she became the queen!