Amish Horses Tour (Part 2)

Climb back up on the horse-draw wagon, and we'll take another jaunt through the Amish countryside. This first picture is of a Percheron mare. Her foal is hiding behind her. You will get to see the baby in a picture further down in this series of pics. Don't you just love the white fences, barns, and buildings on Amish farms? If you read any of my books, you know that I often refer to that "Look" as I describe the setting.

Tranquillity: That is a single word that sums up the vistas in Amish country.

Indiana Amish farmers seem to be partial to Belgian draft horses. They are what you see pictured above and below. Belgian horses vary in color from what they call, "Blond" to a dark sorrel that I would call, "Brick red."

You will also see buggy horses in among the draft breeds. Workhorses are rarely used to pull a buggy, they are for the heavy lifting such as pulling a plow. In the picture above, you can see the two styles side-by-side. Draft horses are often taller, have more muscle, and can look almost fat. The tall, thin, dark horses used to pull buggies (or "Carriages" as they are known by Amish folks in Pennslyvania.) Most buggy horses are of the Standardbred breed. Although, you will find Morgans, Dutch Cross, and Friesians, or some mixture of two or more of those listed.

It is quite evident that these horses are well fed and cared for.

Most Amish farms are well maintained and picturesque, although that may not always be the case. Before you jump to conclusions and judge a family when you see an unpainted barn or a skinny horse, take a moment to consider that we live in a real-world and things happen. Have you ever had a headlight or muffler go out on a car you were driving? Sometimes horses get ill, lose a shoe, hurt a leg, or anyone of countless misfortunate things that can happen. If a person loves their horse, they will try to nurse it back to health. Anyone that has spent time on a farm knows that sick or injured animals are inevitable. I've noticed that people are way too quick to judge before they take the time to understand the whole story. This happens more on the internet than anywhere! Please don't be, "That person."

If you enjoy these photos, you need to visit an Amish community. Ask around and find one near you. There are Amish communities in almost every state. I've visited the big three: Lancaster County, Pennslyvania, Holmes County, Ohio, and these pictures were taken in LaGrange and Elkhart Counties in Northern Indiana. I've also driven by Amish farms in Ontario Canada and many of the United States; including Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Kentucky, Colorado, New York State, and of course my home state Iowa. I need to travel more! There is so much more to see.

Above: Here is the picture I promised of the Percheron mare and her foal.

At the end of the day, I don't mind coming home because of these girls in the photo above. My own place has a little of the Amish flare thanks to my own Amish Horses, Karma and Karla.

If you want to look at Amish Horses Tour part 1, all you need to do is scroll to the top of the page and click on "Home." After doing that, you can scroll back down and beyond these pictures to find my last blog.

The Big Stage

My wife and I took a day-trip to the Percheron World Congress in DesMoines, Iowa this past week.

That's the "Big Stage" for Percheron horses.


I took some pics and videos of the Six-horse gelding hitches.

This picture above was shot a few seconds before the one below.













It kind of gives a time-lapse effect. You can see that I got as close to the action as possible.

The view from up high is better for the overall picture... but I like to be right there to feel the thunder of all those huge hooves.

 The photo above shows a few of the six-horse hitches being looked over by the judge. Three to four teams came in the area at a time. There were seventeen six-horse hitches in this gelding division. In the photo below you will see the top four teams. At one point they brought all seventeen hitches into the arena for the final awards. That is a whole lot of horsepower all standing in close proximity. It may look simple to an outsider, but if just one horse blows up things could get wild in a hurry.

My two favorite hitches came in 1st and 3rd. I really loved these six geldings in the video below. They were perfectly matched and super calm.

 

 I told my wife during the competition that the Young Living Hitch was going to win. That's the horses in the video below. She can verify that I called it!!! LOL. The Young Living Hitch did not make one mistake that I could see, and they were so powerful and lively. They won, and totally deserve to be World Champs!

By the way, a group of around fifteen-or-so Amish folks was sitting behind us. The Amish in my area would not take in such an event but other Amish groups are more lenient. I'm gonna guess that those Amish either had relatives showing horses or had raised some of the horses in the show.

Seasons of Life

 Well, it's time to give the final rose, as they say on the Bachelor show. If you have been following my blog over the past few weeks, you know about my conundrum.

I was given a choice between two amazing horses; one I've owned for the past nine years, the other a full sister to my favorite horse.

Karla (Karm's sister) gets the rose. I have to say, there was a lot that went into this decision.

 Karma and Karla relaxing in the sun.

The first time I hitched these sisters together, it was amazing! They had been a team until Karm was seven and it seemed clear to me that they are perfect for each other.

Coke is such a social creature and seems way happier at the Amish farm with a crowd of buggy horses around her. I asked my Amish friend if Coke raised a fit when she realized that Karm was gone. He said, "Not at all. But when I hitch the team and take them to the field, Coke and one of the buggy horses call back and forth to each other." She has a new best friend.

Ancient Greek philosophers concluded: Change is the only constant.
Seasons of life come and go. Many of us remember taking a new job which altered a connection with our fellow workers. Maybe that new job took us away from family or dear friends, but we knew it was best for our future. Have you ever needed to wean a baby or a colt? It seems so difficult at the time, but in the end, it is best for everyone involved. Our life is made up of seasons that are passing. Coke, Karm, and I had a season together. We learned from each other and grew to love and respect each other. Our time together was never permanent. That season is over, for now. Karla had a season with her Amish friend and other horses. His season of farming is over, and so is his time with his horse. It is time for my friends and me to embrace a new season, which also will someday pass. Wonderful memories of our times and seasons live on forever in our hearts.

When I brought Karma and Karla home a few days back, it was a difficult moment. Karm trotted through the paddock looking for Coke, much like a mare when her colt is weaned from her side. She stood at the gate, looking off in the direction of my Amish friend's farm and whinnied. I went into the house and shed a few tears myself. At that moment, I thought that I would go and get Coke as soon as possible.

A few days passed and Karma and Karla began to form their new routine together. When they seemed comfortable, I hitched them together in harness and the moment was golden. I took a video on that day, and I will share it with you. The moment seemed to declare that this was meant to be. It was time to usher in a new season. A season with Karma and Karla, sisters and friends.

(All of the photos on this post are Karma and Karla)

Horseman Bachelor/Bachelorette

In reality, it is both wonderful and terrible to choose between a group of beautiful girls.

I get to keep all four of these dolls in my life, they're my daughters. However, over the next few days, I need to make a decision that is about as tough as anyone on the Bachelor show has had to face.

It turns our that I have to choose between four amazing Percheron mares. It may seem like a wonderful opportunity, and it is. But, it's also a terrible dilemma.

Let me give you a quick history in how I fell into such a burning ring-of-fire.

Between my home place and Kalona lay ten miles of rolling Iowa farmlands. Most of the farms are Amish owned. Yes, it is a virtual paradise for a man who loves draft horses as much as I do. So much so, that I wrote three full-length novels about my experiences in this heavenly place. If you have read my first book, you will know what a kind, gentle horseman Grandpa was. My Amish friend that I bought Karm and Coke from is about as close to Grandpa as he could be. Every time I step onto his farm I learn something new about horses.

My Amish friend is at a transition point in his life, he is going to be moving into the "grandpa house" and his son-in-law will be the main farmer. He wanted to borrow my horses back one last time before that happened. While they were at his farm, all four mares got a chance to be reunited. My friend told me that I could take home whichever two horses I want. They are all four amazing. I didn't hesitate to say, "I'll take my own two back home." There was one huge problem, though, one of the horses is a full sister to Karma, the best horse I've ever owned. My Amish friend and I had many conversations about it, and we both agree that Karm and her full sister make a better match in multiple ways than Karm and Coke. You see, Coke is a beautiful horse but she is a handful. Much like a sheepdog that needs a full-time job, Coke needs to be hitched often to keep her out of mischief. She will get that if she stays on the Amish farm.

Since all four horses were happily reunited, and I had the tough job of separating them again, I decided that I might as well give Karla a try. I brought her home on a ten-day trial basis. What I didn't see coming was that I was about to fall into the same ring-of-fire every man on the Bachelor show falls into. I fell in love with multiple girls and I can't have them all.

Over the next few days, I will have to give a rose to one of these two beautiful girls and say goodbye to the other. I am in a most wonderful and terrible predicament. Pray for me and I will let you know what happens in a week, or so.

Horse Reunion

Kallie, Karla, Karma, and Coke

Coke, Karma, Karla, and Kalley

My horses spent the past several months at a "horse reunion."

My Percheron draft horse mares, Karma and Coke, were born and raised on my Amish friend's farm.These four horses are all closely related, and they hadn't been together since I brought two of them to my place about 9 years ago.

When not squeezed together for a picture, these stalls are perfect for big teams.

 The middle two horses in these photos are full sisters. My friend (I won't mention his name for privacy sake) helped me squeeze three big girls into one stall so I could get a photo of them.

My Amish friend is an amazing horseman and one of the nicest men you could ever meet. He likes these horses every bit as much as I do. He kept Karm and Coke over the winter and was really excited to get all four mares together again. He used to drive the full-sisters as a team until I took Karm home with me years ago. He had an idea, he thought maybe we should try putting the two sisters back together and the other two horses actually match well. I decided to give it a try. We haven't traded horses, yet, but we are considering it.

Karm and her full sister Karla

So, after several months of all four horses spending time together on my friend's farm, the reunion is over. I now have Karma and her sister Karla at my place. They are so much alike! I do miss my good friend Coke and I can tell Karm does as well. It's a tough decision to make, and I will keep you updated on what we end up doing.

The 10 Most Beautiful Horses (I've ever seen)

Everyone has an ideal horse in their heart, mine happens to be a coal-black Percheron. On the weekend of July 4th, I attended Horse Progress Days in southern Indiana. This eight-horse hitch came prancing out and my heart about stopped. As you can see from the photo... that little Amish boy on the other side of the road had the same reaction I did!

Before they came prancing out I saw them being groomed and harnessed, so I knew already that I loved them.

I was taking a few pictures, when these girls came out and climbed aboard and started braiding their manes and tails. The girl's mother is just out of view. I asked her, "Are you okay with me taking some pictures of this?" She said, "Sure go ahead."

I was happy because I thought this was a perfect moment.

As you can see, these girls know how to braid manes and tails, Unfortunately I was making sure to get a photo of the girls on horseback and missed the one working on the tail... but you can see her hand. In the photos below you can see their finished work. The girl at the head and the girls at the tail also rode along in the wagon into the arena. I said to an Amish guy beside me, "I'm surprised that he has his daughters beside him and not a big strong guy, in case of trouble." He smiled and replied, "I saw those girls working with their horses earlier, they know what they are doing!" These girls look really petite, but I also noticed that they had no fear.

After the horses left the arena, I hurried over near the barn where I saw the girls braiding their manes and tails. I knew I would get to see them up close and hopefully get a good pic to show ya. There is nothing quite like standing on the road as an eight-horse hitch of gorgeous Percheron horses fly by! I could feel each hoof-beat and hear them breathing. Shivers went up my spine!

When they left the arena and headed down the road, a big guy did get on the front seat and the girl climbed into the back as you see below. If something scares eight horses, you need at least two strong people pulling on those eight lines.

You may have wondered why I said, "The 10 most beautiful horses I've ever seen." The eight horses in the hitch were about as pretty as any horses I've ever seen. But when I got home, my own two horses looked almost a beautiful! Maybe just because I'm so happy that they are mine! Karm always greets me with a whinny and warms my heart.

Horse Progress?

My book signing booth

 Have you heard about Horse Progress Days?

I'm super excited about my upcoming trip to southern Indiana for this event! Horse Progress Days is the Amish equivalent to the Farm Progress Show, a national event for farmers to learn about the most up-to-date farm equipment and practices.

I will be there with my books, which happen to be about farming with horses.



Obviously, farming with horses does not qualify as "the most up-to-date" farming practice. However, farming with horses is an extremely "Green" style of agriculture that should be embraced by the most forward thinking people.

If you are going to be at the 2015 Horse Progress Days, look for my booth, stop in and say, "Hello!"

If you can't make it to this year's event, visit the website and start planning for next year.

In the meantime, order a copy of Under the Heavens and start reading about farming with draft horses. Under the Heavens is a "Huck Finn style" Amish adventure-novel about a boy that spends a summer on his grandpa's Amish farm.