So I didn’t want to hijack the thread about the AMHA’s new branding, but I thought a couple of posters made some great points. I wanted to expand on those points and add a few more here.
How can we create interest in our breed? Why don’t we have a lot of new “outsiders” changing over to Morgans or taking a look at them as a horse they’d like to own or show?
Well here’s what I can see, as both a competitor, breeder and owner. I also live in a “Morgan Deficient” area that caters to the hunter/jumper/dressage world or the QH’s, so allow myself to see our breed through outside eyes…
I meet alot of ppl while trail riding or while riding at the local horsepark. They all have questions when they see me ride my Morgan…”Is that an Arab?”, “Why do you make your horse carry it’s neck like that?”, “Is your horse young (as she blows/snorts at everything…she’s eight, btw)?”…”THAT’S a Morgan? I thought they were plow horses!”…
New horse owners are attacted to quiet, beautiful horses that they can hop on and ride (the majority of new horse owners are Baby Boomers). We have a shortage of these – overbreeding to obtain the elusive park horse has flooded our breed with hot horses w/poor conformation that cannot compete in their intended discipline, so the end up in HP or WP. When outsiders watch these classes, they think “oh, a discipline I recognize”. But then they see the weighted shoes, full bridles in HP and cookie cutter bay horses snorting around the ring and occasionally acting a lil’ silly. While that is completely normal to us Morganites, the outsiders are getting turned off. They don’t see themselves on these “hot” horses.
Let’s breed and compete Morgans that were developed to do a job. The types we were all raised on that went in multiple classes and were totally tractable enough to be asked to do so. Breed THOSE horses, and we will have people LOOKING for Morgans, instead of passing over them for a QH. Just as another poster said, we don’t have enough quiet, safe Morgans. We all love a great EP or Park horse. But this breed is VERSATILE – don’t breed only for saddleseat! Some people just want a good “usin’ hoss” – the Morgan used to be that, but we have allowed the QH to take over that realm. These bloodlines still exist…use them!
Let’s make our shows user-friendly again. Where is the comraderie of the 80s and 90s? Showing used to be fun, not a chore…we shouldn’t have to spend so much money to get a horse in the ring to “compete”. Why must we have weighted shoes on our more entry-level classes (HP/WP), and expensive outfits to “compete”? I understand that trainers make the shows profitable, but common sense would say to make shows end on Sundays again, so that Amateur Joe doesn’t have to take off of work for a whole week to compete at a 3 day show!! There are alot of us out here that REALLY want to show and have the money to do so, but the schedules need to be adjusted for us folk that have a 9-5.
Let’s create interest by involving youths! I got into Morgans by riding at a local lesson barn that was active in the AMHAY Horsemastership Program and 4-H. This breed will only get passed to the next generation if you involve them and teach them what is CORRECT in all aspects of horsemanship, and how to judge what they see (and not what’s in style).
With a new re-branding on the horizon, why don’t we all take a look at our programs and see what we can do to get more non-morganites involved. Show locally, host an open barn, host seminars and introduce your local horse community to the real Morgan Horse. Not the “plow horse, “fat arab” or “fake saddlebreds” that way too many ignorant horseman depict them as. Prove them wrong with your short (fun-sized!), beautiful and charismatic MORGAN!
