Miniature horses come to town
MIDRAND – The most majestic horses show off their beauty at the SA Miniature Horse Breeders Society's Fourways Show.
What they lacked in size they made up for in majestic appearance, and drew gasps of awe and admiration from the crowd.
Miniature horses were in town on 26 January when the SA Miniature Horse Breeders Society hosted its Fourways Show at Fourways Riding Centre, Midrand.
The petite pretties were led through the arena a few at a time to show off their beauty while walking and trotting. As the society’s president, Coralezet Erasmus explained, the horses were judged on their conformation, movement, quality and type.
“It’s our first show of the year and it has gone well. Our utility classes are jam-packed,” she said.
Erasmus explained that miniature horses were specially bred and needed to have the same shape and dimension ratio as normal horses.
“It is the only breed where there is actually a maximum height for horses at shows, which is 95cm here. Miniature horses need to look exactly the same as normal horses so that you should be able to mistake them for bigger horses.”
The manes of miniature horses are allowed to grow longer than normal horses, due to the nature of the rules at their shows. These flowed like waves as their owners trotted to and fro in the arena. “We have six miniature horse shows around the country every year. The horses really are beautiful.”
The Fourways Show yielded many winners in different classes. These classes separated the ages of the horses and their sex and height, as well as differentiating between stallions and geldings.
One or two jumps also ensued, to the delight of the crowd. When it was all over, the show left everyone in anticipation of when the society would return for another visit to Midrand.
Details: Fourways Riding Centre riding@global.co.za; 083 265 8278.
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