The People's Horse: Driving Horse WIns Farnam®/Platform™ USEF Horse of the Year

Cincinnati, OH – Every year the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) honors the best horses across all breeds and disciplines at the Farnam®/Platform™ USEF Horse of the Year Awards dinner at the USEF Annual Meeting.

This year, a horse that was just a few steps from slaughter stepped up to the podium. Drining horse "Jamaica" took the night’s biggest accolade.

Jamaica is the foundation of Chester Weber’s Four-in-Hand team that won Individual Silver at the 2008 FEI World Four-in-Hand Driving Championships.

“The horse is amazing,” said Weber after receiving his trophy from Farnam’s Chris Jacobi and USEF President David O’Connor. “It is great to be part of his life.”

The 17-year-old Dutch gelding was initially bought to be a tourist carriage horse, after he was rescued on his way to the slaughter house. His refusal to stand still and be patient was the demise of that career but his tenacity and strength of character paid off when he landed in Weber’s stable.

Jamaica has been part of all six of Weber’s Four-in-Hand National Championship teams.

“It’s a real honor to share this journey with such an unbelievable horse,” said Weber. “Driving is a very small discipline in this country and the support from the rescue organizations and the letters I got from kids was amazing.”

The winning veteran will receive a year’s worth of Farnam Platform feed for his efforts.

Favorite Video: Equine Digestion Animation from Purina; Have You Checked YouTube Lately?

If you follow this blog, you know that I keep a sharp eye out on YouTube for new videos to share with blog readers. December was a red letter month for YouTube when two American companies--Purina Mills and Life Data Labs--launched dedicated video channels to share clips, commercials, product tips, and some valuable information that will be of interest to all horse owners.

Life Data's channel features competitive driver Chester Weber talking about his horses, as well as Scottish researcher Dr. Susan Kempson explaining hoof wall deterioration as seen through a scanning electron microscope, and horse trainer Rick Wheat demonstrating safe horse handling. Best of all, you can hear Dr. Frank Gravlee describe in his own words how his work as an equine veterinarian led to the development of the popular Farriers Formula supplement, the flagship of the Life Data Labs company's products, and to the growth of the company's lovely research farm.

Click here to view the new Life Data YouTube channel.

Purina's channel, with video extracted from its Omolene University web site, knocks itself out with an elaborate animation of the digestion process in horses, with special attention to the roles of glucose and insulin. They have gone to great lengths to create this animation of the digestion process in the various stages of the upper and hind guts in horses.

The narrator speaks quite briskly so you may have to stop and start this video to absorb all the information she offers over the course of the eight-minute clip.

Also on the Purina channel, you can hear nutritionist Dr. Mary Beth Gordon describe the feed classifications and high standards of Purina's equine feed program, take a video tour of the feed mill, and get a glimpse of Purina's video advertising.

Click here to view the new Purina YouTube channel.

Both of these companies are making constructive use of YouTube resources to post video content that goes beyond just commercials to sell their products. With a subject as complex as equine nutrition, education is not an option--it's a necessity. We need to be kept up to date on new research from the impressive labs that these companies run if we are to understand how and when and why to choose from all the products available to our horses.

Thanks, Life Data Labs and Purina Mills!