Sophie Ruiz-Leimer, FEI Commercial Coordinator and John Young, President of the International Ground Jury at the top table with (below) Chefs d'Equipe Rob Hoekstra (GBR), Rob Ehrens (NED), George Morris (USA) and Henk Nooren (FRA) at the draw for the sixth leg of the FEI Nations Cup™ 2011 at Hickstead (GBR) (Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton). Hickstead, Great Britain - The defending champions from France will lead the way as the sixth leg of the FEI Nations Cup™ 2011 kicks off...

The Irish team are hot favorites to win the second leg of the 2011 FEI Nations Cup™ series in Rome (ITA) tomorrow, but they got the worst of the draw today and so will be first into the ring as the action gets underway in the stunning surroundings of the Piazza di Siena. A total of nine teams will line up in this leg of the elite eight-nation tournament, as the host country makes a guest appearance on home turf. The American Team of Charlie Jayne, Christine McCrea, Margie Engle and Rich...

Fear of the unknown often darkens our dream of buying the young horse that will become the next show star. Perhaps we are drawn to this idea by the harmony that arises between human and equine when raising a horse from his first years; possibly it's the chance to be able to buy him before he costs six figures. But will this charming youngster transform into that fancy show horse we had envisioned? Here is a way to peek into a crystal ball. Start from the bottom up — your bottom line Clearly...

Saddlebred.com has a new and valuable feature titled, “Saddle Up a Saddlebred,” which allows anyone interested in seeing, riding or learning more about Saddlebreds to enter their zip code and find a number of stables within a 300-mile radius. It can be accessed by going to www.saddlebred.com and clicking on “About the Breed,” and then going to “Stable Search,” or type in www.saddlebred.com/breed/stables.php . Right now, there are approximately 400 Saddlebred farms and stables in the database...

Lexington, Ky. – The management team at Desert Circuit International Horse Park has worked closely with veterinarians at CDFA and USEF to proactively protect the health and safety of horses on the property adhering to all biosecurity protocols and staying in close communication with participants in response to the recent positive cases of EHV-1. As of the last update on Tuesday, five horses were in isolation, all from one barn where the initial case was located. All of these horses are...

Lexington, Ky. - US Equestrian’s new online Learning Center has proven to be a useful educational tool in one University of Vermont (UVM) animal sciences course. Christina Rohan, a hunter/jumper trainer who also is a UVM lecturer, says Learning Center videos have played a role in her Equine Industry Issues class, where students examined US Equestrian’s role as the national governing body for equestrian sport in the United States. “I felt that they had to have some...

Aurora, Colo. - The Arabian Horse Association’s (AHA) Board of Directors (BOD), at their March 2015 Board Meeting, passed a motion that requires mandatory DNA testing for all horses competing in the Half-Arabian/Anglo-Arabian Halter Futurity classes at Canadian and U.S. Nationals; as well as all horses competing in the Half-Arabian/Anglo-Arabian Performance Futurity and Maturity classes at U.S. Nationals, in 2015. Half-Arabian horses entered in the aforementioned classes must have the...

Lausanne (SUI) - Andrew Nicholson, pictured here en route to victory at Les Etoiles de Pau CCI 4* (FRA) with Nereo, heads into the third leg of the HSBC FEI Classics™ 2012/2013 - the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event - as series leader and still at the top of the HSBC Rankings. (Photo: Kit Houghton/FEI) All eyes will be on Andrew Nicholson (NZL) this weekend as he heads for the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event (USA) on 25-28 April to try to extend his lead in the HSBC FEI Classics™ 2012/2013...

Lexington, KY - The Florida Department of Agriculture has confirmed that a second horse associated with the Ocala Equine Herpes Virus 1 (EHV-1) has presented with neurological signs. To date, there have been a total of 7 horses linked to the Ocala outbreak (two neurological cases, and five having tested positive with no evidence of neurologic disease being seen). All positive tests have been reported as Equine Herpes Virus Type 1, the wild strain. An additional horse (Wellington area and no...

Dedham, MA - EquiFit, inc., makers of distinctive high performance equine products, announces that the 'Get EquiFitted' program that launched earlier this summer at the North American Junior & Young Rider Championships will again be offered during the BigEq.com Equitation Championship Weekend at Capital Challenge Horse Show on October 1-2. The 'Get EquiFitted' program is offered to the top-placing competitor who is wearing T-Boots™ during competition. "We strive to...