When I was doing my presentations at Equine Affaire I had a couple of great demo horses to work with. The first one was a nice haflinger Fire mare that was a great example of how the five element types can look in different breeds. Normally when I think of a haflinger I think about an Earth or Metal type horse but this little mare was definitely Fire. She was light boned for her breed and a beautiful sorrel with flaxen mane and tail. When I asked the audience what was their first impression of her they all agreed she was pretty. If Fanny had been an Arabian you would not have thought of her as pretty compared to other horses in that breed so this was good for the group to see. I have been careful to not put too much emphasis on body type when I discuss the characteristics of the different types because of the variations in breeds but I do look at it myself.
Fanny was the mare’s name and although calm she did move around significantly more than the Earth horse from the previous demonstration. Fanny’s owner described her as very sensitive and willing to please. She said Fanny did not need much correction and if so you had to be very gentle of she would get upset.
As far as health challenges Fanny had trouble with ovarian cysts which kept her from getting pregnant. I see this condition quite often in Fire mares and treating them with foods and herbs that move blood can be very helpful. I have used the algae and sprouts supplement and holy basil with good success.
The demo horse for the second lecture on matching horse and rider was a nice saddlebred mare named Miss P. Miss P’s owner, Kathy, told use she got her name because her personality fit al the P words like pretty, prissy, picky, pugnacious etc. Right off the bat you could see how forward Miss P was as she walked constantly around Kathy. Miss P was a striking mare with a long swan like neck and sculptured head.
As a young horse Miss P had been terrified by being left in a small stall and still did not care for confinement. Miss P was labeled as difficult by her previous trainer but Kathy felt she and Miss P were a perfect match and she had been able to channel Miss P’s energy into brilliant performance in the show ring. As a matter of fact Miss P had won several championships in Western pleasure. In between shows Kathy would take Miss P out for long trail rides which allowed her to expend her pent up energy. Miss P had no health challenges but her sensitivity, intelligence and forward energy proved her Five Element horse temperament was a classic Water/Fire or TaiYang. Madalyn