News

Hard work and love
By Elizabeth Prata

New Gloucester--Rowdy, Finny, and Koning are, walked, coddled, brushed, and talked to. They have a doting mom and a doting dad, are walked every day and have 11 acres on which to romp. They are Pam Fellows's babies and no baby was more loved than these three horses.

Rowdy the a quarter horse is 24 years old, Finny the Standardbred is 4, and Koning, Pam's most recent addition to her family, is just 2.Below, Pam puts Koning thorugh his paces in the ring. Phil Pulsifer photo

"I've loved horses ever since I was 10," said Pam. She has always worked, and worked hard, to support her horses, only recently giving up her shoveling job. "I got my first horse at 15, from Double L Riding Stable in Freeport. I'd worked and saved, but I wasn't allowed to have horses. So I had to hide him away," laughs Pam. Finally the day came when Pam had to come clean with her mom. "I sat her down and said, 'Mom, I have something important to tell you.' I must have looked so serious, because Mom thought I was going to tell her that I was pregnant!" Pam's mom cried in relief, or disappointment, Pam wasn't sure which, saying that she could not and would not pay for the horse that her determined daughter had bought. "And I never expected her to," Pam said.

Pam's smiling face for the last 25 years has graced behind the counter at Cole Farms serving coffee and banter to the breakfast and early lunch crowd. This schedule suits Pam just fine. "I go in early but I get out at around 11 and I have the best of the day to train my horses and play with them," she said.

Koning is a Friesian, a breed that has only lately been introduced to the US. Pam's excitement is obvious as she leads Koning out of the stall and into the ring in her back yard in New Gloucester. Koning's hooves thunder and his muscles move as one, treating the viewer to a fluid movement that looks like a dance. He responds instantly and alertly to commands, and the two run the ring like a ballet.

"A horse's brain only focuses for a few minutes at a time. The best thing is to train every day, several times a day, for a few minutes at a time, consistently," Pam explains.

"I can't live without my horses," Pam said. "My wedding gift was a stud fee for a horse to be born. At one time, I had five horses. Rowdy is older, mellow. Finney is go-go-go, and Koning is a person's best friend, just a love." She gives Koning a rub between the ears and speaks affectionately to him, and Koning's ears prick up and listen to her loving words.

The barn is warm in the last September sunshine streaming in between the boards. The horses had come to the stall door and watched Pam's every move, and Pam's face lights up when she looks at her babies. The tack is neatly arranged and hanging in rows between each stall. It's a warm home for the horses lucky enough to have a hard-working mom looking out for them. Left, love is the order of the day as Koning snuggles with Pam. The Monument: Prata photo

According to the International Museum of the Horse (www.imh.org/imh/bw/friesian.htm) the Friesian Horse originated in Friesland, one of twelve provinces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Holland), situated in the northwest of Europe. Friesland is an old country dating to 500 B.C., when the Friesians settled along the cost of the North Sea. They were tradesmen, seafarers, farmers and horse breeders.
The Friesian horse descends from the Equus robustus. During the 16th and 17th centuries, but probably also earlier, Arabian blood was introduced, especially through Andalusian horses from Spain. This has given them the high knee-action, the small head and the craning neck. Because of his temperament the Friesian horse is considered warm blooded. The Friesian horse has been kept free from influence of the English Thoroughbred. During the last two centuries it has been bred pure. Breeding horses and dealing in them was very important for the Friesians. The monks in the many monasteries in Friesland before the reformation did a lot of horse breeding. Through the centuries the Friesian Government has made many regulations in order to safeguard good breeding. Now the Dutch Horselaw of 1939 (modified) gives rules for studbook and breeding.
From records of the past we know that the Friesian horse of old was famous. There is information from as early as 1251 and there are books in which Friesian horses were mentioned and praised from as early as the 16 th century.
Armored knights of old found this horse very desirable, having the strength to carry great weight into battle and still maneuver quickly. Later, its suppleness and agility made the breed much sought after for use in riding schools in Paris and Spain during the 15 th and 16 th centuries. Before an elegant carriage this breed has few rivals, and throughout Europe the royal courts used them as coach horses.
An excellent trotter, the Friesian was used for racing short distances in Holland. Tom Hannon of Canton, Ohio did not reintroduce the horse to North America until 1974. By 1983 the popularity of the Friesian in America had grown enough to support a national association and a national show.
Friesian Horse links:
Friesian Horse Home Page: www. Friesian horsesociety.com
Friesian Horse Association of North America: www.fhana.com
Friesian Horse Society: www. friesian horsesociety.com/
Breeds of Livestock - Friesian Horse: www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/horses/ friesian /