Meet Our Horses

Cheshire Cat (Chester)

• Born in 2015
• Height: 13hh2
• Color: Chestnut
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Chester arrived along with two other New Forest Ponies in February of 2021 after a long trailer ride across Canada.

He has fit into the family better than we ever could have hoped for. Within a few weeks of his arrival, he was hacking around the field in the snow, and during his first fall with us, he even came hunting with the Ottawa Valley Hunt and was an absolute star!

He has continued to progress in his training both in dressage and over fences, making excellent progress.

We can’t wait to see what the future has in store for this kind, willing soul.

Cinnamon

• Born in 2003
• Height: 13hh1
• Color: Silver Bay
• Breed: Welsh Mountain Pony cross

Cinnamon joined the farm in 2007. She has been proven a valuable asset due to her mid size, hunter style movement and eagerness to please.

Cinnamon has an excellent work ethic, she is very sensible, super smooth, and forward going. She is a great pony to take riders from their first riding lesson all the way to learning to jump. She is also very competitive when it comes to games, and takes our camp relay races very seriously!

Eclipse (Clippers)

• Born in 1999
• Height: 14hh2
• Color: Bay
• Breed: Morgan

Eclipse is the perfect blend of boundless energy and gentleness of soul. Her working life passion was long hacks and cross country jumping.

She has beautiful flowing movement, and her sensitivity was excellent for teaching our more advanced riders the subtlety of seat aids and quiet hands. She excelled in her lateral work and rewarded her rider with a lovely frame when they got it right.

She is now retired from her job as a school pony, but has become the most diligent babysitter of our weanling herd additions. She also ensures that we are notified if she hasn't been given her very own special pile of hay at meal times.

Firenze (Ren)

• Born in 2021
• Height: Growing by the day
• Color: Chestnut
• Breed: Warmblood (bred by Smokey River Sport Horses)

Ren is affectionately referred to as the baby giraffe as he is in his lanky growing phase and as a weanling had to splay his front legs to reach his nose to the ground. He is an absolute puppy dog out in the field, following you around to check and see what is going on and hopefully getting in a few snuggles while he is at it.

Ren can entice just about any of his buddies in the field to play with him and certainly keeps everybody on their toes.

Ren has started work under saddle this year and we look forward to seeing where his exceptional movement takes him in the next few years.

Java

• Born in 2005
• Height: 13hh2
• Color: Piebald
• Breed: Paint/Welsh Pony cross

Java initially came to the farm to be started under saddle, but was purchased after we realized what great potential she possessed.

She is an incredibly energetic, athletic, and talented mare. She went with Bronwyn to Grelo Farms for six months during the winter of 2014 while she was a working student and returned home with a “university education”.

For her petite stature, Java has very large and expressive movement and an ease with self carriage. Her confirmed lateral movements include half pass, renvers, travers, and her growing talent with collection is continuing to impress us.

Java provides students with the opportunity to learn from a pony with a true talent for dressage.

Kate's Addiction (Addi)

• Born in 2006
• Height: 15hh1
• Color: Bay
• Breed: Quarter Horse

Addi is a soft, light ride with an easy going Quarter Horse personality.

She is equally comfortable and talented in the ring being a stellar walk, trot vaulting horse, doing dressage work, or hacking out. Her size and schooling make her a great mount for our riding students from their first lesson to learning the finesse of leg yields.

Addi was the first horse in the herd that told us in no uncertain terms that she LOVED being a vaulting horse. You can see the smile on her face when she gets to be groomed by an entire team, and knows that her job is to just keep walking regardless of the moves happening on her back.

She vaults at a walk and a trot with our beginner and smaller vaulters, and we are so grateful for her incredible patience and kindness.

Marble

• Born in 2010
• Height: 15hh1
• Color: Piebald
• Breed: Clydesdale /Paint cross

Marble is the most recent addition to our herd, and are we ever lucky that this magical unicorn made her way to us.

We had the pleasure of meeting Marble when she was 4 years old at her first home. Ten years later, her first owner found out that she was looking for a new place to call home and thought of us. She has been the perfect horse for Matt since the retirement of his mare, Roka, as well as an excellent mount for some of our taller students, not to mention an incredible vaulting horse!

We are so grateful to consider this wonderful mare part of our herd.

Neville

• Born in 2017
• Height: 14hh
• Color: Dark Bay
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Neville arrived with his two half siblings from Alberta in February, 2021.

We often wonder if he is part dog, because he is so focused on people. If you are out in the field, he is most likely following right behind you just to see what you might be up to.

He has shown a phenomenal work ethic right from the first few times he was ridden. He even hunted with the Ottawa Valley Hunt Club as a four year old, and didn’t put a foot wrong.

He holds a very special place in Kate’s heart, and they have been developing their partnership since his arrival at the farm.

Nimbus

• Born in 2021
• Height: 13hh2 (and growing!)
• Color: Bay
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Nimbus belongs to Laila, our wonderful vaulting coach! He arrived with Misty and Rudy all the way from Alberta, and he has been the most perfect first pony for Laila.

He has taken everything in his training so far in stride. From jumping on the trailer without hesitation, to hand walks on the trails, to having his first rides under saddle both in the ring and on the trails.

Nimbus is an exceptional example of the New Forest breed, and we are lucky to have both him and Laila at the farm!

Roka

• Born in 1994
• Height: 16hh2
• Color: Bay
• Breed: Clydesdale/Thoroughbred cross

Roka is affectionately referred to as Matt's "Big Pony," despite being well and truly a large horse.

In 2010, Kate and Matt went to Italy and, after almost 20 years of marriage, Kate convinced Matt to take his first riding lessons at Il Paretaio, a classical dressage riding centre. On the flight home, Kate asked if Matt would like her to look for a horse more suited to his size (he is 6' 5”) than the collections of ponies on the farm at the time. We were incredibly lucky to find this very well-schooled, straight-forward and generous mare to continue to teach Matt, as well as benefit our other students.

Roka is truly a 'gentle giant' or as some students have declared, she is a 'moving mountain.'

Roka was our perfect school master prior to her retirement. She was unflappable on the trail and made an excellent snow plow for her smaller herd mates when the going gets deep in the winter. She now gets to enjoy her golden years being pestered by her younger herd mates, and joining us on trail rides by walking in hand to still be a part of the group!

Rudolph (Rudy)

• Born in 2022
• Height: 12hh2 (and growing)
• Color: Chestnut
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Rudy came to us in the second trailerload of ponies from Pferde Traum Farm after we completely fell in love with the New Forest breed.

Their incredible personalities, athleticism and versatility has us completely head over heels. Rudy is looking more and more like Chester by the day, which was Bronwyn’s hope, but he has a more mischievous and confident personality, which will be fun to work with more as he gets closer to his third birthday and starting into some grown-up work.

Sassannah (Sassy Boots)

• Born in 2007
• Height: 12hh2
• Color: Chestnut
• Breed: Welsh Mountain Pony

Sassannah was the first foal born at the farm, to our pony mare Cinnamon. She has been a great addition to our lesson program over the past couple of years due to her naturally forward moving and energetic paces.

She is the perfect size for our younger students and shows lovely form over fences.

Despite her small size, Kate enjoys spending time schooling her as she is very athletic and a quick learner. When not working in the arena, Kate and Sassannah can be found hacking around the fields bareback summer or winter.

Schrödinger

• Born in 2020
• Height: 15hh1 (and growing!)
• Color: Bay
• Breed: Percheron/Trakehner cross (bred by Smokey River Sport Horses)

Schrödinger was not sure about his new home when he initially arrived at the farm in November, 2021, after a long trip from Alberta with a delay due to a big snow storm. But he quickly warmed up to us, and is now the first to put his nose on your shoulder for a smooch. He loves the dogs and cats too!

He has been a star during his career under saddle thus far, and we have high hopes for this gentle giant. He will eventually be Matt’s hunt horse extraordinaire, and a vaulting horse for the White Forest Vaulters Club when he has grown up a bit more.

In the meantime, he is learning to be a solid citizen like his older herd mates by working in the ring, going on field rides, working on the trail, attending hunter paces, and lunging clinics. We are so excited for the future with this sweet boy.

Shiva

• Born in 2005
• Height: 14hh2
• Color: Chestnut
• Breed: Haflinger/Quarter Horse/Arab cross

Shiva was bred to be the retirement horse for a longtime horse enthusiast. When health issues for his owner prevented her from realizing her plans for her young horse, the farm became the sanctuary that she dearly wanted for her baby.

Shiva is the most relaxed guy in the barn. Nothing fazes him, making him perfect for nervous and new riders. He is very sweet and loves attention.

Shiva’s patience has made him easy to school in his basic dressage work, and he jumps confidently without ever becoming over excited.

Shiva is often the first horse that people have a chance to feel a canter on, as he is so good on the lunge line and he has a beautiful rocking horse canter. Shiva’s solid build and beautiful canter have also made him an excellent vaulting horse for the White Forest Vaulters!

Silhouette (Etta)

• Born in 2021
• Height: 15hh0 (and growing!)
• Color: Bay
• Breed: Trakehner (bred by Smokey River Sport Horses)

Etta arrived at the farm after a long trailer ride as a weanling in her scruffy winter coat. She has grown considerably since then.

At three years old, she is slowly starting her life as a grown up horse. She has been on a handful of field rides and a few rides in the ring, and has been taking it all in stride.

It is almost as if after watching over the fence for the last couple of years, she is glad to be included with the grown up ponies. We look forward to the future with this athletic mare!

Silvermist (Misty)

• Born in 2022
• Height: 13hh3 (and growing!)
• Color: Bay
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Misty is Kate’s third great love out of Lady Clover from Pferde Traum Farm. She arrived as a weanling, and Kate has been smitten since.

She is a perfect blend between her two half siblings on the farm, Neville and Tinkerbell. In keeping with what we know of the New Forest breed, she is very personable, athletic, and a quick learner with has a strong desire to please.

We can’t wait to see how her journey and partnership with Kate progresses.

Tinkerbell (Tink)

• Born in 2019
• Height: 13hh2
• Color: Bay
• Breed: New Forest Pony (from the wonderful Pferde Traum Farm)

Tinkerbell is affectionately known as Tink the Stink as she can be a troublemaker if she is not kept occupied!

She is a very fast learner and super athletic. She has made leaps and bounds in her training over the last few years with Kate's hard work and dedication to training.

Tink has the person-focused personality that we have come to recognize in the wonderful New Forest ponies from Pferde Traum Farm.

She is right at the front of the herd to greet you out in the field and will even leave food to come and see what you are up to.

We can’t wait to see where this mare goes as she continues to grow up!

Tuxedo (Tux)

• Born in 1999
• Height: 12hh
• Color: Piebald
• Breed: Shetland cross

Tuxedo joined the White Forest Farm herd in 2001 when Kate fell in love with his tail. Since then, this wonderful pony has taught countless children to ride.

Because of his size and his kind disposition, he is the perfect first pony for children to learn on. He is very patient and can take children from their first ride to their first show. 

Tux is fantastic on the lunge line, in hand, or trucking around the ring with his trademark tail swinging behind him.

He loves to hack out in the woods. Tux is teddy bear cute in his fuzzy winter coat, and has had a serious offer to buy him for a lawn ornament.