Meadow Brook Stables

10/10/2025

Our neighbour got this amazing shot of the rainbow today - and the phones really didn’t do it justice. It was so vibrant and bright! 🌈

10/10/2025

Day 201:

This girl is really getting the hang of her farrier days — she stands like a champ as long as she has a personal assistant giving her a belly rub or a good grooming at the same time. She’ll happily lift each foot, let me place it in the cradle, and even stretch her legs forward to rest them on the straight post while we finish up.

We’ve been very lucky all summer with the dry conditions — no hoof issues from too much moisture. But now that the weather is getting colder and damper, it’s the perfect time to start preventive care for thrush.

Thrush is an infection that develops in the frog of one or more of the horse’s hooves, caused by a mixed fungal and bacterial or solely bacterial pathogen. Fusobacterium necrophorumis the bacterium most often associated with thrush infections.

Typical signs of a thrush infection include hoof tenderness and a foul-smelling, black discharge from the hoof. The condition is often diagnosed by visually assessing the hoof and checking the health of the frog tissue.

We do everything with our management to prevent it - by mucking stalls and paddocks several times a day, routinely picking our feet, keeping our horses on a regular trim cycle, and using preventive treatments, especially during wet seasons because, and reduce mud. We have done extensive drainage work to prevent mud in our paddocks, but we can’t unfortunately control the moisture in the soil when we have days of rain or snow.

Easy got the full hoof care package today — a good trim, BioP Teq Hoof Solution to fight off bacteria and fungi, and a finishing touch of HoofDoctor hoof oil to condition and protect.

There’s an old saying in the horse world: “No hoof, no horse.”
�And it’s absolutely true — a horse’s entire health and soundness depend on the strength and integrity of their hooves. Without healthy feet, they can’t move comfortably, train, or even graze properly.

So here’s to keeping Easy’s feet in top shape — strong, clean, and ready to carry her wherever her adventures take her.

10/09/2025

Trying to get a video of Gambit and I get ….

10/09/2025

✨ Meet the Horses Series ✨
Over the next month, we’ll be introducing you to our incredible herd—one horse at a time! This is your chance to get to know the personalities, quirks, and stories behind each of our equine family members.

🐴 Name:
Reg. Name: Suns Guns N Roses
Barn Name: Sol
Nick Name: Bats or Bad Bats (when she is bad)

💛 Color: Palomino

📅 Age: April 17th, 2022 (3 YO)

💼 Occupation: Professional Show Horse

✨ About Me:
Hi, I’m Sol! I was born at MBS and my mum Reed fell in love with me the moment I was born and couldn't resist making me hers! I've lived at MBS my whole life except this summer I went off to Boarding School to learn how to be a fancy Reining Pony.

🎬 Show/Work History:
I hit the show pen this year and was shown in Reining and Ranch Classes and I ddi really good! Earned some money and some ribbons!

🧑‍🧒‍🧒 About My Family:
My mum, Prairie, is still at MBS, and my sister, Lulu, and someday my big brother, Steele, will come back home. My dad Modern Gun lives in Texas. No babies for me - I'm busy being fabulous in the show pen.

🍎 Likes:
Sliding Stops (they are my strongest maneuver and I look GREAT doing it)
Sand (it is a delicacy and I love to eat it, or roll in it)
My Paint Horse Friends (growing up surrounded by paints has made me partial to them)

🚫 Dislikes:
Making mistakes (I am like my mum I am a genuine good girl and don't like being wrong)
Hot Days (I'd like to request my own personal stall with AC for next summer thanks)
Muddy ground (I have sensitive toes, and a gorgeous girl like me can't have dirty feet)

💖 Fun Fact:
I don't know how to eat an apple by myself. My mom has to hold it and rotate it so I can take little bites.

10/09/2025

Day 200:

Can you believe it? Easy is 200 days old today! What a milestone for this little miracle girl.

For those who don’t know, Easy was born with Dummy Foal Syndrome, also known as Neonatal Maladjustment Syndrome (NMS) — a condition caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain during or shortly after birth. This can happen for a variety of reasons, often related to a difficult delivery, placental issues, or prolonged labor. Foals born with NMS may appear weak, disoriented, unable to stand or nurse properly, and sometimes even show neurological symptoms such as blindness, seizures, or difficulty swallowing.

The odds aren’t always in their favor — the survival rate for foals showing significant symptoms can be quite low even with intensive care. But with early intervention, dedicated support, and a whole lot of heart, some of them make it through — and Easy is one of the lucky and determined ones.

She’s come so far from the frail foal who stumbled around her stall blind, fighting through seizures, aspiration pneumonia (from inhaling birth fluids and milk), and struggling just to coordinate her suck and swallow reflexes.

Fast forward to today — after a good grooming session (because yes, she was again covered in manure stains), we had our first session back in the ring in a few days. We mostly did a little review — she’s become a pro at backing up and moving her hip over. Next up: learning to move her shoulder, which might be a bit of a challenge since this girl lovesbeing right up close to you.

Wish us luck for tomorrow — this little girl is just getting started.

10/08/2025

Confession time: I’m a Swiftie. 🎤

I’ve been mucking stalls, feeding ponies, and hauling hay bales to Taylor Swift’s new album on repeat — and honestly, it’s the perfect soundtrack for barn chores. You can love her or you can hate her, but you’ve got to respect the incredible amount of success, grit, and creativity she’s achieved. It’s pretty inspiring to see a woman out there literally living her best life — happy, working her butt off, and bringing so much joy to others through her music.

Meanwhile, Easy would like to officially put in her audition for the next Taylor Swift music video. 🎬💖 She says she was born for the glittery spotlight — pink sparkles, rhinestones, and all — Easy is a Showgirl.

PS Which song is your favourite?



Taylor Swift

10/08/2025

✨ Meet the Horses Series ✨
Over the next month, we’ll be introducing you to our incredible herd—one horse at a time! This is your chance to get to know the personalities, quirks, and stories behind each of our equine family members.

🐴 Name:
Reg. Name: Tru River Raven
Barn Name: River
Nick Name: Riv or RivRiv

🩶 Color: Grulla Tobiano

📅 Age: June 6th, 2021 (4 YO)

💼 Occupation: Professional pasture Pony, Future Show Pony

✨ About Me:
Hi, I’m River! I was born out in the plains of Colorado in a giant herd of horses, I come from the Joni Voloshin program, I was then sold to Washington before making the long trip from West Coast to East Coast to Nova Scotia.

🎬 Show/Work History:
No sows for me yet - I'm still learning.

🧑‍🧒‍🧒 About My Family:
No babies for me I'm still a baby!

🍎 Likes:
Scratches (as long as you don't have that fly spray or fly mask we can talk)
Trail Walks (It is fun getting out and exploring)
Attention (Well sometimes, from certain people, in the right situation)

🚫 Dislikes:
Fly Spray (It is acid in a bottle I tell you!)
Being picked at (I hate it when my bumps and scabs are picked)
Fly Mask (Sometimes I SWEAR it is a monster and it is going to eat me)

💖 Fun Fact:
I have a bump on my head - likely caused from hitting my head off of something very hard on my trip up to NS (but I can't remember - I likely also had a pretty good concussion when I arrived too and had a bit of sensitivity around my face) which makes me look like I have a bit of an off-set roman nose - probably chipped the bone and it calcified funny. Whoops.

10/08/2025

Day 199:

Today was a quiet, easy day for Easy — and for good reason! After vaccines, horses can sometimes feel a little tired or even a bit sore at the injection site, so I like to give them an “easy” day (pun fully intended). I know after my own tetanus shot, my arm is stiff for a day or two — so it’s only fair I do the same for them!

💉 Common, mild vaccine reactions in horses can include:
* Slight muscle soreness or warmth at the injection site
* Mild lethargy or tiredness
* A small, firm lump where the shot was given
* Occasionally a mild fever or off appetite for a day

Luckily Easy and the others aren’t showing any issues post vaccine. Although these are all normal immune responses as the body builds protection. However, anything more severe — like significant swelling, fever that lasts more than 24 hours, or reluctance to move — should be discussed with your vet.

✅ Post-vaccine recommendations:
* Give your horse a light day or two — no intense work or new experiences
* Monitor temperature, eating, and drinking
* Avoid grooming or pressure directly over injection sites
* Offer lots of love, scratches, and maybe a few extra cookies ❤️

Easy certainly didn’t mind the extra attention this morning! Mondays and Tuesdays are always my shortest days with her since I’m at the vet clinic, but we made sure to sneak in some quality scratch time before I headed to work.

10/07/2025

Let’s clear up a very common (and understandable!) confusion in the world of horse colors — the difference between a Medicine Hat and a Splash White.

These two patterns can look similar at first glance — both often have bold white markings and striking faces — but genetically and visually, they are very different!

🎩 Medicine Hat

A Medicine Hat isn’t a color or genetic pattern — it’s a very specific marking pattern and traditionally carries a lot of Native American symbolism.

A true Medicine Hat horse is almost completely white, with only color over the ears and sometimes a patch on the forehead or chest.
That “hat” of color over the ears is where the name comes from — it looks like the horse is wearing a hat!

Sometimes you’ll also hear of a “Shield” — a colored patch on the chest that was thought to protect the rider in battle.

Medicine Hat horses can be any color or pattern genetically (tobiano, sabino, splash, etc.), but the pattern placement is what makes them a Medicine Hat.

🧬 Genetics: Medicine Hat horses don’t have a unique gene — it’s simply the expression of existing white pattern genes (tobiano, overo, sabino, splash, or a combination) that leave color in that specific “hat” area.

💦 Splash White

The Splash White pattern is a genetically defined white spotting pattern — caused by specific mutations in the MITF and PAX3 genes.
Splash Whites typically look like they’ve been dipped feet-first into white paint.

They often have white legs, a large white blaze, and a bottom-heavy pattern (the white spreads upward from the legs and belly).

Many also have blue eyes and a crisp, even edge between colored and white areas — a classic “dipped” look.

The head and lower body are usually white, while the top line (back, mane, and tail area) stays darker.

🧬 Genetics: There are several identified Splash White variants (SW1, SW2, SW3, etc.), and a horse can carry one or more of them.

🔍 How to Tell Them Apart
Medicine Hat → Color only on the ears (and maybe chest but it is not connected to the rest of the head or neck); nearly all white otherwise.
Splash White → White primarily on the bottom half of the horse, like they were dipped in paint.
Medicine Hat = Placement, Splash White = Gene

🧠 Fun Fact
Some Medicine Hat horses can carry Splash White genetics — meaning a Splash White horse could be a Medicine Hat if the markings happen to fall in the right spots. But not all Splash Whites are Medicine Hats, and not all Medicine Hats carry the Splash gene!

No matter which they are, both patterns are absolutely stunning and steeped in fascinating history and genetics.

Have you ever met a true Medicine Hat or a Splash White horse? Drop a photo below — we’d love to see them! 📸👇

10/07/2025

💙 Gambit Update & Donation Link 💙

We’ve had so many people reach out asking how they can help support Gambit, and it honestly means the world. He’s a very special c**t — sweet, kind, and always trying his best — and it’s been so touching to see how many others have fallen in love with him too.

We’ve heard your requests for an easier way to donate, so we’ve added a direct link for anyone who’d like to contribute toward his care and ongoing needs. Every little bit helps — from advanced imaging and diagnostics, and potential life saving surgery, along with his recovery — and it all goes directly to helping this special boy continue to thrive.

❤️ Thank you to everyone who has sent messages, asked about him, or just shown kindness and interest in his journey. Gambit has quite the fan club, and we couldn’t be more grateful for your continued support.

Also know that this isn't just for Gambit - Gambit’s story reflects a challenge that every horse owner eventually faces: how to make difficult choices with the horse’s welfare at the center. Supporting this project ensures Gambit receives the best possible care while creating resources that can guide others through similar decisions.

Thank-you to Horse First Initiative for all the support.

👉https://donorbox.org/gambits-journey-a-horse-first-decisions-project

If you’ve met him, you already know why he’s captured so many hearts — and if you haven’t yet, stay tuned… we’ll keep sharing his updates and milestones along the way!

From the moment Gambit was born at Meadow Brook Stables in 2023, his name carried both hope and risk: A Tru Riskey Gambit. Like every foal, he was a leap of faith — full of promise and uncertainty. Now he faces one of the biggest challenges of his...

10/07/2025

✨ Meet the Horses Series ✨
Over the next month, we’ll be introducing you to our incredible herd—one horse at a time! This is your chance to get to know the personalities, quirks, and stories behind each of our equine family members.

🐴 Name:
Reg. Name: Dun Steele N Gunz
Barn Name: Steele
Nick Name: N/A

🩶 Color: Grulla Splash

📅 Age: April 1st, 2020 (5 YO)

💼 Occupation: Professional College Kid (away at boarding school learning how to be a great show horse)

✨ About Me:
Hi, I’m Steele! I was supposed to be a filly (according to my mum), but she fell in love with me anyways because I was so brave and bold from the moment I was born. She says I was the easiest baby to work with and she got to spend a lot of time with me because of COVID. I was supposed to be sold in utero but boy is she glad the sale never went through! I am also the first horse that MBS has sent to the US for training, Kaila sent me there hoping there would be a lot more opportunities for me down there then at home as they have the worlds best trainers and the biggest shows all very close to one another. The hope is that I’ll be able to “make a name” for myself and get some earnings before coming back home.

🎬 Show/Work History:
I was shown as a Yearling and Two Year Old in Halter, Longe Line and In Hand Trail. I also showed in the APHA World EShow and was a World Champion and Reserve World Champion.

🧑‍🧒‍🧒 About My Family:
My mum Prairie still lives at MBS along with my two sisters, Sol and Lulu. No foals for me yet - I’ve been told I have to go do “cool things” before I am allowed to breed.

🍎 Likes:
Naps (I seriously love a good nap in fresh shavings)
Grass (nothing tastes better than fresh grass)
Grain (I love me my grain - nom nom nom)

🚫 Dislikes:
Being inside (I have learnt to “deal” with it but am much happier outside with room to run and play)
Bugs (seriously why do they always try to bite the “goods”)
Being wrong (I try so hard and hate it when I don’t get the answer right)

💖 Fun Fact:
I grunt and squeal like a little pig when I am excited and am running and playing. I also knocked my front teeth out when I was a few months old … because why not.

10/07/2025

Day 198:

Today was Booster Day for our girl Easy — and she handled it like the total pro she is! She’s now protected from:

🌬️ Influenza (Flu): helps prevent respiratory infections that can spread quickly through barns.�🤧 Rhinopneumonitis (Rhino): protects against the equine herpes virus that can cause respiratory illness and neurological disease.�🦠 Tetanus: guards against the potentially fatal bacteria that can enter through cuts or puncture wounds.�🦟 Eastern & Western Encephalomyelitis (EEE & WEE): protect against mosquito-borne viruses that can cause serious inflammation of the brain and spinal cord.

In true Easy fashion, she was completely unbothered. The moment she spotted Dr. Rachel, she marched herself right up the hill, demanding her usual scritches and attention. She’s always loved her vet visits — especially when she was little and got her navel ultrasounded, because it felt like a big belly rub!

When it came time for her poke, Easy didn’t even flinch. Honestly, I probably didn’t even need to halter her. She got a Stud Muffin afterward, of course — not because she needed a distraction, but because we always like to turn something that could be negative into a positive experience. That’s how you build confident, happy horses who don’t dread vet days.

Many horses tense up or get nervous around the vet, often because they’ve learned to associate the visits with “bad” or painful experiences. But we’re incredibly lucky — our vets take their time, move at each horse’s comfort level, and really make an effort to build trust. It makes all the difference.

Easy’s all set for the year now, though we may do a little vitamin E blood test soon just to make sure everything is balanced for this growing girl.