Trail Rides and Sleigh Rides
Anyone who has spent any significant amount of time around horses knows that they are happiest when they are "worked". They have a need to feel useful and often times will want to do more than they can physically do without hurting themselves. We will not allow this to happen to our animals here at the CHARM Farm, however, we will have our horses involved in the day to day operations of the Farm as well as taking shorter Trail Rides near the Farm to partake in activities like bird watching and scenery viewing since we are located very close to North America's oldest Bird Sanctuary, just off the shore of the beautiful Last Mountain Lake.
Horses that are not physically capable of carrying riders or are not healthy will not be forced into a situation where they must work to earn their keep, but those who can work will be given ample opportunity to do so. There may also be opportunity to take part in short cattle drives as we assist our neighbours in moving their cattle herds from one pasture to the next.
We will also be offering hay rides on wagons in the summer and sleighs in the winter. Some of the horses we are getting in are "draft" horse breeds. These animals will be in later years in many cases when they get here and won't be expected to work as hard as they did when they were in their prime, but they won't simply be put out to pasture to decline if they are still capable of doing lighter tasks. The older horses are also an invaluable asset when training younger animals to work in the harness and will be rewarded with exceptional living conditions, top quality feed and the TLC that they are deserving of. They will not be allowed to work if they are not capable or if it will do them harm, however, in many cases it is more harmful to them to not let them pull a light load from time to time.
As always, the animals that perform this valuable service to the public will receive the utmost in care and grooming. They love to interact with people (in most cases) and will be given whatever they need to make them healthy - both physically and emotionally (usually referred to as "tempermentally").
