Grecia Figueroa / Special to the Roundup
A dusty arena. A chilly breeze. The morning sunrays are weak and unable to warm the air. But they are powerful enough to make even the smallest hair on every horse in the barn glow intensely.
This scene has repeated itself every morning at dawn at the Pierce College farm, where 18 male horses have made of this place their home. It will repeat itself again this summer, this time hundreds of miles away, because they are leaving to go to Yosemite National Park.
Even though Pierce takes care of the horses during the school year implementing them in the Horse Science Program, the horses are owned by the Frontier Pack Train (FPT). This company offers camping trips in the Sierra Mountains, and takes the horses back every summer to bring them along on the camping trails.
“The horses leave during the summer because we do not own them, they have a job at the Pack Station during the summer,” said Paddy Warner, director of the Pierce College Equestrian Center and assistant professor.
The horses left for Yosemite on May 19.
They have to go away around this time of the year because the FPT camping programs start on late May and early June. They have to prepare the horses for the 3-4 day trips they will be making. These camping adventures end in August, just in time for the new fall semester, when they will be transferred back to Pierce.
“The horses are sent to Pierce College because we use them for classes and they [FPT] are not using them,” said Warner.
The Horse Science Program offers horseback riding classes that utilize the horses as their main tool for practice. However, since they will be gone before the semester is over some students are displeased with the situation.
“I’m disappointed, and frustrated as well, because we are still expected to attend class and we can’t ride the horses anymore,” said Charisse Segee, a horseback riding student.
Other students from the horseback riding class expressed their frustration saying they wish the animals could be leaving after finals because they took the class to ride horses, and now they won’t be able to do so.
Not only Animal Science students seem to be upset, even former student Andrea Neira referred to this as an unfortunate situation.
“The horses are a Pierce emblem, we drive by campus and it’s nice to see them as well as to be able visit them from time to time,” said Neira.
On the other hand, there are students that believe this is great for these animals, and strongly support their departure.
“I rather see them in the mountains than here. Horses like to work, and they can run wild in the trails they take them on,” said Jarred Whitaker, a horticulture student who was raised around horses.
Jeff Micka, another horticulture student also shared his support saying that it’s ok they leave during the summer as long as they come back.
“If it’s their choice to take them back during the summer, that’s fine. It will be good for the horses to be out there,” said Micka.
Although this has created mixed feelings among students, it’s clear the horses are essential for the Animal Science Programs. The classes provided by Pierce College are very attractive to people who wish to learn more about Equine Sciences.
The horseback riding classes are offered every semester, and its per-unit low cost lessons makes it a great opportunity to learn how to ride horses as well as providing proper care for them.
The Equestrian Center offers classes such as Equine Health and First Aid, Animal Nutrition, Horse Husbandry and next semester there will be a new Horse Show Management class taught by Paddy Warner and Ron Wechsler, instructor of agriculture.
According to Dr. Leland Shapiro, director of the Pre-Veterinary Science Program, classes during the summer are not provided due to the low budget, therefore there is no need to have the horses in Pierce. The school has not had its own horses on campus for several years.
“We [the Agriculture Department] used to board student, staff and faculty horses on campus all year long,” said Shapiro.
“We hope we will again be able to do so. This will bring in needed capital for our program,” added Shapiro.
“More importantly teach our students the business of horse boarding and management.”
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Marshall, one of the 18 male horses leaving to Yosemite National Park, approaches the fence to greet two vistors on the Pierce College Farm. The symbols of the farm left on May 19 for the national park in northern California. (Grecia Figueroa / Special to the Roundup)
