Far from the main campus of Pierce College, horses are housed in the Equestrian Center waiting for the day to show off their hooves and neighs, and that day is near.
A new partnership is formed at this year’s Parade of Breeds that will be co-hosted by the Boots and Saddles club and the Pre-Vet club. The event will occur on Nov. 5 from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Pierce College Equestrian Center.
The event occurred every fall semester for the past eight years and originally hosted by the Boots and Saddles club. President of the Boots and Saddles club Ana Quintanilla said their advisor Patricia Warner started the event after she noticed that her students had difficulty recognizing breeds.
“Patty had this class and people couldn’t identify the difference between what an Quarter horse was compared to an Arabian, which are huge difference,” Quintanilla said. “So she made this event, which was on Wednesday nights and she had a few people bring their horses to show off the breed and the color.”
As time passed, the event grew and students and the community began to attend. The event has always been free and would attract between 300 to 500 people.
The Santa Monica Mounted Police will present the color guard and the national anthem prior to the start of the event.
“We don’t care if you kneel or stand. That’s our right as an American,” said Casey Cannon, vice president of the Boots and Saddles club.
The proceedings include two rounds and an intermission. During the first round, about 30-50 breeds with a variety of colors will walk through and spectators will attempt to guess each breed.
During intermission, there will be demonstrations that show off different disciplines of riding such as English, reigning, jumping, dressage, barrels, cart driving, trick roping, side saddle and more. ASO representative for the Boots and Saddles club Holly Ellingson will be running the demonstrations.
This year includes a petting zoo and children’s activities as well. The only cost during the event will be horse shoe decorating, which is $2.
“After demos are done, there is a second round where they come through and we announce what every breed was,” Quintanilla said. “So people, if they have their paper, they can say ‘Oh, I got this one wrong. Oh, I got this color right’ and stuff like that.”
People that participate in the event often come from two to five hours away and bring with them their privately-owned horses. The main purpose of the event is for people to learn something about horses that they didn’t know before, according to Cannon and Rama Ramakrishman, vice president of the Pre-Vet club.
“[People can expect] an educational experience to learn about horses, and meet with owners and find out about different breeds and their purposes,” Ramakrishman said. “You don’t see a lot of these breeds because they are very rare. Quarter horses are quite common, but horses like Friesian’s and Akhal-Teke’s and all these different breeds you don’t see often.”
Cannon expects people to enjoy themselves and to become more involved during the event.
“I want the community to have a good time,” Cannon said. “That’s the big thing; we are trying to market the farm and the ranch to the community.”
Cannon wants to see more students interested in the event and Ramakrishman hopes students know they can always join in.
“The horse program is open to anyone. Anyone can take a beginning riding class,” Ramakrishman said. “You don’t have to be someone with horse experience to be a part of the program.”