Transcripts
Today we're excited to welcome Katie Hunt of Shagbark
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Hickory Farm, where the healing power
of horses helps transform lives.
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We'll talk about the equine-assisted
therapy, the unique bond between
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humans and horses, and how
these incredible animals support
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emotional growth, confidence, and
well-being for people of all ages
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hi, Katie.
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Katie: Thank you for having me.
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Dixie: I am super excited to learn
all about Shagbark Hickory Farm.
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Tell me what you do.
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Katie: So I do equine therapy.
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My mother actually started our farm over
50 years ago, and she basically started
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it as a boarding and lesson facility.
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She always loved horses, and she
went up and down her street in South
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Windsor looking for horses to ride.
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And then when she got married she came
here and started her farm basically.
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And then I grew up here as well
and had horses in my backyard.
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I was lucky to have that.
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And basically we are both special ed
teachers by trade, and it was a hobby.
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They've always been here and like
I said, my mother started teaching.
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And then about 2018, I turned
it into a nonprofit to be able
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to do some fundraising and some
grants and things like that.
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And I expanded our programs for the
equine therapy, and then took our special
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ed backgrounds and just morphed it into
with the horses and things like that.
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So I do what I love with our horses.
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And we just found how the horses can
really help these students with autism
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and anxiety and even the cerebral palsy
kids that even have some physical needs
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can just, I don't have the physical
therapy part of it, but the students
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and our, and the parents will come back
and say, "Oh, the doctors have said
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how much they have improved with their
physical mobility," and things like that.
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And some of the anxiety students will
come, and they don't wanna socialize
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with their peers here at the farm.
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They've said that they've had a bad day
or they've had a fight with their parents.
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And so I'll just say why don't
you go brush one of the horses
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in their stall by themselves?"
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And they'll emerge from the
stall like within 20 minutes, and
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I'm like, "Do you feel better?"
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And they are like, "Yes, we do."
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And so I kinda said
horses do fix everything."
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We also have a homeschool program.
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I think our homeschool pro-
program is sometimes bigger
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than just our community lessons.
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We have probably 20 to
25 homeschool students.
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That doesn't include all the
siblings and their parents.
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And then the community lesson program.
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We also have a pre preschool program
that's from two to five years old.
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And we probably have about five to
seven of those on a weekly basis.
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And then we also have connected with a
program in town that's a boys' school
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where it's a residential program,
and they come here also on a weekly
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basis three kids at a time, basically.
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So yeah, that's just-- I
found my niche, if you will.
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Dixie: Yeah, that sounds very interesting.
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I certainly would like to
learn more about all of those.
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Before we get into that though,
I'd like to talk about your name a
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little bit because you do have the
name Farm, so do you do any farming
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outside of just caring for the horses?
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Katie: No, it's basically just the horses.
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It is named after a tree here on the farm.
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We have a very large shagbark
hickory tree, and we did have
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a gentleman stop just randomly
probably about seven years ago.
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I think he just noticed the size
of the tree and how large it is.
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And he had said that it was,
like, within the top 10 in
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Connecticut of the shagbark trees.
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And he hasn't been back since, but
he did kinda say that it was in his
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top 10 if you will, of trees that he
was measuring and keeping an eye on.
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So my parents when they-- like I
said, when they moved here, they,
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that's how they named the farm.
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Dixie: Oh, that's pretty cool.
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Katie: Yeah
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… Dixie: when your parents started it, did
they use any of the horses for therapy?
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Or was it more so that you
just had a love for the horses?
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Katie: It's a love for the horses.
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So they did back then so that
was like, in the '70s and '80s.
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I don't know that it was
a therapy thing back then.
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It was just a love for the horse, and
that's how actually we even just kinda,
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our m- mission, if you will, grew, was
just giving the love of the horse to
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those that can't afford it as well.
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So although we do the therapy piece,
we also just want to share the
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love of the horse with those that
can't have them in their backyard.
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Or a lot of times some of the kids will
ride here and say, "Mommy, Daddy, we
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wanna have a horse," and we tell them no.
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It's a lot of work.
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There's a lot that goes into
having horses themselves.
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They're a tricky animal.
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For starters you don't wanna have to
take care of them, and we're gonna have
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90-degree weather and heat in- heat
indexes up until 100 this coming week.
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And horses can't throw up.
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They get colic instead.
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And if you don't know that as a, a veteran
horse person you can't just throw them
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in your backyard and call it a day.
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So it, there's a lot that goes into them.
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So part of our mission for, or how it
even started when we became a nonprofit
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was to give that love of the horse
to those that either can't afford it
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or just don't have enough knowledge.
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Dixie: How many horses do you have?
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Katie: So it's been an interesting year.
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So if you didn't know, 2026
is the Year of the Horse.
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We have 10.
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That is the most that we've
ever-- I shouldn't say that.
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That's the most we've ever had in,
since we've become a nonprofit.
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My mother, when she was boarding
back when, had the most was 17.
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10 right now is the most
we've had in a very long time.
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Going back to what I was saying about it's
been an interesting year I used to say
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that the most we could ever have was nine.
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We lost one that we had
for a couple of years.
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Part of our mission is to take in the
semi-retired horse and use them in
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our program, but also to give these
horses a home that they can call
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their home until God calls them home.
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So the average age of our horses are
in their 20s, and so one of the horses
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she was suffering from a bladder stone
for the last year or so, and so we had
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to make the difficult decision to put
her down, and that was in January-ish.
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And so then another horse came along
that we thought was going to fit into our
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program, and he was only here for a month.
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It was a very sad and disturbing story.
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I didn't kinda know what
God's plan was really.
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I've decided that He brought him here
so that we could send him on home to
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to be home because he was just here
for a month, and he too had some kind
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of tumor inside he showed signs of
colic for about a week o-off and on,
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and then finally when the vet came,
he had a baseball-sized tumor inside,
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and then he too had to be put down.
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And then finally, we just got a
new one this week, and he seems
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to be good and healthy and will
be wonderful for our program.
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So hopefully we have a good solid
herd now, and we can use them in
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our programs and things like that.
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But again, most of them out
there are in their mid-20s, and
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a few of them are in their teens.
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Where
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Dixie: do you get these
semi-retired horses from?
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Katie: I would say God
opens those doors as well.
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Most of them are given to us.
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My daughter just found this last one.
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She just became a vet tech for our
horse vet that we've had for over 30
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years, and she was on a call, and this
client was looking for a home for him
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because he wasn't fitting in into the
boarding situation that he was in.
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And she wanted him to have a job.
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She's looking to get a new horse
herself, and he wasn't getting, the
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care and the riding that he needed.
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So she wants him to be
busy and have a job.
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He's only 16, so he certainly
has a lot of life ahead of him.
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So he'll fit right in here where he's not
getting too much work, but just enough.
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That's why we call them semi-retired.
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And basically they all just
kinda knock on our door, really.
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I don't go looking for them.
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Dixie: It's like cat people where
the cats just find you, right?
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Katie: Exactly.
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Yes.
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That's a very good analogy.
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Yes.
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I don't go looking for them.
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They find us.
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Dixie: Oh, that's funny.
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Katie: Yes.
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Dixie: With the equine therapy, I
know nothing about equine therapy, so-
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Katie: Okay
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… Dixie: tell me about it in a nutshell.
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What does it involve?
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Katie: Like I said before, It's just
that love of the horse and the horse,
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and the bond between the horse and the
rider, or the horse and the student.
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The horse really does know when somebody's
having a bad day, and it can't be hidden.
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Their heartbeats will
regulate with our heartbeats.
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So if they're really nervous and their
heartbeats are really high, like the horse
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will get really nervous and vice versa.
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And when that student goes into
the stall and just, starts brushing
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them and breathing and, it'll
regulate and calm them down as well.
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There's that piece of it
that just calms them down.
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And then there are riders also
who they too don't know that
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they're uptight or they're nervous.
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They'll tell me, "I'm fine.
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There's nothing wrong with me.
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I'm fine."
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And the horse is just like really
agitated, and I'm like, "You're not fine."
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And so we go through that breathing
and that you need to settle down.
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You're not okay, and the horse
is not okay, so you need to
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settle down for the horse's sake.
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And so it's that team, that
teaming up that they do as well,
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and that just works together.
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So there's that piece.
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That's what we do here.
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There is equine therapy where
they team up with a therapist.
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It's not really what we do here,
but we just use the horse to
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help with the anxiety, the ADHD.
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I do have students here that have
cerebral palsy, that kind of thing.
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My adults come here after work and
just say, one of them just told me
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this week where she was she goes,
"I drive down the road and I see the
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farm, and it all just melts away."
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And that's why I do what I do.
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Dixie: Yeah, that's amazing.
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Now, when you say the horse is
agitated and that's when you can
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tell if a person is nervous, how do
you know- … the horse is agitated?
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What are the signs that
the horse gives you?
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Katie: So I've seen this in both ways.
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One person will get off, the same
horse, one person will get off and,
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or ride rather, and the horse is
like just walking around and being
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slow and just being like, do-do.
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And then the person that's , not having a
great day or has things on their mind, and
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that person'll get on and all of a sudden
they're like walking real fast, and their
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head is high, and they're look, they're
looking around at their surroundings.
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And it's "Yeah, you're not okay."
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I do have couple, two horses probably out
there that they themselves have anxiety,
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so they look to their people to tell
them that it's okay, that they don't
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need to go fast or, that kind of stuff.
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So if they're an anxious rider,
they're going to make him more anxious.
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And so we've paired them up.
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The funny thing is I have a homeschooler
who is an anxious person, but she can
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ride Chevy very well and make him settled.
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And both of us have said that's
really strange," but it really works.
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And so I think that's very good for her
as an anxious person that she can ride
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him and make him chill out a little bit.
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Dixie: When you said that the horse's
heartbeats will regulate with a person's
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heartbeats and they feed on the energy,
is that an observation that you made
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or is that something that's documented?
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Katie: That's documented.
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Dixie: Yeah.
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That's very interesting because I always
tell people when you're dealing with, even
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just like cats and dogs I do cats, and
I notice that, and I always tell people,
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cats always feed off of your energy if
you are nervous, they're gonna be nervous.
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If you're anxious- … they're anxious.
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If you're calm, they're calm.
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They know when you're upset.
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They know when you're happy.
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And a lot- … of people don't
believe that, and they don't
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understand that when you say that.
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So it's very interesting that has
been documented with the horses
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because it's something that you
see with all animals really.
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Katie: Exactly.
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I agree.
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Yes.
227
00:13:20,293 --> 00:13:22,893
No, but it has definitely
been documented, yes.
228
00:13:22,933 --> 00:13:28,353
I can't give you the reference, but I'm
sure if you Google it, you'll find it too,
229
00:13:28,353 --> 00:13:30,533
but it definitely has been documented.
230
00:13:32,919 --> 00:13:36,649
Dixie: When you do the equine
therapy, is it like a field trip?
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00:13:36,769 --> 00:13:40,409
Do people make appointments to
come over, or do they just come?
232
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Do they come as a group?
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00:13:43,069 --> 00:13:45,449
Katie: So we basically,
we do it by appointments.
234
00:13:45,459 --> 00:13:48,459
I teach on Wednesdays
basically and Saturday.
235
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Wednesday afternoons in the spring
semester and in the fall semester
236
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Saturday mornings, and then
we have camp sessions as well.
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And we do it in a group setting basically.
238
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And then I'm very flexible, so I
try to be as flexible as I can with
239
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everybody's schedule and my own as well.
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Dixie: And where do you find the
people that you invite to come
241
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over to do the equine therapy?
242
00:14:16,543 --> 00:14:18,753
Katie: Word of mouth has been wonderful.
243
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Facebook has been wonderful as well.
244
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But yeah, basically I would
say Facebook and word of mouth
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Dixie: And is this something
that's free of charge for people?
246
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Katie: So no, at this point we
are charging, but I also work on
247
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a sliding scale if we need to.
248
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I have done different community services.
249
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We had our town police department
come for this kind of thing last fall.
250
00:14:45,573 --> 00:14:46,593
September fall.
251
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And we plan on doing that again.
252
00:14:48,773 --> 00:14:50,943
We have a pony his name is Snickers.
253
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He's very popular.
254
00:14:52,593 --> 00:14:55,833
He's gone to different events.
255
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We've taken him to the nursing homes.
256
00:14:57,643 --> 00:15:01,393
Those events can be free of
charge and things like that.
257
00:15:01,403 --> 00:15:06,763
So it depends on the circumstances,
but we try to work things
258
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out because it, it is…
259
00:15:09,423 --> 00:15:12,413
10 horses are, there's a
high cost to all of that.
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Dixie: When you take Snickers out to
the nursing home, how does that work?
261
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Katie: So we've taken
him quite a few times.
262
00:15:21,333 --> 00:15:25,953
We have taken him where the
residents come, of the nursing
263
00:15:25,953 --> 00:15:27,853
home come out to see him.
264
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We've dressed him up for 4th of July.
265
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We've dressed him up for Valentine's
Day, different things like that.
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And, we bring him to the nursing
home, and they come out and see him.
267
00:15:38,323 --> 00:15:42,583
And we've walked him right through the
middle of the nursing home as well.
268
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So I have a beautiful picture of Snickers
going right up to the bed of one of
269
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the residents 'cause she was bed bound.
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Dixie: Oh, that's amazing.
271
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I can't imagine-
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Katie: Yeah … what
273
00:15:53,073 --> 00:15:55,123
Dixie: kind of impact
that it has for them.
274
00:15:55,523 --> 00:15:56,183
Katie: Yeah.
275
00:15:56,213 --> 00:15:57,053
It's wonderful.
276
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And at home, he's a pony, and I don't
know if you've ever heard this, but
277
00:16:01,583 --> 00:16:06,683
ponies can be very persnickety and
can sometimes be a little bratty.
278
00:16:07,053 --> 00:16:13,043
But-- And at home, he's definitely that,
but he knows his job, and he knows when he
279
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needs to turn that off and just sit still.
280
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And he does.
281
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It's amazing.
282
00:16:20,283 --> 00:16:24,893
Dixie: What was the aha moment when
you decided that you were going to
283
00:16:24,893 --> 00:16:28,733
go from just having the farm with
the horses to the equine therapy?
284
00:16:29,266 --> 00:16:31,836
Katie: I don't know that
there was an aha moment.
285
00:16:31,876 --> 00:16:36,126
It just evolved into such things.
286
00:16:36,206 --> 00:16:41,106
I think there was an aha moment
turning it into the nonprofit.
287
00:16:41,536 --> 00:16:45,426
We needed to definitely do some,
like the fundraising and the grants
288
00:16:45,436 --> 00:16:47,116
writing and things like that.
289
00:16:47,426 --> 00:16:54,106
And then it became not more of a job,
but okay, what programs can I do next?
290
00:16:54,106 --> 00:16:55,226
What can I work on next?
291
00:16:55,256 --> 00:16:57,436
And so that's where the evolving came.
292
00:16:57,936 --> 00:17:05,376
And then I just, the more things
evolve in the world, if you will, I
293
00:17:05,396 --> 00:17:09,836
don't know that I could ever go back
to public school teaching, and I get
294
00:17:09,836 --> 00:17:14,866
the best of both worlds here, where
I can teach, and I can teach with my
295
00:17:14,866 --> 00:17:17,286
horses, and I couldn't be happier.
296
00:17:18,118 --> 00:17:19,969
When you do your homeschooling,
297
00:17:19,979 --> 00:17:23,299
Dixie: do you have the horses
as a part of the curriculum?
298
00:17:24,469 --> 00:17:25,329
Katie: Absolutely.
299
00:17:25,329 --> 00:17:29,969
So we're not homeschooling in where we're
teaching reading, writing, and math.
300
00:17:30,009 --> 00:17:33,489
They come here, and you had asked
about the farming piece of it.
301
00:17:33,849 --> 00:17:35,849
They're caretaking for the horses.
302
00:17:35,859 --> 00:17:36,639
They're helping.
303
00:17:36,919 --> 00:17:40,939
They're learning how to clean the barn
and take care of the horses, and our
304
00:17:40,939 --> 00:17:45,259
philosophy is the horses come first,
and they put the horses out, and so
305
00:17:45,259 --> 00:17:50,189
they do about a, they're here from
9:00 to 12:00 on a Thursday morning.
306
00:17:50,209 --> 00:17:52,119
And so we do that.
307
00:17:52,149 --> 00:17:56,309
And then like I said, there's about
20 of them, and so we divide them
308
00:17:56,309 --> 00:18:00,329
up about who's gonna ride who and
we use four or five of the horses.
309
00:18:00,649 --> 00:18:05,689
And then the older kids help the
younger kids, and then we ride for,
310
00:18:06,079 --> 00:18:10,959
from 10:00 to 12:00, and the bigger
kids walk the younger kids, and I teach.
311
00:18:11,489 --> 00:18:15,739
And they teach essentially too, if
they're walking the horses, they get,
312
00:18:15,749 --> 00:18:17,749
they have to do some teaching as well.
313
00:18:18,119 --> 00:18:21,899
And then we untack them, and we
put them all away, and they have
314
00:18:21,899 --> 00:18:25,989
to hay and water the horses and
make sure everybody's all set.
315
00:18:25,999 --> 00:18:28,239
Nobody can be like, "My
parents here, I gotta go."
316
00:18:28,279 --> 00:18:28,639
Nope.
317
00:18:28,759 --> 00:18:30,009
The horses come first.
318
00:18:30,499 --> 00:18:32,969
Are the horses all set
before you run out the door?
319
00:18:33,629 --> 00:18:40,109
And so they have to get that full
experience of I take care of my
320
00:18:40,109 --> 00:18:41,579
horse and that kind of thing.
321
00:18:41,909 --> 00:18:44,839
Going back to, "Mommy,
Daddy, can I have a horse?"
322
00:18:44,839 --> 00:18:47,179
If you are gonna have a horse
someday when you're an adult,
323
00:18:47,189 --> 00:18:49,199
this is what it's going to entail.
324
00:18:51,067 --> 00:18:54,697
Dixie: Yeah, that's great that they're
able to go out and learn that kind of
325
00:18:54,697 --> 00:18:59,097
stuff, 'cause I think that's what we need
more of, is people teaching about animals.
326
00:18:59,357 --> 00:19:00,767
I would- And responsibility.
327
00:19:00,777 --> 00:19:02,057
Yes, definitely.
328
00:19:02,067 --> 00:19:06,267
Definitely, because, I think
people have this idea that they can
329
00:19:06,267 --> 00:19:09,257
just get an animal, and it's even
like that with a cat and a dog.
330
00:19:09,307 --> 00:19:11,817
There's no thought into going
into it a lot of the times.
331
00:19:11,817 --> 00:19:14,057
They'll just be like, "Okay,
let's-" "… get an animal today."
332
00:19:14,777 --> 00:19:20,267
And- Yes … then they end up making
that animal disposable in a sense
333
00:19:20,267 --> 00:19:23,467
because they're not ready for the
responsibility of having an animal.
334
00:19:24,417 --> 00:19:25,287
Katie: I agree with you.
335
00:19:25,327 --> 00:19:25,847
Yes.
336
00:19:27,297 --> 00:19:28,187
Absolutely.
337
00:19:28,977 --> 00:19:33,830
And even the preschoolers, so that's on a
Friday morning, that's from 9:00 to 10:00.
338
00:19:33,830 --> 00:19:38,067
Yes, they're two to five years old,
but I try to give them a little chore,
339
00:19:38,077 --> 00:19:42,317
whether it's kicking the shavings
around, all seven of them cleaning one
340
00:19:42,487 --> 00:19:46,997
stall and, no, it's not perfect, but,
cleaning the stall, and then brushing
341
00:19:46,997 --> 00:19:49,217
their horse, and it's one horse.
342
00:19:49,347 --> 00:19:50,697
They're sharing one horse.
343
00:19:50,797 --> 00:19:53,197
The rest of them are
playing in the play area.
344
00:19:53,627 --> 00:19:57,837
They're taking turns, that kind of thing,
so they're learning that, sharing is
345
00:19:57,837 --> 00:20:02,897
caring, and then they're all untacking the
horse and all of that afterwards as well.
346
00:20:03,347 --> 00:20:08,607
They're starting as young as two, two
to five years old at that point as well.
347
00:20:10,207 --> 00:20:14,357
Dixie: Yeah, that's great, and when you
reach them that young, and even just
348
00:20:14,357 --> 00:20:19,207
reaching the children in general, I find
that it almost helps to educate the adults
349
00:20:19,207 --> 00:20:24,617
as well because the kids- go home, and
they tell their parents everything, and
350
00:20:24,617 --> 00:20:28,107
if the parents come up with something
else, they're gonna argue with them and
351
00:20:28,107 --> 00:20:30,017
say, "No, this is what you need to do."
352
00:20:31,107 --> 00:20:31,767
Katie: I agree.
353
00:20:31,807 --> 00:20:32,367
Yes.
354
00:20:32,607 --> 00:20:33,167
Yes.
355
00:20:35,557 --> 00:20:39,097
Dixie: Do you have any success
stories that you would like to share?
356
00:20:42,015 --> 00:20:44,735
Katie: I was just gonna say that
from the preschoolers, I've had
357
00:20:44,735 --> 00:20:49,395
many preschoolers start in preschool
and then just work their way
358
00:20:49,395 --> 00:20:52,075
up, , into our programs for sure.
359
00:20:52,375 --> 00:20:58,135
I do have a bunch of girls that
are now 30 and have been here…
360
00:20:58,495 --> 00:21:01,665
we didn't have preschool back
when they started but nonetheless,
361
00:21:02,005 --> 00:21:05,665
they have started when they were,
six, seven or eight, and then they
362
00:21:05,665 --> 00:21:07,475
have been here and are still here.
363
00:21:07,785 --> 00:21:11,485
And now they're anywhere
from 25 to 30 years old.
364
00:21:11,765 --> 00:21:15,815
But my, one of my other girls who
has been here I think she's going
365
00:21:15,815 --> 00:21:19,445
on her third or fourth year, her
name is Hailey and she has cerebral
366
00:21:19,445 --> 00:21:23,565
palsy and she just loves coming here.
367
00:21:23,575 --> 00:21:25,205
Her legs are in braces.
368
00:21:25,515 --> 00:21:30,995
She almost runs when she walks and she's,
unstable, but she gets on one of our
369
00:21:30,995 --> 00:21:34,415
horses named Wyatt, who again, he knows.
370
00:21:34,755 --> 00:21:36,175
He knows it's her.
371
00:21:36,275 --> 00:21:40,685
He knows he's, he needs to behave
because if it, any of us got on
372
00:21:40,685 --> 00:21:42,905
him, he might give us a hard time.
373
00:21:42,905 --> 00:21:48,235
But he knows it's her and he stands
still, and the girls walk her around and
374
00:21:48,245 --> 00:21:51,215
the dad helps, walk, be a side walker.
375
00:21:51,595 --> 00:21:58,085
And the smile on that girl's face when
she rides and she just, "I ride Wyatt.
376
00:21:58,205 --> 00:22:00,825
I ride Wyatt," the whole
time she goes around.
377
00:22:01,375 --> 00:22:05,485
And she's one also that the grandmother
has said that the doctors have come
378
00:22:05,485 --> 00:22:09,425
back and said, her core has gotten
stronger and things like that.
379
00:22:09,425 --> 00:22:13,555
But again, just the joy to
watch her ride is amazing.
380
00:22:14,045 --> 00:22:18,865
And so there are many stories like that
I could share, but she's one that sticks
381
00:22:18,865 --> 00:22:21,525
out just because she's just so happy.
382
00:22:22,035 --> 00:22:27,915
And I also work with just real quick a
36-year-old young lady who has autism,
383
00:22:27,975 --> 00:22:29,815
and she's been with me for many years.
384
00:22:29,845 --> 00:22:34,055
And that young lady feeds my horses
every night, brings them in and
385
00:22:34,055 --> 00:22:39,465
out every day, and she's just
amazing as well with the horses.
386
00:22:40,595 --> 00:22:40,775
Dixie: Yeah.
387
00:22:40,775 --> 00:22:43,915
That, it's really beautiful,
it really is, to hear that it's
388
00:22:43,925 --> 00:22:45,695
having such an impact on them.
389
00:22:46,685 --> 00:22:47,315
Katie: Yes.
390
00:22:47,325 --> 00:22:47,665
Yeah.
391
00:22:47,665 --> 00:22:48,645
It's wonderful.
392
00:22:48,735 --> 00:22:51,155
It's why I love what I do.
393
00:22:51,235 --> 00:22:51,675
Dixie: Yeah.
394
00:22:51,675 --> 00:22:55,755
Now let me ask you too, the students
that you're getting, are these people
395
00:22:55,795 --> 00:23:00,025
or are these children that have a love
for animals and wanna explore it more?
396
00:23:00,025 --> 00:23:03,785
Or is it something more that the
parents wanna instill this in them?
397
00:23:05,505 --> 00:23:07,815
Katie: I would have to say
it's a little bit of both.
398
00:23:07,865 --> 00:23:10,705
I've had both happen.
399
00:23:10,705 --> 00:23:15,655
I've had both parents call me
and say "My," "my child loves
400
00:23:15,675 --> 00:23:20,295
animals with or without, those
kind of severities of disabilities.
401
00:23:20,615 --> 00:23:23,105
And so I wanna see
what's going to happen."
402
00:23:23,115 --> 00:23:28,335
I've had parents call or text me and
say, "I've heard that horses can be
403
00:23:28,335 --> 00:23:31,025
good with children with disabilities.
404
00:23:31,075 --> 00:23:32,475
Can we give this a try?"
405
00:23:32,785 --> 00:23:33,805
That kind of thing.
406
00:23:34,005 --> 00:23:39,175
And then I've just had, your typical
horse girl where the parents call and say,
407
00:23:39,185 --> 00:23:41,055
"My kid can't stop talking about horses.
408
00:23:41,055 --> 00:23:41,955
Can we come visit?"
409
00:23:44,509 --> 00:23:47,039
So it's been, across
the board kind of thing.
410
00:23:47,919 --> 00:23:51,679
Dixie: And how far do people normally
have to travel to get to your farm?
411
00:23:53,259 --> 00:23:56,859
Katie: We're in Connecticut, so all of
Connecticut is about a two-hour drive.
412
00:23:57,299 --> 00:23:59,599
So most of them are pretty local.
413
00:23:59,829 --> 00:24:05,289
I've, I have had probably a handful that
may have come from about an hour away.
414
00:24:05,389 --> 00:24:06,959
But I feel bad for that.
415
00:24:07,009 --> 00:24:09,559
I wouldn't travel an
hour away to get here.
416
00:24:09,989 --> 00:24:13,749
Not a lot have stuck around
for an hour drive away.
417
00:24:13,999 --> 00:24:18,799
And here, there, there are quite a
few either horse farms in general
418
00:24:18,809 --> 00:24:23,659
or even equine therapy places that
somebody could find something closer
419
00:24:26,247 --> 00:24:27,427
Dixie: That's very interesting.
420
00:24:27,427 --> 00:24:32,157
I loved learning about all of this because
like I said, I knew nothing about equine
421
00:24:32,227 --> 00:24:38,547
therapy, and to hear that these animals
are making such a difference in these
422
00:24:38,547 --> 00:24:42,287
people's lives, and then I would imagine
that it's the same, that these people are
423
00:24:42,287 --> 00:24:45,207
making a difference for the horses, too.
424
00:24:45,977 --> 00:24:46,457
Katie: Yes.
425
00:24:46,497 --> 00:24:47,817
Dixie: Yeah … it's truly amazing.
426
00:24:48,927 --> 00:24:49,307
Katie: Yes.
427
00:24:49,337 --> 00:24:51,767
And, why be out in a field doing nothing?
428
00:24:51,777 --> 00:24:54,027
We actually do have one…
429
00:24:54,567 --> 00:24:55,817
I shouldn't say young horse.
430
00:24:55,817 --> 00:24:57,027
I was gonna say young lady.
431
00:24:57,057 --> 00:24:58,717
She's probably our second oldest horse.
432
00:24:58,717 --> 00:25:00,817
She's 26 years old.
433
00:25:00,817 --> 00:25:01,917
She's a Thoroughbred.
434
00:25:02,267 --> 00:25:07,927
And she came to us a year ago
or so, and the same situation.
435
00:25:07,957 --> 00:25:12,197
She was owned by an 18-year-old who
couldn't afford two horses, and the
436
00:25:12,197 --> 00:25:16,567
trainer, her trainer the young lady's
trainer was like, "Oh, take her."
437
00:25:16,567 --> 00:25:18,357
And I was, I tried really hard to say no.
438
00:25:19,007 --> 00:25:21,847
You were asking me earlier
how they come to me.
439
00:25:22,137 --> 00:25:23,527
I tried really hard to say no.
440
00:25:24,007 --> 00:25:26,137
And I said, "She looks
like she's comfortable.
441
00:25:26,137 --> 00:25:27,647
She looks like she's settled.
442
00:25:27,967 --> 00:25:29,787
She looks like she's nice and retired."
443
00:25:29,787 --> 00:25:30,807
And the trainer was…
444
00:25:31,267 --> 00:25:34,977
said to me "No, she's got some
life left in her," and, her
445
00:25:34,977 --> 00:25:36,447
student couldn't afford her.
446
00:25:36,447 --> 00:25:38,267
And I said, "Okay, fine."
447
00:25:38,267 --> 00:25:42,287
I was afraid that the horse was gonna
get bounced around from one retirement
448
00:25:42,297 --> 00:25:45,947
home to another retirement home,
and I didn't want her to do that.
449
00:25:45,957 --> 00:25:46,927
I said, "I'll take her."
450
00:25:48,597 --> 00:25:49,367
She's here.
451
00:25:49,377 --> 00:25:52,167
And as you were saying, I think it's good.
452
00:25:52,167 --> 00:25:53,177
She likes to work.
453
00:25:53,177 --> 00:25:54,227
She loves the kids.
454
00:25:54,237 --> 00:25:59,957
She's getting tons and tons of love and
attention, so I think it worked out best,
455
00:25:59,967 --> 00:26:02,797
and she won't get, bounced around from…
456
00:26:02,797 --> 00:26:07,347
And I don't know that would've been true,
but I was afraid that, because of the
457
00:26:07,347 --> 00:26:12,057
financial situation, that she would've
just gotten, tossed here or tossed there.
458
00:26:12,057 --> 00:26:14,257
And so now we know that she's here.
459
00:26:16,019 --> 00:26:19,919
Dixie: Before we end the call, can you
tell people how they can connect with
460
00:26:19,919 --> 00:26:21,779
you or learn more about your farm?
461
00:26:22,829 --> 00:26:23,659
Katie: Absolutely.
462
00:26:23,669 --> 00:26:27,909
We're definitely on Facebook and
it's just clearly under Shagbark
463
00:26:27,909 --> 00:26:32,619
Hickory Farm, or you can even connect
with me on Facebook at Katie Hunt.
464
00:26:33,059 --> 00:26:37,069
The best way to get in touch with
me is through my cell phone which
465
00:26:37,069 --> 00:26:41,979
is texting through 860-849-3868.
466
00:26:42,449 --> 00:26:48,409
We've got some, a fundraiser coming up
for our second annual golf tournament
467
00:26:48,409 --> 00:26:54,039
coming up on July 25th that we're excited
about, so we're getting ready for that.
468
00:26:54,309 --> 00:26:59,529
And you can learn more about that
on Facebook and texting me directly.
469
00:26:59,809 --> 00:27:02,469
And yeah, those are the best
ways to get ahold of us.
470
00:27:03,359 --> 00:27:06,699
Dixie: Thanks so much for joining me
today and sharing your love of horses.
471
00:27:06,699 --> 00:27:08,359
I really enjoyed hearing about all this.
472
00:27:09,459 --> 00:27:10,609
Katie: Yes, this was wonderful.
473
00:27:10,619 --> 00:27:11,569
Thanks for reaching out.
474
00:27:11,569 --> 00:27:13,019
I really appreciate it.
