Photo courtesy ELLIS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY. The Interior of Wiesner’s Department Store, 1915. From Left to right are C. Schlyer, Leo G. Wiesner, A.A. Wiesner and Agatha Schuetz.
Couple not horsing around
By KAREN MIKOLS
About a dozen years ago when Marion Schmidt retired, he picked up a little hobby -- miniature horses.
Little did the Hays man know the hobby would grow into a farm where tour and school groups would visit.
"The first time I saw a miniature horse, the two things that went through my head was, 'This is beyond belief. Is this horse gonna grow?' And the second thing I thought was, 'I've got to have one of those,' " Marion said.
He and his wife, Donna, first became involved with the animals when their son asked the pair to train a miniature horse to pull a buggy for their granddaughter.
"On the way back, I said, 'I'm gonna retire in about five years, and I want to find something to do,' " Marion said. " 'I don't want to be a couch bum, why don't we raise miniatures?' "
The couple began showing the Class A miniature horses, which do not exceed 34 inches tall in the shoulder.
After visiting several miniature horse farms, the couple purchased some acreage about 6 miles north of Hays, and Marion said transforming it into Blue Sky Miniature Horse Farm was a project family, friends and neighbors pitched in on.
Initially, the Schmidts showed the horses. But after some encouragement from the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau, they opened the farm up for tours.
On Friday morning, a bus tour group of 18 from Oklahoma City visited the farm.
"This is the only carpeted barn in the world," Marion told the group. "Most of the time in the summer they don't come inside. If it gets too bad, we just throw it out."
He shared the names of the horses, ranging from Siver Legacy, Ginger Snap, Haley's Comet and Snow Dancer on the mares to Valentine, Saturn and Ranger for the stallions.
"Notice how small she is. She's not going to get much bigger," Marion said of 2-year-old Misty Morning. "The interesting thing about miniatures is they get 90 percent of their growth the first year."
In addition to breeding, Marion said it's important to train the horses.
"These are prey animals," he said. "Anything bigger than it will prey on it. Humans are predators. You've got to teach them what not to be afraid of."
In addition to the 16 double registered miniature show horses, the Schmidts also have some foals. Three-week-old Buckeye followed his mother out in front of the crowd.
"When these horses are born, they're about 17 inches tall and they weigh about 20 pounds," Marion said.
The foals are weaned at about four months.
"Probably the most important thing is if you buy one, buy one from Marion," he said with a laugh.
But the biggest allure about the animals is the size.
"They make great pets because they're not bigger than a large dog," Marion said. "Anybody from 7 to 75 can handle these animals if they're trained properly."
Following a barn tour and sharing about the miniature horses, a few were hitched up for buggy rides.
"They can pull four times their own weight, so they can pull 800 to 1,000 pounds," Marion said as volunteer Leroy Gnad gave visitors a ride.
The last dozen years of tours has been rewarding.
"We like the people that come out and we like to visit," Marion said. "Animal people are very happy and trusting people. Pretty soon we're in conversation like old buddies."
The Schmidts are having an open house, "The Wonderful World of Miniature Horses," from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday and June 1 at the farm. Visit www.blueskyhorses.com or call (785) 625-6725 for information.
