It was feeding time at the Bradford barn, and the stall residents were restless. Horses — as any horseperson can testify — have clocks in their tummies. Zoe, a chestnut-colored 2-year-old, had no trouble putting her tiny front hooves in her feed trough, the better to stand tall and demand attention. Her feed trough is only 18 or so inches off the ground, so the feat was not difficult.
Zoe is a miniature horse, which means she stands no taller than 34 to 38 inches at the withers, depending on the registry cited. (The withers is the top of the shoulder, at the base of the mane.)
On the opposite side of the barn aisle, Zoe’s dam, Rosie, was more circumspect, waiting with manners for Dena Bradford to serve up supper to the six equines at Mini Tales Farm. The family farm in western Lowndes County is Dena’s dream-come-true.
“I went on a trail ride at Rock Hill Stables about 25 years ago, started taking English lessons, and I was hooked for life!” the Aberdeen middle school librarian said.
Horses, Dena quickly discovered, are strong, yet gentle. “Beautiful, majestic, free, graceful and spirited,” she added. “They are so easy to love.”
The Bradfords bought their land in the Prairie about 23 years ago with the intention of having horses one day. Raising three children came first, though. The children are grown now. So, when Larry surprised his wife on her 50th birthday two years ago with a couple of minis he adopted from the Golden Triangle Horse Rescue, “they stole my heart instantly,” Dena said. “God has been gracious and is allowing me to fulfill my dream now.”
Starting the herd
“These two started it all,” Dena smiled, pointing to two little mares, Rosie and Ellie Mae, in side-by-side stalls. Larry, standing nearby, grumbled — but good-naturedly. Not only did Fairview Baptist Church’s Minister of Instrumental Music bring the first minis to the farm, he did the bulk of work putting up fencing, building the barn and stalls, installing water and electricity and tending to a dozen other necessities, like drainage and gates. The farm has been a family affair.
That their first minis came from rescue backgrounds was meaningful to the Bradfords.
“I really have a heart for the abused and neglected,” said Dena, adding that working with them can require extra measures of patience.
“When you’re working with a rescue, they sometimes have mental issues to get through first,” she explained. “It takes patience, patience, patience. They have to learn to trust you.”
She praised the Golden Triangle Horse Rescue organization.
“I can’t say enough good things about them. Not only do they nurse the horses back to health, but they work on building relationships with the horses and earning their trust.”
The herd grows
Mini Tales Farm celebrated the arrival of its first foal in June 2014, when Rosie gave birth to Zoe. Every day, Dena headed to the pasture with a beach towel to sit with the diminutive animal, “imprinting” or bonding.
Larry said, “I’d come home from work, and she’d be lying in the pasture with it.”
Each of the horses has a distinct personality, but Zoe came equipped with plenty to spare.
“She is very rotten,” laughed Dena. “She doesn’t realize she’s a horse.” Zoe is a pickpocket, plucking items out of her handlers’ pockets, strolling out on the pier in the pasture’s lake, and onto the sun deck when she is out in the yard. She also shows a talent for unzipping jackets.
Glory, on the other hand, is “just a little lady.” The 2-year-old was added to the herd last summer. Her name was inspired by the Bradford’s late pastor, Brother Mickey Dalrymple, who often said, “Well, glory!” from the pulpit.
Look what I can do
Some of the miniatures are in obstacle course training, with the aim of eventually entering classes at a North Mississippi Miniature Horse and Pony Club show in Pontotoc. The training instills positive discipline and builds confidence in the minis. Dena teaches them to jump low fences and step through feathered hoops. Zoe will “shake hands.” Glory will cross her dainty “ankles” on cue.
The barn is Dena’s “happy place,” where the horses always bring a smile.
“They depend on me, and I do everything in my power to not let them down,” she pledged. Rosie and Ellie Mae, in particular, were neglected once, “and if it’s up to me, they will never be neglected again.”
Dena enjoys sharing her passion for horses with others, especially children. She hopes to some day add more miniature animals, including a miniature donkey and miniature goat.
“My all-time dream is to have my own petting zoo, and maybe when I can retire, God will give me that desire, too,” she said.
In the meantime, Larry might want to get prepared: “I don’t think my herd is complete,” Dena laughed. “I tell Larry that I want a mini in every color!”
ON THE WEB:
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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