Kids on the spot at POA show

Savannah Haynes holds her family's 19-year-old breeding stallion, Wonder Bar, a leopard Pony of the Americas. Seven of the family's ponies will be shown at this weekend's POA show at the Calsonic Arena. (T-G Photo by Mary Reeves) [Order this photo]

If you're seeing spots in front of your eyes this weekend at Calsonic Arena, it's got nothing to do with the heat -- and everything to do with the ponies. The Tennessee Pony of the Americas show will be this Friday and Saturday, beginning at 8 a.m. each day.

The small equines look like scaled-down versions of Appaloosas -- and with good reason. The very first registered POA was a mixture of Appaloosa, Arabian and Shetland pony named Black Hand. His owner, Les Boomhower, had been raising Shetlands and saw potential in this flashy new colt. In 1954, he and other breeders established the POA registry, and in the 55 years since then, it has grown from one horse -- Black Hand -- to more than 40,000. The idea was to capture the smaller stature of a the pony, the delicate lines and dished face of the Arabian, the flashy coloration of the Appaloosa, and the versatility of all three.

Boomhower wanted to create a colorful show pony for children -- and he did. Originally, only children were permitted to show POAs, and even now, when adults can show in some classes, the majority remain the domain of the 18-and-under crowd.

"The POAs are all about the kids," said Lisa Haynes, who raises the pony breed on her Just Foalin' Around Farm on Anderton Road in Bedford County. "They're just a wonderful, wonderful breed, from trail riding to hitting it in the show ring, western pleasure, games ... they can do it all."

Originally, POAs could only be from 40 inches to 52 inches at the withers, or 10.2 to 13 hands. According to the POA web site, the Shetland ponies were eventually replaced as breeding stock with the larger, more defined ponies, such as Welsh, or smaller horses, such as mustangs, Indian ponies or quarter horses. The result would look more like a streamlined small horse than a chunky pony, and the height limit was extended to 56 inches, or 14 hands.

But one thing they all had to have was some sort of Appaloosa coloring, which varies from roan speckling to blanket to "leopard," in which a white body is completely covered with spots.

Lisa knows all about leopard POAs -- her farm's breeding stallion is one. At 19, he's still active and breeding, passing his loud, unique color on almost every breeding.

She got into breeding POAs in a roundabout -- and altruistic -- way.

"A friend of mine has had POAs for a long time and she was telling me about them," said Lisa. "We rescued one a few years ago. We hardshipped him in and my daughter got to showing him."

Hardshipping refers to getting a pony registered even if its parents were not. The horse in question has to meet strict criteria, including size, coloration, mottling of the skin, striped hooves and more. Once in the registry doesn't guarantee a permanent spot there, though. The horses are checked every year for six years to make sure they fulfill the requirements standard to their age, such as height. By the time they are six, if they still meet the requirements, permanent papers are approved, said Lisa.

The Haynes family's POAs enjoy an afternoon run in one of the many paddocks on the Just Foalin' Around Farm in Bedford County. (T-G Photo by Mary Reeves) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

Since that first pony, she has rescued more POAs, and purchased others to begin her breeding farm. She enjoys the shows, not just because the family can show their own ponies, but because more people can find out about them.

"Bring your kids down," Lisa said. "There are owners who don't mind giving rides. These are extremely kid-friendly. You're going to have some, like any breed, with a different attitude, but on the whole, these are real nice ponies. I like them enough to breed them!"

Her three children, Sha-lee, Savannah and Anthony, are rapidly growing out of the youth classes. Savannah, who just turned 18, has been showing since her lead-line classes at the age of four, and her brother Anthony, 16, also shows. But Lisa's not worried -- she's already set her sights on the next generation, her grandson, Connor, 11 months old.

"You can bet as soon as I can Velcro his butt to the saddle, we'll have him in the lead line class," she said, laughing.

POA show

The Tennessee Pony of the Americas show is June 12-13 at the Calsonic Arena. The show begins at 8 a.m. both days and admission is free.

On the web

www.tnpoac.com

www.poac.org