From the feedlot to the show ring: Part II

Kalyn Chalupa and Boon a few months after she bought him. Photo Credit: Clare Chalupa

Boon found himself at a feedlot on Oct. 23, 2013, due to be shipped to the slaughterhouse on Oct. 30. Rebels Equine Feedlot Sales (REFS) had assessed Boon and advertised him for sale but no one seemed to want him. The clock was ticking.

Meanwhile in Surrey, B.C. Kalyn Chalupa couldn’t stop thinking about the small chestnut horse she had seen advertised on REFS’s Facebook page. She didn’t need or want another horse, but for some reason the thought of Boon heading off to slaughter was weighing heavily on her. Eventually, she justified buying Boon by planning to put some training on him and then sell him. Save a life and make a little money. It seemed like a legitimate reason to take a leap of faith. She made the call.

Boon was immediately pulled from the group of horses that were to be shipped to the Alberta slaughterhouse. Making the decision so late, meant that Chalupa had no time to see Boon in the flesh, and no time to have him vetted. She had only seen a photo of him and a short video, in which Boon appeared to be lame. She was told he had quarter crack – a crack in a hoof – and she desperately hoped that was all that was wrong with him and bought him, anyway.

Chalupa had Boon put in quarantine for one month, then planned to pick him up and see him for the first time. During the quarantine, she arranged for a farrier to trim his feet and sort out the quarter crack.

Boon’s hoof that was causing his lameness, pictured during his time in quarantine.
Photo Credit: Shelby Marchesano

Boon’s hoof after the farrier tidied it up. Photo Credit: Shelby Marchesano

Nov. 30, 2013, Chalupa saw what her $600 had bought. Boon was small, 14.3 hands small, which makes him either a very large pony or a very small horse, and a very difficult size to sell. Luckily, Chalupa is only 5’2″ so Boon’s size wouldn’t be a problem for her. His foot turned out to be a partially torn off heel, that would mend much faster than a quarter crack.

A few days after Boon arrived at his new home, sound and happy, Chalupa thought it was time to hop on for the first ride. He had been ridden once at the feedlot, but as he was lame, it wasn’t telling of what he might do now that he was feeling better. Chalupa fastened her helmet, closed the gate to the riding ring and climbed on. She asked him to move forward and nothing happened. She asked again and again. Boon just stood there. This can often be a little unnerving for a rider as there are generally two reactions when a horse refuses to move. One, the horse reluctantly moves forward, or two, the horse explodes in a manner of different ways. Boon’s way was to take off, bucking clear across the ring, stopping only at the opposite fence. Chalupa asked him to move away from the fence, and again Boon bucked his way across the ring. Chalupa managed to stay on but was left wondering if she had made a mistake.

That was the first and last time Boon took off bucking. Ever since, he has been on the fast track to becoming a show horse. He was introduced to jumping within the first week and caught on to the idea quickly. For the rest of the winter, Chalupa took him to schooling shows and continued his training, now with the intention of keeping him as her other horse sustained a leg injury that would have him out of work for a year.

Kalyn Chalupa and Boon schooling over fences in May of 2014. Photo Credit: Rebecca Berry

The fitter and healthier Boon got, the more his personality began to show.

“For a small horse he has a lot of attitude, and never leaves you guessing what sort of mood he is in,” Chalupa said. He is spooky when he is being tacked up or having a blanket put on, which leaves Chalupa wondering what his former life had been like. But those seemed to be his only neurosis.

Boon’s first proper show was Mt. Cheam Horse Trials in Chiliwack, B.C. in April of 2014. Not wanting to over-face Boon, Chalupa entered him at the lowest level possible, pre-entry. He was a star and Chalupa was in love. She entered him in horse trials throughout the summer and each time out Boon was better than the time before.

Chalupa took a leap of faith on the small chestnut horse and hasn’t looked back since.

Boon competing at Campbell Valley Horse Trials in August of 2014. Photo Credit: Rebecca Berry