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First birthdays are always special, and when you can share the birthday with upwards of 10,000 people, they are particularly special. On Saturday, June 9, when Kids’ Fest comes to the Delaware State Fairgrounds in Harrington, Cheyenne will be there to celebrate her very first birthday.
She invites kids and families everywhere to come and join her at 1 p.m. on the fairgrounds near The Centre Ice Rink. The only present needed is a healthy appetite for fun.
Cheyenne is a miniature paint horse who shares her home with Jowana, Terry and Tracy Lamb in Viola. She was a surprise baby. When her mother Gypsy was adopted by the Lambs, she was a chubby miniature, and Jowana provided exercise faithfully to help with the weight problem. On a June morning last year, the Lambs were surprised by the arrival of Cheyenne. Now, at one year, she weighs 125 pounds and is about the size of a large dog.
Jowana Lamb has been trained in the Perrelli technique of natural horsemanship and also trains regularly with Maryland horseman Carroll Williams. She started working with Cheyenne using exclusively a natural horsemanship philosophy when the little foal was just three months old. At five months, Cheyenne was ready for her first performance.
“She was so curious and learned so fast that it really tested my horsemanship skills,” Lamb said.
The pair, Cheyenne and Lamb, have been working and playing together all spring. Cheyenne follows Lamb’s movements, negotiates obstacles, has mastered side passes and balances on a pedestal. As Cheyenne, the Dancing Mini, she will present three shows in an outdoor ring near the ice rink at 11 a.m. and 1 and 3 p.m. Each performance will be different, and the one o:clock show will also celebrate her birthday. As with any birthday party, there will be party favors for all the kids.
Cheynne’s closest human companion, Lamb, is a former dance instructor who discovered a passion for horses while coaching a vaulting team. As a result, she traded in her dancing shoes for boots and now shares her talent and understanding of horses at camps and horse events. After owning regular horses for years, she discovered a love of minis quite by accident when she was asked to give a miniature horse an adoptive home.
According to the Miniature Horse Association website, miniature horses were first imported into the United States in the late 1800s. American miniature horses trace their blood lines to English and Dutch mine horses and were used in some Appalachian coal mines as late as 1950.
Minis are eager to please, gentle and affectionate, and extremely versatile. They grow no bigger than a large dog and are miniature versions of regular horses in conformaton, colors and type. They make wonderful cart horses and can easily pull one or two adults. They can be ridden by children up to 70 pounds. Minis are easy to handle, enjoy excellent health with good care and have a life span of 20 to 30 years. They thrive on pasture, sunshine, and room to run and play.
Cheyenne has plenty of all three.
Dozens of other minis will join Cheyenne at Kids’ Fest. They will be going through their paces at a Miniature Horse Show in Quillen Arena. The show is open to spectators free of charge.
Other activities at Kids’ Fest include a Healthy Kids Expo with arts, crafts, games and educational activities; an Inflatable Fair; free entertainment on two stages, and a Dog Rally.
Admission to the fairgrounds for Kids’ Fest is a family-friendly $1 per person; parking is free. Ride and game tickets may be purchased at 25 for $5; some activities are individually priced, and many, including all entertainment, are free. A variety of food will be for sale throughout the day.
Kids’ Fest, now in its 10th year, is coordinated by the Greater Milford Boys & Girls Club and is presented in cooperation with Nemours Health & Prevention Services. The Milford club is one of nineteen clubs and nearly forty school sites serving 30,000 children and youth throughout the state. Nemours partners with community organizations to promote healthy eating and physical activity through its 5ˆ2ˆ1ˆAlmost None initiative.
For more information about Kids’ Fest, call 302-398-5194 or 302-242-0375 or visit www.kidsfestde.org. To contact the Greater Milford Boys & Girls Club, call 302-422-4453.
For more about the programs of Nemours Health & Prevention Services, visit www.GrowUpHealthy.org.
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