Butler County Ohio Horsemen's Council

Kathy Williams has scheduled the annual event planning meeting to determine the 2012 event calendar. This event planning meeting is a joint session between Butler and Hamilton County OHC chapters and will assist in coordinating events to minimize conflicts. All members of Butler and Hamilton County OHC chapters are welcome to attend and participate.

Discussion of the Horse Day event will occur in a sub-committee meeting separate from this event planning session. That committee is still in formation, and a first planning session will be scheduled soon. If you have interest in participating in this sub-committee, please contact Nancy Harris, Kathy Williams, or Ben Wiechel.

This meeting has been added to our website calendar and is scheduled for 4 February, 2012, at Perkins in Fairfield.

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The Walt’s Barbeque fundraiser has been moved to March 5, 2012, from the originally planned date. For those who had conflicts with the Hamilton County OHC meeting scheduled for the original date, that conflict has been eliminated. We will still need volunteers for the March 5 date to participate in busing tables and serving drinks during our scheduled hours at the restaurant. More information will follow regarding how to volunteer and what time slots we will be covering, though they will still be during the 6-9pm slot originally mentioned.

Volunteers play a special and important

role in making the parks a better place

for all to visit and enjoy

The MetroParks Board of Park Commissioners

want to invite you and your membership to a

Volunteer Appreciation Gathering

(Please extend this invitation to your membership)

December 8^th, 2011

7:00 – 9:00 pm

Ronald Reagan Lodge

Voice of America Park, 7850 VOA Park Drive

West Chester, OH 45069

Dessert, Nibbles and Coffee served

Response needed by December 1^st

with a count of your membership attending-thank you!.

email: ctrammell@yourmetroparks.com

phone: 513-867-5835

Hope to see you there! Attached is a flyer for you to distribute.

Cris

Kathy and Steve McClure plan to have a trail work day on 11/20 at 11:00. Volunteers should plan to work on foot, horses will not be utilized. Plan to meet at the horse parking area. The group will most likely go out for food afterwards.

If you have not completed a volunteer application, please download one from the Butler County MetroParks website or obtain one from Cristy Trammel and return it to her. Cristy also has MetroParks “Green Team” volunteer
t-shirts to wear when doing volunteer work at Sebald or other MetroParks.

Technorati Tags: Butler County MetroParks, MetroParks, Sebald Park, trail work day

Kathy and Steve McClure are to be recognized at the Voice of America annual Volunteer Appreciation event held by Butler County MetroParks. Kathy and Steve are recognized for their volunteer efforts at the parks. Although they will be unable to attend, Bill Ison and spouse will attend on their behalf. Congratulations and great work Kathy and Steve!

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Tonight the chapter met once again and shared food, laughter, discussion, learning, and club business. We had a total of 23 people present, with 19 members and 4 guests. Tonight, two of our guests were Dr. Susan O’Brien, from Lebanon Equine Clinic, who presented on “Common Eye Injuries and Emergencies in the Horse”, and Cristy Trammell, the new Volunteer Coordinator for Butler County MetroParks. Quite a crowd for a rainy Monday night, and a great meeting.

Dr. O’Brien was very informative about common eye injuries and their treatment. We all learned that it is important to engage your veterinarian as soon as possible once an eye injury is detected, and there are few home remedies or medicines you can keep in your cabinet that are appropriate for treating eye injuries. We have reached out to see if we can make the presentation available via the website for members that could not attend. A big thank you to Kimm Nicolay for raising the concern that many/most of us are trail riders and that some injuries may occur on the trail. In the event of an emergency on the trail, Dr. O’Brien recommended that if the eye does need protection, cover it with a clean material such as a clean cloth or gauze, and make sure that it is well hydrated with either saline solution, or water. Vet wrap can be used to secure the cover in place, but she recommended making sure that the other eye remains uncovered so that the horse can continue to see out of the good eye. This is an emergency stop-gap only, and should not be considered an actual treatment for the eye condition. Covering the eye in this manner simply serves as a protection against further damage until you are able to return the horse to your trailer and get the horse to your veterinarian for professional treatment.

We were also blessed to have Cristy Trammell join us and participate in discussion of several topics during the normal meeting. Cristy is the new Volunteer Coordinator for Butler County MetroParks. If you have not previously filled out a MetroParks volunteer application, please take the time to download and complete the form so that Cristy can know who our volunteers are and can reach out to you if needs arise. Cristy and MetroParks appreciate the work we have invested in Sebald Park and our use of the trails at the park.

In December, we have the annual Christmas Party. The club has decided to provide the meat for the event, but attendees should bring a shared dish and non-alcoholic drinks.

If you are attending, please let Kathy Williams know and let her know what type of dish you will be bringing. Meat will be provided by the club, and Kathy will be making a decision regarding the meat (either Jocko’s or Walt’s Barbeque have been discussed). The party will include a gift exchange, not to exceed $15. If you have a spare extension cord and/or surge strip you can bring, that would be appreciated. The event will be held at the Chrisholm Historic Farmstead, 2070 Woodsdale Rd., Trenton, OH 45067.

Bill Ison proposed via email and at the chapter meeting that the Butler County chapter host a “Horse Day” at Sebald Park, open to the public, to raise awareness of horses and horsemanship, and to encourage children and adults to become more familiar with horses. The club has shown interest, assuming liability concerns can be resolved. Cristy Trammell from MetroParks is going to look into the liability concerns, and Oliver informed the club that if the event is an OHC event, event insurance is available via the state organization. A committee will be formed to pursue event planning and bring back a proposal to the club. If you are interested in participating in the planning committee, please contact Kathy Williams or Nancy Harris.

Keep in mind, we have quite a few upcoming events in the next couple of months:

• 11/19 – Preble County Tack Sale @ 9am to 4pm
• 11/20 – 4H Tack Sale @ Darke County Fairgrounds
• 11/25 – Black Friday Ride
• 12/03 – Lebanon Carriage parade
• 12/10 – Santa Parade in Fairfield Township (does anyone want to ride – if so, let Kathy Williams know so she can get the form sent back)
• 12/10 – Christmas Party @ Chrisholm Homestead @ 7pm
• 12/12 – No Meeting
• 01/01 – New Year’s Day ride (traditionally at Shaker Trace Trail, location to be verified)
• 01/09 – Next Meeting @ Bruno’s
• 01/23 – Fundraiser @ Walt’s

Looking forward to seeing everyone at the Christmas Party. Hope you are all able to make it, and be safe during the holiday season.

Technorati Tags: Butler County MetroParks, Christmas, Christmas Party, Cristy Trammell, Dr. Susan O'Brien, eye injuries, eye injury, eye treatment, horse, horse day, MetroParks, Sebald, Sebald Park

Jerry B, Sycamore Park Liaison, wants everyone to be aware of the following:

Attention all riders, when you make plans for this weekend, Nov. 19 & 20, be advised those two days are STATE WIDE YOUTH SHOT GUN SEASON.

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Received from club member Bill I.:

Kathy,

If it is not already on the agenda, would you please add an agenda item to discuss the possibility of our club partnering with Butler Metro Parks to have a ‘Horse Day at Sebald Park’ for the public next year.  I would really like to promote the idea and I am really interested to know if any of the other members would be interested or have any concerns. I would also like to hear Cristy Trammels thoughts and ideas.  Feel free to circulate this email in advance so folks can think about the idea prior to the meeting….

Some potential discussion topics….. assuming our club is interested in pursuing this…..

1.       Could Metro Parks advertise and coordinate the event?
Most of us in OHC really don’t have the time to devote to this and it would be great if Metro Parks could take the lead and maybe just designate some OHC members to coordinate with Metro Parks.

2.       Liability issues…..
Would Metro Parks assume liability under their existing liability coverage?
Should any OHC member who may want to bring a horse to the event be required to purchase the insurance through the club (assuming it would cover liability in such an event, maybe we should verify this)?

3.       Could we provide basic educational info about horses for folks?
Maybe have different ‘educational stations’ set up in the vicinity of the horse trailer parking lot or at different locations within the park…. For example, one station to explain about horse care (maybe Joe Williams would like to explain basics of hoof care?). Maybe have another to explain tack… how a bit and bridle work, saddling a horse, etc. Maybe another station where folks could actually take a short ride on some of our older more gentle horses (I feel certain this station would be a big hit with kids and probably a lot of adults…. Maybe ride the meadow loop at hourly intervals).

4.       Could we schedule guided trail rides for folks who may want to bring their own horses and ride the trails to become familiar with the trails….. maybe schedule a morning ride and an afternoon ride??  I continue to be surprised by horse owners in the vicinity of Sebald Park who are not aware the trails exist.

5.       Would other organizations such as 4H, etc. be interested in participating in the event.

6.       Would any local businesses be interested in sponsoring such an event (Cox’s Saddlery, Tractor Supply, etc.) and, if so, would this be acceptable to Metro Parks.

7.       Should we be concerned about too many folks attending the event  and possibly having some folks disappointed because they were unable to take part in some activities (kids who may want to ride but can’t, etc.)??  If so, maybe an advance registration could be required for participants (handled by Metro Parks) to limit attendance if necessary.

8.       When should we schedule the event???? ….. I think it would be good to schedule this event for mid to late October when the weather is cool but not too cold, the leaves are in full color and the flies are not an issue.

9.       Should we close the trails to the public for the day so our event does not create conflicts with folks wanting to ride the trails or, maybe we conduct our event at a location other than the trailer parking lot so we don’t conflict with other folks who may show up to ride the trails during the event.

10.   Could we accept monetary donations to our club at the event???

At the November 14 meeting, Dr. Susan O’Brien will present on common eye injuries horses can incur. This is an area for the
horse owner that can be an emergency if not treated immediately. We look forward to this presentation. The November meeting will be at Richard’s Pizza on Nilles Rd. in Fairfield, with social time at 6pm and the meeting starting at 7pm.

Technorati Tags: common eye injuries, emergencies in the horse, emergency horse eye injuries, emergency horse eye injury, horse

SISSON, George B. age 55, beloved husband of Annette (nee Henkel) Sisson, father of Jacob E. (Barbie) Sisson, Jennifer L. Sisson, E. Skye (Nick) Cheney, Christopher (Elizabeth) Baker; grandfather of Ethan Sisson and Aidan Chaney; son of Fred D. Sisson and the late Florence K. (nee McCracken) Sisson, and brother of Julie L. Sisson. George served in the U.S. Army, 82nd Airborne Division. He served with distinction for over thirty years in the fire service. He was most proud of his service as a training officer and helped many of his fellow fighters advance their careers. For the past six years he was employed by the Butler County Sheriff’s Department as a Corrections Officer. Services will be private. Memorial contributions may be made to the Animal Adoption Foundation, 2480 Millville-Ross Rd. Hamilton, Ohio 45013. Condolences may be given at www.avancefuneralhome.com.