Creating a Better Paso World

britzlove · Creating a Better Paso World

How do we take our horses to people unfamiliar with them, and let them be able to love them the way we do?

Is there more that could be done for new buyers, or people learning about the breed to better welcome them to the breed.?

What things are being done now that shade the paso's brilliance, and what things are being done to illuminate them?

Can we not be truthful and open about our horses? Must the paso be such a mystery?

I have an interest in seeing more of these horses find the right kind of homes. I would like to see more good pasos in the midwest and central US so that more can be done with them.

I want to be a breed ambassador for the right reasons. I want to show the breed to people that would appreciate them. I want to say, here, ride this horse, and know that the person will be having an experience they will positively remember.

I do not want to see the breed become different than it's description. I grew to adulthood watching one breed of horse die out for the most part as it existed. I don't want to see these horse go that way. I'd like to see the paso horses made up of a majority of quality rather than a majority of average or poor.

Is there anyone else that would like to talk about contributions or ways to contribute that would make it easier to be a paso enthusiast?

Marleen Robinson

Britz, I will try to get back to this after feeding and chores!!!

BigJ

First we need a strong community that starts from the inside. We are constantly seeking our source of strength by measuring sales and market. I think for a small breed, this is not the way. We need to have inner strength first, a foundation to build on.

I don't think we have that yet as the internet has demostrated. The reason we have so many pasofino forums is not because we share our love for our breed. The reason so many forums exist is because we do not work well with each other. The reason the International Paso Horse Federation was started was because PFHA members were unhappy. The reason PFHA/PFOBA exists is because the American Paso Federation members were unhappy. So our "community" is based on distrust and dislike for each other.

EDIT: This morning I've spent most of my time reading GREAT articles from 5 sources on the internet that all interlink to each other for examples, information, teaching, and guiding in the most positive way about designing web sites. It is not link baiting like I've seen on most paso fino forums including PV. Each site obviously mutually likes and respects the other sites it links to and encourages the reader to investigate each source. I'm tired of the link baiting as well. I think there are posts here that should be eliminated as link baiting and if the posters cannot contribute anything else besides their link then remove the post.

So how am I supposed to sincerely try to recruit a sane, sound minded person into my world of pasos? I don't. I do encourage those who demonstrate their interest to become involved because they already are involved with the horses. I don't talk about going to a show or becoming a member of some paso association. I only discuss the horses, which speak for themselves without any need of producing a pedigree or ribbon.

Then I question who it is I'm suppose to attract. My view is we already have too many in this breed who have other agendas besides the breed. I don't want any more. I've seen the policy of "a paso in every back yard" backfire and damage the breed. I don't want just anyone to own a paso fino. This is NOT a Quarter Horse and I hope it never gets to where it is--not in quality, numbers, or the type of riders.

I think the best way to promote the breed is to unabashedly love it for what it is without apology. One of the most attractive sights is a person and his horse mutually liking each other and respecting the partnership. Once again, do our shows demonstrate any of this any more? I'm tired of watching a show of domination. My next spectator sport is to record what trainers do to their horses at a line up during classes at a paso show.

To promote means to protect and we can't protect the whole unless we have a healthy community. I see the starting point with cleaning our house first before inviting anyone else in to visit.

caliber

Very Interesting! as some of you well know! i have been fortunate to have grown in a horse environment my entire life, from race horses to Andalusians. Life has given me the chance to meet those breeds, their people, their organizations and their PARTIES (lol).

I have to say one thing, I have never seen so many great people at other breeds like I have found and "MEET" in this breed. The Paso world not only possesses the most prestige comfortable horse in the world, but also processes of great amigable, carrying, passionate and hard working friends.

But with that said, i will agree with Candice, we have no leadership..... Is hard for me sometimes to see who is leading or setting the tone. Maybe has to do with the way our complete system has been set up!

As I see it! we have one main Locomotive (the PFHA) and approx.20 others locomotive (regions) going at speed, BUT...... no wagons! in other words.... ALL CHIEFS and NO INDIANS......

So, what can we do? In my opinion is a very simple solution! THE PFHA must take leadership and change the constitutions that where written before modern technology! That means the PFHA must govern, must control and must dictate what this breed really means and is...again, in other words, TAKE OVER! this breed is not here to suit or to accommodate marketability, very simple! or either you like it or you don't! but if you take a Paso, you must at all times be willing to accept and take the heritage and the history too. No exceptions to any rules!

The PFHA has been in existing for many years! is set up, and ready to make any changes...... LETS DO IT!

britzlove

BigJ

Hacienda Radiante

Hey, I like my rope reins! Crying or Very sad

But I agree that people who enter the ring with dirty tack should be SPANKED and sent home with no ribbons. Twisted Evil

I think we covered this topic in an earlier thread, right when I first discovered this board. These horses aren't for everyone, nor should they be. Not everyone can drive a Porsche well. And while I'd like to think that the 'Paso grin' is from people discovering a gaited horse, realistically sometimes it is people giggling because the horse feels jiggy to them. If you are used to a big-striding trotter, the paso gait is downright peculiar. Nor are these horses for people who want to go on autopilot when they trail ride -- they require an active presence and a good seat. That alone knocks out a lot of weekend warriors and older/timid riders. You can choose whatever kind of high-end analogy that floats your boat -- wine, cheese, music, art -- but these horses require a certain kind of taste and they won't appeal to the masses, therefore we will probably NEVER be a 'mass-popular' breed. I'm fine with that. Taking a product from 'niche' to 'mass appeal' is financially appealing but requires a guiding intelligence from somewhere, whether that is a company with a profit motive (Apple), an advocacy group (PETA) or a religion (pick a major). Someone has to develop the long-term plan and then select and support the good ideas and steer the group away from the bad ones. And let's be honest, people who choose Pasos can be unusually strong-minded (some might say ORNERY Laughing

) so they are not always the easiest group to lead. I don't think that the volunteer army at PFHA has the stamina to wear the membership down -- they have other jobs they need to pay the bills, their own farms and horses to care for and the full-time paid staff there is overburdened with the administrative tasks required just to keep the trains running. So while I'd like to see the cavalry coming over the hill, I'm not waiting for it. I'll just keep fighting the good fight in my own corner of the world.

Kerry W

I think the area which we lack the most, is the lack of information from our association. I think it would be a positive for the association website to contain video examples, and at the very LEAST, photo images of the breed standard according to the association. It'd be easier to see through the sales pitches, if people had an idea of what it was they were supposed to be looking for. Show me what is brio, so I can tell the difference between that, and poor behavior. I know people who have been involved in the breed for years and years, that STILL lack that knowledge! Show me what is "in gait" and what is "out of gait", so when I go look at a horse and it doesn't look and sound right...I will at least know to ask. Tell me that poor conformation in this breed, is as detrimental as it is in other breeds, and show me images of good and poor conformation, so I can see and understand the differences.

These are things that most horse people take for granted, but I find with this breed, many of the newcomers get swept up in the hype about the breed, and they'll buy the first good line of BS that comes their way. I think they WANT to be educated, but their first "school" is a forum somewhere, and that can be dangerous if they connect with the wrong people. People have favorites, and that's what they're going to push on newcomers. We've all been there. It isn't until we have a wider view of the breed, that we can see that they are selling what they have or what they love most, which may or may not be even close to what the breed is supposed to be.

If newcomers could go to the association website and find some tools to get them started, it would help a great deal. It's set up for members now, and that's fine...I do use it a lot, but as a newcomer, I had to reach out to breeders to get started. Fortunately, those that I found first left me wanting to know more. I didn't get that unwelcome feel...and honestly, I've not gotten that from hardly anyone. Of course, that may be because I am insensitive to my own obnoxiousness...I don't know...never thought about it. Laughing

BigJ

Talk to the:
Events committee
Communications committee
Recreational Riders committee

you get my drift.

caliber

What a wonderful idea Kerry! I agree, our official, the PFHA should be setting the tone at all times... much easier and credible, rather than listening to some idiot using their evil sales tech by saying her bloodline is bred to naturally trained born horses out of pasture!
Yeah right, my dad is the pope and I reside at the vatican too. Rolling Eyes

ayayayayayayayayaya how far can the bullshit flow.... yes! NATURALLY TRAINED OUT OF PASTURE! jejejejejejeejejejejeje The sad thing, many fall for it.

grif

caliber

INSTEAD???????????? Shocked

jejejejeje It didnt know the committees had forums. jejejejejejejejejejeje

I think forums is a great way of communication! at least it has the committees washing ! jejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejejeje

So, I am glad our rambling caught your attention! Wink

grif

It has caught my attention for years that the people on these forums who constantly ramble never step up and do anything about it. Many people have great ideas and they seem to expect that simply venting them on some forum or another will do something. It doesn't. Not unless these people are willing to put forth some kind of an effort to make change happen. And, yes, I listen. I always have. And I have also always done whatever my time allows to work for this breed and the PFHA. I wish more pople would. Perhaps then there would be less bashing and more unity and more productivity. So there is my contribution to what we can all do to promote the breed in this country. We all need to do something with our time other than bitch about what should be done. If all this bitching energy were put towards constructively moving the breed forward, imagine where we could be.

BigJ

Ok, I'll bite.

britzlove

Hacienda Radiante,

I'm not advocating the mass promotion, the paso in every pasture speel. I completely agree with everything you said about the horses, and I think you said it well.

What I would like is more idea sharing like Kerry just gifted us with. On another thread I traced the journey a misc. housewife might encounter if just googling "paso fino", and you find the PFHA website in the first couple links. She's absolutely right in her ideas to make it a more informative experience.

grif

caliber

britzlove

From earlier:

This can't be the way.

Hacienda Radiante

BigJ

I expect a formal process--PERIOD. Just as you expect ideas presented to a committee is some form other than an internet rambling, I expect any idea that is presented to be formally acted on. Simple really.

You mentioned implementation, that means a cost analysis, feasibility study...what? What is it as a committee that is expected to present an idea?

PLEASE don't even suggest all I have to do is email someone and expect some response. We know better. I bankrupt email accounts on a regular basis; it is NOT a formal process.

I'm not talking about "rules" I'm speaking on the matter of documenting both the submittal AND the response from PFHA.

caliber

britzlove

BigJ

No, we just shut up and quit trying.

I've ruminated over this because I think it has taken the typical turn into appearing negative. First let me say, I trust and admire anyone who takes the time to say what they mean.

I think words tend to be interpreted in the same emotional light that a reader is in when the words are read. So, with that intro, let me try to say what I mean in a way that is more constructive.

I am asking, very openly and honestly, as a member of PFHA, to another member of PFHA who happens to be on a PFHA committee, Cindy, what needs to be done to get a GREAT, however rambling, idea to a committee to be seriously considered?

I'm requesting some formal avenue for good reasons. It lets the submitter know that the suggestion should not be something frivolous or off-the-cuff but thought out, detailed and informative. It lets the committee know the submitter of the idea also has expectations that the idea will be considered.

When an idea is submitted and considered how does each party know what the other has done? Track it, document it, process it. If a process is in place the submitter has some general idea of a time line and the committee has committed to deadlines to get the idea considered and provide comment.

If the idea is administrative should there be a "rule"? How about just conducting ourselves with typical professional decorum and courtesy? I think Kerry's idea can be pounded out into format that could be presented and formally considered. I think any idea submitted and accepted for consideration deserves proper feedback as well.

It doesn't have to be elaborate but how is anyone to know each has been treated mutually if there is not some sort of agreement of how to conduct oneself in the first place? Suppose there are committee members who have some personal agenda against the submitter? If no formal process in place it is easy to: 1. have the submitter cry foul whether true or not and 2. have the committee members ignore the suggestion or find excuses or be forced to defend when no defense should be required. It also prevents both sides constantly bugging each other about the progress of the submittal.

I've said many times we are a small breed, but even as small as we are there is no reason why a membership organization cannot behave as an organization. I don't care if it is an organization of one member. Records still have to be kept or even that person will not have a clue about what has been accomplished in meeting certain goals or deadlines.

I also agree, emails, phone calls help but they cannot take the place of formal documentation as proof of record.

Edit: Let me also add my inflationary two cents in (which now costs more than its face value so isn't that deflation?) about email. Cindy said "email me". I asked for her email. She said no. I happen to agree. I wouldn't post my private email in public either. However that little exercise only exposes the very problem with using email as "the" system for submitting anything to be seriously considered.

Actually here is an idea for the communications committee: Set up email accounts for each committee such as events@pfha.org. It can be password protected quite easily and only members of each committee given access to that account. So you have two securities: the admin who gives access and the password for that person. Actually you can do better than that. Have the account as read only if you want to limit activities.

In this way when I ask Cindy for her email it would be Cindy@PFHA.org or events@PFHA.org. I'd feel better knowing it went through PFHA too and not to a personal, private inbox.

Kerry W

I didn't mean for my suggestion of updating the website to be negative. I fully support efforts to update it, and did so when I was on the Communications Committee. The entire committee did. To be honest, we did read the forums for member feedback. Some may see it as pointless bitching, but we used it as a tool. Many of the posters are members, and what they say is relevant, because it's their association too. Just because they can't leave their jobs and families to go to the convention and quarterly meetings, does not mean they don't matter...it should not mean they do not have a voice. They use that voice to tell others about our breed and our association.

The website is, for many newcomers, their first impression of PFHA and the breed. You only get one shot at that. Now that I think about it, perhaps it does represent the association accurately, and should be left alone.

BigJ

Well said Kerry! Members do count, we all count and how we choose to involve ourselves for the positive shouldn't matter but apparently it does.

Also anyone can miscontrue a great idea and make is sound bad or take a lousy policy and make is sound wonderful--it's called "spin".

The beauty of forums is the freedom to involve oneself whenever and however. There are even consequences for one's actions just like in the real world. Forums have their place in today's organizational constructs. Why many coporations have their own blogs, telecasts, and forums for employees to interact. It isn't all "bad".

Hacienda Radiante

The absolute worst thing that can happen is for us to shut up. It's Business 101 that your complaining customers tell you FAR more than the ones that don't say anything (publically) but go away and quietly poison the well. I'll stand by my comment that I think PFHA needs to sort out its economics before it will be able to adequately address many of the ideas that are posted here but, as Kerry said, this forum will be available as an archive to that committee when the time comes. I don't think any of the ideas we have here are time-sensitive, they will still be excellent ideas in a year (or two).

Kerry W

Just as an update...PFHA is working on updating their website. I went through the reports over there last night, and found a report by a Committee Chair outlining the upgrades. I won't go into specifics here, because it is in the "Members Only" area.

I don't think the site is "horrible"...it isn't. As I said in my earlier post, I do use it, and am happy we have one at all. I just think it's a valuable tool and we're not using it to it's full potential.

britzlove

I think that opening the shutters can not only benefit in creating more confidence in the membership, but also help economically.

I'm sure there are several folks who can volunteer to help the association stuff letters, forward emails, post minutes, run PFHA booths, even, help with things like updating a website.

It is time to throw open the shutters, get the members involved, and make the association interactive. Echoing what others said, just because not everyone can be at the meetings, doesn't mean that there can't be interactive meetings, not today, in this age.

If Kerry and I can work together to bring live results on a world show, I'm pretty sure we could field votes and/or input from all over. I know BigJ has talked about that before, but I have so far not heard why it can't be internet televised in an interactive format. HR, it doesn't have to cost any money, there are plenty of people that can participate from home and would volunteer.

I care about it enough, that perhaps I need to give my region a better chance, albeit a last one, for the horses of this area.

My questions were, aimed at seeing how much support we can gather for our horses, in a way that supports them the best, meaning for current and future enthusiasts. I too do not want to see this a mainstream breed, but, I recognize there will always be newbies, and converts. I think we, I, should do everything in my power to help. If that means biting back pride, I'll do that too.

Hacienda Radiante

You are correct, Britz, it doesn't have to cost any money, but it DOES need the buy-in from PFHA. If I represent myself as someone who has authority to establish partnerships on behalf of PFHA and actually go out and do that without the blessings of the association I can only imagine what kind of lawyer would show up on my doorstep... Very Happy

So someone in authority needs to buy into a partnership marketing plan, even if there is no $$ involved.

BigJ

You really hit the nail square on the head Radiante. This is what holds the "civilians" back in doing any promotion that has a tie to PFHA. I don't know why the PFHA BOD can't recognize why nothing happens without their blessings.

I've witnessed the same cyclic complaints:

An individual approaches an authorative figure in PFHA be it judge, steward, committee member, BOD delegate and asks/complains about a specific problem. Then I heard the typical paraphrased reply: "We tried but the BOD voted against it". I've heard this from well respected esteemed and committed people. I've heard this about rule changes, policy, procedure, you name it.

So, maybe the next regional meeting we should be asking our regional delegate is there anything they would support and why it is that so many independent inquiries on the same subject seem to be asking for the same thing but our BOD can't quite come to agreement? Is there a particular delegate who has all the votes holding out so a majority is never made? I'd like to know who/what is holding back progess. If it is the voting system or a procedure then lets change it and get moving again.

caliber

Ok! maybe I'm understood something along. But, let me share my own personal experience.

Every time I needed documentation, literature or even booth decor from our PFHA, I have to say I have received 100% support from them. All it takes is one call, and you will be surprised.

I have never felt the PFHA stopping me from any promotional events, all the contrary.

Please feel free to contact the PFHA, Cori or Mary.

Hacienda Radiante

This is quite different, Felix. Corporate partnerships are way more than just putting a few pamphlets out at an event. Official partnerships at that level are a terrific way to gain exposure to new, relevant audiences without laying out a lot of 'cabbage'. Smile

Let's say I have a strong belief that PFHA is not doing enough to bring in the youth riders and I believe that there is a partnership that could be established between PFHA and, say, the 4-H association. The partnership would take the form of cross-promotion on each others websites, allowing the 4H people come to shows to do regular clinics teaching basic horsemanship to new riders, putting 4H logos on the PFHA literature and allowing 4H to distribute literature to members etc. In exchange, PFHA would connect local Paso breed ambassadors (trainers, breeders, whomever) with the local 4H clubs so the breed gets introduction to that audience. Same literature and promotion opportunities. This is essentially a cashless transaction for both organizations, but it would need a person dedicated to rolling it out, plus approval from the BoD for press releases, modifications to the website and PFHA literature, access to the PFHA membership list etc. That kind of a commitment just isn't something an ordinary member can do without exec approvals.

caliber

Thank you Karen for your explanation. I think I'm getting a brighter idea now, but please correct me if i misunderstood again.

From past dealings with the PFHA in reference a very similar matter (corporate sponsors and exchange), the process was minimum and the support from the PFHA was unconditionally, all it takes is one call to the PFHA.

Hacienda Radiante

Good info, but this is the difference between a sponsorship (getting advertising in exchange for goods or services) and a partnership (strategic alliance that benefits both groups through membership growth). I would say most of what I see on the PFHA site right now falls into the first category -- someone has donated saddles or $$ in exchange for a premium advertising opportunity. It is kind of a blurry line between the two though, I agree. Can you point me to an example where the person brokering the deal was not the owner of the sponsoring company? I.e. NOT, say, the Orthoflex company owner calling PFHA? The only one I can think of is the USEF.

caliber