For the third year, horses from the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society's program, have played integral parts in the Canadian National Farrier Championship.

This year's championship was held this past weekend at the Ancaster, Ontario, fairgrounds. The top five finishers in the competition will make up the Canadian National team at the Calgary Stampede this summer and the ultimate championship in England in September.

"We had 35 competitors this year, from Vancouver to the East Coast," explained organizer Doug Buck, a former Canadian Team member who now organizes the event.

"The Standardbred horses provided by OSAS were great. There was one stallion I remembered from a couple of years ago. He was standing between two mares and just behaved like an old gelding," he praised.

"The other thing about the Standardbreds which makes them so good for this competition, other than their great temperaments, is the fact that they usually have great feet and that really helps in terms of consistency during the competition," added Buck whose son Travis earned a spot on the National team.

The Standardbreds competing in this year's competition included former Ontario Sires Stakes star Equity, a son of Kadabra who earned over $822,000 in his career along with Calamar, The Painted Pony and President Sylberun.

"Our OSAS ambassadors behaved wonderfully for the competition and they graciously donated $250 to OSAS afterwards. It's another great way for us to showcase the temperament and versatility of the Standardbred horse," noted OSAS's Joanne Colville.

(OSAS)