Hi-Fad Farm.....
... is located in central Wisconsin. Our family
consists of Joel, Carrie, and children Adam and Chandra.
We also have three great danes who are a huge part of our
lives as well.
We have been raising Morabs for about 10 years
now, and feel it is the best breed around. We stumbled on the Morab
when we first started looking for that perfect horse for our
oldest child. Joel's grandfather Lee was a great horseman
and told us if we wanted the perfect horse for Adam to cross a morgan to
an arabian and we would have it. At the time we didn't know the Morab
breed
existed, but soon found that perfect Morab for Adam.
We then purchased another one after our first Morab just won
our hearts. And so it began....
Our children showed 4-H for many years
and always on a morab. We also currently raise a few
select Arabians and Morgans as well, but our true love is the Morab.
We pride ourselves on the disposition of our horses and welcome visitors
to our farm to see them in person. We strive to produce
not only that exceptional show horse, but always that perfect
family horse as well.
Special Stories of our Horses
Hi-Fad Traveler..... The Morab Ambassador
Article By Linda Stahl
The Boldig family had anxiously anticipated
this years foal's arrival for several months; their Arabian mare, BWR
Shaikh Kina, had lost last year's foal by the same stallion, PQ Indiana
Big Boy, and they desperately wanted a foal to carry on the Morgan Quizkid
bloodlines.
As I was busy packing my car with our club's display
decorations for the Madison Horse Fair, I received a somewhat panic stricken
call from Carrie; her mare was definitely going to foal within hours and
the family was feeling that they might not make it to Madison that afternoon
as planned. I assured her that everyone in our club would certainly
understand. They needed to take care of their mare and foal first.
Late that evening, we received word that they'd
be coming in very late; they were waiting for the vet. We were pretty
worried, such news usually meant something had gone wrong.
Tricia Aspen and I arrived early Saturday morning
and rushed to the barn to see if the Boldigs had gotten there all right.
They were just pulling in, and after driving most of the night, understandably
looked exhuasted but were all smiles.
Everyone hugged each other in relief, and then
began all talking at once. What had they had? Was everything
OK? etc. But Carrie's expression was a little puzzling, she walked
over to the trailer and opened the back door.
There stood a gorgeous chestnut, blaze faced stud
colt surrounded by his own little box stall made of hay bales. Within
a few seconds, we realized there was no mom.
Carrie looked at us with somewhat of a glare in
her eyes and told us they'd tried for hours to get the mare to accept the
foal, but like many maiden mares, she'd been scared to death of the little
guy and wanted no part of him. They'd even twitched her for several
hours to let him suck, but had finally given up and decided there was nothing
else to do but bring him along. It was the only chance of saving him.
They hoped that by twitching the mare he'd at least
get some of the precious colostrum, but they weren't sure if it had been
enough. By the looks of this brighteyed little guy, it maybe had
been! The next 48 hours would be critical.
What we were all soon to come to grips with was
that Hi-Fad Traveler, by now nicknamed "Miles" because of the number he'd
already traveled at his tender age, would have to be fed every two hours.
The Fair personnel quickly offered a stall to make
feeding a little easier, but after some thought, Carrie and Joel decided
the foal was maybe safer if left in the trailer. Again the uncertainty
of immunity made his survival risky.
Now, picture this - the troop going out to feed
him every two hours and lots of checks in between.
By the time Traveler was 16 hours old, he understood
that people were apparently a pretty important part of his life. As
we approached the trailer, you'd hear footsteps, a tiny precious whinny,
and he'd rush to the open door to greet us as if to say, "OK, where is
it?"
Before long, numerous fair exhibitors and spectators
had happened upon one of the frequent bottle feedings, taken an interest
in this little guy's saga, and continued to stop by for updates on his
progress the entire duration of the fair.
Now remember those wonderful, two-hour feedings??
Well, evening found the Boldig family packing the little feller up and
heading to their motel for the night. You guessed it, treks out to
the motel parking lot all night long.
Needless to say, by the time they headed home late
Sunday evening, everyone was exhausted, and that trip that should have
taken four hours was considerably longer.
The vet came out early the next day, and by late
that evening, the Boldigs got the news that Traveler's colostrum level
was great!!
We all kept the telephone company in business those
first couple of days, checking on his progress.
Before the Boldig family had time to get caught
up with some shut-eye, they had to face the next delimma - what to do with
Traveler the next weekend. For months they'd been planning to bring
four Morabs to the Minnesota Expo. By now, foster mom Carrie quite
honestly wasn't sure she trusted anyone else with Traveler's care. When
the vet said he'd probably be better off going with the family and congratulated
Carrie on her great mothering, all decided Traveler would hit the road again
and put a few more "Miles" under his little belt.
I made a quick call to Carrie Jones, Minnesota
Expo barn manager, and she quickly assured us that she'd make room for
little Traveler. About this time, Joel and Carrie realizing that
their trailer would be fully loaded with their other Morabs had another
dilemma! So, they put their heads together and decided they could
convert the tack compartment into a safe stall for little Traveler - again,
for safety, all lined with hay bales.
At the Minnesota Expo, we all waited anxiously
for the family to arrive, and when Carrie came walking little Traveler
through the maze of bustling exhibitors and horses, we couldn't believe
how he'd grown in a week - those big, bright eyes, those alert little
ears and that "Hey, look at me!" attitude. He obviously knew how
special he was and never let anyone forget it!
His little romps each day in the exercise arena
drew lots of onlookers. We were again swamped with passers-by stopping
to check on his progress.
At one week of age, Traveler was up to six bottles
at each feeding, and when he was finished with the last one, quite indignantly
looked for more. And remember that wonderful two-hour feeding schedule?
Well, that weekend found the Boldig family again loading little Traveler
into the trailer every evening after the Fair was over, and heading out
for the motel parking lot rendezvous scene.
Everyone made the long trek home safe again that
weekend, and when I called Carrie the next day, Traveler was doing fine
and the Boldigs were trying to catch up on some much needed rest. While
the schedule hasn't changed much, it's a lot easier as Carrie and Joel
no longer have to stand and hold bottles to feed him. Bet lots of
you out there that reared children can sympathize. Remember drawing
straws as to whose turn it was to get up and feed the baby!
The Boldigs have been members of the Great Lakes
Club for several years and this latest story demonstrates their dedication
to the Morab Breed. Thanks to their loving care, the Morab breed
has another lovely, healthy representative, the Little Morab Ambassador,
Hi-Fad Traveler - he's become part of our hearts and we a part of his.
To put a glorious cap on Traveler's career, this
beautiful Morab became National Champion Morab gelding in 1999 at the
United Classic Morab horse Nationals.
Maddy at the Nursing Home
Maddie and Joel helping a nursing home resident celebrate her 100th birthday.
