It’s a busy time of year for Orville Fisher, his wife Cathy and their son Mark who operate Fisher Farms in Minden.
Each year from late August to early September, the family makes its way to the Almaguin Highlands to take part in the area fall fairs that feature horse-pulling events. For Orville Fisher, visiting the Highlands is like coming home, because his mother was born in Sundridge and he knows people in the area.
On their most recent trip to the Powassan Fall Fair, the Fisher’s horse-pulling team of Merle and Jack won the event, with a pull of 8,400 pounds.
A couple of weeks earlier at another fair, they pulled 9,800 pounds.
The Fishers got involved in horse pulling 15 years ago and Orville said it’s not an easy activity to start.
“You’re not doing this for the money,” he says.
“The average horse can cost $10,000 to $15,000 and the bigger operators will spend $20,000 to $30,000 for each horse,” he said. “You could buy a cheaper horse but you won’t get far in the competitions.”
Mark added that in addition to the cost of the horses, the farmer has to consider the food for the horses, the barn that houses them, plus the truck and trailer to get to the fair sites.
“So, if you plan to do this, it’s for the fun of it,” said Mark.
Merle and Jack are Belgian horses that stand about six-and-a-half feet and weigh 2,200 pounds each.
Jack is five years old and just started pulling this year. Merle is eight years old.
They are not workhorses and are raised purely for horse pull events.
From April to October, the horses eat in the morning, go through a two-hour workout to keep up their pulling strength, and then enjoy the rest of the day, Fisher said.
The winter months are spent in the pasture since there are no competitions.
Fisher said the horses are well treated and their care is something farmers take very seriously.
He said horses can pull for many years and some have been known to pull until they are 20 years old. Owners also recognize when a horse is no longer able to pull.
“That’s when we retire them and we keep them until they pass away,” he said.
Over the years, the Fishers have raised six horse teams. The family takes part in about 15 fall fairs and has a continuous record of the horse pulls from each event, thanks to Cathy Fisher photographing the pulls.
The Powassan Fall Fair featured six horse-pulling teams and Mark Fisher said that’s a good number for the size of the event.
Events in larger communities where there are more farms, can attract many competitors.
“In Minden, there have been as many as 20 teams,” said Mark. He adds as the local team, sometimes the Fishers are the fan favourites. However, despite competing on home territory, the family has yet to win the competition, he said.
Depending on which fall fair the competitors are at, the distance their horses have to pull the concrete blocks on a sled varies.
For example, at the Powassan Fall Fair, the horses have to pull the sled at least 15 feet to qualify as a successful pull and they have two attempts.
At other fairs, the pull distances are 20 feet and 27 feet.
Mark said the horses know what’s expected of them when pulling the sled and the instant they are hitched to that sled, they bolt forward and begin pulling.
Father and son both said it’s common to run into the same competitors week after week, creating a camaraderie among the owners.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter with Almaguin News. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
