Recently I read the Equine Spirit by C S Purdy and learned a lot about what horses have done for us over time. I was amazed to learn about some pretty incredible horse power inventions in history.

1. The Pony Express was made up of teams of horses and riders that were used to convey messages over long distances, quickly. Obviously one horse and rider can travel a lot faster than a lone person running. The use of a pony express could speed up communications over long distances.
2. The Erie Canal in the United States was run on horse power too, surprisingly! Or more specifically, the pulling power of mules. Mules were attached by ropes to boats and they were directed from the side of the canal, to lead boats down it! Ingenious.
3. Conservation grazing. As outlined in Jenifer Morrissey’s book the Partnered Pony, some ponies are specifically used to graze in a protected area. These equine species will graze on specific plants and create minimal damage to the area, helping to promote a specific result in the native area.
4. Tree logging. Although a lot of this is carried out by machinery these days, it was ultimately a large horse focused industry. Today even, horses or ponies are used in areas that machinery cannot access, or when the local flora and fauna needs to be left as untouched as possible.

Horse Power Inventions

There are many inventions out there that are or were only made possible by the equine species. I’m not certain that era is over! Do you have a horse related invention in mind that you feel can meet a particular need? Be sure to check out a recent post on equine grants if you’re seeking funding help!

“It’s hard to lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a horse.” ― Adlai E. Stevenson II

Recently we had a look at the idea of equine grants on Equus Education. I’d love to explore the other side of this, too. That is, providing grants for horse businesses. In fact, what if there was one place you could go to online that outlined various horse related grants available to the public?

Imagine it. You plan to set up a horse organisation or venture that may be a not for profit. Or, you want to use horses to meet a need in the community. You know that if you are able to setup your horse related plan, you can do great things for locals – and do it with horses, too! But you need some funds to get things started.

If there was one place online that you could go to for this, it could be a great resource. Various grants could be listed based on localities, amounts available and what it’s available for. It could be to establish facilities for keeping horses or offering riding. It could be finances to help with buying needed products like horse riding gear, helmets, or even horse feed. Perhaps grants are available to establish a marketing campaign once your horse idea is setup.

Providing Grants for Horse Businesses as an Online Resource

Whatever it is, how great to be able to go to one place to find it. Perhaps this website could even have a set of questions that you answer to determine just how many grants may be applicable to your situation. For someone who has worked in the area of not for profits and who has a passion for horses, this may be a project that excites them. Plus, they’d have the know-how to be able to set it up.

For it to be an income earner for the person who provided such a valuable resource, they may have to consider paid advertising on the site. Or perhaps they can provide these resources to individual horse set ups at a monthly subscription fee.  Did someone say equine passive income stream? 😉