THOMASTON — The new Pepper Hill Farm in South Thomaston held its open house May 18. The farm will stable and provide a clean new environment for the equine community, as well as offer lessons for children and adults. The open house is not to be confused with the grand opening which will come July 1, when the stables are completed. The open house gave potential boarders a chance to see how big and beautiful the new farm will be. According to Pepper Hill, approximately 160 people visited on Saturday to check out the new building.

Mary Jo Brink, along with husband, Michael, are the proprietors of Pepper Hill Farm. They also own and operate The Hartstone Inn in Camden.  She said they will have the capacity to board 12 horses.

“We have a nicely sized property and as we see our need grows, we can grow with it,” said Brink. “Our goal is to provide the same level of comfort for the horses as we do for our guests at the inn. We don’t want to be exclusive. We’ll welcome any and all disciplines. As we see a need and demand in the area we’ll find the appropriate trainer in those disciplines. We’re very excited about the children’s program we’ve envisioned and we want to bring in some specialists for clinics, as well.  

Brink said the children’s program will be appropriate for all ages beginning at age four. The horses will be smaller and as the children progress, they will offer more advanced classes and have the horses available.

Iris Beckwith, of Owls Head, was one of those potential boarders and now has the distinction of being the first person to officially board a horse at Pepper Hill.

“I have that distinction now, yes, and I’m very happy about it,” said Beckwith. “It looks like it’s going to be a beautiful facility. I like their ideas about various trainers and programs. The stalls are big and wonderful. The barn manager is full of life and the love of horses.”

Beckwith’s horse, now boarded in Washington, is a Hanoverian she bought and flew over from Germany. The Hanoverian is known for its good temperament, athleticism, beauty, and grace. They are often seen in Olympic competitions. Her horse had more frequent flyer miles than she does, laughed Beckwith.

“Right now I drive an hour up and an hour back, plus the two hours I spend with my horse, so it’s going to be wonderful to have a stable that’s just eight minutes from my house,” she said. “I think the general facility is going to be good for both the comfort of the horse and the owner. It will bring a lot of interesting people together and it’s going to make for a nice horse community.”

Dr. Caitlin Daly is a veterinarian with a practice in Waldoboro and she specializes in horses. She was at the open house to see the stables and we took the opportunity to ask her what was involved in keeping a horse healthy.

“It takes yearly vaccinations, as well as a wellness exam,” said Daly. “I like to go over the horse with a fine-tooth comb and revisit any issues we might have had in the previous year. We check the eyes for signs of cataracts, or early blindness; we look at the mouth, and a horse should routinely have his teeth floated once a year.”

Okay, we’re going to stop right there for a second.

Floating a horse’s teeth? I had heard the term a couple of times before, but never paid it much attention. Now I’m interested in what it means. To float a horse's teeth sounds funny. Floating means to smooth or contour a horse's teeth with a file, the file is called a "float." Horse's teeth keep growing and can develop sharp edges, making it difficult for them to chew food or hold a bit. It can be painful and cause discomfort inside their mouth. Check it out here. Take it away, Doc.

“We listen to the heart and lungs and make sure they’re in overall good health to receive their vaccinations for that day,” said Daly. "They get vaccinated for Eastern and Western equine encephalitis, tetanus, rabies and some horses that go to shows are getting vaccinated for rhino influenza. As far as an emergency goes, something that would prompt me to pay a visit, the most common I would say by far is colic. Colic is just a general term for a bellyache, but it can be caused by a number of reasons. Eye emergencies are common. Lacerations, of course, you need to deal with quickly. There are more and worse too, but those are the most common I would say."   

So what, in your professional opinion, is your impression of Pepper Hill Farm?

“This place is going to be absolutely fantastic,” she said. “I am so pleased to see it coming to a community like South Thomaston. What I like about it is that it’s a new property that’s conserving and accentuating the history of the property. It will bring a lot of people and horses out here and it will be a good community resource with their children’s programs, and for older people to rediscover the passion they had with horses as a child.”

Erin Judkins, of Thomaston, serves as manager for the farm’s 28 acres. She graduated from George’s Valley High School and from the University of New Hampshire with an associate’s degree in equine management. She’ll oversee the day-to-day operations of the farm.

“Pepper Hill Farm will have an English and Western riding program,” said Erin. “We’ll have indoor and outdoor arenas and a riding trail. The stalls were all designed and built from the floor up; we started with just a big empty building. Now there are 12 stalls, a tack room, a break room and two different shops that are available for rent. We hope to get those spaces occupied. There’ll be another level above the stalls for hay and office space. And a heated wash stall. It’s all been well thought out and laid out.”

What’s in store for additions?

“We’ll have a connector building that connects the indoor arena to the barn. It will actually be a continuation of the aisle way. We’ll have two areas for viewing, one upstairs and one downstairs and both will be heated. There’ll be a supply and a grain room and two public restrooms of course. The indoor arena will be 75 by 100 feet and there’ll be two outdoor arenas, one for jumping and one for dressage. We’ll have pastures and an outdoor living area for horses. People can rent the arenas and riding trails and we’ll have multiple clinics. It will be a chance for people of all ages to learn about horses and their well being.

"I’m so happy to see all the people who came out today from the town, up the street or down the road,” said Erin. “I loved seeing all the horse folks who came to see us, as well. We really want this barn to be a community and part of the community, the turnout has been awesome. This is my dream job. I love horses and I love teaching people. I couldn’t possibly imagine a better job or better people to work for.”

I asked Mary Jo Brink to comment on her manager. 

"We couldn’t imagine how we were going to find someone to run the facility,” said Brink. “The nice thing about having an inn and a restaurant is the number of people you come in contact with. Just through a conversation Michael mentioned the facility and how we were looking for someone to run it. Through an email Erin contacted us, and the rest, they say, is history. Erin just kind of fell into our lap and she has a good amount of experience for a young woman. She has that can-do attitude which is the most important thing. She’s great to be around, she has a lot of connections in the horse world and we’re just really looking forward to working with her.”