COCHRANE— Nine recently born foals have received their new names via the RCMP’s Name the Foal contest, with one of the monikers coming from a young girl in Cochrane.
Nine-year-old Amelia Bates’ submission of the name Sarge was chosen for one of the nine new service animals.
The nine foals were born into the RCMP’s 80-year long breeding program at a farm in Pakenham, Ont.
According to the RCMP’s website, the breeding program traces its roots to 1937, when assistant commissioner S. T. Wood, who headed the RCMP contingent at the coronation of King George VI, remarked how the red tunic worn by RCMP members stood out against the sleek black coat of the horses.
But, the Mounties use of horses goes back much further, to the inception of the North-West Mounted Police on May 23, 1873.
The official breeding program began in 1939.
The program specifically breeds Hanoverian horses, which are highly sought after for their athleticism, good temperament, trainability, beauty and grace.
The RCMP’s program is internationally recognized for producing some of the finest Hanoverian horses in Canada.
The Name the Foal competition this year drew entries from more than 5,300 kids aged 14 and under.
Amelia’s father, Michael Bates, said he found the contest online and showed it to his kids.
Bates is a father of four children, but only two were young enough to participate in the 14 and under contest.
“My dad told me to come upstairs and he just showed me the website on his computer,” Amelia said. “I was pretty excited.”
The contest was made all the more challenging, she said, because the name of the horse had to start with the letter s.
“We were kind of all as a family, we were just throwing around a couple of ideas for names, we were all kind of pitching in,” she said. “But I was like ‘oh, Sarge is a really good name’ because that also applies to the RCMP.”
When she found out she won, Amelia said, she was very excited,
For picking a winning name, the RCMP sent Amelia a special prize.
“It was a horseshoe, a picture, a certificate and a pin,” she said.
Amelia’s winning choice earned her a 2020 Musical Ride horseshoe, a picture of the foal that she named and a certificate signed by the RCMP commissioner.
When she received the package she was not sure what was inside, but, knew it was heavy.
“My mom was like ‘be careful with it, it’s heavy’ so I opened it up and I’m like ‘oh my gosh it’s a horseshoe,’” she exclaimed.
Amelia added horses are her favourite animal. She said she gets to go to her aunt and uncle’s farm in Saskatchewan where she gets to ride every summer.
“I’ve always just really liked riding them and I’ve always loved to be around them,” she said.
