We are celebrating the Adaptable Arabian as our September Breed of the Month on YourDressage!
Did you know that dressage riders who partner with a member of this ancient breed are eligible for special awards through the Adequan®/USDF All-Breeds Awards program, as the Arabian Horse Association is a participating organization?
Here, a rider from USDF Region 2 shares the incredible origin story of her dance partner, including how she earned her tributary name, “Its Miller Thyme.”
By Ashley Hoffman
From the very beginning, the life of HF Its Miller Thyme+/ (barn name “Milly”) has been one of resilience. Her story all begins when I moved back from North Dakota to be closer to family and to take an agronomist job with a major chemical manufacturer. I had been out of horses for several years during college and while trying to get myself established in the agricultural industry, but I heard from some Arabian friends that the breeder of my heart horse, whom I had lost ten years prior, was retiring, and they were looking to place their horses. So, off to Whispering Pines Arabians we went!
There was one horse I had in mind heading to that farm; her name was WP Shai Monique, and she was the half-sister of my heart horse. Monique was not only a proven broodmare, but she was also an Arabian Horse Association (AHA) regional sport horse champion herself. At 18, she was still one of the most gorgeous mares I have ever laid eyes on, and that day she came home with me. The plan was to breed her to the up-and-coming Arabian dressage superstar, Tuxedo Thyme ABA++++//, the following year.
For the next couple of years, I tried getting WP Shai Monique in foal, but ultimately, I was unsuccessful. It was looking like my dream of a Whispering Pine-bred sport horse was coming to an end. My mom decided to reach out to Don and Bev Kruse to see if they knew of any horses still in the country (they exported a lot of their stock after I got Monique), and to my luck, they had one mare of breeding age left. They didn’t want to sell her, but offered her to me through a lease. That spring, a gorgeous chestnut and flaxen mare named WP Shaikira came home to my farm, and we started the breeding process. On the second cycle, Shaikira was confirmed in foal, and I couldn’t wait for it to come! I was dreaming of a perfect filly for myself to show and eventually continue the bloodlines that were so special to me. The next May, my dream became a reality, but not without complications.
I will never forget the day Milly was born. It was a gorgeous day, and like most farmers in May, we were super busy trying to get our crops in the ground. Shaikira was within her due date range, but it was a little on the early side. However, that morning, she was looking uncomfortable, so I put her in the foaling stall in the barn. I would not have guessed that was going to be the day.
Midafternoon, I went home for a few hours, as our wedding photos had just been edited (I had just gotten married two weeks prior), and my mom had to run to John Deere for some parts. My mom got home first and went out to the barn to check on Shaikira. She then called me and said, “Ashley, you have a baby”! It felt like the longest five-minute drive ever!
When I got back to the farm, there, lying in my foaling stall, was the most beautiful little bay filly I have ever laid eyes on. She was small, but looked healthy overall. Shaikira had already gotten her baby all cleaned up, and she was lying down. I can’t even tell you how overjoyed I was!
Unfortunately, the joy didn’t last long. When the filly got up to nurse, Shaikira wanted nothing to do with her. Time is of the essence for getting that foal to nurse, so I immediately called our local vet and reached out to a friend who experienced a similar experience with one of their mares. We got the mare milked and the filly fed, but then, the real work started. Absolutely nothing made that mare want that little filly; none of the typical drug protocols worked. I remember being in the barn that night and being thankful that the Milwaukee Brewers were playing, so I could at least listen to Bob Uecker while working with the mare and filly. That night was the longest Milwaukee Brewers game ever to have been played at Miller Park. Thus, Milly became “HF Its Miller Thyme+/” in honor of them and the great Bob Uecker.
After a few days of trying on my own, I realized that, with our farm and my job in agriculture, I couldn’t continue by myself. So, my mom suggested having a local friend who runs a lesson/boarding business to continue to work with Shakira and Milly. I loaded up Shaikira, and my husband picked up Milly and handed her to me in the trailer (boy, would I like to see him try that now).
We made that twenty-minute trip with me holding onto my sweet little Milly, and when we arrived, Lynn Marthaler did her absolute best to try to get Shaikira to accept her. She got up at all hours of the night to make sure Milly got fed and stayed safe during this whole process. Milly was in the stall next to Shaikira, where she could see her and had the most adorable stuffed toy for company. After a couple of weeks, we just knew it wasn’t going to work. We loaded up Shaikira and took her back to her owners. Milly got paired with an adorable mini companion, and we switched her over to all milk replacer.
This is where the story gets interesting. I can’t believe the power of social media. Milly’s story was getting shared all over the place with folks looking for a nurse mare for her. I can’t even believe the level of support and ideas people sent me. One of those ideas was a total blessing; a family member of mine reached out and said she knew of a lady who had brought a mare into milk artificially with medications, and that I should call her, which I did instantly. Milly, at this point, was already two weeks old, and the medications take two weeks to come into effect. I knew it was a total gamble, but the chance at a normal life and not being an orphan was well worth it. The next day, I went and picked up a gorgeous Ster Friesian mare named Wally, and with the help of my veterinarian, we started the protocol.
Two weeks later, my veterinarian returned to pair Milly with Wally. We had no idea if this was really going to work, as Milly was much older than any of the other pairings my vet had ever worked with. Wally was 100% on board with Milly, but Milly was terrified. I can’t blame her. She had been through so much. But, within an hour, Milly had a mom. Wally was an absolute blessing. It was incredible to watch a mare of a completely different breed absolutely love a foal that wasn’t hers. She took incredible care of Milly, and we will forever be thankful for her and her owner.
The next two years, Milly had a simple life on the farm. Just enjoying being a baby and growing up on a real working farm. When she was two, I decided to take her to the AHA Region 10 Championship Show. Milly did really well, placing as the Region 10 Champion Two-Year-Old Purebred Filly and Reserve Champion in both the mature mare classes. Hence, her show career started. Since then, she has won two National Top Tens, nine Regional Championships, and five Reserve Regional Championships in hand through AHA.
However, we weren’t without some struggles showing under saddle. In the fall of 2023, I sent Milly out for training, and we were super excited to show her under saddle for her last year competing in the junior horse division. After a super successful Region 11 Sport Horse/Dressage show (Milly won all four in-hand classes), I decided to bring her home to get ready to show under saddle at Region 10.
The following Tuesday, my mom stopped by and we went out to the pasture to grab Milly for my ride. She said to me, “Ashley, Milly doesn’t look sound.” I responded that it was probably because it was so muddy, and proceeded to bring her in and put her in the cross ties. I picked out the first three hooves, and when I got to the fourth, my heart sank. There was a giant nail sticking out of her hoof. My head went all over the place, and I called my local vet. I sent him a few photos, and he said she needed to be hospitalized and to haul Wisconsin Equine. She stayed there for a week, remaining sound throughout the entire process. Crazy enough, Milly went on to win two Reserve Championships in hand at Region 10, not even two weeks later. She was not cleared for riding, though, so we scratched our riding classes.
The next year, we really struggled finding our way as dance partners. Our partnership was really damaged by my sending her off for training. She just didn’t forgive me. Thankfully, this past spring, my good friend and trainer, Jasmine Zimmerman, stepped up to the plate to reunite us. After a few weeks of hard work, we were back at it!
As green as Milly is, she has always been the horse to help push me; help get me over some of my fears. The day I picked Milly up from Jazz, I asked, “What do you think of me doing a dressage clinic with her next weekend?” Jazz encouraged me to do it. Since that day, we have been building. We are building this crazy, awesome relationship. The following month, I rode my Milly to our first-ever Region 10 Dressage Championship! I was absolutely stunned!
This little horse keeps surprising me and pushing me to places I didn’t think I would ever get to. I am blessed to have Milly in my life, and thankful I get to be her person. She’s one very special little horse.
