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Latest News:
- New Trails Brochure Produced with Horse Board Funding
A new brochure entitled "Keep the Ride Alive" has just been completed by the VA Horse Council with funding from the VA Horse Industry Board. As nearly half of all Virginia horse enthusiasts' prime interest is in trail and recreational riding, the VHIB awarded a grant to the VA Horse Council Trails Committee to produce this popular guide. The new publication provides much needed current information about public trails in the state. It also educates trail riders about trail conservation practices, trail etiquette, the "Leave No Trace" ethic, and offers information about camping with horses. It took over three years for VHC Trails Committee Chair Sally Aungier to complete all the research for the brochure.
The colorful booklet contains a grid of 109 public trails in Virginia and expands for easy reading. Details on types of services, trail connections, fees, and restrictions at each site are listed as well.
"Keep the Ride Alive" is available on the VHC website if you wish to download it - click on the tab "Trails and Land Use." Then, under Trail Related Activities, click on the "Keep the Ride Alive" title. Single printed copies can be obtained from the VHC office, by e-mailing info@virginiahorsecouncil.org, or by calling 888-467-7382.
Kudos go to Sally Aungier and the Horse Council's Trails Committee for putting it all together.
- Horse Owners Urged To Vaccinate Now For West Nile Virus And Eastern Equine Encephalitis
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) urges all horse owners to check with their veterinarians for West Nile Virus (WNV) and Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) vaccination recommendations for their animals. Virginia only had one confirmed case of WNV in 2011 and no cases of EEE, although the number of horses affected in previous years and in other states is much higher. State officials are concerned that horse owners may be lulled into inaction by the lack of diseases activity last year and neglect vaccination this year.
Read the full release here
- Need Help With Your Small Business?
Seminars Scheduled Around the State. It's difficult enough running any type of business right now, but operating an
equine business always has challenges. Need to brush up on your business skills or could you use some advice on your budget or marketing efforts? The Virginia Department of Business Assistance (VDBA) is offering a series of free Business Sales Growth Seminars across the state in the coming months. The seminars are designed to provide information on selling to state, federal and local markets as well as selling to the private sector. Workshop segments will include information on how to start and operate a business,
growing an existing business, marketing strategies, financing, and resources.
While these sessions are free, advance registration is required. These "start up" seminars are scheduled by region; dates, locations, and contact information can be found at www.vastartup.org. You can also register directly on line at that site and can download the program flier as well.
Or, if participating in the seminars isn't feasible, download a valuable Question and Answer Guide on Starting and Growing Your Own Business. The 40-page Guide covers the "A to Z's" of developing a business. Topics included are: the business plan, legal structures, state licensing agencies, financing, and types of businesses. In addition, there is an excellent resource section. State Agencies, Small Business Development Centers, websites for state and federal agencies, local Chambers of Commerce, as well as Economic Development Offices, are all listed. Need one-on-one business counseling? Contact the VDBA at 866-248-8814.
- The Virginia Horse Industry Board has approved $37,500 to be awarded for the 2012 Virginia Bred Program to 14 associations and events. This figure represents more than a 44% increase in monies awarded compared with last year's program. The number of participating groups has also increased.
Over the past three years of the "Virginia Bred" Program, the VHIB has invested more than $88,000 back into the Virginia horse industry to promote its economic development. For specifics on which associations and events will receive these grants and the amount of funding for each, see the list of Virginia Bred winners in the News & Events Section
- Horse Owners Need Permits to Ride in Wildlife Management Areas
Horse owners may now need a permit to ride in certain Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) and other property owned by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF). As of January 1, 2012, visitors to WMAs and public fishing lakes owned by DGIF who are age 17 and older need to have an Access Permit unless they possess a valid Virginia hunting, freshwater fishing or trapping license or a current Virginia boat registration. Cost for the Daily Access Permit is $4 and the cost for the Annual Access Permit is $23.
DGIF owns more than 201,000 acres of land on 39 Wildlife Management Areas located across the Commonwealth, as well as 35 public fishing lakes statewide. Through the end of 2011, most of the land and lakes were maintained using revenue from the sale of hunting licenses, freshwater fishing licenses and trapping licenses.
More information about the daily and annual permits can be found online here, or by calling 866/721-6911.
- The Virginia Horse Industry has an economic impact of $1.2 billion.
This and other important statistics are in the just released economic impact study conducted by Dr. Terance Rephann of UVA’s Weldon Cooper Center & funded by the VA Horse Industry Board.
• Download the Equine Economic Impact Study (PDF)
• See highlights of the Economic Study here
- Famous Virginia Horse Stories
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Virginia Horse Industry Board
Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services
102 Governor Street, Room 318
Richmond, VA 23219
Telephone: (804) 786-5842
Fax: (804) 371-7786
Email: Andrea Heid, Program Manager
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