Jenna Brown
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The Cal Poly Equine Center held their annual performance horse auction this past Saturday. The auction was put on by students who participate in the Cal Poly Quarter Horse Enterprise Project, a program that selects students to start and train Cal Poly-bred horses.
“It’s a learning experience; it’s Learn By Doing,” animal science freshman Madison Quintanar said. “You learn so much, and even though I’ve been riding since I was 7, I feel like I’ve become such a better rider because of this.”
At the event, students rode horses to demonstrate skills they developed over the 5-month-long training period. Prospective buyers then had the opportunity to meet with the students to ask specific questions about each horse.
“When somebody actually takes a horse and starts it themselves and gets from the initial phase of the horse not understanding anything, we want it to go to the point where you can show it to a lot of people,” animal science lecturer Pete Agalos said. “I think you get a lot of self-confidence.”
The money raised from the sale goes back into the animal science department to continue the equine breeding, foaling and training programs. Horses not sold at the event could still sell in the future, or be kept on campus and used as part of the riding program.