WINNER

I didn't need a shove, 'cause I just fell in love, with your pretty baby face!
This beautiful palomino Quarter Horse filly named Lily was just a few days old in this photo. She was photographed by Michelle Forbes of Ontario.

FIRST RUNNER-UP

The Eldorado Kid
“He’s a crackerjack!” says Alberta’s Pamela Balderston of her 2013 Appaloosa colt, Eldorado Kid. “He is big, bold, and fast! He keeps our quiet old broodmares very busy.”

SECOND RUNNER-UP

Let’s play tag – you’re it!
This well-matched troop of playful Canadian Warmblood foals at Touchstone Farm in Alberta was photographed by Vanessa Latford.

Newborn innocence
"This baby is a pretty special one," says Alberta's Brooke Whitmarsh, who took this photograph of her Quarter Horse foal, Cruise, when he was just a day old. "He is very sweet and energetic."

The safety and comfort of a mother's love
To take photos that capture a moment in time, like this one of Quinn, a Warmblood colt owned by Temperance View Farm in Ontario, photographer Erica Charlton suggests "you just need a little bit of patience to sit quietly for a few minutes until they forget you're there."

Bashful babe
"This is a very friendly little foal that belongs to a friend," says BC's Giselle Pierce, who photographed the lovely chestnut Quarter Horse filly. "She was very funny to watch and play around with."

Gypsy kisses
“Our horse crazy three-year-old doing what she loves…being with our herd!” says Sonya Martin of Sonview Gypsy Ranch in Waterloo, Ontario, which describes the four-year-old Gypsy Vanner gelding, Max, as a gentle giant.

FIRST RUNNER-UP

A child’s love
“I took this photograph when I was about 13. It’s of my younger brother and my old mare, Tammy. Tammy was so easy to love, and loved everyone in return. Sadly, Tammy passed away a couple of years ago but I am always grateful to look back on this photograph and remember the great horse that she was and the joy she brought to our entire family.” – Chelsea Noyon of BC.

SECOND RUNNER-UP

Some people do yoga…
“We have an unbreakable bond of respect love and trust for each other, illustrated in this photo, such that I have never had with another horse. I would go to the ends of the earth for her, and she, I know, would gladly carry me there,” says Ontario’s Leanne Stalker of Playing with Fire, her 18.1 hand Hanoverian/Friesian mare.

Love of her life
"Gabriel is a 7 year old Connemara/Welsh gelding," says Michelle Forbes of Ontario. "He is my daughter's hunter pony and the love of her life."

Too cute and cuddly to resist
"Our little Webster is such a cuddle bug...and he knows we can't resist him!" says Jill Giese of her one month old Hanoverian colt.

A special bond
"My son Hayden has a special bond with a very special miniature mare named Classy. This photo was taken on an afternoon recently where they spent time together." – Martina East of BC

WINNER

Haying with horsepower
“The past number of years has seen a number of us re-employ farming methods from decades ago; that is, to mow and rake an area of hayland using teams of horses,” says Norbert Stoll, who is located in the North Peace Area of BC. The teamster is Josh Klassen, driving Belgians Pete and Polley owned by Bruce Coleman.

FIRST RUNNER-UP

Impulsion
Ronen, a 14-year-old Holsteiner gelding, is “giving his all in the Medium Canter down the long side,” says Megan Nicholson. “Although he is not perfectly built for dressage, he has the heart and mind of a champion and tries his best every time. He is the love of my life!” Ronen was photographed by Seth Nicholson of Wisconsin.

SECOND RUNNER-UP

That’s how it’s done!
Three of Clubs, a two-year-old Standardbred colt, at the Gold Finals at Mohawk Raceway in Ontario, was photographed by Lori Martin. Three of Clubs was Canada’s fastest two-year-old pacing colt on the half mile track in 2013.

Arabian attraction
Erica Charlton of Ontario took the photo of this lovely Arabian stallion in a Western show class at the 2012 Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show.

Show jumping with style
"The Lake Placid Horse Show (in Lake Placid, New York) runs for a week in late June/early July every year," says Ontario's Erica Charlton. "It draws a lot of competitors and spectators and there are significant prizes to be won."

WINNER

It’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you!
Percheron-Canadian cross mares Kay and Sass, out for a sleigh ride on Family Day at South Algonquin Trails in Ontario, were photographed by Tammy Donaldson.

FIRST RUNNER-UP

Winter grazing… with an amazing view
“This group of horses and mules spend the winter behind our house, it is great having this to look at all winter,” says BC’s Giselle Pierce of the herd that spend their summers working in a pack string.

Fergie catching snowflakes!
“We were on our way to a Santa Claus parade,” says Ontario’s Cindy Vyse, who was snapping photos of her mare Fergie “all braided with her Christmas hat on, and just happened to catch her with eyes closed and catching a snowflake! It was priceless!”

A winter romp
"They were eager to get out and play...they absolutely love to be harnessed up and put to work," says BC's Vallorie Bjerke of Percheron/Shire cross drafts Sam and Sahra. "We use them for pulling a wagon, are building a sleigh for them for the deeper snow and hope to get them plowing the fields soon."

Riding in a winter wonderland
Is there anything better than a winter hack with your barn friends? Erica Charlton took this photo while riding on the snowy trails at Temperance View Farm in Athens, Ontario.

WINNER

Sunset friends
“My Appaloosa DJ loves to be where the action is, so came over to graze where the dogs were taking a break from playing ball,” says Marion Bayliff of BC of her eight-year-old multi-talented gelding and dressage partner.

FIRST RUNNER-UP

Mud bath… did I miss a spot?
“There was a small bit of water laying out in the field after a good rain. Red Bird was the only one who thought she needed a mud bath, to help keep the bugs of or to hold her beauty. This mare is actually a bay roan,” says owner Gloria Dodd of her AQHA mare, Rollin Red Bird.

SECOND RUNNER-UP

Happy hour!
At the end of the day, the trail horses at the Sundance Guest Ranch in Ashcroft BC, are let loose from the paddock to run back out into the fields for the night. The happy herd was photographed by Malinda Vendekerkhove

First Class Crime
"He will be my next barrel futurity horse," says Alberta's Amanda Wunsch of First Class Crime, her 2011 palomino stallion sired by the great barrel horse sire Crime Wave. "I have huge hopes for this colt both in the arena and as a sire."

Look out!
Three-week old twins Penny and Cash scamper to get out of the way for their mother, Gumpy, as she enjoys a nice roll in the pasture. "Even though their odds to survive were 1 in 10,000, they did survive and thrive," says Rebecca Hull of Alberta. "They are almost identical in size and weight, as well as looks and movement. Penny has a little white on her forehead - that's how we tell them apart."

Stretching her legs
"Ivy, being a thoroughbred, loves to stretch her legs and show off her grace and speed," says Jill Perkins, who photographed the four-year-old mare at W-Ranch in Carling, Ontario. "There are two other horses in the paddock with her but when Ivy starts to roll nobody can catch her!"

WINNER

Sleepy Morning
Crispy, pictured here hamming it up for the camera with mom, Kiss, was born on May 29, 2012. “The kids stayed home from school to watch the birthing and it was amazing!” says owner and photographer Irene Attema of BC.

FIRST RUNNER UP

Having Fun!
KWPN foals, Honor (foreground) and High Roller, show off their athleticism as they gambol around the pasture in tandem. Photographed by Denise Gordeyko of BC.

SECOND RUNNER UP

Afternoon nap
This beautiful, weeks-old Rocky Mountain Horse foal was photographed snoozing just after an Ontario sunrise by owner Peter Lindsay.

WINNER

Shoreline Gallop
“Every year for my birthday we take the horses to a local beach. Nothing cures the soul like a good gallop across the shore with waves splashing and the smell of the ocean,” says Samantha Saunders of riding her 19-year-old Appendix gelding, Dash, on the BC coast. Photographed by Mark Perrins.

FIRST RUNNER UP

Moutain View
Pilgrim, photographed here in the Cypress Hills in Saskatchewan at age 27 with owner Bill Merritt aboard, sadly passed away in February of this year. “He was a human disguised as a horse,” says Tracey Schuster, Bill’s wife and the photographer. “He had a big, huge heart.”

SECOND RUNNER UP

Budding Cowgirl
This little girl waits her turn at a gymkhana aboard her trusty steed, a 20-year-old Paint mare. “She was so sweet and cute to watch,” says photographer Giselle Pierce of BC. “Kids just love being on a horse.”

WINNER

Frosty Footsteps
In this stunning photo, Peter Lindsay captured his Rocky Mountain mares running in the snow just as a new storm came rolling across the Ontario hills.

FIRST RUNNER UP

Fun in the snow
“For a few years I was looking to buy a Christmas halter. When I finally found one I immediately went to the barn to try it on Stormy,” says owner and photographer Sabrina Cousineau of Quebec about her eight-year-old Standardbred-cross horse. “I decided to take him outside in his field and take a few pictures. I had a great time shooting him and I was laughing when I saw all the photos with the little pompon in the wind!”

SECOND RUNNER UP

Golden Eyes
“I tried for 26 years to get a good shot of MJB’s golden eyes, and this was the one that struck all the chords in my heart,” says owner Andria West of her friend Leonore Oler’s photograph taken near Calgary, Alberta. “I look at this photo and in those eyes I see all the trails we’ve blazed together and everything he’s taught me.”

WINNER

All in a days work
Belgians Gypsy, Candy, Polley, and Pete, owned by Bruce Coleman, have become accustomed to pulling a variety of horse-drawn farm equipment, including this binder. “This year marks the first year oats were seeded on this land in quite some time (again with horses),” says photographer Norbert Stoll of BC. “It was an arduous task but, with the pooling of resources, equipment was acquired and borrowed to make our version of Threshing Day in the North Peace live on.”

FIRST RUNNER UP

Potato Farming
The Clydesdale horses are put to work harvesting the potato crop in Fort Steele Heritage Town, just north of Cranbrook, BC. “After the horses plough a row, the kids and parents come in and pick the potatoes up and put them in sacks,” says photographer Giselle Pierce, who describes the horses as “the main attraction.”

SECOND RUNNER UP

Heritage Wedding
This wedding took place at Fort Steele Heritage Town, near Cranbrook, BC. Photographer Giselle Pierce says, “After the ceremony, the bride and groom got to go for a carriage ride around the town. All the wedding party, friends, and family ran along behind. It was fun to watch!”