Del Camino Website & External News Page

Web Changes, Media Listings, External Links

This is where we announce the most recent additions to our web site. If you've visited us before and want to know what's changed, take a look here first.

NOTE: Articles written after September 2007 appear in Products and Services, the blog, or one of the forums. The site is undergoing a redesign. This page from Del Camino Equestrian Academy that served our training, boarding, lesson and horsemanship clientele are retained for their convenience, so alumni and friends who have lovingly followed our school horses, retires, and rescues can quickly check for news. This page also serves as and example for our equine business solutions clients.

This Quarter:

Products Launched - ebook Boarding Stable Profits in 10 Easy Steps, ebook How to Adopt a Horse, Equine Business Newsletter
Retirement Jobs - Broodmare, Lesson Horse, Therapy Horse, Military Horse, Historical Re-enactor and Police & Rescue Horse sections all have their own pages.
Forums - added DC Alumni, Non-Profit Horse Groups
Blog - posts and links

Older Maintenance of Note:

1. Moose (Maxwell) Specific Page Updated with correct show history obtained from previous owner Karen Hagy 7/21/07.

2. GLC5500 Equine Joint Supplement Pages Added 8/10/07. (Formerly only available in the barn to boarders as a service, now offered to the public to produce income for the horses.) More products in the works.

3. Services Pages Updated to “Products, Services” to be able to order GLC5500 online using PayPal via web or email ordering. 8/10/07.

4. Pancho Specific Sale Page Updated 8/10/07.

5. History & Contact Page Updated 8/18/07.

6. Bravo Specific Sale Page Updated 8/18/07.

7. Angel Specific Adoption Page Added 8/19/07.

8. Quarterly Tips & Helpful Links Main Page Updated 8/21/07.

9. August 2007 Quarterly Tip Added 8/22/07.

10. DC Sale Horses 2007 Price List Updated 8/18 & 8/22/07.

11. September 2007 Quarterly Tip Added 8/22/07.

12. Home Page Updated to Celebrate Labor Day 8/23/07.

13. Home Page Enhanced to Add Cities of Visitors Display 9/26/07.

14. Home Page Updated to Add September 2007 Helpful Hint Notice 9/28/07.

15. Quarterly Tips & Helpful Links Main Page Updated 9/28/07.

16. Home Page Cities or Countries Counter Added 10/1/07.

17. Home Page Updated to Replace Labor Day with Veterans Day and Thanksgiving Honors, Mention VSAHA Swap Meet

18. User Forum Created 10/10/07. Alumni, Clients, Friends are now able to post messages to one another, ask questions. Ads for used equipment must be approved.

19. September 2007 Quarterly Tip Comment Thread Added 10/09/07. Readers are now able to post feedback and read feedback left by other readers.

20. Products and Services Page Updated 11/15/07 to add e-books and website review service.

21. Del Camino Blog launches December 2007. Watch for the first post.

22. Summer Day Horsemanship Camp Schedule for 2007 Season deleted February 2007 to reduce calls.

23. Client News updated 2006.

24. Lesson Program updated with answers to frequently asked questions and new weight limits 2004.

25. Schoolmaster Program added in 2003 with answers to frequently asked questions about donating a horse to the school. We buy most of our horses through normal sales channels, (recent examples Pancho and Angel) since most horses offered to us by individuals are already too old, or too lame, to be suitable, or will never be able to work with rank beginners. Most are offered at a time when we do not need any more horses, if anything, we have too many. However, because we receive so many calls every month from owners hoping to place an unsellable horse that they love and want to see well cared for, we began offering this page. It has helped many people better evaluate the kind of “retirement” situation they should look for. Very few horses of the “kid broke”, “gentle”, “trained”, “bombproof” descriptions pitched to us are actually suitable in temperament, health, or training to be schoolmasters in a program such as Del Camino offers. The unique quality of our program and our horses built an unmatched reputation for safety, equine education, and humane horsemanship. Our expensive long-term commitment to any horse we took meant that we were frequently recommended by local professionals to horse owners. As heartbreaking as some of their stories were, we were not able to take horses that already had limited usefulness and required special maintenance. Occasionally, a wonderful horse, (Smokey and JJ are great examples) became available at just the right time. They were able to live out happy lives with us and touch the lives of many people in unforgettable ways, receiving the special care their former owners could no longer give. We also had to stop taking horses only suitable for upper intermediate and advanced riders because these horses would never be supported by lesson revenue, but by leases or half-leases. Maxwell, Spirit, Hott Fudge, and JJ, who had been highly successful lease horses, were real assets. But there is a limit to the number that can be carried dictated by the mix of clientele at any point in time. Horses that were eligible for the lease program, but were not supported by revenue, such as Kashmir Kiss, LMS Bravado, and Winlock’s Justice, were transferred off the company payroll and maintained at our personal expense, as were long-term recuperation horses like Clipper, or retirees like Smokey and Spirit. One has to set limits so as not to turn yourself into a non-profit horse rescue as a private citizen!

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Recent Media Coverage of Del Camino or the Horses

Photo Listings coming in Horsetopia.com and Horseweb.com in October for Bravo and Pancho.

Photo of Angel available for adoption on azequinerescue.org with link to our sale page for August!!

Photo Listings, dreamhorse.com, July, 2007, Maxwell, Pancho, Bravo, Angel (3 scammer responses on Pancho, one child response on Bravo. Otherwise, this is a good site, good responses on Bravo and Pancho starting in mid-September.)

Listings, myHorseValues.com, July, 2007, Maxwell, Pancho. Interesting Note: Appraised by site computer program at $12,000 (Maxwell) and $5,100 (Pancho) respectively based on factual characteristics, age, breed, competition experience, etc.

Photo Listings, freehorseads.com, June, 2007, Maxwell, Pancho, Bravo, Angel (no responses by 11/18/07)

Photo Listings, equine.com, webpony.com June, 2007, Maxwell, Pancho, Bravo (good responses on Moose and Pancho, one on Bravo in September.)

Planned Photo Ads Dropped Centerline, Show Program, and ADA Website and horse show class sponsorships June, July and September 2007 due to unforeseen circumstances. These would have been ideal target marketing for Maxwell, Bravo, dressage tack and show clothes. This significant advertising expense budgeted for the horses has been redirected. We regret this missed opportunity to present our offerings to their membership and interested non-members, and support the Arizona Dressage Association. We hope the many, many ADA members who rode with Del Camino have good memories of our horses, philosophy of training and horsemanship, and their time with us. We wish them countless happy hours with their horses.

Listings, Bridle&Bit, May 2007 & June 2007, all online, Maxwell & Barn Sale in print. (no responses to date on horse, barn sale responses poor)

Flyers Posted in May, Updated June, July & Working on August: Greenway Saddlery (good response, thank you ladies!), Western Ranchman (good response, especially for Clipper, that’s how his new owner found out about him!!!!!), Smith’s Tack & Saddlery, The Tack Room (great new store, have 3 saddles on consignment there), C&H Hay Barn, Scottsdale Livestock

Older Advertising for Camp and/or Lessons

Listing, k12academics.com, Annual, 2003 - 2006

Listing, campsatoz.com, Annual, 2003 – 2006

Listings, Arizona Parents’ Guide Annually, 1998 - 2006

Listing, Raising Arizona Kids Summer Camp Issue Annually, 1998 - 2006

Ad, Think!, February through May, 2005

Ad, Bear Essential News for Kids, February through May, 2002 -2006

Ad, Bnai Brith Regional News Magazine, October, 2005