Ask the General October 8th

Dear General Drew,

I have read in your column and seen on the website that the Clydesdales are returning to Independence for Neewollah.  Why can’t we have them every year?

Horse Lover

Dear Horse Lover,

I contact Budweiser every year in an attempt to bring the Clydesdales back to Neewollah, but they are very popular so we are very fortunate to have them retuning this year.   There are 5 traveling Clydesdale teams.  Each year, these teams travel more than 100,000 miles and appear in over 500 events dazzling audiences with their precision, grace and power.  They require a 40 x 120 space with power and water for 12,  10 x 10 stalls. 

It takes 5 hours to prepare the horses for an appearance.  The horses are shampooed and brushed until their coats glisten.  These horses always have a hearty appetite.  Each working horse consumes 50 to 60 pounds of hay and up to 10 pounds of specialized grains and vitamins daily.  They drink about 30 gallons of water each day.  Budweiser is working with a local Grain store to provide the food and hay the horses require.  Every five weeks, each horse gets a new set of shoes.  Their horseshoes measure 20 inches from end to end and each weighs in at 5 pounds.

As you can see it takes a lot of time and effort to host the Clydesdales return to Independence.  I hope you enjoy them.

                                                                   Sincerely,

                                                                   Drew Demo

                                                                   Generalissimo 2007