Cleveland Bay is the oldest established breed of English Horses. Sandra Marx, a horsemanship teacher at Cove Equestrian Center, owns Melvin, 1 of only 200 Cleveland Bays in North America. Marx says Melvin was a gift to her from her friend Laura.

“Laura was looking for a good forever home for him, and I needed good school horses," Marx said. "I got on him, rode him for the first time and took him home.”

The winning horse at Saturday’s Kentucky Derby has Louisiana’s fingerprints all over it. Mystik Dan won by a nose, edging out Sierra Leone and Forever Young. Lafayette native Brian Hernandez was the jockey and Shreveport native Sharilyn Gasaway is a co-owner.

“It’s absolutely unbelievable and a dream of a lifetime for us, we are just grateful and blessed to own this horse,” Gasaway said.

Louisiana Downs is celebrating a milestone this weekend.

Saturday kicks off the racetrack’s 50th anniversary of the live racing season. It’s also the same day as one of the biggest horse racing events of the year -- the Kentucky Derby.

Since 1974, Louisiana Downs has been a part of the northwest Louisiana landscape. Company officials say they are happy to keep the tradition alive for their 50th anniversary.

Horses are big business here in Louisiana, but funding for equine programs is not stable. Several years ago, the state received a grant that ponied up; however, a coalition of horse groups is advocating for more permanent funding.

“In our first year in 2022, we were able to award $194,000 throughout the equine industry,” said LSU AgCenter Equine Extension Specialist Dr. Neely Heidorn. “The economic impact of those funds into the industry ended up being around $4.4 million, which was over a 2,000% return on investment in 2023.”

Clear Creek Stud is holding its annual stallion presentation Saturday, Dec. 16 from 10:30 am until 2:00 p.m., at their farm in Folsom, La.

Several Louisiana legislators as well as Thoroughbred industry dignitaries will be on hand to speak and visit with guests.

A Ville Platte horseman has been crowned the winner of the 2023 Le Tournoi de la Ville Platte.

Marcus Guillory won the competition this year and said despite being a third-generation participant, the victory was unexpected.

The Louisiana High School Rodeo Association (LHSRA) is holding its state finals this week at the West-Cal Arena and Events Center.

So far, Jeff Davis Parish homeschool student Lydia Touchet and Dylan Hennesey of Oak Hill High School in Rapides Parish took home the win in cutting, and Sulphur homeschool student Laney Walker came in first in reined cow horse.

Dead horses witnessed at a Webster Parish rescue has raised alarms from neighbors. But law enforcement officers say the horses' deaths are natural and not from mistreatment. 

Still, Webster Parish sheriff's deputies will make sure the owners of 4M Ranch and Rescue are aware of a state law requiring quick burial or cremation of the dead animals. 

A federal judge on Tuesday granted Louisiana and West Virginia’s request to halt implementation of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) in those states until a wider lawsuit challenging its constitutionality is decided.

U.S. District Court Judge Terry Doughty granted the states a preliminary injunction, saying that the threatened harm to plaintiffs outweighed that of the defendants and that the decision “will not undermine the public interest.”