Buggy horses find comfort and care while owners work at Park’s Livestock

One of the buggies used by the young Mennonite workers at Park’s Livestock. Their horses relax in the adjacent barn, built specifically to shelter them during the workday. Gary West photo

By Gary West

Drivers passing through the Milverton area are used to seeing Mennonite and Amish horse-drawn buggies on the roads, each marked with a slow-moving vehicle triangle and equipped with bright, battery-powered lights for visibility.

As the days grow shorter, those lights become even more noticeable, glowing red at the rear and guiding the way at the front.

Anyone familiar with buggy horses knows how well these animals are cared for. Their coats shine, their feet are meticulously trimmed and many have the high action and elegant movement that comes from a touch of hackney breeding. For their owners, a dependable horse and buggy is an essential mode of transportation – an investment comparable to the cost of a used car.

At Park’s Livestock, just north of Milverton, that respect for the animals extends beyond the buggy ride. Two young Mennonite employees who work in the hog-sorting facility now have access to a small shelter beside the parking lot, built specifically to house up to three horses. The horses spend the workday blanketed, fed and sheltered while their owners sort pigs moving in and out of the modern operation.

Manager Hayden Parks says he appreciates the reliable help from the local Mennonite community, noting the workers’ calm and gentle approach to handling livestock, a standard valued by farmers and buyers alike.

Park’s Livestock opened its Milverton facility this past summer and has quickly filled a gap in the regional hog market, providing a needed service for the many large swine operations across Perth County – long known as one of Canada’s leading pork-producing regions.