Why the interest in "plastic toy horses"?

Way back in 1981, a friend introduced me to her collection,
I went to a "live show" to see what it was all about and I had a wonderful time!
Now there is so much to this hobby, so many ways to learn, and so many talents coming out to offer their services.
I will try to explain, in "layman's terms". This hobby can be quite confusing to a "novice" yet there are so many "senior" showers/collectors out there to help!

Collectors - these are people who collect/buy/trade/sell Breyers, Pete Stone, Hartlands, Hagen-Renakers, Leftons,
Beswicks, and other manufacturers of one or many different breeds, molds, colors, whatever!
They can also be dealers of these manufacturers.

Clubs - Hundreds of clubs all over the world have been started for every kind of interest. A club can be for a certain breed, or color, or halter, or performance, or whatever!

Photo Shows - these people take photos of their models (horses, cattle, longears, fantasy critters, etc.) and send them to people who "advertise" and judge the photos. There are classes to enter the photos. This "judge" seperates the photos in their appropriate classes and chooses the best of the best, based on experience or may even be learning about the hobby. Most of these photo shows are club shows, to benefit, promote, or support the club.
Some may have a small show fee.
Some may have ribbons, awards, prizes and/or points awarded to accumulate in that particular club.

Live Shows - a gathering of people to enter their models in person. This can be a great way to meet people too! You bring your models, enter in the appropriate classes to be judged. There are rules and criteria to follow. Show fees to send in. List of models you will be entering. And, if you're lucky enough, win a fancy award/ribbon/trophy and qualify for the Nationals.

Halter - this basically refers to the model without any tack on. Halters and showmanship bridles can be allowed. Normally a photo or live show entry consists of just the model and no tack.

Performance - "English, Western, Costume, Harness, and Other" are the most common categories and these may be broken down even further. The model is actually fitted with appropriate tack just like a real horse might be. Hobbiests have shown their talents in making items to fit these models. Tack are exact in scale miniatures to the real thing, must fit according to rules, and obstacles must be appropriate. Certain types of jumps, ropes must be tied right in western roping, costumes must be "authentic", and if dolls are used, must be in scale and fit in the saddle correctly.

In other words, this hobby is a "miniature" scale of the "real thing". But, we don't need to feed or clean up (except for maybe a little dusting) after the models!!

It is so hard to explain on this website all there is about this hobby. There is so much more I could tell! Please look through my pages to learn about what I'm interested in, and if you still have more questions, feel free to email me.