Buying land in NC to create your dream horse farm can be a smooth process with a great broker on your side. Once you’ve bought your farm, one of the first questions many may ask you is, “What are you going to call your new place?” That’s a really good question, and your decision could quite possibly affect EVERYTHING about your business (if it’s a working farm). Is it a farm? Is it a ranch? What about “ gardens or acres?” Imagine compounding this with what to name your new horse! Naming horses is not a simple task either, as there are rules about what you can and cannot include in a horse name, and rules about what you can’t name your horse at all. Take time to really think through what’s truly in a name and you can come up with a clever solution for both your horse and farm names.
First, think about what tone you want to set with your property. What purpose does your property serve? If you’re creating a working horse farm, how many horses do you want to board along with your own horses and how will you advertise that? What services area your specialties? Think about your target audience for the name, as this is part of your personal AND professional brand strategy. The most tried-and-true formula is this: [descriptor] + [natural element] + [farm/ranch/gardens/acres] = your unique name. There are exceptions that have entered the scene, but the most memorable names are those that follow this formula.
Next, it’s a good idea to get a little creative. What about Three Stooges Ranch for three crazy brothers who’s wives all think they’ve “bought the farm” in the most insane way? How about a play on pronunciation, like Lordham Tired Acres? There are also people or places that might be incorporated into your name for personalization to your family, or to clearly identify your property’s location. One word of caution: think about the dreaded three-letter acronym your name makes. You wouldn’t want Sally And David (SAD) Farms, would you?
Finally, keep it simple and short. A three-word name is best, and follows the maxim: “Four words Are Good. Three are Better. Two Rock.” Just remember the purpose for the property and the target audience, and your creativity will lead you to the right name. For some more inspiration, visit
www.Localharvest.org.
Now, about that horse name. If there has ever been a regulated naming convention codex, it’s the
Jockey Club interactive registry‘s online book of naming conventions for thoroughbreds. There are more than 47,000 horse names they just released from use, not to mention all the names that are currently in use. There are lots of things you can’t do in naming your horse. For example, you can’t use “III” or “IV” to represent the third or fourth generation of a great name, but you can use a number spelled out as part of the horse name. You can’t use more than 18 characters total, including punctuation. You can’t use names that are exclusively initials or – again – the dreaded three-letter acronym. You can’t get vulgar, though some creative names have phonetically circumvented the approval process. There are plenty of things you can do, and it’s a good idea to take quality time before the birth of your foal to start thinking about names. Follow Rule 6 of the
Stud Book Principal Rules & Requirements and you can let your imagination run wild. For some inspiration, view the
more than 2300 ads at Equinenow.com for horses being sold in North Carolina.
