For more than eight weeks, Bonnie Clark, president of the Louisiana Equine Council (LEC) and publisher of Horseman’s Guide of the South Central Region, set her life aside, unpaid, to head up an operation at the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales, La. There, she helped reunite 357 rescued horses and mules with their owners following Hurricane Katrina.

Now that only seven horses (all with permanent identification) await claim, Clark’s trying to pick up where she left off with her magazine. Katrina hit at a point in the production cycle where the magazine would have accrued more than $50,000 in advertising. However, many of the advertisers’ businesses were destroyed by the hurricane, some relocated, and most just cannot afford to advertise at this time. Normally, Clark would have 300-350 advertisers. She’s down to 63.

The effects of the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes on the horse industry extend far beyond the destruction of barns, businesses, and riding facilities in specific locales. Every aspect of the industry is interconnected. Business owners in hurricane-stricken areas are waiting for small business loan approvals or insurance payouts to keep their enterprises afloat. Those outside the stricken areas, such as farriers, veterinarians, feed store owners, and other equine entrepreneurs, are trying to hold on until the local horse economy rebounds. Among those is Clark.

Clark’s free equine industry directory relies entirely on its advertisers, 80% of which cannot renew their advertising due to the impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Her publication normally is read by up to 15,000 horse owners, many of whom rely on its contents for running their businesses