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From Auction Lot to Dressage Ring: The Story of Kara + Catastrophix (a.k.a. Cat)| Indianapolis IN Equine Photographer


Woman in black dress stands beside a horse on a grassy path, holding its reins. Black-and-white image, with trees and fences in the background.

Heart Horse is a horse and rider portrait series that features 40 horse women and their heart horses, where they share their history together. At the end of the portrait series, there will be a gala to feature stories like this, their one portrait from their session, and to raise money for Epona Healing with Horses. The date is TBD as this project is still ongoing. If you’d like to participate with your heart horse, you can go here to learn more and sign up. 

Some horses gallop into your life with fanfare. Others, like Catastrophix—barn name Cat—quietly step into your heart with a blaze down their face, a left hind sock, and an unexplainable pull that feels a lot like fate.

Kara met Cat in January 2015, and let’s just say… he wasn’t what she was looking for. At all. She was shopping for a chunky, flashy quarter horse, built for speed and western events. But then she saw his photo on Facebook—this gawky, anxious Thoroughbred with a sparkle in his eye—and that was it. The woman selling him warned Kara before she even got on: he was gate-sour, spooked at everything, and was basically unrideable. She apologized and assumed I’d pass. Kara handed her $2500 and didn’t look at a single other horse. When you know, you know.


Meet Cat: Former Racehorse, Current Cookie Connoisseur

Cat is a 14-year-old Thoroughbred, registered as Heart of Kela (by Kela out of Fun At Heart, a Distorted Humor daughter). Bred by Tommy Humphries and stacked with Northern Dancer in his pedigree (which makes sense—he and ND are practically twins), Cat found his way from an auction lot into Kara’s life. And while he couldn’t care less about going fast, he discovered a love for dressage that neither of them saw coming.

Kara boards him in the South East side of Indianapolis, and though they’re currently between trainers, Cat is always working on something—mentally or emotionally. He’s a high-anxiety guy, but a tryer through and through. One of his cutest habits is asking for “bravery cookies” when he sees something scary. He’s figured out that courage = snack, so if he spots a trash can or a spooky corner, he’ll bravely walk up… then immediately turn and stare at Kara for a treat.


Used to be, he’d eat with one leg lifted like a flamingo. Why? Who knows. He’s outgrown most of his quirks, but he used to play this ridiculous hay game at the round bale where he’d push his paddock mate around the bale like it was some weirdly choreographed horsey version of ring-around-the-rosey. Bonus? His buddy needed the movement, so it was weird and wholesome.


Not a Ribbon Horse—Yet Still My Champion

Kara and Cat picked up a few ribbons at local shows, but his anxiety makes the show ring a little overwhelming. Still, he’s Kara’s absolute favorite thing in the entire world, and that beats a blue ribbon any day. She has met hundreds of horses through work, lessons, and barn life, but none of them have made her feel what she felt when she first saw him.

Kara once left a cross-country summer job early—working with 60+ horses a day—because she missed one horse too much. That’s Cat. He’s not just a horse; he’s the horse.


A Little About Kara

Like many horse girls, Kara’s obsession started young: books, Breyers, movies—the whole deal. She got her first lessons in third grade, had to pause in middle school, dabbled in reining, and didn’t fully return to horses until she found Cat in 2015. She said, “He's my first “forever” horse, and my favorite thing about horse ownership. It’s not the discipline, the ribbons, or the goals. It’s just being with him. Watching him learn. Learning alongside him. And occasionally sharing a butterscotch treat—his favorite, and coincidentally mine too (DumDums solidarity).”

“Cat might not have the speed I thought I wanted. But what he lacks in horsepower, he makes up for in heart—and that’s more than enough.”


Woman with red hair hugs a brown horse in a sunlit stable. The horse wears a red halter. Calm and warm atmosphere. Bethany Quinn Studios. BB Quinn Photography.

A woman with red hair embraces a brown horse at sunset, standing in a sandy area with trees and a fence in the background.

Horse in a stable, backlit by sunlight, stands with head turned, creating a dramatic silhouette against the barn’s interior. Black and white.

A woman with red hair in a burgundy dress leads a brown horse on a path. White fence and house in the grassy background.
A woman in glasses and a black dress stands beside a black horse with a white blaze, in a sandy area with trees and a building behind.


Woman with red hair stands beside a brown horse by a white fence, in a green, wooded area. She wears a maroon dress and glasses.

Brown horse with bridle in a paddock, rider in black boots and red pants. Background of sunlit trees and a wooden fence. Calm setting.

A woman with red hair, in a burgundy dress, stands affectionately with a brown horse in a sandy area, beside a house.

Woman with red hair in a maroon dress rides a brown horse in a sandy arena, surrounded by trees and a white fence.




Bethany Quinn Studios, BB Quinn Photography, Boudoir and equine portrait photographer Indianapolis, Indiana, Lexington, Kentucky.


Woman with her white horse in a field holding a camera. The portrait system podcast. Bethany Quinn Studios, BB Quinn Photography, Boudoir and equine portrait photographer Indianapolis, Indiana, Lexington, Kentucky.


Bethany Quinn is the photographer behind Bethany Quinn Studios where she helps modern women feel more confident in their own skin through boudoir and equine photography sessions. We encourage you to grab a glass of wine or sparkling cider, hang out for awhile, and check out more that the blog has to offer! 




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