Intermediate/Advanced: Horse Show Checklist

Ok so I freely acknowledge it’s the wrong time of year for this one, but it’s Nanowrimo this month so we’re going with what I can write quickly, easily, and with no reference material, images, or photoshop work required.

So you want to show next year and need to know what to ask for for Christmas :) There we go, show article in November justified!

Note that if you’re in a riding school, some of this you won’t need to actually purchase (ie, while a saddle is very important if it’s your own horse, if it’s a school horse it probably already has tack!) Also, some tack etc is optional (ie breastplate)

Note two – bringing all this stuff is only half the challenge. The other half is being able to find it once you’re there and stressed cause you’re at a show and the “bomb-proof-might-as-well-be-a-stuffed-pony” horse you loaded on the trailer has suddenly become a fire-breathing monster! We have a rule at GRS that the rider is responsible for packing their own vehicle and nobody else is allowed to touch it once it’s packed! This saves all sorts of blame and stress at the show. Everybody can help toss things back in the vehicle at the end of the day or unpack the trailer at home, but getting ready each rider needs to organize their own stuff in a way that makes sense to them.

Note also that some of this is eventing-specific and/or Ontario-specific. Feel free to alter/add/amend. Obviously if you’re on your way to a dressage show you can probably skip the xc vest and jump saddle >;-P Use some common sense people!

Suggestions very welcome :)

So with all those notes noted, happy packing!

Show Packing list:

Paperwork:
- Memberships (OHTA, OEF, EC)
- Medical armband
- Proof of qualifications
- Passport
- Coggins
- Jr/Am card (if appropriate)
- Copy of entry form
- Chequebook (just-in-case!)

Horse (believe it or not I know one poor girl who packed everything in the trailer and left the horse behind! Never to live it down :) Note that the horse comes after the paperwork; without the paperwork it doesn’t matter whether or not you have a horse!

Tack:
- Jump saddle
- Jump girth
- Dressage saddle (optional)
- Dressage girth
- Extra stirrup leathers (I usually just leave these in the truck)
- Extra girth for each saddle (as above)
- Dressage bridle
- Jump bridle (may be same as dressage bridle)
- Running martingale
- Breastplate
- Jump saddle pad
- Dressage saddle pad
- Horse boots
- Tape to extra-secure Velcro on said horse boots
- Extra halter (this is not optional – consider if either halter or lead break or go missing, how is the rest of your day going to go...? How are you going to get your horse home?)
- Extra leadrope (also not optional – see above :)
- Stud kit (esp if weather/footing is dodgy)
- Any necessary blankets, fly sheet, rain sheet, cooler, etc depending on weather
- Tack cleaning kit (little bucket, saddle soap, sponge, cloth, polish)

Rider Necessities:
- Jacket
- Gloves (black)
- Helmet
- Helmet cover
- Boots
- Breeches
- Belt
- Show shirt
- XC vest
- Medical armband holder
- Pinny holder
- Rain jacket (always. Trust me.)
- Hairnet
- Crop
- Spurs
- Watch (or good friend with watch. When they say you start at 7:53, they mean it. At 7:54 you’re eliminated.)
- Stock tie
- Stock pin
- XC watch (this depends on level and location! In ON it’s currently illegal below T level.)
- Boot pulls
- Boot jack
- Safety pins (you’d be amazed how often you need to pin a number on)

Trailer items:
- Buckets (at very least one for bathing and one for drinking)
- Hay net(s)
- Enough hay/grain/supplements for one day longer than you plan to be there
- Mounting box
- Broom
- Manure fork
- Shipping boots or bandages
- Tail wrap (I personally have never used one, but I have a friend who would disown me if I didn’t put it on the list :)
- Saddle rack
- Bridle hooks
- Duct tape, binder twine and WD40. With these three items, you can fix just about anything!
- Scissors (to aid in above repairs :)
- Horse 1st aid kit
- Water
- Gas in truck
- Bedding (if stabling)

Grooming Kit:
- Hoof pick
- Extra hoof pick (they walk!)
- Curry comb
- Dandy brush
- Soft brush
- Show sheen
- Corn starch/Baby powder (if your horse has white markings)
- Braiding kit (mane comb, string/elastics of appropriate colour, if string also bring: latch hook & stitch ripper)
- Scissors
- Dry swiffer (ok my students and I might be the only ones who do this, but fastest way to get dust of a dark horse after a dusty warm-up ever! Works equally well on boots)
- Sponges (at least one horse-sized for bathing after, good plan to have a small one for grooming touch-ups too)
- Towel
- Sweat scraper
- Fly spray
- Rubber mitt or cactus cloth
- Poultice (and paper to wrap around it)
- Tail comb
- Safety razor
- Hoof polish

Miscellaneous things that have been known to save the day:
- Like minded friend/groom/accomplice...
- Folding chairs
- Hard copy of rule book
- Tim Hortons
- Extra leadline
- People flyspray
- People 1st aid kit
- Umbrella (please be careful where you open it!)
- Drinks (age appropriate please people! And fruit juice or water for all till you’re DONE riding :)
- Food (esp of the light and healthy variety)
- Cash (don’t ever count on being able to use plastic at a horse show)
- Camera
- Change of weather-appropriate clothes for after riding
- Extra socks
- Warmer clothes than you expect to need
- Baseball cap (or some other form of sun-hat)
- Mirror (esp if you’re in a sport where you have to tie a stock tie!)
- Hair brush
- Toilet paper (you can thank me later)
- Sunscreen
- Plastic bags
- Towels/cloths
- Baby wipes
- Deck of cards
- Sense of humour


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Intermediate: Evaluating Soundness

Ok so TheoryThursday is going to be seriously reduced during the month of November due to Nanowrimo (http://www.nanowrimo.org - for the uninitiated) and the fact that there’s only so many hours in a week! I suspect at absolute most only one level is going to get a post each week. Enjoy!

This week – evaluating soundness.
So there will come a time in every horse-person’s life when you’re riding around and suddenly think “hmmmm, that’s not quite right...” So you get off your horse, but now what?

First, bribe a friend. Get this wonderful person to lead your horse in a straight line at the trot. The leadline should have no pressure on it (giving the horse complete freedom of head and neck). Why the trot? Well because at the trot the horse moves in an even 2-beat rhythm, making it much easier to judge if something’s not right. They also tend to carry their heads very still – making it obvious if that’s not right either!

So your willing friend is trotting your horse in a long straight line so you can observe. But what exactly are you seeing? Well first thing – is the horse’s head bobbing? If so, there’s a problem. Next thing to ascertain – does his head seem to be going up higher than normal when it bobs, or is it pulling down lower than normal. I’ll give you a hint, if you’re new to this, odds are it’s going up. The down is usually a much more subtle movement. If it’s going up, you’re looking at a front leg lameness. If it’s going down, it’s the hind leg.

So every-other-beat the horse’s head shoots up in the air. Something’s wrong in the front. But which leg? Well, just imagine if you were limping. You have a huge blister on the ball of your left foot – when you step on that foot you’re going to step mostly on your toes and for as short a time as possible. This means your head will come UP when the SORE leg hits the ground. And as you limp, so does your horse.

If the problem is in the hind-end, you’ll see the horse’s head bob down lower than normal every-other-beat. The reason for this is he’s using his head and neck as a counter-weight so he doesn’t have to put pressure on the sore leg. So in this case the horse’s head goes DOWN when the SORE leg hits the ground.

Which of course makes the two seem like complete opposites and entirely confusing, but really all you have to remember is that the deviation from normal occurs as a result of the pain. So whichever leg is on the ground when the head is in the wrong position is the one you should be looking at. This is a skill that does take time to develop, but you would like it to be at the point where you can tell even without the head bob which leg has something wrong (ie when they’re just not stretching quite as far with one leg as the other).

Once you know *which* leg is sound is the time to try and figure out what is wrong and what to do about it. But that’s a post for another day!

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Intermediate: Lunging

Lunging (or longing) is the art of standing in the middle of a circle with a long rope that your horse, attached to the other end, goes around the outside of a circle. Nothing to it!

Why would we bother with such an activity?
- to improve the horse's way of going. Rhythm, balance and coordination are all easier to master without a rider!
- to observe the horse from the ground (either checking for soundness or watching movement etc)
- to take relax or warmup a tense horse before riding
- to work the horse without riding
- to teach voice commands
- to start a young horse before backing them
- to strengthen the horse
- to enable a rider to focus solely on their position

Ok so maybe it is a useful tool after all. So what's required to do this?
- rider: should be wearing a helmet and gloves. Must not be wearing spurs (and if you're doing Pony Club/EC exams you will be penalized if you do! Reason being if you trip while lunging things can get very bad very quickly...)
- horse: boots all around. They are more likely to hit themselves on the lungeline, so should be appropriately booted. May be tacked up or not. If they have a saddle, make sure the stirrups are run up and knotted so they don't come loose and bang unfairly against the horse. If they have no saddle, a lunging surcingle is often used (essentially a large girth that goes all the way around the horse and has rings that side reins can be attached to).

Surcingle
Likewise a lunging cavesson (looks like a big halter with a very thick noseband, a throat latch, and some extra rings on it) can go over either a halter or a bridle to attache the lunge line. In most exam scenarios this is preferred.
- lunge line (think extra-long lead line) should be held by the rider and done up to either the cavesson or the bridle.

Lunging Cavesson

Note that there are a lot of lunging gadgets (for lack of a better word) that in the hands of somebody who really knows what they're doing can be used to help train a horse through a variety of issues. However, it is incredibly easy to do a ton of harm with these and not so easy to get the truly good results so use them with great caution and only under the instruction of a qualified coach.

Side reins are the most commonly used. These run straight from bit to the side of the girth (although some people choose to attach them to the d-rings instead). Done correctly this can teach a horse to bring their hind end underneath them, their back up, and to stretch down into the contact very much as we want them to do when we're riding. Similarly by shortening the inside one slightly it can help create the correct bend. Done incorrectly you can have a horse who leans on them (and later your hands) with their hind end trailing way out behind them, or overtucks their chin to their chest to avoid the contact altogether, or in extremely bad cases (ie too tight too fast on a green horse) who'll rear and flip over. So while very useful and often applied, make sure you know what you're doing before you choose to use them! For the PC and EC exams you will be expected to use side reins correctly.

Side reins

A similar idea but one that strives to avoid allowing the horse to lean is the chambon martingale which makes a triangle from between the horse's legs through the bit up to the pole and back again. Note that this should never be ridden in! (There's the Degauge martingale if you need essentially the same effect mounted). There's also a variation out now that involves ropes going around the hocks to get them to tuck their hind end under. The idea's theoretically not half bad but the practical reality is a little dodgy. And definitely not to be attempted by an amateur. To put this in perspective, every classical trainer I know will avoid this entire paragraph (although they do all use sidereins from the above).

One of many gadgets

Ok so how do you attach the lungeline to the horse?
- first option is to use a lunging cavesson and attach the lungeline to one of the rings (either centre or on the inside of your circle). The cavesson must be tight enough that when the horse is lunging it doesn't slip (or the cheekpiece on the outside will go over their eye).
- second option is to attach to the inside bit ring. This is seriously frowned upon in all testing scenarios. Reason being you can, in fact, pull the bit through the horse's mouth with this method. Both unpleasant and ineffective.
- third option is the "Barnum" method where the lungeline goes through the inside bit ring, runs parallel to the cheek piece, over the crown piece, and down the cheek piece on the outside to do up to the outside bit ring. This is my personal favourite as it avoids the bit-through-the-mouth issue entirely, allows you to use both reins together (as you would while riding) and has the added benefit of putting pressure on the pole. The down side to this method is that when you switch direction, which you should do often, it's a pita to unhook and reconnect. Should the horse shy or bolt when you're in the middle of setting it up, this would be very bad. In an exam situation, stick with the cavesson.
- another option is to wrap the lungeline once around the cheekpieces and noseband on the inside, go over the noseband, wrap around the cheekpieces and the noseband on the outside, and do it back up to itself underneath. This has the benefit of not using the bit at all and applying pressure to the nose, but is a serious pita to set up and judging just the right length of lungeline to begin wrapping with is a bit of an art in itself. I have seen this used and done it once or twice to try it, but I don't know anybody who uses it as their primary method.

Alright, all tacked up and ready to go! Now what?
You want to make a triangle, with you at the centre of the circle as the point, the lunge line to the horse's head one side, horse's body the second side, and the lungewhip from you pointing toward the horse's tail as the third point.

Neutral position: Dark blue - lunge line, dotted blue - where your body should point, green - where the whip should point

The lungewhip acts as your leg -- point it to the back of the horse to encourage forward; point it to his girth area to keep him out; lower it (or in extreme cases put it behind you) to chill the horse out. Your shoulders can also seriously impact the horse's performance. Remember the horse is a prey animal and will instinctively go away from you. Your neutral and most frequently used position should have your body facing the horse's shoulder. Angling yourself so you're slightly behind him, with the shoulder on the direction he's going slightly back (so your body is facing almost the direction he's going) and he'll accelerate in that direction. Stand slightly ahead and turn that same shoulder in to him (so you're facing more towards the hind end) and you'll find they slow down. In general though, you want to stand in the middle of the circle with your body pointing at the girth. Simple right? hahaha go try it -- it's usually the hardest thing novice lungers find to master. They generally end up ahead of the horse trying to lead him -- resulting in (as noted above) him stopping. Quite amusing from the sidelines but very frustrating for the person who doesn't understand exactly what's going on!

Oops! One of the most common mistakes from a novice lunger is to get ahead of the horse... This usually results in the horse stopping and/or turning in to the middle. Note also that by this point they are no longer anywhere near the middle of the circle.

Important things while lunging:
- if you're inexperienced, make sure somebody is supervising and avoid lunging a green horse till you've practiced with one who knows its job! Remember, you wouldn't've wanted to ride an TB fresh off the track for your first ever riding lesson, so don't try lunging something challenging until you know what you're doing either.
- make sure all tack fits appropriately
- never put a rider on with sidereins done up (although you can replace them once they're on). Don't lunge a rider till you've got mountains of experience with everything else on here.
- always wear gloves
- it's a good idea to always lunge in an enclosed space. Not always possible, but if you have the option. . .
- never let the lunge line touch the ground (and officially same goes for the whip -- if you're in an exam scenario practice this! It takes a fair amount of skill to change direction on the lunge w/o putting down the whip :)
- likewise never all the lunge line to get wrapped around your hand, arm or leg. This mistake can be fatal should the horse bolt. Take it very seriously.
- keep your lunging sessions short - 20 minutes on a lunge line is close to an hour of riding in a larger ring.
- always keep your eye on the horse. Both to make sure you're with-it when the squirrel darts across the ring and spooks your horse who spins and is suddenly running the wrong direction w/ the lungeline over his neck, AND to pay attention to what he's telling you. They will get tired much faster on the lunge than you'd expect. Keep in mind that muscle tired and adrenaline do not always play well together. A spun horse will keep galloping long after their body should've told them to stop. It's your responsibility to make sure that doesn't happen.
- once you get the hang of lunging, get somebody to teach you to longline. Between the two, you can teach the horse all sorts of cool things :)
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Intermediate/Advanced Aids

So you know by now that your natural aids consist of legs, seat, weight, hand, voice. But how do you use them effectively?

There are five different type of rein aids:

• Direct: this is what you'll be most used to. Your hand comes straight back to your hip, and the horse turns their head in that direction. Used to create flexion, turn, slow down, stop, and reverse.


• Indirect (aka rein of opposition): Your hand comes toward the withers (but should never cross!) Mostly used to help take the weight off of the shoulder on the side you're using. Sometimes used on the outside to make a tight turn at speed.


• Opening: this is when you bring your hand off the neck to one side. Used to encourage the shoulders to move in a particular direction, esp when starting a young horse, introducing lateral work, and jumping. Also sometimes called a "leading" rein or a "guiding" rein.


• Neck: most often used in western riding, the rein lies against the neck on the opposite side of the intended movement (ie, so when you want the horse to go left, the rein lies against the right side of his neck) Usually both reins will go left to turn left, both reins go right to turn right (easily done in western where both reins are in one hand). In english riding you mostly see it being used to facilitate turns while jumping. Also occasionally (ummm mostly only in text-books and random exam questions :) called the bearing rein.


• Pully: an emergency stopping aid, one hand with a short rein gets buried in the withers, while the other the rein comes up and back quite sharply. This aid is very harsh and should only be used if you're being seriously run away with (and are about to go off a cliff or crash into something dangerous! Otherwise remember, you can ride as fast as they can run :) If you use this properly the horse *will* stop -- and often spin the direction of the rein you used, so be sitting back and prepared for that.

Now you never use a rein aid without using a leg aid. And while the leg aids don't usually get names, consider the different ways you can use them:

• one leg at the girth - Active: encourages the horse to move forward and to bend around it. Preventative: stop the horse from cutting that direction


• one leg behind the girth - Active: moves the hindquarters. Preventative: stop hindquarters from swinging.


• two legs together: asks the horse to speed up or move forward


• closing a thigh against the saddle - Active: encourages horse to bend correctly rather than lean. Preventative - helps stop the shoulder from dropping (esp out on a turn)

Now consider the many possible combinations of these:
- One leg says go, opposite rein says "not faster", end result = lengthened stride. - Reins and inside leg say "go straight", Outside leg says "bring hindquarters in", end result = traverse.
- etc etc etc
This is, of course, all very simplified. But then, riding is really simple. It's just not always easy >;-P There are hundreds of "how-to" books if you want more about this... But the best thing to do would be ask your coach :)

Seat? What can I do with my seat? Seat is really a combination of your literal seat with your abs and back muscles (technically the back is controlled by the abs too, but for most of us non-anatomy-specialists it helps to think of the back as a separate entity :). Depending on how you choose to sit, you can shift your horse's balance significantly. Shift your weight forward, and his weight will be on the forehand. Sideways and he'll step sideways under you. Turn your hips left, odds are that's what direction you'll go.

You can use your seat with the motion -- your hips follow the movement and it encourages the horse to move freely, or against the motion - where you tighten your abs and back and tuck your seat under you a little bracing slightly. This has the effect of shifting the horse's weight back and will often slow or stop him.

Is your weight in your heels, your thighs, or your seat? It'll make a difference to your horse. Along with weight - where are you looking? This is important because your head is relatively heavy -- your horse can feel the shift in your weight. Note that in the beginning, the seat is rarely focused on -- beginner riders have enough to worry about figuring out their reins, legs and basic balance. But in the end, the top dressage riders will use their seat as their primary aid. It gets it's power out of its subtlety, but requires a great deal of skill to use.

And what's left? Oh yeah, the voice. Mostly a supplementary aid (and illegal in dressage) a cluck or a growl can be that little extra encouragement necessary to get a hesitating horse over a fence while a quiet "steady" or "woah" might help relocate the brain of a panicked bolting horse.

Now the tricky part to riding is to use only the aids you intend to use and none of the ones you don't! It's very easy to accidentally give the horse conflicting signals which can lead to a confused horse and a frustrated rider. When something's not working the first thing to do is stop and think through your aids -- what *exactly* are you asking him? Did your leg bump his sides (go) at the same time you closed your hand (stop)? Did your reins say turn left while your weight said turn right? Always remember your horse can feel a fly land on him -- he can feel what you're telling him, even if you don't *know* you're telling him something!

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Intermediate/Advanced Blankets

So you bought your first horse this spring and had a great season with her. But now it's getting cold :( Time to think about blankets! Why? That's discussed in the beginner section of today's post -- feel free to read it :) In this post, what to know before you buy: size, weight, care, hoods, fit

So you realize you need a blanket and duitifully go to the tack store to purchase one... And are greeted with a whole wall of choices. And absolutely no idea what it is you should be buying. You randomly look at a tag. After cringing at the price you note some other information. Three numbers. No idea what they mean. Great. With Google's help, you end up here :)

I'm not going to discuss brands -- everybody has their own favourites and their own budget. However, there are some things that will be required throughout: size, weight, and care. And for those who *really* want the short version the numbers refer to size, shell and insulation. The end :)

For the long version...:

If your horse is going outside in it, it should be waterproof. Since most waterproof items don't allow sweat to evaporate either, it can lead to overheating which is almost worse than being cold. For this reason you should look for blankets that are both waterproof AND breathable. Harder to find and slightly more expensive, but definitely worth it for your horse's sake. You can always check your horse for overheating by putting a hand between the blanket and the chest or by the girth. If they're overly warm or sweating you've got them over-blanketed. This can happen even when it's cold out -- particularly if it's sunny.

Size

Size is the first number you'll usually see on the tag. It is measured in inches and will range anywhere from about 66" (smaller for foals of course - think baby-clothes) to about 88" (I'm trying to think if I've ever seen a 90" and I don't think I have -- but it doesn't mean they don't exist, it just means I don't work with many HUGE horses :) The usually go up in increments of 2" with always being even numbers, but not always since my ottb is currently wearing a 75" so clearly somebody felt the need to defy the rules *g* Or offer more variety :) Anyways - how do you know what size you'll need?

1. Grab a tape measure and, if you have one, a friend :) Can be done with one person, but much easier with two.


2. Make sure horse is standing square on a flat surface.


3. Have your friend hold the end of the tape at the point where your horse's neck meets the center of his chest.


4. Take the other end of the tape along the side of the horse all the way around to the middle of his hindquarters (will be usually a little less than 1' below where the tail meets the body). Make sure when you're doing this that the tape measure crosses the widest part of the shoulder or your blanket will be too small. Also make sure it's taut (if it's loose your blanket will be too big). Note the measurement. Multiply by 2 and you're good to go.

Now when you're shopping if you're on a half-size go up one. Also, as with people's clothing, different brands and styles fit differently, so while you may technically be a 74, for some brands you may need a 76 or a 72. Well trained sales staff will be able to tell you how the various blankets usually fit.

Weight

Just like you're not going to wear your heavy down-filled parka on a day that's 5deg (ummm that'd be about ..... to our US friends :) it's important that you dress your horse according to the weather as well. Other considerations include activity level, indoor temperature, the length of your horse's hair, and metabolism (a horse that's hard to keep weight on may need a warmer blanket). To this end we have not one but TWO numbers regarding the weight. The second number (after size) you'll usually see on the tag is for the shell (outter layer) and has to do with the weight of the fibers in the fabric. The lower the number, the finer and lighter the fabric (think silk). The higher the number, the coarser and heavier it'll be.

The last number refers to the insulation. Anything below 175 is considered a Light-weight. This could be anything from a rainsheet with no insulation to a stable sheet. A midweight will be in the 175-250 range. A heavyweight is 250+ (up to about 500). Note that realistically the numbers are just guidelines -- anything that's within about 50 of a boundary could switch levels based on the type of fabric used for the shell and the lining. Pretend you have a fleece vest for your "insulation" and you put it over a t-shirt and under a light spring jacket. Now take that same fleece but put it over a sweatshirt and under a heavy leather rain jacket. Technically you've got the same level of insulation, but to a very different result. So you have to consider the overall package not just any one number on its own.

Care

For me, care is once or twice a year making a giant pile of all the blankets and sending them to our wonderful blanket lady who, for a reasonable fee, returns them cleaned and repaired -- complete w/ smilie face stickers indicating all the repairs. However, for those who are a little more ambitious than I...

Most blankets now are made machine washable (yeah!) -- they do tend to be hard on the washers though (and most laundromats will kick you out :) so be forewarned (you might get away with it if you go to a city laundromat where they don't know any better :). They also make a lot of noise since the metal buckles fly around. Generally just follow the instructions -- can't tell you much more than that. Usually wash in warm, rinse in cold. Don't use bleach and don't dry-clean (the chemicals effect the waterproofing and are not particularly good for your horse). The big thing to remember is don't use the dryer as that will undo the waterproofing.

Obviously tears should be stitched, straps must be in good repair, and the inside @ least should be reasonably clean of mud, hair, dirt, etc.


Hoods

Some blankets come with hoods (essentially neck-warmers :) These add time and a bit of a pita to the daily routine, but if your horse has a full-body clip you should seriously consider one (if they have their natural coat on the neck, I don't worry about it). Note that there are some blankets now which do not have hoods but seem to have a little "extra" piece that comes over the withers and just a bit up the neck. These are great in theory. However, in practice I've noticed that since that extra piece doesn't really lie ON the neck so much as over it, there's a tendency for snow and other miserable weather elements to get in there (esp if the horse's head is down) ending with a very wet and very cold horse. Be aware though that's only my personal experience. It's enough that I don't use them any more, but there might be some out there for which that's not an issue.

Fit

Once you've bought your blanket (or blankets as the case usually is) bring them home, groom your horse, and then try them on. It should cover from the withers to the dock (most have little tail flaps now -- great addition!) It should fit reasonably closely -- anything that moves too much, or conversely is too tight, will rub, leaving bare patches on your horse's skin. Check particularly the points of the shoulder and hip as well as by the withers. The blanket should go just past the belly. If it's down near the knees it's way too long and the horse will risk getting tripped up by the straps that attach underneath. Anything that's too big will be subject to twisting and getting tangled. Straps are pretty well always adjustable. They should be loose enough to not be touching the horse (it's not a girth!) but not so loose that they dangle. The chest straps should be snug enough that the blanket is not moving around.
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Intermediate Conformation: Legs

The trick to analyzing leg conformation is to use a plumb line (ummmm think string with a weight tied to one end :). If you're standing in front of the horse and drop the line from the middle of the chest, both legs should run parallel to it and equal distance from it (A).




If the legs go farther apart from the line at the toe than the shoulder, they are said to be base wide (B). Horses whose feet are closer to the line at the bottom are... base narrow (C). Horses whose toes point towards the line are said to be toe-in (D) and those whose toes point away are toe-out (E). Yeah I know, really creative naming. Horses that toe-out often wing, whereas horses that toe-in often paddle (see Movement).

When you look at the legs from the side and drop that same line down it should again run straight down the centre (A - below ). If the knee appears to be in front of the string the horse is said to be "Over at the Knee" (B), if it is behind the string the horse is said to be calf kneed or "Back at the Knee" (C).



So as you might imagine, the same thing is equally important for the hind legs. Correct should be straight (A). No real surprise there :) Base wide is exactly the same as it is on the front legs (B). Now with the hind legs, the hocks are more likely to be closer to the line than the feet -- this is referred to as cow hocked (C). Toe-in (D) and Toe-Out (E) are exactly the same as for the front legs.



Viewing from the side, a line dropped from the point of the dock should run down the back of the hock (A). If the legs are out behind the line they're said to be "standing behind" (B) - ok really, if you want creativity and randomness go read the advanced theory. If the legs are in front of the line they're said to be sickle hocked (C) (slightly more creative there). Standing behind is going to lack in power, sickle hocked will be prone to injury.




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Review Int/Adv Teeth

When is your horse said to have a full mouth? What does that mean?

How do deciduous teeth look different from permanent teeth?

When does Galvayne's Groove appear? Where does it appear?

What age do the middle permanent incisors come in?

How does the shape of the horse's teeth change over time?

When does the dental star first appear?
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Int./Adv Teeth

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. But why? Well because you're likely evaluating it's age -- the ancient world's equivalent of checking the price tag of a gift you've received :)

But what would you be checking for? Well you know (since you either already know OR you read the beginner section :) that a horse's teeth never stop growing. So it stands to reason that they change shape over the years and with practice you can learn to judge the horse's age. Now this is unfortunately never really accurate beyond about age 7 -- but it can, at least, put you in the right ballpark. Why not accurate? Because as we know, wear changes based (among other things) on diet. So every horse's teeth will change at a slightly different rate.

So the very first thing to check -- does your horse still have baby teeth (if so, they're under the age of five). If they do, how many do they have?

Incisors

• Deciduous central incisors - come in at birth or within the first two weeks
  
• Deciduous middle incisors - come in at 4-6 weeks old
  
• Deciduous corner incisors - come in at 6-9 months
  
• Permanent central incisors - come in 2.5-3 years
  
• Permanent middle incisors - come in 3.5-4 years
  
• Permanent corner incisors - come in 4.5-5 years

Note, while it's a lot harder to check the molars, they also come in on schedule:

Premolars (the set at the front of the mouth, meets the bars)

• Wolf teeth (technically PM1) - no deciduous set, permanent ones at 5-6 months (if ever)
  
• All three other deciduous sets: come in at birth or within the first two weeks
  
• Permanent PM2 - 2.5 years
  
• Permanent PM3 - 3 years
  
• Permanent PM4 - 4 years

Molars (the set at the back of the mouth)

• There are no deciduous molars. The horse gets permanent ones as they get older.
  
• 1st - 9-12 months
  
• 2nd - 2 years
  
• 3rd - 3.5 years

Note for both molars and premolars the count goes from front to back. PM1, the wolf teeth, are closest to the incisors, PM2 the next tooth back, etc.

Your horse is said to have a "full mouth" about age 5 when all permanent incisors, premolars and molars are in. How to tell? Deciduous teeth tend to be smaller (I know, big surprise eh?), whiter, and have several grooves on the surface. If the teeth are big, yellow, and rectangular in shape, they're probably permanent. A good thing to do is find a horse who you know is 3 or 4 years of age and look at their teeth to see the difference between the baby teeth and the adult teeth. Ummmm find either a very patient horse or get somebody to help you do this the first time ;) Just a suggestion.

Note that if the gelding or stallion has canines it means they must be at least 4 years old (often these don't come in till 5).

After 5 things get a little trickier, but there are things you can specifically look for:

• The cups - in young horses you can see a cup in the incisors (essentially an oval shaped concave area that will eventually be worn away). By 9 the cups are gone (usually leave central incisors about 7, middle around 8, and corner around 9).
  
• The dental star - this appears at about 6 years of age (in the central incisor - other incisors to follow in the next year or two). If you look at the top of the incisor, you'll see a dark yellow/brown circular/star shape (technically what you're seeing is a dentin-filled pulp chamber -- don't you feel smarter now?). At this age it starts out as a narrow line and morphs into a rounder and bigger shape with age - most dramatic around age 10 (and then usually disappears entirely between 15 and 20). It's toward the front of the tooth.
  
• The hook - at about 7 years of age (and sometimes again at 9) a hook will appear on the upper corner incisor.
  
• Galvayne's Groove - a dark line that runs longitudinally on the upper corner incisor. This shows up about 10 years old, is half way down the tooth at 15, all the way down the tooth by 20, gone by 25. Useful if it's there but not all horses show this.

Then the other thing to evaluate (requires more practice) is the shape of the teeth:

• On a young horse the shape will be oval, then it will square off to become more rectangular. In old age the corners are worn and you end up with an almost triangular shape.
  
• Similarly the angle (when viewed from the side) at which the incisors meet changes. A young horse the teeth meet almost straight up and down like | (technically about 135deg for those who like those things - it's hard to show that accuracy in ascii art :). In an older horse though (age 20+), the angle has changed dramatically so that the incisors meet at almost 90deg (looks like < then).

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Intermediate Grooming: Show Prep

So it's the day before your first show, you show up at the barn and you don't recognize your chestnut horse because she's now bay. hmmmmm a problem.

Step one - all of Beginner :)

Step two - if it's warm enough to bathe, find a friend to help hold your horse (or if you're really lucky, put the horse in a wash stall :) and give him a bath. Water, shampoo, curry, rinse and repeat. Comeon, it's not rocket science. Very very important that the "rinse" section be thorough. Walk or graze horse till dry (odds are if you put him back in the stall or outside he'll roll and you'll be back at step one again. Trust me on this one). If it's slightly cool out, make sure the horse has a cooler on while they're drying. Note, if you're going to braid, do not shampoo the mane. It'll make it too slippery.

Step three - groom again. Should be much easier this time! Make sure any white markings are actually white. There are other stain removers you can use to help with this if the shampoo didn't do it. Also handy last-second camouflage (like when it's the morning of and you're at the show and despite all your hard work the night before the horse is once again green :) corn starch quickly makes white white. Make sure you do this *before* you paint the hooves (which can be done right before you go in :)

Step four - comb out the mane and tail. Make sure you use a comb rather than a brush as the brush will pull out too much hair.

Step five - trim the legs, face, ears and bridlepath. The exception to this is if your horse is living outside -- he'll need the protection provided so consider that before you get clipper-happy!

Step six - if the mane isn't already short and even, pull it. To do this first comb the mane to the right side. The take a couple hairs from underneath, back-comb them, and then pull them out. Repeat going all along the length of the mane until it's thin and short (should be a little over a handspan long). If you have never pulled a mane before, for the sake of your horse, please get somebody who knows what they're doing to supervise!

Step seven - braid the mane. Lots of people leave this till the morning of. For me it depends how *early* that morning is beginning! It also depends on the horse as some will take them all out overnight and you'll just have to start over anyways. That being said, whenever you decide to do it, the key to braiding is not the number of braids but rather to have them evenly spaced and neat. Separate the mane into sections that will be braided. Braid each one using either elastic or string to tie them. Then bobble them (tuck them underneath) -- how depends whether elastics or string, but either way when you look at the neck from the other side, you shouldn't see the braids popping up.

Random notes: show sheen (and variations thereof) is great for detangling the tail. It should not take the place of good grooming to make the rest of the horse shine though. If you *must* use it on the coat, be sure not to use it where the saddle goes!

Before you put the horse away for the night, muck out the stall and put in fresh shavings -- greatly increases your odds of having a clean horse when you get back in the morning. Especially if your horse happens to be gray.

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Intermediate Jumping: Stadium

The trick to riding a good stadium round isn't so much the jumps themselves as the flat work inbetween. Dressage with speedbumps. Can you get the "right" quality of canter; that is, the canter that combines the ideal combination of speed (neither too fast nor too slow), balance (rocked back on the hindquarters), and impulsion (power!)? Can you turn? Can you turn without losing your speed, balance or impulsion? (hmmmm tricky I know :), Can you hold a straight line? Can you adjust your stride? And can you do this all while going downhill? Uphill? On an excited horse? Because that's what'll be required in competition! Once you can do all that, then we can consider adding speed-bumps to the equation.

So you have basically two types of jumps in stadium: verticals and oxers.

Verticals have no width (well negligible width, if there was no width you wouldn't be able to see it. Maybe THOSE are what Zel used to jump in dressage w/u?!?!?! hahaha sorry - lightbulb moment. It took me nearly four years, but I finally figured it out! Those of you who knew my last horse @ age 4 will know what I'm talking about :). Ok back to our regularly scheduled program. Verticals -- straight up and down, one set of standards.

Oxers, conversely, have lots of width :) Or @ least some. They can be a variety of styles:

ascending: the friendliest type of oxer, the back rail is slightly higher than the front, which helps the horse to judge where the highest point of his arch should be. Triple-bars are an often seen version of these that use three sets of rails instead of two. A rider fence (as in one that freaks out the rider but not the horse), they often *seem* quite intimidating, but in reality they usually ride really well.


square: these are when the back rail is in line with the front rail (theoretically creating a square with the ground -- or a rectangle depending how wide/tall the jump is :) These are by far the most common in competition. A green horse will tend to way overjump these, putting the highest part of the arch over the back rail rather than the middle, but once they learn to size them up accurately it's all good :)





swedish: this looks like a giant floating X. The top rails are angled, so the front rail has the left side higher and the back rail has the right side higher (or vise versa). These can be intimidating since the "official" height is where the two rails cross -- meaning the sides could actually be higher than competition height. These can be jumped right in the center, in which case they ride like a square oxer (personally I find them slightly easier than a square oxer, but that might be just me :), or slightly off-center to the side where the back rail is higher, creating an ascending oxer. - fan - this has one standard on one side and several (usually three) on the other. The trick to these is to find the line you want to ride and hold it. If you can do that (remember the whole steering thing above?) you're set.

So you're at the show. There are people walking around the course. Maybe you should walk around too? It's a nice day out, what else is there to do? hahaha but why are you walking? Well to memorize the pattern of course! Well yes, that is true. But eventually you get really good at memorizing patterns from the beautiful little sketch posted near the in-gate. My suggestion would be memorize the course BEFORE you walk it. So that you know where you're walking and can focus on other things.

What other things? Ah now there's the question of the day. What things should you be considering while walking the course?

• where you're going: Not just the *order* of the fences. Admittedly that's step one, but not nearly enough. Exactly where are you going to turn, how wide is the turn going to be, where you're going to take off, where you're going to land, where you're going to be looking while doing each of those things. You need to have a plan. Then you need to ride the plan. But if the plan only states "jump fences 1-12 in order" or even "jump fences 1-12 in order, on the first try" you're still not likely to have a brilliant round.
  
• how you're going to get there: what is the correct speed/balance/impulsion to approach that fence. An uphill oxer away from home may require a very different ride from a downhill vertical towards home.
  
• what's the footing like: common sense here. If it's slippery, slow down. Check for any rocks, holes, hazards etc. Does it change throughout the course (esp grass to dirt, hard to soft, etc). Depending on the conditions it might be worth considering putting studs in too (see shoeing)
  
• what spooky items are out there: is there a path just the other side of the ring? Where are the spectators? Where is the judge? Where are the shadows (and keep in mind these can change between when you walk and when you ride!)? Are there any dirt patches that are a strange colour?
  
• what are the "trappy" fences: on angled terrain? oddly spaced related distances? really flat cups on a maxed out vert? optical illusion (esp when combined w/ light/shadows)? skinny fence off a tight turn on a half stride? All things you should be aware of and have a plan to ride.
  
• what's the striding on any combinations: not much to say about this. Know the distance. Know what that means for your horse. Ride accordingly. Ie) short strided horse, away from home, uphill, to a really long two -- you're either going to really gallop or really collect and do it in three. Either could work, but you need to know before you go out which you're going to do. A long strided horse, downhill, towards home, to a short one -- I'd strongly recommend coming in in a reasonably collected and very balanced canter. Triple combinations become even more fun as the distances between each pair of obstacles work together to make it easy or not to clear the combo.
  
• terrain: uphill, downhill, across-hill, flat... How does the land lie? And what are you going to do about it? Remember we want a good combination of speed, balance and impulsion. Going downhill, horses tend to loose their balance (falling on the forehand) and often pick up speed -- your ride needs to account for this. Uphill speed and/or impulsion are more likely to be lost. It does no good to get to the fence if you don't have enough power to jump it!
  
• towards/away from home: not rocket science here -- most horses accelerate towards home (and home is almost always the in-gate) and decelerate away. Keep it in mind as you're planning your ride.
  
• how are you going to enter: gate's open, now what? What gait will you enter in? Are you trying to energize your horse -- if so, power canter it is! If you're trying to chill them out a quiet trot or even a walk might be appropriate (the walk may not be ok if you have to go a long way to the judge because you'll waste everybody's time). Where will you stop to salute? Can you strategically trot by the really scary fence on the way so your horse can see it? Think it through.
  
• how to ride the first fence: the hardest one because you're really not in the zone yet and still have ALL the rest of the course spinning through your mind. How are you going to approach? What gives you the best line? How much time/space do you need to establish your canter before that? Where are the start flags (make sure you go through them!)?
  
• how to finish: you've cleared the last fence AND gone through the finish flags (important!) Now what? Just galloping out the gate is not exactly recommended both because it's incredibly unsafe and because it's poor training. Where can you circle or stop safely?

So now you see why I suggest you memorize the course before walking it? :)

Now lets see how the best in the world do it. Notice him showing his horse a scary fence and some of the spooky things (ummm people :) before he starts. Look at the different types of fences and see how the ride changes -- from sitting way up and balancing to a tall, skinny vertical, to letting the horse get longer and more forward to a wide liverpool or an oxer.



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Review Int/Adv Preventative Care

What are three things you can do other than deworming to help control parasites?

What are four signs your horse may have a parasite infestation? How can you find out for sure?

How often should you deworm your horse? Why is it important to rotate dewormers?

What are three things you can vaccinate against?

What do you need to prove your horse is not a carrier of EIA? Why does it matter?

What is quidding? What causes it? How can you fix it?
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Int/Adv Preventative Care

Preventative care includes the things we do to avoid the horse getting sick in the first place. There are four important preventative care considerations: parasite control, vaccinations, teeth, and introducing new horses.

Parasite Control:

All horses have parasites. Let me repeat that: All horses have parasites. Since most cause problems and we do everything we can to eradicate them. There are a few things you can do to help control parasites:

• De-worm your horse (more on this next paragraph :)
  
• Avoid overgrazing pasture
  
• Avoid keeping too many horses in one pasture
  
• Rotate pastures (horse parasites won't live in cattle and vise versa)
  
• Keep hay and grain away from manure
  

So deworming -- horses should be dewormed every 8-12 weeks (most people seem to do once/season). Different dewormers kill off different parasites in different phases of their life-cycles. It is important to rotate dewormers so as to eliminate a wide variety and to help prevent any of the worms developing an immunity to the dewormer. Some of the common worms include:

• Large Strongyles: these can cause serious damage. A blocked mesenteric artery (which supplies the intestine) can lead to severe colic, or a blocked iliac artery (which supplies the hind legs) can cause lameness or paralysis.
  
• Small Strongyles: also cause serious damage. Signs include weight loss, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and colic.
  
• Ascarids: most common in foals. These are disgustingly large worms. Signs include: poor coat, coughing, diarrhea, lack of appetite, pot belly, apathetic behaviour, and stunted growth.
  
• Bots: these are less harmful and among the easier to avoid. They lay their eggs on the horse's legs, chest, etc where they get licked off and swallowed. They look like little yellow dots, and if you make a point of removing them when they appear you'll help cut down significantly on the bot population. They can cause sores in the mouth, and sometimes stomach ulcers.
  
• Pinworms: not overly harmful in itself, but a sign that your strongyles dewormer probably isn't working overly well since they're killed off by the same thing. Pinworms lead to the horse rubbing its tail and sometimes you can see gray or yellow eggs around the anus. Pinworms are very rare in horses that live outdoors 24/7.

You'll notice the signs for most of these are similar. In general, any combination of inexplicable weight loss, poor coat condition, rubbing the tail, lethargy, and constipation or diarrhea should have you de-worming your horse or at very least having a fecal test done. Colic is also a sign of parasites gone horribly wrong (really you should catch it before then), but since it can be caused by so many other things may not be a sign in itself.

In areas with winter, the only things you'll really be able to kill after the frost are small strongyles -- so a Moxidectin based dewormer is best used in the winter months. This should be followed with an Invermectin based wormer in the spring to kill off any adult strongyles that survived the winter. Through spring/summer/fall you can alternate between Ivermectin-based and Pyrantel-based. There are multiple brands and types of each of these. Twice a year a Praziquiantel (which is a relatively new super-wormer) is a good idea.

So just for the curious, here's a sched for one horse as an example for the year. This is a 5yo TB mare in good health who lives in Ontario and will be competing from May though Sept. Keep in mind this is just a sample -- your plan should be created in consultation with your vet.



Vaccinations

Like people, horses can be vaccinated against common diseases. Most vaccinations need to be boosted -- some annually, some more often. What you vaccinate against will depend, among other things, where you live and how much contact your horse has with outside horses. If you have a private farm with two back-yard ponies who never go anywhere, they're far less likely to catch something than a competitive horse at a large boarding barn where they get shipped to multiple shows, all obviously with other horses, AND all the ones they live with at home are doing the same thing. Anybody could bring something home and spread it.

Some of the common ones include:

• Tetanus -- aka Lockjaw. Just as with people, this disease affects the nervous system. Usually caused by a dirty would, signs include stiffness of the head, neck and hind end, muscle spasms of the jaw, and the appearance of a third eyelid. There is an 80% mortality rate. Annual boosters are required. If you are working on a farm you would be smart to make sure YOUR tetanus vaccination is also up-to-date (although requires far less often booster).
  
• Rabies -- affects attitude and behaviour. Rabid horses will become violent -- biting, striking and rolling. It is almost always caused by a bite from an infected animal. This is also one of the few diseases that is transmissible to humans. Usually fatal.
  
• Encecphalitis (Eastern: EEE, Western: WEE, Venezuelan: VEE) -- a viral disease often transmitted by mosquitoes. 50-90% mortality rate. Booster shots annually if you have winter, every 6 mths if not.
  
• Influenza -- same concept as with people. Highly contagious but rarely fatal viral disease characterized by a high fever, cough, nasal discharge, depression and loss of appetite. Bi-annual vaccine, usually given spring and fall.
  Rhinopneumonia -- a highly contagious viral infection with signs much like flu. This is most common in young horses.
  
• Potomac Horse Fever -- believed to be carried by ticks (uncommon in this area). Signs include depression, loss of appetite, profuse watery diarrhea, distended abdomen, severe colic and sometimes laminitis. May be fatal. Annual vaccination.
  
• Strangles -- highly infections viral infection which affects the lymph nodes in the upper respiratory and cheek mucous membranes. This has been going around Ontario for the last few years, so be very aware if you're in this area and showing at all, you might want to consider this vaccination seriously. Signs are inflammation of the throat and cheeks, a fever of 39.5-41C (103-106F), reluctance to eat, and a moist cough. Annual Vaccination.
  
• West Nile -- a mosquito-spread neurological infection. Symptoms include listlessness, muscle twitching, weakness or paralysis in limbs, sometimes a fever. Can be fatal or have permanent complications. Annual booster.
  
• Equine Infections Anemia (EIA) -- aka Swamp Fever. Very serious, and any horse who survives it could become a carrier (who looks and acts normal while infecting the rest of the barn). Highly contagious, signs include a really high fever (40.5-41.2C, 105-106F0, rapid weight loss, anemia and hemorrhages of the mucous membranes. There is no cure, and most provinces require any horse that tests positive for EIA to be humanely destroyed. Most farms require proof that a horse is EIA negative before allowing any horse on the property. This proof is in the form of a Coggins test -- a simple blood test done by your vet. An annual coggins test is required for horses showing on most recognized circuits. There is no vaccination or cure for this disease.

As always, check with your vet about what they would recommend in your area.

Teeth:

Horses teeth continually grow. A horse's upper-jaw is wider than his lower-jaw. When they graze, the jaw moves in a side-to-side motion, and the molars wear out unevenly causing sharp points ("hooks") to appear on them. These can hurt. So every six months they should be checked and the sharp points need to be "floated" or filed. This is not a painful procedure but it is awkward and some horses really don't like the noise.



If a horse's mouth seems sore (particularly evident when the previously accepting horse starts flipping their head with any bit contact), or if they start quidding (which is when food dribbles out the side of their mouth as they're eating) they should absolutely be checked.

More on teeth another Thursday :)

New Horses:

When a new horse comes to a facility, proof of negative coggins should always be required. They should also be quarantined until their health is assured and introduced to the other horses slowly. Similarly, when bringing your horse away (ie to a show) it is important to keep them from the other horses. No rubbing noses, no sharing water buckets, food, or brushes. Little things that will keep your horse much healthier in the long run!

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Intermediate Shoeing

The farrier is the person who shoes your horse (as opposed to a blacksmith who works with metal in general -- and in older times often shoed horses as well). He'll use several tools in this process:



1. Rasp - used for, well, rasping. Think of it as a horse-sized nail-file.

2. Clinch cutter - I'd say the use is fairly self-explanitory. At least if you know that the clinches are the part of the nail that pokes out (and is folded over) at the top of the hoof.

3. Pritchel - This is a scary looking metal spike that the farrier uses to hold the hot shoe. Also used in forging to create the nail holes in the shoes.

4. Toe Knife - once-upon-a-time used for trimming the hoof; now rarely seen as preference seems to be for the specialized tools of the drawing knife and the hoof trimmer.

5. Drawing Knife - used to trim the frog or pare away excess sole. This knife is easily recognizable because it has a hook on it.

6. awww comeon, you don't really need me to tell you what this is do you? What's it look like? Yes, it's a Hammer.

7. Shoe Puller -- used for... yup, pulling shoes. Also sometimes called Pincers

8. Hoof Trimmer -- yet another inventive name. Also sometimes called Nippers

9. Clincher -- for closing the part of the nail that sticks out, thereby making the clinches.

Now that you know what tools your farrier will be using, how about what he's going to do?

1. Remove the old shoe. This has a few steps in itself:

• Open the clinches
  
• Either extract nails or use shoe-pullers to pull shoe (always pull toward the frog; both heels, then toe, repeat till off)
  
• Remove any remaining nails

2. Evaluate the hoof (the farrier will check wear patterns, balance, shape and symmetry).

3. Trim the hoof.

4. Select a shoe and reshape it to fit the hoof (it's important that the shoe be fit to the hoof not the hoof to the shoe!)

5. Nail on shoe. Amazing how the simplest instructions arguably requires the most skill.

6. Set and file clinches.

7. Farrier may choose to apply hoof sealer or fill in old nail holes.

And then once that's done, how do you know if your farrier has done a good job?

• the shoe should fit the hoof (shoe reaches heels - or possibly past if necessary)
  
• the shoe is held on by six to eight nails
  
• the toe and heel of each pair of feet should match (ie one front foot should look like the other)
  
• the bulbs of the heels should be even
  clenches should be even; they will usually be about cm from the bottom of the foot
  
• when moving the feet should land evenly
  
• angle of the hoof matches the angle of the pastern
  
• **the frog should touch the ground - this one gets a couple stars because depending which paper you read or which farrier and/or vet you talk to, you'll get a different answer. All agree it should touch the ground when the horse is moving, but there's debate over whether it should be in contact when standing still. Reasonable in-between seems to be yes if on soft ground but not necessarily if on hard ground.
  

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Intermediate Movement

Each stride can be broken into five phases:



1. Landing - when the foot hits the ground

2. Loading - when the foot bears weight; usually the fetlock is at its lowest position

3. Stance - the fetlock raises to the point it's at when the horse is standing at rest.

4. Breakover - lasts from when the heel begins to leave the ground until the toe leaves the ground. The heel lifts and the knee or hock begins to flex.

a. start - heel leaving ground
b. finish - toe leaving ground
5. Swing - the time the foot is in the air.
Movement Faults:

Now that you know the basic beats and how the stride works, it's time to realize it's not a perfect world *sigh*. I'm sorry to be the one to break it to you. >;-P And since it's not a perfect word, not all horses move correctly. So when you find a horse who's movement is creative, you need to be able to evaluate the risks of this and decide whether it's something you want to deal with.

Normal (or @ least ideal) is that the horse will be able to walk a straight path, with each foot staying equal distance from an invisible centre line. Let's be honest, this section is only here so that pictures of the next three examples make sense!










Winging is when the leg travels on an arch in toward the centre instead of on a straight line. This is often connected with horses that toe-out (more on that on conformation day :) Try it yourself -- turn your toes out ballet style and try to walk, you'll find your legs naturally swing toward each other. Seriously -- get up from the computer and go for a walk. You'll feel foolish, but you'll remember it :) Winging can cause a horse to kick himself (see brushing below), and may place extra stress on the inside of the horse's leg as the hoof hits the ground.

This fault also leads to brushing (when one foot hits the other leg, usually @ fetlock level, while moving). This can also be caused by poor shoeing. Horses that brush should wear boots.


Paddling - the opposite of winging in that the legs move away from the center line. To remember which is which, picture paddling a canoe - your paddle would go out of the boat and back towards it. Paddling is often caused by toe-in conformation. This too you can try without your horse. Point your toes toward each other and try to walk. Have fun :)









Plaiting - is when both front feet travel on the centre line (almost directly in front of each other). Horses that plait are often prone to tripping.












Over-reaching is when the toes of the hind foot hits the back of the front foot (injuring usually the heels). Horses that over-reach should wear bell boots. Over-reaching is seen most often in high-energy sports (jumping, xc, etc)

Forging is when the hind shoe strikes the front shoe as the horse trots. This is less dangerous than over-reaching but may cause shoes to be pulled or your horse to trip. This occurs when the hind leg moves too quickly or the front leg too slowly. Often seen in green or tired horses.
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Intermediate Dressage

Dressage is training. Literally -- if you run the Babble Fish and translate French to English it'll tell you dressage is training. Therefore to properly do dressage, you have to understand the training scale. At this level I expect my students to be good at the first two steps and working on the third. Obviously it depends what you're sitting on at any point, but really they're pretty important.



So the idea here is simple: start at the bottom and work your way up. It is not, however, easy.

"Rhythm comes first" -- anybody who has ridden with me more than about oh 30 minutes will have heard that at least a few times :) And there's a reason for it. Nothing else works unless that base is there.

(Note: whoever created this example was way too big a fan of Photoshop - to the point of obnoxiousness, but it does make the rhythm point well; esp worth noting is the lengthen stride to collected stride bang on the beat. Turn your sound on.)



Once you have some rhythm, then there's hope for relaxation (yes you worked *that* hard to relax. And yes the friend who told you you were insane was accurate. Enjoy it - normal's boring.). The relaxation we're really hoping for here though is the horse's and comes along with suppleness (can you bend both ways without tension?). It's not so much that you seek relaxation as that you try to eliminate tension; when you succeed in ridding your horse of tension, you're left with relaxed and supple. Sweet.

From relaxed and supple you can have hope for contact. That elusive "on the bit". Notice though that it came from a rhythmical and relaxed horse!

Beyond that, well now you need impulsion - aka power. Just pretend you're setting up to jump a 4' oxer off a roll-back turn. Now land from that nonexistent jump going straight. This should be a breeze after all your suppling work earlier.Then take all the pieces and collect them!

That's all it takes to master dressage. You're welcome :)



How it looks when you get to the top of the pyramid (turn sound on)

Ok so you've got your horse going forward, bending properly in both directions and the hind end's connected to the front by more than anatomy. The world is good and it's time to go show off. Dressage tests are set patterns ridden in a measured arena (see beginner) in front of a judge (or sometimes more than one -- but that's not something you need to worry about at the beginning).
At this level it is *really* important that your test be accurate! Transitions that are supposed to be at a specific letter, should happen when your shoulder is beside the letter. 20m circles should be 20m. And round. Artistic interpretation is frowned upon in dressage >;-P

Corners should look like corners and circles should look like circles. This means if you're doing a 20m circle right at A, the corner between F and A is square while the one between A and K is rounded off since it's part of the circle. There should be a noticeable difference. An easy way to practice this is to put pylons in the track -- square corners go outside, round ones inside. This is obviously an imperfect technique, but it does make the difference apparent.



Circle vs Corner

Now that you've learned all the basics, it's time to put it together. Practicing the test over and over and over again is not such a good idea because your horse will start to learn it. Seems like a great plan until he starts to anticipate the next move -- suddenly your transition is three strides early and nothing that resembles relaxed. Remember step one? Yeah. Oops.

Click here to download Training Test 1 (technically the level before First Level -- but hey, in eventing there are three levels before you get to Preliminary so what did you expect? :) This is where you start.



Now since it's not such a good idea to ride it multiple times, you need other ways of memorizing. Well -- you can practice the test without your horse. Depending on your level of self confidence you may wish to wait till there's nobody else in the arena, but seriously walking/running the pattern you're going to ride, will help. As always, accuracy is important. You're not just memorizing the test, but actually practicing it. So 20m circles, should be 20m. The FXH diagonal should actually touch each letter. And so on.

There's always the good old "visualization" -- practice riding it in your mind (more on this another week). This has been proven multiple times and works brilliantly so long as you can focus ALL the way through the test. Otherwise the first half will be remarkably better than the second *g* Not that I learned that the hard way or anything.

One last technique -- you can learn it draw the test out. Download this sheet and print off a few copies. Then in each box draw one movement. If you're feeling particularly creative each gait can have a different colour. Good luck!

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Intermediate Tack: Review

What parts of the mouth does a snaffle bit influence?

Name these bits:



Which of those bits might you use on a young, nervous horse? Why?

Which of those bits is the most severe? What makes it that way?

Why might you choose to use a full-cheek instead of a loose-ring snaffle?

Name the three nosebands:



For the first and third nosebands give one advantage of each.

Note: Answers to noseband questions by clicking on the image :)
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Intermediate Tack: Snaffles and Nosebands

Ok so let's get the necessary vocabulary memorization out of the way first. Various snaffle bits in all their glory:



Got it? Good. But by this point you should be doing more than simply memorizing -- you should be thinking! A dangerous hobby, I know, but worth it every once in a while :) These bits -- it's all well and good to know what they are, but what do they do? Why would you choose one over another? How do you tell how severe a bit is? How do they work? Where do they put pressure?

For today we're going to focus on snaffle bits (see adv for others :) with a brief foray into nosebands since they are so often used to supplement the bit.

So to answer the last question first (why do things in order?) -- Snaffle bits apply pressure to the bars of the mouth, the tongue and the lips. But there are many ways of doing that! They are direct pressure bits, which means that the amount of pressure you put on the reins is what the horse feels in his mouth. (sidenote: the bars are the area between the molars and the incisors - if you stick your thumb in the corner of your horse's mouth where the bit goes, you'll discover there are no teeth there. But that's a lesson for another Thursday!)

Severity -- it's important to remember though that any bit's severity is entirely defined by the hands that hold it. That being said, once the hands are educated enough the rider can start to consider appropriate bits for their situation. In general, a thinner bit will be stronger than a thicker one (consider if you're carrying a really heavy bag by handles. Thin handles are going to cut into your hands, whereas thicker ones you'll be able to carry for a longer time -- the pressure is dispersed over a wider area). Anything with a twist will be stronger than something flat. Twisted bits of any sort apply quite sharp pressure (think of that whole thin bit vs thick bit idea -- the edges of the twist are very thin). Since most horses will run from pain you're often better to use a softer bit with a different noseband (ie flash, figure-8) that restricts the horse's ability to open their mouth, then to use the harsher bit. Double bits (esp when twisted) do the same thing but times two as now the pressure points are doubled. While remaining in the realm of snaffles, those are your primary severity considerations: width of bit and is there any sort of twist to it.

A secondary consideration is the type of bit rings (what the reins attach to). A loose ring will rotate as the bit moves in the horse's mouth. It encourages relaxation and is loved by dressage riders everywhere for this :) The main downside to a loose ring is that they can pinch the sides of the mouth -- bit guards (little plastic circles) are sometimes used to counteract this. A full-cheek (and to a lesser extent, a D), will push against the side of the mouth as the opposite side is pulled (so if you pull the left rein, the right side of the bit pushes against the horse). This can help clarify steering requests. The down side to these is that the cheeks could potentially get caught on something, and/or twisted the wrong way -- less than fun for your horse in either scenario. Keepers are often applied (attaching the top of the full-cheek to the cheek piece) to help avoid this issue. An egg-butt is marginally softer than a D in that it doesn't have the straight edge to help with steering to the same degree, but stronger than a loose-ring as it's fixed so there's not as much play.

Now, knowing that a loose ring encourages the horse to salivate (and therefore relax -- the two items are connected pavlovian style in horse's little brains. And in ours too I guess -- when you see a drooling person, they're usually overly relaxed...), what do you suppose bits with keys or rollers are for? Yup, same concept. They also have the bonus of giving the horse something to play with -- especially for young horses, this can be a great thing! Keeps their little brains engaged (so they're not thinking of the goblin in the corner or a million other things that lead to trouble) and gives them something to do that will encourage the relaxation response. All good :) And bits that have copper on them? Same thing. Because of this effect these bits are all illegal in dressage (cheating!).

Some bits are almost straight (ie mullen mouth) or double jointed (ie french link). These reduce the nut-cracker action and disperse the pressure more evenly across the tongue. Which is better depends entirely on your horse. Some horses seem to prefer single joints, others multi- joints. Most of the TBs I've known seem to like the multis; the heavy crosses seem to go better in the singles -- could have something to do with the size of their mouths *g* but this is entirely incidental wisdom. Basically if your horse seems unhappy with one, try the other. If they have a tendency to lean, you'll want to avoid the unjointed bits.

An exercise - go to your tack store (or even your tack store's website -- here's one I use: Bahr Saddlery) -- and look through the bits. Pick three that you don't recognize and see if you can figure out what they do, how they work, and why you would use one. For instance, here's one you may have seen before, but we haven't discussed yet:


Waterford

Now you can see it's a loose ring snaffle, so it's going to encourage playing. It seems to have balls on it too, but they don't roll so it's not really a mouthing bit. It is multi-jointed so it'll lie flatter over the horse's tongue with less nut-cracker action on the bars and lips than a single-jointed. It's not particularly thin and it has no leverage component (see advanced) so it's probably not all that severe. So why would you want it instead of a say a french link? What's the advantage here? The advantage is that with the balls the horse has less opportunity to lean on the bit, but they are softer than any sort of twist so generally don't get the angry response a twist might in a sensitive horse. So if you had a horse who was heavy in your hand, this might be a good one to try.

Run through that thought process with a few more random bits. Good luck!

And as if that weren't enough... Remember the comment about using a noseband instead of increasing the severity of the bit? Well in order to do that, you need to know a little about nosebands! The main ones you're likely to see are:

Cavesson - this is your standard noseband
Flash - the flash is an extra strap attached to the cavesson that does up below the bit. This keeps the horse's mouth closed and prevents the horse from crossing her jaw. It also can hold the bit steadier in the mouth, which some horses seem to prefer.
Figure 8 - much like the flash, but forms an 8, imagine that! The top half of the 8 goes much higher than the usual cavesson, which gives added steering ability. The theory behind this design is that it allows the horse to expand their nostrils more freely which is necessary for high-speed work. These nosebands are often seen on eventers and jumpers.
Drop - same effect as a flash without using a cavesson; these were popular in dressage for a while but have since fallen out of fashion.
Note: If you plan to use a standing martingale you MUST have a cavesson (or a cavesson w/ a flash attachment) to attach it to.


Example of a cavesson, a flash, and a figure-8

A note re fit: none of these photos are ideal. The cavesson should be a little lower; the flash should have the cavesson tighter and the flash closer to the bit; the 8 should be adjusted so the cross is slightly higher. I'm sure Google could show you lots of images of these (and various other) types of nosebands both good and bad! These are just shots I happened to have at hand. :)

Wow, so that was a mountain of information for one day -- but most of it isn't memorization so much as thought process, and since you already know how to think, you're good to go!

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Intermediate: Practice Rides

So you’ve either just decided to part-board (or some variation thereof) or you’ve actually gone and bought your first horse and *finally* you’re allowed to ride without a coach. Oh how much fun you’ll have! Except that after about 20 minutes, you’re out of ideas. What do I do next? And here we have riding independently!

Step one – read and *know* basic arena rules (see beginner!). Seriously. If you haven’t ridden on your own, no matter how good a rider you are, read through that. Or else you’re really going to annoy those who *do* know what they’re doing and have to ride around you. Most experienced riders are totally kewl with steering around beginners or those just starting, but if it’s clear you know what you’re doing, it’s expected that you behave accordingly. Unfortunately, if you’ve learned to ride entirely in the school environment you may not have a clue! Yikes.

Ok so assuming you can ride in a civilized fashion with other people the next thing is, what are you going to do. Well really, that’s entirely up to you; after all, that’s the whole point isn’t it? But before you go out you should have some idea of a plan. Then you should follow the plan. But remember, the plan is always flexible. And yes I realize entirely those last two contradict each other – but such is life. >;-P

Go in the ring, get on in the middle (remember the rules!), and warm-up your horse. No matter how fun and exciting it is, getting on and cantering around is not the best plan. At least not if you care even slightly for your horse. Walk for five – ten minutes. This walk should be a power walk (go somewhere!) not just meandering around the ring. Remember, the idea is to warm the horse up! Conversely, if it’s a particularly hot horse, it’s a great idea to teach them that they *always* walk when you get on and that the first ten mins of any ride is always calm. This can be a huge help when you go somewhere exciting and your horse feels a little like she swallowed dynamite for breakfast. Ok back to the moment -- it’s also a good idea to use this walk time to do some stretching (both you *and* the horse!), some lateral work (if you’ve learned this already) – leg-yield, shoulder-in, flexing in/out, circles of various size (make sure they don’t go so small you lose your rhythm!), etc. At this point not only are you warming your horse’s muscles up, but also his mind – and yours. By the time you’re done you should have a pretty good idea how he’s feeling and have installed/refined steering, breaks and gas. Then your trot warm-up – remember rhythm is first (we’ll do another Thursday on that). If she’s high and bouncing around you might need to devise a warm-up with lots of interesting things to keep her attention; if he’s lazy and would prefer to still be hanging out in the middle, this is when you’re going to make a difference. Get him going now, so later you have something to work with.

Rinse and repeat in canter. Again, rhythm is first! Just going around and around and around the ring mindlessly might warm-up your horse physically, but neither one of you is going very far mentally. Think about what you’re doing and where you’re going. Your jobs: Pace, Path, Position. How fast you’re going, where you’re going, and effectively you’re balanced while you’re going there. Keep checking these as you go.

And while you’re doing all that, mix it up! I recommend never going more than half way around the ring without doing something. Could be as simple as a half-halt or as complex as writing your name (if you’re a student of mine who hasn’t done this one yet, just wait :) but either way, something should happen. Circles, serpentines, transitions (either within the gait or between gaits) are all easy things to keep life interesting. Remember to change direction regularly. But do keep in mind when doing any of said changes where the other horses in the ring are. It’s really frustrating when you’re working really hard, focused and in the zone, and the horse in front of you abruptly stops for no apparent reason. Avoid doing it to somebody else!

If you’ve actually done all the above in your warm-up (yeah right – I know you’re really just trotting around chatting with the other rider in the ring!) you’re more than ready to go to work. Now is time for the all important plan. Remember that? The plan? The plan you made before you ever got on? This plan might be to practice something you learned in your lesson, it might be an exercise you read about and thought would be interesting to try (depending on your experience you might want to clear this with your coach first), it could be working on practicing something you know needs work (those brutal transitions, circles that are actually round, lengthening that’s actually different from the working gait, etc), or it could be focusing totally on you, your position, and exactly what you’re doing while you’re hanging out up there. Whatever the plan is – give it a go. Start easy and build it up. ie) if you want to go from 8 strides to 5 in a set distance, aim for 7 consistently then 6 then 5. And when you’ve accomplished it, go back and see if you can repeat certain numbers on command. Or whatever the equiv is for your plan of choice. Shoulder-in? Start with leg-yield and 10m circles first.

Now the only catch than can exempt you from “stick to the plan” is “the plan is flexible”. Hahaha seriously – at some point, you will come out planning to school piaffe only to find out your horse is on speed and only willing to go round for as long as it takes to get extra power in her buck. On these days, the plan must be flexible, sometimes *very* flexible, because your horse is a living critter who may or may not have ever agreed to the original plan! On these days you have to let it go, because really – it’s never going to happen and trying to force it will make it worse. So revise the plan to something accomplishable – which some days may be as basic as a quiet trot. And be thrilled when you reach it, cause it was probably more than the original plan would ever have been on a good day. And remember, we’ve all been there.

Then, of course, remember to cool out your horse. Trot on a long rein, letting your horse stretch down, switching directions once in a while. Finish with another ten mins of walking (which can be on or off the horse) and make sure pulse and respiration are returned to normal before you put them away (more on that another Thursday!)

Have fun!

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Intermediate Anatomy: Review

What is the Axial skeleton responsible for and what bones are included in it?

How many lumbar vertebrae are there?

What is the skeleton responsible for locomotion called?

What was Lauren's least favourite subject in University? (points for math, bonus points if you know enough to know that despite my evident lack of counting ability, the only math that was truly beyond me was calculus :)

How many sets of ribs are there? What's the difference between true and false ribs? How many are there?

What bones are entirely in the hoof?

Label the diagram -- correctly please!


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Intermediate Anatomy: Skeleton

You're in a dressage lesson and your coach tells you your horse is bending at the third vertebrae. Do you smile and thank her celebrating because it's finally working after months of effort? Or do mutter "yeah I know" under your breath while surreptitiously trying to fix it before she has to tell you *again*? To answer that question you need to know two things: the basic skeleton of the horse, and dressage theory 101. We only have time for the skeleton today -- dressage theory will be another Thursday, so for now I'll just tell you you're probably not celebrating. Perhaps, once you know the skeleton, you'll be able to figure out why.



Unfortunately the diagram was way to crowded with labels, so had to go with numbers. It's all good though cause now I have all the room in the world for explanations!

First of all, the skeleton (205 bones total -- I'm only expecting you to remember 29 -- aren't you lucky!) is divided into two groups:

The Axial Skeleton - which gives the horse its shape
The Appendicular Skeleton - which is the basis for locomotion.
Take a look at the skeleton and see if you can ascertain which numbers fall into which group. Yes of course I'll tell you eventually, but you're more likely to remember if you at least try to think of it yourself first!

1 - Skull (houses a fist-sized brain. This one should be a gimmie... Alas, poor Yorick... Imagine how different that scene would be with this skull!)
2 - Mandible (basically the jaw -- slightly bigger than yours, but same concept!)

Numbers 3-7 comprise the vertebral column. But some sections have more flexibility than others so it's important to know how they divide up. Also, anybody taking riding or PC tests I would be willing to wager it will eventually be a test question. Examiners love it.

3 - Cervical Vertebrae (7)
4 - Thoracic Vertebrae (18)
5 - Lumbar Vertebrae (6)
6 - Sacral (5) -- not sacred as I once saw on a test!
7 - Caudal Vertebrae (15-21)
8 - Ribs. 18 pairs of them to be precise. And just to complicate things, there are 8 "true" pairs and 10 "false". The true ribs are attached to the sternum while the false are not. I remember that from my once rather cynical viewpoint that there are more false people in the world than true... Sad, but true? Either way I never have to look it up.
9 - Sternum

You are now at the end of the Axial Skeleton. Were you right? Did you even think about it at all? If so, congrats! You're in the minority :) And we all know that's where the kewl kids hang out!

So if the Axial Skeleton is comprised of all that is above, it follows that all below will be the Appendicular Skeleton.

10 - Humerus (points to the elbow. Funny bone anybody?)
11 - Scapula
12 - Ulna
13 - Radius (again following basic human anatomy of the arms)
14 - Carpal bones (7 or 8 of them)
15 - Metacarpal bones (3 of them -- more commonly known as the cannon bone and 2 splint bones)
16 - P1 (aka first phalanx)
17 - P2 (aka 2nd or middle phalanx)
18 - take a guess, I dare ya >;-P Yes indeed, it's P3 (aka any of: third phalanx, coffin bone, pedal bone ) This bone is entirely in the hoof along with the navicular bone and P2.
19 - anywhere??? oh my I appear to have lost 19. It's a sad, sad day in the world of Theory Thursdays. I evidently can't count to 20, but I can ride a horse *really* well >;-P On the plus side, it's one less bone for you to memorize. Woohoo! Maybe we can pretend Navicular was 19. The arrow would be pointing to the other side of the hoof from 18.
20 - Sesamoid bones (x 2)

21 through 23 are all really fused together to form the hip. But that's another of those silly exam questions people love so just-in-case, I've included them anyway (after all, have to make up for the missing 19!)

21 - Ilium
22 - Pubis
23 - Ischium
24 - Femur (so now we're doing the legs)
25 - Patella
26 - Fibula
27 - Tibia
28 - Tarsal bones (6)
29 - Metatarsal bones (3) - again with the cannon and 2 splints.

Et al - all the various Px of the hindleg are the same as the front leg, so I'm going to be kind and only have you memorize them once :) You're welcome!

Now that you know all that, what's the point? The skeleton has several functions:

• provide rigidity and form
  
• provide protection to vital organs
  
• facilitate movement
  
• allow locomotion to take place

Well now that was fun and exciting wasn't it?

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