MIdwest Horse Digest November 2008

MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigest igest November 08November 08

November 08November 08 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigest igest Page 3

Midwest Horse DigestRahn Greimann, Publisher,

Owner and Editor© 2008 Greimann Industries

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Midwest Horse Digest is distributed FREE atequine-related businesses in Minnesota,Wisconsin, Iowa, Northern Illinois and Northand South Dakota. No material from this publi-cation may be copied or in any way reproducedwithout written permission from the publisher.Neither the advertisers nor GreimannIndustries are responsible for any errors in theeditorial copy.. Greimann Industries reservesthe right to refuse any advertising which wedeem unsuitable for our publication. No liabili-ty is assumed for errors in or omissions ofadvertisers in this publication. Opinions andviews expressed in articles and advertisementsare not necessarily those of the publisher, edi-tors or employees, nor does publication of anyopinion or statement in Midwest Horse Digestconstitute an endorsement of the views, opin-ions, goods or services mentioned. While everypossible effort is made to make our publicationaccurate and timely, Midwest Horse Digestdoes not warrant the accuracy of material con-tained in any article or the quality of goods orservices contained in any advertisement.

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Page 4 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigest igest November 08November 08

About our cover - We have Nationallyknown Clinician/Trainer Chris Cox on the cover this month. Chris is a

regular on RFD-TV and offers week-long intensive horsemanship clinics athis Outback Ranch in Mineral Wells,

Texas, besides various clinics and horseexpositions around the world. We hopeyou enjoy Chris’s articles and are excitedto be able to bring him right to you, the

reader, each and every month!

We hope you enjoy and learn fromthis issue of

Midwest Horse Digest!We are proud to be able to publish

it for you and ask that you support the advertisers that support

this magazine.Thank you!

Upcoming Events page 28 Advertisers Index page 38Classifieds page 36Traders Corner page 37Thumbnail Ads page 35Real Estate page 38 Equine Law page 30

Craig Cameron - Theories and Philosophies of Horsemanship page 6Chris Cox - Common Mistakes Horse Owners Make page 12Ken McNabb - Hobbling page 14Lynn Palm - Communicating with Your Aids page 16Dennis Auslam - The Fear Factor page 24Jennifer McCormick-Lindgren - The Future Looks Bright page 8Monty Bruce - When should I start my 2 year old? page 5Bob Jeffreys/Suzanne Sheppard - Get Ready - Winter’s Coming page 20Mary Hamilton - How do I lunge my horse? page 18Julie Goodnight - What to do when your horse tests you page 22NWHA - The View from the Center Ring page 10Healing People on Horseback page 21North Central Reined Cow Horse Association RESULTS page 42

This Month in Midwest Horse Digest

It depends upon whom you talk to...I recently attended a couple of National shows and have talked with many others. In almost every

case, the number of horses entered have been up. This is good because the shows and competitionsset the upper end of the perceived value of horses.

On the other side of the spectrum is, traditionally, that the killer market has set the salvage, or bot-tom value, to the perceived value of horses. In the absence of this guideline for setting the salvagevalue of an untrained or un-utilized horse, the true value of each horse is what he is worth to you.

If you love him, or better yet, respect him and he respects you, his value to you is of great worth.Then you should treat him as such, not just with more or better feed, but utilize and stimulate his bodyand mind. In doing so, you will stimulate and invigorate your body and mind, and feel better for it. Thisis the true value of owning and respecting your horse, or in my case horses.

If you don’t respect your horse and he doesn’t respect you, find a different home for him and get onethat you can work with. Don’t ever just neglect them. Invest the money in yourself and in the right horse.Be willing to pay the price. Horse are not cars or ATVs, they should appreciate in value with time andtraining, not depreciate.

The value of a horse has always been what he is perceived to be worth. You do not buy a usedcar based on the scrap metal price. Then why should a horse’s value be based on the scrapprice? You buy a car based on options and value. In the case of a horse it is training, breeding,conformation, looks, safety, etc.

I ask that all of us involved in the horse industry take a positive attitude and perceive that the horsehas great worth and take care of them.. There are as many or more horses and people involved todayas there was a year ago. Let’s work together to take care of them both.

Sincerely, Rahn Greimann, publisher

I don’t think there is a set answer tothat question. It definitely depends on the indi-vidual horse when they are ready to start. Ihave a young filly that I defiantly will not beable to start till later this spring, even after sheturns 2 because she is physically slow tomature and a bit light boned also. I have a coltin the barn that is not 2 yet and we are startedon him all ready. He is physically much moremature and a bit heavier boned. Height does-n’t make the difference to me. Both of thehorses I’m speaking of are about the sameheight. A taller colt doesn’t mean he is moremature. A colt may be taller and bigger but notfully physically mature. If this is the case thereis more weight on his legs. I don’t mind if ayoung horse is small.

One of the most important things tothink about is how much stress you put on theyoung horse. That is a much more importantissue than is when to start. I have started hun-dreds of young horses and never had any trou-ble with joints and legs. The biggest thing youwant to keep in mind is to keep the physicaland mental stress low when you start thehorse. 1. Footing: Make sure that the footing isgood and soft. Hard ground is hard on thejoints and it is much more likely to cause thehorse to slip and strain themselves. 2. Mental stress: keep the stress low for yourcolt. Work with them slowly and quietly tokeep them slow and quiet. You cannot injure acolt’s joints at a walk or trot.

Have your ground work done andthe colt properly prepared for the first ride sohe will be relaxed and you can keep him slowthe first time you get on his back. If you get onhim before he is ready, things will get out ofcontrol and fast, and that’s when you run ahigher risk of injury. Fast, pounding move-ments, hard stops, and quick turns are whatput stress on young joints. If our younghorse’s movements are soft, slow and smoothas we trot around the training pen it is very lowstress and we can build up strength in themuscle and joints.

The advantage of starting coltswhen they are around 2yrs. is that they are notfully physically developed and are not asstrong and tough to get along with. If theywere a year or two older and physically moremature and set in their ways, there can bemore difficulties than a soft impressionableyoung colt. If we are trying to get young hors-

es ready for futurities we have set dates wemust have them ready by and performing at acertain level. The sooner we can get themstarted, the slower we can bring them along intheir training, giving them plenty of time tobuild and mature before we start to step themup and ask for more.

If a young horse seems very quietand there are no futurity plans for your horse,then there is no hurry. On an average, stockhorse type anywhere between 2 and 3yrs. oldwill work well. For some lighter boned breeds

such as Arabians, you may want to wait a littlelonger.

So as you start your colts this newyear, get a professional to evaluate your younghorse if you have any doubt, but remember thebiggest issue when starting your colts are:good footing, ground preparation, and goingslow to let them build up to the stress.

Good luck and God Bless, Monty BruceIf I can be of any help feel free to email me

at [email protected].

When should I start my 2 year old?By Monty Bruce

November08November08 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigest igest Page 5

1st In a series of articles of Craig’s thoughtsabout Horsemanship. More onthis topic andothers can be found in Craig’s book, “RideSmart”.

Quote from Craig “On the road to becom-ing a good horseman, you must first devel-op a good relationship with your horse,based on trust, respect and understand-ing.”

The fundamentals of all goodhorsemanship are the same. It doesn’t matterwhat seat or discipline or style of equitationyou ride. You can take dressage principles andapply them to your western horse. A goodhorseman is a good horseman in any saddle,just as a good horse is a good horse, no mat-ter the breed.

Great horsemen consistently ridegood horses because their horses are areflection of them. It’s been said that the horseseeks the level of the rider. I think there’s a lotof truth to that. One rider can get on a horseand get nothing out of the animal, whileanother rider can accomplish a lot because hepresents things to the horse in a way the horsecan understand. Any time you see a goodhorseman, try to learn from him, no matter thediscipline, whether it’s reining, westernpleasure, dressage or jumping.

Definition of Horsemanship

Horsemanship can be simply stated:Horse + man (or woman) = relationship.

In every phase of horsemanship -on the ground or in the saddle - you have arelationship with your horse. Whether it’s anygood or not depends on you, not your horse.It’s up to you to build a solid, working

p a r t n e r -ship. Yourhorse isn’tgoing todo itfor you.

I ’ v ealways saidthat thehorse isperfect forwhat he isand that’s ahorse. Hed o e s n ’ thave to door changeanything. Inperfect ingour relation-ship withhim, we, ash u m a n s ,must under-stand thea n i m a l ’ snature andmechanicsand present

ourselves tothe horse in a way he can comprehend.Realize that horsemanship is all about workingon yourself, not so much working on the horse.The horse is a rhythmical, balanced, patient,trusting and consistent animal. It’s you whoneeds to develop feel, timing, rhythm, balance,patience, consistency and understanding.

The following theories andphilosophies behind horsemanship aresomething to think about and let soak in overtime. As you advance in your horsemanshipknowledge and skills, their full and truemeaning will become more meaningful to you.

FeelOne of the first and most important

things you must cultivate is feel. It’s also oneof the most difficult because it’s a hard conceptto describe and no one can give it to you. Agood book to read about feel is a book titledTrue Horsemanship Through Feel, by BillDorrance and Leslie Desmond, published byDiamond Lu Productions.

Feel is more than just a physicaltouch; it’s also an emotional response and amental approach to whatever situation you findyourself in with your horse.

Learning to do anything - dancing,playing a guitar, swinging a golf club takestime and no one can really make you under-stand it or do it. They can teach you the funda-mentals, but you’ll have to create your ownstyle and feel.

It’s the same in horsemanship.You’llhave to develop your own lightness andunderstanding of the horse, or feel. Forexample, when your horse is giving to the bit inresponse to one of your requests, the mostimportant thing you can do is give back orrelease the pressure you placed on the horse.The release is the only thing in it for the horse.What you’re trying to say to the horse is:

“When you give, I’ll give.” That’s a feel. “Whenyou’re soft, I’m soft.” That’s a feel. “When youyield, I yield.” That’s a feel. It’s somethingyou’re going to have to work on over a periodof time. Be patient with yourself. Be patientwith your horse. It’s about give and take andtruly a game of feel.

You can recognize that you’redeveloping feel by your horse’s responses. It’lltake time for you to learn when to use morepressure and when to use less. In thebeginning it might take a lot, but in the end itshould take less. The result is a feel that’smore of a suggestion and finally just a thought.

ExperienceExperience is the best teacher for

feel. And if you want to experiencehorsemanship, you have to live it. You have toread about it, study it, make it your passion.You have to love it. Even if you don’t have ahorse, you can hang around a stable andclean stalls. Sit in the stands at horse events,watch and become a part of the horse indus-try. You can associate with people who’reinvolved in it. Make it your lifestyle. Pretty soonyou’ll be able to grow. How can you be betterif you’re not willing to put in the time and work?It’s your job to get the experience.

If you’re lucky enough to have ahorse, become a part of his life. Don’t justcatch him when you want to ride him. Go intohis stall or corral, pet him, scratch behind hiscars and hang out with your horse. Make it sohe’s happy to see you coming. You don’t wantyour horse to run away; you want him to cometo you. Be with your horse like another horsewould. All the time you’ll be learning from him.That’s how you become a horse-man, andyour horse becomes a man-horse. Your horsewill get in tune with you.

Don’t think of a horse as just a thing.He’s not a tractor. He is a living, breathingentity, just like you. Learning horsemanship islike learning another language. You’ve got tobecome bilingual and speak horse to thehorse.

TimingTiming is everything. Your timing

has to be good in order to communicate withthe horse on his level. Timing is discipline andtiming is release. You have to know when torelease pressure so the horse has an incentiveto learn what you want. It’s not the amount ofpressure you place on the reins or spurs; it’sthe release the horse is interested in. It’s therelease that makes them responsive and light.Bits and spurs work on pressure and if you pullor push hard enough they work on pain. It’s notthe pressure or pain that gives the horse theincentive, it’s the release. Horsemanship, likeall things athletic, is a matter of feel, timing andbalance.

Realize that time is not a concepthorses understand. A horse never thinks interms of time - of minutes or hours. That’s ahuman thing. I’ve never seen a horse wear awatch. They live in the moment. Time to thehorse is time to eat, time to breed, time tomove, time to sleep, length of day or night;that’s time to a horse.


Theories and Philosophies of HORSEMANSHIP

part 1

BYBY CRAIG CAMERONCRAIG CAMERON


RhythmRhythm is a specific pattern of

movement. Good horsemanship is getting insync with your horse’s movement. In any of thehorse’s gaits, there’s a rhythm, and you need tomove with it. They don’t call it sitting, theycall it riding.

It’s like dancing. You and your horseare partners. Even if one person (you) is lead-ing and one person (the horse) is following, ide-ally you’re still moving together. As your horse’spartner, it’s your responsibility to be in rhythmwith your horse’s feet. It comes down to foot-work.

BalanceBalance is a state of equilibrium. You

shouldn’t hinder or impede your horse’s move-ment with unbalanced riding, which wouldupset his equilibrium. Be in balance with yourhorse as you sit in the saddle, not too far for-ward, nor too far back. Don’t lean from side toside. Move with your horse and not againsthim. A balanced rider helps, not hinders, ahorse through all movements. You’re riding aliving entity; stay centered. The importance ofbalance in all maneuvers can never be overem-phasized. It’s a key ingredient in all greathorsemanship.

Riding bareback will help youdevelop your balance. In the next issue we will discuss Attitude, Lookfor Try, and Communication and Control.

Get Graig’s book and DVD’s atwww.CraigCameron.com

See you next timeand remember “Ride Smart.”- Craig CameronLEARN WITH CRAIG CAMERON AT THE DOUBLEHORN RANCHThere’s no better place than CCU – CraigCameron University – to learn about horses,horsemanship, self-confidence. responsibility,and lessons that will carry over into everyaspect of your life. To provide the level of edu-cation we offer, we can only accept a very lim-ited number of internships.

Double Horn Ranch-The Making of GreatHorses & Horsemen • Horsemanship-Seminars--VideosP.O. Box 50, , Bluff Dale, Texas 76433254-728-3082 • [email protected]

This year has been a rough ride for manyhorsemen. Increases in grain, hay, and fuelhave drained the budgets of horse ownersacross the country. Whether you own two ortrain twenty, we have all been kicked in thec h e c k b o o k .Combined with therising cost of feed-ing and clothing thehumans in ourfamilies, most own-ers have elected tocut back on the‘nice’eties to affordthe necessities.Overburdened andstretched too thin,rescue organiza-tions are them-selves sufferingfrom a decrease indonations and anincrease in neglectcases. Breedersunable to sell lastyear’s stock havereduced the numberof mares beingbred. The elimina-tion of American slaughter houses, combinedwith rising costs, the mortgage fallout, creditcrunch, and a weak stock market has forcedthe horse industry into a long overdue marketadjustment. This isn’t all bad news. Whenmarkets are thrown into an adjustment, theyforce the less profitable companies and lowerquality goods out. Those that survive are oftenstronger, smarter, and more profitable,strengthening the industry even further.Thankfully, we are seeing a decrease in backyard breeding and over breeding therebyreducing the numbers of available horses.Buyers are more skeptical of purchases andinvestments. The lower end of the horsemarket is in a much needed cleansing phasewhile the upper end continues to thrive.Experienced breeders assure me that pricesfor quality horses remain solid even though thebottom has fallen out of the market. Lowerquality horses are often sold as pets and liveryhorses or disposed of through slaughter. Asprofit margins tighten, we will continue to seeless of the over breeding and lower numbersof unwanted horses. If we work together toincrease demand while continuing to reduce

supply, the market will recover quickly. Horsemen are tough, dedicated andresilient. Despite the downturn of theeconomy, we are still seeing solid numbers atcompetitions. Class entries increased by 191at the AQHA 2008 World show! This year’sArabian Nationals in Tulsa is reporting anincrease of 80 horses. Prepared for theworst, many Open shows were elated, see-ing larger classes than ever before. In myexperience, this year’s competitors at Open

shows were the highest quality I have everseen. It wasn’t unusual to be splitting classesof 30 or more. Many were using these afford-able shows to fine tune their horses for thelarger competitions. While there is no solid

data across the variousbreeds, interviews withshow managers indicatethat it is the middle level(rated shows, qualifyingshows, State and Countyfairs) that is suffering thelargest drop in entries.This may be due to theadditional costs of travel,hotel, stalls, and day feesassociated with multi-dayevents. Once horses getqualified, they stay home.Competitors have confid-ed that they will get totheir National and Worldcompetitions no matterthe financial sacrifice.Breed organizations are

working hard to sustainmembership and fostergrowth. While entries attop level shows increased

or held steady in 2008,almost all Breedorganizations are report-ing a decrease inmembership. Yearly duesare critical to providingservices, maintaining aqualified staff, orchestrat-ing high quality programsfor members, andmarketing to newcomers.Help them help you byremembering to renew.Many programs havebeen restructured tobetter serve the needs ofmembers. In an attempt tobreak down financial andsocial barriers to showing,AQHA has implementedan Open show programwhere registered QuarterHorses and AQHA mem-bers can earn points at approved Open shows.AQHA understands that Open shows are idealcompetitions for its many members who don’t

want to take daysoff of work or dragtheir kids out ofschool to attend ashow. This level ofshows also pro-

vides needed experience for newly cardedAQHA Judges. Last year, AQHA reduced thenumber of qualifying points needed to com-pete in the World show and increased youth‘State’ entries from 2 to 4 per class (Pleasevisit www.AQHA.com for detailed informationon these programs.) The Arabian HorseAssociation sponsors Community shows andhas designed a new Outreach program todraw in more members. Adjusting to thechanging needs of competitors, they now hosta third National show (in addition to the USNationals and Youth Nationals). The SportHorse Nationals is a first class top level showwith 78 classes featuring the country’s topArabians in Dressage, Hunter/Jumper,Carriage driving, in-hand and under Saddle.Learn more at www.Arabianhorses.org.Marketing 101 seems to be a class that mosthorse owners skipped. Horseman have alwayshad a problem with “marketing to the choir”.They rarely reach beyond their comfort zone todraw in new clients, freely complaining whenbusiness is down. Breed and discipline loyaltyoften goes to extremes. Lovers of one Breedor discipline speak of the others as if they werecontentious countries approaching war. Weoften lose sight of the fact that we all benefitfrom promoting one common goal – the love ofthe horse, for pleasure or sport, no matter theBreed or riding style. Remember, horses arean aspect of the entertainment industry, andwholly dependent upon the availability of‘disposable’ income. The majority of horseowners in this country are consumers of thisentertainment - meaning that our horses donot generate the household income, they drawfrom it. Each day, our society is bombardedwith advertising for our entertainment dollars.

School sponsored athleticevents are more easilyaccessible for parents thanriding lessons. Baseball,basketball, volleyball gamesdominate the free timeof most teenagers. Surfingthe net and computergames are at kids fingertips.Horsemen need to showthat horse ownershipincreases a child’s responsi-bility, confidence, and socialskills in addition to beinggreat exercise, too.Increasingly popular, theNational High SchoolRodeo program promotesrodeo alongside academics,requiring acceptable gradesfor eligibility. It is one of thebest horse related youthprograms I have seen for

middle and high school age students.Become part of the solution. All horselovers are responsible for keeping the sport

The Future Looks Bright!By Jennifer Lindgren ©2008


The bond between children and horses begins early.Here, little Bryce Haemker shows his love forChubascorado at Paradise Equestrian Center.

Five year old Bryce is an experienced competitor in leadline.

The Batson family is all about horses. Jacob,James, and Sammy love to compete in halter,

leadline, and walk-trot. Shown here at the KWI Summer show in Illinois, the brothers all worked together to get ready

for the classes and stood at the rail, cheeringfor one another.

alive. Whether you love rodeo, reining, racing,dressage, showing or trail riding, sustainingmembership andincreasing partici-pation will onlyhelp your sport.Remember thisthe next time anew beginnerasks you aquestion or wantsyour advice.Horse people canbe very helpful orvery cruel. I amsure you havemet both. We allhave stories ofthe mentor whot i r e l e s s l yanswered everystupid questionwe could think ofand stories about the rude and petty behaviorof those who felt they were ‘above’ us. A great

m a r k e t e rknows thatevery per-son whocomes to alesson, ashow or aclinic is ap o t e n t i a llong termclient. Withp r o p e rg u i d a n c e

and encour-a g e m e n t ,horse own-ership usual-ly turns intoa lifelong

addiction. A few moments nuzzling alone witha horse.... that’s marketing from the heart. This

is the brand loyaltythat Pepsi, Disney,and Sony attempt tocapture with millions inadvertising. You have more

resources tohelp than youthink. Go to a localshow and sponsora class or donatean award (bucketof treats, halter, anything). Walk up to thearena and watch stick horse, leadline, andwalk-trot. Offer a smile as nervous competitorspass. Support your local 4-H club andconsider donating old show clothes and tack to

struggl ingbeginners.If you canafford anew outfit,help out ayoung girlwho canonly dreamof custom.Hand overthose oldchaps youwill neverwear againto a begin-ner who willt r e a s u r et h e m .Donate oldbreed mag-azines andt r a i n i n gvideos toyour localsaddle clubor riding

academy program. Who you help today willbecome tomorrow’s Judges, Directors, andWorld Champions and I promise they willremember you!Youth and families are the key. They havealways been and will continue to be the back-bone of the horse industry. The 2008 AQHYAshow was up 38% and the Arabian YouthNational entries also increased. I recentlyjudged a leadline class with 17 riders. Theunexpected high number forced a creativeshow committee into high gear, generating

prizes for each of them by the time the classwas complete. Another show presented“Judges Awards” to some very young handlersand their ponies in a large, competitive halterclass. You can be sure that those kids and par-ents will be back again next year. The future of our industry is strong and willcontinue to thrive with the dedication of the

many who take extra time help-ing the youth, amateurs andadult beginners who are thebackbone of the horse industryand who will determine thecourse and success of itsfuture. Open, 4-H, and All-Breedshows are critical to the growthof our entire industry. I am surethat many of you reading thisarticle got your start there andtreasure the pictures that proveit. And for all of you strugglingthrough this economic crisis,hang in there. The ride will berough, but we’re cowboys, we’re

tough.

Good Luck, Ride Safe, Smile &Shine.Jennifer Lindgren has been an All-

Breed Judge since 1985. She is an experiencedcompetitor who has earned Regional andNational awards in Halter, Western, Equitationand Hunter. She loves all Breeds of horses andkeeps her private collection in Grant Park, IL. Contact: [email protected] Copyright 2008 by Jennifer Lindgren.


The National High School Rodeo program promoteshorsemanship, sportsmanship, character and

academics. Competitors have the opportunity toacquire scholarships and grants worth more than

$200,000 each year. Contact NHSRA or your state program to get started.

Not just about winning, youth competitions encourage funand friendship. Kyler Petefish, Chelsea Wright,

and Victoria Taraszewski enjoy their time between classes at the Illinois High School Rodeo,

District 1 competition.

State 4-H Horse programs teach morethan riding skills. Most offer

hippology, horse bowl, and publicspeaking contests. Many riders

who start with 4-H become tough circuit competitors. Carrie Huff has grown up with 4-H and has

become the one to beat in her region

Horses are a Family affair for the Mueller's.Open shows provide a relaxed atmosphere

where all Breeds can compete. The new AQHA Open show program will allow

Gaby to earn points on her Quarter Horse while her Dad, Jim, competes with his Pinto.

Stick Horse Competiton is serious business for the youngest competitors.

Jonathan Sorensen, age 2, concentrates on the poles in Stick

Horse Spooky Trail at Happy Note'sFall Classic in Crown Point, IN.


This article is written by MartieJacobson, member of the National WalkingHorse Association (NWHA) and cardedNWHA judge. The beliefs and opinionsexpressed herein are her own, based onMs. Jacobson’s experience in riding, driv-ing, breeding and showing Walking Horses,Shetland Ponies and Peruvian Horses andare not necessarily the official position ofthe NWHA.

What an eye opener it has been tobecome a judge. The view from center ring isdefinitely different than it is from the specta-tor’s view from the rail or the stands. For onething, the judge can only see what is happen-ing with the horses in her direct line of visionand to a lesser degree, her periphery, while thespectator can see the entire ring and all thehorses. Does the spectator have the advan-tage? At times, perhaps. Does the judge havethe advantage? Again, at times.

When I was fulfilling my judgeapprenticeship requirements, a friend of mineteased me by asking, “So, are you becoming ajudge because you have too many friends andyou’re trying to get rid of some of them?” Thatline has run through my thoughts many timesthe past few years because, as a judge, youcan only please one person per class andoften, you are judging friends in some classes.

Judges are pretty much darned ifthey do and darned if they don’t. There aresome exhibitors who truly believe that everytime their horse sets foot in the show ring, itshould win. Those folks simply don’t enter thering in a realistic state of mind. The placingsreally do depend upon a particular judge, on aparticular day, in a particular class with a par-ticular group of horses.

Often, judges are accused of beinginconsistent in the placings they award. Frommy own experience I share the following sto-ries: I judged a show in the Midwest whichheld its western classes on the first day. Manyof the horses were feeling pretty fresh and def-initely showed it, heads high, sometimes shortstriding due to their excitement, and not travel-ing on a loose rein or in a western frame at all.Sometimes the lower placings were due torider error, over riding the horse rather thanallowing it to be in a longer, looser frame.Those horses were given lower placements ornot placed due to being too up in the bridle orEnglish looking. BUT, several of those horsesgot better and better as western horses as theday went on because they relaxed and loos-ened up, and began to look more like westernstyle Walking Horses. As they did, their plac-ings were higher. In fact, one horse who hadstarted the day placing low worked its way up

each and every class andactually won its westernchampionship class,because by the time it got to

that class, its frame was correct, it was on alooser rein, it made no mistakes and itsmandatory 360 degree turn in the champi-onship lineup was flawless. Other horses,which had done well earlier in the day, beganto fall apart as the day went on. This mighthave been because they were tired, or theexhibitor might have gotten pretty comfortablein his/her placings and got a little lazy in show-ing the horse to its best.

It’s been my experience, and I thinktoo, that of some, fellow judges, that exhibitorssometimes then accuse the judge of beinginconsistent, given the above scenario. In myopinion, a good judge looks at each and everyhorse entering the ring as if she has neverbefore seen that horse or any of the otherhorses in the ring, even if she has seen someof them ten times that day. Every class is dif-ferent and should be judged as such.

In the National Walking HorseAssociation (NWHA) rule book it states thatpumping of the reins at any gait is to be penal-ized. At another show I judged, a woman rodea very talented Walking Horse in several twoand three gait classes. When she rode thehorse correctly, I awarded her very high plac-ings, but when she pumped the reins, usuallyin a canter class, I either didn’t place her or herplacing was low. I’m sure there were peopleon the rail watching who thought I’d lost mymind when her placings were all over the map,but there WAS a reason … she was penalizedwhen she pumped her reins.

Sometimes, a judge is presentedwith a class in which there is one horse whichis far and away the best horse in the class, inother words, there literally, could be 4 to 5imaginary placings between that horse and thenext best horse in the class. But let’s say theexceptional horse makes some errors or mis-behaves a bit which should drop him in theplacings, what then? That is when a judgehas to make a judgment call. A judge’s job isto find and reward the best horse in the class.In this judge’s opinion, and an opinion sharedby some other judges, if the exceptional horsemakes an error, let’s say it misses the correctlead, but is corrected and then picks up thecorrect lead immediately, that horse shouldmaybe be dropped down one placing. If therereally are 4 imaginary placings separating thathorse from the next best horse and he isdropped down a placing, he is still the firstplace horse. Then let’s say he spooks, thejudge doesn’t see if it was an honest spook orthe horse just being silly, (remember, you can’tjudge what you don’t see) but the horse andrider immediately get themselves pulled backtogether and go on as if nothing happened,perhaps he drops down another placing. But

because there are now two imaginary placingsleft between the quality of this particular horseand the next best horse, the horse still remainsin first place. Not all judges think this way, noragree with this way of judging, but hopefully, itmight offer a little insight to you, the reader.

At another show there were threevery interesting In-hand classes. One was aweanling class, one was a yearling class andthe other was a 2 year old and older class. Inthe NWHA rule book it states that, along withmovement and conformation, manners are tobe considered in the final judging. Personally,wrong or right, I am much more forgiving ofmisbehavior in weanlings and, to a certaindegree, the yearlings too, than I am with thetwo year old and older horses.

In the weanling colt class there wereeight colts. One colt immediately stood out asthe superior animal in movement and confor-mation. He was acting up during some of theclass, but never endangered anyone or anyother colts, never struck out at anyone, andnever interfered with any other colts or han-dlers. He was definitely the walkiest colt andhad excellent conformation. Again, becausethis colt was by far a superior colt, the imagi-nary placings came into play for me. In myopinion, he was 5 to 6 placings above the nextbest colt. Plus there were a couple of coltswho, suspiciously, acted way too calm. Eventhough this colt was being naughty, he wasbreathtaking in his movement, his conforma-tion and his “look at me” attitude. I was heav-ily criticized by some for placing this colt first,but I would do it again, given the same sce-nario, because my job was to find the bestspecimen in that class, not the best behavedno matter the quality or lack thereof. The othercolts failed to exhibit correct gait and, uponclose examination in the lineup, had manysevere faults that far outweighed the first placecolt’s naughtiness.

The same thing happened in theYearling Colt’s class and I placed them thesame way, but then in the Adult Model Horse,just the opposite happened. The best qualityhorse misbehaved during a good portion of theclass and he just wasn’t that much better thanthe second place horse to justify placing himfirst. This horse acted up while being walkedand in the lineup, the handler had to keep pop-ping the stud chain, repeatedly commandedthe horse to stand, and actually had thehorse’s left nostril twisted in her hand as if shewere twitching him. All of this was happeningtoward center ring where the spectators sittingin the stands couldn’t see what was going on.I’m sure they wondered why that horse wasplaced third, but this was an adult show horse,which should have been standing like a statuein a Model class in the lineup.

There are times when a judge hasno choice but to place down an excellent horsedue to illegal tack, mixing of English or western

National Walking Horse Association … There IS a Difference.

The View From Center Ring or … One Judge’s Perspective


tack, too severe a bit, a curb chain not lying flat(as required by the NWHA rule book) the riderholding the reins incorrectly, the list goes on.Often, the spectators and other exhibitors haveno clue as to what the judge sees during theclass or in the lineup upon close inspection.

So the judge ends up looking like afool for doing his or her job correctly.

Sometimes a dishonest exhibitor will“school” his or her horse on the rail side of thering where the judge can’t see things, like anexhibitor repeatedly spurring the horse with theoutside leg. The spectators can see it, but thejudge can’t, so the judge can’t penalize it. Or,exhibitors know that a judge doesn’t watch acertain part of a ring as often as another area,so exhibitors may take advantage of that, too,correcting or schooling their horses in that partof the arena, then “setting up” their horse priorto riding in front of the judge. Judges try theirbest to avoid this, and in small classes, thisdoesn’t happen often, but in large classes itcan easily happen. A judge can’t judge whatshe doesn’t see.

Before you criticize a judge underwhich you’ve shown, review your rule book andalso ask yourself what your motivation is forcriticizing. If the judge has broken a rule, by allmeans, talk to show management or write upan evaluation, but be specific so that the judgecan learn from his or her mistake. If you’re justupset because your horse didn’t win or placewell, ask the show manager if you may speakwith the judge after you are finished showing.Most judges are more than happy to explaintheir placings, and to offer suggestions as tohow you might do better next time. But alwayskeep in mind, when you pay your entry fee youare paying for one person’s opinion, whether ornot you agree with it. And what YOU see mightnot be same as the view from center ring.

“The greatness of a nation and itsmoral progress can be judged by the wayits animals are treated.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

If you would like to discuss this articleplease contact Martie Jacobson [email protected]. For general information on thenaturally gaited Walking Horse or tobecome a member of the National WalkingHorse Association please contact our exec-utive director at [email protected] or 859-252-NWHA (6942) or visit us at NWHA.com.

Even when you find a good matchwith a horse whose personality suits yours,you can still make serious mistakes in workingwith him. Like that old saying, “A one-eyedman is king in the land of the blind,” we’ve allbeen guilty at some point of thinking we knowmore than we actually do.

At expos and clinics, I see many of thecommon errors that horse owners routinelymake. More often than not, they aren’t doinganything intentionally, but need to polish theirskills or simply don’t understand the horse.Let’s look at a few of those mistakes.

Being angry, impatient or passive

Many years ago, when I first started help-ing people with their horses, I saw a trend ofpeople being too aggressive. What they weredoing wasn’t working, so they got angry andtook it out on the horse.

Whenever I see someone who’s beating upon a horse, I see someone who’s come to theend of their knowledge. If I start to getfrustrated when I’m working a horse, I realizeI’m coming to the end of my knowledge andthis motivates me to learn more instead ofgetting angry. This doesn’t mean youshouldn’t be firm with a horse, but you mustalways be effective and you can’t be effectiveif you’ve lost your cool and let anger take over.

Don’t take it personally when a horse doessomething wrong. Don’t hold a grudge; don’ttry to “get even” with him. If the horse doessomething dangerous, you need to beassertive, firm and effective. You have tocorrect him and then let up as soon as you getthe response you need.

Today, most of the people I see at clinicsare too passive and are actually teaching theirhorse to become dangerous. It goes back tothe issue of being friends with your horse. Yourhorse needs you to be a leader more than heneeds you to be his friend. He won’t respectyou if you can’t or won’t lead. Treats andpetting will not overcome or solve badbehavior.

Not communicating clearly in ways the horse

relates to

You haveto alwayskeep inmind thatbody lan-

guage iscrucial –

both yours andyour horse’s. This

is how the horse relatesand you will be a step ahead if youremember this. Your horse instinctivelyunderstands the demeanor and expres-sion of your body and face. How fast orslow you move around him, how yourweight is distributed (for example, if youare leaning towards him or away), and ifyou are moving passively or purposefully,

are all things that send a direct message to thehorse.

I don’t personally use much in the way ofverbal cues around my horses. Instead, I relyon putting that expression into my body for thehorse to read. I’ve found that the more I usemy voice, the less I use my body, and thatshouldn’t be the case. You can communicateclearly with your horse without necessarilysaying a word out loud.

“Lying” to the horse

So much of being a success with horses isabout being consistent. If you are inconsistentand don’t follow through, you are literally

“lying” to your horse. Some owners confusetheir horses by not using the same cues eachtime. Others may give the correct cue, butdon’t persist until the horse respondscorrectly. Both examples show inconsistency,and you have to remember that the horsecraves consistency.

If you want positive results, you can’t be hitand miss. Your horse is just a product of whatyou’ve applied, even a great horse isn’t goingto perform unless you know how to raise yourenergy level and ask him to performaccordingly.

Many times an owner will assume the horseunderstands what he is being asked to do andis just being disobedient. The horse seeksweakness and will take advantage ofweakness in the human. You have to remem-ber that horses understand if you’re hesitant,timid or uncertain. This is why you’ll see ahorse buck with one person but not withanother rider. Horses like that need adominant, assertive leader. If you can step intothe saddle and be the leader by instigating theactivity and telling the horse what to do andhow much to do, he won’t even think aboutbucking or acting up.

Asking too much too soon

Everything you do with your horse shouldbe built on in steps. In fact, it’s exactly likebuilding a staircase. You can’t expectto get to the top unless you’ve climbedall the steps to get there.

Common Mistakes Horse Owners MakeBy Cynthia McFarland with Chris Cox


One mistake horse owners make is not realizing the importance of body language in communicating with thehorse. Here, Chris shows a clinic participant how to use his body to effectively direct the horse.

(photo courtesy Chris Cox Horsemanship Co.)

Asking your horse to perform a task ormaneuver he isn’t prepared to do, or doesn’tunderstand because he doesn’t have thefoundation, is only asking for failure. You wantto set the horse up to succeed, not fail. You dothis by building step-by-step and not movingon until you’ve accomplished each lessonalong the way. Ifevery horse ownerwould work theirway up graduallyand perfect theskills it takes tomove to the nextlevel, there wouldbe a lot less injuryand a lot moreenjoyment with thehorse.

Asking toomuch too soonalso applies to youas a horseman or horsewoman. It’s not justabout training the horse; it’s about preparingand training yourself. Once you’ve done this,it’s easy to train your horse because he canaccept the techniques you’re applying. But youneed to learn – and continue learning – inorder to improve your relationship with thehorse. I always say that anyone whois successful with horses learns directlyfrom the horses. I think people are oftenjust impatient and don’t fully understandthe time and effort that it takes to reallybecome good with horses. You have to adoptthe mindset that you’re on a mission to workon your inadequacies, to perfect your feel,timing and awareness, to be more sensitive towhat the horse is telling you – all the things ittakes to effectively communicate with thatanimal. If you have a systematic trainingprogram, this will encourage you and buildyour confidence. Then you’ll get into a grooveand it becomes addictive to want to continue tobetter yourself. As you improve, every horseyou work with should become better andbetter.

We can always learn more and dobetter. This is what motivates me; I’m alwayslooking for ways to improve my horsemanshipskills.

Find someone who is skilled with horses,whose horsemanship demonstrates his or herknowledge and ability, and follow theirexample. If you emulate someone average,you’ll never be anything but average, if youemulate someone excellent, you’ll becomeexcellent.

The motivation and confidence we gain inworking with horses shows up in everythingwe do in life. The horse is just a vehicle to helpus get there. I think God put horses here onearth for us to enjoy and also to learn a lot oflife’s lessons through them.

Up Close with Chris Cox

Ranch-raised in Australia, Chris came to theUnited States in 1986 to make a career ofworking with horses. Years of working horse-back on the ranch near Queensland gaveChris a healthy respect for the horse’s abilityand intelligence, and helped him develop his

own methods of individualized training.Active in the cutting horse world as both a

trainer and competitor, Chris has trained avariety of breeds for different disciplines. Hetravels the United States, Canada, SouthAmerica and Australia appearing at expos,conducting clinics and horsemanship

demonstrations. His“Come Ride theJourney’ tour takeshim to cities across theU.S. each year. Chrisoffers week-long inten-sive horsemanshipclinics at his OutbackRanch in MineralWells, Texas.

W e s t e r nHorseman recentlyreleased Ride theJourney, by ChrisCox with Cynthia

McFarland, a 225-page, full color book thatdetails Chris’ practical methods and trainingtechniques. Packed with step-by-step exercis-es and color photos, the book will help youimprove your horsemanship skills, no matterwhat discipline or breed you ride.

Visit www.chris-cox.com or callChris Cox Horsemanship Company at1-888-81-HORSE for information about theRide the Journey book, upcoming coursedates and appearances, equipmentand training DVDs.


This month, we will coverh o b b l i n g .Your horse

needs to knowhow to ground tie

before you teach himto hobble, as it helps him learn to stand in oneplace. So, before you start this exercise,review the ground tying lesson with yourhorse. To teach hobbling, you will need a hal-ter and lead rope, a second soft cotton ropefourteen feet long or longer, and a set of softleather or felt lined nylon double ring hobbles.I also recommend using protective boots, suchas Pro Choice SMB boots, on your horse’sfront legs. This will protect against any chanceof rope burn.

I’m going to start by going over thesituations where I will, and will not, use hob-bles. I believe that hobbles should be used toallow your horse to graze for short periods oftime in a small circle. They can be used whenyou want to allow your horse to graze butaren’t going to have your eyes on him everysecond, like when you stop for lunch on a trailride. Do not hobble your horse when he is tied.

The first thing you need to teachyour horse is to give his feet to pressure. To

do this, hold the lead rope in onehand and with your other handloop the other rope around one ofyour horse’s front legs. Youshould now be holding both endsof the leg rope in your hand, with along loose loop around yourhorse’s leg. Keeping one hand onthe lead rope, begin running theother rope gently up and downyour horse’s leg. Your horse willprobably move around as he feelsthe new pressure. That is fine.Allow him to move around you,just keep moving the rope up anddown his leg. Now, at some point

your horse is going to start thinking about stop-ping and standing still. When he does, youneed to push him to move around you for a lit-tle longer. It is important that you keep thehorse moving after he wants to stop. Youdon’t want your horse to get in the habit ofmoving when he is nervous or scared. Bypushing him to move after he wants to stop,you are teaching him that it would have beeneasier just to stand still in the first place. Afteryou have done this, ask your horse to stop.Reward him, and then go back to moving therope up and down his leg. This time, heshould stand. If he does for a minute, stopmoving the rope and reward him again. If hemoves, repeat the process described above.

Next, you are going to teach yourhorse to lead by his legs. This should betaught so he will lead when the rope is at anypoint up and down his leg, but for this exercisewe are going to focus especially on the lowerleg. To begin, pull gently forward on the legrope. You want your horse to move his footforward, in the direction you are pulling. If hedoes, release the rope and reward him. If youget no response, continue to hold until hegives. As soon as he moves that foot forward,release the lead rope and leg rope to rewardhim. Once he is giving well with one front foot,

repeat this exercise in different directions andon the other foot. Make sure that you arealways on the same side of the horse as theleg you are working at that time.

If at any point you feel that yourhorse is not paying attention, or is just movingaround on his own, put him to work longeingbriefly; then return to what you were doing.Also, if you feel that you are getting in to amess with your horse, you can always drop theleg rope and put him to work for a while; thenreturn to the exercise.

Now, leaving the leg rope aroundthe leg on one side, step to the other side,bringing the rope so it crosses in front of theother leg. Set it up so that the horse will bumpit with his leg when he steps forward. Thenlead him forward in to it. This helps the horseto begin to feel a connection between his frontfeet. Switch the rope so it is around behind thehorse’s leg, and back him in to it to let him feelthe pressure there. Tuck the lead rope (theone attached to his halter) in to your belt loose-ly so you can grab it easily and pull it out ifneeded, and lead your horse around by hisfeet and legs, changing sides and directions. Itis very important that you practice this a lot, soyour horse clearly understands that he needsto give his feet and legs to pressure and movein the direction of the rope pull.

Take the leg rope and bring one endaround in front of both legs, and the other endbehind both legs. Cross the rope in to an X,and let the horse feel his feet becoming moreconnected. Make sure he still respects thepressure. Begin teaching him to stop whenyou tighten the X around both legs. Lead himforward, and cross the ropes, asking him tostop. Once he is doing this well, you are readyto ask him for more. After he stops, hold thepressure on one side or the other, asking himto step his feet in towards each other.

Once your horse is giving to thepressure with his feet and stopping easily, youare ready to move on to hobbling. To start, usethe same leg rope you have been training with.You are going to loose hobble the horse. Thereason you start with the hobbles loose is sothat the horse feels the pressure but does notfeel trapped. Double the rope over so youhave both ends in one hand and a loop in theother hand. Stand to the side of your horse,and swing the loop end of the rope aroundbehind both legs, catching it on the other side.Now, bring to rope around the pastern on thefoot farther away from you, and twist bothropes together towards you. Be sure that therope is twisted close enough around thepastern that your horse can not step out of theloop. Then, with the twist between the feet, putthe ropes around the other foot and tie in aknot.

It is very important that you stay withyour horse at this point. Under no circum-stances should you walk away and leave him.Stand to the side so he does not run over you


HobblingBy Ken McNabb with Katherine Lindsey Meehan


if he lunges forward, and hold the lead rope inyour hand. Ask him to take one step back-wards. It is important that you start by askinghim to take a step backwards. It is easier forhim to take small steps with his front feet whenthe weight is on his hind end. Ask for one stepat a time, and if the horse steps back calmlyand gives to the hobbles, reward him. Onceyour horse is going backwards calmly, try lead-ing him forward a step. When he is comfort-able doing this, go back to the ground tyingexercise. Drop the lead rope, and tell yourhorse to stay. Back away a little at a time likeyou did when you were originally teaching himto ground tie. Once he is doing well with this,put the lead rope over his neck (so he is nolonger ground tying) and tell him to stay. Nowthe hobbles are holding him still, but you stillhave the lead rope attached if you need it.

Now, you are ready to move on tothe next step. Untie the knot, and shorten thehobble by twisting it more tightly between hisfeet. Re-tie, and repeat the exercises you didwhen he was first hobbled. After you havedone this, quit for the day. The next day,repeat all the steps you have done so far (eachstep should take less and less time), and thenintroduce real hobbles. I recommend usingdouble ring hobbles, because I think they givea better fit than single ring hobbles. Be surethat they are made of soft, well oiled leather orif they are nylon, be sure they are lined withfelt. Work from the side. Put the hobblearound the far foot, through the first ring,through the second ring, and ask your horse tostep his feet together until you can buckle thehobble around his second foot. Remember tostay with your horse and keep the lead rope inyour hand. Repeat all the exercises you didwhen you introduced the rope hobble.

Keep in mind that it may take a fewweeks of practice for your horse to be comfort-able with all these exercises. Take the time tobe sure he knows each one well before mov-ing on to the next. It is very important that youfollow the rules with this exercise. Practiceeach step until your horse knows it perfectlybefore moving on. Review all previous stepsbefore introducing something new. Don’t cutcorners. Take your time, and this will be a fun,safe exercise for you and your horse.

Enjoy your horse and until next time, mayGod bless the trails you ride.

For more information on Ken McNabb’s pro-grams call us at 307-645-3149 or go towww.kenmcnabb.com.

Epitaph for Clyde Kennedy-"When they lay me down to rest, Put my spurs and rope

upon my chest, Get my friends to carry me,and then go turn my horses free"

This month’s article is the beginning of aseries based on the second part in my five-partvisual series, “Dressage Principles for theWestern and English Horse and Rider.”This series is titled “Communicating with YourAids—Keys to Success” because I believe thatit contains the lessons every rider needs tolearn in order to create a responsive andwilling horse.

Throughout this series, I am going to sharetraining techniques built upon the use of therider’s natural aids—the seat, the legs, andthe hands—rather than artificial training aidsor gimmicks. By learning how to use thenatural aids, the rider learns how to control thehorse’s entire body. The rider’s aids are thekeys to success because they are the keys tocommunication with the horse.

The aids used to communicate with thehorse are not complicated for us, or for our

horse, to understand. The challenge comes inlearning how to coordinate the use of theseaids with the horse’s actions or movements toget the response we want. In this series ofarticles, I will explain how to use each of therider’s aids correctly and according to thehorse’s knowledge. You will learn how to teachyour horse to respond more willingly withoutusing force. This is the path to building along-lasting and true partnership with yourhorse.

Here is how I will proceed with the importantlessons in this series. I will cover simple basicsto teach the horse to respond to the rider’saids. The foundation in building anunderstanding between the horse and ridercomes through learning how to correctly useseat, leg, and hand aids.

I will teach you how to introduce these basicaids to your horse through using differentpatterns. I use patterns because, when a rider

changes direction,gaits, or speedwithin any gait, thehorse learns moreeasily. As a rider,you will learn howto more effectivelyuse your aids tocommunicate withthe horse. Thiswork will help youlearn more aboutyour horse’spersonality, sensi-tivity, and level ofknowledge. By

continuously and consistently analyzing hisreactions, you will build a willing rapport withyour horse. Our goal is to have a horse respond to thelightest of aids effortlessly, softly, willingly,and immediately. When we reach this point,riding and training become rewarding andfun.

I always start with the basics to build astrong foundation for future advanced lessons.In this series of articles, I will start with the verybasics of riding. This will be helpful for begin-ning riders. Those of you who are more expe-rienced riders also will benefit from these les-sons if you use them to help you correct anyproblems you may be having with your horse.So many of the problems experienced ridersencounter may be traced back to a problem ina basic element of their riding—a flaw in theirfoundation. By going back to these basics, youmay discover the missing element to help youcorrect that problem.Equipment

I like to use a bit-less bridle, called asidepull, for either beginner riders who arelearning to use their aids or with young horses.It is a great tool for building confidence andrelaxation in both the horse and the rider. Forhorses that display signs of not accepting thebit, such as opening the mouth or having abusy mouth, a sidepull is a good bridle to use.

If you have never seen a sidepull, let meexplain it and its function. The sidepull resem-bles a regular bridle; but, instead of the reinsbeing attached to a bit, each rein is attached toa ring on the side of the bridle’s noseband.

A sidepull works off the bridge of the horse’snose. Properly fitted, the noseband of thesidepull should lay down on the bridge of thehorse’s nose, but not so low that it is down onthe nostrils. To find the correct spot where thesidepull noseband should rest, run your handdown the horse’s face towards his nose. Youwill feel the bone change to softer cartilage asyou get near the nose. The sidepull should lieover this cartilage above the nostrils. Thenoseband should fit just snug enough to gettwo fingers underneath it. If you were to usethe reins to move the horse’s head from sideto side, the noseband should be secureenough so that it does not twist or turn on thehorse’s nose. Note: If you do not have asidepull and do not wish to obtain one, asimple Western or English snaffle bit willwork with the training exercises in thesearticles.


“Communicating with Your Aids—Keys to Success, Part 1”


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The First Step—MountingFor me, the most important display of good

manners that any horse must have is to standstill during the mounting process. If he doesso, it shows me that he is obedient, mannerly,and thinking slowly.

The rider also has a responsibility in themounting process. The rider must learn tomount properly, in a balanced manner, withoutpulling the saddle towards her across thehorse’s back. Whether you are using anEnglish or Western saddle, following are sometips to help improve your mounting technique.

Mounting is typically done on the horse’s leftside. The horse should be standing relativelysquare. As you address the horse to mount,hold the reins evenly. You must be flexibleenough to pick your left foot up and put it in thestirrup without pulling the saddle towards you.

When you are ready to mount, look ahead andpush off with the right foot. As you rise up inthe stirrup, bring your right hand up so it gen-tly grasps the cantle. Swing your right leg overthe saddle while moving the right hand fromthe cantle to the pommel. Sit down easily onthe horse’s back. Put your right foot in the stir-rup.

If your horse does not stand still whilemounting, use a fence! Position the horse sothat a fence is on his right side and he is fac-ing a fence corner or a wall. The fence andcorner/wall will keep him from moving side-ways or forward while you mount.

Mounting properly requires good timing andpractice. Because it is one of the first thingswe do with our horses before starting a school-ing session, any issues we have with mounting

can set the tone for the rest of our ride.In the next article, I will cover in more detail

how to deal with problems in mounting. Formore information about Palm PartnershipTraining, visit our website atwww.lynnpalm.com.


Lunging your horse (sending himaround you on a rope) is an excellent way totake a little energy out of a fresh horse. It alsois a great way to access your horse’s attitudebefore a ride. Lunging is also a good trainingmethod to get your horse attentive to yourcues, responsive, and listening to you. Hereare a few tips to make lunging easy andeffective as a training tool.

Equipment you need: Many lungelines you buy are flat pieces of rope. These flatlunge lines tangle easily and become a knotbefore you know it. A 5/8 inch round (leadrope diameter), twenty –five foot in length,equipped with a brass snap is a much easierrope to lunge with. This round rope slideseasily through your gloved hand (always weargloves when you handle ropes to prevent ropeburns) and has a good weight to it. A one-piecelunge whip is easier to use than a two-piecethat fits together at the middle of the shaft.When you are first learning to lunge yourhorse, it can be difficult to handle the lunge linein one hand and work the whip in the other. Tomake this task easier, practice with the whipalone. Place a bucket twenty feet away from

youas your target and practice flicking the whip atit. Practice with both left and right hands soyou are proficient at both. To lunge you mayuse a lunging caveson, web halter or a ropehalter.Steps: Today I will explain using a rope halterwith the lunge line.

• Place your rope halter on yourhorse’s head. Adjust it so the cheek piece (thatgoes around the nose) fits right below thecheck bone. You don’t want it so low that it willinterfere with the horse’s breathing or too highso it sits above the cheek.

• Attach your lunge line in thebottom ring of the rope halter, under thehorse’s chin.

• Point your lunge line in thedirection you want your horse to move. Hold itin your right hand for the horse to go right.Hold it in your left hand for the horse to go left.To lunge your horse to the right (clockwise),hold the lunge line in your right hand. Lift yourright hand and point in the direction (right) thatyou want your horse to go. Use a verbalcommand like walk to start the movement.Always stay behind the driveline when youlunge or round pen your horse. The driveline isthe slope of the shoulder. If your body gets infront of the driveline, your horse will stop andface you. Staying behind your horse’s drivelinewith your body allows you to get forwardmomentum by driving the hindquarters

forward. (A good visual aid tohelp you is to tie a piece oftwine around your horse’sneck. It makes the drivelinemore visible.

• Your lunge whip hand (the lefthand lunging to the right) provides themomentum and dictates the speed of yourhorse. There are five phases of pressure thatyou apply. The first and least amount ofpressure is verbal, you ask your horse to walk,trot or canter. If there is no response from yourhorse, increase the pressure to the secondlevel, by moving the whip from behind you to aposition behind him where he can see it. Ifthere is no response to this, increase thepressure to the third level by flicking the whipon the ground behind your horse. If your horsestill ignores you, tap him on the hocks with thewhip until he moves forward. The fifth level ofpressure is the most important. That is toremove the pressure once the horse respondsby positioning the whip behind you. Manytimes I see people chasing their horse roundand round with the whip. That is not our goalhere. Our goal is to get our horse to respond toour commands and then to release thepressure. That’s his reward and his incentiveto repeat the behavior.

• To change directions, change yourtools. To lunge left, place the lunge line in theleft hand and lunge whip in your right. If yourhorse moves in toward you as you changedirections, check to make sure you are behindthe driveline. If you are and his shoulder isdrifting in, swing the whip at his shoulder untilhe moves out and makes the circle larger.

• Just like the alpha mare, whoevermakes the others feet move is in charge. So ifyou find your horse lunging you and standingin the middle of the arena that’s a problem.Draw a small box in the sand of the arena andtry to keep your feet inside the box. Rememberthe goal is to move your horse’s feet not yours.

Mary is a Mounted Police instructor and a fullyinsured ARICP riding instructor. She devotesher creative energy to developing customizedtraining programs to improve show ring per-formance, nount obedience and despookingtrail horses utilizing training methods used intraining police horses.Visit her website at www.riderselite.comEMAIL YOUR QUESTIONS TO MARY AT:[email protected]

Ask Mary Mary Hamilton answersyour training questions!

Ask Mary: How do you lungea horse? I get alltangled up in thelunge line when Itry.

Don’t forget to visit us online!

www.horsedigests.com

The MidwestHorse Fair®, one of the topthree-day horse fairs inAmerica, is pleased toannounce that CraigCameron will be one of theworld class clinicians present-ing at the 2009 event. Held inMadison, Wisconsin at the Alliant EnergyCenter, the Midwest Horse Fair® has beengrowing and going strong since 1979. Thisthree-day event will focus on bringingworld class clinicians, providepromotional opportunities forequine-related business-es, and promote theimportance of theequine industry inthe Midwest.

A nativeTexan, Cameron, isconsidered one ofthe original cowboyclinicians. He is on theroad more than 44weeks a year covering80,000 miles demonstratingthe style of horsemanship that hehas perfected over the last 23 years. Calledthe “public defender of the horse,” Cameronhas dedicated himself to those who educatetheir horses by first educating themselves.Cameron has created a program that buildsconfidence and trust between rider and horse.Rather than fight the animal, he offers patienceand understanding that leaves the horse

wanting to do what is asked ofhim. According to his website

(www.craigcameron.com), Cameron wasfortunate to meet a man named RayHunt who opened his eyes to the art ofworking through understanding when training

horses. Building upon hisexperiences, Cameron

uses a philosophy ofteaching that elimi-

nates rough han-dling of horses,earning him awell-deservedinternationalfollowing.

C a m e r o n ’ so r i g i n a l

entertaining andmotivational style is

regularly sought after byTV, radio, magazines, fairs,

ranches, concerts, universities andmany celebrities. Cameron has worked withand for such notables as Lynn Anderson,Ralph Lauren, Ty Murray, Michael MartinMurphy, Cody Lambert, Bum Phillips,Charmayne James, Bob Moorehouse, BuckTaylor and others.In 2002 Cameron was awarded the prestigious

Working Cowboy of the Year award by theAmerican Cowboy Culture Awards Committee,and he was one of only three men selected toparticipate in the First Whisper ChallengeCompetition in August of 2002. Cameron isalso featured weekly in Hoof Beats on cableTV and is a regular on RFD-TV.

His demonstration at the 2009Midwest Horse Fair® will focus on horseman-ship and colt starting. To find out more informa-tion on Cameron’s presentation, or for a listingof other clinicians scheduled for the three-dayevent, visit www.midwesthorsefair.com.

The Midwest Horse Fair® is ownedby the Wisconsin State Horse Council, Inc. Allproceeds from the Fair are returned to theWSHC and are used to represent and foster aunified equine industry in Wisconsin, promotethe equine through leadership, education,

service and commu-nication, and to takea proactive role inthe future growthand development ofthe equine industry.For more informa-tion, please feel freeto contact us viaphone at (920) 623-5515 or email

[email protected]

Craig Cameron to Headline2009 Midwest Horse Fair®!


Professional’s Choice Sports MedicineProducts, Inc. announced the promotion ofMonty Crist of San Diego, California toGeneral Manager of the manufacturing power-house effective August 4th, 2008.

Crist, who commenced his professional jour-ney with the company in 1987, promoting theOriginal Sports Medicine Boot at retail markettrade shows, will oversee the daily operationsas well as the expansion of the equestriansports medicine manufacturer.

His efforts in the sales, marketing and productdevelopment over the past two decadesdemonstrate his commitment to Professional’sChoice and the equestrian industry as awhole. An accomplished team roper andhorseman, riding and competing since he wasjust a young man through present day, Crist isfilled with an abundance of inside knowledgeand experience. “After 21 years with the com-pany, it is our belief that no one is betterequipped to take on the responsibility of thissenior management position than Monty,” said

Professional’s Choice owner and president,Dal Scott, “No one knows our industry, our cul-ture or our business better.”

Crist will continue to drive the product develop-ment division of the company and work withthe Team PC Advisory Board ofprominent horsemen and womenincluding Bob Avila, John Lyons,Steffen Peters, CharmayneJames and Lynn Palm, togetherpersistently delivering innovativeproducts to the public with thehealth and welfare of the horse inmind.

The more comfortable thehorse, the better the perform-ance.

Professional’s Choice is theinventor and manufacturer of theoriginal patented SportsMedicine Boot, the SMB Elite™and the SMx Air Ride™ SaddlePad; Professional’s Choice con-tinually produces high qualityproducts recognized by top train-ers, professionals and everyday

horseman all over the world.

To locate an authorized Professional’s Choicedealer near you, call 800-331-9421 or visittheir website at www.profchoice.com.

Professional’s ChoiceNames Monty Crist General Manager

As we write this, we’re about halfway through October, and the changing colorsare warning us to get ready for Old Man Winteronce again. Even though it seems like he justleft us (we’re big fans of summer, you see), it’stime to prepare our barns, sheds and horsesfor the colder weather.

This is a good time to check yourhorse’s teeth, and if needed, have themfloated. Feed is a critical part of keeping warm,and horse’s teeth must be in good workingorder to maximize the nutritional benefits. Ifyou’re going to perform the same amount ofwork with your horse through the winter, it’sprobably best to continue his normal grainration, but increase his hay intake about 20%.This additional fuel should keep him warm,and keep his weight constant. If you’re notgoing to exercise your horse, or if youdramatically reduce your rides, then you mightconsider cutting back slightly on his grain,while increasing his hay ration between 20 and30%. If your horse is normally on grass, you’llobviously have to switch over to good qualityhay. Sometimes hair coat will actually camou-flage a loss of weight, as your horse burnsextra calories keeping warm, so you shouldperiodically feel your horse’s sides to see ifribs are becoming too prominent. If you findthis is the case, you may have to supplementhis diet with some fat builders, such as cornoil, rice bran oil, or commercial weight

builders.Some people also use beet pulp, but I’mpersonally not a fan of this product, and itmust be soaked before feeding.

The most often asked questionabout winter horse handling is whether or notto blanket. The answer, unfortunately, is notthe same for all horses. Most horses, if theircoats are normal and not clipped, will do justfine without blanketing. Horses tolerate colda lot better than we do, and provided theyhave proper shelter from the elements, they

can withstand temperatures down to aboutzero degrees Fahrenheit. If you have geriatrichorses, try to let their hair coats grow in asmuch as possible before starting to blanket.Thereafter, we definitely recommend thesefellows be blanketed when temps drop belowfreezing. If you clip your horse, or if you wanthis hair coat to remain short, you need to startblanketing now, at least in the evenings (it’sbest to start blanketing as evenings cool inSeptember or early October) to prevent furtherhair growth. If this is your choice (and it doeshelp with cool down time), you must then con-tinue to blanket whenever he’s not beingworked for the duration of the season, sincethe clipping, or early blanketing, will havereduced his natural hair coat, and thus hisprotection against the cold.

Cold is one thing, but cold and wetis totally another. It is therefore imperative thatyour horse have access to shelter, either in theform of a barn or a three sided run in shed. Abarn, which can be closed, may be situated inany direction, but the three sided run in shedshould face away from prevailing winds (herewhere we live in the Northeast, the open sideshould face south to southeast). If horse areturned out together, make sure there’s enoughroom in the shed for both or all of them, andthat the dominant horses will actually allowtheir subordinates in the shed. If you find onepoor soul constantly out in the elements while

h i spaddock mate

stays warm, cozy and dry in the shed, you’llhave to either put up a divider, or give thesubordinate access to a different shelter.

If your horses are housed in a barnwith stalls, so each has his own room, you’llnot have to deal with this problem. But, bewareof closing your barn up too tightly. You shouldtry to keep fresh air moving through. We’re nottalking drafts here, but some access toventilation.

All outside water troughs, ifpossible, should have heaters in them to keepthe water at a reasonable temperature so thatyour horses will continue drinking. Horsesusually drink just as much, and sometimesactually more in the winter as they do insummer months. Drinking clean, fresh waterhelps to keep their digestive systems working,thereby preventing blockages that could leadto impaction colic. We are not fans of exposedelectric heaters in water buckets or anywhereelse inside the barn due to fire risks, but we dolike to give our horses some lukewarm water intheir buckets when in their stalls to encouragethem to drink. Even though they may not atfirst try to drink it before it freezes, most willeventually learn to enjoy this treat while it isstill warm, and before it becomes a solid chunkof ice. This water may also help keep the airfrom becoming too dry. If your horses are barnbound for days on end, try not to beaggressive with handling of hay, cleaning ofblankets, and let the aisle sweeping wait untilthe horses are out so as to minimize dust andother airborne allergens. You may also wish tofully open the doors from time to time to clearthe air.

Severe winter storms can, andusually do, cause power outages, and in mostcases this will affect your water supply, so nowis the time to have a qualified electrician fix itso you can supply your own power to yourwater pump, and a few other vital items, via agasoline powered generator.

Finally, when riding your horses,remember to allow increased time for warmups and cool downs. Unless your barn isheated, avoid hosing with water after riding.Just a damp sponge to remove sweat and agood brushing should do. Make sure yourriding surface is safe, and not pock marked orslippery. If you’re riding outdoors you may wishto have your farrier use borium inserts to helpon ice and snow.

In closing, just know that this winter,like every one before it, will end, and we’ll allbe ready for spring again. Until then, ride safe!

©Two as One October 2008. For info aboutBob & Suzanne’s Wind Rider Challenge,DVD’s, books, Horsemanship Ed Courses orProTrack™ Trainer Certification Program call(845) 692-7478, or visitwww.TwoasOneHorsemanship.com.

Until next time…ride safe and enjoy.

Get Ready-Winter’s Coming!By Bob Jeffreys & Suzanne Sheppard


Horses and Humans Research FoundationAnnounces $100,000 in grant awards toUS and Canadian research teams

Equine-assisted healing techniques forpeople diagnosed with autism and cerebralpalsy will be scientifically tested in 2009 by twoseparate professional research teams,with the assistance of $100,000 in fundingfrom the Horses and Humans ResearchFoundation.

The foundation, which supports rigorousscientific research that substantiates thehealing impact of horses on humans, reportedthat applications for funding were receivedfrom a variety of countries and represented16 universities. The stringent selectionprocess resulted in awards to Good HopeEquestrian Training Center in Miami, FL andthe University of Quebec at Trois-Rivieres,Canada.

"One in every 150 kids has autism," saidMolly Sweeney, HHRF Board of Directors'president. "This pervasive developmentdisorder can have devastating impactson a family. The economic impact per childis estimated at $30,000 annually, and thereare very few effective treatments. We arethrilled at the prospect of providing evidenceof hope."

The Good Hope Equestrian TrainingCenter is a 20-acre facility in southernFlorida. Their research team will evaluatethe effects of equine interaction on 7- to 12-year-old children diagnosed with autism. Theresearch will focus on social function,attention and distractibility.

The University of Quebec atTrois-Rivieres is the first grant awardedinternationally by the Horses and HumansResearch Foundation. The university, located85 miles north-east of Montreal, will conductresearch measuring the effect of a ten-weekhippotherapy Intervention on the controlof head and trunk movement of children withcerebral palsy. Eighteen subjects andtheir horses will be fitted with telemetry-record-ing accelerometers to document the speedand magnitude of the subjects' upper bodyand head displacement throughout theprogram and eight weeks after.

The Horses and Humans ResearchFoundation was established in 2002 to fundresearch that will improve equine-assistedactivities/therapies (EAA/T) best practicesand to increase awareness of EAA/T benefits.

There are nearly 750 EAA/T programsin the United States affiliated with the NorthAmerican Riding for the HandicappedAssociation and over 40,000 participants,which represents only a portion of theprograms operating nationally andinternationally.

The Foundation's first award in 2006went to Washington University Programin Occupational Therapy. During a year-longstudy, the team measured stability changesin children with cerebral palsy after 12 weeksof therapeutic horseback riding. The study

provided strongevidence thathippotherapy, the

use of rhythmicmovements of a horse to effect therapeuticgains, substantially improves both head andtrunk stability and upper extremity functionin children with spastic diplegia cerebralpalsy. The results also dramatically displayedthat students maintained the improvementsafter their sessions ended.

Horses and Humans Research Foundationgrant awards are made possible by thegenerous contributions of foundations,individuals, businesses and therapeutic ridingprograms nationwide. An anonymous$500,000 challenge grant matches everydollar contributed to the organization.

To view the finding and reports of the2006 Washington University project, visitwww.HorsesandHumans.org. Moreinformation about the 501(c)3 organization,including contribution forms, can also be foundat the Web site.Horses and Humans Research FoundationHHRF is dedicated to facilitating universal

understanding and appreciation of thesignificant influence of horses on humans.The foundation promotes research that willdirectly benefit program participants andeducate the public including parents, donors,insurance companies and the medicalcommunity regarding the benefits of equine-assisted activities/therapies. For moreinformation contact KC Henry, executivedirector at (440) 543.8306 or by email [email protected] - Or visit usonline at http://www.horsesandhumans.org/

Good Hope Equestrian Training Centerwww.goodhopeequestriancenter.comThe Good Hope Equestrian Training Centerwas established in 1999 as a not for profitorganization with a mission of providing dis-abled individuals activities that offer opportuni-ties to increase their independence and quali-ty of life.University of Quebec at Trois-Riviereswww.uqtr.ca/InfoGen/AnglaisThe University is located halfway betweenMontréal and Québec. "At UQTR, learning andresearch involve the same hard work asanywhere else"...


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Healing People on Horseback


Question:Hi Julie, I am abeginning rider, andhave been taking lessons twice a week forabout three months now. I have wanted tolearn to ride since I was a little girl so this is adream come true for me (I am 37 now). InitiallyI was very nervous approaching the horses,but more frequent visits have helped. I'm nolonger afraid to get on the horse, but afterwe've walked around the ring a couple of timesthe horse will start testing me (either that or I'mnot giving good cues but she parks at the barnand sidesteps across the ring). I end up yank-ing on the reins to get her back on track. Then

I get tense and the whole thing makesme frustrated and I want to give up. Idon't want to jerk the horse around bythe mouth to teach her who is boss butI can't make her do what I want if Idon't. She is a 9-year old mare and anexperienced trail horse. I want to move

to faster gaits, but I can't even get her totrot around in a circle. The men I ride with

are naturals and don't understand why Ican't just get on and ride. I can't just "get on

and ride" because I know I can't control thehorse and that makes me very anxious. I knowif I could gain confidence through experience Icould relax because then I would feel safer,but I can't do that if I have to fight the horseevery time. I hope you can help me realize mydream of cantering across a field unafraid. Thank you so much. Rachel

Answer: Rachel, You have a lot of different

issues in your question and they are all verycommon issues that beginners everywhereare dealing with. Without fail, the biggest mis-takes I see people make when having controlissues with a horse is two things that comeinstinctively to the rider but are the worst

things youcould do for thehorse and onlye x a c e r b a t e sthe problem.The mistakesare: 1. Pulling backwith both reinsat the sametime, 2. Turning thehorse in thedirection hewants to go andthen circlinghim back.When the rider

feels like she islosing control ofthe horse, shei n s t i n c t i v e l ypulls back withboth reins,sometimes witha turningmotion. Whenthe horse feelsthat much pres-sure on hismouth, he locksup, leans intothe bit and gen-erally does theopposite of

what you want-- if you want him to slow down,he speeds up, if you want him to turn right, heturns left. It is known as “running through thebridle” or “running through the shoulder” andare common responses of the horse when hefeels steady and unrelenting pressure on bothsides of his mouth at the same time.

This horse becomes very defensiveof his mouth and sticks his nose out andbegins to feel to the rider like he has a steelpipe down the middle of his neck. Sadly, thishorse is often labeled "hard mouthed," like it ishis fault. In my opinion there is no such thingas a hard mouthed horse and I have never yetfound a horse that could not be rehabilitated tobecome a very light and responsive horse, andwe get a lot of these horses in training. Also, Ihave seen many school horses learn that allthey need to do is get the rider riled up emo-tionally so she freezes up with both reins andthen the horse knows he can have his waywith the rider and go where he wants.

When you lock up into a tug o' warwith the horse, he will always win because itbecomes a pound-for-pound race. Always tryto use your reins one at a time and in rhythmwith the horse, in a pulsating or dynamic fash-ion, not a static white-knuckle pull; always bequick to offer the release. Learn to ride throughproblems, not lock up on the reins.

Your horse mirrors your emotionsso when you feel frustrated, you horse is feel-ing the same thing. Try to keep your emotionsin check. Some horses learn that all they haveto do is challenge you a little so that you getemotional and lock up and then they knowthey can do anything they want.

When turning right, first slide yourhand down the right rein, then slowly pick upon the rein toward your chest, releasing withthe opposite rein. The slower you move yourhands, the softer the horse will become. Theoutside rein should be totally slack-- do not tryto turn with that rein too, because as soon asyou start pulling with both reins, the horsestiffens and you lock up. Keep the horsemoving forward in the turn by reaching forwardwith your hands and closing both your legs onthe horse's barrel in a pulsating fashion. Don'tpull BACK on the rein to turn, that will interferewith his forward motion; gently lift the rein upor to the side.

The second problem is that whenthe horse becomes nappy and will not turn inthe direction you are asking, most riders willgive up before the horse does and turn thehorse the other way, planning to circle backaround to that spot you wanted to go to beginwith. Although it often works long enough foryou to get the horse positioned where youwanted him to begin with, you have just trainedyour horse to be disobedient by letting him turnthe way he wanted to go and he most

Issues from the Saddle

What to do when your horse "tests you"by Julie Goodnight


certainly willdo it again.In theh o r s e ' smind, heonly knowshe got toturn the wayhe want-ed; he willnot makethe associa-tion of hav-ing to goback towhere youw a n t e dbecause too much time has elapsed in hisbrain. He was rewarded for refusing the rider.

The other problem you mention iswith confidence on your part, which exacer-bates the control problems that you have withyour horse. This is a huge issue and Iguarantee there are thousands of people outthere that know exactly how you feel. There isan article on my website on dealing with fearthat should be helpful for anyone. There is alsoa book coming out soon called "Ride withConfidence!” in which I am one of five con-tributing authors. The book is being publishedin England and should be out this fall and Ithink it is going to be a good one.

I'll be sure to publish it in mynewsletter when the book is available. Oneof the most important components whendealing with fear is to surround yourself with

understanding,empathetic ands u p p o r t i v epeople that canhelp you reachyour goals.Also, youshould pick thecompany thatyou ride with

carefully. If you do, you'll gain confidence morequickly, with more good experiences. I hopeyou can find a riding instructor or friend to help

you work through this control problem. Read through all my Q&As because

you'll probably find other issues that relate tothe problems you are having. Don’t worry,you’ll get there, just be persistant. JulieGoodnight, Clinician and Trainer

Good luck to you!Julie Goodnight Trainer and ClinicianJulie Goodnight has more than a quarter-cen-tury of horse training experience. Her

varied background rangesfrom dressage andjumping to racing, reining,colt-starting, and wildernessriding. She communicatesclearly with horses and rid-ers in any dis-cipline and travels coast-to-coast and beyond to filmher television show, HorseMaster, and to appear athorse expos, conferencesand clinics. Her training andteaching techniques are fre-quent features of Horse &Rider, Perfect Horse, TheTrail Rider and many otherexcellent equine publica-tions and websites. Visitwww.JulieGoodnight.com.

Julie Goodnight NaturalHorsemanship TrainingTM

Goodnight Training Stables, Inc.TM

PO Box 397, Poncha Springs, Colorado 81242Phone: 719-530-0531 • 800-225-8827

HORSE HUMORAn out-of-towner accidentlydrives his car into a deep ditch onthe side of a country road.Luckily a farmer happened bywith his big old horse namedBenny. The man asked for help.The farmer said Benny could pullhis car out.So he backed Benny up andhitched Benny to the man’s carbumper.Then he yelled, “Pull, Nellie,pull.”Bennie didn’t move. Then he yelled, “Come on, pullRanger.”Still, Benny didn’t move. Then he yelled really loud, “Nowpull Fred, pull hard.”Benny just stood. Then the farmer nonchalantlysaid, “Okay, Benny, pull.”Benny pulled the car out of theditch. The man was very appre-ciative, but curious. he asked thefarmer why he called his horse bythe wrong name three times.The farmer said, “Oh, Benny isblind and if he thought he wasthe ony one pulling he wouldn’teven try.”


by Peg Bahls with Dennis Auslam

I got on the phone the other dayand called Dennis after viewing a program onRFD-TV. I had found myself glued to a showthat a clinician was airing on ConfidenceClinics. What caught my attention initially wasthe women telling why they had come to theclinic. One women said she would go out to thebarn and take her horse out of the stall andstart to brush the horse in preparation to ride,she would finish and then start brushing itagain, finally just putting it away, to scared toride.

As I watched, a segment came onthat showed two different women working ontheir balance in the round pen, no reins, thehorse on a lunge line with the trainer directingit. The women were working at trotting aroundthe pen and then were required to go to a lope.What caught my attention here was the rapidbreathing, almost hyperventilating, that thewomen were going through. This was pure

fear. And for the rider it was veryreal!

How do I know that?Because I have experienced it andI have watched numerous othersexperience it. It is the fear factorand it seems that at times it is ram-pant in the horse industry, especial-ly with women in there 30’, 40’s andolder.I finished watching the program with

tears in my eyes, as I remember going throughthe exact same thing. I proceeded to tell himabout the program and we talked about thisphenomenon and how common place it is. Itresults in a lot of horses being very loved, butnot ridden much.

I have known Dennis now for aboutfive years and we talked about how often heworks with women with this issue and thatincluded working with me. It was this issue thatcaused him to develop his Confidence BuildingClinic, and it really does help.

The horsework starts on the groundand teaches both you and the horse. You learnwhat it is that the horse is doing that you prob-ably were not seeing, were ignoring, or werejust not even aware that it was bad behavior.He teaches you how to recognize the veryissues that probably got you to this point offear in the first place and what to do aboutthem.

For Dennis this has become apassion and you can tell when he works withpeople that he loves working with horses. Hewill tell you he likes nothing better than to helpsomeone develop their horse skills and theirconfidence.Teaching them that they canbecome the rider that they deserve to be andtheir horse deserves to have.

If you’ve experienced anythingresembling this: don’t want to take your horseout of the arena, prefer to just walk along, notrotting or loping, not getting involved in anyevents because it might require you to dosomething you just plain are really uncomfort-able doing, you need to realize you are notalone.That’s right, I said you are not alone, butthere is help.

Dennis and I talked about what tolook for if you need help with this issue, orbetter yet would like to not get to the point thatthis is an issue. So here are some tips:

Recognize that you need help.This can be hard to come to grips with. Wethink we should know or that we can overcomethis with more riding or reading. Though thatwill help, you can get through this a lot quickerwith the right professional help. Many times Ifound that I did not even know what it was Ididn’t know. Yes, I meant exactly what I saidhere. I did not know what it was that I did notknow.

If you don’t have the horse, startwith riding lessons before you decide to buy ahorse. If you do have the horse, the same thingapplies, start with riding lessons. I agree withDennis on both these points. I know now that if

I had taken lessons before I evereven thought about getting a horse Iwould have been way ahead of thegame when I finally did get my horse. Like most people, I did not do it that

way, but I am one of the lucky ones in thatI did get an older horse, per the recommenda-tion of a very knowledgeable horse friend. So,though I did not know how to make her do anyof those neat maneuvers you see others doingso easily, I could a least be comfortable get-ting on and riding her, and 11 years later I stillhave her.

By the way, that is 9 years longerthan the average new horse owner lasts. Theaverage is 2 years. That average is because ofthe fact, in most cases, that the new horseowner, which is predominately female, gets ahorse first and then tries to learn on their own.

In many instances we immediatelyhave two problems1. A horse owner who has limited riding knowl-edge and: 2. A horse that is not trained well enough toovercome the inadequate knowledge of therider.

.Dennis talked with me about howcommon this problem is, and when the riderdoes not have enough skill for the horse theyare riding it is always a disaster waiting tohappen.

It is wise to get professional helpfinding the right horse. This particular pointcould be the difference between whether youmake it past that two year industry average.Nothing will cause you greater disappointmentthan getting the wrong horse and nothing willget you hurt faster!

I talked with Dennis about what tolook for in a trainer and let him know that eventhough I fought it, it was a good thing that hechallenged me and pushed me bit by bit. Themain thing he reiterated to me was that thetrainer should start you out with groundwork,not in the saddle.

Groundwork will make all the differ-ence in the world. Everything from desensitiz-ing to leading, lunging, walking through a gatesafely, tying, saddling, the whole ball of wax. Ifyou miss these steps, and start working right inthe saddle, there are many issues that willcome up that could have been completelyavoided had your training, and the horsestraining, started with groundwork.

Groundwork will teach you and thehorse, when done correctly, who is the leader.Learning the correct methods of working thehorse on the ground will build your confidencemore and more and will build the horses confi-dence in you. It is the place where most ofthese issues develop and the place where theycan be overcome.

Take care, God Bless and stay safe!Dennis Auslam is the owner/operator ofRedwood Stables in Morton, MN. He trainsboth horse and rider through lessons and clin-ics and runs a regular schedule of clinics inConfidence Building, Horsemanship, andCattle Work and has recently added anExtreme Trail Course to his facility. You cancontact him at 507-430-0342 or visit hiswebsite at www.redwoodstables.com

The Fear Factor


Dog e Lites™ is pleased toannounce three new LED Safety Products toprotect both you and your horse. Be seen andbe safe when riding or working in low light con-ditions with Horse e Lites™ Flashing BreastPlate, Gaiter Arm/Leg Bands and LED Cap.

The Horse e Lites™ FlashingBreast Plate features 16 high intensity, longlife LEDs embedded in a fully adjustable har-ness that is also equipped with a SuperReflective Strip to maximize visibility evenmore. Select solid or flashing lights that can beseen up to a football field away. Polymer LEDcircuit board technology provides durable flex-ibility and a soft, non-scrape backing restscomfortably on the horse.

Buckle tested with strong welded D-rings, it is lightweight and water resistant. Onesize fits all. 2 Lithium Batteries included. TheHorse e Lites™ Lighted Gaiter Arm/Leg Bandsare designed for horse or rider to provide light-weight LED visibility up to 300 yards away.Velcro fastened, they measure 6.5cm wide x48cm long and also feature double SuperReflective strips. Weatherproof, water resist-ant and easy to use. Unlimited usefulness. 2Lithium Batteries included.

The Dog e Lites™ LED Stable Hatis an awesome idea and a most handy cap. Ithas 5 Ultra Bright lightweight LED lightsembedded in the front visor to light your way orkeep you visible to companions and oncomingtraffic. It is also ideal for dog walking, nightchecks, hiking, jogging, biking, camping, coy-ote deterring, reading directions or locating akeyhole in the dark.

An easy to use on/off button is dis-creetly hidden in the front flap of the cap. Theautomatic fade-out feature keeps batteriesfrom draining if the lights are left on. Includes2 easy-to-find CR2032 batteries plus 2 sparesneatly hidden in each side of the cap.

Dog-e-Lites™ is a family-owned,Canadian company dedicated to providing petsafety products in stylish, contemporary, fash-ionable designs. They offer a wide range ofpractical, lightweight and elegant LED lightedaccessories for dogs and cats includingCollars, Leads, Harnesses, Bandanas andOveralls in a huge selection of colours andmodels.

Other safety products include: theDog-e-Alert™ Pet Loss Prevention Device andPet Locator, ideal for when dogs are off leash;as well as Big & Small Dog Ultra-Soft Leather& Rhinestone Accessories. Check www.dog-e-lites.com or www.horse-e-lites.com whereSafety and Fashion Unite.

Over 30 years ago Pleasant Hills Saddle Shopwas started on the Grosser Family Ranch(Pleasant Hills Ranch) in Maple Grove,Minnesota. In the early 60's, Russ and PatGrosser with their four children, packed up andmoved Northwest. They purchased a ranch,

and began raising andshowing horses. The

ranch's location,high on a hill withplenty of openspaces, soon

became a pleas-ant weekend retreat

for friends and relatives.Thus giving the ranch the name "Pleasant HillsRanch". Recognizing the rapidly growinghorse community, Russ and Pat saw the needfor a complete Western & English store toserve the horseowner. With thissolid foundation,Pleasant Hillsopened it's doorsin 1969 and hasgrown to becomean industryleader with twocomplete andwell stocked retailstores.Locations include Rogers, MN20750 Rogers DriveRogers, MN 55374(763) 428-8636800) 756-6724 andLakeville,MN16450 Kenrick AvenueLakeville, MN 55044(952) 435-2555(888) 449-4471Pleasant Hills strives to make your shoppinge x p e r i e n c ehighly satisfy-ing, by provid-ing the highestquality prod-ucts and serv-ices at the bestvalue to ourc u s t o m e r ,through apro fess iona land courteous sales team.

Wondering about your holiday

giving, our best sellers are pictured here plusmore onine.

Stop at one of our stores and feelthe fine leathers of thesaddles, chaps andboots. Check out ourfully stocked inventorywhile enjoying a com-plimentary bag of freshpopcorn. Browsethrough gift items, hats,men's, ladies and chil-dren's western apparel,boots, outerwear,Westen and English tack, and muchmore!...It's been said we have one of thelargest and nicest Saddle Shops West of theMississippi!Visit our online store and browse for our hotdeals and newest product updates!www.phsaddle.com

Visti us at www.west20.com We Love horses and wee have

everything you need!W e

have plenty toshow you!Saddles, tack,barn supplies,gifts, apparel,you name it.You canbrowse ourcurrent stock,or learn aboutnew andexciting prod-ucts we'vea d d e d .Browse thestore in thecomfort ofyour ownhome! Neithershirts norshoes will be required for service.

West 20 Ranch and SaddleCompany is a full-service solution to all of yourequine needs. Our experts will fit you to thatperfect saddle, help you select the ideal bit foryour needs, and our experienced instructorswill guide you towards being a better, morecomplete rider.We offer: * All levels of instruction *Personalized saddle fitting * Facility rental *Much more!Come and see us! West 20 Ranch and SaddleCo. is located on Hwy 20, 8 miles west of EastTroy, WI, and 1 mile east of Hwy 12/67. Callemail Julie Cyra: [email protected] info or questions: [email protected] 20 Ranch and Saddle CoW 4812 Hwy 20East Troy, WI 53120Telephone: (262) 642-4272

SAFETY WITH STYLE FORHORSE & RIDER – ELEGANT

GIFTS THAT SHOW YOU CARE

PLEASANT HILLS SADDLE SHOP,OFFERS 2 LOCATIONS PLUS

ONLINE SHOPPING


11/4/2008 - IA, Greenfield - Barrel Double BProductions -EXHIBITIONS 7:30 $3 EACHOR 2/$5 OPEN 3D JACKPOT 8 PM ENTRYFEE $20 AWARDS FEE 1X PERHORSE/RIDER FOR SERIES $10 AWARDSFOR 1ST AND 2ND EACH DIV 1D-2D-3DPOINTS 5-1 EACH DIV-(641)743-8223 [email protected]

11/8/2008 Cannon Falls, MN – All breed horseand tack sale, Simon Horse Company, 507-263-4200, www.simonhorsecompany.com

11/8-11/9/2008- NE, Fremont-Barrel -Purina Mills Saddle Series - (712) 545-9152

11/11/2008 - IA, Greenfield - Barrel Double BProductions - EXHIBITIONS 7:30 $3 EACHOR 2/$5 OPEN 3D JACKPOT 8 PM ENTRYFEE $20 AWARDS FEE 1X PERHORSE/RIDER FOR SERIES $10 AWARDSFOR 1ST AND 2ND EACH DIV 1D-2D-3DPOINTS 5-1 EACH DIV - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

11/13/2008 Lindstrom, MN – Barrel racing,Oasis Equestrian Center. 612-205-2256,[email protected]

11/14-11/15/2008 - IA, Greenfield - BarrelDouble B Productions - Fall POWER BAR-RELS Barrel Jackpot (14th exhibitions 7:15pm Jackpot 8 pm) (15th exhibitions 9:30 amJackpot 10 am) Open $15 ef youth 3D $10 ef.Power Barrels $600 added sidepot $20 641-743-8223 call before you haul! -

(641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

11/15/2008 Lindstrom, MN – Barrel racing,Oasis Equestrian Center. 612-205-2256,[email protected]

11/15-11/16 - NE, Fremont- Barrel OnLine Flyer ~ Purina Mills Saddle Series -(712) 545-9152

11/16/2008 - WI, Prescott - Roping Roping Practice & Jackpot 1-5pm - (715) 262-3898

11/18/2008 - IA, Greenfield - Barrel Double B Productions - EXHIBITIONS 7:30 $3EACH OR 2/$5 OPEN 3D JACKPOT 8 PMENTRY FEE $20 AWARDS FEE 1X PERHORSE/RIDER FOR SERIES $10 AWARDSFOR 1ST AND 2ND EACH DIV 1D-2D-3DPOINTS 5-1 EACH DIV - (641) 743-8223 [email protected]

11/20/2008 - WI, Prescott - Roping Roping Practice 7-9pm - (715) 262-3898

11/21-23/2008-MN,Isanti-Gaited Horsemanship

Clinic with Larry Whitesell, Hi Vee Ranch, Hwy47 and Co. Rd. 8. Julie, 763-444-6264, 763-689-3041, [email protected] orwww.rockymountainhorseclub.com

11/22/2008 MN,Cambridge – University ofMinnesota Regional Horse-owner program.Register at www.extension.umn.edu/horse

11/22-11/23 - WY, Gillette - Barrel, Futurity Roper Apparel & Footwear Barrel Futurity -(307) 680-5271


11/25/2008 - IA , Greenfield - Barrel Double B Productions - EXHIBITIONS 7:30$3 EACH OR 2/$5 OPEN 3D JACKPOT 8 PMENTRY FEE $20 AWARDS FEE 1X PERHORSE/RIDER FOR SERIES $10 AWARDSFOR 1ST AND 2ND EACH DIV 1D-2D-3DPOINTS 5-1 EACH DIV - (641) 743-8223 [email protected]

11/28-11/30/2008 - MN, Fergus Falls - BarrelUBRA - Burn'in Barrels

Thanksgiving Weekend Jackpot - $5200Added! - (612) 205-2256 - [email protected]

11/28-11/30/2008 - MO, Columbia -Barrel Double B Productions - PetrolJeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected] Fergus Falls, MN – Minnesota PintoHorse Association Show, Red HorseRanch, 22671 County Highway 10.218-736-3000, ext. 03, [email protected] or www.redhorseran-charena.com

11/29/2008 - WI, Balsam Lake -Barrel, Game Show - UBRA - JJArena Fun Show & UBRA Barrel Race- Always the last Saturday of themonth! - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

11/29/2008 -WI, Prescott - Roping Vizenor Benefit Roping,

Silent Auction & Pig Roast - (715)

262-3898

11/29/2008 - MN, Backus - Barrel UBRA - MRA Barrels & BreakawayFundraiser - (218) 368-0130


12/6/2008 - WI, Balsam Lake Auction, Farm& Equip Auction, Horse Sale & Auction, SalesJJ Arena Select Horse Sale ~ Hay, New &Used Tack & Equipment Auction - (320) 237-3831 - [email protected]


12/8-12/13/2008 - OK, Oklahoma CityBarrel, Futurity - BFA World ChampionshipBarrel Futurity - (405) 364-0274


12/12/2008 - WI, Balsam Lake -Barrel, Game Show, Horse Show -7:00PMJJ Arena Open Fun Show - Open to everyonewho wants to have fun on a Friday night! : ) -(715) 857-5505 - [email protected]

12/13-12/14/2008 - WI, Balsam LakeBarrel, Game Show, Horse Show WSCAWSCA 2008 FALL GAME SHOWS - (320)237-3831 [email protected]

12/14/2008 - WI, Prescott Roping Roping Practice & Jackpot 1-5pm - (715) 262-3898



12/27/2008 - WI, Balsam Lake - Barrel, Game Show UBRA - JJ Arena FunShow & UBRA Barrel Race - Always the lastSaturday of the month! - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

1/1/2009 - WI, Prescott - Roping New Years Day Jackpot 1pm - (715) 262-3898

UPCOMING EVENTS

OurReady to Ride

Guidewill be back in February 2009

PleaseRemember to

call and checkon an eventbefore you

load and haul!

Oakcroft Trunks Sponsors Elizabeth Niemi


Oakcroft Trunks and Stable Accessories is theproud sponsor of FEI dressage competitor andtrainer, Elizabeth Niemi. Fifteen years agoNaomi Despres, President of Oakcroft,branched off from her century old family furni-ture business to form Oakcroft Trunks andStable Accessories. Desprestailored her family’s old-worldstyle craftsmanship skill todevelop well-designed,durable stable equipment andaccessories for farms, showtravel and racing stables.

Twenty years ago Niemi andDespres met through mutualfriends. When Despres decid-ed to transition from theHunter/Jumper world to dres-sage, Niemi coached her every step of theway. Despres realized Niemi’s commitmentto perfection would eventually take her to thetop of the dressage business. As she devel-oped Oakcroft, she identified her own dedica-tion to producing top quality stable equipment

and because of their shared commit-ment to perfection, decided to spon-sor Niemi. “Elizabeth runs a tightship, demands the best and is com-mitted to a beautiful turnout. I knewshe would be the right candidate toshowcase my company,” Despressaid confidently.

The two women collaborate on sta-ble equipment that is made in the Oakcroft fac-tory. They call on their combined equestrianhistories and mutual quest for perfection fortheir product research and developmentendeavors. Although Niemi and Despres havetwo very different careers, the two women

think alike. “I’ve alwaysenjoyed Elizabeth’supbeat and positive per-sonality,” said Despres.“She is vivacious andalways encourages peo-ple. We bring out eachother’s strengths. I couldnot sponsor a harderworking or more profes-sional person in this busi-ness.”

“I’ve used Oakcroft trunks and accessoriessince the company began,” said ElizabethNiemi. “ I still have a prototype trunk I’ve usedfor years. This is the most reliable and beauti-ful stable equipment made today. I am delight-

ed Naomi Despres is sponsoring NiemiDressage.” Niemi also expressed that highquality craftsmanship and a perfectionistapproach to the industry has made Oakcroftthe tack trunk sought after by the industries topprofessionals. Dover Saddlery, NetEquestrianonline store and many fine tack stores carryOakcroft’s trunks and stable accessories.Oakcroft’s exclusive “Baker Blanket” line isavailable through Smart Pak and The Tackeriain Wellington, Florida among others.

Despres says there are several features thatset the Oakcroft trunks apart, “Each trunk isconstructed with premium hand selected NorthAmerican hardwoods and European veneers.Experienced fine furniture craftsmen create allOakcroft trunks, assuring recipients of equip-ment that is both beautiful and enduring.”

The Oakcroft company has donated trunksto the Equestrian Aid Foundation and the MaryRoss Breast Cancer Benefit. Oakcroft activelysponsors many equestrian benefits andhunter/jumper events. With her sponsorship ofElizabeth Niemi, we can now enjoy seeingmore of her stable accessories on displaywhenever Niemi Dressage is at a show. Thelatest design is the flower boxes that borderNiemi’s stable area, each gracefully adornedwith the Niemi crest.For more information on Oakcroft Trunks andStable Accessories visit the website at:www.oakcroft.com.

Photo: Sting poseswith owner/trainerElizabeth Niemi andOakcroft sponsor,Naomi Despres after

winning his classat the ‘08 August HITS

on the Hudson NEDA Dressage Show with a 67.9%

Years after its inception, the Professional’sChoice Ice Boot remains on top and practicalfor cold therapy (cyrotherapy) says leadingveterinarian publication, DVM Magazine.

In a recent study conducted by DVMMagazine’s contributing veterinarian, KennethMarcella, various methods of cold therapywere evaluated for effectiveness, fromhigh-tech units costing up to $5000 to simplebuckets of cold water. Of all the methods, itwas concludedthat old fashionedice was the mosteffective for cool-ing horses’ legs asit sufficientlyreduced tempera-ture while othersdid not. TheP r o f e s s i o n a l ’ sChoice Ice Bootwas found to bethe most efficientway to administer ice to a horse’s legs.

The Professional’s Choice Ice Bootrose above the others and proved to be anexcellent product in the study due to itspractical design and superior qualityneoprene. Elastic pockets inside the bootallow the user to vary the amount and location

of the icedependingupon the

injury ordesired result. The boot is kept secure-ly in place by hook & loop (Velcro® type)closures. The compression of the bootalso adds to its effectiveness.According to the DVM Magazine article,“Research shows that compression fur-ther reduces edema and swelling andincreases the effects of cold therapy.”

It was also found that the suc-cess of cold therapy could be greatly

influenced by thewillingness of boththe horse and han-dler. A horse maynot let itself be sub-jected to beinghooked up to amachine, standing ina bucket of water orcontinual hosing.These methods alsorequire the constant

attention of the handler. Not so when usinga Professional’s Choice Ice Boot as the horsecan remain mobile without supervision duringthe icing process. It is also a non-intimidatingand more comfortable experience for thehorse.

Cold therapy is recommended afterstrenuous workouts as it reduces inflammationand swelling and immediately after an injury as

it has been shown to reducepain, spasm and cell trauma.The huge benefits of icing andits tiny cost make it a verypowerful remedy, and theProfessional’s Choice Iceboot is the most effective toolfor putting cold therapy to use.According to research, as littleas seven minutes of stren-uous exercise can raisetendon and ligament tempera-tures to 113º, a compellingargument for icing after train-

ing routines.The more comfortable the horse, the betterthe performance.

Professional’s Choice is a pioneer inproducing products strictly with the well beingof the horse in mind. As inventor and manufac-turer of the original patented Sports MedicineBoot, the SMB Elite™ and the SMx Air Ride™Saddle Pad, Professional’s Choice continuallyproduces high quality products recognized bytop trainers, professionals and everydayhorseman all over the world. To view the DVMMagazine article in its entirety:http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/dvm/Medicine/Th e - n e w - i c e -age/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/533208?ref=25

To locate an authorized Professional’s Choicedealer near you, call 800-331-9421 or visittheir website at www.profchoice.com.

Cold Therapy - Ice is Still the Best!

Thermography scan showssignificant decrease of

temperature between legswith and without the ice

boot

Close-up thermographyscan of ice boot shows inter-nal temperature during use

Professional’s ChoiceNine Pocket Ice Boot

(C)2008, Julie I. Fershtman. All rightsreserved.

Julie I. Fershtman, Attorney at Lawwww.equinelaw.net

Dear Ms. Fershtman:What laws exist involving safety helmets?

– D.H. (North Carolina)This article discusses equestrian helmet laws

and addresses legislation involving helmets aswell as some recent court cases. The articledoes not address association or competitionrules that involve helmets.

Legislation Involving HelmetsFew laws exist nationwide mandating the useof equestrian safety helmets. New York has ahelmet statute. In Florida, some local govern-ments have enacted helmet ordinances. Asmall number of city governments in Californiaand Washington have helmet ordinances.

The New York LawNew York's helmet law took effect about 8years ago. It requires riders under age 14 towear approved helmets when riding a horse onhighways and/or private roads. New York'slaw also requires those who hire, rent out hors-es for riding, or provide training in the riding ofhorses for consideration to provide helmets atno extra charge to "beginning riders" of anyage and riders less than 14 years of age. Thelaw also requires "horse providers" to offerASTM/SEI standard equestrian helmets to allriders along with "appropriate helmet safetyinformation."

Florida OrdinancesIn Florida, municipalities that have enactedhelmet ordinances include Wellington,Plantation, Davie, and Parkland. All provide, invarious ways, that minors must wear ASTM-standard equestrian helmets when riding inpublic areas. The Florida ordinances, exceptfor the one in Parkland, Florida, apply to ridersunder 16. Parkland's ordinance applies to rid-ers under age 18.

Washington OrdinanceBainbridge Island, Washington passed a hel-met law. It states that people who ride a horsein or on a public area shall wear a helmetunless the rider has an appropriate note froma Washington-licensed doctor excusing theuse of a helmet.

California OrdinanceNorco, California passed a helmet law in 2008.It states that those under age 18 who ridehorses in public areas must wear properly fit-ted and secured helmets that are ASTM-stan-dard (or any other nationally recognized hel-met standard). The helmet must be wornregardless of whether the rider is controllingthe horse.

LiabilityIn recent years, two people who wore no hel-met have sued their employer or trainer claim-ing that he or she should have provided a hel-

met or offered education about helmets.

In a New York case decided in 2006, a policeofficer sued her employer, the City of NewYork, after being thrown from a horse during atraining practice. She wore no safety helmet atthe time and sustained a head injury. Her law-suit claimed that the city's failure to provide aproperly fitting helmet was a substantial causeof her injuries. While the lawsuit progressed,she hired an expert witness who admitted with-in her opinion that even if she had worn a hel-met, this might not necessarily have protectedher head from a hard impact. Later, the courtdismissed her lawsuit and the court of appealsagreed, finding that city's refusal to provide orwarn of helmets might not have been a suffi-cient cause of the accident.

In a California case decided in 2003, the plain-tiff (the one who brought the lawsuit) was com-peting in a championship-level horse showclass when her horse stumbled and threw her.She sustained head injuries and sued her for-mer riding instructor. Her lawsuit claimed thathe negligently advised her not to wear a safe-ty helmet while competing in shows. The trialcourt threw out the lawsuit and the Court ofAppeals agreed. In ruling that the case shouldbe dismissed, the appellate court stated:

The undisputed evidence reveals riders in western competition, at thetime of [the plaintiff's] accident, did not customarily wear helmets whilecompeting. Within the world of western competition, riding apparel is designed to simulate cowboy regalia. Hence, the ubiquitous cowboy hat, not a safety helmet, com-pletes the ensemble.During the western competition at which [the plaintiff] fell, neither she nor her fellow riders sported protective headgear. Both of [the plaitiff's)

parents agreed it was not common practice for western rid-ers to don protective headgear.

* * *Given the conflicting advice on apparel provided by the [now U.S. Equestrian Federation's] rules and the widespread practice of eschewing protective headgear during western competition, we cannot find[the defendant horse trainer] owed [the plaintiff] a duty, as her trainer, togo against the prevailing custom and advise her to wear protective headgear.

The fact that these two cases were dismisseddoes not necessarily mean that helmet-relatedlawsuits are all destined for failure. Whetherany case succeeds always depends on thefacts, law, and circumstances.This article does not constitute legal advice.When questions arise based on specific situa-tions, direct them to a knowledgeable attorney.About the AuthorJulie Fershtman, a lawyer for 22 years, is one ofthe nation's most experienced Equine Law prac-titioners. She has achieved courtroom victoriesin several states for her clients, drafted hundredsof contracts, and has been a speaker on EquineLaw at conventions in 24 states. For more infor-mation, visit www.equinelaw.net andwww.equinelaw.info.Julie Fershtman's books , MORE Equine Law &Horse Sense and Equine Law & Horse Sense,can help you avoid disputes. They are easy toread and are required reading at several equinestudies programs across the country. Order bothbooks for $42.90, first-class shipping included.For more information, or to order, call Horses &The Law Publishing at 866-5-EQUINE. Or, sendcheck or money order to Horses & The LawPublishing, P.O. Box 250696 Franklin, MI 48025-0696.

Questions for an Equine Law PractitionerLaws Involving Equestrian Safety Helmets


Extreme Mustang Makeover Returns to Midwest Horse Fair


Event features50 wild horsesand a purse of$15,000

The MidwestHorse Fair wel-comes back thestar of the 2008show as theE x t r e m e

Mustang Makeover returns to Madison, Wis.for the second year in a row April 17-19 withAmerica's most definitive horsemanship test

Featuring 50 wild horses gatheredfrom Nevada, trainers will have approximately90 days to gentle the mustangs beforedisplaying their talents before what has been astanding room only crowd.

"Rhonda Reese and her team at theMidwest Horse Fair stage a first-class eventand we're only too glad to be a part of this fan-tastic show," said Mustang HeritageFoundation (MHF) Executive Director PattiColbert. "Trainers from the Midwest werephenomenal because they not only raised thebar for the competition, they fought a reallytough winter in 2008 to get these horses ready.The Mustang Makeover has really gained afollowing in the horse industry and I knowthese trainers will bring it in 2009."

The Midwest Extreme MustangMakeover is one among eight events to beheld in 2009. Events include the invitationalMustang Magic competition at the famed FortWorth Stock Show and Rodeo January 23 and24, as well as the Northwest Extreme MustangMakeover in Albany, Ore. March 20-22, theGatorland Extreme Mustang Makeover held inconjunction with Lynn Palm's Women LoveHorses in Ocala, Fla., April 305, the NorcoExtreme Mustang Trail Challenge May 15-17

in Norco., Calif., the Western States ExtremeMustang Makeover June 12-14 inSacramento, and the Wyoming ExtremeMustang Makeover August 14-15 in Douglas.

Trained mustangs are judged onconditioning, groundwork, and a "HorseCourse" that requires maneuvers and includesobstacles found in trail and recreational ridingsituations. Each trainer also has an opportuni-ty to showcase their animal's unique talents ina two minute freestyle before qualifying for thefinal top 10 round. All mustangs in competitionwill be made available for adoption the finalday of each show.

Even though the animals will havebeen handled and trained, the same adoptionsconditions that accompany any Bureau ofLand Management adoption will apply for thenew owner when the animal is adopted.

Potential adopters will apply for theopportunity to be included in the competitivebidding process at the event with BLMpersonnel available to review and approve theapplication on site. For full adoption require-ments and information, go to http://www.wild-horseandburro.blm.gov/adoption.htm.

"This event will be a real treat forany horse lover, whether they plan to adopt ornot," said Colbert. "Seeing how well theseanimals react to training and handling afteronly 90 days is something the public is strong-ly responding to and we have been so fortu-nate to have been able to place 100 percent ofthe horses offered though these events. This isabsolutely something not to be missed."

The Foundation, in partnership withthe U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM),created the Extreme Mustang Makeover tohighlight the recognized value of AmericanMustangs through a national training competi-tion. The event will give the public a uniqueopportunity to see the results of wild horsesbecoming trained mounts and then participate

in a competitive bidding process to adopt oneof these treasured animals. The purpose of thecompetition is to showcase the beauty, versa-tility, and trainability of these rugged horsesthat roam freely on public lands throughout theWest, where they are protected by the BLMunder Federal law.

Nearly 29,000 Mustangs roam fed-eral and privately held contracted lands acrossthe country. In order to manage the herds andmaintain both land and herd health, the BLMoversees the adoption of wild horses and bur-ros through public adoptions held throughoutthe United States. Since 1973, more than219,000 wild horses and burros have beenadopted.

For more information on ExtremeMustang Makeover competition or how tobecome a competing trainer, go toextrememustangmakeover.com or call254.947.5530.

About the Mustang HeritageFoundationThe mission of the Mustang HeritageFoundation and the goal of the ExtremeMustang Makeover are to increase theadoption of mustangs across the country. TheMustang Heritage Foundation created theExtreme Mustang Makeover event to show-case the recognized value of mustangsthrough a national training competition.

About the Bureau of LandManagement The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) isresponsible for managing 258 million acres ofpublic lands, located mostly in the West. Wildhorses and burros roaming public rangelandsare managed in a manner consistent withBLM's overall multiple-use mission, as setforth in the Federal Land Policy andManagement Act of 1976. For more informa-tion, visit wildhorseandburro.blm.gov or call866-4MUSTANGS.

Donne and Cavalli, makers of top ofthe line botanical skin care products, hasrecently released their new organic essentialoils hand lotion. Company founder, DonnaMastrianni, has searched worldwide for theperfect ingredients to make Donne andCavalli's new Organic Hand and Body Lotion“a spa experience in a bottle.” The newlotion, like the entire line of the Donne andCavalli products, was designed with the horseperson in mind.

Donne and Cavalli literally means“women and horses” in Italian. Over the pastfew years, Donne & Cavalli products such astheir unique Soothing Salve, Hand & BodyCleanser, and Lavender & Peppermint HandSanitizer have become “staples in the stable.”Each product was designed to meet thedemanding skin care needs of equestrians.Soothing Salve is a dual use favorite designed

to help the skin care needs of both horses andpeople. A horse owner herself, Mastriannideveloped the Donne and Cavalli products to

specifically address theissues of horse lovers whoall to often spend their daycaring for their horsesinstead of their skin. In developing her new

Organic Hand & BodyLotion, Mastrianni spentover six months searchingfor the perfect essentialoils to create a mostseductive scent and deliv-er skin-rejuvenating prop-erties. The new Donneand Cavalli Organic Hand

and Body Lotion features Lavender from SouthAfrica, Spikenard from Nepal, and Spanish

Sage from Spain. Two American based com-panies provide these special oils imported onlyfrom trusted organic suppliers. Mastrianniexplained additional reasons that she chosethese enticing scents, “Lavender helps to bal-ance the mind and heal the skin. Spikenard isprecious ancient oil used to deeply calm themind and regenerate the skin. Sage assists inhealing dermatitis and helps ease anxiety.Other components of the new Organic Handand Body Lotion are shea butter and olive oil,which help to soften and hydrate the skin.”

Mastrianni refuses to give away toomuch of her special formula, however, saying“The process our blender uses to create a "dryfeel" when applied to the skin is a secret!” Thenew lotion is the perfect independence fordaily skin care. And for the holiday season,Donne & Cavalli is offering a gift set pairing thenew Organic Hand & Body Lotion with theirirresistible Cleanser in a “perfect for the barn”stainless steel carrier. To “get your hands on”this smooth, soothing, sensual lotion, visitwww.donneandcavalli.com for ordering infor-mation.

Engage Your Senses with Donne and Cavalli’s NewOrganic Essential Oils Hand Lotion for Horse Lovers

A three-time Grand NationalChampion American Shetland Pony wasrecently donated to the Arabian Nights dinnershow in Orlando, proving that the ShetlandPony can be a star going from the show ring toshow business. The pony was donated by theAmerican Shetland Pony Club (ASPC) and willjoin more than sixty other horses at ArabianNights, becoming the first-ever ambassadorof the Shetland Pony breed to appear at theattraction.

Tap Dance Kid,known as Dancer, wasthe 2008 AmericanShetland Pony GrandNational Champion geld-ing and had a suc-cessful show career attop pony shows acrossthe country. Dancer willnow have the opportunityto endear people of allages to the AmericanShetland Pony, as up to1,600 people visitArabian Nights daily.

“We were reallyexcited to get a ShetlandPony for Arabian Nights,”said Audrey Padgett, VicePresident of Public Relations and Marketing.“We like to showcase different breeds andtheir variety of talents. Dancer is our 15th dif-ferent breed in our show. ”Dancer will become

part of theChristmasshow atA r a b i a n

N i g h t s ,making his grand debut on November 17. “Weare thrilled to have Dancer demonstrate theversatility of the American Shetland Pony ashe is trained to join the cast for the Christmasshow,” said Zona Schneider, Director ofOperations for the ASPC, who actually donat-ed the pony to the ASPC for the Arabian Nightseffort.

Padgett said Dancer will have a rolein the Gingerbread Man act in the Christmas

show where he will beled into the show inhand and will jumpover Christmas lol-lipops. “He is thecutest thing, he jumpsso high. I think peopleare really going to likeit. I don’t think a lot ofpeople know that smallbreeds can jump,”Padgett said.

As the firstAmerican ShetlandPony to team up withthe impressive array ofmultitalented horsesthat perform at ArabianNights, Dancer will join

gypsies, cowboys, Indians, genies, acrobats,princes, princesses, charioteers and equestri-ans of every discipline to make storybook talesof romance and intrigue come to life.

“Dancer is a beautiful and talentedpony,” said Johnny Robb, Director ofMarketing for the ASPC. “He was a standoutshow pony and will no doubt be an excellentambassador for the breed in his exciting newrole at Arabian Nights.”

Robb visited the dinner show lastspring and was excited to see two MiniatureHorses in the act, but was disappointed thatthere was not a Shetland Pony. She contactedArabian Nights and they were receptive toincorporating a Shetland into the act. Dancer’strainers, Gary and Marcia Yeager, along withSchneider and Robb recently presented thepony to Arabian Nights.

Arabian Nights is a celebration ofhorses from around the world, and each nightmore than sixty horses and riders perform aunique and wonderful show with all the spiritand pizzazz of a Broadway production. Formore information on Arabian Nights visit theirwebsite at www.arabian-nights.com. For moreinformation about Shetland’s, contact theAmerican Shetland Pony Club at www.shet-landminiature.com.

The American Shetland Pony Club, theAmerican Show Pony Registry and TheAmerican Miniature Horse Registry are non-profit organizations established to preserveand refine the bloodlines of these smallequines and promote the enjoyment of smallequines. Recognized as the oldest and mostversatile registry in the United States, theAmerican Shetland Pony Club offers a varietyof programs for Shetland Pony and MiniatureHorse enthusiasts of all ages. Visit their web-site at www.shetlandminiature.com or 81-BEast Queenwood Road, Morton, IL 61550.

American Shetland Pony Club DonatesChampion Pony To Arabian Nights


(L to R) Zona Schneider, Director of Operations forthe American Shetland Pony Club, Hanna Miller,

Executive Vice President of Entertainment atArabian Nights, Audrey Padgett, VP of Public

Relations & Marketing for Arabian Nights, PonyTrainer Gary Yeager and his granddaughter Madisonwith Tap Dance Kid on his first day at the Arabian

Nights Dinner Theatre.

Judges at this year’sAmerican MiniatureHorse Registry(AMHR) NationalChampionships,held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were challenged to choosethe best groomed miniature horse ineach of the two divisions to receive theVetrolin Grooming Award.

Lisa Davis and BobWagner were selected as this year’swinners of the Vetrolin GroomingAward. Davis accepted the award forMagic Man's Grand Slam, her “A”sized miniature horse and Wagner forhis “B” sized miniature, SMHC’sFreedom’s Totally Fabulous, who wasgroomed by daughter Katy Wagner.Davis and Wagner will each receive aone year supply of Vetrolin® groomingproducts from Farnam Horse Products.

“Because the AMHRNational show is over 5,000 entries strong,”explained Johnny Robb, Marketing Director for theAMHR, “Farnam generously opted to give twoVetrolin Grooming Awards this year — one for “A”size miniature horses, 34-inches and under and onefor “B” size miniatures, 38-inches and under.”

Receiving the Vetrolin Grooming Awardwas an unanticipated honor for both Davis andWagner. Both contestants clearly deserved to winthis prestigious award, and were heralded by anapproving audience. Winning a one-year supply of

Vetrolin grooming products will help keep their hand-some miniatures looking their best throughout the

year. The Vetrolin “spa” experi-ence that awaits the winningminiatures of this year’sNational ChampionshipShow is likely to be one theywill never forget. Farnam’sVetrolin line of equine groom-ing products remains anunparalleled experience forboth horse and owner. TheVetrolin bath, conditioner,detangler, and shine are justsome of the products that aredesigned to have your horselooking like a winner every

time he steps out of the barn. When a horse’s coat ishealthy and shiny, it is a credit to the owner, that theyare using the finest products to benefit their animals.Farnam backs this credit with grooming products theprofessional horseman wants to have in his barn andespecially at a show.

In a continuing commitment to smallequines, Farnam donates a one-year supply ofgrooming products to the AMHR and the AmericanShetland Pony Club at their yearly championship

shows. In2006, Farnami n t r o d u c e dtheir highlys u c c e s s f u l

Platform® Miniature Horse and Pony Feed. In2007, Farnam introduced their first SuperMask® forMiniature Horses followed by two additionalsize/styles this year. In combination with being thelargest marketer of equine products in the UnitedStates, Farnam has been a recognized name in ani-mal health care for more than 60 years.

This year, the AMHR NationalChampionship Show to determine the nation’s topminiature horses was held the first week inSeptember in Tulsa, Oklahoma. With more than 300classes for horsemen to enter throughout the dayand evening, contestants were in a whirlwind of activ-ity during the entire week. Over $50,000 in cash andprizes in championship and futurity classes kept thecompetition keen and eager. Halter, driving, jumping,costume and youth classes had the audience sittingon the edge of their seats, anticipating their favoritesreceiving awards and blue ribbons.

For more information regarding Vetrolin products,visit www.farnamhorse.com. For more informationabout the Shetland Ponies and Miniature Horses,visit www.shetlandminiature.com.

Vetrolin®, Platform® and SuperMask® areregistered trademarks of Farnam Companies,Inc.

Two Vetrolin Grooming Award Winners Each Receive a One Year Supply of Vetrolin® Products

One of the Vetrolin Grooming Awardwinners, Lisa Davis, was a real hit at

the American Miniature Horse RegistryNational Championships with her per-

fectly turned out driving horse.(Washburn Photography)

• There are 9.2 million horses in the UnitedStates.*• There are 2 million people who own horses.*• $39 billion direct annual economic impact onthe U.S.*• $1 billion annual economic activity in MNalone.**• The number of horse farms in Minnesota isup 80% from the 1997 Census.**• An estimated direct feed value utilized annu-ally by Horses in Minnesota totals $35.6million; $26 million in forages, alone.**• 24.8% of lifestyle farms own or care for hors-es. These farms have an average of 5 horseseach. ***• 50% of those farms own at least one ATV -Mean of 1.3 ATV’s per farm.***• 93% of those farms own Tractors of 18 hp ormore - Mean of 2.4 tractors per farm.***

*The American Horse Council

**University of MN*** 2005 AMR Rural Lifestyle Farm Research

National Economic Impact of the U.S. HorseIndustry

The horse industry is a very largeand important part of our national, state andlocal economies. It is diverse, involving agri-culture, business, sport, gaming, entertain-ment and recreation.

The economic study done byDeloitte Consulting LLP for the AmericanHorse Council Foundation in 2005 validateswhat the industry has known for some time,that the horse industry is a highly-diverse,national, serious and economically significantindustry that deserves the attention of the gen-eral public, the media and federal, state andlocal officials.

The Diversity of the Industry

The results of the studyshow that the horse busi-ness is a highly diverseindustry that supports a

wide variety of activities in all regions of thecountry. It combines the primarily rural activi-ties of breeding, training, maintaining and rid-ing horses with the more urban activities ofoperating racetracks, off-track betting parlors,horse shows and public sales.

Income LevelsThe study dispels the misperception

that the horse industry is an activity only forwealthy individuals. In fact, the horse industryis a diverse activity with stakeholders includingrecreational and show horse riders, and mod-erate-income track, show and stable employ-ees and volunteers.

Approximately 34% of horse ownershave a household income of less than $50,000and 28% have an annual income of over$100,000. 46% of horse owners have anincome of between $25,000 to $75,000.


Sport Horse Prospect! Price:$7,500.00 -General Xenophon hasfantastic movement, wellbred, & willing to please.He will be perfect as atop show [email protected].

Homoz Black Appaloosa Extreme Curly Coltwith Blue eyes ! WOW$2,500.00 Should getup to 15H, ties, leads,loads, ok feet, nice fel-low509-218-7811

[email protected]

Registered Sonny Dee Bar Paint Pony$850.00 Correct conformation and very straightlegs. Excellent personali-ties. Pinto World caliburin "stock type" ponyclasses. MaureenKnutson [email protected]

Black straight egyptian mare - $3,500.00Thee Desperado grandaughter, with close linesto Alidaar on sire side.Triple *Anstata IbnHalima on dams side.913-579-6276

[email protected]

L’Chaim Chandra - Cr Sertticied x Brandy BGoode - Bay overo pinto mare, 15.1H, 8 yrs.trained western: Arab/Paint cross, level headed,sweet dispositionsporthorse potential. 262-782-7198

L’Chaim Jabez - 2003 Bay Morab gelding13.2 H green broke, quietunder saddle: $950 OBO,imprinted, very peopleoreinted.262-782-7198

LC Seraph Danecer - Secretariat granddaughtersolid mare, 5yrs. 15.1H, by Man O’ Peace JCout of chestnut overoPaint mare: green brokegoing well under sad-dle, sporthorse poten-teal, athletic, quicklearner. $2800 262-782-7198

For Sale

Professional GraphicDesign and WebsiteDesign - Ad design,website design, cus-tome logos, brochures,newsletters, [email protected]

Equine Appraisals, Horse Show Judge,Rehabilitation TherapistQuail Ridge Equine UnlimitedLynette SchneiderP.O. Box 24367Belleville, IL 62223Phone: 618-979-3192

[email protected]

Services and Products

More Photo Classifieds online at www.horsedigests.com

For a limited time you can place youyour photo classified online

and receive a FREE print photo classified for one month.

Nanning 374 - IALHA Stallion Auctionexquisite bloodlines and arecord of producing thehighest quality offspring.888-838-0877

[email protected] pictures online atwww.horsedigests.com

Ironman - $1,500.00 - Oldenburg One the most versatileSporthorse sires in theU.S.17 Hand Oldenburgstallion with a world classpedigree262-707-8408

[email protected]

Stallions and Stallion Auctions

Economic Impact of the Horse Industry

Place your photo classified here for $20.00 per month or for a limited time place it online at www.horsedigests.com

and receive one month in print FREE.

Thumbnail Photo Classifieds


Classifieds PRODUCTSConchos - Horse Hair Tassels - Bling forShows Parades and Everyday Riding. 503-630-3744 [email protected] Designer Beaded cable showhalters XS mini - Large Horse sizes.www.picturetrail.com/qsmom 417 548 0055email [email protected]

FOR SALEHomoz Black Appaloosa Extreme Curly Coltwith Blue eyes ! WOWExtreme Curly, willmaintian mane/tail hair. Snow capped homozblack colt with blue eyes, ties, leads, loads, okfeet, nice fellow and something your not goingsee just every day.509-218-7811 • [email protected]

Registered Sonny Dee Bar Paint Pony.Correct conformation and very straight legs.Excellent personalities, full brother to "MKKCrescents on First", a consisten winner in MNPinto Potential heighth will be 54-56 inches.His pedigree will go back to "Sonny Dee Bar"on the Dam side. Pinto World calibur in the"stock type" pony classes. [email protected]

08 Zippo Pine Bar X Rugged Lark, $900.00 Bay colt with a star & snip.Incentive FundEligable. Very correct conformation and adisposition that one cant beat. Saxon, WI5455, 715-893-2301, [email protected]

Stunning Pinto Miniature Gelding,$2,000.00. 6yr old, Pinto (Chocolate(black)and White) even color. He is currently beingstarted in the cart, [email protected]

Sport Horse Prospect! $7,500.00. General Xenophon has fantastic movement,well bred, & willing to please. He will be per-fect as a top show competator. [email protected].

Homoz Black Appaloosa Extreme CurlyColt with Blue eyes ! WOW $2,500.00 houldget up to 15H, ties, leads, loads, ok feet, nicefellow and something your not going see justevery day. [email protected]

CC EVER DREAMIN , 99.6% Arabian, RareBlack&White Pintabian Mare. Dreamer is arare black & white Pintabian mare who hasgreat ENDURANCE/SPORT HORSE poten-tial. 701-859-3221, [email protected]

Flashy, Friesian/Thoroughbred Mare byNero - Started Riding & Driving! Nala Rox:born 9/24/02 Friesian/Thoroughbred Maresired by Nero. Solid Black - no white.320-272-4099, [email protected]

Black straight egyptian mare - $3,500.00 beautiful, 14.3h, has produce 4 black fillies ina row for me. Easy breeder, no foaling prob-lems. Thee Desperado grandaughter, withclose lines to Alidaar on sire side. Triple*Anstata Ibn Halima on dams side. 913-579-6276 email: [email protected]

Friesian/Paint Gelding by Novi - StartedRiding & Driving - GREAT Temperament!Legend Woods Tovi: born 8/30/04Friesian/Paint Gelding. Solid Bay. 320-272-4099, [email protected]

Wonderful Brood Mare, and lightlyUndersaddle.Grey Lady is a wonderfulBroodmare, she is registered AmericanSaddlebred, who is started lightly undersad-dle, walk/trot/canter, with quick solid whoas.586-784-4368, [email protected]

1/2 Andalusian Sport Horse Candidate,Posh is 1/2 Andalusian 1/4 Arabian 1/4Saddlebred Gelding. He is registered withIALHA, & can be registered with IberianWarmblood. Call - 586-784-4368, [email protected]

STALLIONSCAZAR Bay PRE Andalusian 16.1 byIndiano XVIII. Cazar is Benitez/Guardiolabreeding , has many foals of all colors. Verysweet, Champion Halter & Preformance. Studfee's $2,000 andalusian $1,000 other. 360-273- 6849, [email protected]

Magnificent Friesian Stallion for Stud -Hannibal of Valhalla. Hannibal is a 2002Friesian stallion born of KFPS DutchApproved Stallion Sibald 380. [email protected]! Exotic, tall & stretchy, with trot!Intro stud fee for 2008. Sweepstakesnom.Spotz Sensation is a gorgeous black &white tobiano stallion. [email protected]

Homozygous! The Color of Fame son whocan trot! He is a direct son of the nationallyknown stallion, The Color of Fame. 715-210-5371 [email protected]

Dakota Gambler Rare Black and WhitePintabian At Stud: Proven 99.6% PurebredArabian. Athletic, Correct, Beauty, Elegance,Kind disposition with awesome movement.Registration Numbers: 320-283-5933,

[email protected]

Classic Champagne 1/2 Friesian 1/2 ASB ,UKIAH. 2008 introductory fee is $500 toapproved mares. [email protected]

Pure Friesian "ROEK" 2nd Premie Stallion.ROEK has a great pedigree, to match hisgreat intelligence, temperament, andCHARISMA. 218-780-7064,[email protected].

WANTEDWilliam Woods University a private instituion,occasionally accepts show quality, trainedhorses over the age of 3. contact GaryMullen, [email protected]

WEBSITE AND GRAPIC DESIGNProfessional Website and Ad Design.Rosebud Productions. www.rosebudpro.com507-943-335 [email protected]

Visit us online at WWW.HORSEDIGESTS.COM for even more info, photo classifieds,community events,training videos and more coming all the time.....WWee hhaavvee mmaannyy ooppppoorrttuunniittiieess ffoorr yyoouuttoo pprroommoottee yyoouurr eeqquuiinnee rreellaatteedd bbuussiinneessss oonnlliinnee oorr iinn pprriinntt!!

FFOORR MMOORREE IINNFFOORRMMAATTIIOONN CCAALLLL::Mark or Peg Bahls at 507-943-3355 Email: [email protected] [email protected] Call Andrea Jo Kroeningat 952-237-5311Email: [email protected]

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HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM ALL OF US AT MIDWEST HORSE DIGEST!


I hate to be the bearer of bad news…buttoday’s horseshoes don’t have the power tobring you luck.

Oh, horseshoes used to be lucky…that’sa fact.

But modern manufacturing has renderedthe modern horse shoe useless in the luckdepartment.

Horseshoes were lucky for any numberof reasons and one simple fact; choose thereason for luck that you like and stick with it.The fact is a fact and you can’t change thefact.

The devil came to Count Dunstin in 969AD and asked to have horseshoes put on hiscloven hoofs. Dunstin recognized the Deviland tricked the Devil into letting him squeezehim in an oxen lift while he affixed the horse-shoes. Dunstin squeezed the Devil so hardthe Devil promised him anything if he’d justfree him.

Dunstin freed the Devil after making theDevil promise that any home with a horseshoeover the doorway was off limits and no demonscould bother those residing or visiting within.Dunstin became the Archbishop ofCanterbury…now wasn’t that lucky?

If you don’t like that Devil story, try thisone. The blacksmith engaged to shoe theDevil made the shoes red hot, then burned thedevil’s feet with the hot iron…the Devil tried to

withstand the pain, butscreamed to have theshoes removed whenthe blacksmith began todrive nails to hold the

shoe in place.The Devil remembers the pain so vivid-

ly that whenever he sees a horseshoe heslinks off into the shadows. The devil will gonowhere near a home which has a horseshoeover the doorway.

Other reasons why a horseshoe is lucky:Horseshoes are made of iron which is

born from the marriage of rock and fire, two ofthe basic elements of ancient times; iron there-fore was considered to have magical powers.

Horseshoes are made by blacksmithsand blacksmithing is considered a very luckytrade. Because blacksmiths work with fire andiron, blacksmiths are thought to have very spe-cial powers---consider how magically they takeyour money.

Iron repels fair-folk, keeping away mis-chievous demons, imps, pixies and elves.

The horseshoe invokes the crescentmoon shape of pagan moon goddesses andso invites their protection.

The crescent moon symbol has luck-giv-ing properties in ancient Mediterranean cul-tures.

A witch cannot walk under a horseshoe.Horseshoes can cure hiccups---most

quickly if your toe is stepped upon by a horsewearing a horseshoe. You cannot scream inpain and hiccup at the same time.

There are two things that are mandato-

ry if the horseshoe is to bring you good luck.1. The horseshoe must have been worn by ahorse. 2. The horseshoe must have beenfound, not purchased.

Luckily you can hang the horseshoeabove your door with the ends up ordown…just depends on what you want to do.Hang the horseshoe ends up if you want to“catch” luck; hang it with the ends down if youwant luck to pour over you each time you enterthe home.

The true fact of why horseshoes arelucky is that the lucky horseshoe was com-monly held in place with seven iron nails.

Since ancient times the number sevenhas been considered very important. Note: lifeis divided into seven ages, a rainbow hasseven colors, astrology once held that sevenplanets made up the universe, there are sevendeadly sins, a seventh child is thought to havespecial powers, there are seven days in theweek, the moon changes from one phase toanother every seven days, and your bodygoes through a radical change every sevenyears.

But modern manufacturing has put acurse on the horseshoe’s good luck. Today’shorseshoe has eight nail holes (even more insome aluminum shoes) and today’s horse-shoer invariable uses eight steel nails to affixthe shoe.

Darn the luck!

Visit A Horse, Of Course on the Internet atwww.donblazer.com

A Horse, Of CourseBy Don Blazer

Professional’s Choice and 11 time WorldChampion Barrel Racer Charmayne Jamesteam up to produce the new CharmayneJames SMx® Air Ride Illusion Saddle PadSeries.

The new Charmayne JamesSignature Series pads will have a bold newdesign that was previewed at the NBHA WorldChampionships starting on October 27th.NBHA members had the unique opportunity tobe the first to see the new design and vote fortheir fourfavorite colorsat special work-shops present-ed byProfessional'sChoice. Theirp a r t i c i p a t i o nalso enteredthem in TheCharmayne James FAVE-4 Sweepstakeswhich launches November 1st. All barrel rac-ers in the US and Canada will have the oppor-tunity to enter the sweepstakes and choosetheir favorite color schemes, ultimately deter-mining what the new Charmayne James padswill be. The four most popular colors will beannounced at the end of January, and thepads will be available in tack stores beginning

March of 2009.Charmayne, undeniably the world’s

greatest barrel racer and endorser ofProfessional's Choice since the age of 14, hadwanted to expand her line to include a Navajotop show pad with a merino wool bottom. Thesweepstakes, while giving away fabulousprizes, is already a huge hit and has sparkedthe attention of the entire barrel racing commu-nity. “NBHA members were really excited tobe involved in our creative process with these

pads” remarked Monty Crist, General Managerof Professional's Choice.

Four Grand Prize winners will beoutfitted “Head to Heels, Nose to Tail” inProfessional's Choice products, everything abarrel horse could need, plus a 4-day clinicfrom Charmayne herself. Along with the clinic,the Grand Prize consists of a new CharmayneJames Saddle Pad, a full set of SMB-Elites,

Ballistic Overreach Boots, a CharmayneJames Barrel Cinch and a Neoprene BreastCollar, all in the winner’s color choice. In addi-tion, twenty five Second Prize winners willreceive a new Barrel Pad and a CharmayneJames instructional video.

The Sweepstakes will go live onlineat www.profchoice.com, starting November1st, and in several popular barrel racing mag-azines - but only until the end of the year!

The more comfortable the horse,the better the perform-ance.

Professional'sChoice is a pioneer inproducing productsstrictly with the wellbeing of the horse inmind. As inventor andmanufacturer of the orig-inal patented Sports

Medicine Boot, the SMB Elite™ and the SMxAir Ride™ Saddle Pad, Professional's Choicecontinually produces high quality products rec-ognized by top trainers, professionals andeveryday horseman all over the world.

To locate an authorizedProfessional's Choice dealer near you, call800-331-9421 or visit their website atwww.profchoice.com.

Professional's Choice Kicks Offthe Charmayne James FAVE-4 Saddle Pad Sweepstakes!


Scores ofIberian horses, alongwith their riders, han-dlers and owners,assembled at the WillRogers Equestrian Center in Fort Worth, TexasOctober 13-18 for the International Andalusian &Lusitano Horse Association’s (IALHA) 2008National Championship Horse Show. Last week’scompetition drew nearly 150 Andalusian,Lusitano, and half-Andalusian horses, and includ-ed hundreds of participants from across theUnited States, Canada & Mexico.

Affectionately known as the Horse ofKings, the versatile Andalusian and Lusitanohorses, relatively rare in the United States, areinternationally known for their striking beauty andmovement. The impressive range of disciplinesand classes represented at the show includedEnglish, Western, Dressage, In-Hand, CarriageDriving, and Doma Vaquera.

This year’s show, in addition to regularcompetition, featured a complete Iberian horseexperience offering clinics, seminars, tradebooths, silent auction, youth activities, and aSaturday evening exhibition “Andalusian andLusitanos, from Golega to Sevilla and Beyond”celebrating one of the world’s oldest equinebreeds.

One of the more poignant momentsSaturday evening came as this year’s rafflehorse, the beautiful pure Spanish/Portuguesemare Nadia BA entered the arena. A local FortWorth man who had faithfully attended the IALHANational Show for 4 years and had longed for anIberian horse for over 30 years was announcedthe lucky winner.

“The 2008 national show was one ofthe best ever,” said Nancy Nathanson, a long-time West Coast IALHA show official who volun-teered at the event. “There was a lot of cama-raderie among the participants and some funactivities in addition to the excitement of the com-petition.”

According to Nathanson, the number

of horses was down slightly from previous years,but the show had a very successful PatronProgram, and enjoyed having many new andreturning sponsors, including USEF as a

Platinum Sponsor. About the

I n t e r n a t i o n a lAndalusian & LusitanoHorse Association

(IALHA): IALHA is the leading registry ofAndalusian horses in the United States andCanada. www.ialha.org

Iberian Horses Wow Crowds at IALHA National Championship Show in Fort Worth

The show was held at the National EquestrianCenter in Lake St. Louis, Mo.October 29, 30,31 &November 1,2.

For the second year in a row Friesian horsesfrom all over the United States converged at thevery center of the country in beautiful Lake St.Louis, Missouri. One horse and rider, Bernhardand Christiane Henrichs even traveled all the wayfrom Germany to compete in a variety of classes,winning among others, the Prix St George test inDressage!

This year the event was held in honor of IFSHAfounder and longtime breeder Dr Genevieve deMontremare who passed this year after a longand brave battle with cancer. It was indeed a sadyear for IFSHA and its members as within a fewshort months we lost several friends in a shortspan of time. Classes at the show were held inmemory of Jim Mosebrook, Pamela Jackson andAnita Mellott. All were great supporters of thebreed and will be sadly missed.

Among the top Patrons and CorporateSponsors of the event were Sandra Surber,USEF, Horsedigests.com and Ramardinc.comwho through their generous donations made the

show possible. IFSHA is happy to announce thatdespite the current economic status that our showwas actually bigger by five horses than last year.

The Honorable Mellissa Creswick officiated forDressage and the DSHB in hand portion of theshow on Wednesday which for the first time hadits own day and arena in the schedule. Ms.Creswick currently competes on a Friesian horsein USDF competition and her positive commentswere truly appreciated.Thursday began the National and World competi-tion in the performance and in hand divisions withthe Honorable Suzanne Perkins, JoanneCrockett and Richard Obenauf officiating. CecileHetzel-Dunn made sure everyone followed thefederation rules while special guest Karen HomerBrown represented USEF and all its programs.

ADS driving Judge Lore Homer was the calljudge in all Carriage Driving classes and gra-ciously answered all related questions asked bycompetitors.

In what has become a tradition of sorts theFriday night exhibitor’s party was hosted byLance Bennett and Joan Fernandez of Friesianfocus with Annika Bruggeworth and Kim Deola of

Siren Song Stable hosting festivities onSaturday night.

A great addition this year to the WorldShow was the performances Friday and Saturdaynights of the “Lords of the Ring” exhibition direct-ed by Susan Dyer-de Boer. Spectators packedthe seats each night to watch both the competi-tion and later the spectacular exhibitions.Saturday afternoon brought the membershiptogether in a very informative and successfulannual membership meeting where much wasdiscussed. The new Board of Directors wereintroduced and they are, Sandra Surber, LanceBennett, Tammy Hildreth, Deb Goldmann, GarethSelwood, Regine Brockway and Karl Hirshhorn.Following the general Membership meeting thenew officers were elected by the board and theyare:President-Tammy Hildreth, Vice President LanceBennett, Treasurer Deb Goldmann, SecretaryRegine Brockway. Gareth A Selwood will againbe the manager of the World show in 2009.Locations for the 2009 show are now being con-sidered and the chosen location will beannounced in early December. For infowww.friesianshowhorse.org

2008 IFSHA World and Grand National Championships


North Central Reined Cow Horse Association RESULTS

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The winners of each class are listed below in the following order; Class name and then: Place • Back# • Horse's Name • Rider's Name • Score • Owner's Money • Owner’Name • Owner's City

1. Open Futurity (Composite) - Shown :10 (Added Money: $3000.00)$1338.75 1 2018 Tamspecial Disco Luke Jones 422.00 Daniel Nieland Breda, IA2. $5K Ltd Open Fut (Composite) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $1000.00)$1005.00 1 2103 Colonels Miss Chic Kyle Noyce 401.50 Patrick & Cheryl Morrison Belle Plaine, MN3. $1K Ltd Open Fut (Composite) - Shown: 4$180.00 1 2103 Colonels Miss Chic Kyle Noyce 401.50 Patrick & Cheryl Morrison Belle Plaine, MN4. SS Open Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 6 (Added Money: $800.00)$516.25 1 2018 Tamspecial Disco Luke Jones 422.00 Daniel Nieland Breda, IA5. SS $5K Ltd Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $350.00)$425.00 1 2032 Highbrow Terry Michael D Reece 379.00 Mike Reece Corydon, IA6. Non Pro Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 6 (Added Money: $1500.00)$1115.63 1 2043 Roosters Rip In Time Robin Henrichs 418.50 Connie Henrichs Albion, NE7. $5K AM Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $600.00)$697.50 1 2038 Put On Pepper Nicole Wheeler 393.00 Nicole Wheeler Baker, MT8. $1K AM Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 5$187.50 1 2038 Put On Pepper Nicole Wheeler 393.00 Nicole Wheeler Baker, MT10. SS NP Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 4 (Added Money: $500.00)$336.00 1 2038 Put On Pepper Nicole Wheeler 393.00 Nicole Wheeler Baker, MT11. SS $5K AM Futurity (Composite) - Shown: 2 (Added Money: $350.00)$500.00 1 2038 Put On Pepper Nicole Wheeler 393.00 Nicole Wheeler Baker, MT12. Open Derby (Composite) - Shown: 16 (Added Money: $2000.00)$1365.00 1 2023 Rattlen Pepper Frank Kenzy 433.50 Frank & Jerri Lynn Kenzy Iona, SD13. $5K Ltd Derby (Composite) - Shown: 5 (Added Money: $700.00)$818.75 1 2102 Dunnits QT Dynasty Sterling Slemp 417.50 Richard Veraguth St Joseph, MO14. $1K Ltd Derby (Composite) - Shown: 5$187.50 1 2042 Poco Young Gun Daniel Zimmerli 423.00 Daniel Zimmerli Buffalo, MN15. SS Open Derby (Composite) - Shown: 8 (Added Money: $500.00)$308.00 1 2023 Rattlen Pepper Frank Kenzy 433.50 Frank & Jerri Lynn Kenzy Iona, SD16. SS $5K Ltd Derby (Composite) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $250.00)$325.00 1 2105 Fancy Roan Disco Kyle Noyce 407.50 Dana Roth Chaska, MN17. $2500 Nov Horse Open (Composite) - Shown: 11 (Added Money: $400.00)$491.25 1 2011 R Bruce Almighty Cathy Errington Coleman 425.50 Frances P Errington Gillette, WY18. Non Pro Derby (Composite) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $1500.00)$960.75 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 421.50 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN19. $5K AM Derby (Composite) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $500.00)$570.00 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 421.50 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN20. $1K AM Derby (Composite) - Shown: 4$180.00 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 421.50 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN21. Youth Derby (Composite) - Shown: 1$75.00 1 2027 Play Red Pad Hannah Mrotek 400.00 Dale Mrotek Hayward, WI22. SS NP Derby (Composite) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $300.00)$262.50 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 421.50 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN23. SS $5K AM Derby (Composite) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $250.00)$325.00 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 421.50 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN24. $2500 Nov Horse NP (Composite) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $300.00)$412.50 1 2044 Aint Got Funny Dots Roxanne Sorensen 397.50 Roxanne Sorensen Owatonna, MN34. Open Bridle (Composite) - Shown: 6 (Added Money: $300.00)$375.00 1 2012 Shs Oui Oui Blanton Cathy Errington Coleman 287.50 Charles & Frances PErrington Gillette, WY35. Ltd Open Bridle (Composite) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $100.00)$141.00 1 2067 Blondies Peppy Grace Luke Jones 285.50 Kenneth Schueller Scales Mound, IL36. Open Hackamore (Composite) - Shown: 2 (Added Money: $250.00)$370.00 1 2011 R Bruce Almighty Cathy Errington Coleman 286.50 Frances P Errington Gillette, WY37. Non Pro Bridle (Composite) - Shown: 4 (Added Money: $250.00)$294.00 1 2074 Bodie Bar Lena Sidney A Mullen 277.50 Sidney A Mullen Hayward, WI38. Nov Non Pro Bridle (Composite) - Shown: 2 (Added Money: $100.00)$190.00 1 2086 Peppers Lil Playboy Charli Kenzy 283.50 Charli Kenzy Iona, SD

39. Non Pro Rancher (Composite) - Shown: 3$47.25 1 2085 Old Buck Hancock Shelley Johnsen 131.50 Shelley Johnsen Hawley, MN

1. Open Futurity (Fence) - Shown :10 (Added Money: $3000.00)$318.75 1 2019 PG Blue Agave Luke Jones 145.00 Kenneth Schueller Scales Mound, IL2. $5K Ltd Open Fut (Fence) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $1000.00)1 2109 CBK Lenas Boon Doll Jonathan D Mohler 132.00 Jonathan D Mohler Stewartville, MN3. $1K Ltd Open Fut (Fence) - Shown: 41 2106 Ms Lena Mint Kyle Noyce 132.00 Deb Peterson Kilkenny, MN1 2109 CBK Lenas Boon Doll Jonathan D Mohler 132.00 Jonathan D Mohler Stewartville, MN4. SS Open Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 6 (Added Money: $800.00$73.75 1 2021 BCR Takin The Silver Luke Jones 141.00 Robert Elliott Hartington, NE5. SS $5K Ltd Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $350.00)1 2032 Highbrow Terry Michael D Reece 126.00 Mike Reece Corydon, IA6. Non Pro Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 6 (Added Money: $1500.00)$159.38 1 2043 Roosters Rip In Time Robin Henrichs 144.00 Connie Henrichs Albion, NE7. $5K AM Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $600.00)1 2032 Highbrow Terry Michael D Reece 126.00 Mike Reece Corydon, IA8. $1K AM Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 51 2028 Early Bird Rooster Alexandra J. Mullen 130.50 Alexandra J. Mullen Hayward, WI10. SS NP Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 4 (Added Money: $500.00)$40.00 1 2050 DJ Peppy Playgirl Lou G DeJong 129.00 Lou DeJong Kennebec, SD11. SS $5K AM Futurity (Fence) - Shown: 2 (Added Money: $350.00)1 2032 Highbrow Terry Michael D Reece 126.00 Mike Reece Corydon, IA12. Open Derby (Fence) - Shown: 16 (Added Money: $2000.00)$325.00 1 2023 Rattlen Pepper Frank Kenzy 147.00 Frank & Jerri Lynn Kenzy Iona, SD13. $5K Ltd Derby (Fence) - Shown: 5 (Added Money: $700.00)1 2104 BBR Short On Time Sterling Slemp 142.00 Corey Rohwedder Waterloo, IL14. $1K Ltd Derby (Fence) - Shown: 51 2042 Poco Young Gun Daniel Zimmerli 142.00 Daniel Zimmerli Buffalo, MN15. SS Open Derby (Fence) - Shown: 8 (Added Money: $500.00)$55.00 1 2023 Rattlen Pepper Frank Kenzy 147.00 Frank & Jerri Lynn Kenzy Iona, SD16. SS $5K Ltd Derby (Fence) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $250.00)1 2105 Fancy Roan Disco Kyle Noyce 130.00 Dana Roth Chaska, MN17. $2500 Nov Horse Open (Fence) - Shown: 11 (Added Money: $400.00)1 2017 Nu Felony Chex Luke Jones 145.50 Overlook Farm/Luke Jones Allerton, IA18. Non Pro Derby (Fence) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $1500.00)$114.38 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 144.00 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN19. $5K AM Derby (Fence) - Shown: 3 (Added Money: $500.00)1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 144.00 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN20. $1K AM Derby (Fence) - Shown: 41 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 144.00 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN21. Youth Derby (Fence) - Shown: 11 2027 Play Red Pad Hannah Mrotek 138.50 Dale Mrotek Hayward, WI22. SS NP Derby (Fence) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $300.00)$37.50 1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 144.00 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN23. SS $5K AM Derby (Fence) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $250.00)1 2025 King Okra Merada Julie A Mattson 144.00 Julie A & Steven M Mattson Rogers, MN24. $2500 Nov Horse NP (Fence) - Shown: 1 (Added Money: $300.00)1 2044 Aint Got Funny Dots Roxanne Sorensen 121.00 Roxanne Sorensen Owatonna, MN

31. Reining - Shown :161 2046 Duals Doc Holiday Mysty Schaunman Mysty Schaunman Aberdeen, SD32. Amateur Reining - Shown: 151 2078 Minutes Rooster Lisa C Reiter Lisa C Reiter Bloomer, WI

MIdwest Horse Digest November 2008

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Transcript of MIdwest Horse Digest November 2008