The Riding Instructor Speaks

Ligaments are very strong ‘straps’ of connective tissue that connect bones to each other. They are very important for the stabilization and strength of the horses bones and joints.
Tendons are also strap like connective tissue that connects muscle to bone. This connection enables the horse to move. When the muscle contracts it pulls the tendon and the tendon, which is attached below the joint, pulls the bone like a lever.
Some of the major tendons and ligaments of the lower leg are:
The superficial and deep digital flexor tendons that help flex the leg.
The suspensory ligament that as its name suggests helps to suspend the leg at the fetlock and keep it stabilized.

Tendons and ligaments absorb some of the shock of movement and act as recoil to help propel the horse (like a rubber band); most of the horse’s impact from movement is however actually absorbed by the muscle. When a horse’s muscle tires it looses it’s ability to absorb shock and so more of the shock is on the tendon, ligaments and bone. This is when the horse is most likely to injure any of these major tissues in the form of bone chips and tendon or ligament strains, tears or pulls. Common injuries to tendons and ligaments are; bowed tendons, pulled suspensory ligament and check ligament injuries.

When a tendon is injured it is usually localized to a small area and in that area scar tissue forms. Normally the tendon tissue grows in a lengthwise pattern for better shock absorption but scar tissue has more of a Kris cross pattern. This pattern makes the scar tissue extremely strong but not very good at absorbing shock. Once the injury has healed and the horse is put back into work it is very common for him to re-injure the same tendon or ligament either above or below the original injury where the healthy tissue meets the scarred tissue because the scar tissue does not give. There are new therapies available now that will help the injured area grow back without scar tissue but must be given soon after the injury.

If a horse is exposed many times to stress on his bones, joints, tendons and ligaments either from under-conditioning and under-strengthening, bad confirmation or very strenuous activity particularly at a young age, tears of the ligaments or tendons themselves or where they attach to bone will develop scar tissue. After time these areas will become hardened so they will no longer absorb shock and then more work will aggravate them until the horse has developed changes severe enough that he will go lame. This is the process that causes the development of issues like ringbone, sidebone and in some cases navicular disease.

Proper care in conditioning and exercising a horse for the job he is intending can greatly reduce injuries to the tendons and ligaments.

(How many things are wrong in this picture! The answer is at the end.)

A friend of mine recently asked me where she should take her daughter for beginner lessons. She lives in central NY where I grew up and started my professional career so I was able to send her to a farm where I had known the trainer when I was younger. Even though I knew this trainer growing up I advised her that after the initial meeting she should ask to watch a beginner lesson. I have never seen the trainer teach beginners and am not sure if she does, maybe there is another instructor there for beginners. In any case there is a list of things to look for in a lesson barn when you begin lessons for the first time. The major concerns are 1. safety, 2. competency, 3. atmosphere.

The number one concern for every parent/rider looking for that beginner lesson facility is SAFETY. It can be difficult if you have never been involved with horses to know what you are looking for so I will try to cover many of the basics in barn and riding safety.

First when you arrive at the barn and walk in is there room in the aisle to walk? Many barns will cross tie the horses in the aisle which is fine but in that case is there a main entry for people so you do not have to go around strange horses. Do the stalls in the aisle have bars on the windows? If not do the horses seem friendly or are they pinning their ears back and threatening you a you go by? If they seem threatening it is not a place for children. Be aware some horses just want to say hi by reaching out-always look at the ears, straight back against the neck is a threat (and is probably an unhappy horse). Generally barns have lesson horses and boarded horses, all horses should appear happy and healthy. Lesson horses are not always beautiful show horses, often they are older animals so don’t expect beauty but do expect that they are healthy (not too thin-have a nice shiny coat). The barn should be clean and clear of clutter. Horses poop about every hour so don’t expect the stalls to be free of poop. They are generally cleaned once or twice a day so they shouldn’t be loaded either. The aisles should be swept and cob webs taken down.

The barn should require all riders to wear boots and a helmet. All riders in the arena should have a helmet on when mounted. The instructor should go over the fit of the helmet before the beginner is mounted-parents should pay attention. The helmet should fit the head all the way around, should come down to the brow and should stay on the head without the harness when the head is tipped upside down. The harness should always be attached when mounted and should fit snugly under the chin. When you buy a helmet the staff at the tack store should find a good fit for you-the first helmet should be bought at a store, not online because they come in different shapes for different heads. Many barns have helmets for new students to use but for safety you should buy your own.

Some barns will teach the new students how to prepare the horse for a lesson i.e.: clean and tack the horse. I do recommend that students learn this, then the student will know if the girth has come loose how to tighten it. It is good to learn how to work around a horse safely to groom and tack it. This includes how to safely walk behind a horse. Very young children may need help for a while with all this so parents should pay attention. If the barn requires the student to fetch the horse from the field I wouldn’t recommend riding there for a beginner. Learning to fetch a horse from a field particularly when there are other horses out with it can be dangerous and should be reserved for more experienced riders. The instructor should teach the beginner to lead the horse safely from the stall to the grooming area and from there to the ring. He or she should also teach how to push the horse over in case he steps on the students foot. The horse should never be tied from the metal bit in his mouth, only from the halter to the wall. When the student is mounting the instructor should have the student hold the reins in one hand so he or she maintains control at all times-the instructor may or may not hold he horse also depending on the reliability of the horse.

On that subject: the horse should be very calm and quiet. A beginner horse should never look too lively or excited. He may not always respond to what the beginner is asking but he should stay forever relaxed and calm. Lesson horses have to deal with riders who do not have good balance, may ask incorrectly for something and may be timid. They catch on pretty quickly to the fact that they can take advantage the rider so maybe they won’t respond every time. They should not however need constant reprimand or become angry, irritated or try to injure the rider. A good lesson barn will have good quiet happy horses. I have worked with some ponies that may pin their ears at a child (but not bite/kick). Some horses will see how much they can intimidate, if that is the case the instructor should say so. Usually I use that as lesson to the rider that they cannot walk timidly up to a new horse, they have to work with confidence around them or they may be taken advantage of. That is part of dealing with these animals but shouldn’t be the case in the first few lessons. The beginner lesson horse should never buck, rear, or run away with the rider.

When mounted, small children should in most cases have a line attached to the pony/horse for the instructor or helper to hold so they always maintain control of the animal. Some animals are relaxed and trustworthy enough to be free. Sometimes a lesson is a single rider/horse sometimes more, I highly recommend a single rider for the first few lessons. In the first lesson they should learn proper position and how to start stop and turn almost always at a walk only. The instructor should always have his or her attention on the rider. There should not be too much commotion in the ring during the beginner lesson, all other riders (if any-I recommend having no one else in the ring but that isn’t always possible) should respect the beginners space.

Within the first year the beginner should learn an emergency dismount-how to dismount a moving horse as safely as possible. Beginner lesson horses are generally very safe but horses are flight animals and on occasion something might panic even the quietest horse so the rider should be prepared.

The next major concern is the competency of the instructor. This can be hard to judge as a non-riding parent. First they should be patient with the student and horse at all times. The instructor should never loose patients or be aggressive toward the student. If the student doesn’t understand something it should be explained in a different way until he or she does understand it. The lesson should be age specific for understanding. There is quite a lot of new vocabulary for the new rider to absorb, the instructor needs to be aware when the rider does not know the terms he or she uses-riders should speak up (and instructors should remind them to) when they do not understand. (A good book on the subject can help the rider learn all the new terms when he or she is not at the barn). As a parent if you feel the instructor is disrespectful to your child find another lesson barn. The rider should never be degraded or treated in a poor way. Many instructors have no background or training in teaching they simply are relaying the knowledge of how they ride and work with horses so they are not great teachers. For whatever reason it is tolerated by many students and parents in the horse world but it doesn’t need to be that way, ask what credentials the instructor has and make sure you approve of their style of teaching. A good instructor will always start with a positive not a negative i.e.: ‘Relax your knee and press into your heels’ instead of ‘stop pinching with your knee and pulling your heel up!’.

Moving up from a beginner to an intermediate rider takes some people a short time and some people a long time it is not always a reflection of the instructor. Lessons should be clear and should build from one to the next on the knowledge gained by the student. At some points the rider may need physical exercises to advance, sometimes mental but the lessons should progress and new exercises should be done every week to keep it interesting. A good instructor will keep lessons interesting and explain why what the rider is doing matters in the long run. Riding takes a lifetime to master but every step along the way matters. If clinics are available at the barn from different instructors always take advantage of them, another point of view is always helpful and should be welcomed by the main instructor.

Lastly the atmosphere in the barn is important. There are several major styles of riding, most basically there is english and western but those are divided into different categories. English can be hunt seat-think fox hunting-yes hounds and all or showing in equitation and show hunters. It can be dressage (this is the basis of all english riding), stadium jumping, cross country jumping-the last three combined into eventing, and saddle seat-like the people rode on the southern plantations. Under western is: cutting (that is cutting cows), reining-like dressage but in a western style, western pleasure, equitation, barrel racing/gymkhana, and roping. Certain breeds of horses are more likely used for certain styles of riding. Some barns are show barns meaning the goal is to get you riding well enough that you can go to shows. Shows come in different levels from 4-H to A shows. The cost increases greatly depending on the level so ask when you call or go to a barn. Do your homework before hand to see what style you might most want to ride and whether you want to learn to ride so you can go on a trail ride or you think you are headed for an Olympic gold in the future.

If you are a kid you might look for a barn that caters to children so you have lots of friends at the barn. If you are an adult you may look for a barn that has a good adult program so you aren’t the only 40 something riding in a sea of children. You should like the trainer, barn manager etc. People should be friendly. Maybe you like a trainer to really push you, then look for that. All in all you should be comfortable with the atmosphere of the barn.

Hope this helps all you would be riders, please leave comments, stories about finding the right barn or questions for me in the comment section!

(Top Photo) 1. To start the handler should always be on the same side as the people near the animal because if the pony were to shy the handler would, in this case, pull the pony right into the little girl. 2. The handler is wearing sneakers. 3. The girl is in sneakers (if she is there to ride she should have pants not shorts on and boots not sneakers). 4. The mom is in sandals-ouch!. 5. The handler should have her hair tied back so she can see what is going on around her.

Understanding how horses perceive their world and respond to it helps the horseman/woman better understand how to respond to a horse’s actions and train the horse in a more synergistic way.

Having eyes on the side of the head enable a horse to see predators that may approach from the sides. Because they are prey animals they are very aware of movement in their field of vision. Most riders/handlers have experienced this when a horse has a violent reaction to something like a piece of paper blowing in the wind. This can then trigger the fight or flight response-a spook and stand or a spook and run.

Understanding the range they can see is important when working around or riding a horse so you can understand when they can and can’t see you or the ground you expect them to travel on. The following are examples of the range of vision in resting or working horses:

Binocular means the horse has the use of both eyes in that area. Monocular vision means that the horse can only see with one eye in that area. This reduces the ability to judge depth and distance.

Have you ever ridden a spooky horse? He thinks there is a monster in every corner of the arena, he hesitantly trots towards it, slowing with every stride, looking intently. As he passes by and his vision becomes monocular to the object or area of his fear he can no longer hold himself together and he spooks. He does this at that point because he can no longer judge the depth as well, he feels much more vulnerable when he looses the binocular vision on that object or area. (More below in the ‘Hearing’ section on how to help the spooky horse).

This horse in being ridden with his head behind the perpendicular line so he can barely see in front of himself.

A jumper often lifts his head higher on the approach to a fence, particularly the larger jumps, in the attempt to better see and judge the size of the fence he is jumping. If the horse’s head is in a position like the dressage horse above he would not even see the approaching fence.

Horses can hear quite well and generally just flick their ears in the direction they are listening unless they think the sound is something they should check out more in depth by looking in that direction. One of the best indicators of where the horse is looking or paying attention is by looking at the direction his ears are turned. He may be facing forward but if his ears are passively (as apposed to pinned) back he is probably looking back.

Being aware of where the horse’s ears are can help you keep his attention on you or the task at hand as you work with him. If his ears are pricked forward and he feels a bit tense try talking to him in a calm voice and see if you can get his ears to turn toward you. If you can get that focus on you he is more likely to ignore that ‘monster’ he was just trying to check out. ‘Monsters’ grow bigger in the horse’s imagination when the horse is punished for his fear of them or if the horse feels the rider is oblivious to the perceived danger or afraid of the perceived danger. It is best to acknowledge it and by remaining completely relaxed assure him that he is safe with you. If the alpha horse (you) are not too concerned with the perceived threat then the horse will feel it is not a danger. If you spend enough time with a horse and are working with him to establish that hierarchy he will begin to trust your judgement-some horses take longer than others.

Horse's attention is on it's rider

This horse is listening to his rider. To spite all the activity around him the rider is doing something that has brought the horse’s attention to him. This is what you want particularly when you are adjusting the stirrups and girth in an open field with loads of activity around you.

Looking ahead

Now the same horse is looking into the distance to see something, his attention is not on the rider but on something else. If you want a quicker response to your aids it is best to talk to him so his ears flick back to you (the rider) before asking for something. In a situation like a fox hunt the horses generally do a lot of looking around which is OK as long as they are not frightened by what they are experiencing. The younger ones need to come out early in the season when there are fewer horses and hounds and less activity so that they can become accustom to all the action.

A horse’s sense of smell can be so strong he may respond to a smell that you may not even perceive. I once hacked out horses that lived, unbeknownst to me, somewhat near a pig farm. If we got too close (in the horse’s opinion) to the pig barn he would try to high tail it out of there leaving me perplexed at his behavior. I never smelled the pigs most of the time but he sure did-from far far away. Someone finally let me in on his secret and I could then deal with the issue of his fear. Just one more reason that as a rider/trainer you really need to understand horse behavior and his capabilities so as not to destroy your horse’s training.

As far as taste, anyone who has ever had to orally medicate a horse knows he can taste the medicine. As a feed specialist I have seen owners scratching their head as to why a horse won’t eat his food (and supplements), the first thing I do is put some on my tongue (unless he is on heavy meds)-if I can taste that it is too bitter, salty, yucky, so will he. I always think of the horse’s sense of taste like a child’s, they love sweet. If you need to give oral meds they need to be mixed with apple sauce, molasses or something like that. If they are too disgusting you may need to use a big syringe (no needle of course) to deliver it to the back of the mouth as a paste. Coat the syringe with something sweet to try to temper it.

In the evolution of the horse (and of humans) the sweet tooth developed because sweet foods are higher in calories. Finding something sweet in nature meant more fat could be packed on the body for the leaner times. Of course in nature that doesn’t mean you find a bag of sweet molasses covered grain (or Fruit Loops), maybe it means finding richer grass or some wild fruit tree (wild apples=tart and small, not domesticated or domesticated gone wild, fat, sweet apples). So the sweet tooth was a survival mechanism but now it can be deadly for both horse and human.

Finally we have touch which is the most direct form of communication between the horse and his handler/rider. There is perhaps not as much interpretation when working with and understanding this sense of the horse but still we need to be aware of how the horse responds to it. I also want to categorize the horse’s sense of space within touch. Because they (and you) have a comfort zone of space around them. When we infiltrate that space it is perceived nearly the same as touch. You would never approach another person that you do not know (or even if you know them) and get within inches of their face to talk to them, it would send the other person back, away from you, it would be perceived as a threat. Horses respond in much the same way. They have an unwritten code of what is acceptable.

Horses move away from pressure. All of our aids are based on that. The occasional stubborn horse will lean into pressure but that is not the norm. Where the pressure is placed and the intensity of the pressure will cause movement away from the pressure in relatively predictable fashion.

The point of balance is something all horsemen and women should understand. Without even touching the horse you can use this point to control a horse. Think of lunging a horse. Your lunge line in one hand you position yourself just behind the shoulder in an imaginary triangle to keep the horse moving forward. When you want him to stop you step toward his head bit and he slows down and stops.

When I teach the first lesson of horsemanship to children one of the things they learn is to lead a horse. Often kids want to turn and look at the pony and try to pull him towards themselves. Many ponies and horses will not budge if the handler is facing them no matter how hard they pull. I teach them to stand to the side, just at or behind the shoulder and pull forward on the halter or if they are too small to do that to cluck or tap behind the shoulder to get the horse moving. To stop, getting ahead of the shoulder and facing the horse usually is enough to do the job.

The flight zone can vary depending on the temperament of the horse and how desensitized he is to pressure. The zone is so important in everything we do around our horses, from catching them in the field to riding them. The more sensitive the horse the further away you can be and still effect his movement. Horses tend to become numb to pressure when it is over used. Think of the dressage rider who continually taps the horse with her spurs, after awhile that tapping just becomes background ‘noise’ to the horse. When she needs to get him moving forward a tap from her heel or spur will be ignored.

Understanding the way the horse perceives his world and responds to it helps the horseman/woman become a better trainer and caregiver to the horse and helps to build a better relationship between human and animal.

Animation of stress from poor conformation

This is just a photo of the interactive but you can go to www.rcmvirtualanatomy.com to use the sample interactive. The full version is 66 pages of illustrations, animations and photos that are interactive. It covers the bones, heart, lung and circulation, digestive system, brain and nervous system, conformation, and more. It is a fun way to learn more about the anatomy of the horse. The price is right too!

When I was somewhere around 20 years old I can remember driving down a road that I didn’t travel often and driving by a poor horse standing up to his knees in mud in a tiny paddock alone. I cried. It never crossed my mind at the time that there was anything I could do for that animal.

With age comes wisdom and empowerment! I was driving into town recently and noticed that someone had built a new fence next to the road. It looked like horse fence but it was a tiny little paddock, maybe a hundred feet across. The first thing I thought to myself was “I hope they have a big paddock in back….” They don’t and the horses came-two of them. They look nice and healthy, shiny coats, in good weight and muscle tone, fly masks on.

Then I saw there are two horses being kept this way a few miles away as well, those poor animals! How can anyone think that it is acceptable to keep them in such a small space? So I decided to do something about it. I couldn’t find any New York Laws on keeping horses so I looked up (on line) the zoning laws of the town (I am new to this town). So in my town the animal husbandry laws state that one needs at least one acre per horse for pasture and 100 square feet of inclosed space of some sort-a 10′ by 10′ stall or turn out. The fence needs to be 100 feet from any public road and from any bordering property. The next town over is even more strict.

So I wrote a nice letter to the zoning board explaining to them how inhumane this was and that I thought it was breaking some zoning laws. Time will tell if it has the impact it should. If nothing happens I will probably leave a letter in the mailbox of both places stating my opinion and show up at a zoning board meeting.

A few weeks ago I made my husband stop the truck because one of my neighbors horses was grazing in her yard next to a very busy main road (55 MPH). My husband told me she leaves the horse out there on purpose but I didn’t believe that could be true. When the woman came out of her house she told me she let him go there and he was fine. You and I know that in a second a calm quiet, even and old calm quiet horse can be provoked in many ways to have a melt down. I simply said to the woman “This is a very big liability for you and very dangerous to the people driving by not to mention your horse!” I haven’t seen him out there again. Hopefully just the thought that someone who is driving by is watching and cares is enough to make a difference. I will add, if her homeowners insurance knew she was doing this they would drop her in a second!

The horses have no voice, they often just accept their fate. We have to be their advocates. Owners often do not have the information they need to keep horses at home in a proper manner. The more concerned horse people stop and say something the more things will change. It doesn’t need to be a nasty exchange, just an informative one. If you see someone breaking zoning laws, let the town know. If your local laws are not adequate push to change them (go to a zoning board meeting, have the local cooperative Extension help). If you see inhumane treatment call the SPCA or local humane society.

Give all horses a voice.

Rachel,

Just to give you some background. The horse I’m riding is one of the Queen’s Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment horses (the ones the Army use for ceremonial occasions) and all they do mainly is stand outside Whitehall in London looking smart. We, as civvies riders, volunteer to help exercise them (before work each morning) and normally this is hacking around Hyde Park. Now and again, we go in the outdoor ménage (as in the photo) to do some flat work, which isn’t easy on some of them, which have hard mouths, stiff and unbalanced. I try and learn but without someone to watch me I’m not sure if what I am doing is right.

Thanks for all your help

Barbara

What a great volunteer job!

So I will start with Barbara’s equitation: Barbara looks like a very accomplished rider. She has a very, very nice seat and back. She looks relaxed and comfortable in the saddle and is using her seat and back fairly effectively to try to keep this very large horse together. Seat and back are the foundation of equitation so kudos for having that established!

One issue I see is with her leg. The horse is very large, maybe the stirrup is a bit too long-probably an attempt to get as much leg around the horse as possible. (I am not a big fan of a super long stirrup, I like the Podhajski “school” of equitation, keep enough bend in the knee to absorb some movement.) Barbara’s heel is creeping up a bit, it seems more because she is trying to stay with the large movement of this horse by gripping with the knee a bit. And maybe because the stirrup is just a bit too long for her-and the horse is definitely too large for her leg. She is standing on her toe. She needs to relax at the knees and drop her weight into her heels. It is a tough thing on such a large horse (but all possible just look at Margie Goldstein-Engle). She is also of course using her spur to drive him forward which will bring a heel up although with such a large horse you should easily be able to spur him by simply turning your toe outwards slightly if your leg and foot are positioned correctly.

Her arm and hands are in a correct position, maybe the reins could be slightly shorter but perhaps he has a lot of movement in his neck. In the second picture she has bent her wrist to take up on his mouth, this breaks one of the lines of the arm, it should be done by bending the elbow and keeping the strait line from the elbow to the mouth. Remember the reins need to be an extension of the arm in a relaxed and soft way-like a rubber band. You loose your arm strength by bending your wrist and you loose the elasticity. I can’t quite tell if the elbows are coming out a little also, they need to drop in a relaxed way to the sides.

Barbara’s head and eyes are up. As I said before she has a gorgeous relaxed seat and back, so working to improve this horse shouldn’t be a problem at all.

On to the horse:

The first thing I noticed in the picture is the bit. This is a large horse and he has a strong bit in his mouth. It looks like a strait Pelham with converters for the reins so the rider only has one rein. Pelhams are one of my favorite bits when used correctly. Unfortunately what happens when used often or incorrectly-and even sometimes correctly is that the horse learns to evade the bit by dropping his head behind the perpendicular line. This is what this horse is doing here. In an ideal world, when you use a Pelham you use two reins. This allows the rider to use the less severe part of the bit and reserve the more severe part, the lower part, for when she really needs to get a hold of the horse. I would not school a horse in a ring in a Pelham. I generally reserve that for hacking a strong horse or Fox Hunting a strong horse. I realize that Barbara may have no control over the horse’s equipment and she does quite a bit of hacking on him as well so it may be by default that he wears this bit. If it were her own horse I would say snaffle only in the ring. To get the horse from evading the bit by dropping behind the bit you will need to use a less severe bit and to ride him forward with a very soft rein and do lots of transitions. It can take a long time of riding this way to correct the issue.

The horse dropping his head behind the line can give the rider even less control. A halt or even a half halt shouldn’t truly come from the bit it should come from good training. If you have ever been on a runaway horse you realize very quickly that the little piece of metal in his mouth means nothing. A whoa or halt can be taught on the ground. In the western style horse world the horses nearly all will come to a grinding stop when you say whoa. It is a great thing to teach a horse when they are young especially but they can learn it when they get older as well. When they know it on the ground then you teach them to associate your seat asking for a whoa with the voice command. I rode for someone who imported Irish horses, none of them knew whoa when they came over but they learned.

So this horse actually doesn’t look too bad for what his job in life is. He is reaching pretty well under himself. The best thing to do with him in the ring to help him develop lightness is transitions. Transitions help to build the muscle over the back and in the hind end that they need to carry themselves well under saddle. You have to be careful not to overdo it because it does put some strain on the hind end. You also have to be sure they don’t already have an issue with their hind end because it could do some damage. So instead of getting on and just riding around and around and around the ring, walk trot canter a rider should be changing pace fairly often once warmed up. Try changing pace at least once for every time or every two times around the arena (depending on the size of it). Walk to halt to trot to halt to canter to trot etc. Mix it up! You will find after a few weeks the horse will become more responsive and lighter in your hands. If you have a very excitable horse be careful not to over do it. The horse must stay relaxed to get the real value of the exercise.

To help with a heavy horse when hacking ride lots of hills. I realize this isn’t possible in London but if it were the case that you were out in the country the hill work is great.

Improving a horse is never quick and easy. It can take a few years to get a horse light and responsive consistently. I think Barbara is on the right track. This horse may never be super light because his day job is standing around all day but I think developing his hind end and back will make him more comfortable doing that.

As a side note I want to add my observations on the differences among nations in equestrian activities. I have worked in Italy, Denmark and New Zealand as well as working in the States for an Irishman and of course in the States for Americans. These experiences ranged from fox hunting, eventing, dressage and jumpers. We in America are very equitation-centric. We drill it into our kids sometimes at the sacrifice of teaching them how to really ride. The emphasis is on the way it looks. I was lucky to have a trainer who made us think and ride like a trainer. In every other country I have been to the children riders look pretty rough around the edges but WOW they can jump a horse higher than most American kids! The Irishman I worked for in the States would always misjudge an American rider’s ability because they looked so pretty, often over-mounting them. One of the nicest things is to see a pretty rider who can really ride well. With all my experiences I try to teach both because I think they are really wonderful when they come together.

The horses are trained differently as well, a show hunter in the States is very different from a show hunter in England. The expectation, type and style is different. We don’t generally free jump a horse we rate it to every single fence. We ask for canter (on a show hunter) usually with the outside leg with the horse bend away from the curve- or strait. I couldn’t get a Danish horse to canter for 6 weeks! Our western horses are like machines! They respond to a sound or seat immediately. We have lots to learn from each other.

I would love to hear more about other people’s views or experiences on this subject-please comment!

The modern horse spends quite a bit of time in his stall, of course it would be better if he were turned out for the majority of time but often it is not possible. Because he spends so much time inside it is important to keep his indoor environment clean and safe.

The typical stall is 10′ by 10′ to 12′ by 12′ but the bigger a stall is the better it is for the horse. A large horse should not be in a small stall and the old fashion standing stalls are unacceptable for the horse, here is why: Movement is very important for good blood, lymph and fluid circulation in the horse’s lower legs and hooves. If the horse is confined to a stall he tends to move around less and therefore has less blood circulation to his hooves. This has been suggested to be a predisposing factor in the development of Navicular disease. Navicular disease is a breakdown of the navicular bone and can be very debilitating to the horse. It happens because the structures in the hoof need nutrients from the blood and without those nutrients cannot maintain a healthy state. Poor circulation in the lower legs and hooves also slows the healing of the minor injury and inflammation to tissue that may occur during his daily training.

The stall, no matter what size it is, needs to be cleaned thoroughly every day. This will keep the horse from standing and rolling in his own waste and also keeps the level of ammonia, produced by his urine, to a minimum. Recent studies have shown that many barns have such a high level of ammonia in the air that they would not pass OSHA (US Dept. of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration) regulated air quality tests. The levels of ammonia are highest in the stall. If a horse is exposed to ammonia it will eventually cause damage to the alveoli in the lungs, this is where the exchange of oxygen occurs. So eventually inflammation and scar tissue will cause the alveoli to loose their ability to hold a volume of oxygen therefore causing shortness of breath.

The best way to avoid ammonia is to make sure all the urine is removed from the stall everyday. You can also buy pulverized lime and sprinkle a half a cup over the bare floor of the stall, before re-bedding, to keep the ammonia levels down.

If a stall is not bedded deep enough a horse will usually develop rubs on his hocks and elbows. It is quite usual also for older or very hard working horses to come out of the stall in the morning much more stiff than if they have deep bedding. A rubber matt is not a cushion for a thousand pound animal you must provide the cushion with his bedding. The bedding should be as dust free as possible so that your horse isn’t breathing in large amounts of shavings dust with every movement. Avoid black walnut shavings as they cause laminitis.

Good ventilation in the barn and each stall will keep ammonia and dust levels to a minimum. Many horses are adversely affected by breathing the dust in their environment. It is a common cause of acute heaves and over time may lead to chronic heaves (chronic pulmonary obstruction disease or CPOD). It is best to have a large door at either end of the barn and keep it open, even just a crack when it is cold, so that there is always airflow through the barn. Stalls should have windows to the outside and to the aisle. Stalls should not be built within an indoor riding area, if they are it is very important to keep the dust levels down by regularly watering the ring, adding salt to the water or on the arena will keep it moist in the winter without freezing the footing (more salt for lower temperatures).

Making the barn a safe environment for the horse is fairly easy. Just keep in mind the nature of the horse. They are large animals that tend to spook easily and panic when confined. So when you are setting up the work spaces in the barn make them spacious and open. Rubber mats on the aisle floor will help to keep a tied horse who spooks from slipping and falling over. Being able to see his buddies will help the horse feel comfortable while you are grooming him. Avoid any objects that he can hook or cut himself on, or step on or get caught in and cause injury to himself. Check the stall and pasture fencing regularly for loose nails. Avoid bars on the doors that are large enough to get a hoof caught in. Remember when iron is stressed it can bend! There is nothing worse than finding a horse thrashing while he is dangling from a hoof that is wedged between bars in the window!

As a horse handler you should not wear anything that could get caught on your horse or his equipment. If you have long hair you should keep it tied up while working around horses. Never tie anything to yourself that is attached to a horse at the other end and never tie a horse to something that will break if he really yanks on it. instead use safety ties that can be released if he is really frightened by something. Make sure the release is at the far end from the horse so you do not need to run at his head to release him. Never tie the horse with his bridle, he could severely damage his mouth from pulling back suddenly with the bit in his mouth.

Thinking ahead can really save you time and heartache later.

The emotional well being of the horse is another aspect of horse management. A happy horse is more likely to succeed in his training and be more pleasant to work with. Horses are herd animals and so have intricate social lives. Every herd has a hierarchy system where there is an alpha horse, followers and often outcasts.

When deciding which horses should be turned out with which others, take into consideration any knowledge you have of the horse’s place in previous herds. Try to put the horses in stalls right next to each other first then in adjacent paddocks, make sure the fencing is secure. If they seem compatible then try turning them out in a larger field together. If it is possible it is always best to try this when they are not wearing hind shoes.

Horses should be stabled near friends, never leave two horses that are aggressive toward each other in stalls near each other, it causes too much stress. Some horses love activity around them, they should be in a main aisle where all the action is happening, others prefer a quiet corner stall.

When looking to move your horse to a new barn go and see how the horses behave inside. Do they pin their ears at you? Turn their rear toward you? or are they friendly? Generally speaking horses are friendly and inquisitive unless they don’t feel well either physically or emotionally. Keep in mind if you move your horse from one farm to another you are taking him away from his friends, familiar surroundings and routine and placing him in an entirely new environment. It may take up to 2 months for him to adjust to it entirely.

Following good horse management practices helps to prevent many common illnesses and injuries and so helps to keep your horse safe, healthy and happy.