MIdwest Horse Digest September 2008

Page 2 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigest igest September 08September 08

September 08 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigestigest Page 3Page 3

Midwest Horse DigestRahn Greimann, Publisher,

Owner and Editor

AdvertisingMark Bahls

507-943-3355/Fax [email protected]

Peg Bahls507-943-3355/Fax 507-943-3352

[email protected]

© 2008 Greimann Industries35418 90th Street

Blue Earth, MN 56013Rahn Greimann507-526-5943

Fax 507-526-2629

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.

To all of our advertisers, distributors andreaders - we thank you!

Pick up Midwest Horse Digest every month atover 800 feed stores, tack shops, veterinari-ans, farriers and equestrian centers across theUpper Midwest. If your location does not getMidwest Horse Digest call us at 507-526-5943or email [email protected]

Please direct all editorial and correspondence,as well as change of address to:[email protected] or call 507-526-5943


About our cover -

World famous Smart Chic Olena ridden by his owner JIm Babcock

of Babcock Ranch. See more at

www.BabcockRanch.com940-665-7961

We hope you enjoy this 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 pages 29, 31Advertisers Index page 40Classifieds page 39, 40Traders Corner pages 39Thumbnail Ads page 37Real Estate page 40Press Releases, Events and New Products pages 9, 17,19, 26,27,

28,30Production and Futurity Sales page 33

Craig Cameron - Tough Enough page 20Chris Cox - Meeting the Horses Need for Relief page 15Ken McNabb - Circle S’s page 10Lynn Palm - Exercises on the Longe Line page 24Dennis Auslam - Gaining Respect: Leading, Stopping and Backing page 16Jennifer McCormick-Lindgren - Western Pleasure: Movement is the Key page 6Monty Bruce - The Importance of Leg Control page 34Bob Jeffreys/Suzanne Sheppard - Boarding: A Two Way Street page 8Mary Hamilton - Ask Mary, Catching Your Horse page 12Julie Goodnight - Understanding Horse Behavior page 18Larry Whitesell - Classical Training for the Gaited Horse page 32Judith Reynolds, Ph.D - Equine Dentistry page 14Lodi Equine Clinic Merger page 13Cutters, Reiners, Ropers break new ground page 21NWHA - Tracking Registry page 36

This Month in Midwest Horse Digest

Season�s Change... in the weather and in life.With September upon us it is apparent that fall is close at hand. The air was cool this

morning and the temperature certainly felt fallish. And so the time has come to prepare for anew season.

Sometimes in life we experience an abrupt season’s change and can enter a period thatseems like a long, harsh winter. When that happens we need to remember that, like theweather, in time, this season in our life will change and the harsh, dark coldness will passand give way to a new season of fresh growth, warmth and light because there is a seasonto all of life.

This editorial note is a tribute to a couple of extraodinary people, Rahn Greimann, theowner and publisher of this magazine and Dennis Auslam, a horse trainer and one of ourfeatured writers. These two have been an incredible source of strength and bent overbackwards to help Mark and I move through an extremely rough season in our lives. Thereare others also, but these two have been such a source of blessing during this season ofchange and there is no amount of thanks, to any of these people, that is adequate.

I also write this in the hope that Mark and I can encourage someone, who may beexperiencing such a season of change in their life, to never, never give up. No matter whatanyone says. Some of you, who know Mark and I, know that Mark suffered a hemmoraghicstroke in November of 2006. continud on next page......


When we faced this life threateningsituation, and as we worked through it, westarted to realize the true preciousness of whatit is that God has given us. And that He trulyloves us andonly wantsgood things forus. We alsostarted torealize, whenwe opened upour heart tohear and oureyes to see,how His handwas moving inour life.

As we havelooked backand examinedsome of theevents of thatday and the proceeding days, we realizedthat true miracles happened. We could seethat the right people were placed in the rightplaces at exactly the right time. We sawunexplainable events that happened in pre-cisely the right order. If they had happenedin any other way Mark would not be with ustoday.

Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in allthe little meaningless frustrations of every-day life that we miss the truly importantthings that are there, right in front of us, allthe time.

It is our hope that when you read thisyou will take the time to stop a moment andreflect on what is truly important in your life,and maybe do some reorganization.

Mark spent almost 2 months at AbbottNorthwestern hospital in Minneapolis, MN..Half of that time was in rehab at SisterKenneys. There we were blessed with twowonderful young male therapists who weredetermined that Mark would walk again.

The doctors had told us that he wouldprobably not be able to walk or regain theuse of his left arm and hand and he wouldnever be able to ride horse again.

Well, we are here to tell you that doctorsare definitely not always right and Markwalked out of the hospital with only the useof a cane. They called him the Miracle Manat the Rehab center.

And due to the wonderful, giving natureof Dennis Auslam and a remarkable localtherapist we had in our home area, Mark isnow riding horse again and did his first soloride the end of August 2008 at Dennis’ sta-ble, Redwood Stables in Morton, MN.Mark’s goal is to make it to the upcomingMQHA benefit trail ride in Houston, MN thismonth.

Though this story is not over, and thereis still a ways to go to regain all that was lost,we continue to press on and are determinedto get it all back, but being able to ride wasa major hurdle.

One of the amazing aspects of riding isthe sensory stimulation it causes. Mark will

tell you that his whole body comes alive andit is the one time, when he is on the back ofa horse, that he feels completely healed.

If you are fortunate enough to haveknown Mark before the stroke happened,watched and participated in his life duringthis time after the stroke, and then watchhim when he gets to ride, you too would see

the amazing transformationwhen he is on the back ofa horse. Horses are aremarkable rehabilitationtool for the body, soulland spirit.

Do we feel blessed?Totally! That such won-derful people wereplaced in our life thatwere so willing to help usmake it through this jour-ney. That the world of the

horse had become part ofour lives again after many years away fromthem and how important a role that hasplayed in the road to recovery. That the Lordhas been steadfast and true, even when wehad not been steadfast and true to Him.

That He has shown us hidden treasures.Treasures that we actually would havemissed had we not gone on this journey.

So, before this season changes and theharshness of winter sets in, take the time tostop and think about what is really importantin your life. Don’t miss anymore of theimportant moments because you are to busywith all the little details that life tends tothrow at you.

Go out to thebarn, saddleup yourfavorite horseand take thetime to followthat meander-ing trail youalways passedon by before.May God Bless You Today and Always, Mark and Peg Bahls

Watch future issue of Midwest Horse Digestfor coming articles on what horseback ridingand horse therapy does for the brain andhow it facilitates healing.

Today’s Western pleasure horsesare fantastic athletes and perfectly trained.Competition is tougher than ever before. Unlikescored or timed events, Western pleasurecompetitors are evaluated against one other.Seeking to develop an advantage over thecompetition, exhibitors always ask whichparticular quality makes the Champion westernpleasure horse stand out well above the rest? Ittakes more than good manners, a properheadset, and smooth transitions to win thesedays. Great movement is critical! The AQHAhandbook states the ideal Western pleasurehorse should have balanced, free-flowingmotion, correct gaits and proper cadence. Thebest horses always have a higher quality ofmovement than those getting the gate. So, ifyou believe your horse is doing everything rightin Western pleasure, but you are still left out ofthe ribbons, you may need to take some timeand improve your horse’s quality of movement.

Horses are born movers. Their maindefense against predators is their ability to fleequickly. Watch your horse running freely in thefield. I bet he is just beautiful. Observe hisnatural head and neck carriage, his amazingability for flying lead changes, his impulsionand drive. While not every horse is suitable toperform the discipline we may choose for them,they all have a natural cadence, rhythm, andbalance to their gait when man does not inter-fere. The problems begin when man is addedto the equation. We force them to stand in asmall dark box all day, feed them when it isconvenient to us, and demand they transformfrom lazy horse in the stall to working horse inthe arena within minutes. Throw on a bit, reins,saddle pad, saddle, shoes, weight of therider,splint boots, etc. followed with a rider whospurs, yanks, snatches, and shifts their weight.With all these factors working against them, isit any surprise that our horses become sore, offbalance, lame, and short strided? Top competi-tors learn to recapture and direct the balanced,happy, free flowing movement their horsenaturally has.

Correctly Perform the Gaits:Being a top competitor in any division requiresknowledge of the gaits the horse is asked toperform. For western pleasure, each gait mustbe performed correctly, consistently, and in arelaxed manner. If the goal was to be theslowest horse in the class, we would usetimers, not judges, and the horse with theslowest time would win. The walk is a natural,ground covering, lateral four beat gait. I oftensee horses crawling at the walk, hesitating ateach step as if it is painful to put their foot

down. This slow, unnatural walk is heavilypenalized in the show ring. The pleasure jogshould not be so slow that the horse appears tobe walking behind. The jog must be a true,straight, and relaxed two beat diagonal gait.The lope is a three beat gait with the horsemoving straight down the rail (not canted orturned into the rail) andloping on the front andhind end. The four beatlope and the trope (trotmixed in with the lope) arenot acceptable gaits. Theideal is to have your horseperform all gaits in abalanced, collected andlight manner under littlerein contact.Know Your Horse:Winning the toughestclass on the circuitrequires more than asharp outfit. If you want toimprove your horse’smovement, take the timeto understand him as anindividual. Don’t rely onquick fixes – they don’twork. Observe yourhorse under saddle (norider) and memorize hisrhythm at all three gaits by putting a ‘beat’ to hisfootfall. Make a song in your headto remember his movement. Next,mount your horse and see if hisrhythm changes. Is the song thesame or has it gone out of tune?A great horsemen knows wherehis horses feet are at all times. Ifyou don’t know what is happeningunderneath you, how can youexpect to “set the horse up” for hisnext gait or transition?

U n d e r s t a n dMovement: The perfect Westernpleasure horse is a combination ofgood breeding, quiet tempera-ment, sound conformation, andgreat training. Realistically, few ofus have the resources to buy theperfect horse or hire the besttrainer. We usually have to workwith the horse that we have. Anyhorse will display their bestmovement when working withintheir comfort zone. Once youunderstand your horse and yourgaits, you should be able to “feel”when he is the most relaxed andbalanced. Your goal is to maintainthis “feel” and cadence in addition tomaintaining a collected frame and proper head-set. Making him tired isn’t always the solution.Many horses lose quality in their gait when tiredand become sloppy, lazy movers.

Continue to Learn: No matter howlong you have been riding, you can still learn

from others. Attend clinics, read training arti-cles, and watch videos. There is a lot of greatadvice out there, make use of it. The followingfour horsemen all produce great moving horsesand were eager to share some advice.

Cleve Wells, AQHA professionalhorseman, top Western pleasure trainer, and

national clinician, believes thatwinning Western pleasure intoday’s competitive marketdemands total concentration fromthe rider. “Whether you are athome, in the warm-up ring, or inthe show ring, the only thing therider should be focused on is hishorse”. This means no cellphones, no chatting with friends,no thinking about the laundry.“Your job is to bring out the best inyour horse and you can’t do that ifyou are distracted. Poor move-ment is most often due to therider’s error and the result of poorcommunication between the riderand the horse.” Humans usewords, horses rely on physicalcues. You must learn to “speak”to the horse through your hands,seat, and legs and then “listen” tohis response.

Don’t be a negative riderwho teaches only through punishment. If all

you say is “Don’t,don’t, don’t” toyour horse, howwill he under-stand what to“Do”? Learn tosay “Do!” bybeing clear aboutwhat you expectfrom your horse.Clearly ask yourhorse to “put yourhead here” not“put your headdown”. A horsewill understand“Jog at thisspeed” betterthan “slow down”.Cleve empha-sizes the need to“Justify each andevery cue yougive the horse.Tell the horseexactly what youwant from himand always

reward him when he complies”. Horses want toplease their rider. Give them the chance.

Riders mistake movement as refer-ring to speed and length of stride. Movement isthe style in which the horse carries himself, hiscadence, lift, balance, collection, and footfall inaddition to speed and length of stride.

Want to Win Western Pleasure?MMOOVVEEMMEENNTT iiss tthhee KKEEYY

By Jennifer McCormick-Lindgren


Cleve Wells has trained and produced17 World Champions and ReserveChampions in Western pleasure.

He resides in Burleson, Texas with his family.

Cleve Wells believes that horses deserve praisefor a job well done. For more training tips from

Cleve, visit www.CleveWells.com.


To improve the quality of yourhorse’s gait, you must first establish “Full CircleCommunication” as described by Wells. First,clearly understand what you are asking yourhorse to do. Second, send him a clear andconsistent message. Third, listen to hisresponse. When he complies, always rewardhim. Start with the basics (walk) and build hisknowledge and abilities from there.

Brian Scoggins, a 2008 U.S.Nationals Judge and top Western pleasuretrainer onthe Arabianc i r c u i t ,b e l i e v e sthat time,p a t i e n c e ,and repeti-tion are thekeys togiving yourhorse as t r o n gfoundationfrom whichto learn.R i d e r sneed tolearn howto cue and navigate a horse through their seatand legs and rely less on their hands and reins.A cue should be a clear message that “asksthe horse” for a specific response. Always askyour horse and give him chance to respondbefore you “Tell” him what to do. In the ring,learn to shut out all the distractions. Horses feel

insecure with a nervous or distracted rider andit shows in their performance.

Krylesa Sadowski, trainer ofnumerous Pinto WorldChampions tells her riders to“Apply a little rein contact whenthe horse’s forehand is off theground. At the same time, givea little scoot with your seat tokeep your horse’s hindquartersengaged. Schooling your horse

in this fashion willincrease his ability tocollect and help him todevelop self-carriage.Eventually, he willlearn to travel lightlyon his forehand withhis hock steppingsoftly underneathhim. At this stage,you can begin todrape your rein andonly use it momen-tarily when youneed to rebalanceyour horse.”

Colton Smith, isa highly competitive

amateur on the AQHA andOpen Show circuit in theMidwest region who trainshis own horses. Hebelieves that “Teaching ahorse to be collected andresponsive at the walk is a

key factor in developing a quality mover at allgaits”. Colton emphasizes using leg cues toteach your horse to move away from pressure,

to pivot, and to usetheir hips andshoulders during thewalk. Next, he teachesthem to jog mediumsized circles to gaintheir balance andengage their hindquar-ters. “Your horse needsto trust you and hewon’t build that trust ifyou are always goingto your hands toreprimand him. Rely onleg cues first, use yourhands last. When you

go to the reins make sure you getin and out of the mouth quicklyand always follow-up with thereward - a loose rein.”

Jennifer Lindgren has been an All-Breed Judge since 1985. She is anexperienced competitor who hasearned Regional and Nationalawards in Halter, Western,Equitation and Hunter. She lovesall Breeds of horses and keeps herprivate collection in Grant Park, IL. Contact: [email protected] Copyright 2008 by JenniferLindgren.

Jim Mueller follows Krylesa Sadowski'straining program when schooling his

pinto, Do You Believe In Magic.

Brian Scoggins with WCF Renegade +/, winner of Four US National Top Tens

in Western pleasure. Stuart Vesty photo.

Colton Smith of Kankakee, IL showsPotentially Impulsive at the Redbud

Spectacular in Oklahoma City.

Last month we talked about whatmost stable owners expected from theirboarders and what they found offensive. Nowwe’ll turn the table and discuss what mostboarders want from their boarding farm.

The overriding concern is for thesafety and well being of their horses. Mostboarders insist on their horses receivingquality grass, hay and/or grain. There is nogreater sin than barn owners trying to savemoney by cutting back on either hay or grain.They want fresh water available at all timesand stalls cleaned a minimum of one time perday. Leaving stalls unattended for any lengthof time increases insect and rodent populationwhich is a health concern and probably theboarders’ number two (pardon the pun)concern.

After these primary concernsboarders will look at the overall condition of thebarn itself. Are the stalls safe or are there pro-truding nails or sharp edges. Is the wood rot-ted or moldy? Are the floors level, or do theyhave deep craters in them? Does the stall

h a v egood drainage? Arethere rubber mats to provide acomfortable place to lie down?Are the stalls big enough fortheir horses? What bedding isbeing used, straw, shavings orsomething else? Are the feedand water buckets clean?

When the majorlodging and feeding issuesmeet with approval, thenboarders usually want to knowabout turnout. Recreationalhorses (those not riddenevery day) that are used pri-

marily on weekends will fare much better ifturned out for at least several hours each day(weather permitting) with other compatiblehorses. Extremely nasty horses that couldmaim or seriously injure other horses shouldbe kept by themselves. Fortunately thisaggressive behavior is the exception, not therule. Most horses will determine their positionin the “turnout herd” within a reasonable timeand live happily thereafter. Boarders will wantto be confident that management is capable ofsorting this out. While on the subject ofturnout, boarders will also expect safe fencing,and wish to be assured that brokenboards, etc. will be replaced in a timelyfashion.

If the stable or ranch provides ridingrings or arenas, then boarders will belooking at the arena footing itself, as well asthe maintenance and grooming of thatfooting. An uneven base, footing that containsrocks, roots or other debris such as shards ofglass, and that which is either too deep or tooshallow can be very unsafe and invite

s t u m b l e s ,lameness and worse. All

need to be corrected so that thehorses canmove freely and in good balance.

Furthermore, consistency in thehandling of their horses by barn staff to andfrom paddocks, etc. is key. Horses learn fromeveryone who interacts with them, and poor orinconsistent handling can undo good groundmanners in a hurry, teaching the obedient, lighthorse to become fearful, pushy, or evenaggressive.

Boarders also require a clean andaccessible area to store their tack, and want toknow that their personal property will berespected. They will want to know that theirhorses and tack are secure, and that someoneis always on the premises to handleemergencies. They need to be confident inyour ability to handle a crisis.

They need to know that all postedrules apply to everyone and will be enforcedwithout favoritism. If medical vaccinations,worming, etc. are required, the staff mustmaintain due diligence in confirming that theseconditions are met.

Finally, it is also appreciatedwhen the barn staff is friendly, and maintainsgood communication with the boarders,in addition to providing timely and itemizedbilling for services rendered.

Well there you have it (whew!).When both stable operators and boardersknow and appreciate each others concerns,life is usually improved for both!Till next time, ride safe!

© August 2008. For info about Bob& Suzanne’s Wind Rider Challenge, clinics,DVDs, books, Horsemanship Ed Coursesand ProTrack™ Trainer Certification Programsvisit TwoasOneHorsemanship.com or call 845-692-7478.


Boarding: A Two Way Street - part 2

By Bob Jeffreys and Suzanne Sheppard

SAVE MONEY AND PURCHASE ADVANCETICKETS TO

LAKES REGION HORSE FESTThe 2

ndAnnual Lakes Region Horse

Fest at the Morrison County Fairground inLittle Falls, Minnesota, offers advance ticketsat a 33% savings! Lakes Region Horse Festsponsors help keep this rural lifestyle weekendevent affordable for families, rodeo fans andrural lifestyle enthusiasts.

Advance ticket locations are inconvenient locations in Central Minnesota andMorrison County. You can purchase advancetickets for adults and children – adults at $10,children at $8 and children under 5 get inFREE. The 2008 Lakes Region Horse Fest isset for September 20 and 21 and opens at10:00AM each day with the Dodge PRCARodeo at 2:00PM each day. Gate prices are$15 for adults and $10 for youth.

Ticket locations are Brand Motors inLittle Falls, Kurtz Furniture & Carpet in Pierz,Custom Printing in Little Falls, Famous Dave’sin Baxter, Double SS Saddle Shop in LittleFalls and Little Falls Radio.

In addition to the popular DODGEPRCA Rodeo, a rural lifestyle trade show, anindoor flea market, clinics, a parade of horsesand a dressage demonstration will take placeduring the Lakes Region Horse Fest. You cancheck out the schedule of activities onwww.lakesregionhorsefest.com. Hours ofoperation will be: Saturday, September 20,2008 from 10am until 8pm; and Sunday,September 21, 2008 from 10am until 6pm.

2nd ANNUAL LAKES REGION HORSEFEST TO OFFER FLEA MARKET

The 2nd

Annual Lakes Region HorseFest at the Morrison County Fairground inLittle Falls, Minnesota, will offer sellers andbuyers an opportunity to do someold-fashioned “horse trading” at the IndoorFlea Market. The 2008 Lakes Region HorseFest is set for September 20 and 21 and opensat 10:00AM each day with the Dodge PRCARodeo at 2:00PM each day.

In addition to the popular RuralLifestyle Trade Show, an Indoor Flea Marketwill be located in the 4-H Building on theMorrison County Fairgrounds. Hours ofoperation will be: Saturday, September 20,2008 from 10am until 8pm; and Sunday,September 21, 2008 from 10am until 6pm.Shoppers will be able to pick up bargains andsearch for those hard-to-find items. “We hopeour first attempt at flea marketing takes offand the bargain hunters and collectors enjoythemselves. We’d like to see this continue aslong as the Dodge PRCA Rodeo is success-ful,” said Chris Grams, Program Director forthe Lakes Regio Horse Fest.

WOMEN’S PROFESSIONAL RODEOASSOCIATION AT 2nd ANNUAL LAKES

REGION HORSE FEST BROUGHT TO YOUBY R. A. RANDALL INSURANCE

“We are thrilled to assist women’s barrelracing at the DODGE PRCA Rodeo!”

exclaimed Mark Gerbi, President of R. A.Randall Insurance in Little Falls, Minnesota

Women’s barrel racing will againexcite the crowd at the 2nd Annual LakesRegion Horse Fest at the Morrison CountyFairground in Little Falls, Minnesota. R. A.Randall Insurance of Little Falls is supportingthe Women’s Professional Rodeo Associationsanctioned competition. These professionalriders offer spectators a competition of speed,horsemanship, agility and tough mindednesslike no other athletic competition.“I encourage everyone to come out to theDodge PRCA Rodeo to watch these cowgirlrisk-takers and their athletic horses. They

make it look so easy!” said Mark Gerbi, ownerof R. A. Randall Insurance in Little Falls. Thecut off for standings takes place in Septembertherefore the Lakes Region Horse Festappeals to competitors who are battling forpoints. The Lakes Region Horse Fest adds$1,500 in purse money for Women’s BarrelRacing.The Lakes Region Horse Fest is sponsored byHorseSense Radio Network, Dodge PRCA,Brandl Motors of Pierz, Custom Printing of LittleFalls, Famous Dave’s in Baxter, Coors, MorrisonCounty Tractor & Equipment of Pierz and Q92WYRQ. For more information, please contactChris Grams at 320-632-2992.


22 nndd AA NNUNNUAA L LL L AA KK EE S RS R EE GG II ON HON H OROR SE FSE F EE SST T YYOU WOU WONON ’’ T WT WAA NN T TT TO MO M ISIS S IS ITT !!

ThisExercise will

change the wayyour horse responds to

your cues and the way you ride. The followingexercise is simple, yet if you follow the stepsand stay consistent it will improve your horsewhether you are riding performance or pleasure.

To start, I want you to use themildest bit you can, preferably an Egg butt,Full cheek, D – ring or O – ring snaffle.

TO START THE EXERCISE: I want you to askyour horse to move into an extended trot, thenchange directions. Before the horse changesdirections there are three things you must do.

1. Sit up straight in the middle of the horse. Donot lean to one side or the other but staycentered in your saddle.

2. Look where you want to go. This creates a

natural cue from your body andremoves the need for you to worryabout your leg placement.

3. Pick up one rein and contact thehorse’s mouth using no more pressurethan necessary to create a turn. Makesure you pick up the rein slowly, givingthe horse plenty of time to respondbefore the rein actually contacts hismouth.

We also want the horse to do threethings before you release the rein.

1. Your horse must bend his head andneck.

2. Next, he must soften his jaw andbring his nose towards the point of his

shoulder, “giving to the bit”.

3. Finally, he must change directions. Be sureto alternate the reins. If you continue changingdirections as you should it will look like you areriding the shape of S’s and circles. It isimportant to work this exercise at a trot intwenty minute segments. Give the horse a tenminute break, then start again. After two orthree sessions you will begin to notice yourhorse starting to follow your body, as well asbecoming much softer in the face.

This is a great warm up exercisethat I use every day on my cutting horses aswell as my ranch and trail horses. Consistencyis the most important part. If you areconsistent, you will begin to feel like yourhorse is reading your mind. Remember, this isnot a pattern exercise, but rather a series ofdirectional changes.

Recently, I found myself standing infront of a crystal clear pond with my partner,my paint horse stallion Beau (DiamondBreeze). We were involved in an in depth

photo shoot and things were notgoing the way I had planned.Perhaps I am the only one whohas ever had a less than greatday with my horse. I think it issafe to say we have all hadthose days. If by chance you

respond as I did, then youprobably chose the path of least resistance. Ibegan blaming my horse. Immediately Inoticed that my horse’s frustration level wasalso mounting.

At this level of emotion I foundmyself looking into the pond and seeing aperfect reflection of both myself and my horse.The old adage that says “Your horse is themirror image of you”, came flooding into mymind. I am the kind of person who spendsconsiderable time reflecting on my actions.Suddenly my thoughts were not comforting. Ifmy horse was a mirror image of myself, thenall the frustration that I was experiencing wasmy own fault.

It amazes me sometimes how oftenI must learn the same lesson. As riders andtrainers we may get upset if it seems our horseor our dog or even our child is taking “too longto learn” something new.

During my lifetime of riding andtraining horses, perhaps the most importantlesson I have had to learn is that my horse isnot going to be any more consistent that I am.He won’t learn through osmosis.

I once knew a roper who told me helet his horses set without being ridden for twoor three months at a time because, “they gotbetter that way”. Of course he was only joking.How many times have we started out to teachsomething, perhaps taking 45 minutes beforeour horse finally gets it. We then practice theexercise for five minutes and put our horse upfor the day. The next time we ride we aresurprised that our horse is not perfect at thatparticular lesson. It is imperative that wespend enough time practicing each lesson thatour horse is both calm and consistent inperforming the lesson.

I am reminded of the story of thelittle boy who was given a homeworkassignment to draw a picture of his favoritethings. That night he asked his dad to help himspell a word, but dad was too busy. He tried toask his mom, but she was also too busy.Finally his older sister was able to help himspell family. Twenty years later his own littleboy asked him, “Daddy, how do you spelllove?” His reply was “T.I.M.E.”. This is a lessonfor all of us.

As I looked down into the pond thatday, I realized that what I wanted out of myhorse was love, respect, and obedience,exactly what God wants from us. However, Ifound that, unlike God, I was not offering thesame level of respect and consistency to myhorse that I was asking of him. Fortunately, ourMaster is always consistent, yesterday, today,and forever.

Until next time, may God bless thetrails you ride.

For more information on Ken McNabb’sprograms call 307-645-3149 or go online towww.kenmcnabb.com


Circle S’sby Ken McNabb



Ask Mary: I have a difficult time

catching my horse in the pasture. How can Ifind a way to make him easy to catch?

The other day, I went to the pasture tocatch my horse, Pepe. Of course, he was inthe farthest corner of the 25-acre pasture.Gathering up my halter and lead rope, Iimagined expending my 10,000 daily fitnesssteps in this one activity. Who sayshorse riding doesn’t burncalories? Not long intomy trek, Pepe raisedhis head from graz-ing and recog-nized me. He nickered and cantered up togreet me. Wouldn’t you like to have a safe,easy to catch horse like Pepe? You can. All ittakes is time, practice and a little legwork.Catching your horse can change from achallenging chore to an easy endeavor byusing these training tips and techniques. Theymake catching your horse safe as well aseffortless.

Always use Both a Lead Rope and a Halter.Taking shortcuts, like leading from the halter

or a rope around your horse’s neck can resultin disastrous consequences. You don’t havecontrol of your horse leading this way,especially if something unexpected happens. Ihave seen people kicked, trampled and fingersbroken by using unsafe methods like these.The lead rope is one of your most valuablesafety tools. My favorite lead rope has aleather popper on the end of it. A popper is a

split piece of leather that makes a snappingnoise when you twirl it. When catching yourhorse, place the halter on your left shoulder.Hold the snap of your lead rope in your lefthand. Your right hand holds the tying end ofthe lead rope approximately three feet fromthe end. Swing or twirl the tying end ofthe lead rope with your right hand to make apropeller like action with the rope. Practicethis technique on a fence post, making thepropeller end hit the post. This is the actionyou use on a horse’s shoulder to make themmove away from your space. If another horseapproaches as you are catching your horse,

face the space offending horse andtwirl the

l e a drope in his direction to movehim away from you. This gives you a safespace to work in. You can also use this tech-nique at the gate if horses are crowded aroundit. Swing the lead rope like a propeller atshoulder level to move them away from thegate so you can safely enter. Think aboutkeeping a safety bubble of free space aroundyou at all times.

Check your Body PostureDo you march in high gear right up to your

horse in the pasture? Then wonder why you can’t catch him? By

using an energetic, direct approach your horseperceives your posture as a predatory andthreatening. No wonder he runs. Instead,approach your horse indirectly as another preyanimal would. That means a perpendicularapproach with your side facing the horse.Move to his shoulder, not his head andapproach slowly. If you need to look at yourhorse, look at his shoulder not directly in his

eyes as that is challenging body language. If itlooks like he is getting ready to move awayfrom you, stop and wait until he relaxes. Whenhe does, you can move closer. When inposition at his shoulder, relax, don’t rush andgrab his head. Stand quietly and give him arub on the withers. Slowly and quietly placethe lead rope around his neck. Secure it byclipping it on to itself under the horse’sneck. Now you have an emergency handleif he tries to move away. Carefully slip thehalter on his head being aware of his sensitiveears (no banging around here). Detach thelead rope from his neck and reattach it to thering on the halter

A Horse thatEludes You

If you have a horse thatisn’t easily caught and evades capture, ourgame plan changes. If he moves away fromyou rather than being caught, directly facehim. Then swing your lead rope at his shoulderto move him away from you. Position yourselfbetween your horse and the herd. Get active.Act like the alpha mare disciplining a mis-behaving horse. Drive him away from you andthe other herd members. His natural incli-nation will be to return to the safety of thegroup. Prevent his return to the herd by swing-ing the rope and moving toward him until yousee “horse language of compliance”. Thiswill be lowering of the head, softening of theeye and focusing on you. Once this appears,try your slow indirect approach again. If hemoves away from you drive him off withyour lead rope again and wait until he softens.This retraining takes time and a level of fitnessbut soon you will have a horse that will comeand catch you.

Practice Catch and ReleaseHorses have keen memories. If the only time

you catch your horse is for a hard workouthe may not look forward to seeing you. Hewill soon associate you and the halter withhard work. Hmmmm, hard work or eatinggrass in the pasture with buddies? It’s aneasy choice to make.Practice the catch and release method.Catch your horse and do something he enjoys.Catch your horse and feed him his eveningration of grain or spend some timegrooming him. Then release him back into thepasture. Make being with you a pleasurableactivity and reward for being caught.

Mary is a Mounted Police instructor anda fully insured ARICP certified ridinginstructor. She devotes her creative energyto developing customized training programsto improve show ring performance, mountobedience and despooking trail horsesutilizing training methods used in trainingpolice horses. Visit her website at www.riderselite.com

Taking shortcuts, like leading from the halter is a recipe for disaster.


The merger of the Lodi and MadisonEquine Clinics in January 2008 has assuredSouth Central Wisconsin horse owners of notonly state-of-the-art medical treatment, butalso 24 hour, 7 days a week emergency on-farm care. Thru its central office in Lodi, and asatellite office in Middleton, Wisconsin, LodiEquine offers a myriad of specialized servicesincluding wellness and preventive care, surgi-cal and reproductive services, and alternativemedical treatments such as spinal manipula-tion and acupuncture.

For Dr. David Kolb, veterinarian andclinic director, the work of the facility is “essen-tially equal parts preventative and sick animalcare with disease prevention and dentistry alarge part of the services we provide.”

“Yet, with so many horses nowliving well into their thirties we are dealing withmore physical problems than in the past,including lameness and laminitis.

With a Veterinary degree from theUW School of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Kolbbegan his career at Lodi Veterinary in 1987,and, over the years, has become an expert onthe causes and treatment of equine lameness.“Poorly fitted shoes and uneven foot trimmingcan result in lameness and laminitis, a serioushoof infection that ultimately resulted in thedeath of Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro,” saidKolb. “That’s why it’s imperative that shoes beput on correctly and hoofs trimmed by a certi-fied farrier.”

Since Kolb began his practice inLodi, the increasing need for on site equinecare has resulted in an increase in both staffand facility size. “We now have seven stalls inthe hospital for breeding and ill animal care,and a total of seven veterinarians on staffspecializing in horse care,” said Kolb.

“And, we are fully mobile at all timesfor emergency on-call care,” Kolb added.

Each of the clinic’s ambulatorytrucks carries essential diagnostic equipmentincluding: an x-ray and ultrasound machine,endoscope, ophthalmoscope, and portablemicroscope. “Plus, we have a well-stockedpharmacy and supply source with uswherever we go,” said Kolb. “Our goal is to beas fully prepared as possible for the needs ofour clients.”

The merger of the two clinics hasalso resulted in the expansion of the clinic’sservice area to include Dane and Columbiacounties and parts of three other centralWisconsin counties. The two offices also sharetechnical equipment, and have the ability toco-ordinate on-farm trips. “If I’m in Portage andthere is an emergency in Baraboo, I can nowcontact whoever is closer to make the trip,saving time which may be critical,” Kolb said.“In some situations, that could mean the differ-ence between an animal’s life and death.”

Yet, the history of the merger wouldnot be complete without noting the substantialcontributions of Dr. R. Dean Meyer, a formerveterinary practitioner in Lodi from 1969-1975,and the current director of the Middleton

facility.“Dr. Meyer was instrumental in the

early development of the Lodi Veterinary Clinicincluding the construction of the large animaladdition to the facility in 1972,” said Kolb. “Hewas also instrumental in the formation theWisconsin State Horse Council, and someyears ago developed a line of vitamin andmineral horse products called Doctor’s ChoiceSupplements and Equi-Shine which is distrib-uted in sixteen states.”

“We not only value Dr. Meyer’sexpertise in the field of equine nutrition, butcould have com-pleted the clinicmerger withouthis assistance,”Kolb concluded.

We can now look forward to the fulfilling ofour mission to provide optimal and completehealth care to the horses of South Central

Wisconsin.”“The merger has been a win-win

situation for everyone,” Kolb concluded.

NOTE: The Lodi Equine Clinic islocated at 705 N. Main Street in Lodi,Wisconsin. TEL: 608-592-7751, with theirSatellite office at 2224 Evergreen Road inMiddleton, Wisconsin. TEL: 608-831-4326.

Further information on the equineservices offered at the Lodi facility can beviewed online at lodivet.com., with informationon their satellite office at madisonequine.com.

Lodi Equine Clinic

by Judith A.Reynolds,

Ph.D.,P.A.S.

EquineNutritionist

- Product and Technical ManagerADM Alliance Nutrition

One of the most important aspectsof horse care is to make sure horses haveteeth that function properly. Equine teeth needto grind the 20-30 pounds of hay or 100pounds of grass plus feed that the average1,100 pound horse eats each day. Feeds andforages will be wasted on horses that cannotproperly chew them. Proper maintenance ofhorse teeth usually requires yearly dentistry.

Like other medical sciences, equinedentistry has come a long way in the last fewdecades. Horse owners who wish to takeadvantage of the latest in dentistry canschedule a visit from a mobile equine dentistryclinic at their farm. These clinics are often runby a licensed veterinarian with an assistant tokeep detailed records and a special clinic roomon wheels with a stock for the horse to stand inand over $100,000 in dentistry equipment. It

is not unusual for there to be a waiting listalmost a year long for the services of a mobileveterinary dentistry practice. The other optionis to haul your horse in to the veterinary/den-tal clinic for dentistry and other preventivecare.

One mobile dentist can work on10-13 horses in a long, hard day of ten hoursor more. The average cost per horse is about$200.00. However, a dentistry session onindividual horses that need teeth extracted orincisors shortened might cost over $400.00each. Each exam begins with the identifyinginformation and history of each horse andproceeds to body weight estimation and bodycondition scoring. The veterinarian thenchecks heart rate, respiration rate and generalhealth. If the horse is healthy enough for thedental procedures, he is given a sedative tomake him comfortable and quiet and loadedinto the stock inside the trailer. Special strapskeep him from rearing or fighting and possiblyinjuring himself during the procedures.

The shape and size of the incisorteeth are measured and the angles of theincisor and molar teeth are determined andrecorded. The presence of canine teeth inmales is noted and if sharp edges are present,they will be filed down so that they will nolonger cut the horse’s tongue or gums. Horsecanines are non-functional teeth that do notcontinue to grow and usually only need to be

filed down once in the horse’s lifetime. Theyare behind the incisors and in front of wherethe bit is placed on a horse’s jaw. The dentistthen checks for the presence of up to four ‘wolfteeth’ in front of the large premolars in eachdental arcade. Wolf teeth are vestigial remainsof the first premolars and serve no usefulpurpose, but might interfere with the function ofsome bits. Wolf teeth are either ground downor extracted depending on their size, shapeand location.

Special slings hold the horses’heads and a speculum holds the mouth openduring the dental work. The dentist wears alight on his head to help him view the entiremouth. Manual rasps and power grinders areused as needed. Water is sprayed in themouth to rinse it periodically.

The major amount of dental work isdone on the large rows of teeth that make upthe upper and lower dental arcades on eachside. There are baby and adult teeth that growcontinuously throughout horse’s lives and areground down as the huge amounts of forageand feed are crushed and chopped into piecessmall enough to be swallowed by the horse.Unfortunately for horses, these teeth almostalways grow and wear unevenly and end upwith sharp points and uneven surfaces.

One dentist estimated that 70% ofQuarter Horses aged two years and over haveulcerous sores in their cheeks and tonguesfrom their own teeth unless they have correctdental work done annually. These sores causecontinuous pain and reduce performancecapability. The average amount of dental workrequired varies with the breed, age, diet andgender of the horse. Horses in their late twen-ties and older often start losing teeth, requiringspecial care from then on to keep theirremaining teeth functioning correctly to grindfeed. After the dental work is done, the horsesare given another drug that quickly reversesthe sedation process. They come out of thedentistry trailer alert and calling to their bud-dies in the barn. They are usually able to eatright away, and their chewing efficiency is oftengreatly improved.

Yearly dentistry is required for thedaily comfort of the horse and to find problemsearly and save the teeth for as long aspossible. Horses are already living longer thantheir teeth in many cases due to modernnutrition and medicine. Once the teeth aregone, horses need to be fed only processedcomplete feeds (including forage) such as ourPatriot® Senior and Patriot Feed Easy or ourSENIORGLO® with FORAGE FIRST® HayCubes (soaked in water). Whenever a horse istoo thin or loses condition rapidly, the teethshould be examined and corrected.

For more information about horsehealth and feeding call the Equine NutritionHELPLINE at 800-680-8254 or visitwww.admani.com/AllianceEquine/.Judith is the lead Equine Nutritionist andEquine Product and Technical manager forADM. She is a popular speaker on horsenutrition throughout the US. and Canada andwrites for several horse-focused publicationsalong with providing the technical info for theADM website.


Equine Dentistry


A s ka dozenh o r s eo w n e r swhat theirh o r s e sm o s tapp rec i -ate and

you’ll likely get a dozen different answers.Some would say treats or food,

others might think a good rubdown or scratchsession would be the best reward. Then you’llhave owners who think praises and petting arewhat horses want, or maybe a lazy trail ridedown to the creek to play in the water.

While all of these scenarios mightbe pleasant, none of them represent what thehorse himself values most.

“The gift of relief is the greatest giftyou can give your horse,” says horseman andclinician Chris Cox. “Once you understand thisand appreciate how important relief is to thehorse, you can begin to make great strides inyour training.”Hunt for Relief

Pressure plays a key role in traininghorses. This pressure can come from your leg,seat, hand, rein or spur. It can also bepressure from your physical presence that thehorse reads through your body language andexpression, even when you aren’t touchinghim. Because horses learn through relief ofpressure, the timing of relief is critical tosuccessful training. A wise horseman knowswhen to give that relief so the horse learns ina positive way. Once the horse sees that reliefcomes from you, he will always look to you forrelief.

“All a horse really wants is relief,”Cox explains. “To him, relief is better thanpraise, petting or treats. This is why youalways want to make sure you are giving thehorse a clear pathway in right direction bygiving him relief at the right moment.”

When you put pressure on thehorse – whether that is your presence as youapproach on the ground, or your seat, leg orhand when you are riding – the horseresponds to that pressure. The key is releasingthe pressure IMMEDIATELY when the horseresponds correctly. This tells him he’s donesomething right. The horse quickly learns toseek that relief of pressure and this becomesa major building block in his education.

Keep in mind that relief of pressurecan also work in a negative way. Consider ahorse that has the bad habit of rearing up. Nomatter why he started rearing, the end result isusually the same: the rider gets frightened andloosens his grip on the reins so he can grabthe saddle to try and stay on. All the horselearns is that the pressure on his mouth goesaway when he rears. If he realizes that therelief he’s craving comes when he rears,he’s going to keep rearing until someone is

able to show him how to find relief of pressureanother way.Finding Answers

“I believe it’s very important to setup training situations so the horse finds hisown answers,” says Cox. “I am always settingboundaries for the horse to help him find reliefbut I want him to find the answers himself. Idon’t want to tell him what to do every minute.”

For example, if Cox is teachinglateral flexion, he never pulls the horse’s headto the side or uses mechanical devices to holdthe horse’s head in acertain position.

“ P u l l i n gcreates resistance,so I just hold myhand still where Iwant the horse to‘give’ to that pres-sure,” Cox notes. “Assoon as the horsegives, I immediatelyrelease my hand sohe has relief of pres-sure because this ishow horses learn. Imake it easy for him tofind the position I wantbecause I give himrelief as soon as hegets to that position.”

When you handle relief of pressurein the right way, you will create softness andwillingness in your horse. It becomes thehorse’s idea to respond correctly because youhave set up boundaries that lead him to theright answers. This is so important becauseyou want the horse to be willing mentally, notjust physically.

Anytime you’re working with ahorse, whether it is a young, inexperiencedhorse, or an older horse you are reschooling,

you can expect him to use whathe has already learned aboutseeking relief. Make sure to giverelief quickly and at the right time,and you will end up with a horsethat is a willing, happy partnerwho wants to please.

Up Close with Chris CoxRanch-raised in Australia, Chris

came to the United States in 1986 to make acareer of working with horses. Years ofworking horseback on the ranch nearQueensland gave Chris a healthy respect forthe horse’s ability and intelligence, and helpedhim develop his own methods ofindividualized training.

Active in the cutting horse world asboth a trainer and competitor, Chris hastrained a variety of breeds for different

disciplines. He travels theUnited States, Canada,South America andAustralia appearing atexpos, conducting clinicsand horsemanshipdemonstrations. His“Come Ride the Journey’tour takes him to citiesacross the U.S. each year.Chris offers week-longintensive horsemanshipclinics at his OutbackRanch in Mineral Wells,Texas.

W e s t e r nHorseman recently releasedRide the Journey, by Chris

Cox with Cynthia McFarland, a 225-page, fullcolor book that details Chris’ practical methodsand training techniques. Packed withstep-by-step exercises and color photos, thebook will help you improve your horsemanshipskills, no matter what discipline or breedyou 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, equipment andtraining DVDs.

Meeting the Horse’s Need for Relief: A Key to Successful TrainingBy Cynthia McFarland with Chris Cox

Relief, given at the proper time, is critical when training your horse.

photo: David Stoecklein


Working with horses and people youbecome vary aware of both the behavior of thehorse and the human. One of the things I seethe most is people letting their horses walk allover them. This is a huge cause of concern forme as a trainer, and it is one of the things Ifocus on.

For many individuals the concept ofhorse behavior is very difficult to grasp. Somany horse owners want to be friends withtheir horses, which is okay, you can have that.But a horse is not like any of your other pets. Ahorse is always in herd behavior mode and ifyou are busy being a friend, instead of a herdleader, disaster is just around the corner.

In our last article we talked aboutloungeing and turning to gain control on theground. In this article we are going to talk atabout leading, stopping and backing.

Halter your horse using a rope hal-ter for this exercise. I prefer a rope halterbecause it encourages the horse to pay aten-tion and behave. A rope halter is not severewhen it is used correctly and unless the horseis being really naughty it is not going to hurt

him. This halter works on three pressurepoints, the poll, the nose and the jowl.

Hold your lead rope approximately12” off the snap that is attached to the hal-ter, with your thumb up.

Your horse should be positioned toyour right, the poll no farther ahead of you thanyour shoulder. Now, walk off. Your horseshould walk off with you, maintaining that posi-tion you initially established.. If you horse doesnot walk off with you encourage him with a tapstick or the end of the lead line and your lefthand by reaching around and behind you toeither tap his rear or twirl the line at his rear. Donot turn around to do this. This can take somepractice, but it will encourage him to move for-ward with you.

Walking forward 10 to 12 steps -stop. Your horse should stop also. If he doesnot stop, jiggle your rope to get his attention orgive a tug to get him to stop.

Now move right into backing up afew steps Do not turn around to back up! Youmay have to use your tap stick and tap him inthe chest. You can also wiggle the lead ropeor snap the end of the lead rope back at hischest to get him to step back with you Again,do not turn around to tap him or snap the lineat him, just reach around and tap or snap hischest.

Now repeat the whole processagain and again. Shortly you will see him mov-ing right with you and he will become com-pletely focused on you and what you are goingto do next. That is our goal! To make you theherd leader and have him focus on what youare doing and asking him to do.

As you practice and progress youwill find that your horse moves right with youwithout outside encouragement, that he isalways alert and ready for whatever you areasking him to do. You will get to the point

where even if you were to run backwards hewill back at your speed and stay out of yourspace.

Next I would take the horse to a gateand practice going through the gate. Makesure the gate is open away from you. I haveseen many accidents where the gate wasopened the wrong way and came closed,cathcing the horses hips between the gate andthe post. This is a very serious problem andcan result in the death of the horse. So notehow you open the gate.

The goal here is to not have thehorse rush through the gate. You will use thesame process you used before as you movethrough the gate. Move forward, stop and backa few steps, then repeat.

Having your horses attention andrespect is a top priority in developing yourhorse’s skills and developing that relationshipyou desire with your horse. Gaining thisrespect on the ground first is going to save youa heap of trouble in the future.

Accomplishing this ground control isso important, and so often neglected, when itcan acctually be the easiest thing to train yourhorse to do. Overlooking this is a definiterecipe for disaster. What most of us don’t real-ize is that because of the way the horse thinksit is actually our responsibility as the horseowner to teach him these things.

Remember, you are always teach-ing your horse something everytime you evenjust go into his stall. Be aware of what you areteaching him. It is your responsibility!

Dennis Auslam is the owner/operator of RedwoodStables in Morton, MN. He trains both horse andrider through lessons and clincs and has beenworking with horses all of his life. Yu can contacthim at 507-430-0342 or visit his website atwww.redwoodstables.com

Gaining Respect:Leading, Stopping and Backingby Dennis Auslam


It’s a bird…it’s a plane…no, it’sSuperHorse! To celebrate 30 years of bringingthe very best of premier horse fairs to the area,the Midwest Horse Fair® announces the 2009theme -- “SuperHorse!” “The horse industryin Wisconsin is an important part of our state’sidentity,” said Rhonda Reese, GeneralManager of the Midwest Horse Fair®. “Tocommemorate the 30th anniversary of thisevent, ‘SuperHorse,’ seemed like the perfecttheme to recognize these magnificent animalsand all the horse owners in the Midwest.” The30th annual Midwest Horse Fair® will be heldApril 17-19, 2009 at the Alliant Energy Centerin Madison, WI.

Started in 1979, The Midwest HorseFair® has been growing and going strong for30 years. During that time, attendance hasincreased to over 50,000 people during thethree-day event. Over 500 exhibitors offerunique shopping and educational opportuni-

ties for horse lovers and owners.There arehundreds of clinics, seminars and events thatfeature top horse professionals from all overthe country.Demonstrations and on-goingentertainment appeal to both horse ownersand those who just love horses. The entireweekend is full of family friendly activities.From food and fun, to saddles and sales, theMidwest Horse Fair® has something for every-one. Whether you are a horse lover, new horseowner, or seasoned professional, you will findsomething that you will thoroughly enjoy at theMidwest Horse Fair®.

The best way to get a sneak peek atall of the upcoming attractions is to visit theMidwest Horse Fair® website atwww.midwesthorsefair.com. Visit often as newevents and clinicians are added on a regularbasis.

The Midwest Horse Fair® is ownedby the Wisconsin State Horse Council, Inc(WSHC). All proceeds from the Fair are

returned to the WSHC and are used to repre-sent and foster a unified equine industry inWisconsin, promote the equine throughleadership, education, service andcommunication, and to take a proactive role inthe future growth and development of theequine industry. For additional information, please contact theMidwest Horse Fair® by phone at(920) 623-5515 or e-mail [email protected].

Mark Your Calendars for the 2009 Midwest Horse Fair®April 17-19 2009

at the Alliant Energy Center Madison, WI

The Missouri State Fairgrounds inSedalia, Missouri will be the location forWomen & Horses Expo 2008 from October24 - 26. Among the presenters and clinicianswill be Bonnie Davis from California. Davis isan avid trail rider, horsecamper, ConsultingEditor to ‘Trail Rider’ magazine, writer andowner of Two Horse Enterprises dedicated totrail riding and horsecamping.

Davis will host the forum anddiscussion “Who Says You Can’t Do It?!”.She maintains “one is never to old to ride.You just have to have the attitude to get onyour horse and go. After all, who says youcan’t do it?”.

Drawing from her own experiences,Davis feels “attitude is what it’s all about. Ifyou want to ride, you will. If you say I can’t,you won’t. No one can tell you what you canand can’t do. It’s all in your head. Hopefullysome of my experiences and yours will helpother gals stay on their horses or get back ontheir horses.

“At 19, 30 even 40 I wouldn’t get ona mounting block or a trailer fender for nothing.It was called pride. At 67 I’m looing for everyrock, stump, trailer fender, hillside, creek bankI can find to get back on my horse when I getoff. The important thing is to remember I’mnot the only one looking for those mountingitems. Others are too. Sometimes, it justseems like I’m the only one.” Davis concluded.

In addition to “Who Says You Can’tDo It?!” Bonnie will also present“Horsecamping — Expanding Your TrailRiding Adventures”. Topics and informationon where to go trail riding, getting ready to

camp, preparing a horse for camping, usingwater, selecting feeds to meet environmentalconsiderations and more will be presented.Regardless if one is a beginner or a pro,“Horsecamping” will provide information anda tip or two for organizing that first or next trip.

For more information on the Women &Horses Expo, go to website or call (417) 581-1155. To contact Bonnie Davis, call (510)299-5212 or e-mail .

Women & Horse Expo: “Who Says You Can’t Do It?!”

Howd oh o r s e s 'behaviors inthe wild relate to thebad behaviors we see in domestic horses?

Before we can ever hope tounderstand, let alone control the movement ofa horse, it is important to know the variousbehaviors that motivate a horse to move in thefirst place. Being a prey animal means thehorse's first reaction to danger is to run, hellbent for leather, away from the perceivedthreat. React first, think later.

Everyone knows that horses areflight animals; in fact, horses are the verydefinition of flighty and depend on thisbehavior for survival. What is often misunder-stood about horses is, how deep the flightresponse goes in a horse's nature and thatevery movement a horse is capable of andevery step he takes has some significance.Everything about the horse is linked to its flight

response. Crazy as it sounds, even theirlaziness is related to the flightresponse. By nature horses aregenerally lazy, for the sole purposeof preserving energy in case it isneeded in flight. In the current trendof natural horsemanship, far too

much is sometimes made of thepredator-prey relationship, since

horses, after all, have been domesti-cated for thousands of years and don't

really think of humans as carnivorouspredators.

However, it is important tounderstand that the prey instinct is the origin ofthe horse's behavior as we know it today andit is what motivates their movement. Horsesare herd animals, again related to prey-dom,meaning their survival is dependent on theherd. Safety in numbers.

Herd behavior is another importantmotivating factor for a horse and is present inour everyday dealings with horses, more sothan is often recognized. Again, everymovement a horse makes has meaning andwhen given a choice, the horse will alwaysmove toward the protection of the herd. Theseare fundamental and deep layers of horsebehavior and the subject could fill manyvolumes, but the one thing we can deal withhere, is to develop an understanding of howwe can control the movements of a horse inour presence.

The first thing to understand is thatthe horse feels saferwhen he is movinghis feet, and themore nervous oruncertain he gets,the more he wants tomove his feet. Yetthere is nothing ahorse likes betterthan to feel pro-tected enough thathe can snooze,standing or prone,knowing that theherd leader is watch-ing out for his safety.

The herdleader, a/k/a bossmare, is responsiblefor the safety of theherd and with a sec-ond's notice, must beable to motivate theentire herd to flight.She earns therespect, admiration,obedience and, mostimportantly, atten-tiveness of the herdby dominating everymove they make andby controlling theresources of the herd

(you'll recog-nize the boss mareeasily, she's theone standing infront of the watertrough, playing in

the fresh clean water and slowly sipping untilshe is satiated, while the rest of the herdstands in line, thirsty but patient, awaiting theirturn in the pecking order).

Although the boss mare enjoysmany perks, like first access to food and water,the best shade and the best rolling spot; alongwith these perks comes the awesomeresponsibilities of protecting the herd andkeeping order.

The boss mare controls the actionsof each herd member through her bodylanguage. When her head is down in the grassand she is quietly munching, her herd mateswill be relaxed. When her head comes up, earsprick forward and her muscles tighten, the restof the herd knows to prepare for flight. Theywill follow her anywhere on her signal.

Just to make sure the horses all payattention to her in times of stress, the bossmare will periodically push the herd individualsaround a little so that they are in the habit ofresponding to her. When she directs her gazeat an individual, flattens her ears and takes astep toward him, the subordinate horse knowsto immediately move away. If they don'trespond quickly enough, she might leavesome teeth marks on his rear end.Subordinate herd mates will quickly learn towatch the body language of their leader at alltimes and to respond without question to hermovements.

Wouldn't it be nice to have the kindof relationship with your horse that theyrespond to your requests without question?If you have the opportunity to observe a herd,you will learn to recognize the subtle commu-nications that constantly occur.

For instance, a frightened horse willelevate his head, tense his ears, stiffen his tailand hold his breath; all of these actionscommunicate an outside threat to the otherhorses and they will instantly act the same wayand look in the same direction. A relaxed andsafe horse will lower his head (the lower itgoes the more relaxed he is), relax his ears,lick his lips, chew, drop his tail and take a deepsigh.

Horses communicate with theirbody language, with the head position, earposition, facial expressions, feet, tail, mouthand nose. Horses receive communication fromus in the same way, whether we know it or not.The desired relationship between horse andhuman is that of a herd of two. According to thelaws of the herd (the only rules horses reallyunderstand) the hierarchy is linear, meaningeach and every individual of the herd is eitherdominate over or subordinate to each andevery other individual. In your herd of two, yourchoice is clear: you must be the dominantmember, the alpha individual, the "boss mare."You must earn this respect, admiration andobedience by controlling the space of yourhorse and the "resources" of your herd (if yourhorse is frisking you for treats, HE is controllingthe resources).


Understanding Horse Behaviorby Julie Goodnight


The first step in controlling yourhorse's movement is to control your own bodylanguage. Your horse will notice your posture,eye contact, your foot movements, theelevation of your shoulders, the tone of yourvoice and the rhythm of your breathing. Beaware of the actions on your part and knowthat you are constantly communicating withyour horse through your body language.

If your horse takes a step towardyou and you back away, you have just told himhe is in charge. If you get scared, tense yourmuscles and hold your breath, your horse willmirror your actions and instantly becomefrightened. All horses, no matter how high inthe hierarchy, will gratefully accept theleadership of another individual, as long as theleader has demonstrated their commitment tocontrolling and protecting the herd.

For a horse to accept a human asleader, that human must be able to control thehorse's space and must never betray his trustby causing him fear or pain. Once they haveaccepted the individual (horse or human) asleader, they will be relaxed, compliant,obedient and happy. In natural horsemanship,we use ground work (round pen and lead-line)to control the horse's space so that hebecomes subordinate.

Beyond just controlling his space,we learn to communicate with the horsethrough our body language, to develop astrong bond and trust between leader andfollower. The horse must be treated firmly butwith kindness and above all, your interactionswith the horse must be consistent so that hecan learn to trust them. This kind of relationshipwith the horse is the ideal, but one that manyhorsemen find illusive.

To have a horse that is happy,respectful and obedient, who willingly doeswhatever you ask and responds to your mostsubtle cues, you must first become his leaderand earn his respect. Learn to control yourhorse's space and communicate with your ownbody language in a way that he understands,and you will not only earn his respect, butadmiration as well.

Julie Goodnight Natural HorsemanshipTraining™Goodnight Training Stables, Inc.™PO Box 397 · Poncha Springs CO · 81242phone (719) 530-0531 · phone toll free(800) 225-8827 · fax (719) 530-0939www.juliegoodnight.com

The University of Minnesota Horse Team isoffering four fall regional horse ownereducation programs throughout Minnesota in2008. Each program offers researched basedinformation and knowledgeable speakersidentified specifically for that region by acommittee of local horse experts andenthusiasts.

Speakers for these programs includeUniversity of Minnesota faculty and staff andlocal veterinarians. The dates, locations andtopics include:

Saturday, October 4th in Morris at theUM-Morris Science Building. The programbegins at 1:00 pm. Topics include: Bits 101,First Aid and Emergency Management, EquineBehavior, Dentistry, Unwanted HorsesRoundtable, and Lameness in thePerformance Horse. Registration deadline isMonday, September 29th.

Saturday, October 18th in Bemidji at theNorthwest Technical College. The programbegins at 1:00 pm. Topics include: Nutrition,Dermatology and Allergies, First Aid andEmergency Management, Unwanted HorsesRoundtable, Elderly Horse Care, andOptimizing Your Hay Supply. Registrationdeadline is Monday, October 13th.

Saturday, October 25th in Two Harbors atMinnehaha Elementary School. The programbegins at 1:00 pm. Topics include: Optimizingyour Hay Supply, Lameness in thePerformance Horse, Ask the Vet Roundtable,Nutrition, Unwanted Horses Roundtable, andFirst Aid and Wound Management.Registration deadline is Monday, October20th.

Saturday, November 22nd in Cambridge atCambridge-Isanti High School. The programbegins at 9:30 am. Topics include: EvaluatingDifficult Lameness, Unwanted HorseRoundtable , Rehabilitation andComplementary Therapies, Optimizing YourHay Supply , and Elderly Horse Care.Registration deadline is Monday, November17th.

Participants can select three different topics ateach location (two topics will presentedsimultaneously). The cost to attend eachprogram is $15/person and includes a printedproceeding. Due to pre-printed proceedings,registration is required five days before eachprogram and doors open thirty minutes beforethe program begins. The program sponsor isADM Alliance Nutrition. Secure onlineregistration, program agendas, and additionalinformation is available atwww.extension.umn.edu/horse.

FALL REGIONAL HORSE OWNER PROGRAMSOFFERED THROUGHOUT MN

The longest or the shortest journey beginswith a single step. For the novice or advancedhorse person who is interested in enrolling inan apprentice program, the first step would beto make contact with the trainer of yourpreference. This choice should be determinedby the goals you desire to achieve. If yourambitions are in reining, then a reining trainerwould obviously be your choice. Whether it becutting, western pleasure, jumping ordressage, see if the trainer you had in mindoffers an apprenticeship or work program.

If the trainer is accepting trainees he mightrequire a resume that states your age, experi-ence, past employment and standard job infor-mation. One thing that the trainer might beinterested in is the length of your internship.Trainers are looking for people who are willingto work. Experience is a plus, but like a goodhorse, enthusiasm and trainability might be themost important traits of a good trainee. Beforeyou apply you might bear in mind that horsetraining is not just about riding horses. Theworld of horses is solid labor and a workoutevery day, but if it is what you desire than it isa labor of love.

Most apprentices picture themselves ridingeach day and galloping through green pas-tures in a perfect, relaxed and pleasurableatmosphere. They see themselves learningthe art of horsemanship and training at a highlevel in no time at all. After sixty perfect days ofexclusive and private work with the trainer they

beleive they will be readyto hang out their shingleand conquer the horseworld. Nothing could befurther from the truth. Noart form can be learned insixty days. Most appren-tices ask me, “where do Istart?” I tell them, “Thebeginning would be nice.”

Horsemanship is notall about riding horses. Ifyou’re too good to shovelmanure then you are inthe wrong business. Ifyou are too proud toclean the trailer, go some-where else. If you are toowise to take orders, thenseek life elsewhere. If youare too thin skinned toaccept criticism, there’s

the gate. If you wear your feelings on yoursleeves, you have chosen the wrong endeav-or. If you cannot get up in the middle of thenight as part of your job, then do not enter. Ifyou are intolerant to extreme heat and cold,this work zone is not for you. If you cannothandle long hours that seem almost unfair orunreasonable, then you do not understand thenature of this business. If you are afraid to getdirty or ruin your clothes, join the country clubinstead. If you shy away from responsibility,then turn back. If you are reluctant to go aboveand beyond the call of duty the horse world isnot for you.

The world of horsemanship is its ownlife-style. Horses and horse people have theirown way and it is a way that must be learned.Although it is work, it can be the most fun andrewarding job I know of. It is only learned bydoing and being involved. To learn the ins andout of the horse industry it must be lived every-day. In my opinion, a good apprentishipprogram not only teaches you the skills need-ed to be a horseman, it also teaches you howto run the business end of this industry.

This business end is extremely varied. Agood horseman is a jack of all trades, and agood program will teach many of these trades.A top hand must not only know how but mustbe willing to do anything, from the mostmenial, lowly task, to the job that takes themost experience. My program not only teach-

es the skills of riding but the art of cleaningpens, scrubbing water tanks, bedding stallsand trailers, watching and foaling out mares,correct grooming of horses, feeding, buildingfence, imprinting foals, people skills, adaptabil-ity, caring for tack and doctoring horses andcattle. The skills of changing flats, cross coun-try drives that take all night getting to the nextclinic, setting up the booth at expos around thecountry, ordering feed, rotating pastures, sad-dling horses, dragging arenas, helping andteaching at clinics, trailering and traveling onthe road and cowboy traditions are all taught atthe Craig Cameron University (CCU).

As you can see, my program is extremelyvaried and needs to be if one is to truly learnhow to run a horse operation. However, theactual art of horsemanship can only belearned in the saddle. Much like a younghorse, the journeymen apprentice only learnsthrough repetition, so he needs to ride on aregular bases. Routine is the key.

At my ranch we start early with the feedingprogram. Horses are feed by individual needsand it is the apprentice’s job to be sure eachhorse is properly maintained. It is the trainersjob to make sure the apprentice is doing hisjob correctly. After feeding, horses are gath-ered, haltered and groomed for riding.Saddling is next and a meticulous eye is keptfor correctness of equipment. Correctness is ahabit and is strived for each day and expectedat CCU.

Apprentices are taught how to warm hors-es up and what to look for during this proce-dure. I like to be on hand during all riding ses-sions and school the trainees about the use ofhands, seat and legs. I teach everything fromflexibility to position and control. At all times wework with and not against the horse. No abuseis ever allowed. Apprentices are slowly taughthow to develop circles, stops, backs, rollbacks, lead changes and spins. It is continual-ly stressed to develop foundation and funda-mentals for horse and rider. Both horse andrider must learn how to do specific maneuversbefore they learn how to do them fast. Onemust learn the nature and the mechanics ofthe horse. To be a great teacher one mustlearn how to be a great pupil. I tell my studentsthat learning takes time. Remember in anyrelationship all parties must win; teacher,student and horse.

So you still want to be an apprentice. Besure it is a bite you want to chew.Horsemanship is an art form and art formstake time. The equine industry is a ride in moreways than one. But if you are passionate abouthorses it is a ride that you will love. Anythingworthwhile takes desire, determination anddedication. It is through the beginng that youget to the winning. Stick with it and remember,a champion is not a person who never looses,it is a person who never quits. So you thinkthat you still want to be an apprentice. Can youhandle it? Are you tuff enough?

Work hard and ride smart. Craig Cameron

For information on Craig Cameron, known asthe cowboy’s clinician, his tools, videos andupcoming clinics, visit his website,www.craigcameron.com


Tough Enough!by Craig Cameron


Weatherford, Texas, July 29, 2008 A landmark meeting of

the minds last month brought ninepillars of the equine community tothe roundtable for the first time –and the results were extraordi-nary.

The "Who's Who" gathering in Juneincluded AQHA world champion RobbieSchroeder; NFR heeler Britt Bockius; PRCAand AQHA champion CR Bradley; Hall-of-Fame reiner Clint Haverty; PRCA heelerTwister Cain; working-cow and ranch horseextraordinaire Thomas Saunders; AQHA worldchampion Clay Logan; NCHA cutting horsetrainer, judge and monitor Bobby Hunt; andAPHA world champion AJ Garcia – all perform-ance-horse superstars who proceeded to ham-mer out the exact moves that make up the per-fect team roping run.

In doing so, the nine bridged thechasm of standards between show horses androdeo horses by finding one point of reference;they defined one great rope horse regardlessof venue.

"It was amazing, after we worked aday or two, how really close together we allwere," said Hunt. "You know, for years youeither won from being fast or you won frombeing judged. This method where the time isinvolved is a really neat concept."

The new National Team RopingHorse Association is sanctioning events usinga unique maneuver-based and time-to-pointsconversion system, and is tracking lifetimeearnings and genetics of rope horses – a com-ponent that's been missing in the rapidly grow-ing team roping industry. The NTRHA's 2009schedule includes major events such as a 5-year-old Futurity, Sweepstakes for 6- and 7-year-olds, and an 8-and-over Challenge, inaddition to its World Championships.

The nine individuals in attendanceat the first-ever NTRHA seminar, hosted by theNational Ropers Supply Training Center inDecatur, Texas, represented a one-roomassembly of knowledge that, in Hunt's opinion,happens only once in a lifetime. Hand-pickedby NTRHA Director of Judges John Miller (anAQHA and PRCA world champion team roper),they'd walked in packing millions of dollars inearnings and centuries of experience, but hadalso brought widely varying perspectives. Thefact that all nine found themselves on thesame page surprised even them.

"Everybody was dead-on," saidCain. "We judged 45 head of horses makinglive runs, and the top three were the same forall of us."

As videos and live runs were ana-lyzed, the horsemen's open-minded approachand the format's objectivity melded differingopinions into one. Any of the inaugural judgeswho worried that the faster runs would super-sede the high-scored runs was relieved to seethat if a horse had all the right moves andscored high, he was usually also fast. Anyonewho worried that the high-scored runs wouldbe too tough to beat was relieved to see thatthe addition of time helped balance the payoff."I didn't know how the time deal would workbeing part of the format, but this seminarshowed me that it sure took care of a lot of stuff

– it made it like another judge," Schroedersaid. "Like instead of five judges, there's sixcounting the time. It evened everything out. Ithink it's a really good deal."

Speaking from the rodeo side ofthings, Cain liked the fact that a guy who's fastcould get a bottom-hole check even if hishorse didn't work at the top of his game thatday. On the flip side, Haverty liked the way thescoring end of it could push a slower run intothe money.

Schroeder feels the balance of thetime element will get more people involved inthe rope horse industry, while Bockius' favoriteaspect was that the format will give rise to anew kind of rope horse to market to the public– one that's more user-friendly and stayssound longer.

"Guys that make rope horses rightnow have to try to create a rodeo horse that's

so fast some people can'tmanage it," Hunt said, orthey "have to make a$75,000 World-Show typehorse" that has whatBockius calls "too manybuttons" for the average

Joe.What's more, Schroeder thinks the NTRHA'sconcept will allow clients to let trainers keephorses longer and show them more, becausewith goals of winning the Futurity and other"majors," they have a chance to earn the kindsof dollars that pay for their investment.

The NTRHA held its second semi-nar for sanctioned judges July 21-23, also atthe NRS Training Center, where it certified thelikes of AQHA champions Rick Rosaschi andElzie Harrison, Open Snaffle Bit Futurity cham-pion Robbie Boyce, nationally ranked PRCAheeler Zane Bruce and NRS Training CenterDirector Krece Harris, among others.

For more information on the NTRHA's introducto-ry events this fall (featuring free horseback clinicsby John Miller and the respective judges), call817-598-0110 or visit www.NTRHA.com.

• WORMERS • VACCINES • FLY SPRAYS • GROOMING SUPPLIES

UNITED VET EQUINE800-328-6652

www.UnitedVetEquine.com • FREE CATALOG!

� INSULIN RESISTANCE (IR) � LAMINITIS � OBESITY � CUSHINGS

D-CARB Balance (Pellets) provides essential, balancednutritional support (minerals & vitamins) for restricted (IR)diets of grassy hay, plus over 5,000 mgs of magnesium @$1.00/day!

10 lb (40 Day Supply)................................................$49.95 FOB25 lb (100 Day Supply)............................................$109.95 FOB35 lb (140 Day Supply)............................................$143.95 FOB

CALL FOR SPECIAL OFFER!

CUTTERS, REINERS, ROPERS BREAKNEW GROUND IN ROPE HORSE

INDUSTRY


In this article, I will share someexercises that are done when the rider is “onthe longe.” This means that the rider is mount-ed on a horse while it is being longed by ahelper. Without the reins for security andbalance, a rider can use this technique to buildconfidence and establish a more correct form.Working on a longe line was such an impor-tant stage in my development as a rider, and Iwant to share with you.

To prepare for this lesson, you will need aconsistent, well schooled horse tacked up witha saddle, a halter with longe line properlyattached, and leg protection. Your helpershould know how to longe a horse. Practiceexercises on the longe in a large enclosedarea like a paddock, corral, or arena to giveyou and your horse more security.

These exercises can be done in either aWestern or English saddle. A Western saddlewill help you feel more secure and confident.However, using an English saddle for theseexercises is a good way to build better form,balance, and confidence. For the purpose ofthis article, I will explain these exercises as ifthe rider is doing them in a Western saddle.

Many of the same exercises that I alreadyhave explained in this series can be done onthe longe line. I now am going to share somespecial variations that take advantage of therider not having the use of the reins to help bal-ance. The same techniques for properly doingthese exercises still apply. They are:• Do each exercise slowly. • Breathe because it encourages relaxation.If you tend to hold your breath, try talking or

singing to encourage regular breathing. • Remember our mantra: “CENTER-SQUARE-BALANCED.” Continually analyze your posi-tion using these three key words to maintainproper rider position as you work to improveyour flexibility.• STOP if you experience any pain or havemedical conditions that could be complicatedby doing any of these exercises. Seek advicefrom a health care professional beforecontinuing.

To start this lesson, the rider should bemounted on the horse. The helper should be inposition, holding the longe line that is attachedto the horse. As the rider uses her aids to askher horse to move forward into the walk, sheshould tie a knot in her reins and put the knotover the saddle horn. The rider should be ableto do this without looking. Note: the rider isresponsible in this lesson for keeping herhorse out on the circle and for speed controlthrough the use of her seat, leg, and voiceaids. The helper can assist in keeping thehorse on the circle by “tossing” the longe linetowards him if he falls in.

The rider should start at the walk with herarms at her sides. Let the horse walk a few cir-cles on the longe to allow the rider to feel com-fortable being on the longe and not having anyrein contact.

The next step is to extend the walk andbegin the exercises. Here is a list of exercisesthe rider should try on the longe while thehelper assists in critiquing her form.Upper Body Rotations:

Do this exercise at the walk. Extend both

arms straight out to your sides atshoulder height. Slowly twist at thewaist so one arm extends in frontwhile the other arm extends behindyou. Then rotate so the oppositearm comes forward. You should feela nice stretch in your torso. Tip: Todo this exercise properly, the ridermust continue to look straight aheadand relax her upper body. Her legsshould stay relaxed with her hipsmoving with the horse, and herweight in the saddle. It is importantnot to twist the lower body or swing

the legs in motion with the arms. The stretchwe are looking for comes from keeping thelower body relaxed and in position while theupper body from the waist rotates.Four-Point Arm Circles:

This exercise can be done at the trot. Askyour horse to pick up a trot and extend botharms straight out in front of you. Trot a fewstrides in this position to get the feel of trottingwithout rein contact. Keeping your left arm infront of you, bring your right arm up overhead.Hold this position for a few seconds, and thenrotate the arm behind you with palm down.Hold. Rotate the arm down to your side. Hold,and then return it to the starting position infront of you. Now repeat this sequence withthe left arm, keeping the right arm straight outin front of you. Tip: This exercise is more chal-lenging because the horse’s movement at thetrot requires the rider to keep her balance byputting more weight in her seat. The ridershould take her time and continue breathing tohelp her relax.Double Arm 2-Point Stretches:

Starting with both arms in front of you,stretch both arms overhead and hold. Nowslowly drop both arms down and hold thembehind the saddle with palms facing backward.Keep the shoulders back. Repeat for severalrepetitions.

Are you ready for more challenge? Forthe next set of exercises, drop your stirrups,but keep your toes up and heels down! If youfeel less secure, adjust your shoulders furtherback so your seat stays in closer contact withthe saddle. Hands Behind the Back:

Trot a circle without stirrups and with yourhands dropped down behind you. Hold thisposition for several strides, and then bend theelbows and bring the hands up so they areclasped behind the small of your back. Trot afew strides in this position. Shoulder Rotations:

While continuing to trot without stirrups,bring the elbows up and touch the top of yourshoulders with your fingertips. First, using theright arm, keep contact with the top of theshoulder, and rotate the shoulder to makemedium-sized circles clockwise with theelbow. Do several circles rotating the rightshoulder, and then repeat the exercise with theleft shoulder.Shoulder Shrugs:

While continuing at a trot without stirrups,shrug both shoulders up as if pulling them upto your ears. Hold this stretch for a fewseconds, and then relax the shoulders down.


“Rider Position, Part 6, Exercises on the Longe Line”


As you pick up your shoulders, breathe inthrough your nose. As you release them down,exhale out through your mouth.Arms Up and Down:

Still continuing at the trot without stirrups,bring both arms up overhead and breathe in.Hold for a few seconds and strides. Then,exhale and bring both arms down to your sidesas you relax them.

As we continue to add to the repertoire ofexercises, remember to be creative as you dothem. Mix and match them to develop yourown personal warm-up and flexibility routine.

Here is a sequence of upper body exercisesthat will add more challenge to your stretchingroutine. Do these exercises at an extendedtrot. This adds some degree of difficultybecause the horse’s greater movement chal-lenges the rider to keep her balance and posi-tion. It helps to build the rider’s skills for futureexercises at the canter or lope.

Note: Whether the rider is using a Westernor an English saddle, she should post whendoing these exercises unless a sitting trot isspecified. The rider should let the horse’smovement lift her out of the saddle slightly asshe posts while maintaining her balance andposition.Arms on Hips-Posting Trot:

While at the normal trot, place your handson your hips. Pick up your stirrups withoutlooking. Extend the trot or jog. Pick up a post-ing trot and place both hands on the hips.Make several longe circles as you continue topost.Arm Extensions-Posting Trot:

Add a little more challenge to the last exer-cise by continuing at the posting trot andextending your arms out at your sides for sev-eral strides. Now bring them forward in front ofyou as you continue to post. Then bring themback out to the side again.Arm Circles-Posting Trot:

Continue posting at an extended trot andextend your arms out to your sides. Look to theinside of the circle at the helper. Make smallclockwise arm circles at shoulder height withboth arms. Do several strides of this exercise.Now drop the arms down to the sides. Finishthis set of exercises by looking to the outsideto stretch the head and neck, and then lookback to the inside. Continue several repetitionsof these neck stretches. They should feel goodand relax any tension you may have built up inyour neck

Here is a little test to see how effective theseexercises have been at improving your bal-ance, position, and confidence. While still onthe longe line, try sitting your horse’s extendedjog or trot. Do you feel that you are sitting bet-ter, meaning more balanced than when youfirst started the lesson? Do you feel morerelaxed in your upper body and better able tomove it independently from the lower body?Do you feel more confident and secure in yourposition? If you continue to work on theseexercises, I guarantee you will build theseimportant skills.

My book Head to Toe Horsemanship haseven more exercises that will help you improveyour position and balance. To order it or otherinstructional materials, please visit my websiteat www.lynnpalm.com or call 800-503-2824.

Nothing Small about this Miniature Show!

Over 5,000 Entries Anticipated for the 2008 American Miniature Horse

Registry National Championship Showin Tulsa

Tulsa, OK-The annualA m e r i c a nM i n i a t u r eH o r s eR e g i s t r y( A M H R )N a t i o n a l

Championship Show is scheduled forSeptember 4th-13th at the Expo Square Arenain Tulsa, Oklahoma. The AMHR NationalChampionship Show is highlight of the yeardetermining the Nation’s the top MiniatureHorses.

As in previous years, the showcommittee is expecting more than 5000entries. The AMHR National ChampionshipShow is gearing runs a full slate of classesthroughout the day and evening. Admission isfree and spectators are welcome throughoutthe week and a half long event.

The AMHR National ChampionshipShow now offers close to 300 classes forMiniature Horses to enter. Competitions in hal-ter, driving, jumping, costume, youth classesand more stir the crowd as they cheer on theirfavorites. And with over $50,000 in cash andprizes in championship and futurity classes theatmosphere is one of high stakes and highspirits.

AMHR Miniature Horses may com-pete in one of two divisions. Division “A”Miniatures must stand at 34” and under, whileDivision “B” Miniatures must measure under38”. But don’t let their small stature fool you;Miniature Horses are big fun for children andadults.

“The exciting array of classes, com-bined with the multiple shopping opportunitiesat the mini-mall make this is a can’t-miss eventfor the entire family,” says Johnny Robb,AMHR Marketing Director. “Each year morehorse lovers and families come to enjoy theshow. And once they come they are hooked onour little horses.”

As in 2007, the 2008 AMHRNationals Championships will be televised forfuture programming. “Watching these horseson TV is like reliving the show all over again”,said Marcia Yeager, who’s son Gary Yeagermade it the winner’s circle with LaurieVillalpando’s Grand National ChampionStallion, N.J. Sandhill Spirit.

So mark your calendar to attend theAMHR National Championship Show held atthe Expo Square Arena inTulsa, Oklahoma, thisSeptember 4th-13th.

For more information aboutthe AMHR NationalChampionship Show visit www.shetlandminiature.com

under Events or call 309-263-4044.


The American Shetland Ponies Are on YouTube.com!

Two Lucky Youths Win Ponies at American

Morton, IL- The Chinese gave United States thePanda bears and the American Shetland PonyClub (ASPC) gave Hong Kong two beautifulShetland ponies. As a tribute to the tremen-dous effort the Hong Kong Equestrian Club(HKEC) and the Hong Kong Jockey Club(HKJC) put forth to host the 2008 OlympicEquestrian Games in Hong Kong. Now, high-lights of the touching “Hand-Over” Ceremonyheld July 10th in Hong Kong can now be seenon the popular website YouTube.com.

Under the direction of Dr. Simone Ip,President of the HKEC, the Club hosted a cap-tivating presentation ceremony to receive theponies. This has all been captured onYouTube.com for everyone to enjoy. ZonaSchneider, Director of Operations for ASPCand Marketing Director, Johnny Robb, were onhand to present the tiny ambassadors to thecity of Hong Kong. The ponies were welcomedinto individual public riding schools whereHong Kong’s young equestrians will learn howto ride on them.

In effort to completely assimilate theAmerican Shetlands into their culture, Ipannounced a Pony Naming Contest to be heldin Hong Kong to give the ponies new Chinesenames. The response from the people of HongKong was powerful.

Among hundreds of entries the sug-gested two winning names were three Chinesecharacters meaning “precious,” implying thatFMF Imagination the brown and white PintoShetland Pony will be much treasured andloved by the people of Hong Kong. The secondset of three Chinese characters meant

“remarkable,” implying that PC Karmel Kid isthe outstanding pony of Hong Kong.

The YouTube.com presentation ofthe event is a charming and not to be missedvideo of the “Hand-Over” ceremony. Elatedwith the energy the ponies created in HongKong, Ip states, “On behalf of the Hong KongEquestrian Federation, I would like to thank theAmerican Shetland Pony Club for their gen-erosity and kindness in giving us this magnifi-cent pair of Shetland ponies.”

“Thanks to the vision of theAmerican Shetland Pony Club and a handful ofvisionary equine companies, we are able toshare our wonderful American ShetlandPonies with the riders in Hong Kong,” saidRobb. “We are delighted to play a small role inhonoring their Olympic effort.”For more information contact the AmericanShetland Pony Club atwww.shetlandminiature.com Watch the entire “Hand-Over” Ceremony in HongKong on YouTube.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHGQ34-psVoThe American Shetland Pony Club, the American ShowPony Registry and The American Miniature HorseRegistry are non-profit organizations established to pre-serve and refine the bloodlines of these small equinesand promote the enjoyment of small equines.Recognized as the oldest and most versatile registry inthe United States, the American Shetland PonyClub offers a variety of programs for ShetlandPony and Miniature Horse enthusiasts of all ages.Visit their website at www.shetlandminiature.comor 81-B East Queenwood Road, Morton, IL61550.

Cloverdale, IN –Two Lucky Youthswon big with a small equine prize. At theAmerican Shetland Shetland Pony Congressthis month, two American Shetland Ponieswere awarded to winners of two youth essaycontests. Youths from around the country exer-cised their writing skills for the chance to winone of these amazing Shetland Ponies.

Entries werenumbered andjudged anony-mously. KimberlyCotter was thelucky winner ofE’s Sir Nite andKasey Waxler ofP e n n s y l v a n i awas awardedCross Country’sMr. Banker.

K i m b e r l yCotter, the new

owner of E’s Sir Nite, is only 7-years-old.William Eperthener was the previous ownerand the donor of this special pony. Two yearsago, E’s Sir Nite became the National FuturityChampion and the Modern Liberty Champion.Eperthener’s wife, Fran drove the 5-year-oldbay gelding into the arena for the presentationceremony. Then Cotter confidently took overthe reins and drove out with her new pony.Cotter has experience with Miniature Horses,but E’s Sir Nite is her first Shetland.Eperthener, a member of the Board of

Directors for the American Shetland Pony Club(ASPC), said the pony, known on his farm as“Sweetie Pie,” is excellent for a child. Afterviewing the new pair together, he said, “Thenice thing is they will grow up together.”Eperthener seems to have a genuine appreci-ation for youth and a deep understanding thatthe youth is the future in the AmericanShetland Pony Club.

Cross Country’s Mr. Banker hasalready settled into his new home at Star LakeFarm. He traveled home with 10-year-oldKasey Waxler atthe conclusion ofthe AmericanShetland PonyC o n g r e s s .Kasey’s mother,Cathy Waxlernoted that Kaseywas extremelyexcited with thewin. She said,“Kasey alreadyhas all kinds ofplans for him.We already have about 30 Miniature Horses,but this is our first Shetland.” Belinda Bagby ofCross Country Farm and a member of theBoard of Directors for the ASPC, donated Mr.Banker, a classic buckskin colt. “I picked thislittle guy out right away,” said Bagby. “I justknew he would be perfect for the EssayContest.”

Lucky Kasey Waxler acceptsher new Champion pony,

Cross Country’s Mr. Bankerfrom donor, Belinda Bagby

In driver’s seat, youth essaywinner, Kimberly Cotter drives

her new pony, E’s Sir Nite with Fran Eperthener.

Acampo, CA- Carole Ann Ford

will soon be receiving ayear’s supply of Vetrolin®brand grooming products fromVetrolin® manufacturer Farnam. Judges at thisyear’s American Shetland Pony Congress,held in early August inCloverdale, Indiana,were asked to choosethe Shetland Ponythat outshined all therest. The decisionof the three judgeswas unanimousand Ford’s Wauk-A-Way Daphne wasdeclared the winnerof the 2008 Vetrolin®Grooming Award.

S h a r o nHousley exhibitedWauk-A-Way Daphnein the Classic Mareand Foal of CurrentYear class. Thatmeant extra difficultyfor Wauk-A-WayDaphne’s groomsbecause she and theyoung foal by her sideboth had to lookimmaculate to win the Vetrolin® award.Housley was thrilled to win the class butwinning the Vetrolin® Grooming Awardwas an honor she never anticipated!

Farnam has been a recognized

name in the animal health care industryfor more than 60 years. Today, Farnam is thelargest marketer of equine products in the

United States.F a r n a m ’ sVetrolin® lineoffers acomplete lineof horseg r o o m i n gproducts thatallow you topamper yourhorse in aspa-like expe-rience. TheV e t r o l i n ®bath, condi-tioner, detan-gler, andshine are justsome of theproducts thatare designed

to make anyhorse’s coathealthy, clean,and shiny.

Farnam’s Platform® Feed divisionhas been a strong supporter of the AmericanShetland Pony Club (ASPC) since they

launched their Platform®Miniature Horse and PonyFeed in 2006. MarketingDirector for the ASPC,

Johnny Robb said, “TheVetrolin® Grooming Award is just anotherexample of Farnam’s commitment to our smallequines.”

Two more Vetrolin® GroomingAward winners will be chosen at the AMHRNational Championships to be held in Tulsa,Oklahoma September 4th-13th. “Because theAMHR National show is so large, with over5000 entries, Farnam generously opted to givetwo Vetrolin® Grooming Awards”, explainedRobb, “One for A size miniature horses, 34-inches and under and one for B size minia-tures, 38-inches and under.”

With such great Vetrolin® productsfrom Farnam, Wauk-A-Way Daphne and herfoal are sure to maintain their gleaming coats.For more information regarding Vetrolin®products, visit www.farnamhorse.com. Formore information about the Shetland Poniesand Miniature Horses, visit www.shetlandminiature.com.

Vetrolin is a registered trademark ofFarnam Companies,Inc. Platform is a regis-tered trademark ofFarnam Companies,Inc. (Photo courtesy ofWashburn Photography)


Shetland Pony Congress This American Shetland Pony was foaledFebruary 20th of this year. Even at his youngage, Cross Country’s Mr. Banker is already aGrand Champion having won the title in Area 5.He also won the Nationals Championship titlein his weanling class at Congress the daybefore he became Kasey Waxler’s pony. CrossCountry’s Mr. Banker and Kasey Waxler alsohave a bright future together.

Eperthener and Bagby, donators ofthese two American Shetland Ponies, havemade a generous contribution to acknowledgeyouths in the small equine world. This spirit ofgiving seems to be an extension of another biggift from the American Shetland Pony Club ear-lier this year. The ASPC donated two ponies tothe Hong Kong Equestrian Federation as agesture of goodwill for hosting the 2008Equestrian Olympics. “The Shetland poniesthemselves are still the best ambassadors ofthe breed,” said ASPC Marketing Director,Johnny Robb, “We are fortunate to have somany generous members that help make ourponies available for these wonderfulprograms.”

For more information about the AmericanShetland Pony Club or other programs involvingAmerican Shetland Ponies, visitwww.shetlandminiature.com.

Photos: (courtesy of Washburn Photography)

Shetland Congress Vetrolin® Grooming Award Winner To Receive a Year’s Supply of Vetrolin® Products

Vetrolin® Grooming Award winner Wauk-A-Way Daphne at the 2008 American Shetland Pony Congress

and exhibitor, Sharon Housley accept s the prize from ASPC Board President, Larry Parnell


Professional’sC h o i c eannounces itsnew “ToughEnough toWear Pink” (TETWP) pad as the newestmeans in the fight against breast cancer.Professional’s Choice continues its support bydonating a portion of sales from every pink padthey sell to the Susan G. Komen BreastCancer Foundation.

With a striking pink Navajotop and TETWP decal this saddle padnot only makes a statement, but meansneeded funds for cancer research.Professional’s Choice joined the west-ern industry’s “Tough Enough to WearPink” campaign in the fall of 2005, andhas continued ever since.

The new pad is a special edi-tion designed especially to bring atten-tion to the cause and increase fundingin the quest to eradicate this insidiousdisease. Nearly everybody in the U.S.has been touched by the effects of it inone way or another as was Dal Scott,president and founder of Professional’sChoice, who had a dear friend fall victim to thedisease and another one who managed to beat it. This is his way of helping to increasethe odds in favor of the survivors.

T h e

handsome new TETWP pad has a 100%wool Navajo top, 100% merino wool lining andthe patented, incredibly durable SMx AirRide™ saddle pad core. It has been scientifi-

cally proven to absorb shock and evenly dis-tribute pressure across the horse’s back,increasing overall comfort for the horse. It isalso highly breathable, allowing the free flow ofair, resulting in accelerated heat dispersionand moisture evaporation. The horse feels

less heatand coolsoff faster. Arecent inde-

p e n d e n tstudy by Kansas State University confirmedthat the SMx Air Ride™ out-performed otherpads for pressure distribution and moisturewicking properties. The SMx Air Ride™ is also

lightweight and flexible and conforms tothe horse’s back.

This pad is available in 34x36” and30x30” sizes and comes with a very gen-erous 60-day money back guarantee anda one year warrantee. It will be availablein tack stores in October.

The more comfortable the horse, thebetter the performance.To locate an authorized Professional’sChoice dealer near you, call 800-331-9421 or visit their website at www.prof-choice.com.

Professional’s Choice is a pioneerin producing products strictly with the wellbeing of the horse in mind. As inventor

and manufacturer of the original patentedSports Medicine Boot, the SMB Elite™ and theSMx Air Ride™ Saddle Pad, Professional’sChoice continually produces high quality prod-ucts recognized by top trainers, professionalsand everyday horseman alike.

Professional’s Choice Supports Breast Cancer Research With the New “Tough Enough to Wear Pink” Saddle Pad!

WW ee ll ll -- HH oo rr ss eeLLaauunncchheess tthheeFFiirrsstt AAiidd KKiittiinn aa BBoottttllee

How do you heal openwounds or unsightlyskin conditions? Nowyou can expect won-ders with Well HorseAntibacterial Resinand advanced healingformula. Well Horsestops infection imme-diately and forms alayer of protection tokeep dirt out ofwounds. In addition, itheals ugly skin condi-

tions, such as burns, skin fungus, scratches,dew poisoning, rain rot, ring worm, girth itch,bit sores and cracked heals. Well Horse is thefastest working First Aid Kit in a Bottle with theeasy to use dauber or spray.Well Horse is an organic, 100% natural propri-etary blend of specific tree resins from theAmazon Rain Forest, plus antioxidants, simplephenols, diterpenes, phytosterols and lignans.(No trees are harmed in this process.) It isNon-toxic, contains no iodine and will not burninjured tissue and is safe for all animals. Wounds and skin problems heal faster withoutkilling the hair follicle while forming new colla-gen and regenerating tissue. What that meansto your horse is that the hair grows back (with-

out telltale white hair re-growth). "Every ownerknows the heartbreak of wounds healingimproperly causing proud flesh, scars andunsightly white hairs," said Coco Fernandez,creator of Well Horse. "Now with Well Horse,wounds and skin problems heal themselvesand get you back to the show ring quickly".Whether you discover a gaping wound in yourhorses' stall, or find girth itch when you'reaway showing, Well Horse is you all-in-one"First Aid Kit in a Bottle". Samples, storiesand locations to buy can be found at www.well-horse.com .Well-Horse • (419) 295-0474 • Well-Horse.com

IInnttrroodduucciinngg WWeell ll --HHoorrsseeTThhrruusshh OOffff,, TThhee HHooooff SSaavveerrtthhaatt HHeeaallss -- TThhee OOnnllyy SSaaffeeNNaattuurraall HHooooff PPrroodduucctt TThhaattEElliimmiinnaatteess TThhrruusshh && HHeeaallssIInnssiiddee tthhee HHooooff

Are your stalls and working areas less thanideal for your horses feet? Eliminate anychance of nasty thrush bacteria while healingthe inside of the hoof with Well Horse 'ThrushOff'. Relax, unlike other thrush killing products,Thrush Off is non-toxic, non-caustic and willnot burn sensitive or live tissue. It heals theinside of the hoof naturally while it acts as anantibiotic. Use Thrush Off weekly to preventinfections such as thrush, absesses, quartercracks, and white line disease. Thrush Offheals and will not burn the coronet band or an

open wound and quickly elimi-nates nasty black necrotic

(dead) tissue around the frog, cleftand sulcus.

Application is easy with the handy bottle andbrush. Once the black necrotic (dead) tissuehas been removed and the inside of the hoofhas been cleaned, you simply brush on ThrushOff to target and eliminate thrush and its' foulodor and regain healthy tissue growth.Developed by Master Farrier, CocoFernandez, Thrush Off is an organic, 100%natural proprietary blend of specific tree resinsfrom the Amazon Rain Forest. (No trees areharmed in this process.) It is non-toxic, con-tains no iodine and will not burn injured tissueand is safe for all animals.

"Thrush Off shortensthe recovery timedramatically whentreating injuries andinfections to the coro-net band, crackedheels, thrush,absesses, quartercracks and laminitis"said Fernandez, "it'sthe only hoof saverthat also heals".Samples, stories andlocations to buy canbe found atwww.well-horse.com.

Well-Horse • (419)295-0474 • Well-Horse.com

Well-Horse Introduces Two New Products


9/3/08 MN, Chatfield “Barrel,Futurity “United Barrel RacingAssociation - Gartner’s Arena UBRASummer Series FINALS- 2 Opens,PW, Youth, 2D Futurity Sidepot,(507)259-8105 [email protected]

9/4/08 - WI,Balsam Lake, Barrel, Game Show United Barrel Racing Association - JJ Arena FunShow Saddle Series & UBRA Barrel Race - (715) 857-5505 - [email protected]

9/5-9/7-MN, Fergus Falls, Red Horse Ranch,September Celebration MN Pinto Horse Assoc., 6Judges. Stalling, Contact Karen Clark at 763-682-5324, Show Manager, Kameron Duncanson 763-355-9541 or Larry Bartells 320-248-8642”

9/5-9/7 SD, Rapid City Barrel Futurity“ 5 StateBreeders Futurity” - (605) 431-9480

9/5-9/7 - KS, Topeka - Barrel Double B ProductionsPetrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 [email protected]

9/5-9/7 - TX, Midland “Auction, Clinic, Concert,Dressage, Horse Expos & Fairs, Sales, SpectatorEvents , Other “ (432) 599-1569 [email protected]

9/6/08 - MN, North Branch - Barrel 5th AnnualBenefit - American Cancer Society - (651)277-1095

9/6-9/7 - MN, North Branch - Barrel HouckSummer Barrel Racing Saddle Series FINALS &Annual Benefit! This will be a Power Barrels Event:www.powerbarrels.com - (651) 277-1095 [email protected]

9/6/08 - MN, Princeton - Barrel - United BarrelRacing Association - Round Up Riders SaddleClub Saddle Series - (320) 983-2679 [email protected]

9/6/08 - MN, Loman - “Barrel, Game Show,Spectator Events , Trail Ride “-United BarrelRacing Association - Dancing Sky Ranch UBRASummer Series - Added $$$ - (218) [email protected]

9/6-9/7 - NE, Fremont - Barrel - Purina MillsSaddle Series - (712) 545-9152

9/10-9/14 - WY, Gillette - “Barrel, Futurity “Fizz Bomb Barrel Futurity - (307) 687-2017

9/11 - 9/14 - MO, Huntsville - Trail / PleasureAQHA Rainer Trail Ride 2008 - “Great Fun, GreatFood, Great Ride....Rainer Ranch is the place tobe September 11-14, 2008 For more info visithttp://www.missvalley.com/rainertrailride/index.htm”

9/10 - MN, Monticello “Barrel, Futurity “ UnitedBarrel Racing Association - Arrowhead Arena -Weds Night Summer Series - (763) 878-1554 [email protected]

9/12/08 - MN, Cannon Falls - Barrel Tuff Enuf SlotRace $2375 PURSE 2D Half Second. 25 horses.$100 ef. $713 1st Place 1D!!! - (715) 857-6343 [email protected]

9/12/08 - MN, Sherburn - Barrel - Wisconsin GirlsBarrel Racing Association - WI GIRLS BARRELRACING ASSOCIATION Open Barrel Race ~OPEN TO ANYONE - (715) 237-2485 - [email protected]

9/13-9/14 - MN, Clearwater - Mounted Shooting -Minnesota Mounted Shooters AssociationClearwater Shoot - (763) 286-5393 [email protected]

9/13/08 - MN, Cannon Falls - “Barrel, SpectatorEvents “, Other - Champions Choice Buckle BikiniRace @ 2008 Barrel Bonanza. $50 Cash Bonus

Best Bikini & Wildest Ride - (715) 857-6343 [email protected]/13-9/13 - IL, Woodstock - “Horse Expos & Fairs,Other “ - 2nd Annual Hooved Animal HumaneSociety (HAHS) Fun Horse Show & Picnic 10804McConnell Road, Woodstock, IL 60098 *Fun HorseShow *Equestrian Drill Team *Vendors *PonyRides *Wagon Rides *Tack Shop *Food & Drink -(815) 337-5563 - [email protected]”

9/13-9/14 - EC:9/1/2008 - MN, Cannon Falls“Barrel, Futurity “ - “Northern Region Futurities,United Barrel Racing Association “ - $5,000 AddedBarrel Bonanza. 4 Trophy Saddles! Averageawards to 3rd place: Futurity, Derby, Open 4D &Youth! - (715) 857-6343 - Added Money: $5000 -

[email protected]

9/13-9/13 - WI, Mauston - Barrel“NBHA, WI 02, WI. NBHA “ - RedCedar Ridge - (608) 847-2273

9/18/08 - WI, Balsam Lake - “Barrel,Game Show“ United Barrel RacingAssociation - JJ Arena Fun Show & UBRA Barrel Race -(715) 857-5505 - [email protected]/19-9/21 - MN, Fergus Falls - Barrel - Double BProductions - Petrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641)743-8223 - [email protected]

9/19-9/21 - NE, Fremont - Clinic - Jimmie MunroeBarrel Racing Clinic

9/20/08 - MN, Loman - “Barrel, Game Show,Spectator Events , Trail Ride “ - United BarrelRacing Association - Dancing Sky Ranch UBRASummer Series & BBQ - (218) 285-3433 [email protected] on page 29

UPCOMING EVENTS

Ocala, FL- Equilite is pleased tosponsor six time National Combined DrivingChampion Chester Weber. Currentlycampaigning this summer in Europe, Weberdistinguished himself by winning the TimeShuttle prize in the CHIO Aachen and thengoing on tocrush thecompetition inthe prestigiousG e r m a nF a h r d e r b y(Driving Derby)in Riesenbeck.

Weber’s tour willculminate at theWorld DrivingChampionshipsin Beesd,Netherlands. Animpressive “sponsor team” accompaniedWeber on his successful tour in Europe,contributing to his horses performing in peakform for the major competitions they entered.They are approaching the World DrivingChampionships in first-rate physical conditionpartly due to the fact that Weber is committedto using the finest products to care for his hors-es. One product that Team Weber has reliedon regularly is Equilite’s Sore No More®Liniment. So the sponsorship endorsementbetween Weber and Equilite, Inc., makers

of Sore No More, was a naturalprogression.

Equilite’s Sore No More productshave earned an outstanding reputation forsoothing the aching muscles and legs of highperformance sport horses. Along with the Sore

No More product line,Equilite, Inc. makes anumber of high qualitybotanical productsincluding a cooling claypoultice, all-naturalherbal supplements, flysprays, shampoos, andtopical treatments.

B e c a u s eEquilite productscontain no chemical orharsh abrasives there islittle threat of allergicreactions so it is very

safe to use. Weber is committed to all-naturalherbal-based Sore No More liniment forrelieving sore muscles and wrapping thehorses’ legs at night. This liniment is also safeto use on horses with sensitive skin because ofits proprietary herbal blend.

“We are excited to have ChesterWeber as part of our Equilite’s Team,” saidStacey Small, President of Equilite. “Chester isnot only committed to his own horses care andwellbeing, but also demonstrates acommitment to the welfare of the entire eques-

trian community andthat is philosophy thatwe share at Equilite.”

Weber is aninfluential representa-tive for his sponsors,bringing attention oftheir products tocombined drivingenthusiasts, profes-sional whips andtrainers. His team istreated to some of thefinest care equineproducts can afford ahorse. Weber’soutstanding record,both in the UnitedStates and in Europe,make him uniquelyqualified to encouragethe use of EquiliteSore No Moreproducts for horsementhroughout theindustry and the world.

E q u i l i t eproducts are availableat most tack storesand equine catalogsthroughout the U.S. orvisit www.equilite.comonline for moreinformation.


Equilite, Inc.TM Joins Chester Weber’s Team of Sponsors

New Bits from the Bob Avila Collection

A Bit for EveryHorse!

Professional’s Choice announcesthe expansion of the Bob Avila SignatureSeries line due to ever widening attention anddemand.

Designed and tested by Bob Avila,“World’s Greatest Horseman” and holder ofnearly 40 world titles and the only horseman towin the Magnificent 7 three times in a row, andproduced by Professional’s Choice, the BobAvila Collection has expanded to include over35 styles of bits and spurs. Avila, a soughtafter professional trainer, developed the seriesover many years of working and training hors-es. His extensive hands-on experience andskills have enabled him to develop bits for mul-tiple purposes including specialty bits for indi-vidual needs and bits that can help address aspecific problem.

When first introduced, the Bob AvilaCollection became instantly popular, not onlydue to the types of bits offered, but becausethe bits are extremely affordable allowing thehorseman to train the horse through severalbits if necessary. Because of the wide varietyof horses and disciplines at various levels oftheir training, it was decided to add to thishugely successful bit line.

Newly added are two short shankmedium port bits, two new snaffle bits, threehackamores and a new medium copper port bitwith Bob’s signature shank.

“I am always looking for somethingnew that will work on a specific horse and Ireally wanted to be sure we had something foreveryone’’ says Avila. “Using the correct bitcan move a horse along in its training at afaster rate with more sustainable resultsbecause you have a calmer more focusedhorse. The correct bit lets the horse work withyou instead of against you.”

Bob Avila is involved in research,design and development for otherProfessional’s Choice signature productsincluding their line of protective boots. “Thequality is simply the best. They thoroughly testtheir products on both everyday and perform-ance horses, so you know they are effective.Professional’s Choice products have alwaysbeen there for me and never let me down.”

The more comfortable the horse, the bet-ter the performance.

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

As inventor and manufacturer of the originalpatented Sports Medicine Boot, the SMBElite™ and the SMx Air Ride™ Saddle Pad,Professional’s Choice continually produceshigh quality products recognized by top train-ers, professionals and everyday horseman allover the world.

Coming Events continued from page 29


9/20/08 - MN, Brook Park - Roping - Team Roping/Breakaway Roping - Enter at 8:30 am, Rope at9:00 am. Buckles awarded at EACH roping for 1stplace winner of Ladies Breakaway Jackpot. A sad-dle will be presented to winner of LadiesBreakaway Series! - (763) 258-4815

9/20/08 - 9:00 - IL, Pleasant Hill -Horse Show MFQHA Open Show - Classes include ranch horsepleasure, cutting, ruanch cutting, reining, ranchreining, team sorting, ranch horse trail, barrels, &poles & conformation classes. Buckles to high pt.and reserve Sr, Jr, cattle, & youth. - (217) 491-0833

9/21-9/21 - WI, Beaver Dam - Barrel - NBHA, WI02, Wisconsin NBHA “ Boots & Saddle Club Arena- (920) 382-3560

9/26-9/28 - IA, Waterloo - Barrel - Double BProductions - Petrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

9/26-9/28 - MN, Henderson - “Barrel, Clinic “Kelly Kaminski Barrel Racing Clinic - (952) 448-5657 - [email protected]

9/26-9/27 - TX, Guthrie - “Auction, Horse Sale &Auction “ - 2008 Return to the Remuda SaleSaturday, 9/27. Preview ~ Friday, 9/26. Hosted by:Pitchfork Land & Cattle Company. QualityProspects from the historical ranches of 6666Ranch, Beggs Ranch, Pitchfork Ranch and TongueRiver Ranch. - (806) 596-4424

9/26-9/28 - NE, Wahoo - Clinic - Walt WoodwardTeam Roping Clinic for both headers and heelers712-545-9152

9/27 - 9/28 - MN, Jordan - JP BELL CUTTINGCLINIC at 2 BIT QUARTER HORSEScontact Dianne at 952-492-6166www.2bitquarterhorses.com

limited to the first 15 riders - Spectors welcomefree of charge.

9/27/08 - MN, Litchfield - Barrel - Cowgirl Tuff Co.1st Annual Barrel Race - (320) 693-2339 [email protected]

9/27/08 - MN, North Branch - Fun Show - (651)277-1095 - [email protected]

9/27/08 - 9:45 - WI, Balsam Lake -“Barrel, GameShow “ - United Barrel Racing Association - JJArena Fun Show & UBRA Barrel Race - Always thelast Saturday of the month! - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

9/28/08 - MN, Lindstrom - Barrel United BarrelRacing Association - $500 Added-JackpotBarrels/Pole Bending at Oasis. Check www.betterbarrelraces.com for BBR approveddates. - (612) 205-2256 - [email protected]

10/2/08 - WI, Balsam Lake - “Barrel, Game Show “United Barrel Racing Association - JJ Arena FunShow & UBRA Barrel Race - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

10/3-10/5 - SD, Huron - “Barrel, Futurity ““Northern Region Futurities, United Barrel RacingAssociation “ - 10th Annual Bold Heart Futurity,Derby, Breeder’s & Open Barrel Race - (605) 543-5797 - Added Money: $15000 - [email protected]/4-10/5 - NE, Fremont - Barrel - Purina MillsSaddle Series - (712) 545-9152

10/5/08 - 9:00 - MN, Lindstrom - Horse Show OPEN FUN SHOW - (651) 257-4642

10/10-10/12 - CO, Loveland - “Barrel, Futurity “Spin 3 A Mile Hi $5,000 Added Futurity $1,000Added Derby - (720) 530-4159 - [email protected]

10/10-10/12 - MN, Verndale - “Barrel, Sales,Spectator Events” - United Barrel Racing Assoc. UBRA World Finale $5,000 Added Min. Open,Futurity & Youth Weekend Awards. - (715) 857-6343 - Added Money: $5000 - [email protected]”

10/10-10/12 - NE, Lincoln - Barrel Double BProductions - Petrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

10/11-10/12 - MN, Verndale - “Barrel, Futurity,Sales, Spectator Events “ - “Northern RegionFuturities, United Barrel Racing Association “ “”” JJClassic Futurity and Derby w/ Breeder’s Incentive.$2,000 Added Futurity $1,000 Added Derby +$7,000+ JJBI - (715) 857-6343 - Added Money:$3000 - [email protected]”

10/16/08 - WI, Balsam Lake - “Barrel, Game ShowUnited Barrel Racing Association - JJ Arena FunShow & UBRA Barrel Race - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

10/17-10/19 - MN, Fergus Falls - “Barrel, Futurity “$8000 Total added money PLUS MCA IncentiveMoney for eligible futurity horses.(701) 541-3930 [email protected]

10/18/08 - MN, Lindstrom - Barrel - United BarrelRacing Association -” THIS EVENT HAS BEENCANCELLED! - (612) 205-2256 [email protected]


10/18/08 - MN, Brook Park - Roping, Team Roping/Breakaway Roping - Enter at 8:30 am, Rope at9:00 am. Buckles will be awarded at EACH ropingfor the 1st place winner of the Ladies BreakawayJackpot. A saddle will be presented to the winner ofthe Ladies Breakaway Series! - (763) 258-4815

10/21 - MN, Stillwater - Friesians/CrossbredsInspection - Contact: Sandra Adams, 651-491-5378

10/24-10/26 - MN, Sherburn - Barrel Double BProductions - Petrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

10/25-10/26 - SD, Platte - “Barrel, Futurity ““Northern Region Futurities, United Barrel RacingAssociation “ - Heartland Futurity & Derby $500Added Futurity $500 Added Derby - (605) 796-4618- [email protected]

10/25/08 - 9:45 - WI, Balsam Lake - “Barrel, GameShow “ - United Barrel Racing Association JJArena Fun Show & UBRA Barrel Race - Always thelast Saturday of the month! - (715) 857-5505 [email protected]

10/31-11/2 - MO, Carthage - Barrel - Double BProductions - Petrol Jeans Barrel Bash - (641) 743-8223 - [email protected]

10/31-11/2 - MN, Fergus Falls - “Barrel, Futurity,Sales, Spectator Events” - “Northern RegionFuturities, United Barrel Racing Association “ “”2008 NRF Tour Finals. Open to ALL NRF TOURHORSES. $$$$ & AWARDS - (715) 857-6343 -Added Money: $2500 - [email protected]

10/31-11/2 - MN, Fergus Falls - “Barrel, Futurity “United Barrel Racing Association - UBRA Tour -ADDED $$$ & CLEAN SLATE WEEKENDAWARDS. Open 4Ds, Youth, 2D Futurity, PeeWee -(715) 857-6343 - [email protected]”


Andersen NamedDirector of the Unwanted

Horse CoalitionThe American Horse Council is pleased

to announce the arrival of Julia Andersen, whowill serve as the Director of the UnwantedHorse Coalition.

Andersen came to the UHC with a versatilebackground in communications and life-longpassion for horses. While receiving undergrad-uate degrees in Rhetoric/Communications andFine Arts from Mount St. Mary’s University,Andersen also founded the school’s Equestrianteam and club. She went on to earn hermaster’s degree in Journalism from EmersonCollege. Andersen gained strong experiencein writing, creativity and deadline managementthroughout her professional career in thetelevision industry, while working in programdevelopment for the Discovery Channel and asan Associate Producer for Court TV. Mostrecently, Andersen worked for Maryland LifeMagazine as an Account Executive.

Jay Hickey, President of the AmericanHorse Council, said, “We are happy to haveJulia join the team. She brings greatenthusiasm, and an understanding of the horseindustry.”

“I have always found my energy inhorses. Working for the Unwanted HorseCoalition on the problem of the unwanted horseis the perfect opportunity for me. I am trulylucky to find a career where I can combine myexperience in communications and my knowl-edge of the horse industry,” said Andersen.

As the national associationrepresenting all segments of the horse industryin Washington, D.C., the American HorseCouncil works daily to represent equineinterests and opportunities. Organized in 1969,the AHC promotes and protects the industry bycommunicating with Congress, federalagencies, the media and the industry on behalfof all horse related interests each and everyday.

The AHC is member supported by individu-als and organizations representing virtuallyevery facet of the horse world from owners,breeders, veterinarians, farriers, breedregistries and horsemen's associations tohorse shows, race tracks, rodeos, commercialsuppliers and state horse councils.


As I travel around the country, what I see inthe gaited horse world are people trying tomake horses gait before they teach them to bea “broke” horse. Most of the gaited horses thatattend our clinics have problems that resultfrom no foundation training.

Manygaited riderswant thehorse tohave analmost verti-cal neck toachieve gait.T h e yattempt toobtain thiscarriage bydriving thehorse force-fully into thehand orusing equip-ment to holdthe position,thus riskinga falseframe. The horse must systematically learnhow to adjust his feet and use his body in newways, changing his understanding of balance.He must also develop the muscles needed forcollection.

Sometimes when you ride a gaited horsethat becomes alarmed or when you turn backto the barn, the horse gaits very well. If hegaits better in situations like this than he nor-mally does, it is because he is motivated to goand therefore has better engagement of thehind legs. Since he is doing this without beingcued, he is more or less running away. Manyriders try to get their horses to gait by artificial-ly reproducing this type of engagement. Theyuse leg to push the horse into a bridle or pieceof equipment that is intimidating enough thatthe horse can’t run off. When a horse is taughtto gait this way, an insecure rider has problemsgetting the horse to gait because they fearloosing control. Restraining the head in anyway creates stiffness. Stiffness destroysrhythm and gait is rhythm.

Optimally, we want to teach the horse toengage the hind legs when we cue with ourlegs and still remain soft in our hands. If weeducate the horse correctly, he can gait withhis head up or down. Head and neck positionhas little to do with gait. Collection is not head-set but engagement.

Pulling on the face for gait forces the horseinto a false frame; with the neck up but theback dropped and the hind legs workingbehind the balance. Most gaited horses cangait this way, but the horse creates defenses.Problems such as pacing, rushing the bridle,herd sour, and the list goes on. Riders come

to clinics wanting to fix each problem. Whatwe need to do is cure the disease and notjust fix the symptoms. The real problem ishorse’s body is full of tension and braces,

because he does not understand the bridle, orthe rider does not know how to use it. By sup-pling and strengthening the horse, we canremove tension and stiffness.

Relaxation allows the horse to becomemore flexible in his joints and muscles. When

we get the horse moresoft and supple he canobtain deeper engage-ment, needed to help agaited horse gait. Thisengaged frame, with theback raised, allows thehorse to transfer his cen-ter of gravity from theforehand to the areabeneath the rider and ulti-mately obtain self-car-riage. When we haveeducated the horse clas-sically, removing all ten-sion and braces through-out his body, the energytraveling from thehaunches can flow for-ward. The horse then

finds forward impulsion less of an effort. Thiscontrolled forward impulsion is what generatesgait.

It is easy to educate a horse to the bridlebecause heonly wants toknow onething; “what doI need to do tokeep yourhands out ofmy mouth.”When helearns that howhe respondswith his feet isthe answer hewill do whatyou want verygenerously. Ifyou are pullingon the reins asyou are sayingwhoa, he hasno chance. Isee riders pullthe head to the right to get the horse to turn. Ifhe doesn’t turn they pull more. When you pullthe head around the horse is out of balanceand it is hard for the feet to take the body to theright. Pulling builds braces in the horse. Myhorse needs to know if I touch the bridle I amtalking to his feet and not his face.

The head and neck are a huge part of thehorse’s balance system. When we force theneck up before teaching the horse to redistrib-ute his weight, we jeopardize the balance of

our horse. Developing the muscles to redis-tribute the weight is part of it. There is no waya three year old horse can have the muscles tocarry a rider in a collected frame. A horse con-stantly pulled out of balance by the bridlebecomes anxious or worried; and a worriedhorse is not safe to ride. You can count on acorrectly schooled horse to give you the sameresponse every time, in all situations.

Horses constantly pulled out of balance willhave a harder time finding gait because itdestroys the rhythm of the feet. It is easier fora trotting horse to maintain trot while beingpulled on, but a four beat gait is a more fragilegait. You see trotting horses that are uncom-fortable in the bride, jig at the walk. This is evi-dence that it is easier to deteriorate their fourbeat gait than their trot.

The bridle is a preparatory cue, it is not whatturns or stops the horse. Touching the reinsshould tell the horse get ready to turn. Mostriders just pull to turn, which surprises thehorse. You should do no more than close yourfingers to let him know you are turning. Heturns because he follows your seat and shoul-ders. If you lean you are trying to turn the frontend of the horse. Its like your car, you turn thefront wheels right but the car won’t turn untilyou step on the accelerator so the back wheelspush the front wheels around. If you lean andpull on the face the horse doesn’t turn well.Just close your right hand turn your shouldersand the horse turns his, then ride forward sothe hind legs drive the front feet through the

turn. By closing the fin-gers on your right handto signal the horse, hewill gather himself into aframe to turn right. Bypulling on the reins toturn you surprise himand he turns out of bal-ance, because he does-n’t prepare himself. Ifriders drove cars asinconsiderately as theyride their horses theirinsurance companieswould drop them, butthere is no one lookingout for the welfares ofthe horses. Most riderswait until they are at thespot where they want tostop to say whoa asthey pull on the mouth.

The horse has no chance to reposition hisweight and feet so he can stop. He is sur-prised to know you were stopping. It takesseveral strides to stop. Not only does he haveto prepare his frame to stop but there is a thingcalled inertia. It is not fair to expect a thousandpound animal to stop in one or two strides.You don’t wait until you are at the stop sign tostart breaking. The faster you are going themore time you allow to stop.continued on page 38

Classical Training for the Gaited Horseby Larry Whitesell, trainer

Visit us online at www.horsedigests.comfor even more info, photo

classifieds, community events, training videos

and more coming all the time.....

We have many opportunities foryou to promote your

equine related business. For more information call

Mark or Peg at

507-943-3355 or email:[email protected]@horsedigests.com

September 12, 2008Dakota Classic Cutting Futurity Horse Sale Selling Yearlings and 2 year olds eligible for the DCCF FuturityHeld in Conjunction with the DakotaClassic Cutting Futurity, 3:00pm CentralTime Held: SD State Fair Grounds, Huron, SouthDakota. Request a catalogue for information:Jenny 605-222-7491

September 13 Double R Quarter Horse Ranch Sale, 1 pm, Atthe Ranch, Washburn,ND, www.doublerquarterhorses.com

September 13, John Finarty Quarter HorseProduction Sale, Clarke County Fairgrounds inOsceola, IA., 1:00 pm, .641-862-4436

September 13 Open Box Rafter Ranch Annual ProductionSale, Central StatesFairgrounds, Rapid City, SD, 605-538-4450

September 13, 2008 WYO Quarter Horse Sale,Hot Springs County Fairgrounds,

in Thermopolis, Wyoming. 12 pm. WYO Quarter HorseRanch, PO Box 642, Thermopolis, WY82443, 307-864-5671,PHONE NUMBER FOR SALE DAY:

307-272-0593, email: [email protected] 14

Wyoming Blanton Production & PerformanceHorse Sale, Pine Bluffs,WY, 307-245-3609

September 19 Balkenbush Sunshine Ranch Final ProductionSale, Bush Arena,Conrad, MT, 406-278-3569

September 19WD Ranch Production SaleW/D Ranch 6940 N. Montana Ave Helena,Montana, (406) 458-8706

September 20 Weaver Quarter Horses 13th Annual ProductionSale, Great Falls, MT, www.weaverhorses.comSeptember 20Roan Rose Ranch Production and Ranch HorseSale, Willard, MO., www.roanrose.com417-742-3469

September 20MA Quarter Horses Production and HerdReduction Sale, www.mahorses.com, 940-742-4444

September 2012th Annual Van Norman and freinds ProductionSale, Elko, Nevada, [email protected], Catalog on line at:www.vannormansale.comSeptember 21

Central Nebraska Ranch & Production HorseSale, Broken Bow, NE, 308.872.2243www.centralnebraskahorsesale.com

September 27 Performance Quarter Horses Breeders of SD4th Annual Sale, Futurity10 am, Pre-view 4 pm, Sale 5 pm, Yellow RoseArena, Platte, SD,www.pqhbsd.com

September 28North Country Quarter Horses and Sun PrairieHorses. [email protected] 406-964-1015

October 184th Annual Production and Invitation Sale, RiverBluff Ranch, Walnut Grove, Missouri. 417-376-8003, www.riverbluffranch.net

October 26North Country Breeders Draft Horse SaleKeystone Agricultural Centre , Brandon, M,Manitoba, Canada, 12:00 pmBlaine Peel, 204-567-3720 [email protected] Brown, [email protected] Lane, 204-842-3658, [email protected] Joorisity, 306-736-2769 [email protected]


Horse Fall Production and Futurity Sales


Leg control; is this a necessity intraining our horse or just an extra button? Dowe need it?

I believe, in getting our horse brokeand trained, it is a very important part of thetraining process to be able to communicatewith our horse.

Without body control through theuse of our legs, all we have is forward motionand no lateral movement. With the use of ourreins we can direct and turn our horse andthey learn to follow the nose, but without legcontrol we cannot ask them to side-pass, flexand bend their body to get them soft and flex-ible. Then when advancing the horse, we can-not teach and ask maneuvers of them such asour turn around or spin, lope departures, pick-ing up the correct lead and changing leadswithout being able to yield to our leg pressure.

So how do we teach our horse toyield to leg pressure or advance thereresponsiveness and control?

It will be like everything else, wewant to start out very simple and slow, step bystep, and build. Give the horse time to learnand build confidence.

Time----Consistency-----Repetition arethe main aspects of training!

I always want to make it as simpleand easy as possible for the horse. Set himup to succeed.

The first thing we want to teach ourhorse is simply to side pass, move thebody laterally or sideways. To make thissimple we want to block their forwardmotion by riding them up to a fence or awall. This allows the horse fewer opportu-nities to make a mistake, they now canonly go left, right, or backwards. The oddsare in their favor that they will take that lat-eral step. I want to keep it really simpleand keep it clear in his mind what to do. Iwill work on teaching him to yield in onedirection and get him confident and consis-

tent before I switch to the other direction toavoid any confusion to my horse when I amfirst introducing this maneuver. I want tohave my horse side pass to the right. When Ihave my horse facing the wall or fence, I applyleg pressure to the left side of my horse, andI really lift my right leg off the horse. Showingthe horse, there’s the open door (the rightside) and by giving a gentle push through it (onthe left side). Then I shift me weight (NOTLEAN) to the left side to take all the weight offthe right side and making it easier for thehorse to pick up his right legs and step over.Then I apply pressure with my left leg on thehorses side and push it to get him over (pushhim out the door).

If my horse has never done thismaneuver before when we ask him to do this,it may take him a bit to figure this out. He maypush into my leg, he may back up but I keepapplying pressure and being persistent andsooner or later he will take a step in the rightdirection. As soon as he does I release thepressure (the left leg) to keep our horsesresponsive and sharp to leg pressure. I alwayswear spurs, but I don’t always use them.

When applying pressure with my leg I alwaysuse the calf of my leg. Always ask or cue thehorse with the least amount of pressure to givehim the chance to respond before we step upthe pressure. If the horse doesn’t move off theuse of my calf then I will slowly press my spurinto his side. If I get the movement, even if it’sthe wrong direction or backwards I DO NOTstep up the pressure, I only remain consistentwith the pressure until the horse moves in thedirection that I am asking, and then I willrelease the pressure. As long as I’m gettingmovement, I know they are trying, and if theyare trying I can eventually direct the movementin the direction that I want.

If I still am not getting any results ormovement I need to step up the pressure. I donot like to kick on my horse with a spur.I believe a negative result happens by doingthis. If you kick, the horse tightens up andcringes at the spur jab. So instead, I pressharder or roll the spur up the side of thehorse’s belly. This action tickles the horse’s ribcage and causes them to really get off andrespect the leg without the fear of the kick orpoke.

I want to be very aware of my timingin the release of my leg pressure, as soon asthey take a stop off my leg and yield I take myleg and spur off to reward them for themovement over and to make it even moorclear in their mind that they did the right thingI will pause for a moment (let them stand) andpet them. If they don’t get the instant releaseof pressure when they yield, what reward tothey have or reason do they have to keeptrying for you.

Again, Timing and consistency aretwo of the three most important rules intraining and for building confidence, anddeveloping try in our horses.

Until next time, Good luck and God bless, Monty Bruce.

If you have any questions or would like moreinformation, log onto Monty’s web-site at www.montybruce.com

The Importance of Leg Controlby Monty Bruce



This article is written by Martie Jacobson,member of the National Walking HorseAssociation (NWHA) and licensed NWHAjudge. The beliefs and opinions expressedherein are her own, based on Ms. Jacobson’sexperience in riding, driving, breeding, train-ing and showing Walking Horses, ShetlandPonies and Peruvian Horses and are not nec-essarily the official position of the NWHA.

No Registration Required.Did you know that the National

Walking Horse Association (NWHA) does notrequire proof of registration for your horse tocompete in the show ring or to participate inany other NWHA affiliated activities? Did youknow that the NWHA has a Tracking Registry?This registry offers many benefits to its mem-bers, reflects positively on members’ breedingprograms and successfully impacts the NWHAmembership’s sales of naturally gaitedWalking Horses.

The National Walking HorseAssociation was created in 1998 by a group ofpeople who had been involved with an indus-try which was home to some folks who usedinhumane methods of training and showing theTennessee Walking Horse. Some of theNWHA founders will admit to having been rightthere in the trenches, involved with, or havinghad knowledge of the practice of soring.Soring is the inhumane practice of intentional-ly making a Tennessee Walking Horse’s frontfeet or lower legs so sore that he will lift hispain-filled front legs unnaturally high andunnaturally fast, thereby creating an exagger-ated gait. After watching these horses performthis horrific so-called gait, it is my opinion thatthis gait places extreme stress on the horse’sfeet, body, mind and spirit. Soring can beaccomplished with caustic chemicals or withforeign objects placed between theshoes/pads and the sensitive hoof sole or byfoundering, and any number of other creativebut illegal methods.

The Horse Protection Act (HPA) waswritten to put a stop to these inhumane prac-tices and the United States Department ofAgriculture (USDA) was charged with enforc-ing the HPA. However, due to lack of funds,the USDA was, and continues to be, very lim-ited in its ability to completely enforce thisHPA. So the practice of soring in some showsnot affiliated with NWHA continues, despite theadamant denials of folks still involved with thepractice.

What, if anything, does all of theabove have to do with why the NationalWalking Horse Association doesn’t requireproof of registration? Everything! Thefounders of NWHA felt that its members shouldnot be forced to register a horse just to partic-

ipate in NWHAa f f i l i a t e devents. NWHAwas created to

provide a fair and honest playing field wheresound, (not sored,) naturally gaited WalkingHorses could show, so it made no sense torequire proof of registration from any otherorganizations who might allow the exaggerat-ed, artificially created gait. The NWHA proud-ly adheres to a strict, “Zero Tolerance” policy,and after ten years of growth, the NWHAproudly maintains this practice which, by theway, exceeds the inspection requirements ofthe USDA and the HPA. Zero Tolerancemeans no horse which has scars or hair lossindicative of soring will be allowed into theshow ring. Zero Tolerance also means that nohorse will be allowed on the show grounds withplastic wrap covered legs or in the show ringwith foreign substances on the legs, wearingchains or exhibiting sensitivity to palpation orhoof testing.

In 2003 the NWHA Board ofDirectors began to explore the idea of a reg-istry to track the performance of sound,humanely trained Walking Horses competingagainst other sound, humanely trainedWalking Horses. Breeders wanted to knowwhich naturally gaited horses’ bloodlinescrossed with other naturally gaited horses’bloodlines might be more likely to produce ahorse which does a true flat walk and runningwalk rather than a pace or stepping pace andalso, which lines, when crossed, would mostlikely produce a quiet mannered trail horse.There are many Tennessee Walking Horseswith blue blood pedigrees who can’t performthe correct gaits, yet there are many, wonder-ful Walking Horses out there, without paperswho are quite literally, walking machines. Thatis why the NWHA membership created theNational Walking Horse Association TrackingRegistry (NWHATR,) … to track the perform-ance of sound horses, and in 2004, it becamea reality by a vote of the NWHA membership.The NWHA members also decided that if ahorse could perform the correct gaits, regis-tered or not, the horse was welcome to partic-ipate in all NWHA shows and events. After all,pedigree does not a Walking Horse make, or inother words, pretty is as pretty does.

This unique registry and searchdatabase is designed to be a helpful tool forbuyers and sellers because once in the NWHATracking Registry, the performance of thehorse is tracked as it participates in competi-tive events, endurance or trail rides. ThisTracking Registry provides a documentedrecord of the horse’s performance which canbe used as a breeding tool, a selling feature, orjust a walk down memory lane. The NWHA-TR is not a complete database of all WalkingHorses, or other gaited horses and their pedi-gree information, but for buyers seeking natu-rally gaited horses for show, gaming, jumping,

dressage trail riding, field trials or enduranceriding (the list goes on,) this tracking and per-formance information is invaluable becausethat buyer can be reasonably assured that noartificial techniques were used in the trainingor showing of these horses. In other words,these horses are naturally gaited horses pro-ducing foals performing the correct gaits frombirth.

The horse’s NWHATR registrationnumber appears with its name and anyNWHA championship titles are represented inred (NC-National Champion; NGC-NationalGrand Champion.)

There are two means by which aWalking Horse may be registered with theNWHATR: Owners who can furnish lineageinformation, both sire and dam, for their horsemay submit an application for registration intothe NWHATR; or the horse may become regis-tered through the Gait and Conformationprocess. That application process may befound by visiting www.nwha.com and clickingon “Tracking Registry.”

After reading about the TrackingRegistry information, please take time toexplore the entire NWHA website. It providesinformation on current events such as trailrides, training clinics, shows and many otherprograms including a great youth program.There is also a complete listing of trainers andbreeders of naturally gaited Walking Horses.The National Walking Horse Association’sNational Championship Show will be heldSeptember 30 – October 4, 2008 at the MillerColiseum in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Thisyear’s show promises to be bigger than ever,showcasing all naturally gaited, naturally mov-ing, happy horses doing what they do best.Come join us … you’ll be glad you did!The National Walking Horse Association ….It’s about the horse!

If you would like to discuss this article pleasecontact Martie Jacobson at [email protected]. Forgeneral information on the naturally gaitedWalking Horse or to become a member of theNational Walking Horse Association pleasecontact our executive director [email protected] or 859-252-NWHA (6942)or visit us at NWHA.com.

. ....There IS a Difference.

Tracking Registry

To advertsie in Midwest

Horse DigestCall

Mark or Peg at 507-943-3355

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

08 Zippo Pine Bar X Rugged Lark - $900.00 Bay colt with astar & snip.Incentive FundEligable. Very correct con-formation and a disposi-tion that one can’t beat.715-893-2301 [email protected]

CAZAR Bay PRE Andalusian 16.1 by IndianoXVIII Cazar is Benitez/Guardiola. Very sweet,Champion Halter &Preformance.Stud fee's $2,000andalusian $1,000 other 360 273 [email protected]

CAZAR Bay PRE Andalusian 16.1 by IndianoXVIII Cazar is Benitez/Guardiola. Very sweet,Champion Halter &Preformance.Stud fee's $2,000andalusian $1,000 other 360 273 [email protected]

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]

Zinnia BA Andalusian Mare (Despierto xZinnia) US ReserveNational ChampionAndalusian Mare. Price:$20,000.00 Zinnia BA is a16.1 hand baySpanish/Portuguese [email protected]

Wonderful Brood Mare, and lightlyUndersaddle.Price:$5,000.00 Grey Lady is awonderful Broodmare, sheis registered AmericanSaddlebred [email protected]

1/2 Andalusian Sport Horse CandidatePrice:$8,200.00 Posh is 1/2Andalusian 1/4 Arabian 1/4Saddlebred Gelding. He isregistered with IALHA. SireElegido [email protected]

For Sale For Sale

Services and Products

Photo Classifieds - $20.00Call 507-943-3355 to place your photo

classified or go online, place you class-fied and get one month in print FREE!


Midwest Horse Digests has a Sister Website

We invite you to view our flipbookmagazine online. Every issue is archivedonline and you can veiw it in a flip throughmagazine format. Just go towww.horsedigests.com and click on digests.

You will find more photo classifiedsfor Horses for Sale, Stallions, EquineProducts and Services and many othercategories. Traffic is growing every day so besure to place your classified there today.

Have an event, put it online in ourevent section!

Horsedigests.com is NOW addingmore articles online and training video too!You will want to bookmark our site so youcan go back regularly to read more articlesand we will soon be offering training videosright online.

Right now you will find articles fromLynn Palm and Craig Cameron!

We are excited to be able to bringthis service to the equine community andhope you enjoy the website along with eachand every issue of the magazine, whetheryou view it online or in print.

If you are an association you willwant to check out our Breed AssoicationAfflilation Program. Just register yourassoiciation, it’s free, promote it to yourmembers to use www.horsedigests.com fortheir advertising needs and make money foryour association. For details click on AffiliateProgram and see how you can earn cash foryour association.

Many new things are coming andwe are excited to be able to bring you amulti-faceted marketing program were youcan utilize both print and onlineopportunities to let people know about yourequine business.

Larry Whitesel...continued from page 32

The number one problem gaited horseshave is that riders spend most of their timeworking on their horse instead of their riding.Horses that have the genetics to gait wouldgait if the rider would ride and not interfere somuch. Most gaited horses will gait if they arebalanced and ridden for-ward. If we pull on them,lean in turns, sit unbal-anced, the horse spends allhis time rebalancing. Forexample if you say whoaand pull back, if your elbowscome back your pelvis goesforward. What would makethe horse know you arestopping when your pelvis ispushing forward? A horse isa four legged animal andcannot smoothly turn with-out forward riding. If yourhand comes toward yourpocket and your shoulderslean off to one side you can-not be riding forward in theturn. When working on cir-cles and reverses spendmore time working onYOUR riding, and your horse will get better atturning. Riders that attend our clinics are sur-prised at how well their horses turn and guidewhen they change themselves. It is easier tobuy new equipment or bits than it is to becomea rider, but I owe it to my horse to be a betterrider. Being a good rider doesn’t mean you

can stay on, it means you can get the mostfrom your horse with the least interference,your equipment, your seat, your hands, yourlegs. There are no braces in your horse oryou.

With all the training information available,we all agree that whatever I teach my horse on

the rightside, Ihave tot e a c hthe left.Yet web e l i e v ewe cant e a c hc o l l e c -tion byho ld ingb o t hr e i n sand driv-ing withb o t hl e g s .T h a twould beteachingb o t h

sides at once. Collection like everything elsehas to be taught one side at a time. You wouldteach turns on the forehand and turn on thehaunches. Right leg back would ask thehorse’s right hind leg to step under in a turn onthe forehand and vice versa. When the horsegets good at that you could ask for a shoulder-

in. Right shoulder-in teaches the horse to takethe left hind leg and step under to the bridle.Teach it at walk, then slow gait, then normalspeed. If we ask a horse for speed in his earlytraining we will loose the relaxation, necessaryfor true collection. His feet will move quickerthan his brain and muscles can keep up, hewill become tense. He will brace or get stiff inhis back blocking the flow of energy from thehind legs. The back has to stay soft andrelaxed to allow the hind legs to come under.To ask a three year old horse to be collected orquick would do damage to the horse mentallyand physically.

It is very common in the gaited horse worldto see riders hold their lower leg off the horseor ride with their feet way forward. It is thelower leg that takes the horses hind legs to thebridle. If the rider holds his leg off and gigs thehorse to drive him, then the horse becomesreactive to the leg instead of collecting. If thelower leg is held off, this tightens the musclesof the inner thigh of the rider. If you use thesemuscles it would encourage the back to drop,just as squeezing the seat muscles wouldcause the horse to hollow. If you are puttingthe lower leg on you are encouraging thehorse to lift his belly, which would raise hisback, bringing the hind legs forward. If yourfeet are not under you in a correct riding posi-tion, your legs cannot talk to the horses hindlegs. By sitting on your pockets with your feetin front of you, your pelvis cannot move withthe horse, restricting his movement and flow ofenergy. Anything that restricts forward impul-sion is going to make it tougher for a gaitedhorse to gait.

Sometimes we use strong equipment onour gaited horses before they are ready. Thiscreates confusion in the horse and destroyshis confidence. This translates to mentalstress, which usually converts to physicalbraces and stiffness. A horse that is trainedthrough a correct system will have a gait thatis fluid and rhythmic. The horse will neitherrush forward nor lag behind.

Because of genetics, some horses will gaiteasier or sooner than others. Breeders have aresponsibility to protect the integrity of thebreed. When breeding gaited horses keep thegait, disposition, and breed standard in mindand don’t be sidetracked by the latest fad inthe show ring. If you do have a horse that isdifficult to get to gait, just take the time to do itright. Get help, but beware of those who wantto fix your horse mechanically. You will justtrade one problem for two. When looking forhelp remember all horsemen are trainers butnot all trainers are horsemen. I would like tosee horses that have been trained by the per-son I will learn from. Are they trained like Iwant my horse to be? Are they light and bal-anced and relaxed? What is the horse’s dis-position during and after work?

To ride a gaited horse that is well schooledand moves with impulsion matched with light-ness has great satisfaction.

Larry Whitesell7380 Old Mill RdBaxter, TN 38544931-858-0658www.whitesellgaitedhorsemanship.com


TR

AD

ER

SC

OR

NE

RSeptember 08 MMidwest idwest HHorse orse DDigestigest Page 39Page 39Classifieds PRODUCTSConchos - Horse Hair Tassels - Bling for ShowsParades and Everyday Riding. [email protected] Designer Beaded cable showhalters XS mini - Large Horse sizes.www.picturetrail.com/qsmom 417 548 0055email [email protected]

FOR SALE08 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, WI54559- 715-893-2301, [email protected]

Stunning Pinto Miniature Gelding,$2,000.00. 6yr old, Pinto (Chocolate(black) andWhite) even color. He is currently being startedin the cart, [email protected]

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

Zinnia BA Andalusian Mare (Despierto xZinnia) Zinnia BA is a 16.1 hand baySpanish/Portuguese mare. She is the 2004 USNational Champion S/P Jr. Mare and USNational Champion Western and Hunt Seat Jr.Horse. 262-249-8870 [email protected]

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

Flashy, Friesian/Thoroughbred Mare byNero - Started Riding & Driving! Nala Rox: born9/24/02 Friesian/Thoroughbred Mare sired byNero. Solid Black - no white.320-272-4099,[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 undersaddle,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]

ASB Color of Fame dtr. Serafame is a chest-nut daughter of the Color of Fame. Dam is aSkywatch dtr. Open can sell with a breeding toa Hot August Nite grandson or a Barbary+++son. [email protected]

Continued on next page......

HORSE SUPPLIES

INSURANCE

SADDLES AND TACK

WEB AND AD DESIGN

TRAINERS

Advertise in the Traders Corner for aslittle as 17.00 per month

call 507-943-3355


ADVERTISERS INDEXAgstar page 13Arena Fenceline-Service Equipment page 14Arena Trailers page 44Black Hills Horse Properties page 40Bob Jeffreys/Suzanne Shepard page 8Cannon Falls Trailer Sales page 41Cleary Buildings page 19Dennis Auslam - Rewood Stables page 16Excalibur Breeding Center page 16Federated Coop page 25Grassland Solutions page 15Horse Digests.com page 5Horse Sense Radio page 34Horseware Ireland page 22 & 23I90 Expo Center page 7J&B Western Store page 9Julie Goodnight page 18Ken McNabb page 10Krebsbach Performance Horses page 39Little Falls Horse Fest page 3Lynn Palm page 25Minnesota Equifest page 43Minnesota Horse Council page 8 & 34

MN School Of Horse Shoeing page 20More Custom Leather page 39North Country Breeders page 33Northland Buildings page 17Palma Feed page 39Pleasant Hills page 27, 39Rosebud Productions page 39R.T. Duggan page 39Roger Berg page 39Schatzlein Saddle Shop page 19Simon Arena/Twin Cities Horse Sale page 35Stable Pros page 31SM Iron page 19The Natural Gait page 39Triple Crown Custom page 2Twin Cities Featherlite page 11United Vet Equine page 21UBRA page 42U of M Extention page 29Wehr's Chevrolet page 29Westwind Shelters page 21WHolistic Horse page 30William Woods University page 17Wright-Way Trailer page 24

RE

AL

ES

TA

TE

classifieds continued...

STALLIONSCAZAR Bay PRE Andalusian 16.1 by IndianoXVIII. Cazar is Benitez/Guardiola breeding ,has many foals of all colors. Very sweet,Champion Halter & Preformance. Stud fee'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 Dutch ApprovedStallion Sibald 380. [email protected]

Homozygous! 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 his greatintelligence, temperament, and CHARISMA.218-780-7064, [email protected].

WEBSITE AND GRAPIC DESIGNProfessional Website and Ad Design.Rosebud Productions. [email protected]


888-263-7212www.cannonfallstrailers.com

1 mile east of Hwy 52 & Cty 86Cannon Falls, MN

Chuck Erdahl, Owner/ManagerDan Erdahl, Sales/Service

C A N N O N F A L L S T R A I L E R S A L E S7 Major Brands Elite • Trail-Et • S&H • Hay Van • DCT • Cherokee • Twister

2004 Sundowner BP7x14’ 7’6” tall Sunlite All Alumn, 2 Horse w/Mangers

Straight Load, Walk-thru to dress room, drop down feed

doors, double rear doors w/Ramp, Padded divider & stalls,

saddle racks under mangers. AD#0490

Very Clean. Sale Price $11,900

2005 Exiss GN7x18 7’ Tall 3 horse sport ES300 4’ to 8’ dress

room, escape door, drop down feed doors

w/bars, collap. rear tack, spare tire. AD#4458

Very Clean Trailer.

Sale Price $12,900

1995 Sooner GN7’X20’ 7’ Tall 3 H, 4’ Dress Rm, 2’-6’ MID TACK, Rear Tack, Trlr is

Lined & Insulated, Dress Rm & Mid Tack, Drp Dwn Wndws, Rear

Load Rmp, Dbl Rear Drs, Load Lights, Alum Rims, Like New

Michelin Tires, Spare Painted Roof Rail, Clean-Clean Trailer.

When Sooner was a Sooner. $14,500

2004 Featherlite GN7’x23’ 7’ tall 4 horse w/6’ to 10’ dress rm, camper door

w/screen. Escape door w/drop down feed door, low

mount latches w/face bars, collap rear tack, padded

dividers, stud divider, 2-step awning, spare tire. AD#4200

Very Clean. Used Very Little. $17,900

2006 Elite GN7X18 7’ Tall Dlx Mustang 3 H, 4’ - 8’ Dress Rm, Cloth Rod, Escape Dr

w/Drop Dwn, Feed Door & Bars, Collap. Rear Tack, Padded Div, Load

Light, LED Lights, Stud Divider, Graphic Pkg, Stainless Simulators,

7000 lb Axles, 16” 10 ply Radials, Spare. AD#7782 New $21,900

Save/Like New. Sale Price $17,900

2000 Featherlite GN7x22 7’tall 4 horse 4’ to 8’ dress room, sofa-sleeper, 110

volt pkg, dinette window, walk-thru door, camper door

w/screen, escape door, drop down windows w/face

screens, collap. rear tack, spare tire. AD#7008

Good Condition! $13,500

2008 Elite Stock Combo GN7X24 7' Tall, 4 ft Dress Rm, GN Windows,

Carpet GN Drop & Floor, 4 Saddle Rcks,

10 Bridle Hks, HD Tack Dr w/Window,

Double Rear Drs, Center Gate Escape Dr

20’-$17,000

2004 CM GN7.5X24 3H, Norstar LX, Mid Tack & 7' Trail Boss Solid

Oak LQ, AC/Furnace, Dinette, 6 cu Refg, Micro, Sink, Hot

Water, Stool, Cowboy Shower, 3 Mangers, Drop Down

Feed Doors w/Drop Bars. AD#2061

Great Trail or Show Trailer! $29,500

1998 Sooner GN7x26 7’ Tall 6 Horse 2’to 6’ Dress Rm, Saddle Racks, Carpeted BH Wall, Bridle

Hooks, Large Blanket Bars, Escape Door, Drop Down Feed Doors w/Drop Bars,

Plexiglass Rump Wall, Rubber Lined, Collaps Rear Tack, Roof Vent. AD#0015

Trailer is clean, sound & affordable.$14,900

2005 Trails West Sierra GN2 H Lined, Insulat, Carpet, & Xtra Footage

in Dress Rm, Boot Box, Collaps. Rear Tack,

Swing Out Sddl Rck & Blnkt Bar, Drop Dwn

Feed Drs/Safety Bars, Walk-thru Dr, Drp

Dwn Wndw in Escape Dr, Floor Mats, Water

Tank, fridge, Micro, TV Hookup AD#5072

PERFECT WEEKENDER. LIKE NEW. $11,200

2004 CM GN8X32 7'6" T, 4H, 15' Trail Boss Slide Out LQ, AC, Furnace, Solid Oak, Sofa

& Dinette, 6 cu Refg, 3 Brnr Stove, Micro, Stereo, Neo Angle Showr, Bathrm

w/closets, Hay Rack, Hydr Jack, Awning, Escape Dr w/Drop Dwn, Insulated

Roof, Drop Fd Drs w/Drop Bars, Collaps Rear Tack, Stud Div. AD#1921

SALE PRICE! $54,900

1990 Featherlite GN8X27 TOC 3 H w/12’ Stallion Solid Oak LQ, 2’ to 6’ Mid Tack, Rear

Tack, Generator, 6cu Refg, 2 Burner Stove, Micro, Stereo, AC, Ducted

Furn, Lg Dinette, Swivel Chair, sep. Bathrm w/Shower and Stool,

Swing out Saddle Racks, Padded Div, Drop Feed Doors. AD#2198

Clean. Affordable. Sale Price $23,500

EACH AND EVERY ELITE TRAILERIS CRAFTED WELL BEYONDINDUSTRY STANDARDSWITH EMPHASIS ONRELIABILITY,DETAIL, SAFETYAND COMFORT.



Documents

MIdwest Horse Digest September 2008