Vet manners
This message is from: lewa...@aol.com Hi, I have read so many suggestions about the situation, but nobody had mention another very simple approach: Don't try to tie the horse or make it otherwise stand still. A horse that doesn't want to stand still will not be standing still by force of one person when there is fear envolved. If your vet is a savy person he/she would lead the horse in very small circles and give the shot while the horse is moving. It will keep the horse somewhat off balance because the neck is bend towards the person leading it and it is therefore next to impossible for the horse to hurt the person or bolt away. You would also avoid the build up of the tension because the horse is still moving which is part of the relaxing part of the deal. It has so far worked for me if somebodyreally doesn't like needles. Good luck Heike Lewandowski Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw Classified Ads: http://tinyurl.com/5b5g2f
Vet manners
This message is from: lewa...@aol.com Hi, I have read so many suggestions about the situation, but nobody had mention another very simple approach: Don't try to tie the horse or make it otherwise stand still. A horse that doesn't want to stand still will not be standing still by force of one person when there is fear envolved. If your vet is a savy person he/she would lead the horse in very small circles and give the shot while the horse is moving. It will keep the horse somewhat off balance because the neck is bend towards the person leading it and it is therefore next to impossible for the horse to hurt the person or bolt away. You would also avoid the build up of the tension because the horse is still moving which is part of the relaxing part of the deal. It has so far worked for me if somebodyreally doesn't like needles. Good luck Heike Lewandowski Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw Classified Ads: http://tinyurl.com/5b5g2f
Re: fjordhorse-digest V2007 #184
This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hi Yasmine, I have taken my stallion Wags o' Thorson in a few shorter distance rides. He does well in it. Generally speaking I believe you can train every horse to do anything. Thor is proof of that. I have ridden him in dressage and stadium jumping earning his NFHR Excellence award; he placed high in gaming classes; he is part of a mounted patrol unit; he has worked cattle; he did?his first CDE this year and has the NFHR Silver Level 1 and Gold Level 4 medallion (Sorry I got carried away bragging about him)The question is: How far/what level do you want to take it and how much effort do you want to put into it to get them there. Distance riding has different disciplines: Competitive trail riding - you go out in a small group; everybody has to ride the course in the same time (there is a +/- 5-minute window); the horse that is in the best condition with the lowest hart rate/respiration wins on a point system; the distances start at around 12 miles up to 100 miles Limited distance riding - Everybody starts at the same time and rides on their own as fast as they can; In this discipline it is the time that wins rather than the points for condition, but it is the fastest time that already has a certain lower hart rate (65); Once you cross the finish line your time keeps going until you call for the vet to take the horses heart rate; As you can tell there is a little bit more strategy involved in this one; the distance for this one starts usually at 25 miles. Endurance - Flat out race where the fastest horse wins unless the vet pulls it from the competition. The distance is also starting at 25 miles and increases from there. The distance riding community is very similar to the Fjord community: You are never alone and always have people to help you along. That makes it fun. The vet is there to help you assess your horse and it's condition in order to keep it safe. If you are riding with a group it is easy to get carried away and ask the horse to do more than it is able to do; the excitement of the competition may cover the early signs of exhaustion in you and you horseif that happens the vet may make the decision for you or recommends to not continue or slow down a bit in order to finish; that is a good thing and not to be taken personally. Any distance ride is a challenge and more that the average trail rider does; in order to condition your horse you should have the time to ride your horse at least three times a week 2/3 of the distance you plan on competing in a free, ground-covering trot; you should not need any tie-downs, flash bands or other aids that restrict the horses natural breathing/gait. I hope this info gives you the tools to asses your horse as to how much effort you would have to put into it. The way it sounds from the other e-mails yours is a little on the draft side which probably does not make him a natural to win compared to some arabs/morgans, but with some good conditioning he would be able to do the shorter distances. Even if you never compete; a well conditioned horse stays generally healthier than an over-weight pasture ornament. Enjoy. Happy trails Heike Lewandowski The FjordHorse List archives can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw
Re: fjordhorse-digest V2006 #29
This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] I have read a lot about the pros and cons about the live and DVD evaluations. A lot of people seem very opiniated one way or another. So am I. An evaluation is a tool of advertisement. It does not say that every evaluated horse is better than one that is not evaluted. I just says that you have proven certain qualities. It is the same as having a vet check when you sell or buy or horse. You prove the condition of the horse that day. That does not mean that is healt hier than a horse that didn't have a vet check... I simply say: You get out what you put into it! If you invest in a lot of training and advertisement chances are your horse is going to be better known than others; if you have a professional trainer ride or drive your horse at the evaluation (live or DVD) chances are that it will be shown closer to his full potential. A back yard breeder that loves watching his horse, but never had any formal training on how to demonstrate his horse won't really benefit from DVD evaluation because he still wouldn't know what a judge is looking for. He would have even less advise around him than at a live evaluation where maybe an experienced person offers to take the horse in the ring or help clip the mane just right to help look the best. To me complaining about the money aspect is pointless. In Germany, evaluations, regardless what breed, are mandetory. Unless you are a professional rider you are not even authorized to ride your own horse. $300-500 per month boarding plus paying a proffesional trainer for 100 days plus evaluation fees for judges..you easily have to spend several thousand dollars to get your horse evaluated. And even then the final testing and scoring is based on a single day performance. If your horse had a bad day you may have to invest the money for the 100 day testing twice or you still don't get the breeding permission at all. Breeding a horse with pedigree in Germany is only for well situated people. Here in the USA you have a choice. You will be able to register you horse with the NFHR wether or not you have the time and/or money to get your horse evaluated. I am all for evaluations especially since Ford breeders are so far and few between. I see an evaluation as a form of advertising. If you don't have the time or money to bring your horse across state boarders to get it officially evaluated you can take certain measurements (canon bone, height) yourself or train your horse for local shows. If somebody is serious enough about the performance of their breeding stallion they can show hism for example at local dressage shows. Once they receive a number of rides in the 60% range in first level dressage, it is a pretty safe bet that they would get a blue ribbon in the advanced English test. The same holds true for reigning. With riding local shows one can also qualify for the excellence and or versatility award. There are many ways to demonstrate the quality of your horse and educate people about the value of your horse for breeding. Evaluations are just one of them. To me live evaluations are the only realistic ones if you choose evaluations as your tool of advertisement. Otherwise we could also suggest to cancel horse shows and send in DVD for the various classes instead. That way we could save ourselves some more money and don't subject our horses to the stress of showing and being away from home. Heike
