Leasing: A look at the viewpoint of the lessor rather than the lessee.

I had quite the negotiation with my husband when I finally convinced him to buy a horse for me. He was not interested in the maintenance costs on a second horse so I took on some work at the barn to cover some of my board. I am the show secretary and webmaster as well as doing a few other odds and ends. The deal is that I need to find a lessee to ride my horse 3 days a week and pay the other half of my board.

When I leased a horse two days a week, my perspective on the whole situation was so different. I loved the horses I leased. I loved them as though they were my own and tried to be communicative with the owners and defer to their various care choices. On the lessee side of the fence, I didn't love that I wasn't in full control. In the case of both horses I leased, the owners decided to ride more and I lost access to the horses.

So now I am the lessor. I've only had my horse for one month and 6 days. I'm still getting to know him and I've been so busy with my new responsibilities at the barn that I haven't had as much time for him as I would like. Regardless, the pressure is on from my husband to find a lessee.

I have a friend who may be interested in leasing Crafty for herself or her daughter. She came by the other day to take a lesson on him. It was really difficult for me. I don't necessarily want to share him. I want to be his person. If I share him, he won't know he's mine. I had a hard time watching my friend lead him and tack him up. I'm very particular about how he is lead. He's not allowed to wander, drag his person off, start grazing, etc. I'm working to establish myself as his leader on the ground and under saddle. Will leasing my horse undermine that work?

My friend did a great job riding Crafty and I think she had fun. She will likely try him again but I'm not sure if he will work out for her or her daughter. They use a different trainer and I only want one trainer working with my horse, especially during the first year when we are still getting to know him. Having two riders is confusing enough. Two trainers, two different agendas and approaches, would not be fair to the horse.

I think there will be someone wonderful who wants to lease Crafty. He's a nice horse. But I think it will be interesting to see how people feel about the cost. He can be ridden 6 times per week. I will ride 3 times and lease him out for 3 rides which is a half lease. From where I am now sitting, half of board and $100.00 towards shoes sounds like a bargain. I am paying for all supplements, most of the shoes, routine vet care. I am providing really nice, brand new tack. I am providing a lovely horse, boarded at a barn with awesome facilities for riding.

I will require my lessee to take one lesson a week, at least for the first 6 months. I will also require them to do at least two sessions with our natural horsemanship trainer so that we are all on the same program. My poor lessee. I'm starting to feel sorry for her already.

If my lessee ends up being someone who wants to take Crafty to shows or camps, I will expect them to contribute to maintenance type veterinary care such as Adequan or joint injections. The reality is that my level of riding is putting very little wear and tear on the horse. I will also ask them to have their own saddle pads. I hate washing saddle pads. I don't really want to do it when I don't even get the pleasure of riding!

I think I'm ok with my lessee taking my horse places even though it feels terribly wrong. I will have to get over it but I feel like he's one of my children. I've been a stay at home mom for 17 years. I have rarely spent a day without at least one of my children. I don't know how people who are divorced with joint custody do it. On the one hand it looks so glamorous to have every other weekend to yourself but on the other hand, it would feel like a limb was missing.

This post seems to be more about personal therapy than about leasing a horse but if you are out looking to lease, I'm hoping my thoughts will help you think a little more kindly of the horse owner and the price they set for sharing their precious steed with another rider.

Silver Linings: The things we learn when our horses can't work.

I was giving a friend an update on Quizz the other day and realized just how big a blessing Quizz's issues have been so thought it was worth sharing the upside to rehabilitating a horse now that I can see the upside!

For most of January we took one step forward and two steps back each week.  It's been difficult to pin down the issue.  Winter inflicts enough stiffness on its own, exacerbating the question of whether there is a real problem or just an environmental one.  We had some good days.  Quizz no longer cross cantered (rather than bringing both inside legs forward together, the horse brings the front inside leg and the hind outside leg forward together).  She was doing better with her canter transitions though frequently exploding on the lunge line before picking it up.  We would have a good day followed by a day she didn't want anyone on her back.  We panicked that the saddles didn't fit but it turns out that wasn't really the biggest issue.  We did what you do with horses; we tried different things until we found a way to make things work.

Quizz has now been shod twice by her new farrier.  She still definitely has something going on in her right SI.  She won't let the farrier bring her right hind leg up under her so he has taken to doing all the work on that leg out behind her and she is much happier.  She is growing a nice amount of hoof in front, less behind.  He estimates it will take 6 - 8 months to get her feet where he would like to see them.

In the mean time, we developed a routine that seems to be working.  My daughter lunges Quizz for 10 - 20 minutes before every ride.  The goal is to achieve 2 smooth canter transitions on each side before working under saddle.  Some days this takes longer than others.  Quizz generally explodes at least once, leaping off the ground on all fours, bucking and taking off around her circle or another more creative shape.  Some days she explodes 3 or 4 times.  As we implement this routine, the lunging duration continues to vary but definitely improves each day.

As I mentioned in my post on lameness, lunging is an important skill but one we often neglect.  It had been on our list to work on for over a year and we did work on it a bit but usually our trainer would lunge the pony or horse, Elizabeth would watch and take over the lunge once we were sure things were going well and only at the walk and maybe the trot.  Over the past few weeks Elizabeth has developed her skills immensely.  Our trainer now sits at the side of the ring while Elizabeth handles the lunge line.  When Quizz explodes Elizabeth calms her saying, "Easy," and brings her back to a controlled trot or canter.  Four weeks ago Elizabeth was afraid to really swing the whip at her.  Now she uses it to insist on a consistent tempo in the trot and on picking up the canter.  The transitions are still not timely but they are getting better.  And the best part is that Elizabeth is solving a problem on the ground she struggles with in the saddle: respect!  The ground work is making Quizz respect her young rider.  The more Elizabeth insists on the canter transition on the lunge line, the better Quizz's canter transitions go under saddle.  I am so incredibly proud of my 12 year old daughter as I watch her master this skill and work with her horse to build a relationship and mutual understanding.

When Elizabeth sits on Quizz's back, the horse is already warm and loose.  The ride begins with stretching Quizz at the walk on 10 meter circles in both directions.  She's very tight through her rib cage so Elizabeth is learning to not just use her inside rein but to really use her inside leg to bend Quizz's body.  This is also improving.  Elizabeth is not big and heavy at this point so making a horse respect her leg has been a challenge but she's getting some results.  She absolutely has to get Quizz round and using her body properly at the walk before she can trot, and at the trot before she can canter.  In the past we've let the roundness and contact slide since those are difficult riding skills to master.  But now it is too important for Quizz that she engage her core during work and that she is not allowed to hollow her back.  By the end of their rides, Quizz looks wonderful!  It takes an awful lot to get there but she develops a beautiful, forward working trot, a nice long and low stretchy trot and lovely, smooth canter transitions.

The next step is to increase Quizz's work load.  Right now the weather is just miserable.  Quizz is doing very good work but often it's every other day.  By the beginning of March we will start working 5 days a week and, soon after, 6 days a week.  The duration of work will increase and hopefully by then she will be able to reduce the amount of lunging and even begin to jump again but we will be patient and let the horse determine the pace.

It's actually very interesting to watch this mare's progress.  She has had moments that she was not exactly cooperative which bothered us because she generally has a great attitude.  I have sensed a shift recently as though she feels like we finally figured things out and are giving her what she needs.  I believe she loves working, she loves eventing and she loves my daughter.  So I'm extremely optimistic we will get there and hopefully in time for a great season.

So in the end this whole thing has been a blessing in disguise.  It’s actually great seeing the things Elizabeth is learning during this rehab period that she wouldn’t have worked on if Quizz had been perfectly healthy.  If she had been healthy we would have been working on jumping position, jumping higher, no stirrups, etc, all valuable things we will get to but I feel like the things she’s focused on instead are the things we easily skip over or don’t fully embrace and perfect because we all have limited time.  We always say we need to work on lunging but until the horse forced us to go there we weren’t doing it in a way that Elizabeth was really learning and taking responsibility for.  I’m so proud of her.  You should see Quizz being totally ridiculous jumping up and down and taking off all crazy and Elizabeth telling her easy and bringing her back without a care in the world.  It’s hard to believe my daughter is only 12 years old sometimes.  

When Horses Aren't Fun: How not to end up with an inappropriate mount for your child.

I suppose there are many times we question our involvement with horses, especially during a New England winter!  But my topic today centers on the pain of choosing the wrong horse.  Too often a parent is willing to buy their child a horse but without the necessary support they can make an inappropriate choice.  Once that happens it is very difficult to undo the damage.  It is unfair to the kid and it is unfair to the horse.

The first pony we leased for my daughter was appropriate for the sport we leased her for but when we changed sports, the pony was no longer a safe choice.  She dumped my daughter several times before our trainer wisely said enough.  This is the point at which parents are tempted to make a huge mistake by not listening to our experts.  Our experts want the best for us.  In my case, the trainer had not one thing to gain by a horse change since she neither buys nor sells horses nor does she take a commission on any purchases.  Fortunately, the pony we had was wanted for the job she knew and we were able to send her to a good home.  Too often when the horse doesn't work out it is difficult to find them a new situation.  It can take a very long time to rehome an unsafe horse and all that time you will be paying for board, shoes, vet costs and possibly training for a horse your child isn't riding or is riding in a limited way.  The wrong horse will prevent your child from doing the things she wants to do.  An uncooperative horse will make Pony Club or horse shows nearly impossible and if you do manage some schooling shows, your child will find it difficult to move up the levels or to go to rated shows and after awhile, you will resent the horse.  You will also watch your child's confidence deteriorate and she very well may become so afraid she no longer wants to be involved with horses.

I've watched a few families suffer negative experiences.  One family I know has a one year lease, two daughters who want to ride and very little knowledge about horses.  Older, more experienced people can ride their horse but the girls who lease him really shouldn't.  Even some trainers don't want to ride him because it isn't worth getting hurt.  One of the girls came off the horse and broke her foot shortly after they got him.  The family is stuck with the horse until the end of the lease and they are trying to do what they can, engaging a trainer to ride him.  The biggest mistake I saw this family make was not having help right from the start.  They waited months thinking they knew enough.

Let me tell you right now that if you have spent less than 6 days a week over at least 5 years with a horse you have no business owning one without professional help!  They are complicated and there is an endless amount you need to know to handle the variety of situations that will arise.  If you have a backyard horse for your kids you need Pony Club.  Run, don't walk, to your nearest Pony Club and start learning what you need to know.

Another family has a daughter who is a bit more experienced and has had a very tough horse for a few years now.  She handles him extremely well but hasn't been having any fun at all.  Every ride is exhausting to watch.  He always misbehaves, is very out of control and it is not a training issue.  Her mother, who grew up with horses and Pony Club, has finally started looking for a different horse but even she is wondering what took her so long.  They wasted several years on a horse that was never going to be a good partner for her daughter.  I'm amazed the girl still wants to ride!  They will not be able to sell the horse and plan to donate him to a collegiate riding program.  Woe be the rider who draws that horse in competition!

Let's take a moment to think about the cost of the wrong choice.  Board where we live is about $1000 a month, shoes range from $200 a month on up, the vet is about $1000 a year in a good year with no issues and then we have lessons and training costs which would be a minimum of $70 a week or $3600 a year.  So a free horse costs you no less than $18,000 a year to support and honestly it costs more than that.  So the thought of spending all that time and money for something that is not fun, stresses you out, endangers your child and has no easy out is ludicrous!  But there is a solution!

I will start from the premise that it is always possible to find an appropriate horse for every kid.  That does not mean that it will be quick or easy to find the right horse.  And even wonderful horses have bad days.  You will find many people who grew up with horses that threw them off, refused every fence, never came to them in the paddock and on and on.  Some of those people would argue that they learned more from those naughty horses than they could have from the kind who take care of their rider.  Well, I beg to differ.  You don't necessarily learn more from either kind but you do learn different things.  In most of those cases, someone, usually not the parents, gave those kids horses that were then kept in their backyard.  Most of those parents didn't make conscious choices about the horse they had.  It was a different time.  And I would warn you about any "free" horse that crosses your path.  As mentioned above, the upkeep for a horse is far more significant than the cost of an appropriate mount for a child assuming you aren't trying to be competitive on the A Circuit or in the Pony Division so if you are willing to support a horse, be willing to provide a small budget for the purchase.

I would argue that as equine parents our priority is to give our children the opportunity to experience life with horses and all the wonderful things that can come from that in the safest way possible.  This is especially important if you are a parent with limited knowledge of horses, even more so if you have limited access to help.  There are 2 primary qualities that stand out as determining the safety of any particular mount.  The first is a good brain.  You will hear this often with horses.  It generally means the horse is intelligent, doesn't spook each and every day at the same exact bush it has lived next to for 5 years (I used to ride a horse that did this and it was annoying rather than unsafe but would have been very unsettling for a child).  A horse with a good brain will try to figure out what you want him to do and will know when he has a kid on his back and how to behave.  The second quality is experience.  You can buy a young horse that will miraculously have such a good brain that it doesn't need experience to be a safe mount.  However, it is best as a non-horsey parent to stick with slightly older, experienced horses.  A horse that has already done everything you want to do with it will not be surprised.  It will understand what's going on each day and can help your child along as she's learning.  An older horse will need more maintenance but I promise it is well worth the trade off!

Before you choose a horse, know what it is you want to do with the horse (hunters, equitation, dressage, eventing) and look for a horse that has a record at that sport.  If at some point this changes, be aware you might need to change horses as well.  For instance, we leased my daughter's first pony to be used in the hunter ring in the short stirrup division.  She was only ridden in smallish, enclosed rings.  My daughter then switched to eventing.  Suddenly the pony found herself in wide open spaces somewhat far away from the barn and with no other horses in sight.  Asking her to change sports was actually unfair.  She would have needed a great deal of training in order to succeed in a new sport and it just wasn't worth it so we sent her back to the short stirrup division where she has kept her rider very happy.

Once you identify the sport, identify the place you will board the horse and the horse professional who will help you with your horse.   Have a discussion with any potential horse professionals and ask about their approach not only to finding the right horse but to caring for the horse once you have it.  If you need help, is this person interested in helping you or does he or she primarily offer lessons and leave everything else to the owners or barn manager?  Our trainer is a resident trainer at the barn where we board and she gives my daughter lessons, gives our horse training rides and provides a ton of invaluable support and advice.  She is never too busy and is incredibly generous with her time and knowledge.  In some cases your horse professional will lead you to an appropriate horse.  I know one eventing trainer who specializes in half leasing schoolmaster ponies to kids for the introductory levels.  At a certain point they need to acquire their own horse but this is a great way to get started.  Our trainer does not act as an agent in horse sales but she does assist her clients by helping them identify the characteristics they are looking for in a horse, looking over ads brought to her by clients and going out to look at horses the client has identified as potential options.  This process is extremely educational.  Even though it can take a great deal of time to search for horses and visit them only to be disappointed by what you find, each horse you look at teaches you something about what you are looking for and which qualities are the must have qualities.

There are many places to look for the right horse.  There are great websites out there with horse listings and people at your barn will often know of good horses for sale.  Pony Club is a great resource for finding horses for kids.  Any ad that mentions a horse has been used for Pony Club rallies and/or ratings, especially if they have done rallies in multiple disciplines and ratings above the D2 level (which means D3, C1, C2, etc.) that tells you this is a kids' mount.  There are classified ads on the Pony Club website and many local clubs or regions keep their own classified ad pages.  From there it really depends on what you plan to do with the horse.  USEA (US Eventing Association) has websites by Area with great classifieds.  Sport Horse Nation is another classified site dedicated primarily to eventing horses.  I am sure there is an equivalent in the hunter, equitation, jumper and dressage disciplines and a good web search should help you find them.  In addition equine.com, dreamhorse.com and others have a huge assortment of classified ads.  You can narrow it down by price, location, age, etc.

The next thing you need to determine is what does the right horse look like.  Color, breed, even gender and size are all things you need to be willing to let go of in your search.  It's ok to have a preference but if you want a bay gelding and the perfect grey mare appears, you buy the perfect grey mare.  High on my list of qualities are good ground manners, willingness to get on and off the trailer and willingness to stand for me when I pull his mane or clip him.  These are the things that will make my job as chauffeur and groom easy and since I'm paying the bills, these are by and large non-negotiable.  I can say that because my daughter is riding at a low enough level that we don't need some kind of insane speed or jumping ability.  In fact, those would be negatives at this point.  For a first horse you want one you have to really kick to make it go rather than one you are always pulling on to slow it down.  As I mentioned earlier, experience is essential.  If you plan to ride in the open, buy or lease a horse that has evented or done hunter paces.  If you plan to do dressage, buy a horse that knows how to be ridden with contact so that your child can learn from the horse.  Ask parents of kids doing the sport your child wants to do what they most value in their child's horse.  Work with your professional to hone the list and prioritize it.  You should have a few non-negotiable qualities, several desirable qualities and a few preferences you can live without but can be kept in mind during the search.

I'd like to say something her about gender.  Some people will only buy geldings and others will only buy mares.  We've had both and here's what little I can decipher about the difference.  The boys may have an opinion but they are pretty willing to give it up if you insist.  The girls on the other hand tend to hang onto their opinions.  They are more willing to stick to their guns and have an argument with you about who's way is the correct way.  Our trainer is a big fan of geldings and my daughter's amazing pony was a gelding.  When I found our lovely mare our trainer was determined not to like her.  She tried everything to make the horse angry or to find an issue.  But our mare is just lovely.  She has the world's best attitude and tries her heart out every day.  She is definitely bossy and opinionated but she's so wonderful we can live with that.  She is also quite amorous of all the boys when she is in season which seems like pretty much most of the time so we live with that too.  So gender can be one of your non-negotiables but I hate to think we would have passed on Quizz because she's a girl.  It would have definitely been our loss.

Before you head out to try any horses, set a budget.  Depending on what you want to do, a first horse should cost between $5,000 and $10,000.  Backyard ponies can be cheaper, show ponies (meaning hunter division) will be far more expensive.  We paid in that range for our pony and quite a bit more for my daughter's current horse.  This may vary depending on where you live.  Remember a more flexible budget will give you more options but you really do not need to pay a whole lot more to get a first horse.  And don't expect to buy one horse and be done.  Again, it all depends on what you intend to do with the horse.  In our case my daughter needed one year with an experienced pony we knew she would outgrow.  We bought a pony, lost a little selling it (as we knew we would), and bought her wonderful next horse.  This horse should last her awhile if she can stay sound.  It's a little bit like buying a house.  You start with something small and then after having 3 kids you outgrow the tiny house and move somewhere a little bigger.  If you try to buy one horse that will be all things from beginning to end you will have to make concessions somewhere else.  Either you will pay more for talent you won't be using until some undefined time in the future by which time your child may not even be riding or the horse may not still be sound or you will buy too much horse - too big, too strong or fast - wanting to make it last only to defeat the whole purpose of trying to buy the appropriate mount.  Don't do it!  If you are really concerned about buying and selling on a rather short horizon, find a horse you can lease.

Regarding the search for the horse I just want to mention something about looking at ads and videos. Look at horses aged 8 - 16.  The older horses should cost less and you should plan for needing to retire that horse or free lease it out to kids when you are done until he can't work.  Many horses can keep teaching kids well into their 20's.  When you look at videos, make sure you are looking at a child riding the horse in a situation comparable to what your child will be doing.  I often found the videos were of professionals riding the horse.  I would ask to see a video of a kid jumping the horse in a field.  If the video is less than 10 seconds long, they might be hiding something.  They might not but it's something to keep in mind.  I'd rather see a horse jumping clumsily but safely with a kid on its back than beautifully 3 levels above where my child is competing.  Even better is seeing both!

After you identify some horses you are interested in, call the owners or agents to chat and set up a time you can take your child and trainer to ride the horse.  If the horse is nearby, try to visit on more than one day.  This is a huge long term commitment, take your time and gather all the information.  When we look at horses, usually the current trainer or rider will get on and warm the horse up, show off his jumping or lead changes, etc.  Then both my daughter and our trainer take turns.  If we go a longer distance and our trainer can't join us, I might hop on just to see if I feel like the horse is scary or not.  I'm not much of a rider but I can at least gather one more data point.  I would never buy a horse my trainer hasn't sat on but I might have to do the first visit without her.  I always let the people showing us the horse know ahead of time that I need to see my daughter jump the horse in an open field.  Often this has to be done on a different day since not everyone has a cross country field available on their property.  However, I wouldn't ever buy a horse without having seen my daughter jump it in the open.  Jumping in the open is a big part of what she does with her horse and it's the activity that leaves the most opportunity for something to go wrong.  After the ride I like to go into the barn and be part of the untacking experience, especially if they already had the horse tacked when we got there.  It's important to see how the horse behaves in the barn, on the cross ties, etc.  Sometimes you will gain little snip-its of pertinent information such as the horse can't be cross tied!  It may be a manageable quirk rather than a deal breaker but such a thing would surely warrant consideration and further investigation.

I'm not going to get into vetting and all the other things involved with buying a horse.  Everyone has their own perspective and I'm really just focusing on how to make sure you're making a safe choice for your child.  If you do make the right choice, your child will have fun and thrive while learning from a lovely animal.  She will likely improve her skills quickly and be able to move up the levels and gain confidence.  If you don't make the right choice, be patient but not too patient.  It takes a year to get to know a horse.  There are so many factors - change of environment, different riding style, new schedule, new farrier.  Give the horse a chance.  If you did your homework then you chose this horse because you believed it was the best choice.  Give it some time.  On the other hand, listen to your gut, your child and your horse professional.  If the horse demonstrates dangerous behavior, take it seriously.  Don't be afraid to say we made a mistake and to take steps to relocate the horse and start over again.  Don't waste 3 years with the wrong horse making a bad situation worse.  It's ok to acknowledge when it isn't working and to find a way to move onto a better fit but be responsible to the horse in the process.  In reality our kids are home with us and riding for a very limited number of years.  Try not to waste them!

What About Me?: When mom wants a turn to ride.

Elizabeth on Sabrina with me on Toby.

I spend an absurd amount of time and energy supporting my daughter's equine passion.  Is it wrong that I want to have some fun along the way?  A major reason she has my support is that I had the same desire as a kid that she has now.  I would have given anything to have had a horse and to have been able to ride everyday.  I would have given even more to have been in Pony Club.  My own riding experience is fairly limited.  As a teenager I took lessons at a hunter barn in California whenever I had enough money from babysitting to pay for them.  I didn't ride at all through college and then in my late 20's, after my oldest son was born, I started taking lessons once a week at a hunter barn here in Massachusetts.  I loved it!  But then I had two more children and I just didn't have the time for my expensive hobby.  I tried several times to get my husband on board with my horse fantasy but it didn't happen.  So now that I am providing all of this for my daughter, there are days I selfishly wish it was me in the saddle.

I know quite a few moms who have been riding all their lives.  Their daughters discovered horses through their mothers and it was only a matter of time before they were both riding.  Many of these women now keep their horses at home.  Horses have always been a priority for them so when they realized there was a need to support more than one horse, they built barns.  Oh how I wish 15 years ago when we left the city I had opted for land and bucolic bliss over suburban convenience.  I'm now stuck in the town we live in until my kids graduate from high school so putting horses in my back yard is not an option.

If having horses in your backyard is an option, it's a great way to make riding more accessible for multiple family members.  With horses at home you save money on board and have the convenience of being able to ride whenever you want (unless it's winter 6 months of the year and you live in New England with no indoor).  Just having Elizabeth's horse at home would mean she could ride while I cook dinner!  But beware!  Having horses at home is a huge commitment.  I won't go into all the gory details but just a few of the things I've discovered one needs to consider when keeping horses at home are enough to put most people off.  Among them are manure management, insurance, never ever being able to go away or paying an extra $1000 for barn help to be away for the weekend, being the one to wake up to feed the horses 365 days a year and the one to do night check the same number of days no matter the weather, state of your health or other things going on in your life.  Perhaps at this point it is just as well that I can't have horses at home since I'm pretty sure I'd be in over my head!

Elizabeth on Pumba with me on Nugget.

For the past couple of years Elizabeth was riding ponies, first leased ponies then the pony we bought  for her.  During that time I had the good fortune to half lease a couple of different horses so that I did get a chance to ride a bit.  Every time I felt like I was getting somewhere, the owner would make a change and I would be without a horse again.  I am incredibly grateful that before that happened this last time I was able to go on a couple of trail rides with my daughter.  Those were the best days of my life.  Half leasing is a good option.  The cost isn't too horrendous and has a limit unlike ownership.  I was riding 2 days a week which should cost about 1/3 of the board for the horse.  Lessons cost money over and above this so it wasn't exactly a cheap option but it was appropriate for me with regards to both time and money.

When we bought Elizabeth's horse last fall my husband assumed we would share the horse.  I know a couple of other moms who are looking for horses to share with their kids.  And my two cents on this topic is that is doesn't work, at least not for us.  It certainly can work depending on your goals.  For our family, we have chosen to support Elizabeth's riding goals.  Those goals are pretty lofty and require her to ride often.  Our horse works 6 times a week.  We try to have our trainer ride her once a week which leaves 5 rides for Elizabeth and me to split up.  Well, if I'm lucky, I can have one.  And that is definitely the way it should be.  Quizz is Elizabeth's horse.  This is Elizabeth's sport.  They need to work hard in order to be ready for Pony Club certifications and horse trials.

My favorite view - of my daughter on her pony
 through the ears of an awesome horse!

So where does that leave me?  Horseless.  I've tried to talk my husband into buying me a horse but
since my daughter's horse has had so many issues - expensive issues - I don't think he will ever be willing to own two horses.  The most I can hope for is that another horse will come along with an owner willing to lease him or her out a couple of days a week.  Some day, when Elizabeth needs an upper level horse and Quizz has finished doing her job with Elizabeth, I will have my turn.  Quizz and I will live out our twilight years on the trail together.  Until then I will get my horse fix living through my daughter - watching, trailering, grooming and paying.

I hate to sound silly, but what does my pony eat?

It may sound silly to some people but honestly, if we hadn't left our first barn and joined pony club, I don't think I would have any idea how to answer this question.  The day we changed barns, the owner of our old barn gave me a great list of everything the new barn would need to know and that was when I realized how little I knew about our pony.  I had no clue what any of it meant.  I'm pleased to say I now know exactly what our pony eats and I am the one who decides what to feed him (with lots of help from people who know what they're doing).  It isn't that difficult once you get your head around the basics.

The most important component to a horse's diet is forage or roughage - grass or hay.  Some horses in some climates live outside in grassy pastures all the time and graze.  That is often their only form of sustenance.  Lucky horses!  

Because we have developed an artificial lifestyle for our horse athletes, we usually need to supplement their forage with concentrates - usually grain.

Succulents are the fun, "healthy" treats we like to give horses such as apples, carrots and fresh grass.  They are a treat and should be given to reward good behavior and not given in excess.

And lastly, just like humans, our modern, artificially kept horses often take supplements - think of them as vitamins.  Technically, supplements fall under concentrates but I order them separately and for beginners like us, they are easier to comprehend on their own.

So those are the basics.  Now for the nitty gritty.

Horses have enormously long intestines and food takes about 3 days to make it's way through their bodies.  It is important that they eat very little, very frequently.  Horses need more food than ponies.  Concentrates can be high in sugar and make ponies very excited - just like a child gets hyped up on cupcakes and ice cream at a birthday party.  

According to my pony club daughter, roughage feed includes hay (varieties include timothy, clover, bermuda, alfalfa), grass, hay pellets, range cubes and sugar beet pulp.  Hay pellets, range cubes and sugar beet pulp must be soaked before feeding.  They expand in water so if you feed them dry, they will expand in the horse's stomach and can cause their stomach to explode.  Which leads me to inform you of the fact that horses cannot vomit.  Therefore, what goes in stays in unless removed surgically. 

Horses eat hay all day and all night.  They need this to keep their digestion moving.  How much they eat depends on size.  Hay is given at our barn first thing in the morning (6am?), they are then turned out with hay after their grain (if they get grain), given hay again around noon, 2:00, 5:00 and 9:00pm.

Horses have very sensitive systems.  When there is a change in hay, they can react badly.  Therefore, when any change is made, it should be made slowly.  When we go away for a couple of days we travel with our own hay.  If we are away for a week we may bring 2 bales and mix it with the new hay for a few days before changing over completely.  Then we have to do the same thing in reverse upon our return home.

Concentrates are the means we use to control our horses weight and nutrition.  Depending on your hay, your horse may not be getting all the nutrients he needs.  There are a million different products out there to combat this problem.  Many brands have comparable grain products and most barn managers know a reasonable amount about the grains they feed.  Grain is usually fed twice a day, morning and late afternoon at our barn.  Our pony didn't get any grain or supplements prior to living with us but we now feed him a tiny amount of MVP in the morning.  MVP is a pellet form vitamin.  It gives him some nutrition and something fun to eat in the morning.  It also gives us something to mix with his supplements which come in powder form.  We give him supplements for his digestion because he's kind of gassy.  There are so many products and it is all incredibly confusing.  Find someone who really knows what they are doing to help you figure out what your pony needs.  He likely doesn't need anything!

On the topic of supplements, for people like us who have one pony and embrace convenience,

SmartPaks are a great thing.  You can choose whatever supplements you feel your horse needs, determine the quantity (they are very helpful with this, professional vitamin salespeople) and whether you want them in the am or pm feed.  The company then packages the supplements and ships them, usually free of charge, to your barn so whoever is doing the feeding at your barn just opens a pack each morning or evening and adds it in.  If you instead choose to buy supplements in bulk you can make up your own packs using ziploc baggies.  This is what we did with our first two ponies.  It takes quite a bit of time and was tedious.  SmarPaks are just easier for us.  That said, not every supplement is available.  Again, this is whatever works for you and your horse!

Another extremely important component of your equine diet is salt and water.  Your horse should always have a salt lick in his stall.  Take note of whether or not your horse is consuming the salt.  And horses always need an ample supply of fresh water.  This is something your barn should be providing throughout the day, especially in winter when the water buckets freeze over and need to be broken open with a hammer every few hours.

I'm sure you've heard the terms colic and founder but may not really know what they mean.  Colic refers to a twisting of the intestines.  With so much intestine floating around in their big horse bodies, horses are prone to this issue.  How you feed them can contribute to or reduce the risk of colic.  Horses should not eat concentrates just prior to or just after hard work.  A little hay is OK but if you plan to ride around grain feeding time, ask the barn to hold the grain until after you ride.  You should not ride for at least 30 minutes after grain is fed and should not give it to your horse after work until they are fully cooled down and have first consumed a little hay to get their digestive system going again.  If the weather is good and you have time to graze your horse after riding, make sure that he is fully cooled down first.  And be careful about how much grass you let him eat.  Especially in the spring time the sugar content of the grass can be very high and too much sugar can cause him to founder.

What is founder?  It is a condition of the hoof in which the coffin bone pulls away from the hoof.  I don't fully understand it but this is a pretty good article if you would like to learn more.  The thing you need to know is that too much sugar can seriously damage a horse's delicate system.  It seems strange that sugar can cause huge issues in the hooves but that is exactly what happens.  Horses' hooves are complicated and connected to their nervous systems.  Unfortunately, once a horse has these hoof issues caused by founder, or laminitis, a different but equally horrifying hoof issue, there is little that can be done for them.

We have cared for three ponies.  All three had significantly different diets and all three stayed nutritionally healthy.  All three taught me something about feed.  Our second pony had to have her hay soaked to remove dust - she had allergies.  She also had monthly allergy shots.  And she loved to eat.  She is a prime example of ponies who just love to eat eat eat and it is up to us to help control that tendency.  Our first pony on the other hand tended to be rather slim, unusual for a pony.  Our current pony is super easy.  I think he's pretty psyched to have morning grain.  We don't give him afternoon grain and unlike the horses who know it's feeding time and start making noise around 3:00pm, he is happy to eat a little hay and do some work in exchange for a yummy treat.  We've given different supplements to each pony as well.  I'm not sure if any of them do anything but it makes me feel like a good caregiver.  There are supplements out there for marsh behavior, for old age, to make their coat shiny and for anything else you can think of.  They can be very expensive and some probably are worth giving.

As with everything, make sure you have someone who can help you with knowing what to feed your pony and when.  That's the most important thing.  If you can, spend a day helping out with feeding at your barn and learn from the people who work there.  With 40 some horses at our barn it's fascinating to see all the different feed.  Some people bring in their own hay because they like feeding alfalfa or timothy.  Some horses have serious issues and need really special feed regiments.  Some guys like ours just eat what they're given and seem to thrive on anything.  Once again, horses are a lot like people.

If you care to read further on the topic, the pony club manuals have great information.  The D Level Manual is a little shorter and more simplistic and starts on page 199.  The C Level Manual is longer and goes into great detail starting on page 167.  I highly recommend reading these books if you can find the time.

Happy eating!

Kristie

My daughter is obsessed with horses. What books might she like to read?

This post has the most hits of any post I've written in the years I've been blogging so I thought it called for an update. I once again enlisted the help of my voracious reader of horse books, my daughter. 

My daughter devours horse books. We've got them all. So I thought I'd try to give you a list with a little something for every age. Most of the comments come directly from my 11 1/2 year old daughter (now 13 1/2 as I update this blog) since I haven't read most of these books. Many we originally found at the library. The Wellesely Library has a great horse book list. Others we stumbled upon through Amazon recommendations. At the end I've included my favorites for grown ups. Some of them you will love wether you are a horse person or not. These are just plain good books. And reading a good book about horses will help any non-horse obsessed parent relate to their horse obsessed child a little more. All titles are linked to Amazon. Several of the books are only available as eBooks.

Early Readers

Keeker by Hadley Higginson - Pre-reader to early reader.  Fun bed time stories.

Pony Pals by Jeanne Betancourt - These were written awhile back.  There are at least 20 books. Similar to Keeker, pre - early reader.

Horse Diaries - 10 books, each written by a different author.  The books are not related to each other, each being about a different horse.  My daughter's favorites are #2 Bell's Star and #10 Darcy.

Elementary School

Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry - Marguerite Henry wrote many wonderful horse novels starting with this one which won the Newbery Award and was originally published in 1947.  My daughter enjoyed all the Misty books but didn't really like her other books.  Elizabeth recommends Misty of Chincoteague, Stormy: Misty's Foal and Misty's Twilight.

Wildwood Stables by Suzanne Weyn - There are 6 books in this Scholastic series and was the first series Elizabeth really got into.  She thinks these are good for 3rd grade and up even though the main character is a 13 year old girl.  It takes place in a hunter lesson barn.

Riding Freedom by Pam Munoz Ryan - This book is about an orphan girl who lives in an orphanage with a barn.  Elizabeth says it's a really good book.

Running Horse Ridge Series by Heather Brooks - There are 3 books in this series appropriate for 4th grade and up.  The main character's mother died when she was a baby and she lives with her dad.  She's a dressage rider.

Chestnut Hill Series by Lauren Brooke - There are 6 books in this series which, while appropriate for 4th grade and up, is about bratty girls.  This was not one of Elizabeth's favorites.

Middle School (Elizabeth read many of these in 5th grade)

Heartland Series by Lauren Brooke - There are 20 books in this series which Elizabeth says are more sad and realistic.  The main character ages from 12 through high school during the series.  Her family owns a horse rehab center so it's about caring for the horses.

Thoroughbred Series by Joanna Campbell - 59 books in the original series and 15 books in the sequel Ashleigh series.  These are nice books about a girl whose family raises race horses.  Appropriate for 4th grade and up.

Canterwood Crest Series by Jessica Burkhart - This series has 20 books and has been Elizabeth's favorite for awhile.  It's a little Dana Hall (local boarding school with equine program) meets eventing.  There is some basic teen content - romance, social stuff - but appropriate for 5th - 8th grade.

Timber Ridge Riders Series by Maggie Dana - So far there are 8 books in this series.  Elizabeth wrote an email to the author last summer and she wrote back!  The stories are about two 15 year old girls who are eventers.

Horses of Oak Valley Ranch Series by Jane Smiley - These are excellent books.  There are 5 of them so far starting with The Georges and the Jewels.  Jane Smiley is a Pulitzer Prize winning novelist who has always owned horses.  Her editor asked her to write a young adult horse series since they are in such high demand.  If only all series were of this caliber.

Indefensible by Rebecca Frankeny - I read this one to make sure it was OK for E.  The writing isn't the best but even I enjoyed the story.  It's about best friend eventers and their horses.  Good for 5th grade and up but the older the girl the more she'll really get the story.

Bittersweet Farm by Barbara Morgenroth - There are 6 books in this series for horse lovers.  There is definitely some boy girl stuff in these books so better for late middle school.  The girls live on a horse farm, they start off doing hunters and eq then one ends up doing dressage.  Elizabeth is hooked on these books.

The Shadows Breathe and The Shadows Fall by Kathleen Marentes - These books focus on training show horses, primarily Saddlebreds and Arabians.  There are story lines which include horse abuse and drugging and people who work to stop the abuse.

Turning on a Dime by Maggie Dana - By the same author as the Timber Ridge Rider series, the main character travels through time to the Civil War era.  Another favorite of Elizabeth's.

Show Jumping Dreams by Claire Svendsen - This is a series of over 20 books. They're all good and flow one to the next. A girl loses her sister and mother and ends up living with her father and accumulates 4 horses. There are some mean girl dynamics, boys in the later books.

Young Adult

Shadow Horse and Whirlwind by Alison Hart - These are definitely young adult books, again, according to Elizabeth who read them at age 11.  The main character is a teenaged girl who ends up with a foster family who runs a rehab center for animals.

A Circuit by Georgina Bloomberg - Young adult, 8th grade through high school.  I bought one of these for Elizabeth and made the mistake of not pre reading it.  There was a scene with a keg party and some heavy boy girl stuff.  My sons discovered the problem and we pulled the book.

Dancing with Horses by Toni Mari - There are currently 3 books in this series about a college aged dressage rider trying to make it to the North American Junior Young Rider Championship.

Alex and Alexander by Natalie Keller Reinert - This is a 4 book series about life at the race track. Alex, the main character, is in her mid-twenties.

Ambition by Natalie Keller Reinert - This is the only book currently available in this series focused on eventing. It takes place in Florida and the main character has always dreamed of having her own farm. She is trying to make her way as an event trainer.

Nadia and Winny by Rachel Eliker - This two book series (Headed for the Win and Road to the Ragalia) is about an event rider moving through the upper levels who changes places with her horse (think Freaky Friday, equine addition).

Great Books for High School Kids through Adults (ranked by how much I enjoyed them)

Horse Heaven by Jane Smiley - This is my all time favorite book.  I reread it every year.  I don't know if I love it because I love horses or just because it is such a great book.  She writes about the horses as though they were human characters and it is awesome.  It's about horse racing but really, it's about horses and the people who live with them.  So well written and I learned a ton about horse racing and training.

Eighty-Dollar Champion by Elizabeth Letts - This is one of those random books I bought having no idea what it might be about.  I wanted to read it to make sure it was appropriate for E and I got totally hooked.  It's your typical - and true - underdog story about an amazing horse saved from the slaughter truck who went on to win many times at Madison Square Garden.  Again, maybe I loved it because I love horses but I think anyone who loves a good, well written story would embrace this one.

Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand - I'm guessing you've read the book or seen the movie.  The book, as usual, is WAY better than the movie.  Another great underdog story.  Super well written non-fiction tale of the triple crown winning race horse.

Horse People by Michael Korda - Another book I randomly picked up because it had a horse on the cover.  I was so pleasantly surprised by this book written by the editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster.  He tells numerous stories about his interactions with horses and horse people.  A rider himself, he has some good stories to tell - from fox hunting in the South to riding in Central Park in New York.  I've read criticism of this book for being more about wealthy people and their lifestyle rather than about the connection between people and their horses but I enjoyed it anyway.  I think it's a horse book non-horse people can enjoy.

Falling for Eli by Nancy Shullins - This was a lovely memoir about how a horse can come into a life and completely change it. Nancy Shullins tells her story with sensitivity and humor. I don't know if a non-horse person would get as much out of this book but it would probably be a valuable read for anyone with a horse person in their life. It might give you some perspective on the depth of the relationship between horse and rider.

And that's my list! Happy reading for you and your horse obsessed child!

Kristie

Blanketing: Why does the pony have more clothes than I do?

****Note: The links in this post aren't really recommendations.  At the bottom I will give you a run down on what I know of brands and places to buy them but I am putting links with lots of the items I mention just so you have a reference point for what I'm talking about.

Living in New England, blankets are a pretty serious topic.  Everyone kind of develops their own system and brand preferences and you will too.  However, we all need a jumping off point.

Last winter we were at a barn that really took care of the blanketing for us.  Our leased pony came with blankets and we didn't think about it too much.  Heading into winter this year we had a new pony and no blankets.  I didn't even know where to begin.

One big issue is that pony sizes are hard to come by so where horses have the option of buying a set from one brand and having all the layers work together, ponies end up with a bit of a hodge podge.  Then there is the issue of where to buy blankets.  I like to buy from my local tack shop.  It saves shipping costs and means I can try things out and exchange them if they don't work.  This is really important with blankets - just as it is with saddles and bridles.  But when it comes to ponies, the local shop won't always have what you need.  Sometimes, they can't even order it!  In that case, Just for Ponies is the place to go.  Even then you may not find what you need.

So what do you need?  It depends on where you live but if temps get down to 20 degrees in your area you should, at a minimum, have a turnout sheet, a cooler and a heavy.  A turnout sheet is the horse version of a lightweight rain jacket.  It can be put on when it's 50 and raining to keep the horse dry.  We also use ours overnight before a show so the clean pony can't get dirty when he rolls.  A cooler can take many forms but is essentially a cotton or fleece layer that can be put on either to keep a damp pony from catching a chill or as a layering piece under a turnout sheet.  So if it's 30 and rainy you may put a fleece cooler under the turnout.  Turnout sheets also come in medium and heavy fill powers so the heavy is like a super warm North Face down coat, usually with 300 grams of fill.  The medium is just a little lighter, usually around 200 grams of fill.  Both should be waterproof.  Many, like the Smartpak Deluxe, can be ordered in any or all of the 3 weights.  Sometimes you find you can order your blankets in a set which gives you more layering options rather than a heavy weight turn out.  I'm surprised by how much we use both the heavy and the medium.  Sometimes one of them gets wet so it's nice to have the other one available.  If you have a horse you are likely to have for a long time it's worth have a good selection of blankets and sheets.

If you live in a cool climate, a quarter sheet is a really good idea.  I made the one in this photo from a blanket called a Chappy Wrap.  A quarter sheet is soft and warm and is used to keep the horse warm while riding on a really cold day.  It has side extensions that go under the saddle flaps and meet in front of the saddle where they velcro to keep the sheet in place while you ride.

There are several other types of blankets and sheets out there.  Typically if someone refers to a sheet they mean the lightweight turnout.  However, there are also stable sheets.  These are not waterproof and are more appropriate for a life indoors.  It's nice to have a stable sheet for trailering or for putting on when they come in on a rainy day so the turnout can hang and dry.  It can also be a good layering piece.  The Baker Blanket is an equine staple and we have 2.  They are great for layering and come in wool or cotton.  We have cotton which is easy to take home and run through the washing machine (more on cleaning horse clothes in a minute).  Another good item to have in your equine wardrobe is the anti-sweat sheet.  This is similar to a cooler and is used to keep a sweaty horse from getting chilled.  It soaks up sweat but is like netting so it allows air in to dry the horse while keeping him warm.  There are certainly other items out there including dress sheets.  Some people like to have a separate set of blankets they use only for shows when the horse is clean and they want to look good.  They usually have a nicer trim and are embroidered with a monogram.  Most tack shops also offer a line of custom sheets and coolers.

If you plan to clip your horse's neck or if you live in a severely cold climate, a neck cover - or a heavy weight blanket with a high neck - might be necessary.  If you want a neck cover it is best to buy one that goes with your sheet.  Again, with ponies, this is a tall order.  I did end up finding one that fit our pony but then the sheet of the same brand didn't work with it. Fortunately, it does work with our medium and our heavy.  Eventually I'll get around to adding rings to our lightweight so it will work with that too but it still isn't ideal.  If you can, try to buy them together.  There are a few different systems out there but for the most part they have velcro or hooks on the underside of the neck cover that attach to the neck edge of the sheet either through metal rings or belt loops.  This is one of those things that's nice to buy at a tack shop so you can see how it works before making your choice.

To order blankets you will need an idea of what size your horse will wear.  The size corresponds to a measurement you can take.  Using a soft tape measure, start at the center of the chest and measure to the tail.  This is really only a starting point.  Our pony measures 63 inches but he has short legs and a big barrel.  Some blankets are long on him and a 66 fits better than a 63.  Like people clothes, some brands run big and others run small.  Some run in 2 inch increments, others in 3 inch.  Some have pony sizes and some do not.  Once you find a blanket or sheet that fits really well, take it with you when shopping for sheets and use it as a comparison.  Take notes on which brands and sizes fit well and keep it on your cell phone so any time you are out shopping you can remember if it was Weatherbeata or SmartPak that ran big for your guy.

Now that you have a wardrobe, I suppose you'd like to know how to use it.  This is something that just takes time and experimentation.  The goal is to keep the horse warm without causing him to sweat.  You don't want to over blanket.  If a horse gets sweaty and gets his blanket wet he can catch a chill as the temperature drops.  This is all pretty basic common sense.  If your horse has a heavy winter coat he won't need as much clothing as a thoroughbred with no hair.  If you do a full clip, you need to put on extra clothes.

Clipping may be another post but you may have no idea what I'm talking about so I'll try to explain briefly.  When you work a horse for an hour, even on a cold day, they can work up a sweat.  Before you can put the horse in his stall for the night, he must be completely dry.  You can't blanket a wet horse for the night.  If your horse is particularly fuzzy it can take a very long time walking him around to cool him out - we're talking about an additional 45 minutes.  So, you can shave off some hair to reduce sweating as well as the time it takes to cool down.  We full body clipped Pumba in October but it's pretty much fully grown out now.  For the coldest part of the winter we are just clipping him under his neck, across his chest and belly just past the girth.  You have to experiment with your own horse and the amount and type of riding you do to know how much clipping is optimal for you.  Follow this link for some information on clipping.

With blankets and clipping come blanket rub, yet another thing I had no idea about until one day I noticed an area on our pony where the fur had literally "rubbed" away.  Even really nice, well fitted blankets can give a horse rub.  On a chestnut horse it looks like a small patch of grayish dirt.  It's pretty easy to see on a light grey pony - it's typically dark grey against their light hair.  The real issue with allowing rub to continue is that eventually, all the hair in the affected area will wear away and the blanket will then begin to rub and irritate the skin.  I guess you could think of it like a bed sore.  The chest area is usually the worst and there are a few products on the market to help prevent rub.  Stretchies are usually the first line of defense.  You can buy a full body stretchy or one that covers the chest area and which many people refer to as a "bra".  Another option, and definitely a brand recommendation, is the Bossy Big which completely eradicated rub from the portion of our pony that it covers.  The stretchy just didn't work for us but the bib is a life saver.  We find that our Baker Blanket causes more rub than a fleece cooler if we need to layer - we recently had a stretch of sub-zero temperatures that had us layering under Pumba's heavy!  We also find that rotating blankets helps since different blankets fit a little differently and put pressure in different spots.  Most sheets have a nice slippery layer against the pony to minimize friction but some horses are just prone to rub anyway.  We find our Amigo heavy and SmartPak Deluxe medium are really good sheets and don't cause much rub.

Horses are dirty and love to roll in the mud so your pony clothes will get filthy.  Our barn sends sheets out at the end of winter for cleaning.  You can also have older sheets waterproofed if they are starting to leak though it seems as though once they start leaking, they never stop.  We sometimes take blankets to Dover Saddlery to send out for cleaning and I know there are other places that do it as well.  Dover is just really convenient for us.  I do wash coolers at home in my washing machine.  We usually put duct tape around the metal parts to preserve our washer and dryer.  Be prepared if you wash blankets at home you will find horse hair in everything you own!  It's probably not a good idea to wash sheets at home for several reasons.  Firstly, they are seriously dirty.  Secondly, you may damage their waterproof finish.  Thirdly, medium and heavy weight turnouts are super big and may overload your washer.  Having them cleaned once a year at the end of the season is usually sufficient.

So, in case you couldn't tell already, my favorite places to shop are Dover Saddlery, SmartPak and Just for Ponies.  We are super super super lucky to live in Wellesley, Massachusetts which boasts brick and mortar Dover and SmartPak stores.  We have even been so lucky as to find blankets in the discount attic at SmartPak and basement at Dover.  We love the SmartPak brand blankets.  Weatherbeeta tends to make sheets with the most fun fabrics.  Horsewear Ireland makes both the Amigo and Rambo brands which are pretty much top of the line in both price and design.  We got an Amigo from a friend and it is super nice.  It fits really well and when I'm out shopping I notice both brands take advantage the most innovative design and textiles.  If you can afford it, I think they are worth the money ($400 for a Rambo heavy vs. $200 for a SmartPak heavy).  But I am just about as happy with our SmartPak sheets so you don't HAVE to spend more.  I do think Horsewear does a better job with neck covers so if you intend to use a neck cover frequently you might really think about splurging.  Also take into account how long you will have the particular horse you are clothing.  It's rare that the next horse fits in the same blankets.  If you are leasing for a year, you might not go for the extensive wardrobe of high end blankets.  If, however, this is a young, forever horse, I would buy blankets that really fit well and will perform for a long time.

SmartPak has some great resources on their website including a Blanketing 101 article and a Blanketing Glossary.  Both are worth a look if you still have questions.

Have fun dressing your pony! -
Kristie

Pony Club: What is it? Should we join?

I first heard of Pony Club when I took my daughter to a great dressage barn up in Maine for lessons a few summers ago.  The barn owner made an obscure reference to having jumped 4 feet without stirrups and all that other crazy pony club stuff but she was done jumping.  I was mystified and wondered what she meant. 

When we decided to change barns, we soon found ourselves out of our depth.  Our first barn, like most hunter/jumper barns, took care of everything for us.  I had no idea what the pony ate or when, or any idea what to do about veterinary and dental care.  They arranged all of it and I wrote a check.  On show days the instructors loaded the ponies into their trailer and drove them to the show.  It was great!  Then again, I like knowing all that stuff and doing it for myself.  When we switched to eventing, our new trainer (a past pony clubber herself) was willing to show us what to do and stand next to us as we learned but she wasn’t going to do it for us.  This was just what we wanted but it was also a little intimidating.  We needed more support, more education.  Enter Pony Club.

I often describe Pony Club to non-horse friends as Girl Scouts but you bring your pony. The United States Pony Club is divided into regions which each contain a number of clubs.  Clubs can take 2 forms.  A Center is one in which a barn, and often one particular instructor, runs a pony club at their facility for the kids who ride there.  The advantage to this model is that kids who may not have access to their own mount can participate easily.  The downside can be that the education is less broad, coming primarily from the instructor they ride with each week.  In contrast, ours is a traditional Pony Club, meaning that it has no single location.  Many of our members keep their ponies at home (any equine animal being used by a pony clubber is known as a pony, regardless of size) and most of the mothers ride as well.  We have several barns in the area that host us and one that hosts our annual August camp.  The advantage to this type of club is exposure to many instructors from multiple disciplines and the presence of experienced horsepeople in the ranks of our sponsors (what they call the parents of pony clubbers).  I suppose the downside to this model is that it’s difficult to participate fully without your own pony or your own trailer but I’ve been really impressed with the horse community in our area and how much they have done to keep kids in the program.

Pony Club provides an enriching program of education in both horse management and riding.  Over time, members achieve “Ratings” based on their proficiency in these two areas.  Pony Club originally emerged from the eventing discipline so the traditional path is heavily influenced by the skills and riding style of the eventer but there are now other paths one can take through pony club at the higher levels.  Ratings are conducted once or twice a year depending on the number of participants and the levels they are testing for.  You can think of it like a karate test for a higher belt.  The candidates are being tested against a standard.  All can pass or all can fail or there can be a mix.  Sometimes candidates pass one portion such as horse management but not another, such as the riding portion.

The ratings are as follows:

Unrated – What we call a pony clubber prior to their first ratings test.

D1, D2, D3 – D1 is the first rating attained and is pretty basic.  By the time a rider reaches the D3 they are jumping 2’3” both in an enclosed space and in an open field as well as having a pretty hefty knowledge of tack, horse anatomy, veterinary care, etc. The D3 level is the first to require a record book which includes a good deal of information about your pony - farrier and vet visits, training, costs of everything.  My daughter is a D2, hoping to do her D3 next fall. 

C1, C2, C3 – This is pretty serious stuff. I observed a C1/C2 rating conducted by a national examiner and was seriously impressed with the young women who tested (and all passed).  The C2 is jumping over 3’.  The C3 gets particularly serious with candidates switching horses for part of the riding portion.  The young women in our club who are C2’s are juniors and seniors in high school. Ratings C3 and above are conducted on the national level.

HB – This rating means you have achieved a B rating in horse management but have not yet rated a B in riding.  Some candidates prefer to do their HB first and their C3 after. 

B – The “traditional” B rating is both horse management and riding and includes all possible riding options.  There are paths that allow a person to focus on dressage riding or hunter style riding in an enclosed space without jumping in the open.

HA – Similar to HB but at a higher level of knowledge.

A – The “traditional A rating” is the highest level in pony club and must be attained by the age of 25.  It is extremely rare that a rider makes it through this rating.  Not only does the rider need to be extremely knowledgeable and capable, they need to have a horse that can jump high for them as well as for a fellow pony clubber who has never ridden their mount before.

Now that you are thoroughly confused, I’ll tell you a little about why we LOVE Pony Club.  Elizabeth and I have both made friends in Pony Club.  In the beginning I called our new friends almost daily with questions and they were always there for us.  Our club conducts 2 mounted meetings per month April through November which means Elizabeth and her friends are taking their ponies places together on a very regular basis.  The impact this has on my daughter’s connection to her pony and her confidence is enormous.  The camp our club does in August was the greatest week of Elizabeth’s life.  As horse camp goes, it’s incredibly low cost.  Parents provide the supervision and the kids do all the work.  They muck their own stalls, take turns coming early to feed and late to do night check.  They ride twice a day and have a multitude of instructors.  They even completed a 3-phase event within camp.  I loved it so much I’m in charge of camp for next year.  We love pony club because we feel like a real part of our community.  We know people now anywhere we go – to a horse show, another barn, the tack shop.  Elizabeth is passionate about horses, not just winning ribbons.  For her Pony Club is as exciting as showing, maybe more so since there is no pressure during a mounted meeting, and her ratings mean a great deal to her.  On a practical side, your Pony Club rating means something to other horse people.  When you tell someone you are a C3, they know what it means.  Your rating is a clear indication of your knowledge and your capabilities as a rider.

Pony Club is also about leadership.  The older girls in our club conduct the lower level ratings, teach unmounted meetings and mentor kids who are working on a rating.  They also act as stable managers at rallies and as such go to bat for their riders over the rules when they deem a ruling unfair – this is sometimes amusing for the adults to watch but also gratifying to see typically shy horsey girls handle themselves with strength and determination.

Did I lose you at rally and stable manager?  The other major thing we do in Pony Club is rally.  There are 5 - 6 rallies in each region each year.  A rally has a theme – dressage, show jumping, eventing, tetrathalon (don’t ask, but it involves swimming and shooting and is super fun), quiz (tests horse knowledge).  Clubs form teams of 4 – 5 riders.  Each rider is considered and scored based on their own rating so a team can have D’s, C’s and B’s all together.  There is a written test in addition to the scored riding portion of the rally which resembles a horse show.  There are also inspections of each pony and rider team and of the teams’ stabling areas.  The stable manager is a member of the team who does not ride in the competition.  The stable manager makes sure each member of the team is where they need to be and is doing what they should be doing, that their tack is clean and in order and that they are doing things in the proper order.  Awards are given for both riding and horse management.  Some rallies are "qualifying rallies" meaning that competitors can qualify for nationals and compete in a bigger pony club arena.  Every three years nationals takes place at the Kentucky Horse Park so it's pretty exciting!

My favorite part of rallying is “turn back” in which each team must clean all their tack and reorganize their stable area to absolute perfection for one final inspection before they pack up to go home.  This is a GREAT life lesson!!!!  It is so wonderful to get home to unload and be all ready for the next day because the work was done right away, especially since it is usually very late at night by that point and you've already put in a 16 hour day.

What is the commitment?  Well, like all things with horses, pretty big, but in my eyes manageable and well worth it.  I’m sure every club is different but we have one “sponsor’s” meeting a month (skipping August and December), mounted meetings in the good weather, unmounted meetings in the winter.  A member is really expected to attend most of these meetings and a parent is expected to accompany them.  If a member is working toward a new rating there will be rating prep meetings to attend as well as the rating itself.  This can be extremely time consuming.  Rallies and camp are optional but add greatly to the experience.  As kids get older and have more commitments outside pony club or are more focused on showing, they will sometimes choose not to go to camp.  Many of the rallies fall on days we have a horse show so Elizabeth only rallied once in 2013 but we hope to rally much more in the year ahead!  Financially, Pony Club is a bargain as horse activities go.  We pay dues to our local club and our national organization.  We fundraise, requiring every member to do 3 - 4 shifts at a horse show concession stand in the summer and for one parent to join them for each shift.  Each mounted meeting usually has a fee – in our club the member pays the facility use fee and our club pays the instructors, making the fundraising well worth the effort.  Rallies cost about as much to enter as a schooling show.  The big expenses are the horse and transportation which is why I bought a trailer.  I can’t imagine being in pony club without a trailer.  I have friends who do it but it would drive me crazy to never be 100% certain how I was getting anywhere. 

Pony Club teaches kids to be independent and responsible.  They learn the skills and knowledge required to be good horse custodians.  Because of the heavy parent involvement, we learn about being good custodians as well.  Since having a horsey child can take over a good portion of your time, it’s really nice to find a group of non-competitive parents to bond with on the topic.  I can’t say enough about how healthy and productive the Pony Club experience has been for us.

One of my favorite things about Pony Club is the interaction between kids of varying age groups.  Our club has kids from age 8 - 18 and you are as likely to find an 11 year old and 16 year old chatting as you are to find two kids of the same age together.  My daughter has more in common with a pony clubber two years older than her than she does with most of the girls in her class at school.  The older girls are wonderful mentors and good friends to the younger girls.  As parents we love watching them build relationships built on more than just their age or grade in school.

I could go on all day and still only scratch the surface so if you would like more information here are a few links.  Pony Club's new website has a great page for parents with some basic information.  This D Level ratings flowchart will give you an idea of what is required both in knowledge and riding skill at the first 3 levels of pony club ratings.  Whether you join Pony Club or not, if you buy or lease a pony the D Level Manual is a great resource.  We have actually found the C Level Manual to be of even greater use.  It doesn’t take long to need that little bit more information about horse management issues when you have your own pony.  Both manuals are also available from Amazon for the Kindle.  There are other awesome Pony Club books, especially if you already know a good deal about horses and just want to expand your knowledge.

For our family, the idea of having a pony and just riding it doesn’t quite work.  A pony enables our daughter to do a sport but it's not the equivalent of a lacrosse stick or hockey skates.  A pony is not just a pet but another member of the family.  Many days Pumba is Elizabeth's best friend.  They are a team and sometimes they get along and sometimes they don't.  A pony needs constant care and attention. Fortunately Elizabeth loves everything about having a pony from mucking to tacking, from riding on the flat, to going over jumps in the field (which sometimes scares her but she loves to do it anyway).  She's passionate about learning about horse illness, dangerous plants, how to wrap her pony's legs properly.  And she loves to just spend time talking to him, grooming him and giving him treats.  Buying Elizabeth a pony was a great decision and Pony Club has contributed a great deal to the happy circumstances we now find ourselves in.

Happy Pony Clubbing!

Kristie