Forum rules

[Erin]

As a participant on this forum, it is your responsibility to know and follow our rules. Please read this message in its entirety.

Board Rules

1. You’re responsible for what you say.

This is a public forum viewed by a wide spectrum of people. Outright inflammatory, vulgar, harassing or otherwise inappropriate statements and legally unsubstantiated defamatory accusations will not be tolerated and will be dealt with at the discretion of the moderators. Due to the popularity and size of the forums, policing each post is impossible, and members bear the ultimate responsibility for their comments. The Chronicle of the Horse and its affiliates, as well Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd., the developers of vBulletin, are not responsible for the content of the forums, but the moderators work to maintain the closest adherence to the rules of the board as possible.

2. Conversations must be horse-related.

The forums are a wonderful source of information and support for members of the horse community. While it’s understandably tempting to share information or search for input on other topics upon which members might have a similar level of knowledge, we must maintain the focus on horses.

3. Keep conversations productive, on topic and civil.

Discussion and disagreement are inevitable and encouraged; personal attacks, diatribes and sniping comments are unproductive and unacceptable. Whether a subject is light-hearted or serious, keep posts focused on the current topic and of general interest to other participants of that thread. Utilize the private message feature or personal email where appropriate to address side topics or personal issues not related to the topic at large.

4. No advertising on the discussion forums.

Posts in the discussion forums directly or indirectly advertising horses, jobs, items or services for sale or wanted will be removed at the discretion of the moderators. Unsolicited promotion of horses for sale and use of the private messaging feature for advertising are not permitted.

Paid advertising is available in the classified forums and through the purchase of banner ads. The tightly monitored “Giveaways” forum permits free listings of genuinely free horses and items available or wanted (on a limited basis). Items offered for trade are not allowed.

Advertising Policy Specifics
When in doubt of whether something you want to post constitutes advertising, please contact a moderator privately in advance for further clarification. Refer to the following points for general guidelines:

Horses – Only general discussion about the buying, leasing, selling and pricing of horses is permitted. If the post contains the type of specific information typically found in a sales or wanted ad, and it’s related to a horse you or an associate are looking for or are looking to sell, it doesn’t belong in the discussion forums.

Stallions – Board members may ask for suggestions on breeding stallion recommendations. Stallion owners may reply to such queries by suggesting their own stallions, only if their horse fits the specific criteria of the original poster. Excessive promotion of a stallion by its owner or related parties is not permitted and will be addressed at the discretion of the moderators.

Services – Members may use the forums to ask for recommendations of trainers, barns, shippers, farriers, etc., and other members may answer those requests by suggesting themselves or their company, if their services fulfill the specific criteria of the original post. Members may not solicit other members for business if it is not in response to a direct, genuine query.

Products – While members may ask for general opinions and suggestions on equipment, trailers, trucks, etc., they may not list the specific attributes for which they are in the market, as such posts serve as wanted ads.

Event Announcements – Members may post one notification of an upcoming event that may be of interest to fellow members, if the original poster does not benefit financially from the event. Such threads may not be “bumped” excessively.

Charities/Rescues – Announcements for charitable or fundraising events can only be made for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations. Special exceptions may be made, at the moderators’ discretion and direction, for board-related events or fundraising activities in extraordinary circumstances.

Occasional posts regarding horses available for adoption through IRS-registered horse rescue or placement programs are permitted in the appropriate forums, but these threads may be limited at the discretion of the moderators. Individuals may not advertise or make announcements for horses in need of rescue, placement or adoption unless the horse is available through a recognized rescue or placement agency or government-run entity or the thread fits the criteria for and is located in the Giveaways forum.

5. Do not post copyrighted photographs unless you have purchased that photo.

6. Respect and help the moderators.

As members are often passionate about their beliefs and intentions can easily be misinterpreted in this type of environment, try to explore or resolve the inevitable disagreements that arise in the course of threads calmly and rationally. If you see a post that you feel violates the rules of the board, please click the “alert” button (exclamation point inside of a red triangle) on the upper right side of the post, which will alert ONLY the moderators and administrators to the post in question. They will then take whatever action is deemed appropriate for the situation. Do not air grievances regarding other posters or the moderators in the discussion forums.

Be advised that the “Ignore” function in your User Control Panel can be an effective tool to avoid reading posts by and being contacted by members whose commentary you’d prefer to skip.

Understand that the moderators exist to maintain a generally informative and enjoyable forum for the exchange of ideas, information and opinions on the horse world. The moderators’ decisions are final and while you may not always agree with them, respect that such actions are done in the best interest of the board, based upon a number of factors, not always readily apparent. If you question the handling of a situation, contact a moderator privately and respectfully, in order to discuss it.

7. We reserve the right to enforce and amend the rules.

The moderators may delete, edit, move or close any post or thread at any time, and may suspend or revoke a user’s membership privileges at any time to maintain adherence to the rules and the general spirit of the forum. These rules may be amended at any time to address the current needs of the board.

Thanks for being a part of the Chronicle of the Horse's forum!