Since this is the Annual Horse Show Issue, I asked friends and colleagues what they felt needed to be addressed at our horse shows. These are all issues that can be dealt with to make things better, but people must work together to make this happen.

We, as a community, are responsible for what’s happening in the hunter industry, and we are capable of fixing the problems.

The first issue is the misuse of and over-longeing of horses. Joe Fargis and I talked recently about the training of horses and their preparation for showing. Joe is disappointed by the misuse of longeing, and rightly so.

Longeing can be a valuable training aid when done properly, but today, for a growing number, it’s simply become a way to wear horses down to the point that they’ll obey their riders’ commands.

Why? I think the biggest reason is that we now have so many horse shows on the calendar that many end up teaching students just to ride in the show ring. In the good old days, you trained at home and went to the show when your instructor felt you were ready to test your abilities against yourself and others.

There’s no single reason for this situation. But it is the fault of everyone involved in the hunter industry.

Trainers are responding to pressure from clients to show, judging must allow for some expression within a horse’s performance, and clients need to be patient, to wait until they’re ready to securely negotiate classes in the performance arena.

We’ve all seen riders who make you gasp and hold your breath when they’re going around the ring. How often when you see these riders do you comment on what a saint the horse is? How did he get to be that saint? We all hope it’s because he’s a wonderful, naturally quiet, well-schooled, and patient soul, but often he’s just worn out. Over-longeing horses causes them to lose their personality, spirit, character and soul.

There are all levels of longeing, and virtually every trainer uses longeing, including me. But I learned long ago from training partner Chuck Keller that even though good longeing can facilitate the training of the horse, it doesn’t take the place of riding. The horse must understand and accept the use of the legs, seat, hands and voice.

Proper longeing to let a horse warm up, cool down or play freely, to train and school a horse, is a good thing, but the infamous “longeing till dead” (LTD) is not.

And to whom are we delegating the responsibility for these horses when they are out longeing? Are we training our grooms and assistants in the proper methods of longeing horses? Just drive past any horse show exercise area in the early morning, and you’ll see many horses that aren’t longeing in a manner that contributes to their training. They’re just being chased around, often on the cross-canter, until they say “uncle.”

The pressure created on a horse’s body and bone structure by improper longeing techniques is unnecessary and abusive. How can we expect these athletes to continue performing over any length of time when they’re subjected to this strain? The torque created by hours of tight circling in often less-than-adequate footing will eventually destroy the horse’s longevity, by causing injuries and soreness.

If the horse is that wild, then he really isn’t ready to be at the show or may need a change of career.

It’s so easy to get into the routine of just wearing them out, especially if it produces the winner that day. But eventually it catches up with you, and the horse pays the price.

Similarly, we’re seeing one of the best creations for enhancing a horse’s condition, performance and rehabilitation being turned into an all night walk-a-thon at some barns. The horse-walker machine was designed to help keep horses fit and to help injured horses with their recovery. As it requires very little human interaction and is cost-efficient, at some barns it’s evolved into a virtual robot that performs the duty of wearing the horse out.

They’re A Hazard
Two of the most dangerous situations at competitions are the use of cellular telephones while riding and motor vehicles around horses. Too many cell-phone-dependent riders pay no attention to anything or anyone around them in the schooling areas, on the riding paths, and when crossing automobile traffic areas. Some just expect that you’ll watch out for them and take no responsibility for the situation.

If you need to talk on your phone and you’re on a horse, get out of the schooling area so that you’re not a hazard to the rest of the people riding.

All riders need to take a minute, especially at the crowded shows, to analyze the size of the schooling rings and the number of animals in them. Walking two, three and four abreast may be fine if there are just a few horses in the schooling ring, but when it’s crowded, it’s just plain rude and offensive. You’re taking up the space of those trying to exercise and train their horses.

We’ve all heard of near-misses and accidents involving golf carts and motorbikes. We managed to survive for years without these conveniences, and while our show grounds are growing bigger all the time and these luxuries provide us with the ability to be more efficient, they are luxuries and should be used respectfully of others.

Thankfully, a U.S. Equestrian Federation rule that took effect last April requires you to be of driving age to operate a motorized vehicle at a competition. With the exception of some parents who think it’s cute to let their little children operate these vehicles on their lap, at least now we don’t have to deal with unlicensed and untrained drivers.

Competition managers should be commended for their support of this rule and that of the recent rule requiring dogs to be on a leash. What’s amazing is that we had to tailor this rule to make it clear that you couldn’t be mounted on a horse with a dog on a leash.

We’re at a horse show, people, not a dog show. While you may find your pet to be the most adorable thing to ever take a breath, others may not. If you’re compelled to bring your pet, then you’re responsible for keeping it under control and out of the way of the horses.

Negative Agenda
Last of all, there’s a group of people within our sport who continue to look for the negative and propagate it, while never getting involved in creating solutions to our problems. Yes, this is certainly a very small minority, but they’re a cancer in our sport, and it’s a shame that these individuals continue to spread misinformation.

All too often, these people speak without getting the facts right. If you have a question about rules, initiatives, programs and governance in our industry, go to your equestrian organizations to get the answer, or go to a responsible and upstanding member of the equestrian community for help. If you hear a rumor, let the buck stop with you. Don’t spread anything you cannot take personal responsibility for saying. This way, you won’t let these people use you to further their negative agenda.

I’ve just discussed four areas of concern at our competitions. The U.S. Hunter Jumper Association’s Horse Welfare Committee has been instructed by the U.S. Equestrian Federation board to bring a rule change forward to the July meeting regarding the welfare of the horse, a rule that encompasses all breeds and disciplines.

Right now, the longeing issue needs to be addressed on all levels of our sport by all of us involved. A philosophy on the practice of longeing must be developed, accepted and supported by all equestrians. This means trainers must work together in support of this philosophy and clients must realize that they or their horses may not be ready to compete.

The use of cellular phones and motorized vehicles is solved by common sense, responsibility and awareness on the part of all of us.

And stopping the chain of false information is very easy. Before you say it, be sure you can defend it and that you’re willing to take responsibility for your words and actions.

We have many issues on the horizon, and now is the time to be proactive in creating solutions to the problems.