US Equestrian Magazine by United States Equestrian Federation, Inc.

Official Magazine of the United States Equestrian Federation | Summer 2019

SENIOR STRATEGIES Keeping Horses Active Longer

LAMINITIS

Look Beyond the Hooves

PONY FINALS Kat Fuqua: Memories and Top Tips My First Pony Finals Safe Sport Town Halls

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FESTIVAL OF CHAMPIONS

CONTENTS FEATURES 66 SENIOR STRATEGIES

Keys to keeping horses active longer

76 PONY FINALS CHAMP KAT FUQUA

On life lessons and show tips

88 LAMINITIS

It’s not only about the hooves

96 LICENSED OFFICIALS

How and why to become an LO

DEPARTMENTS 8 Partners 10 Sponsors 14 Marketing/Media 16 Letter from the President 18 Snapshot

20 USEF News

30 Seen & Heard 32 Learning Center Cover: Maddie Tosh and Bit of Love at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals Photo: Taylor Pence/ US Equestrian

38 Pro Tip Official Magazine of the United States Equestrian Federation | Summer 2019

SENIOR STRATEGIES Keeping Horses Active Longer

LAMINITIS

Look Beyond the Hooves

44 Juniors’ Ring 48 My First 52 Hot Links

PONY FINALS Kat Fuqua: Memories and Top Tips My First Pony Finals Safe Sport Town Halls

56 Trending 60 Horse Health 110 For the Record

4 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP): ARND.NL/ARND BRONKHORST, ©MICHAEL WILDENSTEIN, S. HELLNER PHOTOGRAPHY

Official Magazine of the United States Equestrian Federation

US EQUESTRIAN MAGAZINE Volume LXXXIII, Summer Edition PUBLISHED BY The United States Equestrian Federation, Inc. CHIEF MARKETING & CONTENT OFFICER Vicki Lowell | vlowell@usef.org EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Glenye Cain Oakford | goakford@usef.org CREATIVE DIRECTOR Candice McCown | cmccown@usef.org ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Kim Russell | 859 225 6938 | krussell@usef.org DIRECTOR OF SPONSORSHIP & SALES Layson Griffin | lgriffin@usef.org DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL & VIDEO CONTENT Andrea Evans | aevans@usef.org ASSISTANT DESIGNER Kate Strom | kstrom@usef.org EDITORIAL STAFF Kathleen Landwehr, Jane Ohlert, Kim Russell, Ashley Swift CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Fran Jurga, Jeannie Blancq Paolino Equestrian Magazine (ISSN 1548-873X) is published five times a year: Horse of the Year Special Edition, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter, by the United States Equestrian Federation®, 4047 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511; Phone: (859) 258-2472; Fax: (859) 231-6662. (ISSN:1548-873X). NOTE: Effective Spring issue of 2018, Equestrian magazine will be published and provided electronically and only four editions will have printed copies and be provided by U.S. Mail. The Winter issue will only be provided electronically. The Horse of the Year issue will be mailed only to competing members as of the date of publication and the year immediately prior to the date of publication. USEF is not responsible for the opinions and statements expressed in signed articles and paid advertisements. These opinions are not necessarily the opinions of USEF and its staff. While the Federation makes every effort to avoid errors, we assume no liability to anyone for mistakes or omissions. It is the policy of the Federation to report factually and accurately in Equestrian and to encourage and to publish corrections whenever warranted. Kindly direct any comments or inquiries regarding corrections to Glenye Cain Oakford goakford@usef.org or by direct dial 859-225-6941. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to US Equestrian, 4047 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511. Canadian Publications Agreement No. 40845627. For Canadian returns, mail to Canada Express, 7686 #21 Kimble Street Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, L5S1E9. (905) 672-8100. Reproduction of any article, in whole or part, by written permission only of the Editor. Equestrian: Publisher, United States Equestrian Federation®, Chief Executive Officer, William J. Moroney (859) 225-6912. Director of Advertising, Kim Russell (859) 225-6938. Copyright © 2018. Equestrian is the official publication of the United States Equestrian Federation, the National Governing Body for Equestrian Sport in the USA, and is an official publication of USEF.

Published at 4047 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, Ky 40511 USequestrian.org

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The United States Equestrian Federation does not endorse or recommend any commercial product or service. Therefore, designations as official suppliers of the USEF of any commercial product or service cannot be construed as an endorsement or recommendation by the United States Equestrian Federation.

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BRIEF SUMMARY: Prior to use please consult the product insert, a summary of which follows: CAUTION: Federal law restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. INDICATIONS: Adequan® i.m. is recommended for the intramuscular treatment of non-infectious degenerative and/or traumatic joint dysfunction and associated lameness of the carpal and hock joints in horses. CONTRAINDICATIONS: There are no known contraindications to the use of intramuscular Polysulfated Glycosaminoglycan. WARNINGS: Do not use in horses intended for human consumption. Not for use in humans. Keep this and all medications out of the reach of children. PRECAUTIONS: The safe use of Adequan® i.m. in horses used for breeding purposes, during pregnancy, or in lactating mares has not been evaluated. For customer care, or to obtain product information, visit www.adequan.com. To report an adverse event please contact American Regent, Inc. at (800) 734-9236 or email pv@americanregent.com. Please see Full Prescribing Information at www.adequan.com. 1 Adequan® i.m. Package Insert, Rev 1/19. 2 Burba DJ, Collier MA, DeBault LE, Hanson-Painton O, Thompson HC, Holder CL: In vivo kinetic study on uptake and distribution of intramuscular tritium-labeled polysulfated glycosaminoglycan in equine body fluid compartments and articular cartilage in an osteochondral defect model. J Equine Vet Sci 1993; 13: 696-703. Adequan and the Horse Head design are registered trademarks of American Regent, Inc. © 2019, American Regent, Inc. PP-AI-US-0214 02/2019

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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

Show Season: A Time for Joy and Growth As we enter the summer months, your Federation continues to work hard on your behalf to provide you a safe, fair, and enjoyable environment to compete in. To that end, I am happy to report that the initial phase of Safe Sport training is behind us, as the vast majority of USEF members have completed the legally required training. In addition, our membership continues to grow, the staff continues to identify and provide new and better member benefits, and USEF is financially strong. The Board of US Equestrian will be gathering in Lexington for their mid-year meeting in early July. One important topic of the mid-year meeting will be the recent feedback we received in response to the letter our CEO Bill Moroney and I recently sent. Your constructive feedback in numerous areas helps us to make informed decisions, which, in turn, work better in the competition environment. It is greatly appreciated. Beyond listening and responding to feedback that makes us better, we all

16 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

know that the future of our sport depends on our youth. So in this summer issue, we turn our attention to the USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm. As part of our Pony Finals emphasis, contributor Jeannie Blancq Paolino talked to Kat Fuqua, winner of last year’s USEF Pony Finals Overall Grand Hunter Pony Championship with Brighton in her fifth year at the event. In our feature “Life Lessons in the Saddle,” Kat discusses the persistence and training it took to win a Pony Finals championship, talks about what she’s learned from riding in the show ring, and gives her top tips for this year’s Pony Finals competitors. She is also one of several equestrian stars we meet from the upcoming film “Billy and Blaze.” Fifteen-year-old Emily Smith is another rider with fond memories of Pony Finals. Emily attended her first Pony Finals last year, competing on her Connemara gelding Gold Medal Ribbon. In our “My First” department, she and her mom reminisce about the experience and the mental confidence Emily gained from it. Other important topics are also covered in this issue. Mental preparedness is part of every athlete’s program, at every level. Performance psychologist and equestrian Dr. Darby Bonomi shares her strategies for overcoming competition nerves, building confidence, and improving focus, with bonus tips from two FEI World Equestrian Games™ team veterans, show jumper and gold medalist Adrienne Sternlicht and reiner and coach Troy Heikes. Human athletes rely on their equine counterparts, and this issue provides you with useful information about maintaining older horses and dealing with laminitis. Horses’ needs change as they grow older, and advances in technology and research have paved the way for many horses to continue their competitive careers well into their teens—and even beyond. In our feature “Senior Strategies,” expert veterinarians and trainers share their views on how nutrition, exercise, and farrier and veterinary care all factor

into the well-being of your horse or pony and their career longevity. Laminitis, or founder, continues to be a much-feared equine disease. But research advancements are making scientists, veterinarians, and owners look at laminitis differently, as contributor Fran Jurga reveals in the feature “Laminitis.” Greater awareness of systemic changes in your horse can help you detect founder before it becomes a significant risk for your horse. No competition would be held without trained and licensed officials. Being a USEF licensed official comes with a great responsibility to be fair, impartial, prepared for the task by knowing the rules under which you are officiating, and professional in your conduct. Our members believe that licensed officials should be held to a higher standard due to their stature in the community, and USEF shares this viewpoint. In this issue’s “Becoming a Licensed Official,” we take you through some of the processes of becoming a licensed official and provide you with additional resources to assist you on the pathway to officiating. We have been working hand in hand with our affiliates to ensure that the correct educational systems are in place and that a clear and fair licensing process is in place for all applicants. The process includes both objective and subjective criteria. However, whenever subjective criteria exist, our goal is to define the parameters of such criteria and the weight that carries in the process. We wish all our members a successful and safe summer and hope you experience and help us spread the joy of horse sports to as many people as possible. Sincerely,

Murray S. Kessler

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18 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

USEF NEWS

What You Need to Know:

Five Fast Facts About the USEF Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies On June 1, 2019, US Equestrian’s Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention (MAAP) Policies went into effect. These policies apply to USEF members who are 18 years old and older (regardless of their USEF age), referred to as “Adults” below. As members work to change their behaviors to further support and protect minor athletes (anyone under 18 years of age regardless of USEF age), in our sport, the following are five fast facts you need to know about the mandatory requirements outlined in the new USEF MAAP Policies:

1. While at USEF-sanctioned events, Adults’

one-on-one interactions with minors must be observable and interruptible. In the event an Adult and minor need to hold an individual training session that is not observable and interruptible at a USEF-sanctioned event, the Adult must obtain written consent from a legal guardian. This consent should be updated every six months. USEF has provided sample consent language that can be used as an informational resource. These are located at usef.org under the Safe Sport tab. “Observable and interruptible” means that the interaction is not occurring in a private place and someone else can observe and interrupt the one-on-one interaction at any time. Fortunately for equestrian sports, much of our activity at USEF-sanctioned events occurs in the arena or barn areas that are observable and interruptible. Do not engage in one-onone interactions at USEF-sanctioned events that don’t meet this standard, such as private, one-on-one conversations in an enclosed tack room with no visibility from the outside.

2. Adults must include another Adult on all

electronic communications (phone calls, texts, emails, social media messaging, etc.) with a minor. This requirement applies at all times, whether at a USEF-sanctioned events or at home. The additional party on electronic communications must be an Adult (for example, assistant trainer, parent, groom, or rider who is 18 years old or older). While adding an adult to a text message group or CCing them on an email might seem an obvious way to provide the right level of transparency with electronic 20 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

communications, you must ensure your oneon-one phone calls with minors occur in an environment where you could be overheard. If appropriate for the conversation and location, you might also consider using speaker phone with another Adult present or add another Adult caller to the line.

Adults and minors can continue to friend or follow each other on social media platforms. They can continue to interact with each other’s posts that are visible to other users of the platform. However, Adults cannot maintain private messages with minors on social media or through any electronic communications, unless another Adult is included on the communication. For example, Adults may comment on a minor’s post, but they should not contact that minor through a direct message to carry on a one-on-one conversation. On Facebook, Adults can consider creating a group on Messenger as a way to include another Adult in a message through this platform. If you run a page or an account for your business, consider providing additional administrative rights to another Adult who can act as a second party to any direct conversations between a business social media account and a minor. Again, this effort is about making communication between Adults and minors more transparent. In doing so, we create a culture that leaves nowhere for predators to hide.

SAFE SPORT POLICY

Recognizing, Reducing, and Responding to Abuse in Sport

4. Adults may travel with a minor as long as

another Adult or two other minors are in the vehicle as well. Adults must obtain written consent from a legal guardian before traveling with a minor alone. Equestrian sport requires regular travel, and we want minors to be able to train and

USEF NEWS compete where they will thrive. Ensuring legal guardians are informed and approve of the travel arrangements in advance helps to protect athletes and opens a dialogue between legal guardians and minors that is important to preventing abuse. Refer to USEF’s sample consent language, available on usef.org under the Safe Sport tab, which includes a section for local travel.

5. Working students or barn workers under 18 years of age who

travel or live with a trainer must have documented legal guardian consent to do so. Being a working student in our sport is a valuable way to advance and gain wonderful knowledge from talented professionals. Ensuring working students are safe as they pursue these opportunities is essential. Professionals who hire working students will need to ensure they are following the USEF MAAP Policies to keep the minors working with them safe. USEF has created sample informed consent language that can be used by trainers and professionals and their attorneys as a reference for crafting informed consent forms tailored for the working student environment. This is located at usef.org under the Safe Sport tab. While these five fast facts provide a snapshot of some of the policies and how they can be applied to help protect minor athletes in our sport, it is important to review the comprehensive policies, which include both mandatory requirements and recommended best practices that aim to protect minors in equestrian sport from abuse. Under the Safe Sport tab at usef.org, you’ll find many resources, including a side-by-side look at mandatory versus recommended best practices. View the updated USEF Safe Sport Policy and MAAP Policies at usef.org under the Safe Sport tab. USEF has created a variety of resources to help members maintain a culture that does not tolerate abuse. You can find them on usef.org under the Safe Sport tab. MAAP Policies MAAP Policies FAQs MAAP Policies Mandatory and Recommended Side by Side USEF Safe Sport Policy SafeSport Training FAQs SafeSport Training Instructions Take the SafeSport Training Report Sexual Misconduct In Crisis? Call the 24/7 SafeSport Helpline US Equestrian is committed to creating and maintaining, as well as educating and informing, an equestrian community free of all forms of emotional, physical, and sexual misconduct. Protecting athletes and fostering an environment where existing participants and newcomers alike feel safe is of the utmost importance. The USEF Safe Sport Policy and U.S. Center for SafeSport Code were designed to protect, and aim at protecting, all participants in our sport. USEF stands behind these policies to protect the athletes of equestrian sport, not just because the law requires it, but because every member has a responsibility to protect those who have chosen horses as their passion. For technical assistance with completing the SafeSport Training, please contact the U.S. Center for SafeSport’s Technical Support Help Desk at 720.676.6417. For additional questions related to Safe Sport and the new MAAP Policies, please contact USEF’s Safe Sport Program Coordinator, Teresa Roper, at troper@usef.org or USEF General Counsel Sonja Keating at skeating@usef.org. 22 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

US Equestrian to Host Two Safe Sport Town Halls at USEF Pony Finals Presented by Collecting Gaits Farm In its ongoing efforts to provide resources and tools to ensure a safe competition environment, US Equestrian will host two Safe Sport Town Hall meetings during the 2019 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky. The first town hall is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 6, at 1 p.m., with the second on Thursday, Aug. 8, at 3 p.m. Please note that start times are tentative and subject to change, based on the competition schedule. Both sessions will take place in the Covered Arena. USEF members, parents, junior exhibitors, and media are invited to attend these sessions, which will focus on providing parents with important information and answering questions they may have about USEF’s Safe Sport policies and how they contribute to the protection of minor athletes. US Equestrian CEO Bill Moroney and USEF General Counsel Sonja Keating will lead the meetings and discuss US Equestrian’s role in the Safe Sport movement and the federal mandates affecting amateur sport organizations nationwide. They will provide an overview of the updated USEF Safe Sport Policy, including ongoing training requirements and educational offerings, as well as the new Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies that became effective June 1. US Equestrian’s commitment to creating and maintaining a safe environment within the equestrian community continues to be of paramount importance to the organization. “Every equestrian engaged in our sport should be able to participate in an environment free of physical, emotional, and sexual misconduct,” said Moroney. “It remains a priority to communicate to our members, provide resources, offer education, and answer questions about the importance of Safe Sport practices. Engaging parents in this process is crucial to ensuring the safety of our youth participants. This USEF national championship provides a great opportunity to communicate directly with parents as we endeavor to help keep their children safe.” US Equestrian offered a single meeting last year but expanded the schedule in 2019 in order to maximize the opportunity for all interested members and parents to participate. For more Safe Sport resources, visit the US Equestrian Safe Sport page on usef.org, where you’ll find the USEF Safe Sport Policy (including the Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies), Safe Sport FAQ, MAAP Policies FAQ, SafeSport Training FAQ, and a link to the U.S. Center for SafeSport.

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USEF NEWS

Safe Sport: A New Policy Announcement On April 29, 2019, the USEF Board of Directors approved updates to the USEF Safe Sport Policy and adopted new policies to provide further protections for our members, called the USEF Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies, which went into effect June 1. The new MAAP Policies are part of a congressional requirement mandating that USEF, along with other amateur sports organizations and governing bodies, implement policies and procedures that limit one-on-one interactions between minor athletes and adults who are not their parent/ legal guardian. We designed these policies to work for equestrian sport, but please recognize that they are based on the uniform policies developed by the U.S. Center for SafeSport that will further protect

minor athletes. Under federal law, if USEF affiliates do not adopt the USEF MAAP Policies, they must implement their own policies. We understand that these policies—which affect one-on-one meetings and training, social media, electronic communications (such as text messages and e-mail), travel, and more—will change the way adults and minors in our sport currently interact. We have provided examples to explain the policies, and we encourage you to read them closely. These policies are designed to protect minors and adults, and other sports governing bodies across the country are enacting similar measures. You can view the new MAAP Policies in the updated USEF Safe Sport Policy by visiting usef.org and clicking the Safe Sport heading. Find FAQs about the MAAP Policies at usef.org/ faqs/usef-safe-sport-policy-updates-minor-athlete. It is vital to the sustainability of equestrian sport to deliver Safe Sport information and resources directly to our members. We will continue to support you in adhering to these policies by providing regular updates. We appreciate your efforts to ensure equestrian sport is a safe environment for all.

US Equestrian is pleased to announce that Marshall & Sterling Insurance, Inc., will continue as the title sponsor of the USEF National Pony Medal Championship at the USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm. Competition will be held August 6-11 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky. The Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Championship finals will begin Sunday, August 11, at 7 a.m. “Marshall & Sterling’s commitment to providing exceptional insurance coverage for horses and their owners is one of many reasons why US Equestrian is honored to have their support as the title sponsor of the USEF National Pony Medal Championship,” said USEF CEO Bill Moroney. “We could not imagine a better partner and look forward to their continued support of US Equestrian.” “Marshall & Sterling Insurance is proud to support the USEF National Pony Medal Championship at the USEF Pony Finals,” said Don Graves, Vice President and Director of Marshall & Sterling’s Equisport Division. “For over 30 years, we have passionately protected horses and their owners while encouraging riders of all ages to strive for excellence.” Since 1864, Marshall & Sterling Insurance has been the name synonymous with outstanding insurance coverage and customer service. Marshall & Sterling provides exceptional insurance coverage with unparalleled service and support for their valued clients. Watch the live stream of the USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm on the USEF Network. To learn more about the USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm, visit ponyfinals.org. To learn more about Marshall & Sterling Insurance, visit marshallsterling.com/equisport. For more information on becoming a USEF sponsor, please contact Layson Griffin at lgriffin@usef.org or 859-225-6942. 24 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

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Marshall & Sterling Insurance Continues as Title Sponsor of National Pony Medal Championship

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USEF NEWS

Clockwise from left: USPEA President Hope Hand (left) with rider Riley Garrett of Thorncroft, Therapeutic Horseback Riding, on Van Gogh. Rider Mary Hummell with HorseAbility instructor Pam Holbrook. Equestrian Mary Hummell with a HorseAbility horse.

26 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

The United States Equestrian Federation and the United States Para-Equestrian Association have named two additional USEF/USPEA National Para-Equestrian Dressage Centers of Excellence: HorseAbility in Melville, N.Y., and Thorncroft, Therapeutic Horseback Riding, Inc., in Malvern, Pa. Centers of Excellence are identified as regional hubs of excellence that will attract new riders to the sport of para-equestrian dressage and work in partnership with the USEF High Performance Programs to develop athletes to a point that they can represent the United States at the international and Paralympic Games level. They also attract trainers to para-equestrian dressage, serve as primary hubs for delivering USEF Para-Equestrian Dressage High Performance Programs and educational symposia, and more. The two newest additions join the following facilities as Centers of Excellence: Carlisle Academy (Lyman, Maine); Healing Strides of Va. (Boones Mill, Va.); North Texas Equestrian Center (Wylie, Texas); Ride On Therapeutic Riding Center (Chatsworth, Calif.); Therapeutic Riding, Inc. (Ann Arbor, Mich.); Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center (Loxahatchee, Fla.); and Wheatland Farm Equestrian Center (Purcellville, Va.). For more information on the COE programs, please contact USEF Director, Dressage Performance & Event Support/COE Coordinator, Para-Equestrian, Laura Roberts at 859-225-6986 or lroberts@usef.org. The USPEA remains the driving force of para-dressage by providing education and opportunities for those wishing to enter para-equestrian sports. For more information on getting started with para-equestrian, please visit uspea.org or contact USPEA President Hope Hand at wheeler966@aol.com.

PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THORNCROFT, THERAPEUTIC HORSEBACK RIDING, INC., COURTESY OF HORSEABILITY

USEF, USPEA Add Two Para-Equestrian Dressage Centers of Excellence

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USEF NEWS

Important Information About Synephrine Official Magazine of the United States Equestrian Federation | Fall 2018

In Horse Health

HOOF ABSCESSES

How to Prevent and Treat

PRESIDENTIAL EQUESTRIANS Horses and the White House

HORSES THAT HEAL

Therapy Horses and Ponies

WEG SPORT GUIDE What to Know and When to Watch at Tryon 2018

US Equestrian Magazine Takes Top Honors at AHP Awards US Equestrian, the United States Equestrian Federation’s membership magazine, received three first-place awards—including Overall Publication honors—at the American Horse Publications 2019 Equine Media Awards in Albuquerque, N.M., on June 1. In addition to its Overall Publication award, the magazine also collected first-place honors for General Excellence for an association publication (circulation 15,000 and over) and for creative director Candice McCown’s design for “Let the Games Begin,” the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games™ preview in its Fall 2018 issue. The Summer 2018 issue also received a second-place award for editor-in-chief Glenye Cain Oakford’s feature article “Comeback Kids.” The magazine is one of many benefits US Equestrian members receive. Not a member yet? Join now! Competing members and other paid members receive mailed copies of US Equestrian magazine. Digital copies are available to all members, including free fan members, who can also upgrade and subscribe to the awardwinning mailed magazine for $25 by visiting their member dashboard under at usef.org. 28 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

The FEI has warned the equestrian community regarding synephrine, a substance listed as a Banned Substance (Specified Substance) on the FEI’s Equine Prohibited Substances List. It also is a banned substance under the USEF’s Drugs and Medications rules. Prohibited Substances that are identified as Specified Substances should not in any way be considered less important or less dangerous than other prohibited substances; they are simply substances which are more likely to have been ingested by horses for a purpose other than the enhancement of sport performance, for example, through a contaminated food substance. A high number of samples taken from horses under the FEI’s Equine Anti-Doping and Controlled Medication Program have tested positive for synephrine. Although investigations into the sources of the positive cases are still ongoing, the FEI would like to warn stakeholders of synephrine which may be found in the horse’s environment and advise on measures that can be taken to prevent a positive finding. Synephrine is a stimulant which can cause vasoconstriction and an increased heart rate and is used as a weight-loss aid.

In certain parts of the world, synephrine can be found in plants such as common rush (Juncus usitatus), Mullumbimby couch (Cyperus brevifolus), and the leaves of citrus trees (e.g., mandarin, orange, and lemon). Synephrine has also been detected in Teff grass hay in some countries. It can also be found as an ingredient of herbal and nutritional supplements, and it’s commonly found in the peel extract of bitter orange (also known as Seville orange) which is used as a flavoring agent. Measures that can be taken to prevent positive findings include using reputable suppliers of hay, feed and supplements, checking the horse’s environment for plants containing synephrine, and ensuring that any personnel taking supplements or other products containing synephrine wash their hands thoroughly after coming into contact with the substance. Additionally, it is recommended that samples are kept of batches of hay, feed, and supplements given to competition horses to enable a thorough investigation to take place should the horse test positive for synephrine. Further information concerning contamination prevention can be found at inside.fei.org/fei/cleansport/horses/ contamination-prevention.

Cannabinoid (CBD) Positives to Result in GR4 Violations from Sept. 1

The USEF Equine Drugs and Medications Rules prohibit cannabidiol (CBD) and its metabolites. CBD, in both natural and synthetic forms, is likely to effect the performance of a horse due to its reported anxiolytic effects. This substance is no different from legitimate therapeutics that affect mentation and behavior in horses and are prohibited. It is for these reasons that USEF prohibits CBD and all related cannabinoids. Horses competing under USEF rules who test positive for natural cannabinoids, synthetic cannabinoids, and other cannabimimetics will be considered in violation of GR4 beginning September 1, 2019. It is important to note that analytical methods are being implemented to detect CBD and similar cannabinoids. Both USEF and FEI list natural cannabinoids, synthetic cannabinoids, and other cannabimimetics as prohibited substances. Caution is important when using these products, as their composition widely varies and may not be representative of their label claims. There is no regulatory oversight from the Food and Drug Administration, nor guarantee of their safety in horses. Because published literature does not exist noting detection times of these substances in the horse, and because products can widely vary in their compositions and concentrations, detections prior to September 1 will receive warnings. They will be considered to be in “prior” violation if there are additional detections of cannabinoids following September 1. GR411 Conditions For Therapeutic Administrations of Prohibited Substances does not apply for cannabinoids, so medication report forms do not apply. With regards to human use, any athlete who is subject to testing under the World Anti-Doping Code can refer to the regulations for human use of cannabinoids at wadaama.org/en/questions-answers/cannabinoid.

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SEEN AND HEARD

In & Around the Ring “It definitely is a different mindset for me. I have had athletes I coached in the Olympic Games; I’ve been on a team in the Olympics. I’ve never been a chef [d’equipe] for a team to bring home a medal. I keep thinking way forward now. I’m thinking of Tokyo [2020], and we want this to keep being a progression and an uphill trend.”

Left: Laura Graves and Verdades, reserve champions of the FEI Dressage World Cup™ Final in Gothenburg, Sweden, celebrate following their freestyle. Above: Beezie Madden and Breitling LS delivered a solid performance at the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final in Gothenburg, Sweden, finishing in overall sixth place.

30 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTOS: (FAR LEFT) SHANNON BRINKMAN PHOTO, ANDREA EVANS/US EQUESTRIAN, (FAR RIGHT) PHOTOS LES GARENNES

- Debbie McDonald, chef d’equipe of The Dutta Corp. U.S. Dressage Team, after the U.S. won gold in the FEI Dressage Nations Cup™ USA

US Equestrian CEO Bill Moroney pats Carl JNR while Rachel Seifert looks on during the American Saddlebred Horse Association’s demonstration at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Mars Equestrian in Lexington, Ky.

Daniel Janes and Haley Smith’s pas de deux freestyle clinched the silver medal at the FEI Vaulting World Cup™ Final in Saumur, France.

“It was out of the goodness of her heart, because we were competitors. We were very friendly to each other, but we were competitors. She gave me something that I had worked so hard for. And for her to give me that opportunity – it was awesome. And now I have a great friendship.” - Mount Holyoke College’s Elizabeth Sams after Alexandra Ferris, a University of Massachusetts Amherst team member and 2016 USEF Youth Sportsman’s Award winner, gave up her spot in a hunter seat equitation flat class at the IHSA Zone 1 Championships so Sams could compete following a scoring error

USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 31

LEARNING CENTER

the

MENTAL G A M E

by Glenye Cain Oakford

We asked a psychologist and several equestrians how to increase concentration and banish butterflies before and during a competition.

32 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

is that fear really about? Often, people are so afraid of failing, of not getting a certain score, or that their trainer is going to be upset with them. The center of it tends to be that they’re not really riding for themselves in that moment. They’re riding for a ribbon, for a championship, or for a trainer. If I can get them to really own their ride in the moment, to be present in that moment, and have the ride be between them and their horse, a lot of this fear about perfectionism goes away.” STEP 1: Own your ride Making the ride about you and your horse is a mindset you can develop every time you’re at the barn. “This is your time,” Bonomi said. “Set an intention to own every minute, from the time you set foot on the ground at the barn. The next step is to bring yourself back into the present time if you start to worry about what your trainer is going to think or whether your horse is going to do this or that.” Visualization is a good way to get your mind in the moment, whether you’re a rider, driver, or vaulter. “It’s almost like meditation: ‘I’m feeling my weight in the saddle, I’m feeling my feet in the stirrups, I’m feeling my horse, I’m feeling my hands on the reins,’” Bonomi said. “Like any meditation, it brings you into being present, instead of off in the future, wondering, ‘What’s going to happen when my trainer puts the jump up higher?’” Once you’ve started working with your horse, “take some deep, clearing “I know personally that when I am in that place of real joy, I ride better and it’s more fun,” says performance psychologist and equestrian Darby Bonomi, Ph.D., shown here on Little Wing.

PHOTO: CLARA BONOMI PHOTOGRAPHY

If your heart pounds and your hands get sweaty when you are moments away from competing, you’re not alone. Many equestrians suffer from competition nerves. The good news is that nervous energy isn’t all bad, and it can even be useful, according to Darby Bonomi, Ph.D., a practicing performance psychologist and lifelong equestrian who competes in the hunter jumper discipline. “People can use their anxiety to turn it into focus and excitement,” said Bonomi, who is based in San Francisco, Calif. “For a lot of people who have anxiety at a competition, a good portion of that anxiety is excitement. Just by recognizing that excitement, it can transform the feeling of it, and sometimes that anxiety or excitement can help make your mind work a little quicker.” Getting comfortable with nerves and pressure really can help you boost performance, as show jumper and FEI World Equestrian Games™ Tryon 2018 team gold medalist Adrienne Sternlicht pointed out. “The pressure and intensity change as you move up levels, but learning how to handle competition and zero in at pivotal moments is an invaluable skill,” she said. “It’s a practice that I believe is impossible to perfect, but each time I’ve competed where there has been more at stake, I try to see it as another opportunity to develop mental tenacity and fortitude.” How do you turn stomach-churning nerves into productive energy and concentration? Start well before you ever get to a competition, Bonomi advises, by embracing the anxiety and examining it. “Different people have different fears,” Bonomi explained. “But, generally, it revolves around some sort of perfectionism, a fear that something is going to go wrong. I ask them to go through an inventory. What

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LEARNING CENTER

STEP 2: Set achievable personal goals Your long-term goal might be to win a class or a championship, but it’s helpful to keep your focus on smaller tasks that you’ve been working on at home and that you want to achieve during your class or round. “I find people often don’t focus enough on the moment-to-moment process, and they put the judgment out there—their desire is to win this class or qualify for something,” said Bonomi. “Of course, that is the long-term goal, but horses operate in the moment. So when I go into the ring, I’ll have things that I personally want to do. If I accomplish those things for myself, then it’s an A+ ride. If I don’t, then I know what I have to work on. “For example, I know my horse leans really hard into my left leg,” she continued. “So my goal is to not let him bulge out and to keep forward in the turn so I don’t get hung up on the left side of the fence. Regardless of what else happens, if I can accomplish that, then that ride is a success.” 34 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

Setting incremental personal goals like this can help you clear your mind of distractions and focus on what you’re really trying to achieve: a better performance with your horse. “There are so many things you can’t control: you can’t control whether you win a class or what’s going on outside the ring that might upset your horse,” Bonomi said. “But you can control those things you’ve been working on, and if you do those, then you’ve defined your own success. “People often get hung up on the one thing they didn’t do right or on the score or judgment rather than on something that they can control or that they can go in and work on next time,” she added. “Try not to focus on the judge or the venue; make it between you and you. When you do that, the anxiety really drops and the focus increases. “Visualize what you’re going to do. Then, in the warm-up ring, plan it and practice what you’re going to do in the ring, and that brings you into the moment.” STEP 3: Develop a pre-competition routine Having a routine or ritual also can help alleviate nerves and sharpen your focus. “I think developing a pre-show routine has been crucial to helping me channel

STEP 4: Don’t compare yourself to others Whatever your breed or discipline, you can learn from others. But it’s also helpful to remember that your plan or your “Know the sequence the maneuvers are supposed to go in, then just go execute the maneuvers individually,” advises FEI World Equestrian Games™ competitor and coach Troy Heikes.

PHOTO: DIRK CAREMANS/FEI

breaths,” Bonomi said. “Become aware of your breath, and time it with your horse’s breathing. If you focus on your breath, you might notice that your horse also will take a breath. You kind of relax together.”

that energy in a productive way,” said jumper Sternlicht. “I stick to my routine very rigidly before a big competition, and meditation is a very important part of that structured time. Like yoga, it helps me connect to my breathing and feel grounded in my body. I always try to organize my day so that I can do a longer meditation before I walk the course to get me in the right mindset, and I like to do a shorter one using the Headspace app right before I get on my horse. “I also listen to audiobooks before I compete,” she added. “Right now I love ‘Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender,’ by David Hawkins. While I don’t always have ample time to follow my routine step by step, I find comfort in falling back on it in pressure-filled moments.” Practicing a routine or ritual back home at the barn can help you get focused on your horse when you arrive at the barn and also can reinforce a feeling of calm when you carry it over to competitions. “When I’m preparing for a show or even prepping for a lesson, I have a routine I like to do,” Bonomi said. “It helps me connect with my horse, and I don’t like to chat. When you’re preparing and competing, you can create a kind of bubble around yourself, and that will help clear your mind and help you focus. Clear everything else out of your mind, whether it’s your grocery shopping list or your phone or social media. “Not enough people do show practice at home,” she added, “and there are things you can practice at home. You can practice standing outside the in-gate, walking in, and riding a course. You can put yourself in a show mindset, and the more you do it, the more relaxed you get about it. You can even practice a course or a test in your mind when you’re at home sitting in a chair! You get practice by visualizing, and the more you can do it, the more routine it is, the more you relax.”

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LEARNING CENTER

STEP 5: Break your larger task into

individual steps

Don’t think of your jumping round, dressage test, marathon phase, or class as a single large mountain to climb. Instead, break it down into a series of manageable steps. “When you break something larger down into smaller tasks—a whole jump course is just made up of lines that you’ve been practicing at home, right?—that reduces anxiety,” Bonomi said. “I tell people that when they approach the pen, they need to know the sequence the maneuvers are supposed to go in, then just go execute the maneuvers individually,” said WEG competitor and reining coach Troy Heikes. “That pattern will take care of itself if you’ll just go execute. It can be so overwhelming if you just think, ‘Okay, we’ve got to run Pattern 5 today.’ I tell them, ‘Just break it down. The first thing you have to do is come to the middle, get a clean lope departure, and run a set of three circles to the left.’ When they’re able to break it down into the increments, one at a time, it’s less overwhelming.” This also helps your focus stay on the goals you want to achieve—and on the details that can improve your performance. “Focusing on the process is a way to have more fun and also reduce anxiety,” said Bonomi. “Focus on what’s going on right now rather than the end result.” STEP 6: Set mental checkpoints When planning your performance, set points along the way where you plan to promote relaxation and presence by taking a breath, pushing your heels down, or mentally recalling a personal mantra. “Your thoughts are very powerful, and if 36 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

you set an intention and say, ‘I am in the present now,’ you can feel a change in your body,” Bonomi said. STEP 7: Look forward, not backward If things don’t go as you’d hoped or planned, don’t dwell on the mishap; look forward to the next step and focus on performing it well. “It’s important to be able to put things behind you if you have a bobble,” reining champion Heikes said. “It’s over and done with, and you have to move on. It’s the mind game. If you have a bobble and think, ‘Oh, geez, I just blew it,’ well, as you’re having this conversation with yourself, you’re continuing to blow it. If something goes wrong, you have to be done with it and move on to the next thing.” Looking ahead to the next task, instead of in the rear-view mirror, also helps you stay grounded in the moment. “Horses are in present time, but if we’re worrying about the future or about yesterday, even back at the last fence that we didn’t jump well, then we’re not with our horse and we’re not going to ride well,” said Bonomi. “The goal is to really be with your horse in present time, owning the moment.” And don’t only own the moment, enjoy it. That joy will lead to more relaxation, which in turn will fuel better performance, leading back to more enjoyment—the virtuous circle we’d all like to have when we spend time with our horses and ponies. “Part of my goal is to bring the joy back to it, because we all love horses and we all love to compete,” Bonomi said. “I know personally that when I am in that place of real joy, I ride better and it’s more fun.”

Learn More Online Head to the digital Learning Center usef.org/learn for more great resources on sharpening your focus and calming pre-competition nerves. Try these videos: Managing Competition Anxiety with 2016 Olympic show jumping team silver medalist Lucy Davis Tips for Visualizing Your Dressage Test with 2016 Olympic dressage team bronze medalist Allison Brock

PHOTO: ANDREA EVANS/US EQUESTRIAN

horse’s needs are not necessarily the same as someone else’s. When you’re at a show, don’t worry about how you might stack up to others; stick to your plan. “It’s important to learn from other competitors and watch other competitors, but don’t compare yourself, because what you personally are working on is different from what I might be working on,” explained Bonomi. “I counsel people to watch and observe, but then put some distance between you and other competitors. Make the competition about you. Get in your own head and your own body about your own plan with your own horse.”

PRO TIP

The Ins & Outs of Catch-Riding Catch-riding, or riding unfamiliar horses in competition, is commonplace in the horse world. It tests riders’ abilities to evaluate and communicate with horses that they are often sitting on for the first time. While professionals frequently catch-ride horses in the show ring, all riders can further their skills by riding an unfamiliar horse. We spoke with three coaches to get their take on catchriding techniques: Charlie Moorcroft, owner of Charles Moorcroft, Inc., a hunter jumper show operation in Wellington, Fla.; Christy Parker, owner/trainer of Pine Haven Stables in Brunswick, Ga., and a member of the 2019 U.S. Saddle Seat Young Riders Coaching Team; and Spencer Zimmerman, head coach of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Western team at the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio. “Catch-riding requires a rider to utilize all the skills they have learned with finesse and confidence,” Parker explained. “It teaches the rider to quickly get a feel for the horse, how much contact the horse requires, and to be adaptable in multiple situations. I think if you ride the same horse all the time you can develop bad habits or some weaknesses, because a horse can help compensate with some things.” Zimmerman’s students learn much about themselves by riding on an IHSA team. “They can learn what they are doing correctly, what they are doing incorrectly,” Zimmerman said. “They get to fill their toolbox with all these different techniques; what worked for this horse might not work for your next horse, but maybe there is another tool out there that they are going to learn.” Moorcroft primarily works with hunter pony riders, and his students often collaborate with a pony’s trainer in the catch-ride process. “I think it is really important that the riders remember what they already know and add on top to their normal skill set what that trainer is telling them about that specific animal,” he said. 38 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

“Riding as many extras as possible, even ponies that riders feel are below their level, still teaches you so much,” said Charlie Moorcroft, shown with young Lilly Ward.

PHOTO: THE BOOK LLC

by Kathleen Landwehr

USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 39

PRO TIP

“It teaches the rider to quickly get a feel for the horse, how much contact the horse requires, and to be adaptable in multiple situations,” Christy Parker (below) said of catch-riding.

There are other tricks to improve catch-riding skills. Parker encourages students to watch other riders compete, as it gives her students a visual example of what to do and what not to do. Zimmerman asks his students to recall a similar horse they have previously ridden to remember tools and techniques that might be helpful with their catch-ride. His students also will video each other at shows, then watch their rides and critique their performances, thinking of ways to improve in the future. Moorcroft has his students pretend they are riding their pony for the first time to give them a fresh perspective. “Ask yourself, ‘Does the pony go when I use my leg? Does he slow down when I use my reins? What does he do going to the jump?’” Moorcroft said. “Instead of riding from history and familiarity, really start from the beginning again.” Determining a good match between horse and rider is important to set up the pair for success—especially so, Moorcroft believes, for children catch-riding ponies. “A lot of us who pay close attention [at shows], we know the strengths and weaknesses of a lot of the ponies, and I would be very strong in recommending or not recommending a kid based on the strengths and 40 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTO: BOBBY HAVEN/THE BRUNSWICK NEWS

Since each rider, pony, and trainer is an individual, the amount of input a rider needs can vary and communication between all parties is key. “It depends on the level of experience of the rider, the degree of difficulty of the pony, and how comfortable they are trusting their own instincts and using the tools in their toolbox,” Moorcroft added. Gaining saddle time on a variety of horses at home allows riders to gain essential experience in adapting their skills. Zimmerman’s students have an IHSA team practice once a week but switch mounts throughout the practice to ride four or five horses within that hour. Riding multiple horses gives the riders a chance to develop better feel for a horse, Zimmerman notes. “Defining feel is hard; to teach feel is even harder,” he said. “Assessing the horse really relates back to that feel. As you are going, you need to feel what [the horse] is doing underneath you.” Moorcroft also has his students challenge themselves by switching mounts at home. “Switching ponies is another great exercise to just get kids more exposure,” Moorcroft explained. “Riding as many extras as possible, even ponies that riders feel are below their level, still teaches you so much.”

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in the morning by the host team and collegiate athletes mount the horses immediately before entering the ring. Zimmerman and his team take notes on each horse during the warm-up period, often comparing the horses to ones they have previously ridden. “We see things that the riders do and remember, ‘That one you cannot take a hold of fast’ or ‘You have to ride it on a looser rein’ or ‘You ride it more off your seat and your leg and not much in your hand,’” Zimmerman explained. While this situation differs from some catch-riding warm-ups, watchful note-taking, either written or mental, is another great way to develop your riding and horsemanship skills. Things might not go to plan in the show ring, but there are ways to get back on track. “Mentally regroup, take a deep breath, take off a bit of pressure, and ask again,” Parker recommended. “Sometimes less is more, unless you know up front there is an issue.” Zimmerman tells his riders to block out distractions and focus on their ride. “You can’t make your horse better in five minutes; you can just get on and show that horse to the best of its abilities on that day,” he pointed out. “When things go unexpectedly, I always try to tell them that they should react slowly, so they don’t overreact. It may be something that they are feeling and it is not visible to us.” Catch-riding serves as the ultimate test of a rider’s skills and adaptability. Whether it be in the show ring or at the lesson barn, listening to the advice of Moorcroft, Parker, and Zimmerman can help any rider develop his or her skills when riding an unfamiliar horse.

PHOTO: EQ MEDIA

Spencer Zimmerman (second from left) with his student Julia Roshelli (mounted), winner of the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association Nationals AQHA Western High-Point Rider award in 2019.

weaknesses of the kid and the pony,” Moorcroft pointed out. “So it is up to us to make sure we are overseeing it enough that it is a win-win.” When it comes time to hop on a catch-ride at a show, Parker suggests speaking with a horse’s trainer, groom, and previous riders to gather important information on the mount. “Every horse has likes and dislikes,” Parker explained. “Trainers can fill in this information to prepare the rider, and the rider needs to be focused and in tune with the horse immediately upon mounting. This will allow the rider to prevent mistakes before they happen and quickly focus the horse.” Parker also notes that saddle seat horses have different preferences about the amount of pressure on the snaffle and curb reins of their bridles. “Some horses want steady pressure on all four reins, on both sides of their mouth, some horses don’t really like a curb bit so you ride them mostly off the snaffle, and others don’t really like the snaffle so you ride them mostly off of the curb bit,” Parker revealed. In the warm-up ring, the rider should test the various buttons to get a feel for the horse. Parker has catch-riders go through each gait during their warm-up, starting out quietly before asking for more collection and impulsion. “Go through a normal warm-up that you are comfortable with and ask the pony a lot of questions so you can realize you are on the same page and you realize you can accomplish your goal when you go through the in-gate,” Moorcroft said. Zimmerman’s warm-up approach is different for IHSA shows, because horses are warmed up

42 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

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JUNIORS’ RING

Emerson Burr Grant Tests Knowledge, Opens Doors by Glenye Cain Oakford

When young jumper rider Genevieve Munson mapped out her goals for 2017, one of them was to win that year’s Emerson Burr Horsemanship Grant. The grant rewards winners in a different kind of equestrian competition: a horsemanship quiz for juniors that involves both written and practical, hands-on sections. At the zone level, winners in each of four age groups each receive a $100 grant. At the national level, which takes place annually at USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm, equestrians in each age group compete for a $500 grant. Both zone and national grants are for use toward equestrian education-related expenses. When Munson, now 15, won her national grant at the 2017 Pony Finals, she applied it toward the fee for a three-day clinic with famed trainer George Morris at Brody Robertson’s Altamonté Show Stable in Pacific, Mo. The clinic—her second with Morris—helped Munson build on the knowledge and skills that already had made her 2014’s USEF Pony Jumper Champion and helped her achieve a team silver medal in jumping at last year’s Adequan® FEI North American Youth Championships presented by Gotham North. “They have a beautiful grass jumping field with natural obstacles, and for the clinic Brody brings out a lot of the jumps he makes,” she said. “It’s a beautiful clinic, and one that George says is one of his favorites every year because of the natural obstacles. There’s open water and other things that you don’t typically get to see. So it was a really special experience.” The grant is more than a check. It represents an investment in a junior’s riding career, said Genevieve’s dad, Micheal, who owns Rogers Equestrian Center in Rogers, Ark., with his wife Glenda. “Every time Gen has ridden with George, it’s been monumental,” he said. “There wasn’t really an option to audit. You get there early, you take care of your horse, and everyone rushes out to be there when George sets 44 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

The Emerson Burr competition's national level, which awards $500 grants in each age group, takes place at USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm.

PHOTO: SHAWN MCMILLEN PHOTOGRAPHY

The Emerson Burr Horsemanship Grant, awarded at zone and national levels, rewards horsemanship and provides a grant toward equestrian educational expenses.

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JUNIORS’ RING

Opportunities Closing Soon! Higher Education Equestrian Scholarship

US Equestrian offers five $1,000 scholarships to high-school seniors for collegiate equestrian team or club participation, enrollment in an equine degree program, or enrollment in equine-specific agricultural studies. Deadline: July 31. For details, visit usef.org/start-riding/ youth-programs/grants-scholarships/ high-school-scholarship.

Youth Sportsman’s Award

the course in the morning. It’s serious. For Gen, it was more of what she likes to do. You’re hanging on every word. It’s phenomenal. “The Emerson Burr grant helped place us in that circle of people, and what you learn in those situations I can’t even explain,” he said. “It’s priceless. We go all over the world, and most kids work with one coach. Genevieve doesn’t. She works with a lot of different people, and going to clinics like that one is important. We were just thrilled that we could use the grant for that purpose, because just keeping up the pace financially, for our family, is a challenge. So it was a very welcome relief to receive the grant and to be able to apply it. If I had to monetize the value that we received from the grant, it was way more than the amount of the award.” The grant stems from a fund created in 2002 to honor the late Emerson Burr, a chairman emeritus of the USEF’s Hunter/Jumper Pony Committee whose accolades included the 1998 Lifetime Achievement Award. The fund’s goal is to perpetuate proper horsemanship among young equestrians. To be eligible for the grant, a rider must be competing in regular hunter pony, green hunter pony, Pony Medal, pony jumpers, or children’s hunter pony sections. Each participant in the program must take a short multiple-choice written test on horsemanship. At zone level, awards are based on test results and the participant’s response to a short essay question. “It’s only going to make you a better horseman to learn it,” said Micheal. “It all goes together: the Pony Club ratings, the USEF and USHJA’s commitment to horsemanship, and rekindling that grassroots level 46 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

of horsemanship. There’s a lot of buzz about that. We’re just that family that did Pony Club and who is in a socioeconomic situation where we have to do our own work. Gen tacks her horses up to longe them and wraps her own horses, which is one of the things she was asked to do on an Emerson Burr test. That’s all everyday stuff for us. It’s not just about doing it, but doing it correctly, and Pony Club really makes sure that you’re correct.” For a list of 2019 zone competitions, as well as a suggested reading list for those wanting to study for the Emerson Burr test, visit usef.org/compete/disciplines/hunter/emerson-burr-horsemanship-grant.

PHOTO: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN

Genevieve Munson (above) won an Emerson Burr grant in 2017, something she and her family consider "priceless."

This award identifies future leaders in the equine industry from across all breeds and disciplines and recognizes outstanding youth for their achievements. Open to USEF members 17 or younger (as of Dec. 1 of the current competition year) who are also members of a USEF national affiliate organization or international discipline association. The overall Youth Sportsman’s Award winner receives a $1,000 grant to the educational program of their choice; the reserve winner receives a $500 grant to the educational program of their choice. Applications must be submitted to the appropriate national affiliate or international discipline association. Deadline: Sept. 5. For details, visit usef.org/start-riding/ youth-programs/grants-scholarships/ youth-sportsman.

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MY FIRST

Emily Smith’s debut at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm gave her confidence and joy.

Emily Smith (right) and Gold Medal Ribbon with barnmate Martha Parrott on Champlain Serafina (left) and their trainer Lauren Hill at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm.

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Emily Smith’s first glimpse of USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm was on a computer screen, courtesy of the USEF Network livestream of the event. It made an impression and cemented Pony Finals as a goal in the young North Carolina equestrian’s mind. “It was a goal from since I was a little kid watching it on the USEF Network livestream and hearing about all the people who were going out there,” said Emily, now 15. “I thought, ‘That would be fun. I really want to do that.’ So then I had to find something that would take me there.” Emily’s mom, Connie Smith, found that pony on Facebook in 2017, when she spotted a free-lease ad for a green Connemara gelding. The Irish-bred dun, then eight, was Gold Medal Ribbon. He was located in Canada. “His owner wanted someone to put show miles on him, and we were looking for a large green pony,” Connie said. “The pony we had been leasing had a medical problem and couldn’t jump anymore, so we were looking for a pony that could go to the greens.” Gold Medal Ribbon, known around the barn as August, shipped to Raleigh, N.C., and quickly became a member of the Smith family. “Then we decided that we didn’t want to give him back!” Connie said. “So we ended up buying him last July.” By the time the purchase went through, Emily and August already were headed for their Pony Finals debut alongside Martha Parrott, their barnmate from Seaborne Farm

by Glenye Cain Oakford

in Creedmoor, N.C. They discovered a show that’s not just about the competition. It’s also about camaraderie and learning. Outside the show ring, there were horsemanship and showrelated clinics, meet-and-greets with other competitors, and even a golf cart parade. “The entire environment at Pony Finals was amazing,” Connie said. “They definitely support the camaraderie among the kids and made it so they could meet other kids who are there. A lot of kids only go one time, and a lot of kids go more than once, but everyone can have such a great experience while they’re there.” In the show ring, Emily also learned that she could focus and perform at a major show. “I thought that my big challenge was going to be to not get distracted in the ring, because there’s just so much going on around you,” Emily recalled. “I was like, ‘I need to just focus and pay attention to what’s going on in the ring,’ because it’s a big event, and it kind of gets in your head that there are all these people watching. On the livestream, there are people that aren’t even there who are watching! It’s nerve-wracking, but you just have to think, ‘Stay focused and pay attention to what’s going on right now with your pony’ instead of thinking about the people around you. I told myself to just calm down and take it step by step.” In fact, August was the perfect partner for this big moment. “He’s kind of lazy, but he’s really sweet, and he’s really laid-back,” Emily explained. “He was a little perky, but he’s usually perky when we go

PHOTO: CONNIE SMITH

My First Pony Finals

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in the show ring, which is always nice. going on outside the ring. It was like any So it kind of felt like a normal horse normal show round, kind of—just bigger.” show for him, which helped me to stay Emily and August finished 25th in the more calm. He was the same horse that over-fences class and 54th overall after comI’ve always ridden. pleting the model (in hand), under-saddle, “I think Connemaras are really and over-fences classes. It was never really hardy animals, and they can take on about where she finished, though. It was anything,” Emily added. “You can take about getting there and competing. them out in the field, you can take them “What I remember most and what was into water—they don’t seem to be scared the best was coming out of the ring and of anything, and they’ll do whatever you being so relieved and really proud of how ask them to do.” the round went and how I felt doing it,” Mom Connie had some butterflies, Emily remembered. “I remember giving too, as her daughter entered the Kenmy trainer, Lauren Hill, a high-five, and tucky Horse Park’s Walnut Ring for the she was like, ‘You did it!’ I think that was first time. probably the best feeling in the world. “Yes, there was the huge excite“I think I learned more ment of the event and everything about how to handle myself that’s going on and all the people,” in large situations with a lot Connie said. “And there are the of people, and I learned a lot nerves, because you only have one about my pony and how he’s chance to do it right, as opposed good everywhere you go,” she to at a normal show, where you continued. “He’s level-headed. have several rounds. But I think And I learned how to have once you get focused on how you fun and be less stressed about got there and what you did to get big events and horse shows. to that point, at least with Emily, Since Pony Finals I am defionce she got into the ring, it kind nitely less stressed at horse of all came together. shows than I was before.” “August’s personality is such Mom Connie agrees that being in that atmosphere that Emily’s Pony Finals didn’t seem to distract him, so experience has boosted her she didn’t have to compensate for confidence, and that’s not any unknown things about him the only thing she feels her that we hadn’t seen before. He daughter has gained from was the same pony, fortunately, horse sports. that he typically is, and so she “She’s learned resilience,” could focus on what she was there Connie said. “Things don’t for. I think that goes to his personalways go your way. You have ality. He can roll with the punches. to bounce back from those Nothing much really upsets him disappointments. I think it’s or gets him addled. really taught her to think, “They’re very brave ponies, in ‘Okay, this isn’t the end of the general,” she said of Connemaworld. I can come back, and ras. “From a parent’s perspective, I can handle this.’ I think I know that he’s going to take care that translates to life skills.” of her.” “My goal was just to have When Emily and August went fun and get around all the into their most-anticipated class, the jumps,” Emily said of Pony Top: Emily Smith and Gold Medal Ribbon at the 2018 USEF over-fences class, Emily’s nerves Finals. “There’s always that Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm. held steady, even though she went background goal of ‘I want Center: (Left to right) Barnmates Martha Parrott and Emily early as just the third rider on course. to do well. I want to get to Smith, trainer Lauren Hill, and groom Alyssa Williams with “When I got in there, all I could the top.’ But it’s not the main their entry in the 2018 Pony Finals golf cart parade. think about was my horse and my goal. The main goal is to enjoy jumps,” she said. “I didn’t really see myself and have a nice round Bottom: Emily Smith and Gold Medal Ribbon in the the people around me or what was with a pony that I love.” model class. 50 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTO: (TOP & BOTTOM) SHAWN MCMILLEN PHTOGRAPHY, (CENTER) COURTESY CONNIE SMITH

MY FIRST

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Bringing the Joy

US Equestrian’s Joy Tour winds through a variety of venues all year—come join us at our booth at these events this summer and fall to shop USEF apparel and accessories, get free fan memberships, meet your favorite equestrian athletes, and more!

Presented by Collecting Gaits Farm

Kentucky Horse Park Lexington, Ky. usef.org/compete/disciplines/ hunter/usef-pony-finals

August 20-25 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions Lamplight Equestrian Center Wayne, Ill. usef.org/compete/disciplines/dressage/ dressage-championships-national-fei/ us-dressage-festival-of-champions August 27- September 1 USEA American Eventing Championships Kentucky Horse Park Lexington, Ky. eq-events.com/aec/

52 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

October 10-13 Pennsylvania National Horse Show PA Farm Show Complex and Expo Center Harrisburg, Pa. panational.org October 17-20 The Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International Elkton, Md. fairhillinternational.org October 22-27 Washington International Horse Show Capital One Arena Washington, D.C. wihs.org October 25-November 3 National Horse Show Kentucky Horse Park Lexington, Ky. nhs.org

Get the Scoop Have you signed up yet for our digital newsetter, Equestrian Weekly? It’s free! Visit usef.org/tune-in/equestrian-weekly to catch up on horse health and horsemanship topics, the updated USEF Network schedule, promo codes, links to video streams, original stories from around US Equestrian’s 29 breeds and disciplines, great ShopUSEF merch, and USEF News. Equestrian Weekly puts a week’s worth of news and resources right in your inbox. Sign up now for free!

PHOTO: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN

August 6-11 USEF Pony Finals

The Equestrian World Returns to Las Vegas APRIL 15 - 19, 2020

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HOT LINKS

COMING UP ON USEF NETWORK

USEF Pony Finals

US Equestrian members can access livestreams and on-demand coverage on USEF Network at usef.org/network. Check the site for the most up-to-date schedule.

Aug. 6-11 Lexington, Ky.

presented by Collecting Gaits Farm

Great Lakes Equestrian Festival July 3-Aug. 11 Traverse City, Mich. USEF Junior Hunter National Championships – East July 8-9 Devon, Pa.

USEF Junior Hunter National Championships – West July 22-23 Petaluma, Calif.

U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions Aug. 20-25 Wayne, Ill.

Plantation Field International Horse Trials Sept. 19-22 Kennett Square, Pa.

American Gold Cup Sept. 11-15 North Salem, N.Y.

Dressage at Devon Sept. 24-29 Devon, Pa.

Dressage and Jumping July 30-Aug. 4 North Salem, N.Y.

Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals - West Sept. 19-21 San Juan Capistrano, Calif.

WPCSA American Nationals Sept. 25-29 Tulsa, Okla.

AVA/USEF Vaulting National Championship Aug. 8-11 St. Louis, Mo.

PFHA Grand National Championship Show Sept. 16-21 Perry, Ga.

Adequan® North American Youth Championships presented by Gotham North

Eventing July 24-28 Kalispell, Mont. Adequan®/FEI North American Youth Championships presented by Gotham North

54 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTO: SHAWN MCMILLEN PHOTOGRAPHY

USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final July 10 Lexington, Ky.

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HORSE HEALTH

Uveitis?

Here’s What You Need to Know by Glenye Cain Oakford

Uveitis is a common cause of blindness in horses, but in some ways it remains mysterious. In its recurrent form, it also can be intractable. There’s no cure for it yet, but it also need not be a death sentence for a horse. Careful management and treatment can help preserve a horse’s sight longer, and even in cases where an affected eye has to be removed, many horses can still continue to live largely normal, active lives and even have successful competitive careers. Uveitis is inflammation of the eye’s uveal tract, a layer of tissue that lies between the eye’s outer layer (including the cornea) and its inner layer (the retina) and includes the iris, the ciliary body, and the choroid. This tissue is delicate, and when it’s inflamed, the effects can be painful. “The iris sphincter muscle contracts and causes the pupil to close, so you get a constricted pupil,” explained Dr. Rana Bozorgmanesh of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute. “The ciliary body muscles spasm, and that’s pretty painful. And the blood capillaries in those areas also become leaky, and that releases proteins and cells, which results in the signs that we see.” Those signs can include squinting, tearing, light sensitivity, a swollen or red eye, and/or a cloudy appearance or bluish haze over the cornea. The white of the eye might appear bloodshot or you might see pus or yellow deposits under the cornea in the eye’s anterior chamber. But there are also subclinical cases that might show only subtle symptoms. “You can basically have a smoldering uveitis going on without you knowing, with tiny changes taking place in the eye until it reaches a threshold and the eye goes blind,” Bozorgmanesh said. “Often horse owners wouldn’t know the disease was there until the horse is blind in those cases. Alternatively, in other cases you will see the obvious clinical signs in the active phases of the disease.”

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PHOTO: MANBENDU/ADOBESTOCK

Hagyard Equine Medical Institute’s Dr. Rana Bozorgmanesh talks you through symptoms and treatment options.

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HORSE HEALTH Causes of Uveitis

What to Do if You Suspect Uveitis Your first step: call your veterinarian immediately. “It’s important to distinguish uveitis from recurrent uveitis,” Bozorgmanesh said. “There’s no one test to figure out whether it’s ERU or just a single episode. You need your veterinarian to come out, firstly to rule out a primary cause of the uveitis, such as infection, an eye ulcer, trauma, all of those things that might be the primary reason why the horse has developed uveitis. It’s better for you and your horse if there is a clear reason that the horse has developed uveitis. If it’s just uveitis by itself, that’s more concerning, because that’s a case that could develop into recurrent uveitis.” 62 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

Above: Eye with chronic signs of uveitis, including discoloration of the iris and pupillary constriction. Below: Eye with multiple signs of uveitis, including constriction of the pupil, deposits in the anterior chamber (beneath the cornea), as well as corneal abnormalities.

Because equine recurrent uveitis is progressive and does not currently have a cure, most horses that have it eventually will go blind in the affected eye. “There are ways of slowing the progression, and with cases that we’ve been able to follow up on, we’ve had reasonable success,” Bozorgmanesh said. “But, unfortunately, because there is no cure, over the long-term, most of them are going to go blind. The prognosis is also worse if the ERU is leptospirosis-associated. Studies have shown that in cases where there’s evidence that leptospirosis has triggered their ERU, those are more likely to go blind.” Treatment Options There are a number of treatments available to help slow ERU’s progression. “Even if it’s just a one-off case, you’ll be treating the horse for several weeks,” said Bozorgmanesh. “So be prepared for that.” The goals for treatment are to reduce the inflammation, control pain, minimize the inflammatory mediators that are promoting

PHOTOS: COURTESY OF DR. RANA BOZORGMANESH AND DR. NATHAN SLOVIS

Uveitis can occur as a one-off event—caused by trauma to the eye, for example—that might never happen again and might not create future problems. But in the chronic, repeating form known as equine recurrent uveitis (ERU) or moon blindness, the disease can lead to permanent damage and eventually blindness—and it’s this manifestation that horse owners particularly worry about. “Equine recurrent uveitis is the leading cause of blindness in horses, and it’s a progressive condition,” Bozorgmanesh said. The prevalence varies some according to a horse’s breed and geographical location, but, generally speaking, in the United States between 2% and 25% of the equine population is affected. “It’s much more prevalent in appaloosa horses; they’re genetically predisposed and have up to 25% prevalence,” Bozorgmanesh said. “German warmbloods may also have a heritable form. So it’s seen more commonly in warmbloods, draft horses, and appaloosas generally, as well as some quarter horses, also.” The uveitis most commonly seen in the United States is a panuveitis, which tends to affect the front part of the eye more. In Europe, posterior uveitis—which affects the back of the eye, including the retina—is more common, but it also can be seen in the U.S. “So people who import warmbloods into the U.S. might see a different type of uveitis,” Bozorgmanesh said. ERU has been around for a long time. “Recurrent uveitis used to be called moon blindness, a term that was coined around the 1600s,” Bozorgmanesh explained. “Even back then, they noticed that horses had these recurring episodes of eye issues or what they thought was temporary blindness. At the time, they thought it was related to phases of the moon. Obviously, that isn’t the case, but it does kind of wax and wane.” Although horse owners have been aware of the disease for centuries, its cause is still somewhat obscure. “It’s essentially an autoimmune syndrome that has been associated with leptospirosis as the inciting cause in some cases, although that’s not 100% true of every case, or it may just be that we haven’t been able to identify leptospirosis in every case,” Bozorgmanesh said. “So the exact cause of the disease has yet to be discovered. There is a genetic predisposition—for example, in the appaloosa, it’s correlated with their coat patterns. The genetic predisposition affects the immune system, as well. So if you are genetically predisposed to having a certain kind of immune response, then if you get a certain trigger such as leptospirosis, this can result in equine recurrent uveitis.”

HORSE HEALTH

If your horse is squinting, tearing, or showing signs of eye discomfort or injury, call your veterinarian immediately.

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“It’s a surgical procedure done under general anesthesia,” Bozorgmanesh said of the implantation. “You want a healthy horse to do that. The eye also has to be ‘quiet,’ so you can’t do the surgery if there’s a huge flare-up of uveitis underway. You have to treat the eye until the uveitis is better and quiet, and then you can place the implant.” In cases where the implant works, Bozorgmanesh said, it has been shown to decrease the recurrence of uveitis. It also has been shown to decrease the severity and length of each episode. And it improves response to treatment in cases that still require topical treatment in addition to the implant. For cases of posterior uveitis as sometimes seen with horses imported from Europe, there’s another surgical procedure: removal of the vitreous humor (the fluid in the back of the eye). “In this kind of uveitis, by removing that fluid you’re removing the immune mediators, the inflammatory debris— basically, everything that’s driving that immune response,” Bozorgmanesh said. “That procedure isn’t thought to help with the more typical panuveitis we see here in the States,” she added. Before You Treat Because uveitis treatments like corticosteroids will suppress the eye’s immune response, it’s important to be certain before treatment that your horse doesn’t have an infection or an ulcer that might be made worse by the treatment, Bozorgmanesh cautioned. “Otherwise the treatment might make things 100 times worse,” she said. “While you are treating with a steroid, you need to have your vet regularly check the eye. You also need to be aware that if at any point the eye suddenly looks more painful, that may be a sign that they’ve developed an ulcer or something along those lines that requires immediate attention. In that case, you need to stop the steroid immediately. “I always tell people that just because you have a tube of eye ointment in your first-aid kit, don’t just grab it and apply it if your horse’s eye looks painful,” she added. “Different conditions require different medications.” Removing an Affected Eye Horse owners might also consider removing an affected eye. “There’s not necessarily a right or a wrong when it comes to that,” Bozorgmanesh said. “ERU is a painful condition for your horse, and it is challenging for both you and the horse. You have to gauge whether removing the eye is best for you and your horse. Every case is individual. If you think your horse is suffering from the pain and you’re not able to control the pain and the flare-ups or if you physically can’t get the medication into the eye as frequently as you need to, removing the eye might be the right thing to do at a certain point.” If you do opt for surgical removal of the eye, it doesn’t necessarily mean an end to your horse’s activity or even to his competitive career. “Horses adapt very quickly,” Bozorgmanesh said. “It’s nothing to be afraid of. There are a lot of horses out there living happy lives with only one eye, and they can still do a lot. For the majority of horses, the advantages to having a life without pain far outweigh the aesthetic advantage of having an eye that is painful.”

PHOTO: BMF-FOTO.DE/ADOBESTOCK

the inflammatory reaction, and then re-establishing the bloodocular barrier—in other words, improve the leaks from blood vessels that are releasing cells into the eye. Treatment options generally include topical and/or systemic non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (like Banamine); corticosteroids, which also are anti-inflammatory; and medications to dilate the pupil, which will help reduce pain. If there’s a concern that the horse has a leptospirosis infection, your veterinarian also might prescribe a two- to four-week course of antibiotics such as doxycycline or minocycline. A device called a subpalpebral lavage catheter also can make treatment easier. The lavage system includes a port attached to the horse’s mane at the base of the neck that’s attached to a long tube that a veterinarian inserts through the horse’s eyelid. The user simply injects medication into the port, and from there the medicine is carried through the tube and directly onto the eye’s surface. The downside: the catheter can’t stay in the horse’s eye indefinitely, although it can stay in place for weeks to months if needed. “There are also immuno-modulatory medications you can use to try to suppress the immune reaction going on in the eye,” Bozorgmanesh said. “One of those is cyclosporine, which you can sometimes use as an ointment in the eye.” For ERU cases, cyclosporine (specifically, cyclosporine A) also can be administered through a sustained-release device—a disk implanted surgically in the eye. “It’s not always easy to get medication into your horse’s eye,” Bozorgmanesh said. “It depends on your horse, obviously, but often in these cases you’ll be doing it up to four times a day. That’s hard work for you, and it’s something some horses won’t tolerate well. And their upper eyelid muscles are some of the strongest eyelid muscles out there! So if they don’t want you to put it in their eye, you’re not going to be able to do it. The implant helps to eliminate that work.” A cyclosporine A implant is effective for four years or longer, which also can be more cost-effective over the long term.

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PHOTO: SARAH BENNETT

As breeding and management has advanced itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s allowed horses to stay active longer. Sunken Treasure (shown with owner McGee Bosworth) competed through age 20.

SENIOR STRATEGIES These 11 management steps can help your older equine athletes enjoy long, healthy, active careers. BY GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD

Cathy Blackmon’s Connemara pony Hideaway’s Special Delivery isn’t your average eventing competitor. The 15-hand gray gelding is 24 years old, and in the spring he finished second, on his dresssage score of 24.3, in his novice division at the Ocala Winter II Horse Trials in Florida. “He is extraordinary!” Blackmon said of her pony, who had been competing at the preliminary training level—meaning he competed at preliminary level for his dressage and jumping phases and at training level for cross-country—until Blackmon decided to drop him back to the lower novice level when he was 22. And he doesn’t just compete in eventing. “We still do the low children’s/adult jumpers, which is a meter, and we do a couple of those jumper shows every year,” Blackmon said. “Last year, I got to earn my bronze on him, which is third level, in dressage.” As Special’s chiropractor once told Blackmon, “There are a lot of old horses out there, but there aren’t a lot of old horses competing like this.” Special, as he’s called around the barn, might be an exceptional example, but as veterinary care, horse management, and breeding practices have advanced, horses often are living longer, veterinarians say. USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 67

Left: Cathy Blackmon’s 24-year-old Connemara Hideaway’s Special Delivery competing in 2019 at the Ocala Winter Horse Trials II, where he won his division at novice level. Right: Low-impact exercise like trail riding, walking up and down hills, and basic dressage can keep the older horse fit and happy without stressing their bodies.

PHOTOS: XPRESS FOTO, ARND BRONKHORST/ARND.NL

“I’m seeing older and older horses all the time in my practice, and I think genetics are playing a role in that,” said Dr. Liz Barrett of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Lexington, Ky. “The way we’re breeding horses and taking care of them means we’re getting more years out of them.” Keeping the older equine athlete active, comfortable, and happy doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does require good observation and the flexibility to tweak or change the horse or pony’s management if and when age-related changes occur. But simply turning a calendar page doesn’t necessarily mean you should dramatically alter your horse or pony’s routine as a matter of course. “There are horses who compete and are being ridden well into their 20s with only very minor issues,” Barrett said. “I think most of them appreciate a routine, and sticking with a routine with them—including feeding, exercise, and turnout—is probably more important than making big changes just because they’re aging.” Increased age does come with advantages, as trainer Mary Orr of High Caliber Stables in Greensboro, N.C., points out. “In all honesty, as they age, I think they become a little bit more settled,” said Orr. “My show horses don’t particularly lose that spring in their step for showing; they’re just a little bit smarter about things. Even the school horses just get so good at their jobs—they become solid.” But age also comes with physical changes. So it’s important to keep a close eye on the animal to spot such signs as weight loss or gain, signs of arthritis, loss of rank among pasturemates, or symptoms of problems like Cushing’s disease (also known as equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, or PPID), one

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of the most common diseases of horses greater than 15 years of age. You can mitigate many of these, whether that’s by tweaking the horse’s diet, changing his turnout schedule or pasture, medicating him, or changing his exercise routine. “Just because a horse is getting older doesn’t necessarily mean that they will need more, if they’re being properly used and properly maintained,” Barrett said. “I wouldn’t go looking for issues just because they’ve hit 15 or 18. But, just like a person, as a horse gets older the amount and type of collagen they have in their soft tissue changes, and that can make them slightly more prone to injuries if they’re not warmed up properly or turned out in the best footing, for example. And, obviously, the older they are the more wear and tear they’ll have on their joints, so they’re slightly more likely to have arthritic changes in their joints and things like that. “As they get older, they’re also somewhat more likely to have conditions like PPID or equine metabolic syndrome, and both of those things, through hormonal changes, can have effects on the structure of their soft tissue and on their attitudes and demeanor toward work.” To catch any brewing ailments, High Caliber’s Orr runs blood tests on the stable’s older horses at least twice a year. “We’re very proactive about doing blood panels and making sure things like their thyroid are in order,” Orr explained. “Things

like Cushing’s disease are age-related. With those things, the vet care and the monitoring become really important. And if we see a change in that horse—like he’s dropping weight, gaining weight, or starting to get cresty in his neck—before we change food or add supplements, we do a blood panel.” Regular veterinary examinations, including inspection of the horse’s teeth, can also aid management of the older equine athlete, and it’s worth talking to your veterinarian before making changes to your horse’s diet or routine. And factor in your horse’s previous care and condition as you keep an eye for signs of aging, suggests Jennifer Ridgely, head coach for Delaware State University’s equestrian team, a member of the National Collegiate Equestrian Association that, like most college programs, receives donated horses from a variety of backgrounds. “How much wear and tear a horse has when he arrives really makes a difference in how he ages,” Ridgely said. “If a horse has had a tough life prior to us, they often age sooner and poorer. But if we get a horse who had one owner, was lightly shown, and its maintenance was updated and it was cared for well, that horse doesn’t seem to age as poorly.” There are common-sense (and relatively simple) steps you can take to increase an older horse or pony’s chances of staying happily active. We asked Barrett and a group of owners and trainers to share their advice and management strategies.

Turnout helps older equine athletes maintain fitness and joint health. If your older horse or pony is turned out in a group, keep an eye on his status in the group to make sure he’s not being bullied or becoming more aggressive with age.

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Olivia Griswold of Mount Eden Vaulting Club longes Jan Garrod’s Sunny Boy, a 1999 Dutch Warmblood who is still an active athlete, as Madelyn Hubb vaults.

Regular exercise helps maintain fitness and promote athletic longevity. That doesn’t have to mean hours of riding or driving: regular turnout on good footing is one way to keep older horses and ponies moving. For training, incorporate lower-impact exercise, like dressage or walking on the flat or up and down hills. “We might have two days a week where we just walk, then work three days a week,” said Blackmon, who also gives her 24-year-old Connemara, Special, at least 12 hours of turnout a day. “The other thing that I think is super-important for him and for me, too, is setting goals. Each year, I set goals for us, and then I have something to target. That keeps me on a routine for what his work and exercise schedule should be, and his work routine is not stressful.” “We do a lot of jogging [in the jog cart], and where you might give a younger horse a harder workout, maybe we’ll take the older one for a trail ride,” said trainer Mary Orr, who has had success with such older athletes as American Saddlebred World Champion CHSunken Treasure, who competed successfully until he was 20. “They’re still moving, they’re still active, and they’re staying fit, but you need to be more creative with their program. Sometimes people think ‘old’ means ‘no work,’ but that’s not true. Every day, we’re getting

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them out of that stall. But maybe one of the days it’s for a 15-minute trail ride, not 45 minutes of hard-core riding.” DSU’s equestrian team has ample turnout, says head coach Ridgely, and tailors their 20 horses’ workloads to their individual needs. “You can’t overuse them, but you can’t underuse them, either,” she said. “So as long as they’re sound and it doesn’t hurt them in any way to be ridden, then riding is good for them. Giving them a job is really crucial to their mental health. Over the summer, when the team isn’t here, we also make sure the horses still get exercised.” “We deal with a lot of bigger-boned horses, so low-impact exercise is huge for us,” said Olivia Griswold, who manages Emma Seely and Jan Garrod’s vaulting horses at Mount Eden Vaulting Club in Saratoga, Calif. “We do a lot of dressage, not to try to get them to third or fourth level, but for the gymnastics aspect of it, to get them stretching and moving. We use it like yoga, to keep their bodies strong and flexible. We also get them out on the trails. We get them trotting up hills and exploring long, stretchy contact, and make sure they’re using their whole body correctly and straight. Vaulting is so much on a 20-meter circle, so we don’t usually do any circles outside of vaulting time.”

PHOTOS: ARI BACKHOLM, MONICA ELLIS/DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY, SARAH BENNETT

Keep them moving.

Top: Sandra L. Tucker’s Ain’t Dun Yet, known as Mick, actively competes at age 21 as part of Delaware State University’s program. Bottom: High Caliber Stables’ Mary Orr, shown with CH Our Charming Lady, an American Saddlebred Horse Association Broodmare Hall of Famer.

Lengthen warm-up and cool-down time. “Where a young horse can come out and be ready to do what you want them to do right now, an older horse might need a couple of trips around the ring at a walk,” said Orr. “That’s going to help them get themselves prepared to do their job.” “Movement in general helps keep collagen fibers aligned appropriately and arthritic joints more comfortable,” explained Barrett. “It’s the same in people: when you first get up in the morning, before you start moving and flexing and extending the joints, you might be quite stiff. But the more you go, the joint capsule loosens up, you move around the joint fluid you have in there, and you get more comfortable as you move. An older horse with hock arthritis, for example, might be quite short behind if you were to take them out of the stall cold and start trotting. But within five or 10 minutes, they’d actually loosen up and move pretty well—that’s the value of the long warm-up.”

Monitor your tack. “As their body changes, make sure your tack still fits properly,” veterinarian Barrett advised. Older horses can lose or gain weight, and exercise also can alter the physique of any horse of any age.

Consider changing their job. “As they age, the horse who was the amateur five-gaited world champion is not going to be able to do that, but it doesn’t mean they’re not able to have a job,” said High Caliber Stables’ Orr. “Maybe a walk-trot-canter advanced horse turns into an intermediate horse, then later they turn into a walk and trot horse, and then maybe they become the horse that does the introductory lesson. I’ve found that, with lesson horses, especially, the hardest thing for them is to not do a job, so it’s good to keep them doing a job but also to make sure their job suits them.”

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Thoughtful individualized care and maintenance can keep a horse or pony happy and healthy for many years.

Mount Eden Vaulting Club’s Griswold regularly uses general wellness supplements. She also supplements vitamin E after her veterinarian researched it as a preventive treatment for shivers and stringhalt, which can affect horses of any breed. “If you’re looking for something to make a horse more sound, there’s not a lot of research around many oral supplements,” said Hagyard’s Barrett. “If it’s an older athletic animal, depending on the level of work you’re doing and whether they are happy, there are joint injections and different systemic medications you can give that might help them and help keep them more comfortable.” Feed supplements to promote wellness and digestive health, including probiotics, can be useful, according to Barrett. “There is some merit in some supplements,” she explained. “Products that have a lot of fat, for example, can help horses gain weight without too much bulk and also can help their coat. Things like that can be worthwhile.” But be cautious, she added. “I’ve also seen issues where horses are on too many supplements and have gotten colicky. So talk to your veterinarian.” As always, consult your veterinarian and be sure to discuss any implications a medication or supplement might have for a horse’s competitive career. US Equestrian’s online Drugs and Medications page at usef.org and the downloadable brochure “2019 USEF Guidelines & Rules for Drugs and Medications” are valuable resources. The guidelines include updated information on pergolide (the most common medication for Cushing’s/PPID), common prohibited substances under USEF rules, restricted medications’ dose and time recommendations, and much more.

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PHOTOS: PETRA ECKERL/ADOBESTOCK , ARND BONKHORST/ARND.NL

Consult your veterinarian about supplements and/or medications.

Consider alternatives to medications, too. DSU’s equestrian team incorporates a variety of other therapies, says coach Ridgely. “We have a massage therapist who comes to the barn once a month, and we rotate the horses who get done,” she said. “Each horse doesn’t get done every month, but they get done about every third month, and a massage goes a long way toward making them feel good and getting those knots out. “We also have a chiropractor who comes once a month for free,” she added. “His wife comes to do essential oils, too. Those two things also seem to go a long way.”

Keep up with hoof care— and look for any changes in the hoof. “I think people don’t always realize that the way their feet grow can be different as they age,” said High Caliber Stables’ Orr. “They’ve put a lot of miles on their feet, so their heels might be more tender and you have to keep a lookout for a foot that cracks a little bit more. We’ve found that sometimes the feet grow faster and sometimes they grow less foot. We usually reset a horse every six to eight weeks, but that changes with some of our older horses.” “It varies by horse, but if you have a horse that’s been in hard work all his life, you’ll see that wear and tear in their feet,” says DSU coach Ridgley. “As long as you keep them shod properly, we’ve found that their feet generally hold up fine. It’s also part of our team’s routine that the girls oil their feet or whatever that particular horse needs.”

Watch teeth and diet.

“Their teeth definitely need to be looked at a bit more frequently,” Dr. Liz Barrett of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute said of senior horses and ponies.

If the older horse begins eating less, losing weight, or dropping food, it can be a sign of dental problems. “I think their teeth definitely need to be looked at a bit more frequently,” said Hagyard veterinarian Barrett. The horse’s diet also might need changing, and there are many feeds available today that are tailored to a variety of requirements in the aging horse, including formulations for horses with PPID or metabolic syndrome, easily digestible feeds for horses who don’t chew as well, and more. Work with your veterinarian before changing feed, Barrett advised, and “as with any change in diet, it has to be done gradually—you’re talking about over several weeks to a month if you’re making a major change to the diet,” she said. “If you’re adding a supplement, I’d start with one and make sure the horse isn’t having any reactions or side-effects from that, and then add in anything else. Don’t just throw a bunch of stuff at him because he turned 17.”

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Schedule regular veterinary exams. Bringing your veterinarian in regularly will allow assessments of everything from teeth to cataracts to Cushing’s/PPID—and potentially nip a problem in the bud. “If they are in active work, I’d have them examined at least once a year before they are going to be used heavily—such as in a competition season—to make sure they’re still sound and see if there’s anything to do that would help make them a little bit more comfortable,” advised Hagyard’s Barrett. “If you see a change, such as a horse losing more weight over the winter than he normally would, it might be worthwhile pulling some blood. There are still certain conditions that might show up in the bloodwork that we might not have a lot of ways to treat, but it gives you a heads-up that you might need to look at different ways of managing the horse.”

What about vaccines?

“Love goes a long way!” says DSU equestrian coach Ridgely. “They just want to be loved and petted like they’re someone’s personal horse, not just a tool, so our team loves our horses just like they’re our own. We assign each kid a care horse, and they have to treat it like it’s theirs. They bring them treats, they groom them, and if it’s bad weather and we haven’t been able to ride, they take them out to eat grass or give them a bath. They care for that horse, whether they’ve been ridden or not.” With good care, many horses can enjoy long, active lives, even in competition. And that investment is worth it, says Orr, the saddle seat trainer. “So many people, when they’re looking at show horses or even school horses, they’ll back away from an older horse, and I think they’re missing an opportunity to have the education and the quality of a wonderful animal that still has a lot of life to live,” she said. “There is so much life and experience in those older horses. Yes, you won’t get all of your investment out, but isn’t your investment in the riding and in having those wonderful opportunities in the show ring? These horses will give you better years than you ever hoped for.”

PHOTO: SHELLEY PAULSON

“PPID can make them slightly more susceptible to infection because of the hormonal imbalances, so keep up on their vaccines,” Barrett said. “But sometimes I also find that older horses can become a little more sensitive to vaccines, so I try to divide the vaccines up more than I would in a younger horse.”

Give them individual attention.

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Kat and Chic in Time at the 2017 Pony Finals

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It’s Field Day at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School, and the fifth-grade class team color is green. A shade of emerald green lipstick and face paint adorns the face of 11-year-old Kat Fuqua, perfectly matching her kelly-green shirt. It’s not the typical interview, in an Atlanta-area Dunkin Donuts over breakfast as she runs off to school to participate in relay races and bobbing for marshmallows, but Kat is no typical 11-yearold. She is no stranger to interviews and cameras, most recently because of her first championship title at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals aboard Brighton, but also because of her debut, with another of her ponies, as an actor in the new film “Billy and Blaze,” due out in late 2019. The film is based on a famous series of 11 books written and illustrated by beloved author C.W. Anderson between 1936 and 1970 about the adventures of a young boy and the pony he receives as a birthday present. In the movie produced by Welkin Studios, Kat appears alongside young Virginia-based equestrian Henry Lesko, who stars as Billy. Kat’s character and her pony Ladybug compete against Billy and Blaze—played by Welsh pony Banbury Cross Abu—in jumping. “We’re five minutes late … the story of our lives,” said Shereen Fuqua, Kat’s mom. “This always happens to us when we’re going back and forth doing horse stuff.” She turned to Kat, “Love you. Have a good day at school; hope you win.” And just like that, the hard-working child is off to class. Although she recently added top junior hunter to her resume, and is now doing equitation and working toward the ASPCA Maclay Finals with her trainer Jimmy Torano by her side, Kat is probably best known to date for winning the Overall Grand Hunter Pony Championship with Brighton at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals. The

PHOTOS: (COVER) S. HELLNER PHOTO, ANNE GITTINS, ALICIA FRESE PHOTOGRAPHY

Young Kat Fuqua won the Overall Grand Hunter Pony Champion title with Brighton at the 2018 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm in her fifth year at the event. Since then, ponies have taken her from show ring to silver screen. As she prepares to defend her Pony Finals title, she reveals why the event holds a special place in her heart— and why a rider should never give up.

young Fuqua is preparing to defend her title at the 2019 USEF Pony Finals, which takes place at the Kentucky Horse Park Aug. 6-11, but she said it is important to balance the competition aspect with the unique Pony Finals experience. “I wanted to win but didn’t think it would be that soon,” she said. “It took me a while to even get a ribbon there. I thought I’d be a teenager before I’d ever win there. The competition at Pony Finals is very serious, and that’s what we go there to do every year, but I look forward to playing with my friends and meeting new friends—even from the first year, I remember that being a big part of the experience.” OLYMPIC INSPIRATION Kat is no stranger to the world of horse sport. Her parents are both Grand Prix dressage riders and own Collecting Gaits Farm in Atlanta, Ga., which also is the presenting sponsor of Pony Finals. As a result, Kat has learned from some of the best riders in the world, starting at a young age. “She’s been coming to the barn since she was born,” said Shereen. “She’s grown up with the ponies and the minis looking into her eyes. I’ve taught her to care for the animals first, so if she thinks the pony is tired or doesn’t feel good, she doesn’t want to show, because she has a lot of compassion for the animals. I’m very proud about that.” The young Fuqua rode with her first Olympian when she was only six. “It’s always nice to meet Olympians and get training from them, because they know so much and have experienced so much,” Kat said. “I’ve trained with Michelle Gibson, who is a bronze medalist in dressage. She’s helped me a lot with my flat work. Lendon Gray has also helped me a lot with my flat work, and she’s a dressage Olympian and really amazing. Recently, I trained with (jumping gold

medalist) Rodrigo Pessoa. I had two lessons with him, and he was really good with the jumping and the flat work.” Another Olympian Kat can call a friend is 1976 eventing team and individual gold medalist Tad Coffin, who also appears in “Billy and Blaze,” playing Billy’s grandfather. “He was very serious and a little intimidating, but he was very nice, so I wasn’t too nervous,” Kat said. Kat and her family had met him previously when he helped fit some of her ponies with his line of performance saddles. The film features Kat and her pony Ladybug, competing against “Billy” and “Blaze” at a horse show. “It was really unexpected,” said Kat. “I didn’t think that I would ever be in a movie. It was my pony’s first time being videoed with all the big cameras. She handled it really well, and so did all the other horses.” The most important thing Kat learned from her acting debut that will translate to horses, ponies, and showing: just relax. “You definitely have to go with the flow,” Kat said. “You kind of have to sit around and wait; that’s just how it goes, because they shoot different scenes at different times. Also, if I am messing up, I have to fake it and just keep going, and that’s the same in the show ring.” In addition to the lessons Kat took away from the experience, she hopes viewers leave the theaters with an important message. “The little boy in the movie, Billy, always wanted a pony, and he finally got one,” she said. “It wasn’t the fanciest pony, but that didn’t stop him from winning.”

Shereen Fuqua on Caribi at the 2009 Atlanta National Fall Dressage Show.

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PONY FINALS MEMORIES Those are meaningful words from a wise child who also never gives up. It took Kat four Pony Finals appearances before she earned a ribbon, and then, on her fifth trip, it all came together. “Last year, when I walked out of the ring on Brighton and I heard my scores, I knew I had won,” she recalled. “It was the best feeling ever. I was so happy.” Kat started her Pony Finals career in 2014 with wellknown trainer Mindy Darst. “Pony Finals means a lot for us for many reasons,” said Shereen. “Mindy Darst, who passed away from cancer, trained Kat how to jump. She taught us a lot about Pony Finals. It was the 2017 Pony Finals. Kat with dad Jeff Fuqua at a really great experience the last several years just to live Mindy’s dream to make young children happy learning, not necessarily winning, but just being part of a great organization like USEF, that has provided to my husband and I from our dressage days 20 years ago, and now to our daughter. I am very proud to be associated with USEF and support their activities.” Another proud moment for mom: her daughter winning that first Pony Finals championship on Shereen’s birthday last year. With five years of Pony Finals experiences under her belt, Kat looks forward to defending her Overall Grand Hunter Pony Champion title in 2019. “I’ve gotten so much taller and more experienced,” she said. “I’ve gotten a lot more relaxed there, and I have a lot of fun with the whole experience. I think I’ve improved my riding a lot. I’m a lot better than the first time I showed there.” Kat knows how hard she has worked to get where she is and how hard she must continue to work for the kind of wins and, more importantly, the enjoyment she gets out of this sport. “I can’t just win,” she said. “I have to work hard and train a lot so I can win, and I had to work really hard to get there. I can’t just go in my first time and win. Each and every year, I had to work really hard to get there, and then it paid off.” For Kat, working hard means not just excelling at her sport of choice but also balancing school and her home life. “When I wake up in the morning, I have chores to do, so before I do anything I like to go downstairs and do the things I need to do,” said Kat. Shereen and her husband, Jeff, feel it is important for Kat to maintain as normal as possible a life outside of her horse habit, so she attends Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School and is tutored three days a week, often having to take her tests ahead of time so that she can comfortably leave during the week for horse shows. The Fuquas have worked diligently to educate the school about the

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PHOTOS: (THIS PAGE) COURTESY OF THE FUQUA FAMILY, SHAWN MCMILLEN PHOTOGRAPHY, (OPPOSITE) ANNE GITTINS, FOREVER PHOTO COMPANY

The experience reminded Kat of her favorite horse movie, “Racing Stripes,” about a zebra raised on a farm in Kentucky who wants to be a champion racehorse. “It’s really funny how the zebra beats all the racehorses,” she said. “The zebra never gave up; he kept racing until he finally won.”

Clockwise: Kat (facing camera) at the Winter Equestrian Festival in 2014. Kat with Brighton, junior hunter Cupido Z, and large green pony Prestige. Kat and NutterButter at Collecting Gaits Farm last year. Opposite: Kat and Powder Puff at the 2015 Pony Finals.

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“We’ve taught Kat to focus on the riding, and eventually the ribbons will come.” -Shereen Fuqua

“IT’S NOT ABOUT THE RIBBONS” With their background in dressage, Shereen and her husband knew enough to know what they were getting into with a horse-crazy daughter, but jumping was new territory for them. “Her trainers used to always tell me that this is the area for the trainers; over there is for the mothers,” laughed Shereen. “I would just look at them, because I felt like, okay, I’m a rider too.” But Shereen admits to saying a lot of prayers those first few years. “Especially if it was a new pony, yeah, I would say the Lord’s Prayer, but then over time I started to realize that Kat really did know how to ride. Kat’s trainers have done an

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excellent job keeping her safe and teaching the proper way of jumping, the proper position and form, so now I’m not nervous. Recently, she was on a big jumper and I was watching; I get excited to watch her go and see the confidence that she has learned over the years.” It was the Fuquas’ strategy to start Kat out in the show ring in Wellington, Fla., riding among some of the best equestrian kids on a regular basis. “It teaches you that it’s not about winning or getting the ribbons,” said Shereen. “It’s more about working with your trainer and learning how to ride. We’ve taught Kat to focus on the riding, and eventually the ribbons will come.” Other life lessons have come along the way. “There have been a lot of tears; we’ve had a lot of sad times,” Shereen said. “We’ve lost a trainer. We’ve lost a pony. It’s been very sad, but we’ve had a lot of good times. There have been a couple times where we would be standing behind bushes, and she would be very upset and I would explain to her it’s not her year and God has a plan and that she needed to stay committed to her sport and keep working at riding and learning what she could do better. “I also try to encourage her with what she did well. I think that training comes from my dressage background. In dressage, we look at piece by piece, we get scored movement by movement. So we focus on, okay, this movement was good, maybe it was a seven or eight. This one was bad, maybe a four or five, but you just keep moving on so that each movement will keep building, and you try to shoot for a seven or eight. That is a great score in dressage. We rarely ever

Above: Shereen and Kat at US Equestrian’s Horse of the Year Awards Opposite: Kat and Brighton celebrating their 2018 Winter Equestrian Festival championship with trainer Jimmy Torano.

PHOTOS: EQUINIUM, ANNE GITTINS

importance of riding and how it is no different than other recognized junior varsity and varsity sports offered by the school; in fact, many would argue horse sports are possibly even more demanding. “This is a very competitive sport,” said Shereen. “Recently, Kat did the USEF Lettering Program, and there was a place on the application where it asked if you wanted to notify the school, and of course we said yes. It was really cool to have her go through the questionnaire and the Lettering Program and earn that patch. … I think it’s a good beginning to start to educate the schools that this is a very serious and difficult sport that the boys and girls participate in with their ponies.” It was her time in the Girl Scouts that taught the important life lessons to Shereen, and she believes USEF is doing the same for young girls and boys today. “There are so many life skills that USEF Pony Finals teaches these children, as far as growing up and being a responsible adult eventually, and that part I am always excited about,” she said.

Kat’s Top Five Tips for Pony Finals Hopefuls

got a nine or 10. So for Kat’s training, it was more about focusing on each movement and where she could improve and, again, not on the ribbons.” Kat is aware of, and thankful for, the support system behind her. “Pepe Escobedo and Jorge Villalon have all of the stuff at the horse shows taken care of,” Kat said. “They take care of my horses. Also, Cindy, who works with our barn at home and does all of the maintenance—I wouldn’t be able to do all of what I do without them.” She also appreciates her parents for their regular support and reminders. “In the morning before I ride, my dad always tells me to put on sunscreen and my mom tells me to drink a lot of water,” she said. And then there are the other members of Kat’s family. “All the horses are my best friends,” she said. “My mini pony, NutterButter, is like my little brother. I have a connection with all the horses, and I love them so much.” In addition to being her friends and family, Kat says the horses have also been her teachers. “I have to be patient with horses; they’ve definitely taught me that,” she explained. “You can’t rush through anything with them.” Jeff and Shereen Fuqua, both self-made business people who grew up with very little, couldn’t be happier to be able to provide Kat with the equestrian life and experiences that have given her a passion like no other. “I want her to have that fire in her belly like I did growing up,” said Shereen. “I believe the horses give Kat that fire in her belly. It gives her a goal. It gives her passion unlike, say, soccer or softball. Kat is drawn to the live animals, the ponies and the horses. I love that in the horse sport: it’s not just about the sport, it’s about taking care of the animal.”

Since 2014, Kat Fuqua has been competing at the USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm. She’s grateful for the older kids who have helped her along the way, and her hope is to do that same thing for other youngsters with stars in their eyes as they aim to make the trip to Kentucky with their favorite ponies. “It’s a lot of fun,” Kat said of Pony Finals. “You can get a little nervous, but you just have to breathe, believe in yourself, and never give up.” Here are Kat’s top tips for Pony Finals competitors: 1. Enjoy being there. “Just have fun for your first time, and don’t focus on winning,” she advised. “There are lots of things to do at Pony Finals.” 2. Stay neat and polished. “In the ring you want to make sure your boots are polished and your hair is up correctly so you don’t look sloppy. I’m still working on getting better at polishing my boots,” she said with a smile. 3. Don’t rush ahead if you’re not sure about your course. “Make sure you don’t go in the ring if you have a feeling you don’t know your course,” she said. “Take your time learning it, and don’t rush in if you’re not completely sure where you are going.” 4. Create a routine to steady your nerves. “Before I go into the ring, I just breathe and make a circle and think about my course and what I’m going to do, so I have a plan and I’m not nervous when I go in,” Kat said. “If it’s not a handy [class], I will make a circle or do a detour in the ring so my pony can see all the jumps. Doing the circle kind of relaxes me. “If you’re allowed to walk the course, that is always good to do, but if not, you can watch another rider and see how the lines ride. If you go first, just land from the jump into the line and see if you need to ride up or not, and then you can plan if you have to go forward or slower for all the other lines.” 5. Remember: it isn’t only about winning. Winning definitely isn’t everything, according to Kat. “Every time I competed, I would be upset with myself if I hadn’t done well, but I had to work up to winning,” she said. “When I won, I was really thrilled, because I usually got nervous the times before and I’d mess up. But I believed in my pony and myself, so I was really proud when I finished the course.” Not everyone can win, and it took Kat five tries to accomplish her goal. Her biggest piece of advice for when you don’t take home the title or a blue ribbon? “Just believe in yourself for the next time, and train for the next time,” she said. “Don’t be too hard on yourself for not doing as well as you’d hoped. There’s always another chance to do better.”

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Young actors, including Kat Fuqua (far left, on Ladybug) and Henry Lesko (second from right, holding Banbury Cross Abu), on the set of “Billy and Blaze” in 2018.

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questrians in the audience for the film “Billy and Blaze,” planned for release in late 2019, will spot a number of real-life riders among the cast, including eventing legend Tad Coffin and Virginia hunter jumper rider Henry Lesko. Lesko, 10, stars in the film as Billy, and Coffin—the eventing individual and team gold medalist at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal—plays Billy’s grandfather. Lesko, a rising sixth-grader at Walton Middle School in Charlottesville, Va., has been riding since age four and is a regular competitor in local hunter jumper shows with trainers Sally Armstrong and Chad Keenum. He secured the part of Billy, his mother Anne said, after filmmaker Cynthia “Cindy” Erkel saw him calmly handle a fractious pony during a group audition. “Cindy’s caution about casting Henry was that she knew the pony they were going to use could be kind of ‘up,’ and Henry was little,” Anne said. “She was worried that he wasn’t going to be able to handle the pony.” But during the audition, the pony Henry was on “leaped straight up in the air and bucked and ran,” Anne recalled. “Henry just giggled and was like, ‘Whatever, pony.’ Cindy saw Henry handle it, and she said, ‘Oh, that’s it! He can do it!’”

PHOTOS: COURTESY OF BILLY & BLAZE FILM PARTNERS, PATRICE CASANOVA

(Glenye Cain Oakford)

For the movie, Henry was paired with Bella Mosko’s Welsh pony Banbury Cross Abu, an accomplished jumper and field hunter trained by Leslie Deering at Glendevon Stables in Maryland. “He was a good pony—a very brave pony,” said Anne. “I learned that ponies will be ponies,” Henry said of his “Billy and Blaze” filming experience. “No pony is perfect, but if we’d had any other pony do this, it would have spooked at almost everything there, because there were so many lights and reflectors.” Henry’s equestrian life isn’t that different from Billy’s in the book; Henry takes care of his two pony mares—the small Welsh pony Heartland and the medium Welsh/warmblood cross Diamonds and Pearls—at the family’s home in Scottsville, Va., where he often trail rides. He doesn’t have a dog named Rex to accompany him on his adventures, but he is sometimes followed out riding by the Leskos’ orange barn cat, Cheese. Henry says he doesn’t plan to make his career in acting, but he expects horses will always be a part of his life. “I don’t know what I want to do, but I would love to have riding involved with it,” said Henry. “What I like about riding is being able to come to the barn and be by myself for a little bit with the ponies and ride with my parents. I like to jump. And the first words I said to Sally [Armstrong] were, ‘I like to go fast.’” Henry got to go fast during shooting. In his favorite scene, he was directed to “race” a large drone as it filmed him galloping across a field. “The drone was about six feet wide and sounded like a flying hornet’s nest,” he said. “It was really fun.” During filming Henry picked up a few riding tips from Coffin, who

also recommended the late Sally Swift’s classic equestrian book “Centered Riding” and Wilhelm Museler’s “Riding Logic” to him. Coffin, who owns Tad Coffin Performance Saddles in Ruckersville, Va., jokes that filmmaker Erkel, who also lives in Virginia, “conspired” with Coffin’s wife Kelly to convince him play the grandfather role. Kelly, an artist, also participated, doing artwork for the film’s promotion. Coffin brought his own saddle to the set, naturally. “I wouldn’t ride in anything else, even if they had lobbied that I should,” Coffin said. “Henry Lesko rode in a saddle that I made for my son Jack when he was five years old. He’s a Navy Seal now, so he’s long since outgrown it.” Bringing “Billy and Blaze” to life brought back memories of Coffin’s own childhood. “The most fun was working with all of the kids who were on set as Billy and his friends,” Coffin said. “There was one scene that was shot in late November that was particularly memorable. The sun was going down, and we were filming in a little valley up against the Blue Ridge Mountains at a lovely bed-and-breakfast place. There was a scene where Billy isn’t supposed to be jumping in the ring because I’ve instructed him that he has to wait until I got back, and his cohorts in crime decide that if they move the jumps outside the ring, he could jump away! I was supposed to appear as he’s jumping and all of his friends are encouraging him, and I’m supposed to ask what’s going on and be somewhat admonishing in tone. But watching those kids, I had to work hard to put on a serious face. “It was freezing cold, the sun was going down, and these kids were all in summer clothes,” he continued. “We were on take 15 or 16, but they were performing with

just as much delight, enthusiasm, and keenness as if they were on take one. They were doing what kids do, and it was just fun. They were outwitting the adults, and Henry was jumping these little hay bales with his dog in tow. It didn’t matter that it was 40 degrees with the wind blowing. It was total enjoyment, and it was a lot of fun witnessing their joy in riding. It was what I did on ponies when I was a kid. In between takes they’d just be horsing around on their ponies, some of them bareback, some of them not, galloping here and there, and doing fun things kids do with ponies.” That’s the message Coffin says he hopes audiences take home from the movie. “I would love it if people take away a focus on the connection between a kid and a pony as the primary reason for involvement in equestrian activities,” he said. “There’s a picture in the ‘Billy and Blaze’ book where he’s just riding along through the woods. The two of them are out in nature, there’s a relationship between the two of them, and it’s something they’re sharing with the rest of nature around them. That’s a pretty important part of what we do as equestrians, and I think there’s less and less of that. Having people create more ‘Billy and Blaze’ moments in their own riding and in their child’s riding career would be useful.”

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What does a horse with laminitis look like? If you’re imagining a painfully foot-sore horse confined to a deeply-bedded stall, think again. A horse with minor laminitis might not show any sign of lameness. Until you know where to look, that is. And it’s important to look before it’s too late.

Look Beyond the Hoof to Understand the Most Feared Equine Disease

Have you looked at your horse lately? Really looked at him? Veterinarians, farriers, and researchers hope you will stand back and take a long look at your horse—from the crest of his neck to the bottom of his feet. Across the country, leading practitioners lament the number of laminitis cases still filling their appointment books, in spite of more research, more medications, more testing protocols, and more new shoes and boots to support damaged feet. The only thing there doesn’t seem to be more of, in their opinion, is proactive management on the part of owners to avoid laminitis. “We’re still seeing the same problems,” lamented farrier Steve Kraus, senior lecturer in Large Animal Surgery at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, N.Y. “The faces and the names may change, but the real problem hasn’t changed at all.” 88 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

PHOTO: MICHAEL WILDENSTEIN

BY FRAN JURGA

A venogram, like this one, can reveal the extent of any damage to a hoofâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s blood supply.

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AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION So what’s the problem? According to Kraus and many veterinarians, horse owners put their horses at risk by ignoring danger signs. “They think it can’t happen to them,” Kraus said. “But it can. And I hate to say it, but it will.” “I don’t know that we’re that much better at treating laminitis, but we’re better at preventing it,” observed retired veterinarian Dr. Donald Walsh of Pacific, Mo. Walsh spent more than three decades heading the Animal Health Foundation, a charity that funded laminitis-focused research, especially in Australia. “I don’t know what more we can do to simplify prevention. The biggest message still is that laminitis is a medical emergency. But, for most horses, it doesn’t happen overnight. You can see it coming. And you should be able to stop it. “Maybe they think a horse ate some bad hay,” he added, shaking his head. “Or that it’s the change in the weather. It’s not. It’s been brewing. And in the majority of cases, it could have been avoided. “And don’t forget that stress is a big factor,” said Walsh, referring to competition horses; he exhibited American Saddlebreds in his youth. “It is definitely part of the equation.” California veterinarian Dr. Mark Silverman of Sporthorse Veterinary Services in Rancho Santa Fe sees predominantly warmblood competition horses at his practice; his background as a dressage rider gives him insight into subtle lameness and performance issues, but he also sees horses suffering from endocrine problems, which can lead to laminitis, with the stress of training and showing layered on top. The trick is sorting it all out, but Silverman is up to the challenge. “We have more overweight horses, by a long shot,” Silverman said. “We’re not recognizing laminitis.”

This horse’s foot shows damage from chronic laminitis.

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Laminitis has been known for centuries as a serious disease that cripples horses and deforms their hooves. Everything from prevention to treatment was based on the wisdom and experience of treating veterinarians than on a body of research. A veterinarian working closely with a skilled farrier and a diligent owner had a fair shot of success, but not every horse, every time, could be saved. They still can’t. In spite of all the research and treatments, laminitis is still second only to colic as the cause of death in horses. For years, members of the

PHOTOS: FRAN JURGA, NADINE HAASE

A SYSTEMIC ISSUE

Keep an eye on your horse’s weight and look for signs of equine metabolic syndrome, such as fat deposits on the crest of the neck or at the tailhead.

American Association of Equine Practitioners identified it as the horse health problem most in need of research. It’s not that the research community isn’t trying. In 2017, according to the HoofSearch index of equine lameness research, 187 articles on laminitis were published in peer-reviewed veterinary journals around the world. Only equine therapeutics research—stem cells, medications, and regenerative medicine for various therapies— garnered more research publication. Most recent research focuses on the hormonal roots of laminitis within equine metabolic syndrome and pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID, formerly known as equine Cushing’s disease). In recent years, research turned the perception of laminitis on its head by asking people to appreciate that the foot deformity and lameness they associate with laminitis is far from the full picture of the disease. Most laminitis is part of a systemic disease, whether related to endocrine (hormonal) disease or systemic sepsis inflammatory response, which causes the more sudden and drastic form seen when a horse gorges in an open feed room or develops laminitis after severe diarrhea, colic, or a retained afterbirth in mares. Another form of laminitis is related to abnormal weight-bearing; commonly called

“supporting-limb laminitis,” it’s often seen in horses after a major musculoskeletal injury or when the “good foot” bears excess weight during recovery from injury. Yesterday’s laminitis researcher was likely a surgeon concerned with lameness; today’s laminitis researcher may be an internal medicine veterinarian or an endocrinologist who understands the role of hormones in horses of different breeds, ages, and uses. He or she may never touch a horse’s foot. Instead, they analyze hormone levels. But they will also look at the shape and size of the horse and help horse owners identify excess or abnormal body condition.

RED FLAGS FROM HEAD TO HOOF The University of Minnesota Equine Genetics and Genomics Laboratory lists the areas for equine metabolic syndrome fat deposits as the nuchal ligament in the neck (cresty neck), the tailhead, above the eye, behind the shoulder, and around the sheath or mammary glands. In some horses these deposits are obvious; the horse may look relatively lean otherwise. Other horses are more traditionally obese, and regional fat isn’t obvious. USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 91

Bottom: A veterinarian palpates the coronet of a horse with pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, formerly known as equine Cushing’s disease.

Keep looking. All the way down at the foot, you may see red flags—and they are, literally, red. Walsh looks for early signs of sole bruising and blood in stretched white lines in the hoof. He says that horse owners need to listen to their farriers when they warn about the effects of obesity showing up on the bottom of the foot. The signs are there, but the horse still might be showing and training, although perhaps with minor intermittent lameness, shorter strides, or uncharacteristic resistance to jumping or lead changes. Looking over the farrier’s shoulder while hooves are freshly trimmed may reveal these warning signs to the owner. Some horses continue with this low-grade, “invisible” laminitis for months or years. A change in shoeing, management, or diet may trigger a more serious lameness and, finally, an overdue call to the veterinarian. The prevalence of endocrine-related laminitis over other forms is not exactly news; it is just much more documented now that hormone testing is more routine and the research community around the world has worked together. But what is it about an excess of insulin circulating in the horse’s body that causes gradual damage to the foot? While sepsis-related laminitis may cause a severe and sudden cleavage of the basement membrane of the foot’s lamina—the tiny thread-like attachment system that holds the hoof capsule to the coffin bone—insulin dysregulation attacks the lamina not by detaching them all at once, but by stretching and deforming the laminar cells. The relationship between this stretching and the excess weight in an obese horse are a formula for slower disaster.

WEIGHT GAIN, INSULIN ISSUES, AND MORE Back in 2010, data collected by Drs. Robert Hunt and Robin Wharton of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Lexington, Ky., analyzed the cause of death in horses necropsied at the University of Kentucky Livestock Disease Diagnostic Center over a period of 10 years; more than half (52%) of the records listed laminitis as the cause of death. Another 33% of records listed laminitis along with other causes. Only 12% of horses did not have signs of laminitis.1 These horses all lived (and died) before the simplification of endocrine testing for horses. Their weight was also not mentioned. 1

Hunt, R. J., & Wharton, R. E. (2010). Clinical presentation,

diagnosis, and prognosis of chronic laminitis in North America. Veterinary Clinics: Equine Practice, 26(1), 141-153.

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PHOTO: MICHAEL WILDENSTEIN, FRAN JURGA, COURTESY OF DR. DONALD WALSH (OPPOSITE)

Top: Stretched white line with bruising, a red flag for laminitis.

With all laminitis cases, regardless of type, the only hope for successful treatment is to understand what caused the disease and remove or interrupt that influence on the horse. Horses will often continue to “founder” again, if the cause is not removed. The greatest shoes, boots, supplements, medications, soaking therapy, and any other methods will not be as effective as they might be if the horse continues to be buffeted by excess hormones, in the case of

equine metabolic syndrome/PPID, or the fasteracting trigger in sepsis. Walsh is proud of the Animal Health Foundation’s funding of research to validate the simplified Oral Sugar Test for insulin dysregulation in horses with equine metabolic syndrome. Horse owners give their horses a dose of Karo simple sugar syrup before the veterinarian arrives to draw blood for the insulin test; in a horse with

Dr. Donald Walsh treats a laminitic horse.

equine metabolic syndrome, insulin levels will remain high even 90 minutes after the syrup was administered. “It’s simple. It works,” Walsh said confidently. Using this test, veterinarians can monitor the insulin levels in horses across the seasons or after a bout of lameness. The Animal Health Foundation also funded research in Australia on the use of ice (cryotherapy) to prevent laminitis, as well as studies on pasture improvement and the genesis of insulin dysregulation. According to Silverman, horse professionals recognize overt signs of obesity and equine metabolic syndrome. “They would notice weight issues when they see them, but if you see an animal every day, you just don’t see the weight gain,” he said. An overweight horse, according to Silverman, sends a subliminal message: “This horse is much loved.”

But Silverman can’t help but notice that his clients are constantly adjusting saddles and girths. “I give out a lot of weight tapes,” he said. “Sure, they aren’t always 100 percent accurate, but I just ask people to use it once a month to gauge any changes and ask the question, ‘Are you feeding too much?’” For Kraus, who sees all types of horses referred to Cornell for laminitis treatment, the message needs to get through to owners and breeders. “People won’t listen until they have a problem. They don’t want to change their management. “I have to put grazing muzzles on two of my own horses, even though they are in work,” confided Kraus, who also is a polo coach at Cornell and an umpire who uses his horses on the field. “My horses are eating machines—they don’t stop.” For Kraus, however, the classic insulinrelated laminitis cases aren’t the only ones on USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 93

his case list. Cornell also treats horses that suffer from sepsistype acute laminitis secondary to Potomac horse fever or as an occasional complication of surgery or potential allergic reaction.

Steve Kraus, farrier and senior lecturer at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.

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For Silverman, a simple improvement would be for horse owners to call their veterinarians immediately when lameness begins. “People go to their farriers, not their veterinarians,” he said. “Horse owners don’t recognize that laminitis is a potentially permanent problem for their horses.” Silverman also advocated a more proactive role for farriers. “Farriers should notify owners when they see stretched white lines in the feet of an overweight horse—before it is lame,” he said. “The FDA approval of pergolide (Prascend®) has been a critical step forward,” Silverman added, referring to the medication associated with successful management of PPID in horses. Silverman also praised the simple tool for foot management known as the Steward clog, which can help make horses with laminitis pain more comfortable, and the use of ice therapy, with one caveat: “Just remember that icing has to be done before the horse is sore,” he said. Walsh is upbeat about the future and the tools we have to help horses. “We’ve come a long way,” he said. “We used to just have Obel,” he quipped, referring to a grading system for laminitis lameness developed by Swedish researcher Nils Obel in 1948. “We’ve gone from there to the venogram!” Venograms are advanced radiographic images taken after a contrast medium is injected into the horse’s foot. Where there is damage to the blood supply, the image will reveal the extent. Some veterinarians formulate a prognosis for the horse based on successive venograms. But, for Walsh, the biggest change is clear: the Oral Sugar Test to test insulin levels. “And in the future,” he stressed, “the OST may well be part of a horse’s pre-purchase exam.” Walsh also sang the praises of grazing muzzles and small-mesh hay nets to slow down eager eaters. “I like them. The horses aren’t as bored,” he observed, referring to making hay last longer and making horses work a little harder for each mouthful. Soaking hay was also on his list of good ideas. “Carbohydrates drive the disease,” he emphasized, referring to the reduction of carbohydrates in soaked hay, “but research has shown that carbs don’t cause it. They cause obesity. Equine metabolic syndrome is always there, even after a horse loses weight.” The initial challenge to horse owners to observe horses’ body condition and, if possible, measure and weigh them, is the simplest and most productive step that most horse owners can take to prevent laminitis. Nowhere in the horse world is the old idiom that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” more fitting than in the prevention of laminitis. Avoiding the dreaded disease has never been more possible, more economical, or more simple. Doesn’t every horse deserve that ounce?

PHOTO: COURTESY OF CORNELL UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE

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Becoming a

LICENSED

OFFICIAL PHOTO: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN

BY GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD

96 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

Licensed officials make competitions happen around the country—and their collegial community plays a key role in maintaining and improving horse sports. Why not join them?

Are you ready to give back to the sport you love in a way that will also make you a better, more informed competitor? Then you might want to consider becoming a licensed official. There are many opportunities in every breed and discipline: there are 78 types of United States Equestrian Federation licenses, and if you include Fédération Équestre Internationale license types, that number goes up to 156. There are currently 2,094 individuals serving equestrian sport as licensed officials. These USEF members are making competitions happen all across the country, and there is always room for more people to provide this kind of vital on-the-ground support.

The basic categories of licensed officials are judges, course designers, stewards, and technical delegates.

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98 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

on what kind of horse or what kind of rider it takes to be at the top of a sport. You really get that perspective from the judges’ booth.” The process of becoming a licensed official takes time, but it’s worth the investment. The road to a license starts with a call to the USEF’s Licensed Officials department. Each breed and discipline has its own requirements for officials, and the USEF can provide you with all the information you need on your particular path to a license. “The first thing a person should do is to familiarize themselves with what they need to get done to become a licensed official,” said Licensed Officials Committee chair Mugnier. “They need to learn what the requirements are, because they’re different for each license. Then start down the list of requirements.” Mugnier suggests perusing US Equestrian’s Policies and Procedures document, which is available on the licensed officials’ resource page on usef.org. “That gives a template for each of the breeds and disciplines and what the requirements are for licensing and maintaining a license,” Mugnier explained. What is a Licensed Official? “The basic categories of licensed officials are judges, course designers, and stewards and technical delegates,” said Brazzil. The judge’s and course designer’s roles are generally well understood by competitors and spectators, alike. But stewards and TDs also have responsibilities that are vital for safe, fair competitions. “Stewards and TDs have different names, but they share many duties: they are the reporters of the competition,” Brazzil said. “They fill out their steward or TD report after the competition happens, and there are certain questions

Above: Becoming a licensed official gives you a new viewpoint and also can make you a stronger competitor, licensed officials say. Right: The process of becoming a licensed official takes time, but it’s worth the investment.

PHOTOS: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN

“For me, the most important reason to do it is to give back to the industry, and I also think it’s a responsibility and an honor to be in a position to guard the integrity of a breed or discipline,” said Cindy Mugnier, who began judging saddle seat equitation and Morgan classes in the 1990s. She later earned her American Saddlebred, Roadster, and Hackney licenses and is also chair of the USEF Licensed Officials Committee. “We’re always looking for highly qualified individuals to judge horse shows, because judges affect numbers at a horse show,” Mugnier said. “We need new blood in the ring.” “You’ll see the competition world from a different viewpoint,” USEF’s director of licensed officials, Alina Brazzil, said. “The ring looks different from the judge’s box than it looks from the in-gate.” Horse sports particularly need experienced professionals to become licensed officials, says Linda Andrisani, a hunter/jumper official with Registered (“R”) licenses in Hunter, Hunter/ Jumping Seat Equitation, and Hunter Breeding, and a member of the USEF’s Licensed Officials Committee. “It’s important that we have professionals who are teaching, training, and participating themselves as a rider, driver, or trainer at competitions,” said Andrisani. “We want professionals in the judges’ booth who are participating in the industry on a daily basis, who are competing, and who are actively preparing horses and getting them from the barn into the ring. They understand the challenges involved in getting horses and equestrians into the show ring. “First, it’s good for them to give back to the industry that’s been good to them,” Andrisani continued. “Second, when you sit in that chair and have to make the ultimate decision about one blue ribbon, it’s an eye-opening situation. As a trainer or a professional, when you’re at the in-gate, you’re paying attention, but you’re thinking about your horse or your ride or your rider. You’re watching the show, but you’re not watching in quite the same capacity that a judge watches. Number three, you’re at a different location than the judges are, and that also makes things look different. The visual you have, as opposed to the visual from the judge’s stand, can be worlds apart. Once professionals and trainers allow themselves time in that judge’s booth, they comprehend the numerical scoring much better. It gives you a better perspective

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PHOTO: SARAH BENNETT

The application process has educational and practical components, including apprenticing with an established licensed official at a competition.

“THE MOST IMPORTANT REASON TO DO IT IS TO GIVE BACK TO THE INDUSTRY,” —Cindy Mugnier, USEF Licensed Officials Committee chair

they have to answer. If there were any issues, they’re the point people, and they’re the liaisons between competitors and competition managers, judges, or course designers. They also have to be the walking Rulebook, as well as be aware of all medical and emergency protocols. Competitor and horse safety and welfare are huge responsibilities for them. “Even within our national system, as opposed to the FEI system, we have different levels—r, R, and S—which often determine what level of competition the licensee is eligible to officiate for. Most licenses start with r, which stands for ‘recorded.’ The next step would be R, which stands for ‘registered.’ The S stands for ‘senior.’ Some licenses, like in hunter breeding, only have R. Others, like eventing and dressage, have r, R, and S. So it depends on the breed or discipline.” Officials can apply to move up the levels, which will require different expectations and duties. The Pathway to a License Specific details vary by breed or discipline, but the three main requirements for becoming a licensed official are education, practical experience, and testing, USEF’s Brazzil explained. 1. Education. The precise educational requirements depend on the specific license the candidate is applying for, but they can include online modules on the USEF website (usef.org), in-person clinics covering one or more days, or both. These educational opportunities introduce attendees to basic information that a new licensed official would need to know. Some affiliates require completing a USEF online training module as a prerequisite for the in-person sessions. The USEF’s online modules include PowerPoint presentations followed by quizzes that the candidate must pass before moving to the next section. “We also do webinars that can count as clinic education credit,” Brazzil said. “We have PowerPoints that applicants can follow along, and we can play USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 101

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they interacted with people, and things that are specific to that particular role. The individual will have access to the apprentice evaluation form before their apprenticeship, so they’ll know ahead of time what they’ll be evaluated on.” Honest feedback is a crucial part of training officials, and a recent rule clarification has increased transparency and accountability in this part of the process. That’s beneficial to all the parties involved, and, most importantly, it helps maintain the high standards exhibitors expect when they compete. “With this new procedure, there’s more accountability, both for the clinicians who take apprentices and for the apprentices themselves,” Mugnier explained. “It’s much more transparent for the applicant, and it’s a better place for the evaluator to be in, too, because they have an opportunity not only to express how they feel but also give better direction to the applicant. The goal is to educate and have people go through the system who are the most highly qualified to take on the incredibly important job of making decisions in a judging atmosphere. Judging has a tremendous effect on the industry and on where the industry goes. It’s important to provide transparency and to provide to the exhibitor the most highly qualified individuals.” Mugnier believes that the current process also will encourage current licensed officials to recommend potential new judging candidates to competition management. “They can say, ‘I had this individual, and he or she was terrific; if you’re looking for a judge, give this person a try. I can highly recommend this person,’” she said. “And I think that will help bring in that new blood.” “Hopefully, the people who will take them on will be willing to explain where their

PHOTOS: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN, SHAWN MCMILLEN PHOTOGRAPHY

videos from competitions so a group of applicants can comment together on what they’re seeing.” For clinics and webinars, applicants need to register before the session. You can find clinic/webinar dates, requirements, and registration information at officials.usef.org/clinics/schedule. 2. Practical experience. Like the educational component, practical requirements for licensing also can vary by breed or discipline. “It usually involves apprenticing with someone who already is a licensed official,” Brazzil said. “The applicant will have to spend time at a competition, a certain number of days, or a certain number of hours with the licensed official. It’s a learning experience so an applicant can see a day in the life with an actual licensed official and learn about the job on site.” Most breed and discipline licenses require several apprenticeships with different officials. The established licensed officials provide the apprentice with guidance, critiques, and a close look at how officiating works. After each apprenticeship, the official will complete an evaluation for inclusion in the candidate’s application packet. The applicant will have access to the feedback, which will allow them to target specific skills for improvement for future apprenticeships. “Take advantage of the feedback you get to become a better licensed official,” Brazzil advised. “Applicants will be evaluated on how well they know the rules, how

the Rulebook tile, which will take you to the online Rulebook as well as to links to download the app. Open-book exams also test the candidates’ knowledge of how and where to locate specific information in the Rulebook, Brazzil said, because that’s a skill they’ll also need in the field as a licensed official. Some affiliates also conduct interviews with applicants, scoring candidates on their answers according to the affiliate’s specific criteria. Once all requirements are complete, the application is reviewed for approval by the USEF, which reviews applications three times a year. weaknesses are and what they need to pursue before they go any farther,” Andrisani said. “The job can be more complicated than it first appears, and until you’re sitting in that chair and watching what’s taking place from the judge’s booth, it’s sometimes hard for even the professional to understand the difficulty of the job. People need immediate feedback, and they need to know what areas they’re good in and what areas they’re weaker in. It provides a guideline.” It also will contribute to better education and, ultimately, lead to quality officials at competitions—which helps competitors and horse sports overall. 3. Testing. Under recent reforms in the licensing process, all license pathways will culminate in a final exam, which can be oral, written, practical, or a combination. “We look to the affiliates for help for what the best fit is for a particular license, and we work with them to develop the most appropriate tests,” Brazzil said. “We want to make sure that by the end of this process, you are truly ready to be a licensed official.” The final exams do have threshold scores an applicant must meet in order to pass, and in many cases the applicants can consult the Rulebook during tests. “The theory is that, as a licensed official in the field, you’re not expected to have every single answer in your head at every single moment,” Brazzil explained, especially now that the Rulebook is available as an app from the Apple App Store and Google Play for iOS and Android devices. It’s also accessible at usef.org; simply hover your cursor over the Compete tab on the menu at the top of the homepage, then click Rules & Regulations in the menu that appears. Scroll down and click Learn More on

What Does it Cost? A first-time application currently costs $125 (if you already hold a license and are applying to be promoted, that costs $50), and licenses must be renewed annually, which costs $40 per license. Be aware that there can be other expenses associated with becoming a first-time licensed official. For example, Clockwise from left: From designing jumping courses to upholding the rules, the licensed officials community makes competition happen. The specific requirements for becoming a judge or other licensed official vary according to the specific license you’re applying for. There are currently 2,039 licensed officials in the U.S., and there’s always room for more people to provide this kind of vital onthe-ground support. USEQUESTRIAN.ORG 103

“YOU’LL SEE THE COMPETITION WORLD FROM A DIFFERENT VIEWPOINT.” —Alina Brazzil, USEF director of licensed officials

License Maintenance Once you become a licensed official, you’ll need to fulfill maintenance requirements to keep your skills up to date. That doesn’t only benefit you as a licensed official; it also maintains highquality officiating for competitors. “As a competitor, you can be assured that the officials evaluating you are keeping up with the times with these maintenance requirements,” Brazzil noted. “To keep current, they have to go to a clinic every certain number of years. They have to take exams every once in a while. And they also have officiating maintenance requirements. Those can vary widely, but in general they require that you have to officiate a certain number of times within a specific number of years. “It’s important to stay current with the sport from the official’s point of view, too,” Brazzil added. “It’s a chance to learn about new things coming up and to engage with hot-topic issues. Those maintenance requirements also help keep everyone on the same page, which helps to keep competition standards clear.”

The Licensed Officials Committee: Transformation and Transparency

The USEF’s Licensed Officials Committee has undertaken a number of reforms in the last several years, resulting in a licensing process that is more streamlined, transparent, and welcoming to applicants. As part of the reform process, the committee and support staff have clarified objective licensing criteria. In cases where criteria are necessarily subjective, they’ve also specifically defined those requirements so applicants will better understand what is expected and how they are being evaluated. And they’ve consolidated information about licensing requirements and the licensing process in a single, easily accessible document: the US Equestrian Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures, your one-stop shop for licensing application information. The US Equestrian Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures is available online on the Licensed Officials page of the USEF website. To access the Licensed Officials page, simply hover your cursor over the Compete tab in the menu across the top of the site. On the dropdown menu that appears, click Licensed Officials, which appears under the heading Resources & Forms. Scroll down to the heading Forms and Publications to see the US Equestrian Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures link. Under its new charter, the Licensed Officials Committee is smaller and more efficient at 12 members, down from 30. Its role also has shifted with the development of a broader focus on big-picture policy, such as reviewing rule changes that affect licensed officials, ensuring a high overall standard of licensed official education, developing education systems that match the breeds’ and disciplines’ needs, reviewing licensing requirements and education from a more global perspective, and more. The result: a leaner, more efficient, and highly interactive committee dedicated to working on overarching issues that affect licensed officials and the quality of their education—and maintain high standards of officiating at USEF competitions around the country.

WANT MORE DETAILS? CHECK OUT THESE RESOURCES. Visit the Licensed Officials page at usef.org/compete/ resources-forms/licensedofficials for the US Equestrian Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures, the Licensed 104 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

Officials Code of Ethics, Social Media Policy, and more. Find a clinic or webinar at officials.usef.org/clinics/schedule. Watch the video “Licensed Officials,” featuring USEF’s Alina

Brazzil, in our online Learning Center at usef.org/learn. Explore our new Licensed Officials Resources page at usef. org/compete/resources-forms/ licensed-officials/resources.

Dig into the Rulebook online and download the app at usef. org/compete/resources-forms/ rules-regulations/rulebook. Have questions? Email us at loinquiry@usef.org.

PHOTO: TAYLOR PENCE/US EQUESTRIAN

you are responsible for travel to apprenticeships, and some clinics and webinars also have fees, usually ranging from about $100 to about $350. There are some grants available for licensed official education, so it’s worth checking with the USEF or your affiliated breed or discipline to see whether there are any in your chosen field.

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Hearing Committee Rulings and Administrative Penalties OFFICIAL NOTICES Contributed by the Regulation Department unless otherwise indicated. The following official notices are only intended to give penalty information for a given case and not to disclose the factual basis for each violation or penalty. The Hearing Committee decides each case based on the evidence presented at the hearing and takes into account many factors that may raise or lower a given penalty. For example, the Hearing Committee takes into account such things as whether the violation was intentional or unintentional, the nature of the violation, the credibility of witnesses, penalties in similar cases, past violations of Federation rules by a respondent, and many other mitigating factors. US Equestrian members can access and search the United States Equestrian Federation rulings and findings online at USequestrian.org. Hover over the Compete tab on the homepage. In the menu that appears, click Rulings & Findings under Rules & Regulations. HEARING COMMITTEE RULINGS Below are the official rulings reached by the Hearing Committee following hearings held in these matters and/or plea agreements made. This is official notice of actions taken by the United States Equestrian Federation, Inc., Hearing Committee on December 4, 2018. APRIL HAYS of Lexington, Tenn., violated Chapter 7, GR702.1d and GR702.1f; Chapter 8, GR839.4a and GR839.4m; and EV111.1, EV111.3, EV111.4, and EV111.5 of this Federation, in connection with the Chattahoochee Hills Horse Trials held June 30-July 1, 2018, in that while competing on the cross-country course she overused the bit and excessively used her whip and spurs on her mount, HSH QREDIBLE, which resulted in visible whip marks and spur rubs on the horse. In determining the proper penalty for the violations, the Hearing Committee gave consideration to the evidence submitted as well as the live and telephonic testimony of the parties and witnesses present at the hearing. Having considered all the evidence, the Hearing Committee ruled unanimously that Ms. Hays violated Federation rules as charged. There was sufficient evidence that she used the whip and spurs excessively in this instance, causing visible welts upon inspection by the veterinarian. At the same time, there was no blood on the horse, no broken skin, and no shying or other reaction from the horse that could follow abuse. Accordingly, the facts and mitigating circumstances in this case supported the following penalty even though it is below the suggested penalty range for a Category I violation as outlined in the USEF Horse Welfare & Safety Penalty Guidelines. For these violations of the rules, the Hearing Committee members present directed that, pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1b and GR703.1f, APRIL HAYS be found not in good standing, suspended from membership and forbidden from the privilege of taking any part whatsoever in any Licensed Competition for four months, and is excluded from all competition grounds during Licensed Competitions for that period: (1) as an exhibitor, participant or spectator; (2) from participating in all Federation affairs and activities; (3) from holding or exercising office in the Federation or in any Licensed Competition; and (4) from attending, observing, or participating in any event, forum, meeting, program, clinic, task force, 110 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

or committee of the Federation, sponsored by or conducted by the Federation, or held in connection with the Federation and any of its activities.Â The four-month suspension shall commence on May 1, 2019, and terminate at midnight on August 31, 2019.Â Any horse or horses, completely or in part owned, leased, or of any partnership, corporation, or stable of her, or shown in her name or for her reputation (whether such interest was held at the time of the alleged violation or acquired thereafter), shall also be suspended pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1c, for the same time period. The Hearing Committee further directed that APRIL HAYS be fined $4,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES This is official notice of the imposition of Administrative Penalties pursuant to Chapter 4, GR412, and/or Chapter 6, GR616, offered by the Federation and accepted by the following parties, and approved by the Hearing Committee in lieu of hearings. SANJAY BAGAI of Petaluma, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with Sonoma Horse Park Season Finale Horse Show held on September 19-23, 2018, in that he, as trainer, exhibited the horse VERKA DES HAZALLES after it had been administered and/or contained in its body diclofenac in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that SANJAY BAGAI be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by VERKA DES HAZALLES at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. JACQUELINE BECK and NEIL VISSER both of Versailles, Ky., violated Chapter 13, GR1306.4f and GR1307.6, of this Federation, in connection with the Kentucky Fall Classic Horse Show held October 3-6, 2018, in that JACQUELINE BECK exhibited the horse ALL NIGHTER who is trained and owned by a client of her cohabitant, Neil Visser.

For this violation, it was determined that pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, JACQUELINE BECK and NEIL VISSER each be censured and collectively fined $1,000 pursuant to Chapter 1, GR703.1j. It was further directed that JACQUELINE BECK must return for redistribution all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won on the horse ALL NIGHTER at said competitions and must pay a $300 fee to the competitions in connection with this penalty pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 7, GR703.1g. FRANK and ELIZABETH CUNNIFFE of South Salem, N.Y., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with Washington International Horse Show held on October 23-28, 2018, in that they, as trainers, exhibited the horse BETTY BOOP III after it had been administered and/or contained in its body flunixin in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that FRANK and ELIZABETH CUNNIFFE be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,500 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. This penalty was issued in accordance with a second offense under Category I of the USEF Drugs & Medications Penalty Guidelines. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by BETTY BOOP III at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. ERIN DUFFY of La Canada, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with National Sunshine Series II Horse Show held on November 7-11, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse TOMBOY after it had been administered and/or contained in its body flunixin in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that ERIN DUFFY be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by TOMBOY at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. MICHAEL EDRICK of Agoura, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation,

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FOR THE RECORD in connection with the Gold Coast Labor Day Horse Show held on August 31-September 2, 2018, in that he, as trainer, exhibited the horse ELITE after it had been administered and/ or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that MICHAEL EDRICK be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by ELITE at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. HEATHER GNEWUCH of Redding, Conn., violated Chapter 4, GR410 and GR414, of this Federation, in connection with the Fairfield Co. Hunt Club August II Horse Show held on August 16-19, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse CONCORD 58 after it had been administered and/or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level, which was administered intramuscularly within 12 hours prior to competing. For these violations, it was determined that HEATHER GNEWUCH be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for these violations of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by CONCORD 58 at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g.

COURTNEY GOLDSTEIN of Savannah, Ga., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with Atlanta Fall Classic I Horse Show held on November 8-11, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse CRYPTONITE Z after it had been administered and/or contained in its body flunixin in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that COURTNEY GOLDSTEIN be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by CRYPTONITE Z at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. BELLE HUFFERD of Roanoke, Ind., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the Grand National and World Championship Morgan Horse Show held on October 6-13, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse MISS VELVET BROWN after it had been administered and/ or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that BELLE HUFFERD be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by MISS VELVET BROWN at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g.

MICHELLE MAHONEY of Watsonville, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the Arabian and Half-Arabian Sport Horse Nationals Horse Show held on September 18-22, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse MAGICO++// after it had been administered and/or contained in its body flunixin in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that MICHELLE MAHONEY be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,500 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. This penalty was issued in accordance with a second offense under Category I of the USEF Drugs & Medications Penalty Guidelines. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by MAGICO++// at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. FOREST NEALON of Newberg, Ore., violated Chapter 4, GR411, of this Federation, in connection with Grand National and World Championship Morgan Horse Show held on October 6-13, 2018, in that he, as trainer, failed to properly submit an Equine Medication Report Form to document the valid therapeutic administration of clenbuterol to the horse GORDELâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DELIVERANCE, which was appropriately withdrawn for the requisite 24-hour period before competing. For this violation, it was determined that FOREST NEALON be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j.

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FOR THE RECORD ALEXANDRA PANETTA of Brookeville, Md., violated Chapter 4, GR410-411, of this Federation, in connection with the Rose Mount Farm Summer Horse Show held on July 26-29, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse SANTINOS after it had been administered and/or contained in its body pentoxifylline. The facts and mitigating factors in this case supported the following penalty even though it is below the suggested range for Category II violations outlined in the Drugs & Medications Penalty Guidelines. For this violation, it was determined that ALEXANDRA PANETTA be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by SANTINOS at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. JERI LOU PAUL-ELLISON of North Highlands, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the Wine Country Classic Horse Show held on August 16-19, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse SYRAH after it had been administered and/or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that JERI LOU PAUL-ELLISON be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,250 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. This fine was enhanced due to the level of dexamethasone detected. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by SYRAH

at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. RYAN PEDIGO of Chino Hills, Calif., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the National Sunshine Series II Horse Show held on November 7-11, 2018, in that he, as trainer, exhibited the horse CALIFORNIA GIRL after it had been administered and/or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that RYAN PEDIGO be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,500 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. This penalty was issued in accordance with a second offense under Category I of the USEF Drugs & Medications Penalty Guidelines. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by CALIFORNIA GIRL at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. MARIANNE ROTH of Bishopville, Md., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the December Hunter Classic Horse Show held on December 6-9, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse LAPIS after it had been administered and/ or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that MARIANNE ROTH be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that

for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by LAPIS at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. ANA SCHRAVESANDE of Baird, Texas, violated Chapter 10, GR1034.5, of this Federation, in connection with the Rocking Horse Spring Horse Trials held March 30-April 1, 2018; the Rocking Horse Spring Horse Trials held March 31-April 2, 2017; and the Rocking Horse Spring Horse Trials held April 1-3, 2016, in that she served as Technical Delegate for the same competition for three consecutive years. For this violation, it was determined that ANA SCHRAVESANDE be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $500 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. CAROLYN STEPPE of New Market, Md., violated Chapter 7, GR702.1d and GR702.1f, and Chapter 8, GR839.4a, of this Federation, in connection with the CDCTA Dressage At Morningside Horse Show held August 18, 2018, in that she behaved aggressively towards her horse, DANIKA, after falling off, causing the horse to run away in an attempt to evade her reprimands, thus endangering the other riders and horses in the arena. For this violation, it was determined that pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1b and GR703.1f, CAROLYN STEPPE be found not in good standing, suspended from membership, and forbidden from the privilege of taking any part whatsoever in any Licensed Competition for two months, and is excluded from all competition grounds during Licensed Competitions for that period: (1) as an exhibitor, participant or

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FOR THE RECORD spectator; (2) from participating in all Federation affairs and activities; (3) from holding or exercising office in the Federation or in any Licensed Competition; and (4) from attending, observing, or participating in any event, forum, meeting, program, clinic, task force, or committee of the Federation, sponsored by or conducted by the Federation, or held in connection with the Federation and any of its activities. The two-month suspension shall commence on July 1, 2019, and terminate at midnight on August 31, 2019. Any horse or horses, completely or in part owned, leased, or of any partnership, corporation, or stable of hers, or shown in her name or for her reputation (whether such interest was held at the time of the alleged violation or acquired thereafter), shall also be suspended pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1c, for the same time period. It was further directed that CAROLYN STEPPE be fined $2,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j.

Competition; and (4) from attending, observing, or participating in any event, forum, meeting, program, clinic, task force, or committee of the Federation, sponsored by or conducted by the Federation, or held in connection with the Federation and any of its activities. The three-month suspension shall commence on October 1, 2019, and terminate at midnight on December 31, 2019. Any horse or horses owned, leased, or of any partnership, corporation or stable of his, or shown in his name or for his reputation (whether such interest was held at the time of the alleged violation or acquired thereafter), shall also be suspended, pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1c, for the same period. ABEL VEGA was also fined $3,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by REGAL’S NIGHT SHADOW LF at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g.

MARY ANN THOMAS of Saint George, Kan., violated Chapter 4, GR411, of this Federation, in connection with SFHJA 68th Annual Charity Horse Show held on November 21-25, 2018, in that she failed to properly submit an Equine Medication Report Form to document the valid therapeutic administration of pentoxifylline to the horse SIR DRAGON, which was appropriately withdrawn for the requisite 24-hour period before competing. For this violation, it was determined that MARY ANN THOMAS be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j.

WA S H I N G TO N I N T E R N AT I O N A L HORSE SHOW ASSOCIATION of Washington, D.C., violated Chapter 12, GR1211.4a, of this Federation, in connection with the WIHS Regional Horse Show held October 19-21, 2018, in that WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL HORSE SHOW ASSOCIATION, as Competition Management, failed to have a veterinarian on competition grounds or on call during the first licensed day of competition. For this violation, it was determined that WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL HORSE SHOW ASSOCIATION be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $1,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j.

ELISSA TOPOLSKI of Charlton, N.Y., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the Washington International Horse Show held on October 23-28, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse BOCA’S IN PURSUIT after it had been administered and/or contained in its body dexamethasone in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. For this violation, it was determined that ELISSA TOPOLSKI be censured pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1a, and fined $750 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by BOCA’S IN PURSUIT at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g. ABEL VEGA of Covington, La., violated Chapter 4, GR410-411,of this Federation, in connection with Mid-America Mane Event Horse Show held on October 18-21, 2018, in that, he, as trainer, exhibited the horse REGAL’S NIGHT SHADOW LF after it had been administered and contained in its body stanozolol. For this violation, it was determined that pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1b and GR703.1f, ABEL VEGA be found not in good standing, suspended from membership, and forbidden from the privilege of taking any part whatsoever in any Licensed Competition for three months and is excluded from all competition grounds during Licensed Competitions for that period: (1) as an exhibitor, participant, or spectator; (2) from participating in all Federation affairs and activities; (3) from holding or exercising office in the Federation or in any Licensed 116 SUMMER ISSUE 2019

KELLIE WENDLING-BUDD of Sheridan, Ind., violated Chapter 4, GR410, of this Federation, in connection with the Arabian and Half-Arabian Youth National Championship Horse Show held on July 21-28, 2018, in that she, as trainer, exhibited the horse JSN MANHATTAN after it had been administered and/or contained in its body flunixin in a plasma concentration exceeding the maximum permitted level. The following penalty was issued in accordance with a third offense under Category I of the USEF Drugs & Medications Penalty Guidelines. For this violation, it was determined that pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1b and GR703.1f, KELLIE WENDLING-BUDD be found not in good standing, suspended from membership, and forbidden from the privilege of taking any part whatsoever in any Licensed Competition for one month and is excluded from all competition grounds during Licensed Competitions for that period: (1) as an exhibitor, participant, or spectator; (2) from participating in all Federation affairs and activities; (3) from holding or exercising office in the Federation or in any Licensed Competition; and (4) from attending, observing, or participating in any event, forum, meeting, program, clinic, task force, or committee of the Federation, sponsored by or conducted by the Federation, or held in connection with the Federation and any of its activities. The one-month suspension shall commence on June 10, 2019, and terminate at midnight on July 10, 2019. Any horse or horses owned, leased, or of any partnership, corporation or stable of hers, or shown in her name or for her reputation (whether such interest was held at the time of the

alleged violation or acquired thereafter), shall also be suspended, pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1c for the same period. KELLIE WENDLING-BUDD was also fined $3,000 pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1j. It was further directed that for this violation of the rules, all trophies, prizes, ribbons, and monies, if any, won by JSN MANHATTAN at said competition must be redistributed pursuant to Chapter 7, GR703.1g.

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