Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine

March 2011

Tamworth & District

LOCAL HORSE Magazine “THE

MAGAZINE ON THE SCENE”

FREE Monthly

INSIDE: LOADS of articles covering: Trick Riding Horse Agility Horseball The Friesian Cowboy Logic Team Penning Colleen Kelly Mel Fleming Tonya Johnston Larry Trocha & much MORE!

Divided into separate disciplines, making it even easier to find what you are looking for!

The ONLY freely circulated equine mag that can be viewed

ONLINE! Just visit:

www.tdlhorsemag.com.au

www.tamworthrural.com.au

CONTENTS

FROM THE EDITOR

4. FEATURE STORY - The art of trick riding

A BIG WELCOME to the very first edition of the “Tamworth & District Loc al Horse Magazine”!

7. BREEDS - The exquisite Friesian

I am so happy to fina lly get this mag out to you all!

The magazine is uni que in the fact that it is separated into each dis cipline, making it easier for the reader to find exactly what they are looking for.

As the magazine grows we are hoping to add more disciplines & sep few that appear togeth arate the er.

The aim for the magaz ine is for each discip line to have its very coded section with a own colour What’s on calendar, Educational article, Co Trainers listing, Horse aches & s/horse gear for sal e & Advertising from providers. The magaz Service ine will also offer a sep arate Service directory Horse properties for sal and a e/Rent section.

I just quickly have to sen d out a MASSIVE thanks to the wonderful Kristi Editor of the QLD bas Canty, ed “Scenic Rim Local Ho rse Magazine”, and the fou of our little “Local Horse nder ” family.....thank you so much for all of your hel continued support & frie p, your ndship!

A massive thank you to all those who offe red their contributions great first edition. Als to make a o, Kelly Tombs for you r amazing effort (definitely have published the ma couldn’t g without you)!! You r time & effort is ver appreciated! y much

Disciplines 10. Campdraft/Team Penning 14. Cutting 18. Dressage 22. Endurance 26. Eventing 30. Natural horsemanship 36. Polo/Polocrosse/Horseball 40. Riding groups/Pony clubs 44. Rodeo/Barrel Horse 48. Showjumping 52. Show Horse/Agricultural 56. Western Performance/Reining

Articles

11. Not a Science, it’s an art-Team Penning 15. Tony Ernst - Cowboy Logic

Hope you enjoy! Happy reading!

Cheers, Mel

19. Rider Biomechanics-Colleen Kelly 20. From the Judge at C - Liz Coe 23. The Importance of Electrolytes -Carol Layton

PG 4

27.

Believe in yourself-Tonya Johnston

PG 15

31. Connecting with horses & riding with syncronicity - Mel Fleming 33. Agility in Australia 37. Polo - Sport of Kings, King of sport 38. Horseball 41. Taking care of your horse in summer

PG 37

45. ABCRA Local Charity support 46. Rodeo is...

49. Showjumping Nostalgia - Kevin Bacon

PG 33

53. Grooming tips from the top - Show Horse 57. Reining - Longer Sliding stops

PG 31

60. Dentistry for Nutrition 62. All about QLD Itch 64. Steeds & Weeds - Patersons curse

Service Directory 61. Service Directory

Disclaimer Tamworth & District local Horse Magazine have taken every care in preparation of this magazine. Therefore it may not be copied in part or whole for reproduction, without said magazines written authority.

While we take every care in the preparation and accuracy of its contents we are not responsible for any mistakes or misprints in any article or advertisement, nor are we responsible for any errors by others. Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine accepts no liability resulting from omissions, errors, misprints or failure to publish any advertisements.

Cover shot: “Southern Star Dolbro”

By MS Equipix www.msequipix.com

View each edition online at www.tdlhorsemag.com.au

FEATURE STORY

THE

EXTREME IN

EQUINE ENTERTAINMENT! Sally Ham, our very own local Quirindi trick chick, lends us some insight into the fast paced, adrenalin packed world of professional trick riding and it's history. Sally is the current Australian Womens Trick Riding Champion and heads local trick riding team "HighVelocity Trick Riding".

HighVelocity is an action packed, adrenalin rush on horse back, and with years of professional trick riding experience and a long list of credits, Sally and her team are a guaranteed crowd pleasing, show stopper!

I think it started with the realization that my Shetland pony had a pig-root button. When I pressed it he’d kick up. So I kept pressing it. ‘Sit on that horse properly’ then became a mantra at Pony Club, and when it was more fun to dismount and mount via the rump it was possibly fate that found me hanging upside down off horses in the extreme sport of trick riding.

Although the roots of the sport go back as far as the Roman Circus Maximus in the fourth century, any kid (or big kid at heart) who loves to experiment on their horse is a trick rider at heart. The big kids give the “I’ve done that trick before; only I never made it back up”.

Skills now displayed today at shows, rodeos and the like were utilized by

armies who rode into battle hidden along side of their mount, giving the appearance of riderless horses.

When in enemy territory they would spring back into the saddle and attack. Vaults, drags and balance tricks turned from tactics to entertainment, with an English soldier of the 15th Light Dragoons putting on a display in London in 1788. Watch movies today such as Zorro and you’ll see trick riding at its best.

Not every horse is built for the life of bright colours and crowds, both in build and mentality. For the most part, a strongly set horse with a sensible outlook on life is a good start. Breed, age and height are a personal preference, but most importantly is what is or isn’t between their ears.

Sally & Wasabi flying home to take out the title of Australian Trick Riding Champions, last year at TEE 10

With training, like any discipline, the basics still apply and walking before you run applies more than ever. Having a horse balanced and responsive is still central, although your arms and legs are rarely in the usual spots.

There’s no doubt that a lot of faith is put in a trick riding horse.

The basics of trick riding are excellent for teaching riders’ confidence and increasing enjoyment and scope of riding in general. Particularly encouraging kids to sometimes drop the reins and relax, gain better balance and get their backside out of the saddle. For people that like to have fun with horses, there’s nothing else like it.

Moving into trick riding more seriously requires some tools of the trade.

There are two main types of saddle most commonly used. A trick saddle has a flat seat and long horn with hand holds and straps for various drag, vault and balance tricks. A Cossack saddle has a padded seat, english type stirrups and a smaller horn and is used more in countries such as Turkey and Russia where most of the trick riders are men.

Blinkers, tie downs and other extras depend on the rider and the horse. Learning from a professional is possibly the most important step.

The trick rider’s bible states “some tricks are difficult, some will crack your skull if you do them wrong, many are easy, one or two will kill you if you get too cocky- but all are interesting!” There’s no better feeling once a trick is tried, accomplished and performed at pace. With your head near hooves and all your faith in the 500ks they support, trick riding really is the extreme of equine sports.

www.highvelocity.com.au

Artwork by MS EQUIPIX

BY SALLY HAM HIGHVELOCITY TRICK RIDING WWW.HIGHVELOCITY.COM.AU

What’s on calendar Breeds

B r e e d s

S e c t i o n

March 2011 National Paint Horse Championships AELEC, Tamworth www.painthorse.com.au

3rd - 9th March

Australian National Arabian Championships AELEC, Tamworth www.ahsa.asn.au

15th - 20th March

AQHA - Tamworth District Western Performance & Appaloosa Club Tamworth Show Grounds Carol Willding 02 6769 7644

20th March

National Appaloosa Championships AELEC, Tamworth www.appaloosa.org.au

25th - 31st March

April 2011 AQHA National Championships AELEC, Tamworth (02) 6762 6444 www.aqha.com.au

12th - 23rd April

Surrounding areas Australian Stock Horse Hunter Branch Annual Show White Park, Scone, NSW Fiona Brooker 0418 416 725

5th - 6th March

Austrailian Stock Horse Far North Coast Branch 40th Anniversary Championship Show & Futurities Hawthorne Park, South Grafton, NSW Karen Morgan (02) 6649 3276

12th - 13th March

The Friesian is most often recognised by its black coat color. Friesian horses also have a long, thick mane and tail, often wavy, and "feathers" on the lower legs. The official breed rarely has white markings of any kind; most registries allow only a small star on the forehead for purebred registration. Though extremely rare, and not accepted for registration in most cases, Friesians are occasionally chestnut. The Friesian's average height is about 15.3 hands, although it may vary from 14.2 to 17 hands tall at the withers. The breed is known for a brisk, high-stepping trot. The Friesian is considered a willing, active, and energetic horse that is also gentle and docile. A Friesian tends to have great presence and to carry itself with elegance.

The breed has powerful overall conformation and good bone structure, with what is sometimes called a "Baroque" body type. Friesians have long, arched necks and well-chiseled, short-eared, "Spanish type" heads.

Their sloping shoulders are quite powerful. They have compact, muscular bodies with strong sloping hindquarters and a low-set tail. Their limbs are comparatively short and strong.

Today, there are two distinct conformation types. The baroque type has the more robust build of the classical Friesian. The modern, sport horse type is finer-boned. Conformation type is judged less important than correct movement, and both types are common, though the Modern type is currently more popular in the show ring than is the Baroque Friesian.

The Friesian today From the latter part of the 20th century until the present, demand for purebreds, particularly the "Modern style" finer-boned, taller, more agile version of the Friesian increased, so breeders have bred both purebreds and a lighter-weight crossbred horse with valued characteristics, resulting in the Friesian cross and Friesian Sporthorse.

Friesian horses are popular, and are often used today for dressage competition, pleasure riding, as circus horses and for driving. Friesian horses can do well in dressage competition due to the breed's movement, trainability, appearance, power, and body control.

Due to its flashy appearance, the Friesian has also become popular in the film industry. Though Friesians are of dramatic appearance, sometimes their use in dramatizations of actual historical events is of dubious accuracy, given that the breed as it is known today only came into being within the last 400 to 600 years.

S e c t i o n

Breed characteristics

B r e e d s

The beautiful Friesian Horse is recognised as one of the oldest equine breeds in the world. It is native to a northern province in the Netherlands called Friesland. Although the breed's conformation resembles that of a light draft horse, Friesians are graceful and nimble for their size. During the middle ages, it is believed that the ancestors of Friesian horses were in great demand as war horses throughout continental Europe. Through the early middle ages and high middle ages, their size enabled them to carry a knight in armor. In the late middle ages, heavier, draft type animals were needed. Though the breed nearly became extinct on more than one occasion, the modern day Friesian horse is growing in numbers and popularity, used both in harness and under saddle. Most recently, the breed is being introduced to the field of dressage.

www.sharpelabs.com.au

Artwork by MS EQUIPIX

www.equissage.com.au

www.enduromin.com

www.tdlhorsemag.com.au

C a m p d r a f t / T e a m

P e n n i n g

Photograph courtesy Jess Moran

What’s on calendar Campdrafting/Team Penning Tamworth Team Penning www.tamworthteampenning.com Australian Bushmans Campdraft & Rodeo Asscociation www.abcra.com.au Australian Campdraft Association www.campdraft.com.au

March/April Tamworth TEAM PENNING - Run Dates 6 March 2011 10 April 2011 Lisa Wilson 02 67 621 928 www.tamworthteampenning.com

Surrounding areas March 2011 NCCA Championships - Barraba Hosted by ABCRA Cambell Tonkin - 0429 830 140 4th - 6th March Inverell & District CAMPDRAFT Jan Clancy - (02) 67 214 737 5th - 6th March Glencoe CAMPDRAFT Helen Fenton - (02)67 333 202 12th - 13th March Bundarra Lions Club CAMPDRAFT NEW DATE Points JACK GALLAGHER 02 6723 7255 25th - 27th March Dungog CAMPDRAFT Points DES HOPSON (02) 4995 3234 25th - 26th March

TEAM PENNING Australia - Run Dates 20th March 17th April www.teampenningaustralia.com teampenningaustralia@bigpond.com

UNDERSTANDING HOW CATTLE REACT AND SEE Team Penning is a competition between riders and cattle - and the cattle are pretty cagey critters – you would swear that cattle enjoy making penners look bad!

Since the beginning of time, cattle have been food for something. They have developed instincts, physical characteristics and a sixth sense for the environment around them help them survive. At the first sign of a threat, their survival skills kick in. The thing is, the cattle treat penners like they would any other predator – and that is what makes the competition between riders and cattle.

The cattle’s first instinct is to stay with the herd - because there is safety in numbers. Once separated, cattle make one of two decisions – run away or run back to the herd. Separate the good cow from as much of the herd as you can ... to get control of the cut ... push the good cow all the way down the arena before turning back to the herd.

Make sure he’s staying put before leaving. If the cow is far enough away from the commotion, it will stay away – if not - it is coming back to the safety of the herd.

When the cattle can’t get back to the herd they will run away. The closer the penner is to them the faster the cattle will run. Some penners call that pressure. When you hear someone say “back off!” what they are saying is take the pressure off the cattle by backing away from the cattle or the good cow. When you do back off, everything will slow down and allow you to regain control of the cattle because the cow(s) feel less pressure. Caution is advised. If the rider is too close before the cow is separated from the herd, it will turn back to the herd. Horses need time to react to the cattle. Penners develop a feel for how close to work the cattle. It is a good idea to stay back 1/2 a cow length until you develop the feel for your reaction time and the space your horse needs to respond to the cattle’s maneuvers.

A cow’s eyes are set on the side of its head. The design provides terrific side vision because cattle can see independently on each side. This is called field of vision. However, the side-set eyes affects their forward vision.

Cattle cannot see ten to fifteen feet directly in front of them. That area, along with the area behind the cow are called the blind spots.

Cattle turn their heads to change their field of vision allowing them to see behind. A rider can control a cow by moving into or out of the field of vision when the cow sees a rider is in the field of vision it believes its escape route is blocked. When the rider is out of the field of vision the cow will try to escape from the pressure toward the open field of vision.

Experienced penners often say “watch their ears.” because when the cattle look behind, their ear turns in the direction that they are looking! Their ears can signal the direction the cow is thinking about going.

There are penners that swear a cow knows when you’re looking at it ... sort of a sixth sense. It would sure come in handy if the eyes belonged to a mountain lion - wouldn’t it? Maybe it is true.

Believers say that when they’re sorting off trash they try not to look at the good cow. Once the good cow is clear they bore a hole with their eyes all the way to the other end.

P e n n i n g

Team penning is undergoing huge growth in Australia and is also said to be one of the fastest growing equine sports in North America.

It is a sport for all ages, that all members of the family can get involved with. The competition pits thirty cattle against three horses and three riders to determine if the riders can pull the right three cows from the herd, push them down the arena and put them in the pen faster than any of the other teams. Penners are successful when the cattle are penned. If the allotted time expires or too many cattle cross the foul line, the result is a no time.

C a m p d r a f t / T e a m

Team Penning

P e n n i n g C a m p d r a f t / T e a m

CONTROL THE TRASH BY REDUCING THE NUMBER OF CATTLE AFFECTED - BEFORE STARTING THE CUT Less trash - faster cut - less risk!

The back wall, corner and the side fence are your 4th partner, helping you eliminate the possibility that a cow will turn away from the pressure of the horse and rider.

Your 4th partner is always there ! When you are in front of the herd reducing the number of cattle to be sorted, when you are in the corner sorting off the remaining trash, when you are pushing the good cow to the fence.

Always there, always doing the same thing - occupying the cattle's away side field of vision. The cattle or the isolated cow must concentrate on the pressure of the Photos courtesy Mell Cannon Equine Photography horse and rider. If you elect to get between your 4th partner and the cattle, you have added another avenue to escape from the pressure applied by the horse and rider.

It is more difficult to control the herd or the good cow without your 4th partner.

REDUCE IN FRONT OF THE HERD - SORT IN THE CORNER When you are in front of the herd, moving along the plane of the back wall, the majority of the herd falls behind as the rider maneuvers for position to cut the good cow, which in turn reduces the number of cattle to be controlled and sorted in the corner. Fewer cattle are easier to control, faster to sort and easier on your turnback riders.

CUT THE HEAD - PUSH THE HIP Cattle respond to the pressure applied by the horse's head and body.

Moving the horse’s body closer to the cattle speeds them up - moving the body away will slow and stop them. The cow will turn away when the head of the horse moves ahead of the cow's head; the cow will squirt ahead when the head of the horse is at its hip. Use the horse's head and body like a weapon by applying pressure to force cattle movement.

CONTROL THE HORSE'S TAIL When you are in the herd. The back end of the horse moves cattle just like the horse's head - often with unintended consequences. Reduce the tail pressure by applying cow-side leg pressure to the horse. The leg pressure will angle the horse’s hip away from the cattle when you are reducing the herd or when you are sorting the good cow. Tipping the horse's head toward the hip of the good cow and moving the horse's hip away eliminates the unintended consequences of the unmanaged pressure exerted by the hind quarters of your horse.

PUT THE GOOD COW ON THE FENCE ...and push to the pen - the horse's nose at the cow's hip, the horse's tail away from the cow. When the good cow is on the fence, its clear sailing! One or two trash cows can be easily sliced off if the good cow is on the fence. On the other hand, if trash is on the fence the linesman can do one of three things - hope for a miracle, turn back everything or let the trash go.

INFLUENCING CATTLE WITH NOISE There are teams that are quite as church mice; there are others that make enough noise to raise the dead!

The truth is somewhere in the middle. Team members must communicate with one another, so there is a certain amount of chatter anyway.

Whatever noise you make will scare the cattle and they will react – when ever you make noise – for better or worse. The more cattle affected – the louder the noise – the greater the reaction. Hootin’ and hollerin’ can become a habit which, if you’re not careful, can hurt more than it helps. On the other hand, it can be a tool to speed things up or help you recover from a mistake. Noise can be an effective tool when you or one of your partners need it! NOISE IS A TOOL!!

Team penning is one of the fastest growing equestrian sports in Australia – maybe the world – because it is fun! You will develop a style of your own soon enough as you discover what works for you – but the basics of the sport will always hold true.

Photos courtesy Mell Cannon Equine Photography

Mount up, do your job, have fun!

Information supplied by

www.teampenning.com.au

Central West Team Penning Assoc. Inc. at Canowindra, NSW , affiliates of Team Penning Australia Inc., held their th th first 2 day event on the weekend of the 12 & 13 of February. Arena Sorting was held on the Saturday with Sunday seeing even more competitors for the Team Penning event.

There was some first time riders that attend, and some riders travelled from Goulburn, Young, Forbes and all around the district to take part. Toby Newcombe, President of CWTP was just overwhelmed by the great success over the 2 days. Along with his hard working committee and cattlemen it was smooth sailing for both days.

Debby Stocks from TPA Tamworth, travelled to Canowindra to judge for the 2 day event and said it was one of the most successful events that she has attended throughout the last 6 months.

Results for the Arena Sorting – Saturday 12th Feb Open Division 1st – Run 44, Debra & Phillip Bell, Mick Jenkinson – 10 head – 1min 59.85secs 2nd – Run 50, Carlie Venable, Clint Stapleton, Jennifer

P e n n i n g

C anowindra T eam P enning w eekend

Equal 3rd 8 Head - 2 Mins Run 10, Bob Myers, Peter Kilmister, Joan Bunt Run 38, Peter Clemson, Sue Willoughby, Clint Stapleton Run 40, Debra & Phillip Bell, Mick Jenkinson

Donna, Arena Sorting

Junior Division Run 1 – Hannah Noakes, Yasmine Hopley, Elizabeth Wythes – 1 head – 2 mins Open Div Team Penning Winners Matt, Owen & Greg from Young.

Results for the Team Penning – Sunday 13th Feb Open Division 1st – Run 35 – Owen Parker, Greg Bruce, Matt Daley – 3 head, 42.07secs 2nd – Run 29 – Peter Clemson, Sue Willoughby, Clint Stapleton – 3head, 48.75secs 3rd – Run 57 – Carlie Venable, Clint Stapleton, Jennifer Dowdy – 3head, 49.50secs Jnr Div Team Penning Winners Tara, Troy & James

Junior Division 1st, 2nd,3rd was won by the same team James Watson, Troy & Tara Jenkins 1st – 3head, 1min-19.70secs 2nd – 3head, 1min-20.62secs 3rd – 3head, 1min-23.68secs Saturday Encouragement Award Killarny Vandike & Kershell Jefferys Sunday Encouragement Award Hannah Keen & Tara Jenkins

TEAM PENNING AUSTRALIA INC. PO BOX 4097, Nemingha, NSW 2340 President: Bob Lee 02 6760 5897 Secretary: Debby Stocks 0409 446 815 teampenningaustralia@bigpond.com www.teampenningaustralia.com

Team work during the Arena Sorting

C a m p d r a f t / T e a m

Dowdy – 10 head – 2mins

C u t t i n g

What’s on calendar

Cutting National Cutting Horse Association www.ncha.com.au

March 2011 Tony Ernst Monthly Cutting Development Day Venue: TBA Time: 9 am start tony@tonyernstcowboylogic.com.au

27th March

National Cutting Horse Association The NCHA has 53 affiliates that conduct shows, practice days and clinics throughout Australia. All levels of competition are catered for in over 200 shows throughout Australia culminating with the NCHA National FInals. HIgh Point Awards are highly prized and competitors travel many kilometres to achieve success.

The showcase of Cutting is the NCHA Futurity held every May/June at Tamworth NSW. The Futurity Show has grown into the richest three year old performance horse event in Australia. It incorporates the best cutting seen anywhere, the largest country/western rural trade display outside the metropolitan areas, restaurants,bars, big screen, live country country music entertainers, and the NCHA Sale which auctions some of the best bred performance horses in Australia.

Where can you see cutting?

C u t t i n g

The NCHA has 45 affiliates that conduct shows, practice days and clinics throughout Australia. All levels of competition including youth classes are catered for in over 200 shows throughout Australia including Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney Royals culminating with the NCHA National Finals. High Point Awards are highly prized and competitors travel many kilometres to achieve success.

The showcase of Cutting is the NCHA Futurity held every May/June at Tamworth, NSW. The Futurity Show has grown into the richest three year old performance horse event in Australia. It incorporates the best cutting seen anywhere, the largest country/ western rural trade display outside the metropolitan areas, restaurants, bars, video walls, live country music entertainers, and the NCHA Sale which auctions some of the best bred performance horses in Australia.

Local NCHA affiliate Clubs Peel Valley Cutting Club 02 67 771 116 0428 772 034

Walcha Cutting Club 02 67 787 327 0437 301 069

C u t t i n g

y l p m si s ’ t I

After a lifetime of developing horse skills, martial arts, and person to person relationship skills, Tony Ernst has developed a successful concept of personal development and team building using the magic of the horse.

Meet Tony Ernst, the creator of Cowboy Logic and one of the most down-to-earth, knowledgeable & easily relatable people I have ever had the pleasure to meet.

“If I can lighten the load for just one person on their journey, then this has all been worth it”.

Tony Ernst

ABOUT TONY Born and raised in far North Queensland Tony spent his youth working on stations such as “Tallaroo” and “Dagworth”. There began his love for the outback life and horses.

Tony spent the next forty years learning from some of the most accomplished horsemen in the world, while accomplishing the title as “Elder” in the Yee Chang school of Kung Fu under the instruction of Master Ian Garbett.

Soon the yearning to learn more about the relationship between horse and man took Tony to the United States. From 1965 to 1983 Tony spent his life in pursuit of knowledge from the best trainers in the world: Essy Murray, Lee Reborse, Bob Ingersoll, Bill Wilds and Bill Freeman and Pat Parelli.

In 2000, after moving to Tamworth, NSW Tony and Dixie were fortunate to become involved in a business that taught mentorship and wealth creation. Tony soon became a mentor to a large group of people and in 2003 was inspired to travel Australia and New Zealand motivating using a culmination of Kung Fu, horses, “Cowboy Logic” and a life of “falling down and getting back up again” experiences.

In 2008 Tony started to incorporate motivation with hands on experience with horses to develop people’s attitudes and identify their personality and achieve goals through using the magic of the horse.

COWBOY LOGIC Tonys Cowboy Logic is a team building concept and is aimed at helping people develop an understanding of how they are perceived by others in business, personal relationships, the sporting arena, and anywhere in which people have to work with other people to achieve goals.

During the program Tony shares his knowledge through specific exercises designed to enhance people’s understanding of themselves, their leadership skills and the power of “Teamwork”.

Tony Ernst has been a mentor to a broad range of successful people including World Champion sportsmen, large and small business owners and employees, and people who have a need for self improvement.

C u t t i n g

In 1983 Tony met his wife Dixie in Texas and they moved back to Australia to make their home in Bundarra NSW. Tony spent many years working the property, training horses and teaching others.

C u t t i n g

Tony says “The aim is to take people from where they are to where they want to be using the horse as a mirror which reflects and illuminates the personality flaws and attributes within each individual”. The Cowboy Logic program aims to develop honesty in the way your personality affects the people you interact with and the result. The medium of the horse helps develop a more positive attitude as well as teaching leadership skills, people skills, self esteem and team building, which in turn, will ultimately create positive action.

From this training experience, all participants should find by the end of the two-day program, that they are more competent in dealing with colleagues and subordinates as a result of developing a more positive and equal process of dealing with others in situations that can run the risk of causing a detrimental outcome to the communication and productivity of the organisation.

Cowboy Logic aims: To help people discover themselves and the way other people see them.

To develop self esteem to understand the only person someone can really change is themselves using the horse as a truth mirror To help understand that attitude is a choice and how that change has the possibility to set a person on the path to personal or team success.

To help people understand the dream and goals procedure both personally and for the team.

To become the best person they can for themselves and those surrounding them.

Tony believes that on a whole, people tend to go through life expecting a different result without changing anything, and most importantly themselves. As an intermediary (in many years of working with horses, dogs and all forms of livestock) Tony has developed an ability to put people in a situation where they will discover who they are and what's more, who they can become. The success that is projected from the Cowboy Logic program is a product of the knowledge of personal mentors and books that he has read over the years. He hopes that his training program will provide people with the information and motivation required to successfully communicate with colleagues and lead them into a positive future.

C u t t i n g

MONTHLY CUTTING DEVELOPMENT DAYS Tony also runs monthly cutting development days from his property on Werris Creek Road. Tony says that “Over a lifetime of being involved in the Cutting Industry I have noticed an extreme lack of bottom to middle level development in the cutting horse industry. I have designed an affordable learning forum for youth to adults who would like to learn the industry and gain an understanding of what cutting is about, from an observer or parents view or a potential cutting enthusiast”.

The cutting days are a monthly program which cover everything from the starting out in Cutting through to today’s showing, training a cutting horse, the skills of cutting a cow, the importance, the "how to" of turning back and holding herd, rules and judging.

The instructors are Tony himself and any available volunteer professionals.

Any enquiries are welcome and bookings for these days are essential and can be done via email:

tony@tonyernstcowboylogic.com.au For more information on Tony Ernst his Cowboy Logic and the Monthly Cutting Development days just visit the website

www.tonyernstcowboylogic.com.au “Your horse always remembers how you made him feel. .. He don't give a damn how much you know”

TONY ERNST MONTHLY CUTTING DEVELOPMENT DAY

If you would like your event/training day covered by Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine/MS Equipix just phone Mel on 0409 987 152 or email tdlhorsemag@live.com

D r e s s a g e

D r e s s a g e

What’s on calendar ~

Dressage

Dressage NSW www.dressagensw.com.au Tamworth Dressage Club www.tamworthdc.equestrian.org.au

March 2011 Heath Ryan Clinic Tamworth Indoor arena showgrounds

29th March

Contact Lauren Horseland Tamworth 0267652500

April 2011 Tamworth Dressage Club Official/Associate Competition Marjolyn Thomas 0428 671 338 tamworthdc@hotmail.com

17th April

Surrounding areas March 2011 DNSW Clarendon Hawkesbury Showground, Clarendon Official Event, Novice to Grand Prix & Young horse qualifier Karen Lever - 02 4576 7996 dnsw.clarendonsec@equestrian.org.au

11th - 13th March

Colleen Kelly Horse Rider Biomechanics Somersby Margie Abott - Margie.Abbott@scenictours.com

25th - 27th March

The Tamworth Dressage Club was formed in November 1981 and currently has approximately 70 members. In 2005 the club established a permanent home ground at Moonbi, which sits at the bottom of the beautiful Moonbi ranges and is a 15 minute drive north from the city of Tamworth.

Facilities include two permanent sand dressage arenas, a small club house, equipment container and other shared facilities. The club runs activities most months of the year, including official competitions,training clinics ,ribbon days and practice days. New members are always welcome and updates on informal club activities (e.g. dates when members can practice on the Moonbi arenas) can be found on the website.

PO Box 3130 West Tamworth NSW 2340

www.tamworthdc.equestrian.org.au tamworthdc@hotmail.com

Club Secretary: Marjolyn Thomas 0428 671 338

Rider Biomechanics

“But the head nod is rarely the only thing moving in the riders body, usually the feet also bump and there is movement in the hands – its a generic wobble that starts at the centre of gravity of the rider, at the belly button, and just goes out to the extremities with which that rider has a problem. It may represent itself in head nod, hand wobbles, feet bumping and in worse case scenarios, the butt coming off the saddle., but its a generic wobble that requires a generic solution. Its more fixing the riders entire body than fixing one little tiny bit of it.

“The answer is not in moving your head in a different way, holding it in a different way or following with your hips. I've done all that, and quite frankly I was still a really bad sitting trotter and still wobbled. For me the ‘old fashioned’ balance exercises that have been around lost and forgotten offer the solution.

The very first thing they do at the Spanish riding School is stand straight up in the saddle over the pommel and learn to balance up in trot and gradually lower the pelvic floor an inch, and an inch, and an inch and an inch until they are in contact with saddle. They don't sit, they barely touch the saddle and then they are able to glaze over all this movement underneath, their hips barely move their heads stay in the centre.

www.colleenkelly.com “It’s not jumping two point, its standing straight up with your pubic bone up over your toes and your belly button over your pubic bone so your not tucked behind or leaning in front. Its just like you were standing and you stay in the rising trot, with the horse on the bit, regular, straight and everything that the dressage horse has to be. You have to learn to do it from up there and slowly but surely, inch by inch, month by month you get to the point where your pelvic floor touches the saddle but instead of working form the bottom and bouncing around in the saddle and trying to fix that, we work from the top and your instantly still, the rattles are gone. Then you just need to learn to bring that stillness back another couple of inches, and another couple of inches.

“Its balance, skill, co-ordination, fitness and fear – if you’re afraid and you’re holding the horse back all the time and jamming him up then that will have a big affect as he’ll be stiff and you wont be able to sit to that. Poor posture, poor conformation, a poor physical body and poor training are all factors, but the only way I know to really, really fix it, is to go back to the balancing exercises like they do at the Spanish Riding School.

“An interesting exercise I often use to emphasize how much movement of the head can influence the weight distribution, and therefore stability and effectiveness of the rider, involves a wooden saddle stand ‘horse’ and four sets of bathroom scales, each set of scales is placed under a saddle stand leg then the rider ‘mounts’ and is asked to cast their eyes downwards. No movement of the head is allowed just the eyeballs can move. Most are amazed when on average, there is 11kg of difference created just by looking down, so just imagine how much it would be during a ‘head nod’! In effect the slight imbalance of the rider measured in this experiment means an unnecessary 11kg remains on the forehand of the horse.

Colleen Kelly first started her career in exercise physiology and now, some 30 years later, is one of the worlds most sought-after speakers on sports biomechanics, specializing in seat, posture & balance of the rider.

Her world lecture tour includes Official Equestrian Federations, FEI Level Judge’s clinics, world class conferences, and the worlds largest universities.

Although Colleen is well known for judging at National and Royal Championships, and for receiving a remarkable 100% in her Official Dressage Judges Exam. It’s her ‘Irish Sense of Humor’ that keeps audiences laughing & has seen her awarded with 3 separate awards for her work with Riding for Disabled.

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“While most people obsess about their horse being ‘on the bit’, few are aware that they as riders, also move above and below the vertical in terms of their head position. Particularly relevant to head nodding is that the angle of the riders chin in relation to the chest shouldn't change during ‘bouncier’ movements such as sitting trot. When the chin comes closer to the chest (decreasing the angle), then raises up and moves away from the chest (increasing the angle), then comes closer to the chest again, it becomes the traditional head nod. Another way of visualizing what is happening when the head is nodding is to pretend you're wearing a surgical collar while riding a movement where the habit shows up, as, irrespective of whether the shoulders and torso moved up and down your chin would keep banging into the collar.

D r e s s a g e

Colleen Kelly

From the Judge at C Liz Coe

~ ‘A’ level Grand Prix Dressage Judge/Mentor and Judge Educator

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“Riding is a partnership. The horse lends you his strength, speed and grace, which are greater than yours. For your part you give him your guidance, intelligence and understanding, which are greater than his. Together you can achieve a richness that alone neither can." ~ Lucy Rees My name is Liz and in this series of articles I would like to take you on a journey from what is the meaning of “dressage” through the training scale and what characteristics of the horse’s way of going the judge is looking for in each movement. What does that 5-6 or 8 mean? I will discuss different phrases such as contact and how it is different from “on the bit”. I will try to highlight what judges comments on your tests actually mean in plain English. Finally, we will provide a section for your voice where you can write in with questions that you may have. So let us begin.

What is Dressage? It is a French term which is roughly translated into the word “training”.

Its fundamental purpose is to develop, through standardized progressive training methods, the horse’s natural athletic ability and willingness to perform, thereby maximizing its potential as a riding horse and increasing the usable life of the horse.

The very spectacular caprioles and airs above ground that is seen by thousands at the Spanish Riding School had its roots in a very practical application: the horses were trained to leap and kick out this way in battle to free the horse and rider of foot soldiers surrounding them. These horses responded to weight and leg signals from the rider, leaving both hands free to wield weapons of war. So the better trained the horse was in response to the rider’s aid, the better the chance of survival for its rider.

Dressage is also occasionally referred to as “Horse Ballet”. Early European aristocrats displayed their horses’ training in equestrian parades and displays, but in modern dressage, successful training of the horse from preliminary level to Grand Prix is demonstrated through the performance of “dressage tests”, which is a set of prescribed movements ridden within a 60 x 20 metre arena.

Judges evaluate each movement on the basis of an objective standard appropriate to the level of the test and assign each movement a score from zero to ten - zero being “not executed” and 10 being “excellent”(notice I do NOT say perfect!). A competitor achieving all 6s (which means 60% overall) should be considering moving on to the next level.

At the peak of a dressage horse’s gymnastic development, it can smoothly respond to a skilled rider’s minimal almost invisible aids and perform the requested movement while remaining balanced, energetic but relaxed and appearing effortless. When you see a lovely test where the horse appears to be performing the test on their own – you are seeing excellent training.

D r e s s a g e

This is the ultimate goal of modern dressage; however most of us when starting our dressage career often begin with a test that may look a little more like this one.

Take heart this is only the beginning of your partnership. Remember don’t be afraid of mistakes – every single mistake is a perfect training opportunity you can use to develop towards your goal.

Before we go on there are vital points to remember!!!

1. I am assuming that you ride these wonderful creatures and compete at the competitions because you enjoy riding and love the sport, so remember you are NOT competing for sheep stations it is meant to be fun!

2. The horse will not go any better at a competition than in your home paddock, in fact my old coach used to say that you lose approximately 10% in marks when you compete compared to what you can achieve at home, and she was right! So if the movement is not amazing at home do not expect it to be amazing at your competition 3. When all goes well the rider deserves the credit and rightly so.

4. When there are problems the rider must then bear the responsibility as well. Don’t lose your temper at the horse. Your horse, while munching his breakfast hay, does NOT think "I don’t really want to do my novice and elementary tests today so I am going to be very naughty just to make my owner cranky."

5. Some days the test does not go as planned, and whether you are new to the sport or a former Olympian you need to think that today, in this test, the aids were not quite effective and my horse has not really listened to me. The problem could be something as simple as not getting there early enough to warm up correctly or too much warm up and the horse becomes tired, so you make plans on how you will train a little differently for a better result.

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Judy & Katrina Allan

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Photo courtesy Chris & Natalie McIntyre/Crik Hollow Endurance

What’s on calendar Endurance NSW Endurance Riders Association www.nswera.asn.au

March 2011 Arab Horse Society, Tamworth Twilight Ride Prenominate Gay Bonham (02) 6785 2055

April 2011 Manilla Muster Prenominate Gay Bonham (02) 6785 2055

Surrounding areas April 2011 Tooraweenah Sonia Bonham (02) 6848 5345 10th April

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19th - 20th March

Cedar Ridge Stables, Oberon Easter Carnival - Rides each day Courtney Freeman 0417 248 172 22nd - 25th April

22nd - 26th April

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Electrolytes

by Carol Layton B.Sc M.Ed

www.balancedequine.com.au On top of a more than adequate nutrient diet with balanced minerals, it is often recommended that horses receive electrolytes whether they are performance horses in work or a much loved member of the family in the back paddock. An electrolyte is defined as any mineral not attached to a protein in a free or ionised form. The major electrolytes in the bloodstream and in the space surrounding cells (extracellular space) is sodium, followed by chloride and in much smaller amounts, potassium and bicarbonate. Tiny amounts of calcium and magnesium also circulate as unbound ions. The best electrolyte for day to day supplementation is plain salt; NaCl.

• • • • •

of essential body functions depend on the presence of electrolytes. These include: The production and secretion of sweat, saliva, intestinal tract fluids, urine and mucus Skeletal muscle and heart contraction Intestinal movement (and other involuntary smooth muscle contraction, such as the uterus) Absorption of nutrients across the intestinal wall and into the body cells Skeletal muscle contraction Nerve function Maintenance of normal acid-base balance (pH) Maintenance of normal hydration (the body contains roughly 70% water)

Precise electrolyte concentrations are maintained in and out of cells and in certain parts of cells.

The movement of electrolytes in and out of cells is what enables nutrients to move from one place to another.

Electrolyte levels in the blood are tightly regulated by hormones. This is of paramount importance so other areas of the body will go without to ensure the bloodstream maintains concentrations. If sodium is low, the body will draw the sodium ions from the extracellular spaces (between cells) and results in the horse’s skin getting a tented look. When a vet pinches the skin near the shoulder they are getting a measure of skin elasticity, an indication of sodium deficiency.

Sodium is involved in many, many cellular processes including muscle contraction. The presence of sodium in the right concentrations will move glucose into the cell where it will become metabolised in the powerhouse section of the cell (mitochondria) to produce energy. If sodium is deficient because it has been drawn into the bloodstream to maintain concentration then less glucose can be transported into the cell and impaired performance will occur. Dr Eleanor Kellon VMD, a leader in equine nutrition reports that as little as 2 to 3% dehydration can lead to a 10% drop in performance.

Sodium is also the major controller of water balance in tissues. Sodium levels in the brain are read by cells called osmoreceptors, short for osmolality. In addition to ‘holding’ water in the tissues, sodium is what the brain ‘reads’ in determining when to trigger thirst and when to regulate the amount of sodium and water the body excretes in the urine.

Chloride is involved in a host of reactions that include maintaining normal pH, fluid volume and electrical conductivity of cells.

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A host • • •

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the importance of

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Potassium is the major electrolyte inside a cell; the difference in sodium and potassium concentrations outside and inside cells is responsible for excitability of muscle and nerve tissue. If potassium is deficient symptoms can include fatigue, heart rhythm irregularities, muscle weakness or tying up (Rhabdomyolysis) and nerve irritability, also known as ‘Thumps’.

All forages; grass and hay are a rich source of potassium so it doesn’t need to be supplemented for a horse that is not in work. Sodium though is rarely in sufficient quantities to satisfy maintenance needs unless the soil the pasture is grown on is quite saline. Adding 1-2 tablespoons of common table salt (sodium chloride) per day to a horse’s feed is a reasonable amount to cover maintenance electrolyte requirements, especially for a horse that sweats on a hot day standing around in a paddock or on a short trail ride. Any excess is easily and efficiently excreted from the kidneys. Of course, drinking water should always be provided.

For example, the National Research Council (NRC), in the current 6th revised edition of Nutrient Requirements of Horses (2007) gives the following calculations to determine maintenance requirements based on body weight (BW). For sodium it is 0.02 x BW and chloride, 0.08 x BW. A 450 kg horse requires 9 grams of sodium and 36 grams chloride per day. These are minimum levels; it doesn’t take into account sweat losses on a hot day or exercise. A level tablespoon of salt contains approximately 9 grams of sodium and 14 grams of chloride.

If a horse is exercised for more than 2 hours then an electrolyte mix with potassium is necessary to replace heavy losses in sweat. Electrolytes can be added directly to a feed or syringed. If syringing, mix with a little sugar, preferably glucose. Sodium, chloride and potassium move through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream via passive transport; the ions fit through the small holes or pores. However, a small amount of sugar or amino acids (protein) will enable active transport of sodium, a quicker process than passive transport. This applies only to sodium, not chloride or potassium.

Providing a salt lick is an excellent idea but they can’t be relied on to cover maintenance and sweat requirements, especially for horses in work. Despite salt being the only documented craving horses can have, some horses won’t touch a salt lick. Adding table salt to a feed will ensure a horse will have his sodium and chloride needs covered with forage as the potassium, calcium and magnesium source.

One horse owner wondered why his horse always licked the ground in the same spot when out on a trail ride. On adding 2 tablespoons of salt to his horse’s feed (per day) he found his horse no longer wanted to lick the ground. He observed his horse drinking more water and looking more hydrated.

One theory that explains why horses have such a high need for salt is that they evolved in a region with very saline soils.

Carol is a keen endurance rider with a passion for equine nutrition, training and management. Her horse, Omani Mr Sqiggle is one of the first two barefoot horses to successfully complete the 400 km marathon, Shahzada and she has many 80 and 160 km State Championship rides to her credit along with numerous best conditioned awards.

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What’s on calendar

E v e n t i n g

E v e n t i n g

Eventing Eventing NSW www.eventingnsw.com.au Quirindi Eventing Inc www.quirindieventing.com Tamworth International Eventing www.tie.equestrian.org.au

March 2011

Surrounding areas

Coaches & Trainers Norm Hindmarsh Southern Cross Warmbloods PH: 02 6767 1404 M: 0429 862 854 scwarmbloods@yahoo.com www.southerncrosswarmbloods.com.au Sharmayne Spencer Heritage Hill Ph: 02 6760 5554 M: 0414 577 273 - Sharmayne M: 0447 328 608 info@heritagehillequine.com.au www.heritagehillequine.com.au

Scone www.eventingnsw.com.au

12th - 13th March

Cudgegong - Mudge www.eventingnsw.com.au

27th March

By Tonya Johnston, MA Sport Psychology Consultant

www.tonyajohnston.com

Tonya Johnston, MA, is a Sport Psychology Consultant who works with equestrian athletes on the mental skills required for achieving peak performance. She specializes in work with horseback riders from a variety of equestrian disciplines, including dressage, eventing, and hunter/jumpers. Tonya offers Sport Psychology for Riders clinics, and individual phone or in-person appointments.

What do you think you can accomplish on a horse? Do you believe you can be calm and focused in your stadium round next week? Are you going to get strong enough to sit your horse’s trot for more than three laps of the arena? Do you think you will be successful at the next level?

What you believe about yourself, your abilities, your horses and the world at large play a large part in creating your experiences. Although these beliefs exist at a deep level, and are thus sometimes hard to identify and adjust, it is important to take stock periodically to ensure they are 100% helpful to you.

The goal of this article is to help you investigate the role your beliefs have in your day-to-day riding life. How to assess them, evaluate their usefulness and fine-tune them as necessary.

This work is a true ‘inside job’ – others can give you advice, encouragement, or instruction, but only you can be sure the faith you have in yourself is helpful and true.

The Belief Pyramid Do you believe it was random luck when your horse bulged left, spooked at a shadow to the right, and ended up staying on the direct track to the chevron? Or were you balanced and secure (to correct the drift), prepared for anything (including the spook), with your eye locked on your focal point to make sure your horse knew where you were going? Can you see the difference between those two perceptions and thus the beliefs that will ensue? (“I am a lucky rider.” vs. “I am a prepared and tenacious rider.”)

Beliefs you hold true are the basis for your expectations, self talk and actions. In the field of psychology, a term called self-efficacy describes the belief you have in your ability to be successful. When you believe that you will be successful, does that mean you will be every time? Maybe, maybe not - but you are much more likely to have positive expectations, tell yourself you can do it, and utilize your best skills and abilities.

listing specific mental and physical skills that contribute to your success in the saddle. Give yourself 15 minutes to think, brainstorm and write only affirmative things. Next, write down things that are negative or limiting. Now compare the two. Are the negative beliefs fun, helpful or entertaining?

(Trust me, the answer is no!) Hopefully the positive beliefs outnumber the negative ones, but if not don’t worry - there are ways to modify and erase those pesky negative beliefs.

The first and best thing to do to get rid of limiting beliefs is to determine if they are rational or irrational. It is the irrational ones (that hold us back unnecessarily) that we are pursuing here. (Such as, “I will never be confident jumping a down bank into water.”) These irrational and negative beliefs are suspect - they don’t help you succeed, and yet they linger in the deepest recesses of your mind.

Common Irrational Beliefs Irrational beliefs are generated by many different thought patterns. It is not out of the ordinary to experience them, most everyone does. The problem occurs when you as a rider accept, preserve and endorse these self-defeating beliefs as universal truths. You have then severely limited your potential and your performance.

The following are examples of athletes’ commonly held irrational beliefs and distorted thinking:

What do you believe?

Try this: write a list of the beliefs you have about Tonya with a pupil ringside. your riding abilities. Fist, focus on the positive by

Perfection is essential: “I must be perfect to be respected as a good rider.”

Catastrophizing: “I know that look in my horse’s eye means I will _____ (get run away with, trample my ground person, get eliminated for jumping out of the start box, etc.).”

One-trial generalizations: “I always forget my stadium course.”

Personalization: “Those people watching on the rail are all laughing at me.”

Polarized thinking: “I am not a true event rider if I can’t be in the top five this year, and I will quit if it doesn’t happen.”

Worth depends on achievement: “Thank goodness I won last weekend, now I finally know how to ride.”

Assess your Beliefs Put your negative beliefs to the test and assess if they are rational or irrational, productive or unproductive by using the questions below. For example, let’s investigate the following belief: “I always ride terribly in my stadium round.”

Is the belief based on objective reality?

Would observers see the event the way you perceived it, or do you exaggerate the situation?

Is it useful in some way?

Does the belief help you reach your goals, or get in the way?

Does the belief create emotions that help you feel empowered and capable while reducing your stress level?

It should be evident that when put to this test, the above belief is irrational. It may feel true to you but it is not based in objective reality (you stay on course, your horse leaves many jumps up and you have sections of every course where your trainer tells you that you rode well); it is not useful in any way; it prevents you from achieving your goals by creating a constant negative expectation; and it makes you feel tense and anxious.

Adjust Your Beliefs In order to get a handle on your irrational beliefs and adjust them appropriately use a method, developed by psychologist Albert Ellis, called “ABC Cognitive Restructuring”. To use this method take an irrational belief you have identified and work through it using the following strategy: Irrational Belief Example: “I can’t stay focused when my horse is bad.”

A: Activating Event First, describe a typical event that leads to the belief, feelings and behavior.

My horse spooked five times on the way to the warm-up area.

B: Beliefs or Interpretations Second, record the negative self-talk and beliefs.

“This dressage test is going to be awful.”

“I can’t stay focused when he is bad.”

C: Consequences Third, identify the bodily reactions, feelings, and behavior that resulted.

Worry; my legs are not down and around my horse; my shoulders, jaw and neck are tense; my elbow is locked.

D: Dispute Fourth, write rational and adaptive responses to use in the same situation.

“This is a challenge, but one I can solve. I know some good flatwork exercises to get his mind back on me.”

“I am in control of my body and my energy. When I remain calm, centered and keep my goals realistic I can make the best of any situation.”

You can see the negative impact the belief has on your behavior. Your expectations are negative, your self talk is unhelpful, your body is tense and locked – how do you think the dressage test would go if the belief is left unchecked? By taking the time to realistically and actively dispute the negative belief you mobilize your skills and talents. The “Dispute” section is crucial to this process.

The next time you are faced with a similar situation you will remember that you have choices about your mental and physical responses. The experience of your horse repeatedly spooking does not have to equal a horrible test – so you can leave that belief behind and remember that there are many productive things you can do to create a solid performance.

The Optimal Idea Wouldn’t it be silly if all that was standing between you and your best event ever were the old beliefs that your horse ‘doesn’t like new places’ and ‘I am really too old to be doing this’? Wilma Rudolph, the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field, and a childhood polio survivor, said, “My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to.

The first was to walk without braces.” To develop from a child who couldn’t walk to an Olympic champion, her beliefs in her abilities surely grew and developed as her skills increased - be sure yours do the same.

www.tonyajohnston.com

Official photographer for the Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine

Ph: 0409 987 152 msequipix@live.com

www.msequipix.com

H o r s e m a n s h i p Na t u r a l

What’s on calendar Natural horsemanship April 2011

Mel Fleming 'Alchemy Place' Moonbi, NSW April 22nd -26th - 5 day Easter Camp CONNECTING WITH HORSES & RIDING WITH SYNCHRONICITY Intermediate Level

Coaches & Trainers Mel Fleming - Moonbi www.melfleming.com.au mel@melfleming.com.au 0428 385 745 02 6760 5519

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By Mel Fleming Connecting with Horses is about connecting in to our horses at a deeper level, a more intuitive level. A deeper understanding of the horse’s thoughts, emotions and physical body will be gained. At this deeper level we have ‘feel’, the intrinsic quality that makes a horseman. Without ‘feel’ people are just technicians or going through the mechanics of things. You will know a horseman by the quality of calmness, softness, self expression, self confidence, lightness and responsiveness in the horses they ride or handle. All of these qualities must be present. You can imagine that horses would enjoy the experience of being ridden in the hands of a horseman.

Riding with Synchronicity is about riding in a way where we are in absolute harmony and synchronicity with the horse and riding without tension or tightness in our bodies. Even the aids or cues to the horse are applied with the most minimal amount of muscle or joint tension. In this way of riding we are able to allow and encourage horses to move freely with raised backs, open spines, long elegant necks, open throats and long, free flowing strides.

These are all essential elements for horses if they are to be free, balanced, calm and athletic. When ridden in a free and balanced way the sports and activities that horses are asked to do can feel easy and enjoyable for them. Riding horses in this way can be extremely therapeutic for their mind, emotions and body, enhancing their health and soundness. When ridden with restriction and without balance things will feel strenuous and difficult and riding can be damaging to horses, hence the reason for so many unsound and broken down horses in many disciplines. Riding in Synchronicity is also extremely therapeutic for the human.

No matter what their breed or the sports that they are in, the biomechanical needs for horses are similar. Fundamentally these are that the HQ’s are used to push the horse forward and to carry the weight of the horse itself and the rider. The horse’s back and whither are lifted and there is a lightness of the forehand. The only way that engagement of the hindquarters can occur is if horses can lift and round their backs from the loins to the whither.

Try this - While standing, hollow your back as much as you can and then see how high you can lift your knee up in front of you. Now allow your back to round and see how high you can lift your knee. You should be able to lift it considerably higher and with more ease when your back can round.

Here are some riding techniques and concepts that will help us ride in a better way for the horse and of

course they will also make things feel better for the rider.

We need to ride in a way which invites a horse’s back to lift underneath us. When a horse is moving optimally their will be quite a bit of movement through the horse’s back as the energy flows from the horse’s hindlegs through his back to his front end. Hence the dressage terminology of riding your horse “through”. The energy from the push of the hindlegs comes up through the riders pelvis through the riders elbows and down the forearm through the rein if there is a contact (otherwise the flow is just directed) to the horse’s mouth.

To be in harmony our bodies have to be mobile enough to absorb the motion of the horse’s body. It is our torso that is the most important and this is the area that most people have very little awareness of.

The pelvis, hips, coccyx, lower back and sacrum, ribcage, sternum, shoulder blades, collar bones and all the vertebrae of the spine.

The horse’s back lifts on one side and then the other as their ribcage swings. It is a lifting and diagonally forwards movement that we need to be following with our hips and pelvis. Our pelvis and hips have to move independently, one side and then the other‘independent suspension’. This is how we ride the walk, sitting trot and in much more subtle way the canter.

To have the mobility to follow the movement of the horse it is crucial to be sitting in ‘Alignment’ - ie. sitting towards the back of our seat bone. I also call this position ‘neutral’ because from there you are equally ready to move in any direction. Some people sit towards their crotch while others sit towards the tail bone. Both these positions are out of balance and the joints of the body are immobilized.

TRY THIS - In a standing position tip your pelvis as far forward as possible and then lift one heel off the ground at a time alternating one then the other.

Repeat the exercise with the pelvis rolled back in the other direction. Finally find the middle, neutral, and lift the heels alternately. This final position should feel the most effortless as the body will be balanced and aligned.

Essentially the classical line of hip, shoulder, hip, heel applies however rather than thinking of being fixed in this position think of your body constantly adjusting around this central line as all the joints in the body absorb and adjust and mirror the motion of the horse.

and helps to distribute the weight of the rider so that the weight it is not solely directed as a downward force on the horses back.

Imagine your centre of gravity as a heavy weight down low inside your pelvis. This heavy weight could be very restrictive to the horse but because of the self carriage in the rider’s upper body and the contact with the lower leg this weight doesn’t become a burden to the horse.

If we want the horse to have balance and self carriage then we need to be in a state of balance and self carriage. Do this by lengthening the space between the top of your pelvis and the bottom of the ribcage, maintaining the natural soft curve of the lower back.

TRY THIS – While sitting or standing with your knees bent place your fingers to the side and top of your pelvis then place your thumbs at the bottom of your last rib. Now lengthen this distance between your finger and your thumb.

You will feel your whole upper body come into alignment and lengthen and the sternum will softly lift.

Stretch down from the sacrum and up from there at the same time, lengthening the spine. Compressed spines are restricted and immobile The shoulders should hang down, loose and relaxed.

You should feel long through the back of the neck with the jaw and chin soft. If you feel tension in the jaw area open and close your mouth several times and softly and slowly move your head up and down and to the sides. Have soft eyes which means focusing with a very wide peripheral vision rather than an intensely directed stare.

There should never be any downward pressure exerted into the stirrup, especially in the rising trot. I like to imagine that the sole of my boot is velcroed to the stirrup. It has a lot of connection but no downward pressure. Downward pressure in the stirrup causes the tree of the saddle and stirrup bars to press into the horses back which is going to cause the horse to hollow his back.

The ankle should be soft. The heel should hang and not be force down or forward.

Most importantly of all is to be in a mental and emotional state of lightness, ease, non-judgment and detachment to the outcome. You need a feeling of lightness, a soft excitement and energy vibrating continuously throughout your entire body. Imagine the energy vibrating through you, wriggle your fingers, toes and tongue to make sure that the energy goes all the way to your extremities and there are no blocks there. Feel it through your spine from your coccyx to the base of your skull. You are looking for your horse to have a feeling of lightness throughout his whole body especially in his legs and feet like the feeling that he could walk on egg shells – you need to have that same feeling in your body. So enjoy the ride, don’t try to hard and have fun experimenting.

To allow the horses back to lift and the ribcage to expand under our seat and thighs we need to ride with our hips open (that is the femur slightly rotated out) and the knee soft and slightly rotated out. This in turn means that your toes will be slightly turned out.

Closed and holding knees and thighs –make it impossible for a horse to lift and expand underneath you.

Contact with the top and back of the calf encourages the horse to lift the belly and the back. This contact with the lower leg stabilizes and supports the riders upper body (especially important for the rising trot)

For more information about Mel Fleming and ‘Connecting with Horses & Riding with Synchronicity’ and to see her course schedule you can go to w w w. m e l f l e m i n g . c o m . a u o r c o n t a c t M e l mel@melfleming.com.au 0r 0428 385 745

www.melfleming.com.au mel@melfleming.com.au 0428 385 745 02 6760 5519

Also contact Mel for saddle fittings & BALANCE Saddles

In the space of only a few short weeks, this incredibly exciting horse sport went from being virtually unknown to having a strong following in Australia. Since then, Agility has taken off and there's now several clubs and clinicians setting up to do agility around the country.

Like the better-known dog agility, horse agility involves horses moving about a course of obstacles including bending poles, ramps, bridges, tunnels, jumps and even hoops. It was created by Kalev Tyllinen in Finland in 2000, and has been steadily building worldwide since then.

"The response has been enormous," said Horse Agility Australia founder, Andrew Hennell. "We already have hundreds of people training horses in agility across the country."

Horse Agility tests the horse’s physical and emotional fitness and tests the ability of the trainer to keep the horse traveling safely over the course effectively and with grace.

"What horse agility does is give a new definition to groundwork," explains Andrew. "We've had a huge response from people who are unable to ride, either because of their own limitations or because they have old, injured or unbroken horses. Agility gives them a purpose to train with their horses."

Horse agility builds confidence in both horse and handler/rider, it creates a strong, rewarding, relationship with the horse on the ground that can be transferred into riding should you wish. It gives everyone the chance to train and compete without having to ride or spend hours preparing their horse for showing classes.

There is no age restrictions to take part. Just like any other horse sport people of all ages can enjoy Horse Agility.

Any horse can become a horse Horse Agility horse, from a Miniature through to a Clydesdale and everything in between. If you can work them on the ground then you can do Horse Agility.

Horse Agility Australia is steadily building a website with information about the sport, how to build obstacles, and information for clubs.

Rather than being yet another club to join, horse agility is working with established clubs around Australia to run training days and, later in 2011, to host competitions. Plans include an accredited agility trainer program, workshops and demonstrations at expos and clubs, and a national point score leader board for competitions.

For more information on how to train your horse in agility, or for clubs wanting to host training days, visit the Horse Agility Australia website

www.horseagility.com.au Andrew Hennel is the man at the centre of the Horse Agility boom in Australia. He is motivated by his love groundwork, and because of the many people out there who can't or won't ride, and the many horses who can't be ridden - yet they can all enjoy this sport on the ground. He is creating Horse Agility Australia from the ground up and is paying for it all out of his own pocket to promote a sport he is passionate about, not to make money.

Photography by Ashleigh Caird

Winner will receive a $50 gift voucher from their local Produce!!

Mothers Day Competition yo u r mum o n t h e f r o n t co v e r of

Ta mw o r t h & D i s t r i c t L o c a l H o r s e m a g a z i n e

Explain in 50 words or less why your mother is the best HORSE MUM ever!

Winner will receive:

1. A photo shoot from MS EQUIPIX (mum with a horse) (one of the photos will be on the front cover of Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine) You & your mum will also receive a full disk of all photographs from the shoot & an A4 print of your favorite photograph for FREE!

2. A massage voucher from Golden Horizons, Bridge St, Tamworth

To enter your mother must live in the Tamworth & District area.

Simply email your entries to tdlhorsemag@live.com

Photo of Day Spa MASSAGE THERAPISTS and advertisment

Artwork by MS EQUIPIX

Thank you to our Sponsors!!!!

SPIRITUAL CENTRE

READINGS

MASSAGE

GIFTS

Helen Allen - Relaxation & Remedial Massage, Lymphatic Drainage & Bodywork.

Carole Wright - Remedial Massage Janita Ying - Acupressure Massage

For all bookings & information Phone: 02 6762 7162 or email: info@mandycoles.com.au Call in & see us at 105 Bridge St (cnr Bridge & Denison) Tamworth. Full details online at www.mandycoles.com.au www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1160166946#!/pages/Don-Ross-Show-Entertainment/415846805293

P o l o / P o l o c r o s s e / H o r s eb a l l

What’s on calendar

Polo/Polocrosse/Horseball NSW Polocrosse Association www.nswpolocrosse.com.au Australian Horseball Association www.horseball.com.au NSW Polo Association www.australianpolo.com.au of Clubs: 10 Polocrosse - Hunter Valley Zone/Clubs - Number Secretary Contact: Lyric Anderson Phone: 0427532335 Email: lyricalanswers@westnet.com.au

BUNNAN Carnival Date: 2011-07-09 President: Brad Wamsley - 0429078114 Secretary: Shannon Miller - 0409076928 CASSILIS Carnival Date: 2011-05-28 President: Arch Anderson - 0421691618 Secretary: Ashlee Anderson - 0267471387

MERRIWA Carnival Date: 2011-05-21 President: Pauline Lawler - 0265482333 Secretary: Shirley Hunt - 0428485158 MUSWELLBROOK Carnival Date: 2011-05-07 President: Terry Blake - 0265431492 Secretary: Louise Parkinson - 0265431492

CENTRAL COAST Carnival Date: 2011-04-22 President: Ken Broomfield - 0412435603 Secretary: Jade Hooke - 0414835985

QUIRINDI Carnival Date: 2011-05-14 President: Paul Kelly - 0267463145 Secretary: Margaret Lane - 0447256683

MAITLAND Carnival Date: 2011-07-23 President: Brett Pryor - 0249306149 Secretary: Leanne Polglase - 0249374043

SINGLETON Carnival Date: 0000-00-00 President: Paul Kelly - 0267463145 Secretary: Margaret Lane - 0447256683

MANNING Carnival Date: 0000-00-00 President: Brian (Kevin) Kelly - 0417264210 Secretary: Ian Greenaway - 0265592812

TAMWORTH TAMWORTH CLUB IS NOT CURRENTLY OPERATING ANYONE WISHING TO PLAY POLOCROSSE IN THE TAMWORTH AREA PLEASE CONTACT THE NSW POLOCROSSE ASSOCIATION OFFICE ON 0412597789

Polo playing season is very dependent on weather, usually starting in March and continuing through the cooler months to October annually avoiding the wet season and the hotter months.

Each of the NSW clubs hold a variety of tournaments during the year with practice chukkas on a regular basis.

If you are new to the sport of polo and would like to learn how to play polo many of our clubs hold coaching clinics during the year accommodating beginners to advanced players. You can even hire horses and purchase ‘Trial Memberships’ for a minimal fee which provides you a 28 day membership giving you ample time to discover the ‘excitement’ of polo. If, after the 28 day trial, you want to continue to play Polo, as many of our Trial Members do, you can then upgrade your membership to either a Senior Playing annual member or Junior Playing annual member only paying the remainder of the membership fee.

It is compulsory to hold a playing membership from an affiliated club if you intend to play polo in Australia as this covers the player for Public Liability Insurance on receipt of payment.

Polo is played in 5 States in Australia: QLD, NSW, SA, VIC & WA. There are approximately 50 Clubs throughout Australia, each club affiliated to their State Polo Association overseen by the Australian Polo Council.

In the scheme of equestrian sports Polo is known to be the King Of Sports.

Polo is an equine sport designed to be fast, skillful, social and entertaining.

The Polo field length varies between a maximum of 275 meters and a minimum of 230 meters. The width also can vary between a maximum of 180 meters meters & 150 meters boarded.

Polo is played with two teams usually with 4 players a side. The game is divided into 6 or 4 periods called ‘chukkas’ each lasting 7 minutes with a 30 second overtime available.

Polo is played with a ball and each player on horse back has a ‘mallet’ to hit the ball.

Players play off ‘Handicaps’. All registered players in Australia are rated on a scale of –2 to 10 (the higher the better). The handicap of the team is the sum total rating of its players and their handicaps. Players usually start on a -2 Handicap depending on their ability.

Each of the four team members plays a noticeably different position. Since polo is such a flowing game, the players may briefly change positions but usually return to their initial position.

P o l o / P o l o c r o s s e / H o r s eb a l l

Spo! of Kings, King of "o!s

P o l o / P o l o c r o s s e / H o r s eb a l l

HH O RSEBALL RSEBALL It’s exhilarating, it’s precision on horseback and it’s new to Australia!

Horse-ball was introduced to Australia in 2009 off

Alistar Schwager & Alex Willey went down 2

the back of the sport’s enormous popularity

matches to 1, however the internationals were

throughout Europe. Horseball is a game played on

nothing but complimentary of the horsemanship and

horseback where a ball is handled and points are

riding skills, and suggested our Australian Stock

scored by shooting it through a high net

Horses were some of the best in the world.

(approximately 1.5m x 1.5m). The sport is like a combination of polo, rugby, and basketball. It is one of the ten disciplines officially recognized by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports.

Appearing even bigger and better recently at Equitana our Australian and International Reps combined with the support of the Australian Equine & Livestock Events Centre (AELEC) and the

Taking off in Australia, our foundation team was

Australian Stock Horse Society to provide the

requested at the Sydney Royal Easter Show,

crowds with another thrilling display of

Australian Stock Horse Nationals, Tamworth

horsemanship, generating talk

Equestrian Exhibition and Equitana, with the

throughout the entire equestrian

calendar filling fast for the 2011 season.

community nationwide.

AELEC boasted some of the

October 22nd-24th 2010 saw the sports first

international superstars of the sport,

national titles held at the Tamworth

including (JJ) Campeo who plays in the

Equestrian Exhibition, attracting teams from

national Portugese side who flew direct

Sydney to Cubbaroo and prize money in

from the Champions League in France

excess of $5,500. The Australian Title was

with his cousin John, a bronze medallist

taken out by Eaglehawk Angus Team -

at the last World Cup.

Sam Halstead, Tom Trisley, Jack Halstead, Harry Vivers & Simon George.

The Equitana crowd’s enthusiasm was awarded with a thrilling final match down

With Mitch Anderson crowned best male

to the wire. With the Australian Stock

player and Grace Halstead named best

Horse Society a goal behind going

female player. In conjunction Tamworth

into the last ten seconds, an

hosted Australia’s first international match with

opportunity was missed allowing

worldwide superstars flying in specifically to

the AELEC team to narrowly steal the

compete. Our Australian Team coached by the late Lachie Eliott comprised of Grant Biffin (captain), Mitchell Anderson, Matthew Birch, Ian Hodges,

win.

Horse-ball is a fast-paced nail biting sport, a remarkable show of skill and athleticism from both horse and rider, and breathtaking for all to watch.

Teams and clinics are starting up all over the country.

Australian Horseball Association www.horseball.com.au

By Courtney Larard Rosebrook Performance Horses www.rosebrook.com.au

TEE 10...Trick Riding...Tee has Talent...Horseball

If you would like your event/training day covered by Tamworth & District Local Horse Magazine/MS Equipix just phone Mel on 0409 987 152 or email tdlhorsemag@live.com

c l u b g r o u p s / P o n y R i d i n g

What’s on calendar Riding groups/Pony club Pony Club NSW www.pcansw.org.au

CURRABUBULA PONY CLUB Currabubula Rec Grounds Judith Ann Alston - (02) 6744 5714 justjude@bigpond.com BENDEMEER PONY CLUB Rodeo recreation grounds Faith Dixon - 02 6769 6530 www.bendemeerpc.pcansw.org.au GUNNEDAH PONY CLUB Gunnedah Show Grounds Donna Hall - (02) 6742 5633 gdhpcsec@yahoo.com KOOTINGAL PONY CLUB Moonbi Sports Grounds Joanne Roberts - 02 6760 3249 joroberts@activ8.net.au www.kootingal.pcansw.org.au ARMIDALE RIDING CLUB INC

02 6771 5322 sue.mills@rbsmorgans.com www.armidalerc.equestrian.org.au

MANILLA PONY CLUB Manilla Show Grounds Colin Donlan - 02 6785 7365 NUNDLE PONY CLUB Taylors Lane Wally Whatmore – 0267691692 glenalmond@bigpond.com QUIRINDI PONY CLUB Quirindi Shoe Grounds Rachel Hope Coward - Secretary superiormobilehair@yahoo.com.au TAMWORTH PONY CLUB Cnr Bournes Lane & Meldorn Lane Jim Kolokotas - 02 6760 8172 kolokotas@optusnet.com.au QUIRINDI & DISTRICT EQUITATION CLUB INC

(02) 6767 0284 qdeci@live.com.au www.quirindiec.equestrian.org.au

Surrounding areas BARADINE PONY CLUB Baradine Showground Megan Worrell - 02 6823 5172 megan.worrell@gmanil.com BARRABA PONY CLUB Barraba Showgrounds Sonia Simpson - 02 6783 1382 soniasimpson1@bigpond.com

BOGGABRI PONY CLUB Boggabri Show Ground Gunnedah Road Anne Keys (02) 6743 4732 denmarkstud@bigpond.com

Water is top of the list for a very good reason, namely that a horse's body is made up of 70% water. One of the first things you probably learned as a horse owner is that horses need access to fresh, clean water at all times and this is especially important during summer.

Water is vital for fluid balance, tolerance for exercise and also helps digestion. Did you know studies have shown that restricting a horse's water intake for as little as two hours greatly increases the chance of colic?.

Horses drink around 45 liters of water a day and this can increase by up to 40% during warm weather.

Excessive sweating or diarrhea can cause your horse to become dehydrated, you can check for this by doing a pinch test.

Pinch the skin in the middle of the horse's neck and pull it gently outwards, then release. If your horse isn't dehydrated, the skin will snap back into place straight away. Skin that takes 2-5 seconds to return to normal indicates mild dehydration, while skin that takes 10-15 seconds shows severe dehydration. Other signs of dehydration or heat stress include sunken eyes, a tucked up appearance, heavy breathing and a rapid pulse.

A horse's diet will also influence his water intake, hay requires more water to chew and swallow than grain, while grass (which has some water content) requires less. When traveling, consider taking along some water from home incase your horse doesn't like to drink water that tastes different.

HORSE CARE TIP Prop a piece of untreated timber in water troughs so that birds or mice that fall in can climb out and avoid contaminating the water.

HORSE CARE TIP Regularly pick up manure from beneath trees or around your horse's shelter to reduce annoying flies.

FLIES Flies and other pesky summer insects are a never ending battle. All you can do is try to minimize their irritating attack on your horse.

Flies are attracted to moisture, which they need to complete their life cycle, this means your horse's eyes, nose, mouth and rear. Bot flies are a particular hassle as they buzz around laying yellow eggs on your horse's legs in late summer. They look a lot like bees and drive some sensitive horses crazy.

They're most active in bright light, so try to keep your horse in a shady paddock if you have one. Remove the eggs as soon as you spot them, don't be slack and leave them to be licked by your horse to hatch in his stomach, where they can do untold damage.

Many fly species carry the stomach worm, whose larvae travels from the fly's proboscis to the horse as the fly is obtaining moisture from the horse's eyes or lips. From there the larvae migrates through the horse doing internal damage along the way and is passed via manure to start the cycle over.

To help control flies, pick up manure on a regular basis as many flies depend on it for survival. Protect your horses face with a flyveil, either string or mesh, but these will need to be checked daily in case they slip.

Make sure you have a couple of spares on hand in case your horse loses one.

SHADE

R i d i n g

This is very close second to water when it comes to summer horse care. A lot of times you'll see horses grazing out in the blazing sun but they do have access to shade when they start getting too hot, or feel like a snooze. If there's no trees then you must provide some kind of shelter, the higher the roof the better air circulation will be. It can even have just a roof and no walls for optimum air flow. If you know a handyman, even a shade cloth with 80% sun blockout would do, but it must be sturdy enough not to flap in the wind, otherwise your horse won't go near it.

g r o u p s / P o n y

WATER

c l u b

TAKING CARE OF YOUR HORSE IN

Trees with overhanging branches and thick foliage are ideal. Not so good are more upright growing trees like conifers, which may offer shade for only part of the day, depending on where the sun is. Your horse needs access to shade from dawn to dusk during summer.

Place some hay in the shade for him to eat if he wants as this helps his digestion moving along. It's also a good place to locate a salt and mineral lick.

Locals keeping themselves & their horses cool in the Peel River.

c l u b g r o u p s / P o n y R i d i n g

There's lots of excellent insect repellents available from saddle shops including some that only need to be applied weekly. Keep open wounds clean and covered during summer, otherwise they will attract blowflies and possibly even develop maggots.

HORSE CARE TIP When picking up manure, pile it in a heap to generate heat, which will destroy any fly larvae. Make sure it's kept away from your horse though.

HORSE CARE Sweat When horses (and people) sweat, the moisture produced by sweat glands in the skin evaporates, which helps cooling although this effect is reduced in humid conditions. Sweat contains water and salts (electrolytes) but a horse's sweat is 10 times more potassium, chloride, magnesium and calcium and excessive loss of electrolytes can affect your horse's health and performance.

A horse's endurance time can decrease by 25% during hot weather and 50% in humid weather, so stick to cooler morning or evening hours to ride during summer. Learn to recognise signs of heat stroke on horses which can not only happen in horses being worked, but also ones kept in hot, poorly ventilated stables or floats.

Signs include weakness, not eating, rapid breathing and pulse and even collapse. Do the pinch test to check for dehydration.

To rapidly cool an over heated horse, move him into shade and continually sponge all over with cold water, which will evaporate, cool him down and lower his body temperature. To help this, you can also use fans. Give your horse small, regular drinks of water until he's cooled down and showing signs or recovery. If in doubt, call a vet to give intravenous fluid and generally monitor things.

Horse Care Tip If you have access to ice, place ice packs over the legs, head and neck. It was once thought only warm water should be used to cool hot horses however research during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics (where it was very hot and humid) showed that cold water and ice was safe and effective.

Information supplied by www.horserides.org

Not currently in work

FOR SALE ~All rounders

c l u b g r o u p s / P o n y R i d i n g

ZONE 5

Club Senior Instructors 2011 Barraba Libby Thompson ‘Allawa’, Barraba 2347 (02) 67 821 227

Currabubula None Appointed - Co-Ordinator Peta Christie (02) 67 659 479

Baradine Senior Club Captain - Hilton Harris Baradine. 2396 (02) 68 431 812

Gunnedah Caretaker - Anna Witts 'Pilatus' Emerald Hill Gunnedah 2380 (02) 67 431 563

Bendemeer Steven Bailey, 4 Mahony Avenue, Tamworth 2340 0427 949 85

Kootingal Lyndall Hemmings 14-18 William Street Moonbi. 2358 (2)67 605 511

Boggabri Robert Groth "Harvenvale" Boggabri 2382 0429 609 987

Manilla Kylie Rowland Manilla 2346 (02)67 851 856

Coonabarabran Ben Deshon Coonabarabran 2395 0429 151 515

Narrabri Raymond Booby PO Box 3070 Narrabri. 2390

Nundle Susi Bell 'Banoon' Nundle 2340 (02) 67 693 415 Quirindi Ming Thompson Bundella Station Quirindi 2343 (02) 67 476 228 Tamworth Allison Newcombe Meldorn Lane Tamworth 2340 (02) 67 617 269 Wee Waa Maryann Paulston 'Tharlene" Wee Waa. 2388 (02) 67 962 208

Natalie Lambeth, Mathew Letton, Amy Roberts and Alex Roberts with some of the donated first aid items.

KOOTINGAL PONY CLUB FLOOD APPEAL COLLECTION The Junior Members of Kootingal Pony Club got behind the recent “Horse Deals First Aid Flood Appeal” by collecting donated items and paying the postage to send them to the distribution centre.

Donation boxes were left at Tamworth Coop (Moonbi Store) and Everything Equine for one week, with approximately $500 worth of items being donated. Items collected included; bandages; cotton wool; saline; betadine; antiseptic spray; ointment, worming paste; surgical tape; syringes and needles.

R o d e o / B a r r e l

H o r s e

What’s on calendar Rodeo/Barrel Horse

Australian Barrel Horse Association www.abha.com.au Australian Bushmans Campdraft & Rodeo Association www.abcra.com.au

March 2011 Divisional BARREL Race Moobi Magic Barrel Racing Inc Moobi Western area

20th March

Susan Worgan (02) 6767 1204 or 0427 010 688 moonbimagic@hotmail.com

April 2011 Divisional BARREL Race Moobi Magic Barrel Racing Inc Moobi Western area Susan Worgan (02) 6767 1204 or 0427 010 688 moonbimagic@hotmail.com

3rd April

Surrounding areas March 2011 Mudgee Show RODEO - New date Dollars Only ALLISON BEER 02 6372 4099

4th March

Barraba Show junior & novice RODEO Points LEON CUMMINS 0428 821 661

4th March

Barraba Show RODEO Points LEON CUMMINS 0428 821 661

5th March

NSW Classic Saddle Series - BARREL !

CWBHC - Stanton arena Dubbo abstanton@bigpond.com

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6th March

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11th March

Coolah Team Penning & BARREL Race Day! ! !

“See Campdaraft/Team Penning Calendar for more info” Erin - (02)63 771 191

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12th March

!

Coonabarabran JUNIOR RODEO - New date !

Points DAVID GRANT 0439 421 436

Dungog JUNIOR RODEO Points DES HOPSON (02) 4995 3234

25th March

Dungog RODEO Points DES HOPSON (02) 4995 3234

26th March

their sizable donations from the ABCRA.

Big Boost for Cancer Council The Cancer Council’s North West Office was presented with a cheque of over $7000 dollars following the Tough Enough to Wear Pink Fundraiser hosted in conjunction with the Australian Bushmens Campdraft and Rodeo Association as part of their National Rodeo Finals held late last month.

The Australian Livestock Events Center turned pink on Thursday 20th January, with competitors, spectators and even horses embracing the event through wearing the feature colour.

Hailed a huge success the Tough Enough to Wear Pink fundraiser was held to raise awareness and vital funds for all forms of Cancer, in particular women’s cancers.

Cancer Council Community Relations Coordinator Jane Sweeney said “The importance of events like Tough Enough to Wear Pink cannot be denied with more than 1,000 people in the North West region alone being diagnosed with cancer every year.

Competitors and spectators on the night were so supportive of our cause which was wonderful to see and really illustrates how cancer affects such a wide audience,”Jane Sweeney said.

An auction was held on the evening, with a Pink Whip donated by RM Williams fetching the highest price on the night, an impressive $1850. A shirt worn by Country Music Star Melinda Schneider, a hat donated and signed by the ABCRA competitors was also auctioned off at Tough Enough to Wear Pink. Further funds were also raised through a pink blanket drop and $2.00 from the sale of every ticket, being given to the Cancer Council to assist in the fight to defeat cancer.

Kids supporting Kids, Tamworth’s Ronald McDonald House On Tuesday the 18th of January, the ABCRA Juniors went all out to show their support. The National Finals is ‘game on’ for the Juniors, spending twelve months to qualify for this event is no mean feat for the competitors and their family’s. However the idea of helping other Kids and their family’s who may be going through a tough time, is one that received unanimous support from all those involved. The Juniors, decorated everything possible from horse to rider. AELEC was a sea of Red and Yellow. Which added an element of fun to a serious event.

Kylie Eakin Tamworth’s Ronald McDonald Executive Officer it was such a great opportunity for the ABCRA Juniors to come to the House prior to the event and see where the money they raised will go, and how they are helping the children and their families that use the House. It is wonderful to see these children choosing to help others in need.

FOR SALE

R o d e o / B a r r e l

The ABCRA were proud to support local Charities at their National Finals. This year the Junior National Finals was in support of Tamworth’s Ronald McDonald house and the National Finals Rodeo was proud to be supporting Tough Enough To Wear Pink and Cancer Council. Cancer Council and Tamworth’s Ronald McDonald house had representatives out at AELEC Tuesday morning the 15th Feb who were presented with

H o r s e

Local organisation supporting local charities...

...made up of a wide range of events that test competitors in every way. They are:

R o d e o / B a r r e l

H o r s e

BULL RIDING The most popular rodeo riding event and the most dangerous. A loose rope straps a man's hand to a tonne of explosive power.

Because the cowboy never knows what the animal beneath him is going to do next, he must draw upon his sharpest mental and physical abilities when trying to conquer this twisting tornado. To keep his position and balance, a bull rider is constantly grabbing for new holds with his feet and continually pulling up on the rope. The more powerfully a bull bucks and the faster he spins the more points the ride is worth.

BAREBACK RIDING A very demanding event for the competitor. From the moment the gate swings open and the horse and rider explode from the chute, both must perform exceptionally well if the cowboy is to win. A suitcase like handle is attached to the top of the leather rigging, cinched around the horse's middle. The contestant grips this handle with one hand, keeps his other free and high in the air. Ideally bareback riders want to try to spur the horse on each jump, reaching as far forward as they can with their feet, then jerking their spurs upwards towards the rigging.

SADDLEBRONC Considered the classic rodeo event, this competition is definitely not for beginners.

There is a reason - the instinctive reactions required to keep in the stirrups, sense what the horse will do next and the ability to synchronise with the bronc's movement- make this event one with no substitute for years of experience. Since there in nothing solid to hold on to, a cowboy can only stay in the saddle through timing and balance. The proven rider deliberately matches his spurring strides with the bucking bronc's rhythm beneath him making the whole ride appear smooth.

STEERWRESTLING An event that not only requires speed and agility, but also physical size and strength. When a man drops from the side of a galloping horse onto a running steer and throws him to the ground, spectators have seen athletic skill overcome heavily weighted odds. In keeping with the sharing and helping character of rodeo, the steer wrestler is allowed a partner called a 'hazer' to aid him in lining up the charging steer. This assistance helps to assure perfect placement of the steer and horse before the cowboy dismounts. The time stops after the contestant has thrown and turned the steer's head and all four feet are out in the same direction.

ROPE & TIE An event that shows the grace and beauty of true horsemanship along with the athletic skills of both horse and rider. Roping is a race against time with the seconds counted in decimal points. To win, a horse and rider must work together in precision teamwork. The contest begins when the calf is released from the chute with the rider and horse chasing behind. A good horse will carry its rider in perfect accord with every move of the calf and when the rope is thrown will stoop on a dime, back up so the rope is pulled taut allowing the roper to dismount, run down the rope, throw the calf and tie any three legs with the 'piggin string' and then signal 'all clear' with his hands in the air. The rider must remount his horse and slacken the rope to prove the tie, which must then hold for six seconds.

An event that owes its very existence to the everyday work of the American working cowboy. On the open range it is often necessary to catch an animal in order to attend to or brand it, and that is where the first team roping took place. In rodeo competition today the header starts the time when he leaves the box in pursuit of the runaway steer. His job is to rope the steer's horns, take a dally wrapping the loose end of the rope around the saddle horn and turn the steer away from his partner. With great skill and accurate timing the heeler then ropes the steer's hind legs and takes his dally. Then both header and heeler face their horses towards the steer, time stops. Because of the excellent team work involved this event is a favourite of many.

LADIES BARREL RACE The all female event that tests the speed and agility of both cowgirl and horse. The horses ridden in the event are highly trained and extremely athletic, matching their speed and turns to the cues given by the riders. The clock is set in motion when the girl and the horse cross the starting line and is stopped when she recrosses the line after completing her run. The colourful rider and her mount must make two turns in one direction and one in the other around the three barrels. These barrels are set in a triangular pattern, a prescribed distance apart.

Winners are on many occasions determined by differences of hundredths of a second. So the five second penalty for an overturned barrel can be devastating. This event is certainly one of sheer elegance and precise timing.

H o r s e

TEAM ROPING

Another all female event which is the female version of calf roping. This event differs from roping in that the cowgirl does not have to rope the calf, dismount the horse and tie the calf's legs. Instead, the rope is tied to the saddle horn with a ribbon. When the calf is roped, the horse pulls up and calf keeps running until the rope is taut, which then 'breaks' the rope from the saddle horn and the time is taken. This event is contested as hotly by these cowgirls as by the men in the roping.

STEER UNDECORATING Another all-female event which is the female version of steer wrestling. However, in this event rather than having to slide over the side of the galloping horse and stop the steer, the cowgirl has to catch up to the steer and remove the ribbon attached to its back. Like the steer wrestling , the cowgirl is allowed a 'hazer' to aid her in lining up the charging steer. This helps her to line up the steer perfectly to allow her to remove the ribbon. Time is taken when she removes the ribbon from the steer and raises it high over her head.

Information supplied by the ABCRA www.abcra.com.au

R o d e o / B a r r e l

BREAKAWAY ROPING

J u m p i n g

What’s on calendar

Show jumping Showjumping NSW www.nswsjc.com North & North West Showjumping Club www.nnwsjc.equestrian.org.au

March 2011 Armidale Show June Dangar Ph: 02 67723113 Mobile: 0422 079097 Email: armidaleshow@newenglandwebspot.com Website: www.armidaleshow.com.au

4th - 5th March

Manilla Show Lesley Morris Ph: 02 67851228 or 02 67697776 Mobile: 0427 697776 Email: lesleyamorris@bigpond.com

12th - 13th March

April 2011 Tamworth Indoor Championships - Australian Amateur Titles 2011 North & North West Showjumping Club AELEC Phillip Hetherington - pjh@garvin.com.au

1st - 3rd April

Surrounding areas

S h o w

March 2011 Coonabarabran Show Jeanette Fenwick - 02 6842 3177 fenwickwestmount@clearmail.com.au

11th - 13th March

Newcastle Show Gina White - 02 4961 2085 admin@newcastleshow.com.au

18th - 20th March

Mendooran Show Pip Archer - 02 6886 1085 simpip@activ8.net.au

26th - 27th March

Kevin Bacon, is considered to be the greatest show jumper that Australia has ever produced.

A true horseman and showman.

This very popular Australian rider toured the European show jumping circuit for decades. He competed in three Olympic Games; Tokyo 1964, Mexico City 1968 and Montreal 1976.

Kevin Bacon was born at Dungog in 1932 and was a farmer and cordial manufacturer. His career in the show ring started when he was eight and his first pony was Bobby Bruce. Other horses that Kevin rode early in his career were Moonlight, Domino and Ocean Foam.

His was famous for his peculiar style in the saddle, hanging high in the air above the horse over the obstacles.

You could often see the sky between him and saddle.

Kevin has won almost every show jumping event in the world, including four times champion at Madison Square Gardens and several Grand Prix contests in Paris and Canada.

For more than 30 years Kevin has been the leading rider over the jumps at the Royal Easter Show, top rider at the Melbourne Show at least 10 times and the Brisbane Exhibition and Adelaide Show's champion several times.

Little Chichester, a jet-black horse, was the one that really took Kevin to international success. Chichester had an unusual jumping style that was a big hit in Europe. Kevin won the Berlin International Championship on Chichester. These two were very close and where almost unbeatable in speed competitions. Chichester also jumped at the highest level, like the incredibly demanding courses at the Olympics in Mexico 1968.

In the jumping arena, Kevin was thought to be a very tough

Kevin Bacon on Chichester opponent. Once he was in the saddle and past the starting peg his thought was victory! This determination and concentration helped him to become one of the best show jumpers in the world.

Kevin Bacon was awarded the Order of Australia Medal on June 13, 1994. He now lives in Paris and spends most of his time teaching and training in Europe.

Those in the sport would probably acknowledge Kevin Bacon as our greatest ever showjump rider. Kevin Bacon has been a showjumper all his life and even at 69 years of age - he's still competing.

Reference material courtesy of showjumpingnostalgia.com & www.showjumpingsaddle.com.au Photographs courtesy of the National Library of Australia

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h o r s e / A g r i c u l t u r a l S h o w

What’s on calendar Show horse/Agricultural www.agshowsnsw.org.au

March 2011 Armidale Show June Dangar Ph: 02 67723113 Mobile: 0422 079097 Email: armidaleshow@newenglandwebspot.com Website: www.armidaleshow.com.au

4th - 5th March

Walcha Show Don Murchie Ph: 02 67772265 Mobile: 0428 772265 Fax: 02 67771055 Email: walchass@tpg.com.au

11th - 12th March

Manilla Show Lesley Morris Ph: 02 67851228 or 02 67697776 Mobile: 0427 697776 Email: lesleyamorris@bigpond.com

12th - 13th March

April 2011 Tamworth Show Suzanne Rodd P O Box 7111 Ph: 02 67659381 Mobile: 0427 691622 Fax: 02 67652088 Email: admin@tamworthshow.com.au

1st - 3rd April

Surrounding areas

For more listings of shows in surrounding areas see also Showjumping section.

March 2011 Barraba Show The Show society will comemorate their 100th Show.

The National Campdraft finals will be held during the show.

Jayne Miller Mobile: 0427-145385 Email: pandjmiller@hotmail.com Binnaway Show Binnaway PAH & I Assn Inc Swegn Smith Ph: 02 6844 1336 Email: binnaway.show@gmail.com

3rd - 6th March

5th March

April 2011 Gunnedah Show Jackie Weston Ph: 02 6742 1867 (Tues) Mobile: 0429 441781 Email: gunnedahshowsociety@westnet.com.au Website: www.gunnedahshowsociety.com.au

29th April - 1st May

Every top show groom has his or her own bag of tricks out of which they pull some secret technique to make their horses stand out. Here's a list of tips to help you shine on show day: • For really white socks or stockings, dust the legs with baby powder, corn starch or French white chalk.

• To cut down on static electricity in the mane and tail, use dryer sheets. One wipe-down through the hair will help eliminate static.

• Rub a dab of baby oil along the bridle path to get rid of that chalky, just-clipped look and make it shiny.

• For breeds that show with a patent-leather shiny hoof, fill in any old nail holes with a spackling compound that matches the colour of your horse's hoof. For a black foot, the colour of the compound won't matter. To polish the feet, use the wax-based, cake shoe polishes to add a deep luster to the foot while protecting it from the drying effects of hoof lacquer, which can be applied over the shoe polish.

• When you don't need to pull the mane, use thinning shears to shorten it without having the chopped look of scissor cuts.

• Clippers can give you the effect of a pulled tail, without having to pull out hairs. Run the clippers carefully along the outside of the dock and down about 4 to 6 inches, just up to the point where the hair begins to crest over. Thin the hairs along the top of the tail and blend longer hairs to gradually blend into the shorter ones.

• To make your horse shiny mix your shampoo in water and add baby oil.

• Wash your horse a couple of days before the show so the oils of the coat have time to work to the surface for a natural shine. Keep a light sheet on to keep the coat clean until show day.

• If you choose not to braid a horse's mane, lay a dampened towel over the neck to help the hairs lie down smoothly.

• Keep a wrap on your horse's braided tail temporarily so that it arrives at the show grounds with the braid intact.

• Apply only one coat of hoof oil or dressing if arena footing is deep. The oil will collect dirt, but the judge will know that you made the effort.

• Instead of using rags to wipe down your horse, purchase inexpensive knit gloves (available at most Chemists or hardware stores) and apply the product directly to them. When you are finished, they can be washed.

• For coarse tails, use a hot oil treatment in addition to your regular equine conditioner to soften the hairs and make them flow.

• Clipping excess hair to show refinement of the socks, fetlocks, tail, bridle path, ears, muzzle and jaw. If you clip the inside of your horse's ears, place cotton inside to prevent hairs from entering the ear canal and also to deaden the buzz of the clippers.

• On some colours, darkening the colour of the legs using ravens oil, enhances the coat colour and finish.

• Darkening the muzzle and ear region to simulate a ‘summer’ face/coat, done with specialised makeup or chalk and baby oil (my preferred method, easy and cheap!)

• If you like the sleek, shiny look on the face, try using Brylcreem instead of baby oil. This wonderful men's hair product creates a natural shine that sets off your horse without making him look oily. It only takes a little bit to add polish to your horse's face.

• Dyeing the tail of the bay horse to eliminate sun bleaching and to show a nice gloss to the hair. Flaxen and palomino horses often need a stronger method of cleaning to eliminate urine stains if a tail bag has not been used.

Sard Wonder Soap or Sunlight Soap in the bar, works amazing on white tails and socks.

h o r s e / A g r i c u l t u r a l

Show groomers share secret techniques for making their horses stand out on show day.

S h o w

Grooming Tips ~ From the Top

Artwork by MS EQUIPIX

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The Challenge Equine Laundry provides exclusive services including a water repellent solution for your horse rugs to restore their original weather resistance, which helps prolong their life. The laundry is also able to organize repairs to horse rugs and saddle cloths.

Challenge Equine Laundry prides itself on its quick, professional, old-fashioned service with a smile. Whether you need one rug laundered or 30 rugs laundered, no job is too small, too big or too difficult. Give us a call on 02 6762 1066 or drop in and see us at 20 Macintosh Street Tamworth.

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Pe r f o r m a n c e / R e i n i n g We s t e r n

What’s on calendar Western Performance/Reining NSW Reining Horse Association www.reiningnsw.com Tamworth District Western Performance & Appaloosa Club www.freewebs.com/tamappy1

April 2011 Q11 Tamworth The Reining events at Q11 are being held on the 17th & 18th April

17th - 18th April

AELEC

Surrounding areas March 2011 NSWRHA 1st Qualifier Show Horseworld Stadium, Maralya

6th March

Australian Halter Showcase Werribee Park www.haltershowcase.com.au

9th - 13th March

Coaches & Trainers Carolyn Johnston Show Horses Rockin’ Horse Ranch Tamworth NSW 2340 Phone 0409 470 039 info@rockinhorseranch.com.au www.rockinhorseranch.com.au

For more of Rockin’ Horse Ranch see page 59

Training for Longer Sliding Stops!

By Larry Trocha A pro's advice about what it takes for a reining horse or reined cow horse to perform big-time sliding stops..

Do you own a reining horse or young reined cow horse prospect?

If so, you know how critical a good stop is to your horse's success in the show arena.

In this discussion, I'm going to talk about reining horse sliding stops and specifically, ways you can improve your horse's sliding stop.

We have a lot of ground to cover so let's get started.

There are several factors that influence the length of a horse's slide. They are: The horse's natural ability and aptitude for stopping.

The ground the horse is stopping on.

The way the horse is shod.

The horse's rate of speed when going into the stop.

The way the rider cues the horse for the stop (how the reins are worked, rider's posture, etc.).

I'd like to talk about each of these factors and explain how they effect your horse's slide.

Pe r f o r m a n c e / R e i n i n g

Reining Horse

First, let me make it clear that just about any horse can do a nice little two foot slide on good ground. It’s another thing altogether for a horse to slide 15 or 20 feet. If you want big time stops you need a horse that has the ability and desire to stop.

You’re not going to get the job done on just a so-so kind of horse. And if you try to force a non-stopper into becoming a big-time stopper you’ll find your training sessions becoming too harsh.

How do you know if your horse has the aptitude to be a good stopper? If it was relatively easy to get him to stop well at the trot or slow lope, chances are you won’t have much of a problem advancing the stop.

(Providing you do it gradually and the horse has the necessary strength to hold a hard stop).

On the other hand, if you had hell getting him to stop at the trot or slow lope, you’re going to have more hell trying to get him to stop from a faster pace. Personally, I don’t think it’s worth it to put yourself or the horse through that kind of ordeal.

Let’s talk about how the ground affects a horse’s slide. It never ceases to amaze me how normally intelligent people can’t figure out that a long slide ain’t gonna happen on bad ground. So, for the sake of clarity let me describe what good sliding ground is. Good sliding ground consists of a hard, packed base that is smooth with two or three inches of loose, fluffy dirt on top.

Again this will shorten the slide or worse, injure the horse. It’s important the ground on top of the base be fluffy and loose. Here’s why. This top ground needs to soften the concussion of the feet entering the ground and hitting the hard base. Without a soft cushion to absorb the shock the horse will get sore.

Another reason you want the ground loose and fluffy is so the horse can easily plow through it while sliding.

If this top ground is too deep or too heavy it makes it too difficult for the horse to slide very far. He’ll need to be awfully strong to hold a slide in deep, heavy ground. Here’s a tip for improving your sliding ground.

Add rice hulls or shavings to the dirt. This will really fluff it up and make it light.

The way your horse’s hind feet are shod will have a lot to do with how well he slides. Sliding shoes are advised. They are made of tempered, flat bar iron, one to one and a half inches wide. The wider the shoe the less friction (or grab) on the ground and the longer the slide. There are limits though. I prefer not to go wider than one inch wide shoes.

Again, for less grab. The toe of the shoe is rocked up a quarter inch like the front of a ski. This prevents the toe from jamming in the ground while sliding. The quarters of the shoe should come almost straight back from the toe to allow dirt to easily flow out the back of the shoe.

We s t e r n

The advantages of this kind of ground are obvious. The hard packed base gives the horse something solid to slide on. Without it the horse’s feet would dig in the ground too deep thus shortening the slide. The base must also be smooth. If there are any ruts in it a horse’s feet will catch in the rut.

Pe r f o r m a n c e / R e i n i n g We s t e r n

The trailers should extend all the way back to the bulbs of the foot, but no farther. You also should have the horse’s hind feet trimmed with a little longer toe and a little lower heel than normal.

(Normal means the angle of the hoof is the same as the angle of the pastern).

This creates more surface area and makes for a more effective ski. Do not go to extremes with this.

The idea is to have the angle of the foot so there is no danger of the horse stubbing his toe in the dirt, knuckling over and hurting himself.

If he’s trimmed at too steep of an angle (heels too high) he’ll knuckle over while stopping and pull a tendon. Trim the heel too low and he’ll strain his ham strings while stopping.

Horses who’s hind legs are straight with feet pointing straight ahead, have an easier time of sliding far. Their hind feet will stay together while sliding and make a nice set of long, straight “11”s.

A horse who’s hind feet toe out will have a difficult time sliding far.

Because he toes out, his hind feet will start to spread as he slides. The farther the slide the more he spreads until he’s forced to come out of the slide to bring his feet back together in a more comfortable position.

This horse’s slide tracks will look like a “V”. You can help this by turning the shoe on the foot so it’s pointing more straight ahead. And it sometimes helps to rock the toe a little to the inside of the foot.

The speed your horse is running when going into the stop is one of the major factors dictating the length of the slide. In other words, if he’s not going fast, he’s not going to slide far.

Let’s say you are going to run down the length of the arena and ask for a sliding stop about ! of the way down. It’s important to start the run-down real slow. Then, very gradually build speed as you go down the arena and reach the point where you ask for the stop. Do not lope slow almost to the end then bust him into a run.

Gradually means to increase speed a little with each stride. It’s critical to ask for the stop while the horse is accelerating. Why? Because his shoulders are more elevated and his hind legs reach farther under him when he’s building speed (necessary elements for a sliding stop).

Just make sure you time the rate of acceleration so he’s not going too fast when you reach the ! mark. Otherwise he may run right through the stop. All horses have an optimum running speed where they will still try to stop.

If you run him faster than that optimum speed he just thinks about running and forgets about

stopping. Or maybe he’s not strong enough to hold a stop past his optimum speed and refuses to try. You’ll have to experiment to find out just how fast you can run him and still get a stop.

Another thing. Don’t ask your horse to stop from top speed very often. You’ll sour him if you do.

And remember to put skid boots on him so his fetlocks are protected.

A lot of riders build speed too quickly, then start to slow down as they near the end of the run-down.

They ask the horse to stop while he’s decelerating. The result is usually a disappointing stop. It’s also important for the horse to be running straight when you ask for the stop.

His body should be straight from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail. If he’s crooked he’ll stop out of balance. Also, his path down the arena must be straight. If he is zigzagging or trying to veer off while making the run-down, his stop will suffer.

The way you cue your horse to stop is vitally important. Using the reins correctly, proper riding posture and timing is what enables your horse to perform a long slide. But before I explain the right way, let me tell you what not to do. Contrary to popular belief, pulling the reins harder does not make for a longer slide. It actually shortens the slide.

Why? Because the hard pull makes the horse jam his feet in the ground too deep. It also causes his hind legs to spread out too much to slide far. And maybe worst of all, a horse can’t keep his balance for a long slide when he’s being pulled on.

OK, that takes care of what not to do. Now next issue we’ll talk about how to do it right. On a reining horse there are three different techniques I’ll use to handle the reins. The techniques are different but the principle of why they work is similar.

Why do I use different techniques? Because different horses respond differently. I’ll use the technique that works the best on that particular horse. Next issue i’ll give you a brief description of the three techniques of using the reins. Then I’ll go into more detail on the one that works on the majority of horses.

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Carolyn and WINDERADEEN SOMEBLUMAGIC winning the OPEN western pleasure classic at GV Summer Sizzler 2009

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Dentistry for nutrition

by Dr Shannon Lee, BVSc www.advancedequinedentistry.com.au In order to digest their feed horses must first pick it up (prehension, done by the lips and front teeth) and chew it (mastication, done by the back teeth). Any problem with either of these steps affects the efficiency of the entire process.

To use an analogy cars in a queue can only go as fast as the slowest moving car.

But speed is not the only issue here in order for proper digestion to occur feed must be reduced to a certain size before reaching the gut, food that is not reduced enough will not be properly digested and will be passed out in to the paddock.

The condition of the cheek teeth of a horse determines this size. The reduction in absorption of feed can be as much as thirty percent. So for this reason alone it is vitally important that all horses receive regular professional dental exams and treatment.

So what affects these two steps and what can be done about it? Four things commonly affect prehension and mastication: Pain - Any problem in the horse's mouth that causes pain will lead them to alter the way they eat and the speed at which they eat.

Trauma - As you are no doubt aware horses love to hurt themselves and other horses and the mouth is no different from any other part of the body, horse's frequently injure their teeth, tongue, skull and gums.

Disease - Diseases of the mouth such as gingivitis and periodontal disease are common in the horse and if untreated lead to premature loss of teeth and the potential for diseases of the vital organs such as the heart and kidneys.

Genetic disorders - Several genetic disorders occur commonly in the horse, the most common being parrot mouth or an underbite if left untreated parrot mouth leads to alterations in the wear of the back teeth and thus problems with both prehension and mastication.

Entire chapters of text books have been written on each of the headings above so obviously there are a lot of details that we don't have room to cover here but I will give a brief outline of some the conditions that occur.

There are numerous sources of pain in the horse's mouth. Some of the more common ones include ulcers to the cheeks and tongue caused by sharp enamel points, incorrect use of the bit, gingivitis and periodontal disease, fractures or loose teeth, bit contact with wolf teeth, impacted teeth and lacerations to the tongue.

There is not enough room to cover the treatment of these conditions, but what is essential is a thorough exam of the whole horse. Followed by an external exam of the head and then a complete oral exam with a good light source, a full mouth speculum, a mirror and probe and possibly other tools such as x-rays. Only then can a diagnosis be made and treatment started.

Trauma can basically be divided into recent and long term as well as major and minor, recent trauma can often be treated while long term trauma is usually managed.

Major trauma may require immediate surgery while minor trauma might be treated with pain relief and monitoring.

Examples of major trauma include jaw fractures, avulsion of teeth and severe cuts to the tongue or cheeks. Minor trauma includes bumps and scratches and chipping of teeth Some oral diseases are extremely common such as periodontal disease (disease of the structures anchoring the tooth) while others like neoplasia (cancer) are relatively rare, however none can be diagnosed and treated without a proper oral exam.

Genetic disorders like parrot mouth can often be corrected and certainly need to be managed throughout a horse's life, but require a diagnosis at or soon after birth for the best outcome. So dental checks for foals are recommended.

With the current high feed prices and the severe pain and suffering caused to horse's through dental conditions I encourage all horse owners to take responsibility to ensure their horse's receive the best possible dental care and maintain optimal digestive function.

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The dreaded Itch Horses are often hassled by an itchy, annoying skin condition known as 'Queensland Itch', 'Sweet Itch', summer eczema or recurrent seasonal pruritis.

While the condition is an annoyance for the horse owner, it becomes a constant nagging irritation for the horse itself.

Itching is the main sign of the condition. An affected horse will rub its rump, the butt of its tail and its mane on fixed objects in its paddock or stable. It can also rub itself down the side of its chest and its ears are often affected.

The constant rubbing usually causes hair loss and skin changes.

What causes Queensland itch?

The usual cause of Queensland Itch is a hypersensitivity to the bites of sand flies (midges) of the species Culicoides. While the bite of the midge is an irritation, some horses develop sensitivity to the bite and will rub themselves so much that they cause injury to their skin.

The cause is actually an allergic reaction to chemicals in the saliva of the midge. When this reaction occurs, specific chemicals are released in the skin. These chemicals cause an irritation, which in turn causes the horse to scratch and rub.

Environmental Management Horses should be stabled during the midges peak feeding period (i.e. dusk, dawn and night) or placed in stalls under strong fans because Culicoides spp. are weak and cannot operate in wind 1. Windows should be screened with small mesh (32x32) and sprayed with a parasiticide with residual activity 2. Breeding areas for flies should be eliminated i.e. standing water, manure

3. Some affected horses should be moved to a farm where there is not the potential for biting midge attack, especially during the peak season Repellants and Insecticides

1. Horses should be sprayed or rinsed with insecticides with residual activity e.g. pyrethrins or pyrethroids, such as Flyaway, Permoxin Insecticidal Spray or Swift according to label recommendations. However, sprays or rinses should be applied over a small area of skin initially to test for any reaction.

2. Repellants, such as Cetrigen Spray and Septicide Cream can also be effective in suppressing biting midge activity, as well as help prevent infection and aid healing sores.

3. Daily bathing of affected animals removes crusts and 'Queensland Itch' is a summer problem and it's worse where there is a quantity of still, stagnant water for the midges to breed in.

You should suspect that your horse has 'Queensland Itch' if it develops a reoccurring, itchy skin condition every summer and if the itching occurs mainly around the butt of the tail and around its mane.

What affect does Queensland itch have on horses?

The effects on horses can be dramatic. They suffer intense pruritis (itchiness) on the mane, tail, face, ears and back, resulting in biting, rubbing, hair loss, selftrauma and a change in temperament. They become miserable and irritable.

Hair loss is common in the areas that are being rubbed, usually along the midline and in the mane. The hairs will be coarse, broken and stubbly and will often be standing on end. Crusts, scales and scabs appear in the coat, especially on the butt of the tail and around the ears.

While horses donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t die from 'Queensland Itch', badly affected horses are of little use as working or pleasure animals as the itching makes them difficult to work. The damage to their coat also makes them look terrible.

scales, and also decreases itchiness. Your vet can prescribe a suitable medicated shampoo.

Glucocorticoids

1. If insect control is not sufficient to alleviate discomfort and clinical signs, systemic anti-inflammatory drugs are required. Your vet may give your horse an injection for immediate relief then a course of oral medication e.g Preddy Granules that is gradually tapered off after 2 weeks to achieve the smallest dose of alternate day therapy that is effective.

2. Horses should then be weaned off glucocorticoids completely, as soon as possible, by giving twice weekly for another 2-3 weeks. The use of glucocorticoids has been associated with development of laminitis (Founder) in horses, so long term administration is not recommended and close monitoring is required.

Lastly, not all itching or rubbing in horses is caused by 'Queensland Itch'. Itching in horses can be caused by many things, including a variety of contact allergies and even to a form of worm infestation.

If you are unsure whether your horse has 'Queensland Itch' or some other skin condition, consult with your veterinarian for full advice.

By Petalia, Tamworth Veterinary Hospital

www.tamworthvet.com.au

Artwork by MS EQUIPIX

www.premiumequine.com.au

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www.socem.com.au

Paterson’s curse (Echium plantagineum), also known as salvation Jane, is a major weed in winter pastures throughout southern Australia and can be a problem in areas of natural vegetation.

The weed is native to Mediterranean Europe and northern Africa. It was both accidentally and deliberately introduced to Australia in the 1850s and by 1890 it was showing potential as a major weed.

Paterson’s curse is a winter annual herb that often becomes the dominant species in pastures. It is a prolific seeder that can produce more than 5000 seeds per plant per year. Large quantities of seeds may accumulate in the soil over several years. For example, a seedbank of up to 30 000 seeds per square metre has been reported.

Seeds may remain dormant in the soil for up to five years.

Distribution Paterson’s curse now occurs in all States and Territories in Australia. However, the most serious infestations occur in pastoral regions of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and in the south-west region of Western Australia where a winter rainfall climate dominates.

Description Paterson’s curse is an erect herb commonly 60 cm high, but it can grow up to 150 cm.

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2 3 4

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Rosettes have green to light-green hairy, egg-shaped leaves that may grow to 30 cm long. The rosettes are stalked and have distinct, branched veins.

Stem leaves are also hairy, but are smaller and narrower than rosette leaves and are almost stem-clasping.

Stems are branched, with multiple stems often arising from the plant base. All stems are covered with stiff hairs.

Flowers are mostly purple, but white, blue and pink flowering plants are sometimes found. The 2-3 cm long flowers are shaped like curved trumpets. Each flower has five stamens, two of which protrude past the end of the flower tube. Flowers generally appear from September to December.

Seeds are dark-brown to grey and have a roughened seed coat. Up to four seeds develop from each flower.

The plant has a stout taproot with numerous lateral roots.

Effects on livestock Paterson’s curse contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These alkaloids cause liver damage if livestock graze the weed for extended periods. Liver damage reduces livestock productivity, reduces their productive lifespan (increasing stock replacement rates) and may result in death. The damage is irreversible and cannot be treated.

It has been observed that the production of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in Paterson’s curse increases at the full flowering stage. This suggests that the weed is the most toxic to livestock if grazed while it is flowering. Further research is being conducted to confirm this trend.

Susceptibility to poisoning by Paterson’s curse varies with different livestock species. Pigs and horses are highly susceptible, cattle moderately susceptible and sheep and goats the least susceptible. Pigs and horses are nonruminants and do not have the necessary micro-organisms in the stomach to break down the pyrrolizidine alkaloids.

Individual horses vary in their susceptibility, with some dying after a few weeks grazing Paterson’s curse. Others may graze the weed for successive seasons before signs of poisoning appear. There is usually a gradual loss of condition over four to six weeks followed by listlessness and poor appetite. Some horses show nervous signs such as head pressing, blindness and aimless walking. This is because toxins, normally removed by the liver, build up in the bloodstream and interfere with brain function. Most horses die once the illness is apparent, even after being removed from Paterson’s curse infested pasture. On post-mortem the liver appears small, firmer than normal, and fibrotic. Jaundice of the carcass and an excessive amount of yellow fluid in body cavities can also be expected.

For more information regarding Paterson’s curse, control measures and other noxious weeds please go to www.dpi.nsw.gov.au

Melinda Waterhouse

Horse and Riding Wear - Show Horses for Sale - Agistment and Training

mel@kingsparkhorses.com www.kingsparkhorses.com www.kingsparkhorses.

Phone (02) 6649 2203 or 0488 492 260 PO Box 5192, Glenreagh, NSW, 2450

AUSTRALIAN CROSS COUNTRY WAYNE COPPING

FEI International Course Designer

FEI Candidate Technical Delegate

4* Course Designer available for; Equestrian consultation Cross Country course design & construction Private training courses Custom competition cross country portable jumps Cross Country course assessment & upgrades Seminars and workshops

2 Mountview Road Mt. Torrens SA 5244

Mobile: 0428821005Â Home : +61 8 83894184

wcopping@bigpond.com waynecopping@me.com

Garnetgrove Electra 15mth old blue eyed bay overo filly registered PHAA 11647. Mature 15+hh. easy to catch, lead, handle, trim, rug, very quiet & gentle nature, no vices, unbroken.

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Included in sale Sal 65.00 2 Weaver Neoprene Smart Cinch - Black 32 worth $88.00 $3 xtra e t Padded Saddle Carrier Bag worth $95.00 igh Fre Padded Bridle Carrier Bag worth $35.00 The Saddle has never been used and still in brand new condition.

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All Photography by Tania Hobbs

www.randlab.com.au

Are you seeing eye to eye?

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