PaintedFreeway

I'm going to a hunter / jumper show soon and I have two questions:

1) Is a running braid / spanish braid / running plait okay to use on a show jumper, or is this more for dressage? (I have a Belgian Sport Horse with a LONG mane!)

2) When plaiting the tail, the short top pieces come loose when I'm done... how can I prevent this?

Also, does anyone know if I'm supposed to braid a Gypsy Vanner's mane or tail, or if I'm allowed? Just curious, my Gypsy gelding will be showing in a couple years.

Thank you all!

(And yes, I know HOW to do the braids, just need tips!)

I have a black and white horse and would like to show Enlglish Pleasure. Can I show with a black saddle? Or should it be brown?

Any tips out there to get a white horse clean that's still yellow after a bath? I use whitening shampoo, but want to know if anyone knows of any other tricks I can use to make him look good! Thanks! (He has white feathers that are still yellow, and also he's a piebald so he has black spots, that I don't want turning white - so dying his hair is out of the question, which is totally absurd anyway --- and YES someone has suggested it to me)

Monty Roberts uses "no violence" when working with horses. Any tips on breaking a horse with zero violence? How do you keep them from bucking with a rider? How do you teach them to stop trying to run out from underneath the rider? I would just like some tips on how Monty Roberts might break a horse from the start. Thanks!

I have a belgian draft cross whose an AMAZING jumper! I have been setting up sets of two jumps. I would like three canter strides between the two jumps, she does have a long stride. However, if not set exactly right, she tends to refuse the second jump (I would too if someone placed it at 2 1/2 strides!). Any helpful tips on how far I should place the second jump from the first? I have been told 36 feet, as well as 9 large human strides. I have tried both but seem to still be off. I did get it right once and she was ssssooooo excited! No hesitation at all on the second jump! SHE LOVES IT! Mind you, we're only jumping like 2' 6".

Also if anyone cares to add some tips on how to go from western pleasure riding to jumping equitation please let me know. Sitting deep has been so pounded into my head I find its really hard for me to get my butt OUT of the saddle to jump. Here are some pictures if you would please critique my equitation it would be much appreciated! Thank you!!

I was going to use a bozelle hackamore to break her, then move on to a full cheek snaffle. Just wondering how others start out their fillies/colts. This is the first time I'm doing it completely by myself :-)

I have an 18 year old quarter horse gelding that has trouble keeping muscle tone on his back and topline. What types of exercises can I do to help him build up this muscle?

Okay, I'm used to showing horses western, so I always band my horse's mane, and leave his tail straight. However, a family has asked me to ride their thoroughbred in an upcoming schooling show. They have a couple of kids that are going to help me bathe him and get him ready, and I was wondering if I can braid or band him at all? He is going to be shown hunter and western the same day, but there is time to take out braids in between. I just want to give the kids something fun to do. I know Arabians have special braids, and a lot of hunter horses have plaited tails... can I do anything like this on a thoroughbred? I own a paint, so I have no clue when it comes to other breeds. Like I said, this is just a schooling show, so its not like I have to braid him at all, but I know the kids would love to spiff him up... I just don't want to go into the arena with an arabian braid on a 17 hand thoroughbred!!

I'm training a yearling filly for the upcoming show season. I'm just going to take her in a local halter class for weanlings and yearlings. However, I'm having trouble keeping her at my shoulder. She's completely fine at the walk, but if asked to trot or stop, she goes past my shoulder a bit more than she should. She looks this way and that, but doesn't pay attention to me. I've tried everything that works with other yearlings I've worked with, but this filly is completely insensitive to EVERYTHING. She doesn't care what type of pressure on what part of her body I use, she doesn't move.... just stares off into space. How do I get her to move away from pressure when she's so insensitive.... If I could get her to move away from pressure, then halter training would be a piece of cake!

I am giving begginning lessons to a nine year old girl and her mom. We have a small arena with a round pen plopped in the middle of it. They ride a very lare ex-jumping thoroughbred. I have them doing transitions, working on their posting form, small patterns such as figure eights, and some pole work, because believe it or not, their ex-jumper is afraid of ground poles. They also work on bridling and releasing pressure, etc. What can I do to make their lessons more fun for them, and not seem so repetitive. Is there a fun way to use ground poles and cones? Any and all suggestions are welcome!

I have a draft cross mare, and she's completely gate sour. At the walk, she normally does alright, although she pushes through my leg a little. At the trot, she's worse, and I can pull and tug, and push with my leg, and it doesn't matter, she still slams my leg into the fence. At the canter, I might as well forget it, because there is no way I can get her to turn, she just runs right into the gate, sliding to a stop at the very end. How can I get her to go past the gate at a walk trot and canter without pushing through my legs? I'm using a snaffle with a leather chin strap, if that makes any difference. Also, she's just green broke under saddle, and she has a tendency to rush out from under leg pressure. However, these things are slowly being corrected, and she's comming around nicely, its just the gate that I can't seem to work with.

I have a quarter horse gelding that's perfect in every aspect except being alone in the show arena. He would be an absolutely PERFECT trail horse, if he would just go into the arena by himself. He knows how to do every element of every trail course ever thought of. However, when I ask him to enter the arena he balks, rears, and backs in circles. On the occasion that I do get him into the arena, he usually starts rearing and bucking near the first obstacle. There are horses within sight almost everywhere. Some in warm up pens near the show arena, so horses even standing right on the fence line watching the class or awaiting their turn. How can I get my horse to calm down and focus on the obstacles. And why does he freak out so much when he's so close to other horses, just alone in the arena itself?

I have a yearling I've been working with since birth. She ties, bathes, trailers, picks up her feet, walks, trots, canters (all on a lead). She even lays down, sits, shakes, and preforms various other small tricks on cue, but she just won't lunge. I normally use a lunge whip and a round pen to lunge my other horses. This has also worked with ever other yearling I've worked with. However, this filly doesn't care what I fling at her or tap her with, she just stands there. What can I do to make her move away from me? Do I need to physically hit her with a whip or crop? Or is my approach with the whip or lariat wrong?