Showing a Horse for the First Time

Did your parents finally relent and buy you that horse or pony you've been pining for for as long as you can remember? Congratulations! But, now what? What are you going to do with this lovely new pet you've acquired? Oh, you want to show it! Good for you, but before you load up your pretty new horse and head off to the nearest show ring, here are a couple of things you should think about first.

First off, taking part in a show requires a lot more work than many first time showers realize. Don't expect to enter this horse you got the day before in any number of classes and walk out first, second, or even third in any of them. That's right, you probably won't place at all at the first handful of shows you attend, unless you're amazingly lucky, or unless you have a horse that has been professionally trained and could do the class without your guidance in his sleep. But that likelihood is pretty slim. It's more likely that your parents bought the gentlest horse they could find at the lowest price available, and professionally trained horses usually don't come cheap unless there is something wrong with them.

"What kind of work?" you may ask, which isn't a simple question to answer, since it depends on just which aspect of a show you're planning to take part in. Which discipline do you wish to show in - English or Western? Let's say you chose Western over English. Has your horse been trained for that certain discipline? If it has, great. Now we're getting somewhere!

The first thing you need a lot of is time. About six month's worth at the minimum. Yes, six months at the minimum, but more would probably be best. Why do you need that much time? So you and your horse can be prepared as possible and at the top of your game when you enter the show ring, that why. You'll need the time to get your horse, and yourself in shape before you enter the ring. You don't want your horse to be huffing and puffing at the end of a class he should have handled with ease, do you?

You'll also want to use the time for simple training as well, though training and exercise can generally go hand in hand. You'll need to go to a show, without your horse, and watch the classes you want to take part in, that way you can go home and prepare yourself and your horse for the class, and so you know which tack you'll need for the class. You can't expect your horse to perform a maneuver flawlessly if you've never practiced it with him, now can you? Not at all. And you don't want to put a bridle on your horse for a halter class, either.

The last reason you'll need at least six months to prepare for the show is to ensure that your horse is as healthy as possible. For that, he'll need regular vet visits and worming to make sure he is at his peak for health. He'll also need daily grooming to make his coat glow with signs of good health. It should be smooth and shine brightly in the sun. A dull, rough looking coat is one of the sure signs of an unhealthy or poorly cared for horse, and the judge at a show will notice it right off. Don't forget presentation is a key factor, but that's another thing all together.

It is for these reasons that attending and participating in a horse show is more work than first time showers realize, and it leaves a lot of room for error. For many, showing is just a passing fancy, and the amount of work required will be too much for them to want to deal with and they will quickly lose interest. For others, the effort required will make it all that more desirable and a true passion for showing will be born.