Wasatch Pony Club

Rating Prep – D3

 

Stable Management/ Leading/Longeing

Demonstrate how to clean and bed a stall giving reasons for each step. Know use of hay net and the dangers of improper use.

Lead correctly, moving mount forward with whip or assistance ( if necessary). Do walk-trot-walk-halt transitions in hand. Lead safely from both sides.

 

Part I: Candidates demonstrate cleaning and bedding a stall, answering the following questions at each step.

 

1. If your pony is kept in a stall, why do you have to use some kind of bedding? to keep his stall clean and dry and to give him a cushion to stand and lie down on

 

2. Describe the steps in stall cleaning:

a. Pick up all the manure and soiled bedding from the surface and throw it into a wheelbarrow or muck basket. Sort through the bedding with a fork or picker, turning the bedding over, throwing out the wet and soiled bedding. Separate the good bedding and pile it in a clean spot against the walls of the stall. Explain why. Answer should include thrush and flies.

b. If the pony will be out several hours, dust the wet spots with lime and leave the floor bare. Explain why. Answer should include letting floor dry and air out.

c. Before you put the pony back in the stall, rebed it. Add enough fresh bedding to replace what you removed. Bank it up higher against the walls and in the corners. Explain why. Answer should include that this keeps the pony from getting cast (stuck) if he rolls.

d. When cleaning a stall, notice anything that needs repair or could injure your pony like splinters or nails sticking out. Explain why. Answer should include that these things could injure pony.

[Manual, p. 176-178]

 

3. Describe “picking out” a stall, and explain why you should do it.

Doing a quick pickup of manure, which keeps stall cleaner and saves you work and bedding. [Manual, p. 177]

 

4. Hay nets must be tied safely or they can cause diseases or accidents. If tied too low, the pony can get his legs or head caught in it. Tie a hay net at eye or hand level. Pass the rope through a ring or around a board and run it through the section at the bottom or at the top of the hay net. Tie the hay net with a quick-release knot or a sturdy square knot. [Manual, p. 179-180]

 

5. The hay net should be tied to the same ring the pony is tied to. True or False. [Manual, p. 179-180]

 

Part II: Q & A – Leading

 

1. To lead from the left, hold the rein or lead rope in your right or left hand about 6 or 12 inches from the bit or halter. Wrap or Fold the end of the rein or rope in your other hand. [Manual, p. 135-136]

 

2. Practice leading your pony from the right side as well as the left. True or False [Manual, p. 135-136]

 

3. To teach your pony to move freely at a walk or trot use a short or long training whip about 2 or 4 feet long. [Manual, p. 139]

 

4. Carry the whip in your right or left hand with the tip or grip trailing on the ground behind you. If the pony does not jog when you ask him, tap or whack him once on the hindquarters or nose by flicking or whipping the whip sideways behind or in front of you. You must tap or whack him within 1 or 10 seconds of giving the trot command. Jog with him and praise or stop him right away. [Manual, p. 139-140]

 

5. Another way is to have a helper or tractor follow the pony and tap or push him on the hind leg or hindquarters if he doesn’t respond. [Manual, p. 139-140]

 

Part IV: Candidates demonstrate leading the pony forward correctly from both sides.

Candidates demonstrate walk-trot-walk-halt transitions in hand.. [Manual, p. 136-140]

 

Bandaging

Describe critical areas protected by shipping bandages or boots. Give reasons for their use. Apply protective boots (with supervision) on own mount. Apply stable wrap with assistance.

 

Part I: Q & A

 

1. Why is it a good idea to use shipping boots or bandages on your pony when he travels?

Because he may slip or step on his own feet or another pony’s feet [Manual, p. 217]

 

2. Shipping boots or bandages protect the leg from the hoof to the knees and hocks.

 

3. Shipping boots should be well padded, firm, and snug to support the tendons.

 

4. Shipping bandages should cover the heels, coronet, pastern, and fetlock joint and the tendons up to the bottom of the knee or hock.

 

Part II: Candidates apply protective boots with assistance. Candidates apply stable wrap with assistance. [Manual, p. 217-218] [Detailed instructions for stable wrap in C Manual, p. 270-272]

 

Turn-out Tack and Safety Check Rider in safe and neat attire. Mount clean and neatly groomed, feet picked out, showing farrier care. Tack to be properly adjusted, safe and clean. Describe formal attire, informal attire.

 

1. What do we mean by “turnout”?

Rider and pony are clean, dressed safely and neatly, with properly fitting tack, and prepared to ride. [Manual, p. 283]

 

2. Informal or Formal turnout is what you should wear for a riding lesson, clinic, informal hunting, or rally. Informal or Formal turnout is what you wear for formal competitions, hunting, and formal

Pony Club inspections at rallies. [Manual, p. 283]

 

3. Describe correct Everyday, Informal and Formal turnout for the following:

helmet              shirt                  tie

boots                coat                  gloves

pants                jewelry             hair [Manual, p. 283-293]                   

 

4. Your pony should be curried and brushed clean. Name some places you need to check:

· under saddle & girth

· roots of mane & tail

· head & around ears

· back of pastern & lower leg

· under belly & hind legs

· elbows & between front legs

[Manual, p. 294]

 

5. A turnback or formal inspection is held at a working rally after riding. [Manual, p. 296]

 

6. List 4 effects of improperly adjusted tack:

· can hurt your pony by pinching, slipping, or rubbing

· can make your saddle unsafe

· can make your pony act up

· can make you uncomfortable

 

7. Describe how to check the fit of tack to the pony: [Manual, p. 263-273]

saddle                                                                          girth

leathers                                                                         snaffle

pelhams, kimberwickes, and curb chains                       browband

throatlash                                                                      crownpiece

cavesson                                                                      saddle pads

breastplate                                                                    breast collar

standing martingale                                                        running martingale

 

Conditioning/Nutrition

Know 5-7 basic rules of feeding. Describe care of mount after strenuous work, to include cooling out, inspection of legs,

watering and feeding. Discuss the amount of roughage and the amount of concentrates per ration for own mount.

 

1. As soon as you dismount, if your pony has done hard work, run up your stirrups,   Loosen your girth, and  leave the saddle. Walk your pony for 10 minutes and check his temperature. If your pony has cooled down to normal, untack him and scrape his sweaty places. In warm weather, he can be sponged then scraped.   Check his feet for stones and loose shoes. Check his legs for cuts, heat, or swelling.   Offer your pony a few sips of lukewarm water every few minutes while he walks and cools out. He can be given hay and water when he is cool and dry. He can be given grain when he has been normal for  an hour. Check your pony often for 2 hours to see if he is sweating. The next day, jog him for lameness or stiffness.

[Manual, p. 166-168]

 

2. Roughage means:

· grass                                      · hay                             · bulky foods [Manual, p. 185]

 

3. Concentrates for ponies are:

· grain                           · mixed feeds

· pellets                         · supplements [Manual, p. 185]

 

 4. Fill in the chart below:

My Pony’s Daily Feeding Schedule

 

Morning

 

Time: _______ How much hay _________ How much grain _____________ other ____________

Evening

Time: _______ How much hay _________ How much grain _____________ other ____________

Other :

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Foot & Shoeing

Describe obvious signs of a foot needing shoeing or trimming.

 

1 Ponies’ feet grow about __1/4 inch __ each month. [Manual, p. 205]

 

2. The first sign that a pony need shoeing or trimming is long  feet. The Toe grows longer than the heel. The wall of the foot may start to grow over the edge of the shoe, and the clinches (ends of the nail) will stand up from the wall of the foot. Some nails may loosen or fall out and the shoe may become loose. If a shoe is loose, you can hear it when a pony walks.

[Manual, p. 206-207]

 

Health/Veterinary Knowledge

Name some symptoms of a sick or injured mount that would cause you to seek help.

List 8 signs of sickness that would make you get help:

· colic

· coughing

· diarrhea

· depression

· fever

· not eating normally

· losing weight/dull coat

· injuries [Manual, p. 211-212]

 

Introduction to Horse Sports

Name 5 of the sports available in USPC.

 

Name 5 of the sports in Pony Club. Dressage, Show Jumping, Games, Eventing, Quiz, Polocrosse, Tetrathlon, Vaulting

 

Travel Safety

Know the rules for riding safely on public roads in your state. Know procedure for mounted group crossing a public roadway. Discuss the proper procedure for loading and unloading a mount.

 

1. When riding on the road, keep to the __side__ and obey all __traffic laws__. [Manual, p. 220-221]

 

 2. Contact your local Motor Vehicle Office and Sheriff’s Department and list any local laws for horseback riders on the back of this sheet.

 

3. When riding in a group, everyone should stay on one  side of the road. To cross a road with a group, everyone should cross at once. The riders at each end look both ways. When it is clear, they act as crossing guards  and watch  when riders cross together between them.

[Manual, p. 220-221]

 

4. When loading a pony into a trailer, lead him straight forward into the trailer. It is not safe to walk into a closed trailer with a pony. Fasten the tail bar before you tie your pony. Tie him with a quick-release knot. [Manual, p. 224-228]

 

5. When unloading, always untie the pony before you open the door. [Manual, p. 224-228]

 

6. Make sure the pony backs out slowly and straight. [Manual, p. 224-228]

 

7. What should you take when your pony travels?

a. Hay net with hay

b. Water bucket

c. Equine first aid kit

d. Extra lead rope

e. Muck bucket and rake

f. Tack and grooming kit [Manual, p. 223-224]

 

Pony Parts/Conformation/Lameness

Describe how to measure height of mount. Identify at least 20 parts of the mount, to include hock, gaskin, withers, coup, fetlock, pastern, etc. Know common conformation faults of neck, back, shoulder, head, and pasterns. Describe the characteristics of a strange mount clearly enough for another person to recognize it within a group. Include: color, breed, markings, size, sex, and obvious conformation characteristics.

 

1. The size of a pony is measured in hands from the ground to the withers. One hand = 4 inches.

 

2. Using model horse, identify at least 20 parts of the mount.. [See Manual p. 231]

 

3. Describe these common conformation faults:

· lop eared                                            · roman nosed

· coarse, heavy head                             · pig eyes

· short, upright                                      . shoulder

· straight pastern                                   · ewe necked

· sway backed                                      · high withers

· low withers                                         [Manual, p. 243-245]

 

4. Describe your own pony’s conformation. [Manual, p. 246]

 

5. Using a model horse, describe its conformation well enough for others to pick it out of a group. [Manual, p. 246]

The following questions may be practiced verbally when candidate is unmounted, in preparation for the Riding Test Expectations part of the mounted rating prep. See the D3 Standards for a full listing of

expectations.

 

Riding on the Flat

 

1. When you adjust your girth or stirrups:

a. Keep your reins loose on the pony’s neck. True or False

b. Keep your foot in the stirrup. True or False

c. Check your girth 5 minutes after you start to ride. True or False. [Manual, p. 87-88]

 

2. When might you perform an emergency dismount?

When you need to dismount quickly on purpose. [Manual, p. 97]

 

3. Toe touches and lying down are good for leg postion. Stirrup standing and airplane are good for heels down. Shoulder circles and arm circles are good for shoulder back. Centering, teeter-totter, and swivel are good for balance. [Manual, p. 89-97]

 

4. To ride a sitting trot well, you must be in balance. [Manual, p. 99]

 

5. To rein back, sit up deep, squeeze with your legs and then squeeze with your hands. [Manual, p. 100]

 

6. The aids for riding in a circle are:

· inside leg: stays in regular position close to girth

· outside leg: moves back

· seat: swivels

· inside rein: says look on the direction

· outside rein: says not too fast

· eyes: look around the circle [Manual, p. 101-103]

 

7. To increase speed, legs squeeze in rhythm with the trot. To decrease speed, squeeze your

fingers each time you sit in posting. [Manual, p. 105

 

8. The natural aids are the aids that are a part of you. Name them.

· Hands

· Legs

· Seat,

· Voice [Manual, p. 105]

 

9. The artificial aids are things that help out the natural aids. Name them. Crops, spurs. [Manual, p.105]

 

Riding Over Fences/ Riding in the Open

 

1. Describe these releases:

· basic release: also called mane release because you hold onto the mane

· crest release: pressing down on the pony’s neck 12” up his neck

· short release: crest release that only releases 4 or 5 inches

· automatic release: called “following through the air” or “jumping on contact”. Arms stretch forward with pony’s head, with light contact on mouth [Manual, p. 110-112]

 

2. Describe jumping in balance. Shoulders over knees, angles close, hands release, eyes up, heels down. [Manual, p. 110]

 

3. Trotting over group poles to a cross rail helps your __balance, suppleness, and jump position, and teaches your pony to balance himself, to pick up his feet and to take off at the right spot.

[Manual, p. 114]

 

4. Ride over cavelletti and cross rails at a posting trot. [Manual, p. 114]

 

5. To learn to canter over fences, set up 2 cross rails 48 feet apart, and count to 4.  [Manual, p. 117]

 

6. Plan how you will ride your course. Pick a target to look at to keep you lined up straight.   [Manual, p. 119]

 

7. Two steps you must follow when a pony disobeys are:

a. handle the refusal

b. figure out why he stopped and how to keep him from doing it again [Manual, p. 119]

 

8. List 6 reasons why a pony might refuse and how to handle each:

a. rider error: ride a better approach

b. jump is too big: lower it

c. pony off balance: ride a better approach

d. pony is lame: check with a vet or farrier

e. you are not confident: build your confidence over smaller jumps

f. pony is green: work over smaller jumps [Manual, p. 119-120]

 

9. When riding in a group you must fight against herd instinct. List 2 ways to control your pony in a group: pulley rein, circling [Manual, p. 124]

 

10. When riding through water, keep your pony moving. When riding over a ditch, keep your pony straight and your eyes up. [Manual, p. 126-127]