What Is Horse Judging?

Horse Judging is an activity in which youth participants learn and apply knowledge of the ideal features of a variety of breeds and a variety of riding styles. They must evaluate each horse in relation to the ideal for the breed and in relation to the other horses or riders in the class. In addition to simply placing the class, contestants must also defend their placings to an official in order to further prove their knowledge of the horses.

According to the American Quarter Horse Association’s manual on Competitive Horse Judging, the characteristics of a successful judge are "A. A clear mental picture of the ideal or type, and an ability to recognize undesirable traits. B. Ability to employ deductive reasoning and incorporate practical considerations in a positive manner. C. The mental and physical stamina necessary to make logical decisions under pressure." and, "D. The ability to effectively defend the placing of a class." A participant can grow from being only a kid with an aversion for horses to an active member of the horse industry with the skills acquired from horse judging.

Participants learn to be confident about their decisions, to use logic when faced with a problem, to expresses their ideas in a calm and poised manner, and to stand up and speak in front of strangers in addition to countless other skills that will successfully guide any person through school and through a career in the real world.

The events that participants must know and understand are halter, which deals with the conformation and quality of a horse, and performance, which deals with the ability of a horse or rider in a certain discipline.

Contests

---

From county to state and national competitions, all horse judging contests have the same basic structure. Participants in teams of three or four judge two types of classes; halter and performance. Each class is composed of four horses of a specific gender, breed, or discipline. The contestants must individually place the classes according to their opinions of the horses. Everyone marks one card for every class judged with their placings. The placings are then scored according to the official placings and cuts and the contestants are given a numerical score with fifty being the highest possible. In addition to simply placing the classes, the contestants give oral reasons defending their placings of a few of the classes. Reasons are individually given to the officials and are also scored on a scale of fifty.

In halter classes, the horses are judged according to their conformation and quality. The four categories that determine the placings of a class are balance, structural correctness, muscling, and breed and sex characteristics. The contestants are allowed to view the horses from all four sides, they can watch the horses travel at a walk and a trot, and they can search for finer details during close inspection. If preparing to give reasons on a halter class, contestants will note that a high quality Quarter Horse demonstrates balance of smoothly blending body parts, exhibits a greater circumference of muscling through the forearms and gaskins and, in addition, tracks straighter while traveling.

Performance classes are placed according to the horses' abilities in a specific discipline such as Hunter Under Saddle or Trail. Each horse's proficiency in the show ring is weighed against the the other horses' perfomances and a placing is determined. For reasons, contestants will look for traits such as a Hunter Under Saddle horse having a longer more ground covering stride, and Western Riding horse displaying a more level body position through smoother more prompt lead changes, and a Reining horse performing longer, smoother sliding stops in which it hinged at the loin and reached its hocks deeper into the ground.

Reasons are the most important part of a judging contest. The participants are required to justify their placings to the officials in a confident manner. The reasons are what build skill in speaking in front of people, demonstrating ease in memorization, and being precise in decision making. Also they will make or break the success of a contestant. A person with high reasons scores and average placing scores will usually excel over someone will average reasons and high placings. Reasons are structured with an opening statement, a top pair, a middle pair, a bottom pair, and a closing statement. Reasons should include a grant for the lower placed horse of each pair; color identifications of the horses; transitions such as "in addition," and "furthermore"; and action words such as "exhibited," "demonstrated," and "showed." Moreover, only the bottom placed horse of each class can be criticized therefore increasing the difficulty of giving a good set of reasons. The average set should be around two minutes, no notes can be used when giving reasons, and, ideally, a person should not pause or stutter. The ability to give good reasons comes with years of practice.

Most contests will have four or five halter classes, four or five performance classes, and three or four sets of reasons. During the contests, everyone must work individually and cannot converse with other team members. After the scores are tabulated, awards are given for the categories of overall halter individual, overall performance individual, overall reasons individual, high overall individual, and high overall team. The contests can become very competitive yet are extremely rewarding for all who participate.

Email me!

Return Home