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All about horses in northern B.C. Issue # 28: May 15, 2000 Published each Monday by Kristi McCrindle, editor Here's some interesting stuff to share with you, things that I've been working through with Riser, my palomino gelding. As some of you already know, Riser was leased out for the past two years to several different youth riders. Being a one owner horse up until that point, it must have been quite confusing for Riser as he moved time and time again, with new people taking care of him. More confusing yet must have been having different riders. While a few people have been on Riser for a few minutes here or there, mostly I am the only one who has ridden him. I'm certainly the only one that has ever schooled him, and suddenly there were strange people telling him what to do, and telling him differently than I did. Being a basically gentle and obedient horse, Riser tried to do what he was told, but over the course of the two years, he lost a lot of his fine tuned edge. Riser and I had a sort of bond that develops between a horse and rider, a partnership, where sometimes it was not much more than a thought that he was obeying. That fine tuning was no longer there when he returned home. When I got Riser back this spring, I put him back into training. Now last year, I rode a lot on Raime, the cremello gelding, and we did a lot of clinics. Those clinics changed a lot of the things I do, and the way I do them, but Riser didn't get to learn them as I did. Instead, he came back to a new me, and I was expecting him to ride like Raime does now. After all, he's well broke and should be able to pick this stuff up quickly, right? Well, poor Riser was once again confused. I kept getting after him for doing things wrong, and he started to worry all the time. He got so anxious I couldn't get him to drop his neck and relax at the lope, he was trying to be speedy and race around. What had happened to my slow western pleasure horse? I tried more new methods, but all they served to do was get him more upset and more worried. He got so he didn't want to walk quietly after doing trot or canter work, but would try and anxiously break into a jog. Finally, it all fell apart in Quesnel at the clinic. I was not having a good time riding Riser at all, he was racy and silly, wouldn't settle and lope quietly at all. J.P. and I discussed it,and he figured that I wasn't giving Riser enough credit - he had been so well broke, then had so many different riders on him, then I expected things to go back to the way they were. That simply wasn't possible and what I needed to do now was to rebuild Riser's trust in me. Sounds simple, but what a task ahead of me! Next week, rebuilding our partnership... email to editor: kristi@hiway16.com (If you see error messages when viewing this page, your browser may be out-of-date. If you upgrade to a 4.x version, the error messages should disappear) NEW! Foal Announcements - add a listing or check out the latest

Pleasant Valley Days events - May 20-22 Well, I had hoped to give you a fully detailed report on what is coming up this weekend at Pleasant Valley Days in Houston, but my contact was unable to get me the information I needed, so I guess I'll just have to wing it. I've heard lots of talk about what is going to take place, but nothing here is guaranteed - for more info please call Terri Stewart at 250-845-7624. Pleasant Valley Days is a District of Houston celebration. Various clubs and organizations take part in the May long weekend festivities. The Pleasant Valley Horse Club (PVHC) runs a large western equestrian event during this time which includes team cattle penning, L'il Britches gymkhana, barrel racing, and some other fun events. Team cattle penning is an exciting sport in which teams of three mounted riders go into a herd of numbered cattle and cut out the three wearing the correct number. They then bring those cows down and pen them at the other end of the arena - in 90 seconds or less. The members of the Lakes District Cattle Penning Association is supporting this penning by bringing the cows and several of the teams for the competition. There is also a L'il Britches rodeo/gymkhana. The events held differ sometimes from club to club, but you can expect to see barrel racing, pole-bending, mutton busting (riding sheep!), calf riding and more. PVHC has an active gymkhana group, so they may also add in their regular speed event classes. I believe in past years the barrel racing group has also put in an appearance. Other exciting events may include wild cow milking, greased pig contests and more. There was also talk of team roping but I'm not sure if that is happening or not. So if you are wondering what to do this May long weekend and haven't yet made plans, think about stopping by Four Seasons Park in Houston and checking out the action. If you have tips or questions on equipment care, purchases, fit, or anything else to do with equestrian equipment, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com We update the Events Page regularly - so be sure to check often. Western, English, Penning or Trail riding, all equine sports have a voice on Northern B.C. Horse If you are new to Northern B.C. Horse, check out all the previous issues on the Archive page. Kristi is building a great knowledge base about horses, with the emphasis on our area of the world.	Past articles are all available in the More travelling tips - feeding your horse When travelling to a show, clinic or other event, try to bring your own hay and grain from home. Your horse's digestive system is used to its regular feed, and the stress of travelling can be compounded by providing different feed. Also plan on bringing your usual feed and water buckets from home. This is partly for safety (so as not to share buckets with strange horses) but also for comfort. The horse knows the smell of his own bucket and having familiar items around can help a horse settle in to a new place. You may need to bring water from home - some horses are very picky and won't drink strange water. I always pack a couple of water jugs (we've found cleaned plastic cat litter jugs work well) with me as emergency water anyway, so they go into the horse buckets when we arrive. Another way of helping a horse drink at a new place is to start flavouring the water a few days before leaving home - some people use a bit of koolaid or mint flavouring if their horse is really finicky. Make sure you keep your supplements coming and also that your horse has access to salt during his stay. Try not to change his routine too much, and if someone offers to feed for you, find out what time they plan on feeding. The closer your horse stays to his regular schedule, the better. Show horses are more prone to colic anyway (higher stress lifestyle), so help minimize the risk by keeping them on the program. With that in mind, if you have to ride first thing in the morning and don't think feeding at 3 am is practical (gee, why not?) you might want to feed LOTS of hay the night before. He will waste some but at least he will have time to digest some of his food before you start riding at 7 or 8 am! And those are some tips from someone who is travelling often with her horses these days! Excursions with your equine partner can be done in a safe and fun manner, most of it is just common sense. If you have tips or questions you'd like to share with other local equestrians, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com	How to choose a coach One day, you will look around and decide that you want to begin riding lessons. You may not even have a horse, or you might be an advanced rider that wants some tune-up tips. So how do you find the coach that will suit your needs? There are lots of ways to find a coach. Start by talking to people in your area - ask around at the tack and feed stores, or in the local riding stables. Approach active club members of pony clubs, saddle clubs and the like. If you know you want to ride western, there might not seem a point in talking to pony clubbers, but you never know who they might know! Check out Horse Council BC's Equine Directory - a comprehensive guide to who is officially recoognized by our governing provincial body - they list certified coaches of all disciplines and all levels. Once you have a few names picked out, find out what their credentials are. Talk to students (past and present) and find out their likes and dislikes. Talk to the coach himself - schedule a visit to meet and explore their facility. While a new barn and fresh painted fences don't make a coach, they do speak of professionalism. On the other hand, a place with wire fences and a few simple turn out shelters may house a gifted coach who simply doesn't have lots of money. A personal visit will give you a feel for who the instructor is. Discuss your goals with the coach and see how their program will fit your needs. Instructors and trainers tend to set programs for themselves that they mold most things into, and sometimes their way might not be for you. For instance, if you have no interest in showing, getting in with a coach who has a barn full of amateur showing students might not be the place for you, and likewise, the backyard coach with a handful of local kids on their grade ponies might not be the place to ride if you have aspirations of the Olympic jumping team. Consider choosing a certified coach. While a piece of paper does not mean that the instructor will be the right one for you, it does mean he or she has been through some sort of organized program. For instance, the Canadian Equestrian Federation (CEF) requires coaches to pass several components before certification - First Aid (usually a standard first aid course), a coaching course from NCCP (National Coaching Certification Program), and riding and coaching skills in the discipline in which the coach becomes certified, as tested by a higher level CEF coach. There are lots of good coaches out there - you just have to find them! If you have tips or questions you'd like to share with other local equestrians, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com Northern B.C. Horse is brought to you courtesy of our advertisers including: The Tack Store Ridennoure Paint Horses Burns Lake Building Supplies Hoskins Ford Uniglobe Travel North Thanks to our advertisers for making this all possible... ...for information about advertising, email jim@hiway16.com

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