You are traveling to an unfamiliar show ring and in the rules it says "no abuse of any kind will be tolerated towards your or anyone else's horse." It sounds like an excellent rule.

However, what is considered abuse?

Rule of thumb is you do not hit your horse in front of the shoulders or neck; the "above the shoulders rule." What about the other person kicking the horse repetitively like their legs are wings coming from the last barrel in their barrel run with nine pointed spur rowels? To some it may be okay however, rowels are for rolling on the horse's side, not jabbing. Jabbing is what causes gashes and cuts. Now tell me. Does that sound like abuse?

Another example is its ninety-five degrees on a Saturday in July. There is this one person who is "Warming up" his horse before his barrel run, consistently looping circles in both directions for about twenty minutes. The horse is soaked in sweat, hot to the touch and nostrils stretched as far as they can to get air. In his barrel run, the horse collapses! The horse is over-heated, and now showing signs of colic.

Ask yourself and the show ring president or judge, "What is abuse?" Go to a show ring meeting, suggest more definite rules on horse abuse, not just the ‘above the shoulders’ rule.

Jennifer Minney is a 2007 Gilmer County High School graduate and a well-known, award-winning participant in regional horse shows. She is currently attending Meredith Manor International Equestrian Centre in Waverly.