Table of contents for Practical Horseman Extra Volume 22 in Practical Horseman

The issue of equitation usually comes up in a training session when I’ve reminded an amateur rider to keep her heels down or her body quiet over the fence. The rider pulls up and politely asks, “We’re being judged on how my horse goes around the hunter ring, not on my equitation. So why does my position make a difference?” It’s an honest question. But I believe that equitation totally matters. As hunter riders, we present a visual of the horse as our dance partner, flowing elegantly around the ring. When our bodies are doing things that are unattractive or distracting, it ruins that visual ballet. Yes, the horse is the one being judged—but the judge still sees the total picture. Also remember that form equals function. Classical style doesn’t…

Research in the past several years has provided a great deal of information on meeting energy requirements of performance horses. However, there is still an element of art to balancing the various fuel sources to meet an individual horse’s needs. Depending on the workload, type of work and individual metabolic differences, the type of feeding program can look quite different even among horses with similar lifestyles. As a horse’s level of performance effort increases, higher energy requirement is the most obvious change in his nutrient needs. Energy is the fuel used by the horse for all functions, including performance and maintenance of body tissues. Energy itself cannot be measured, but it can be converted to heat, which can be measured. We measure the energy stored in feed in megacalories (Mcal)…