“Try to focus on having your horse hold his lead each way while he’s jumping. That way, your horse becomes straight and more ambidextrous.”

Let’s think about how you would respond if a horse contracted Strangles in your barn. First, you would close the barn to new horses to prevent infection, ie. social distancing. You would make sure to disinfect anything that has come into contact with an infected horse, ie. wash your hands, use hand sanitizer, don’t touch your face. You wouldn’t take an infected horse to an event where it might come into contact with others and spread the disease, ie. stay at home. 

Because this pattern “tracks back on itself,” and has the horse and rider cross their original line of travel, the first line you make will be important as it will affect the future placement of every following transition. 

Today’s lesson plan focuses on the markings that our more colorful equines sport. Do you know the difference between a snip, strip, or crescent? What about a blaze, bald, or bonnet?