EC Pinto World Blog: Is Showing a Miniature Easier Than a Big Horse? Not By A Long Shot!

Pinto World 2017 – It’s No Tiny Feat

Is Showing Miniatures Easier than Big Horses at a World Championship? Not by a long shot.

EC Blog by: Delores Kuhlwein

Last place is not in my comfort zone. In fact, I didn’t know it was in my vocabulary.  I like to be the first one to enter the pen, and coming out of the show pen last makes me feel rather squeamish. But, the first time I showed my new miniature horse in driving classes at a small show in 2016, I was repeatedly in last place: Amateur Pleasure Driving:  Last, Disciplined Rail: Last, Open Pleasure Driving:  Last. The feeling I had initially experienced my first time in a Driving class, where my friend told me to stop grinning or I’d get bugs in my teeth, had faded to the background.

As an exhibitor of “big” horses, aka Paints, for the last 14 years, it’s not as if I thought I would come in and sweep the board, nor did I think I was better. But, I didn’t expect the intensity of the competition to be the same, or I might suggest even harder. These ladies and youth competitors were serious! And their horses were very nice to boot.

When I ended that day in tears, my husband (a former trainer of many years with APHA World Championships in Driving) said, “I thought we were just having fun, but if you want to get serious, we can.” So, my education began. First of all, when it came to Driving, my reins were too floppy and my horse’s back was too hollow. I now refer to it with the hashtag #westernpleasureproblems. Instead of letting go when the horse is correct, well, you just can’t, because you have no legs on the horse. What I discovered was that being on the bit was security for my little guy.

As we practiced Driving for the next show, I found that most of my current skills from the show ring were needed, such as opening up my horse’s shoulder in the corners of the arena to keeping feel of his face, just as when I had shown in English long ago. I also learned that miniature horses act just like big horses, but on smaller terms. At times, it was funny, and other times, not so much, as I was experiencing similar obstacles to overcome. I wondered if I’d ever get the hang of holding a whip and the reins together, getting my horse to round up just like I was used to when I rode, and having my horse stop squarely and not on his shoulders.

I only managed to get a few shows under my belt before we reached the 2017 Pinto World Championships, where only a year before, I had sat in my vendor booth and fawned over the miniatures driving in the arena. What I learned this past week is that while the horses are smaller, the competition is just as mighty.

The Prep

I must admit, that once we started experimenting with showing a miniature horse, we were pretty stoked at the ease of his care. We discovered that we can open our slant 2-horse trailer, bed it, and turn him loose with water and feed while we travel. We ordered only one bale of hay ahead of time for the Pinto World and brought a bag and a half of pellets. We could bed the stall deeply enough to avoid renting stall mats. No banding was necessary, and there were no fake tails. Wash and clip time was minimal, although my husband found that he did have to braid for my English events. My friends (fondly called the Mini Mafia) immortalized the image of him sitting on a pink feed bucket to braid my 37-inch tall horse’s tail on Facebook.

The Nerves

I remember when I first leased 14-year-old Pistol, before I purchased him (my trial run to see if I really wanted to do this), I tried not to snicker when I was told he jumped, did Trail, and much more. I wasn’t going to do that! It didn’t take long to find out that Trail, Obstacle Driving, and Hunter or Jumping In-Hand was a blast, and it was hard! This year, I stood at the entrance to Arena 3 in the Pavilion, with the same World Show nerves as ten years before, praying not to fall on my face in my daughter’s borrowed English boots for the Working Hunter In-Hand. You see, I had never run in them before. Luckily, my very broke mini did his job, and I made it through without face planting in the dirt, and with a Top Ten finish under our belt.

The Competition

When it came time for the Amateur Pleasure Driving, the class I’d been waiting for, I was worried and a bit discouraged. The miniatures are specialized, to some extent, the way the stock horses are: all-around horses or stock types don’t trot as fancy as those with more Hackney or more of an Arab look, so I didn’t think I had a chance. I decided to just enjoy myself and show him to the best of my ability, since I’d waited since last year to wear my evening gown and hat! Some of the other miniatures flew by me with beautiful floating trots (one of the aspects I really love about the minis is asking for rounding, engagement, and impulsion) so I asked for his best trot in a class of 14 or 15 horses. Pistol’s consistency as a veteran show horse paid off resulting a Reserve World Championship title for us – my first one ever. It was a success I didn’t expect, that probably hooked me for good.

The Conclusion

What I found by showing miniatures is another avenue of the horse industry to explore. I had the same disappointments (ie – went around the wrong side of a cone and disqualified myself in a Trail class) and the same joys. It was just as physically taxing due to the required running in Showmanship, both English and Western, Trail, and Over Fence classes. The amount of support I received from my mini barn family was equal as well, and, for me, it has been another discipline to enjoy in my life, and the outfits are just too fun! I love being on my full-sized Paint/Pinto horse’s back, but I now understand the love of the miniature, a horse that has more try and heart than I expected. When the jump off fences were raised, as tall as he was, he tried to jump it for me anyway. When he got tired and sore, he kept working. I’ve learned that the size of the horse doesn’t matter; it’s the size of their hearts.