Advertising Rates - FOSH 08 SA.pdf · Lexington,Virginia.The schedule comprised 3 very full days and nights of classes for TWH, Spotted Saddle Horse, Racking, Missouri Fox Trotters,

that we spend many hours each month to present thelist of Horse Protection Act suspensions on our website: http://www.fosh.info/hpalist.htm.

Then I got to spend two days home at our farm,playing with our stunning “lit up” colt who’s a monthold, continuing his imprint training with lots of han-dling of his lovely legs and hooves, trail riding on sev-eral of our smooth, barefoot Walkers, and filming por-tions of my Parelli Level 3 journey on my Walker mare,Magnolia. Watching them all cavort in our pastures asa herd made me chuckle as I remembered WinkGroover’s derisive comment to me a year ago in one ofthese “industry meetings.” At the time, Wink was thePresident of the Walking Horse Trainers’ Association.“Why, Lori, all Tennessee Walkers have scarring ontheir pasterns from the flexion action of their feet, youjust check your babies inthe pasture.” You arecertainly wrong, Mr.Groover, and myWalkers are lucky to livein a sound home.

—Lori Northrup,President

Sound Advocate page 2

President’sKornerContrast ofTennesseeWalkingHorses….

I just spent two dayson the “cause” in all-day meetings in Washington, DC with the USDA, manyof the participating Horse Industry Organizations(HIOs), a hostile Tennessee Congressman, and othersinvolved in the efforts to end soring. Certainly it’s chal-lenging to categorize the two days as “fruitful or pro-ductive,” because the issues are complicated by otherswho are trying to lobby, make a living showing “BigLick horses,” and block the progress of using technolo-gy to detect soring. But I think our work group accom-plished some good, and the continued efforts over timewill show final progress, I hope. As we do each month,the final, approved minutes from these HIO/USDAmeetings are posted on the FOSH web site as soon asthey are approved for the public. Also, please remember Photos: Golden Stride’s Phoenix, at one-month old.

The 9th annual North American Pleasure Gaited Horse

Championships were held Thursday, June 26th thru Saturday,

June 28th, 2008 at the Virginia Horse Center, East Complex inLexington,Virginia.The schedule comprised 3 very full days andnights of classes for TWH, Spotted Saddle Horse, Racking,Missouri Fox Trotters, Mountain (RMHA & UMH),Tiger, FloridaCracker and Icelandic Horses. The Open Gaited Breed divisionrounded out the class list with options for Country Pleasure,Dressage and Trail Obstacle. Horses and exhibitors made thetrip to Virginia from Arkansas, Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky,Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida,West Virginia, Maryland, andNew Jersey.

Our exhibitors persevered through the heat,humidity, thun-derstorms and downpours while adhering to the FUN Rule andFOSH Sound Principles.

The Missouri Fox Trotters again lived up to their state’smotto and showed us fine examples of the breed.The MissouriFox Trotter Championship was won by Playboy’s Sampsonwith Tori Blankenship.

HIGHLIGHTSHIGHLIGHTSfrom the NAC Championships

The TigerHorse Associationheld their inaugu-ral National Showin conjunctionwith the NAC. Toprove their versa-tility, an excellentexample of thebreed, I’ve BeenSpotted, and hisrider DeDe Marshall earned The Ivory Pal Versatility Hi-PointPerpetual Trophy.

The Frida Icelandic Riding Club provided a licensedIcelandic judge for their schooling show classes that proved anexciting exhibition for the spectators.

The Florida Cracker group brought 3 excellent ambassa-dors of the breed who proved their versatility in rail and versa-tility classes. Dean VanCamp and Sonny partnered their way toThe Midnight Shamen Natural Horsemanship PerpetualTrophy.

A ten horse OGB Working Trail Pleasure 2 gt w/ 3 obstacleswas won by Digger’s Sun Up Delight (TWH) and Steve Luoni.The OGB Suitability for Dressage class demonstrated all breedscan benefit from classical training.

continued on page 23

Gator (Florida Cracker Horse) with riderEmily Moore for owner Crescent J Ranch

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The Sound Advocate is published bi-monthly by Friends of Sound Horses, Inc. 6614 Clayton Road#105; St. Louis, MO 63117. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any mechani-cal, photographic or electronic means witout written permission of FOSH. FOSH reserves the rightto edit submissions for content, style, and space. All show results and suspensions lists are print-ed as they are received from the reporting agencies. FOSH is unable to verify that each adver-tiser is a sound horse resource whether farm, breeder, or trainer. Please research thoroughlyand always ask for references before going forward with any transaction.

POSTMASTER:Send address corrections to: Friends of Sound Horses, Inc 6614 Clayton Rd #105; St. Louis, MO 63117.

SUBSCRIBERS:The postal service does not forward magazines. If you move and do not inform us, you willnot get your magazine. Always call the office if you do not receive your magazine. Please sendany change of address to the FOSH office.

SEND YOUR ARTICLES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS TO:Sandy McCart: [email protected] Schild: [email protected] Bippen: [email protected]

Friends of Sound Horses, Inc.MAILING ADDRESS:

6614 Clayton Rd #105 • St. Louis, MO 63117CONTACT INFORMATION:

800-651-7993 • [email protected] • www.fosh.info

Board of DirectorsPresident (2009) Director of Versatility & High Point (2008)Lori Northrup Sally Frones - VPEllicottvile, New York Carlton, [email protected] [email protected]

Director of Sanctioned Shows (2008) Director of Judges (2008)Rhonda Azevedo - VP Dianne Little - VPGraton, California Calgary, Alberta, [email protected] [email protected]

Public Relations; Editor (2009) Inspection Program Administration (2008)Teresa Bippen - VP Bob Blackwell - VPSt. Louis, Missouri Niangua, Missouri [email protected] [email protected]

Treasurer (2009) Secretary (2008)Rachel Hughes Maggie MacAllisterVerona, Virginia Staunton, [email protected] [email protected]

Director At Large (2007) Director At Large (2007)Bill Coon Nancy HardingHerriman, Utah Savannah, [email protected] [email protected]

Executive Advisory Committee

Karen Clark (2008) Elizabeth Jones, Editor (2007)Nampa, Idaho St. Louis, [email protected] mo_writer@yahoo,com

Ann Loveless (2007) Desirai Schild, Editor (2008)Middletown, Pennsylvania Chubbuck, [email protected] desiraischild@yahoo,com

Fields Richardson (2008) Jim Russell (2008)Arlington, Texas Tampa, [email protected] [email protected]

Jim Scullin (2007) Julia Tarnawski (2008)Verona, Virginia Sunland, [email protected] [email protected]

Our Mission Statement

To promote “sound,” naturally gaited horses, with a specific empha-sis on Tennessee Waking Horses. (“Sound” means not sored.)

Importance is placed on education regarding the humane care,training, and treatment of all gaited horses. FOSH will only supportflat shod or barefoot horses, and will never endorse any event thatuses stacks and/or chains as action devices, nor any mechanical,chemical or artificial means to modify the natural gaits of the horse.

FOSH focuses on three areas for gaited horses:1. Educating people on sound training principles

2. Sanctioning sound shows and events3. Working to end soring

Lifetime Members

Sarah Bushong-Weeks Denver, CO

Julie Church Pagosa Springs, CO

Mary & William Church Pagosa Springs, CO

Jane Howlett Pocatella, ID

Anne Northrup Ellicottville, NY

Bucky Sparks Cortez, CO

Nancy Sparks Cortez, CO

Laura Wyant Cheshire, OR

Marcy Wadlington Canon City, CO

Leslie Weiler Pagosa Springs, CO

Anonymous Donor



On February 29, a group of seven horses and rid-ers representing FOSH and IPWHA gatheredexpectantly with their Tennessee Walking Horses

in the holding ring waiting to go into the arena for thefirst of three exhibitions at the Equifest in Wichita,Kansas. As their turn came, Jana Babuszczak aboard theSupreme Versatility Champion, Roan Flash (English) ledthe parade followed by Melanie Lehman on three timeGrand Champion and Supreme Versatility Champion,Generator’s Mac Attack (English), Cheyenne Dunham onthe 2006 North American Pleasure Gaited Horse HighPoint Walking Horse, Peach Muffin (English), AnitaDunham on Pride’s Little Darling (Western), KatieKettinger on Mac’s Little Luci (English), Pam Swindleron Pride’s Mega Motion (Western), and Shannon Walkerleading Mia Walker on Ultra Peppermint Patty bringingup “the caboose” (Sidesaddle). This was just the first ofthree educational and well-received exhibitions the groupparticipated in that weekend.

The weekend was spent riding their horses, relaxing atthe stalls, and visiting other exhibitors’ booths. Theyspoke with several interested visitors at their booth aboutthe way the Tennessee Walking Horses are being betterrepresented as sound and light shod not only at showsand expos, but also on the trail. Many positive commentswere received about the horses being in keg shod shoes orbarefoot. This year TWHBEA was not represented at theKansas Equifest.

Under the direction of Shannon Walker and with aHollywood Theme of “Walk of Fame,” the stall areareceived second place in the stall decorating contest.

The group was well-organized, thanks to their helpfulground crew, and felt supported and then some, thanks toall the cheers and applause they received from the audi-ence before, during, and after their demonstrations. Thehorses displayed the Tennessee Walking Horse’s gentledisposition and willing manner as they performed theTennessee Walking Horses’ three signature gaits: the flatwalk, running walk, and canter. Their riders showcasedthe relaxed mood and fun attitude you can have while rid-ing a Tennessee Walking Horse not to mention the versa-tility in riding disciplines. A narrative accompanied thedemonstration that impressed upon the audience the factthat these were sound, keg shod or barefoot horses, thatneeded no mechanical or chemical enhancement. Theaudience understood immediately the significance of whatwas being demonstrated and the applause spoke theirapproval.

The New England Walking Horse Associationproudly represented FOSH and its own clubat the Everything Equine Expo in Vermont

the last weekend in April. Perfect weather and aprime location by the entrance brought thousandsof people by our booth where NEWHA membersDianne Lashoones, Tracy Gandin and MadelineTobias and IJA Judge Suzanne Cobb answeredquestions from attendees. By the end of the firstday, nearly all the informational materials had beendistributed. On Sunday morning, DianneLashoones on her eight year old black stallion,Genius Boy’s Tony LaGotta and Tracy Gandin onher four year old bay tobiano gelding, Painted byRooster, demonstrated the natural gaiting of bare-foot Walkers while Suzanne Cobb gave an excellenttalk on identifying gaits and demystifying confusionover gaited horses’ abilities to exhibit multiple gaits.

After the demonstration, Dianne and “Tony”and Tracy and “Rooster” spent time along the railwith the crowds, answering questions one on one.The calm demeanor and crowd friendliness of astallion and a young horse who had never been inthis type of venue before impressed the crowd.

Vermont EverythingEquine Expo

By Dianne Lashoones, President,New England Walking Horse Association

Wichita, KansasExpo ReportBy Cheyenne Dunham

Exhibitors for the Equifest in Wichita, Kansasawait their turn to perform.


Under a perfect, sunny,spring sky, Kentucky’sFirst Lady, Jane

Beshear opened the ThreePhase Event’s second nation-al competition April 18th atthe new Kentucky EquestrianCenter outside Winchester,Kentucky before competi-tors, guests and vendors. Mrs.Beshear toured the coursesand reviewed a parade of the

competing breeds which included Mountain horses, Mc CurdyPlantation horses, American Saddelbreds, Tennessee Walkinghorses, Arabian and Quarter horses. She was presented with aflask, decorated with the Three Phase logo, of creek water fromthe cross country course to be added to the 2010 FEI WorldGames fountain at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.

The pretty weather didn’t last. Competitors found the skiesovercast with occasional light sprinkles during Saturdays’events.The dampening didn’t effect the enthusiasm of the ridersor their excitement and determination. The competition notonly attracted six different breeds of horses, but their ownersand riders represented attendance from six different states –Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Tennessee, and Texas, and16 different cities throughout those states,a third of whom werethere for the first time.All came despite record fuel costs and amiserable winter for training.

The horses competed in each phase – dressage, stadiumobstacle and cross country – in one of four levels based on theirdressage skills: beginner novice, novice, training and, our newhighest level, preliminary.The event focuses on eventing for nonjumping competitors.

In the dressage phase, the horse and rider was judged by aUSDF licensed judge in dressage tests written for their specificgaits. Gaited horses had gait specific tests published by theNational Walking Horse Association and trot horses used stan-dard USDF tests.

The trail obstacle course, judged by an NWHA/FOSHlicensed judge, was designed to increase the difficulty of theobstacles by competition level and it certainly succeeded.

The cross country course, held on Sunday, proved to be achallenge to several riders. It was designed to test the trail wor-thiness of the horse and rider and test the rider’s ability to fol-low directions and a map. Safety on the course was emphasized.Eventing judges directed this phase and eventing rules regardingvet checks were followed.

Dinner Saturday night, was followed by an impromptu cri-tique by one of the judges on the exciting progress she sawbetween the first and second year’s events.This competition isgratifying for exhibitors. They like getting individualized feed-back on their dressage and stadium obstacle tests, unlike a showring class A question and answer discussion kept the judge anda lot of the riders, trainers and owners,busy for quite a while dis-

2008 Three Phase Event

cussing what the riders and trainers should be striving toachieve. Competitors were already looking forward to learningmore in order to improve their skills and scores next year. .

Audience and participant feedback was gratifying. Onecompetitor said, "A lot of new faces from barns toindividuals...the ambiance was exciting, everybody enjoying,cheering for each other, helping out and what I reallysensed...LAUGHTER...lots and lots of laughter...at yourselvesand each other...you did not feel bad because you got lost on thetrail course...because there were several who did...one riderclaimed he went to another town and back before he found thefinish line... and we all laughed about it and became runningjokes throughout the event..."

There were winners in each division and a national highpoint winner for the beginner novice/novice and training/pre-liminary categories. Charlie De Atley, on SRF Silver Sundown, aRocky Mountain horse, won the beginner Novice/Novice divi-sion, and Travis Robinson on Little Ann, a Kentucky MountainSaddle Horse,won the Training/ Preliminary division.A new per-petual trophy was introduced which will memorialize thesehighpoint winners through the years.A complete list of the win-ners can be found on the website: www.threephaseevent.com

Plans are already underway for the next year’s Three PhaseEvent. Keep checking the website for updates throughout theyear. ■

— Carolyn L. Kenton, President;Three Phase Event, Inc. [email protected]


Comments from May/June Part I quotations:

In the last issue I have tried to present the function of thehorse’s foot, most of the foot’s parts and how these partswork together to perform their function. I will now pres-ent information in three areas to help with the health ofthe horse and the horse’s hooves.The areas are break-over,heel-first landings, and one cause of laminitis (founder). Inreference to laminitis it has been said that “90% of domes-tic horses have mild to severe laminitis”due to the mannerin which we humans house and feed our horses.This con-dition relates directly to the health of the horse.The horsewill show sign of lameness since both front hooves havethe same pain.Thus the horse just continues doing what isbeing asked to do.The following figure is a representationof break-over:

At this point I would like to quote from Ms. MarjorieSmith:This is her response to my question on toe length [41/2 inches]relative to the health of the horse and break-over.

"Toe length is a critical dimension for the soundness ofa hoof. In order to be completely sound, the foot must landheel-first when going on a level surface. Hind feet arealmost always able to land heel-first, due to the zigzagarrangement of the hind-leg joints. Front feet, due to a dif-

The Horse’s FootA Compilation of Information

by Bill Coon

ferent joint arrangement, are only able to land heel-first ifthe hoof is trimmed to a natural shape, e.g. the wall istrimmed to the "live" sole plane, and the toe is beveled orbacked-up so that in a toe with totally straight growth fromthe coronet to the ground-- zero forward flare -- the break-over is in the middle of the "water line" or inner non-pig-mented layer of wall.”

“Any toe-wall that rests on the ground forward of thatbreak-over -- a flat-bottomed wall, a toe grown longer thanthe sole plane (hooves grow forward), a forward-flared toe(white line separation), or a foot with shoes that are notrockered back to the correct break-over point -- puts themoment of break-over late. Such a foot does not have timeto swing far enough forward to land on the heel. In prac-tice, a horse that has been shod is likely to have some for-ward flare, which necessitates beveling or backing-up thetoe to the edge of the sole (which grows forward of its cor-rect position along with the flared toe), until the toe hasgrown straight with a tight white-line connection to themiddle phalanx (coffin bone).”

"The heels can be approximately 1/8 inch longer thanthe sole plane (figure 11) to give the digital cushion someprotection in horses with an under-developed digital cush-ion, which is most domestic horses and especially thosethat have been shod more than a few months, and those,that were stalled as foals. Heels longer than about 1/8 inchcan also change the balance of the foot and prevent heel-first landing, no matter what the toe angle is. Heelstrimmed to the sole plane (or into the sole) will generallybe sore, as they don't protect an under-developed digitalcushion enough,and the horse will land toe-first to protecthis heels.”

“Everything about the horse's hoof works better whenthe foot lands on the ground heel-first. The hoof capsuleflexes in such a way that you get the best shock absorp-tion, the best circulation, and balanced wear. The digitalcushion is tough and the frog and heels are wide; they areable to protect the foot from amazing amounts of hardwork.”

PART II

Figure 7 A hoof balanced for heel-first landing.The distance from the break over lineto the widest part of the hoof is short-er than the distance from the widestpart to the heel buttresses.

An imbalanced hoof with long heels(which moves the buttresses forward)and a flared toe (which moves thebreak-over forward). The “widest part"stays at about the same position.The distance from the break-over lineto the widest part of the hoof islonger than the distance from thewidest part to the heel buttress


The sole plane is defined as thatpart of the hoof, viewed from the bot-tom that protects the third phalanxand the internal structures from theground.The sole is three eights of aninch thick and should not betrimmed.

"Hooves that land consistentlytoe-first will eventually get aninflamed impar ligament (holds thenavicular bone in place),due to incor-rect movement of the pastern boneswhen landing on the toe. It is nowbelieved that impar ligament inflam-mation comprises much of what wehave called "navicular syndrome".Further, the heel-first landing pro-vides the best circulation (needed forhealthy laminae / white line) and re-shapes contracted heels." (ask GeneOvnicek and/or Dr. Robert Bowker ifyou need particulars).”

“When a horse lands toe-first, orflat,over a long period of time, "navic-ular" pain is likely to develop, and theoval shape typical of shod hooves isvery slow to re-shape to a round foot.”

“If a front foot is landing toe firston level ground, look for one or moreof the following -- these are the mostcommon hoof difficulties.”

“Forward flared toe causes late

break-over, which in turngives the front leg too littletime to fully extend forwardfor a heel-first landing. Even aslight flare delays break-over.Forward flared toe comesfrom: the mechanical forcesof horseshoes, which tend todeform the hoof capsule in aforward direction, over time.If your horse's toe-first land-ing is due to forward flaredtoe,you need to "back up" thetoe to the edge of the sole.

Soft, undeveloped digital cushion (ashock absorbing tissue just above thefrog, which is supposed to be toughand fibrous), due to horseshoes,which prevent frog contact with theground and the horse did not gomany miles per day as a foal, or cur-rently does not go many miles perday, on firm ground, which toughensthe digital cushion. In most domestichorses, especially those that havebeen shod for a long time, the horsewill deliberately land toe-first toavoid concussion on the soft digitalcushion. The heelshould be left 1/8 to1/4 inch (2 to 5 mm)longer than the solein the seat of corn(after any chalky solematerial is scrapedaway), to give someprotection to thedigital cushion whilestill allowing frogcontact. Generallythe horse will let youknow, by increasedor decreased lame-ness, whether youhave trimmed theheel to just thelength he needs.” Asin figure 9:Figure 9 is a cour-tesy of MarjorieSmith

Figure 9 pointsout the difference

between the natural foot on the leftand the normal foot on the right.Theright two illustrations point out whatis probably 90% of domestic horses.The “standing up”, if you will, of thehoof in normal shoeing increases notonly the possibility of heel pain, butalso the probability of stretching ofthe white line or sensitive laminae :this in some cases called :white linedisease. So, if this form of shoeingcauses the above issues with the foot,long toes does also, with toe firstlanding since the heels of the foothurt. The horse does not show anypain since both feet hurt equally andhave grown accustomed to what istaking place. If the above conditionswork into full laminitis(founder),then the horse does show the pain inthe front hooves. Refer figures 10 &11 on page 12.The following definitions and expla-nations are the courtesy and web siteof Marjorie Smith:

“Most of the problems we see inthe hooves of domestic horses arerelated to flaring of the hoof wall.

continued page 12

Figure 8

Figure 7A

"Triangle foot" as worn by “wild horses”— short heels (comfortable) — coffin bone is "ground-parallel" (level) — pastern is sloped for good shock absorption

"Box foot" trim used by many farriers 10Btext— long heels (painful)— coffin bone is not "ground-parallel" — pastern is upright, loss of shock absorption

Bottom view of a "triangle foot"— frog and heels are wide— bulbs are wide apart— heels meet the corners of the frog 11Atext— bars are straight, making a strong heel structure

Bottom view of a "box foot"— frog and heels are contracted— bulbs and frog are creased together— heels are forward from the corners of the frog — bars are squeezed into a curve

When the foot lands toe-first, thepastern bones must change froman upward curve as the toelands, to a downward curve whenthe foot becomes weight-bearing.

When the foot lands heel-first,the pastern bones are already ina downward curve (full extensionof the joints) and the curvedoesn't have to change orienta-tion when the foot becomesweight-bearing.

continued on page <None>Sound Advocate page 8

The North West PleasureTennessee Walking Horse

Association was proud to present ourwonderful breed at the NorthwestHorse Fair and Expo in Albany,Oregon March 28-30 this year.

The weather was far from nice.We had rain, hail, snow, more rainand every once in a while, a bit ofsunshine. Even with the unpleasantweather, we had many people visitour horses. We distributed FOSHand NWPTWHA flyers. We madesome new friends and members forour Association. All the people wetalked to were impressed with ourglittering vests and beautiful horses.Our stalls were decorated in black,white, silver, and blue.

We took 10 horses and riders thisyear, all from our Silver Light RidersDrill Team. Our riders and horseswere: Bethany Larson & Gunner,Gaylene Bartel & Rocky, Ruth Good

& Venus, Kellie Rahm & Radar,Susan Hamlin & Maya, DeniseHenning & Romeo, Becky Jones &Marquis, Brenda Morgan & Tosha,Sabina Clevenger & Princess, JaimeRickkard & Baby, and our CaptainMichele McGuire. We rode our drillpattern once each day and demon-strated both the versatility and gaitsof our wonderful Walking Horses.

Becky Jones was also in the“Extreme Cowboy Race” which wewere all very excited about as she wasthe only gaited horse entered. Wewere also very excited when asked tocarry our American Flag everyday.Denise and Romeo rode the first day;Bethany and Gunner the next, andthe final day went to Becky andMarquis.

We were also asked by the Fjordgroup to play “cowboy polo” withthem in the Friday evening extrava-ganza which, of course, our team won.

As proud members of theNWPTWHA, we promote, andeducate the public on the versatility,grace, elegance, and style of thesound Tennessee Walking Horse.This year was like no other year thatwe have attended. We were able totake more horses, spend more timeat the booth and hand out more fly-ers and information on the WalkingHorse. We had our Walker in acompetition that has never seen agaited horse before. We took thetrophy in “cowboy polo” and wecannot wait to see what next yearwill bring for us!

NORTHWEST HORSE FAIR AND EXPO


Noted gaited horse expert, Barbara Weatherwax has been a soundgaited horse enthusiast since her first gaited horse, a Midnight Sundaughter, in 1947. She is the author of three books about gaited hors-es and is working on a new one about the purchase, maintenance andwinterizing of horses. She has been an examiner for several breedsincluding the Mountain Horses, Racking horses and Tiger horses. As alicensed judge for the Missouri Fox Trotter. Barbara judged many all-breed gaited horse shows, and is constantly keen about promoting thegaited breeds and educating horse lovers to the joys of sound horseswherever she goes.

sword” it is a good idea to prac-tice a right side mount for thattime when you are on the trailand have to dismount on the offside for some emergency. Midtrauma is not the time for a train-ing session.

Getting back to mentalintent; it is important that youare always paying attentionwhen you are interacting withyour horse. (That refers to bothin the saddle and on the ground.)It is important to engage yourmind in the activity. This alonewill pull your intention and letyour horse know “you’re upthere.” Variety is not only thespice of life, it is important tokeeping your horse’s attentionon what it is doing.They turn offthe same way we do – if we arebored with habitual circum-stances. We have many things tokeep our attention varied. Yourhorse has only its outings on thetrail to stimulate its imagination.It doesn’t take much to intro-duce a bit of change to our ride.If we have different venues we’reahead of the game. If we have totravel over the same terrainevery time we ride, we will haveto use a bit of imagination.

Vary your speed. Stop andback up a few steps every oncein a while. Think about yourhands and feet and seat bychecking your equitation.Talk toyour horse.Tell it what you haveplanned. Better yet, tell it a story;maybe a fairy tale or perhaps lastnight’s CSI. Change directions onthe trail. Don’t make the samepredictable loop. Keep your rela-tionship active and alive. Thenenjoy your ride.

Variety is the SpiceGreat Gaitsby

Barbara Weatherwax

bring their own qualities to therelationship. It’s a good idea ifthe human’s wishes are primary.It certainly isnít necessary totreat each ride as a work detail.All we want to do is maintaincontrol. A good portion of thiscan be accomplished by simplemental intent. Your safety alonecan benefit from this.It’s a goodidea if you riding buddy or bud-dies are in on the plan. If one per-son usually takes the lead –switch that around and share thelead. Maintaining the same posi-tioning in the group can affectyour horse’s attention.

In early training, it’s impor-tant to train the same task fromboth sides of your horse. If youlead from the left side; also leadfrom the right. Mounting is also“side sensitive.” We traditionallymount from the left side of thehorse because of the military.Since most people are righthanded, they would carry theirsword on their left side to facili-tate pulling it out with their righthand. Mounting from the rightwould be a challenge. If youdoubt that, hang a broom fromyour belt on the left side and tryto mount your horse from theright. Since most of us ride “sans

Any of us who spend a lotof time in the saddle canget lazy about our riding

habits. It is so easy to ride on thesame trail, utilize the same gaitsand maintain the same expecta-tions. But this lack of variation isa recipe for becoming stale.

Your horse can’t help buttake over the decision making onyour rides. Itís easy to under-stand why your horse becomesnumb to any signals. It is so usedto the routine that much of itstraining becomes lost.

So how do we remedy this?Well, we stop taking the samepath, we become more unpre-dictable in our requests and wemake every attempt to thinkabout what we are doing.

This may be more difficultthan one might imagine. Formany of us, our riding is our timeto relax; out time to get awayfrom the stresses in our life. Itfeels so good to simply go into avegetative state,and let our horsemake the decisions.

Unfortunately, once yourhorse takes over, it can be a prob-lem to regain the reins, so tospeak. The relationship betweenhorse and owner/rider is likeother interactions. Both parties

Barbara Weatherwax & General Jackson

www.BarbaraWeatherwax.com • www.GreatGaits.comwww.TheFabulousFloatingHorses.com • [email protected]



The first Independent Judges’ Association gaitedhorse dressage clinic made waves that will be felt

in the horse community across the continent.The clinic was generously hosted by FOSH

Patroness Sarah Bushong-Weeks at her fabulous 8thHeaven Farm in Castle Rock, CO.

Three clinicians donated their extremely valuabletime to instruct at the event.The clinicians were K CParkins-Kyle, Castle Rock, Diane Sept-Sutton, PA andLaurie Wolf, FL. Diane and Laurie also are IJA judges. KCbrought her experience from years of working withnon-gaited dressage. Together, they offered about 85years of experience with horses.

The May 31-June 2 event attracted five IJA judges,four entrants for the IJA dressage certification program,eight full auditors and three part auditors. Participantscame from nine states and one foreign country.

The event began with a day of classroom instruc-tion on what was expected in dressage in general andgaited dressage in particular.The newly developed IJAtests were presented and explained. The tests rangefrom beginning level where horses are required only todo various types of walks to higher levels where can-ters are required.

Day two of the clinic brought 21 tests being riddenby all different levels and breeds of gaited horses.Judges in training were assigned to one of the threeinstructors for a certain number of tests, then rotatedonto the next instructor.

“It’s amazing how closely all the judges scored thetests and how similar the scoring was to non-gaiteddressage,”said Christy Taylor,Pocatello, Idaho.She ownsC&M Farms, teaches numerous dressage classes andcompetes in non-gaited tests all around the west.“I wasso impressed with the knowledge of the instructors. I’dlike to hire them to judge my shows.”

Christy has incorporated the IJA dressage tests intoher instruction for her gaited students and will offerthe tests at her annual show.

The participating horses and riders were treated to

an equine body work session by Diane Sept-Suttonand assisted by Laurie Wolf. Owners were taught howto make their horses feel better through massage andother physical means.

KC was impressed by all the FOSH members. Shewas introduced to gaited horses by working for Sarahat 8th Heaven.

“What a relief to meet people who truly have thehorses’ best interest in mind among the gaited horsecommunity,” she said. “Dressage is about really goodriding for the human and the solid development of thehorse.There is no limit to its application.”

The third day of the clinic was spent evaluatingthe tests and how they should be executed in the ring.

“The clinic was a positive, educational and pro-gressive experience,” Diane Sept-Sutton said. “Therewere lovely horses presented for the show.As for thepeople and horses who participated in the clinic, thenotable changes in both horse and rider were nothingless than exciting and positive.”

She praised the people who did so much planningto create a positive gaited dressage experience.

“The official IJA manual for gaited dressage hasbeen developed and is a work in progress,” saidDianne Little, IJA Director of Judging.“The enthusiasmand hard work by the clinicians in putting togetherthe manual was awe-inspiring. Having them all cometogether with the dedicated clinic participants waswonderful.This is just the very beginning.The impactand enhancement of horsemanship through dressagehas just begun to be felt inthe gaited community.There is no end to wherethis can go.”

First Gaited DressageClinic a Success withClinicians andParticipants Alike

Photo Right:Diane Sept on Izzy;owners Gary & Linda Bean

Top Photo:Dressage Clinic Attendeesand Clinicians


The Horse’s Footcontinued from pg 7

Transition pain is due to flaringwhich allows the coffin bone to settledown and bruise the sole corium;Founder is essentially a big flare;Contracted heels are due to a for-ward-flared toe; Navicular pain isrelated to a forward-flared toe causingthe foot to land toe-first.”“Except for laminitis, where inflam-mation of the laminae allows thewhite line to stretch or separate,flares are the result of incorrectmechanical forces which pry the wallaway from the coffin bone.”“What is a flare?”“A flare is separation of the hoof wall,away from the coffin bone. Often thewall curves outwards at the bottomlike the bell of a trumpet.You can feeleven the slightest flare with yourhand, and you can generally see aflare by looking at the hoof wall withyour eye or camera at ground level,and moving around the foot to see allparts of the wall.”

“A flare due to laminitis or long-term mechanical stress (shoes or apulled-forward toe) often is straight inoutline, and may be difficult to recog-nize. The angle of the wall changesabruptly, high up -- sometimes soclose to the coronet that you can't seewhere it changes.”

“Flare tells us that white linestretching or separation has occurredand the hoof wall is not attached tothe coffin bone in that area. Flare andwhite line separation are the samething.When you look at the sole of aflared foot, the white line beside theflare is dirty (stretched) or makes asmall groove (separated) between thewall and the sole.To say it the otherway around, you will find a flarewhere the white line is dirty orgrooved.”

“When the white line has pulledapart -- like pulling the two sides of

Velcro (hook and loop fastener) apart-- the two sides cannot re-attach toeach other. A new connection mustgrow down from the coronet (hair-

line) -- just as, if you tear part of yourfingernail, you have to wait for thefingernail to grow out from thequick.”

“Most flares occur at the bottomof the wall, where ground contactmechanically starts to pry the wallaway from the bone. Occasionally ahind foot that is overgrown in the toebut short in the heel, will form abulge ("bull-nose") halfway up thetoe wall.The white line at the bulge isstretched because the unusualmechanical forces in this shape of ahoof pull the wall away from thebone.”

“A founder is a flare so severethat the coffin bone falls away(rotates at the P2-P3 joint) down-wards at the toe. Founder can resulteither from inflammation of the lami-nae (laminitis) or from mechanicalforces in an overgrown or badlytrimmed foot.”

“Flares are painful.The hoof wallis fingernail, and is attached to thebone by the same strong-but-tendermaterial that holds fingernails on --you can see the stripes of your ownlaminae through your fingernails.

Flaring feels something like havingyour fingernail pulled off. Laminitis(inflammation of the white line) is sopainful the horse will stand in the

"founder stance{forelegs out in front ofthe shoulder and mov-ing weight to the hindquarters}.” Even amechanical flare ispainful enough tomake the horse notice-ably unsound — some-times people thinktheir horse is "being

lazy" but the horse peps up againwhen you get the white line tight-ened up.”“Wild horses don't often haveflares. A horse living in "horsecountry" going 20 miles (30 km)daily on rough, dry ground wearsits feet to an efficient "mustangroll" or rounded bevel that cannot

flare. In unusual conditions -- a rainyseason with lush grass -- wild hoovesdo get overgrown and begin to flare.The flared wall chips, cracks, andbreaks away, giving the horse a rough-looking but workable hoof until dryconditions return.”

”Flares in domestic horses”“Flares are common in domestic hors-es. Mechanical flares happen when ahoof is overgrown or imbalanced. Ifthe horse lives in a wet climate, thesoftened hoof flares more easily thana dry-climate hoof. In addition, we seelaminitic flares in these same wetareas, because the grass is lush andfull of sugars, and many horses sooneror later become insulin-resistant. (Seewww.safergrass.org. Pasture grasseshave been bred for high sugar con-tent to raise milk production in dairycattle.Excellent recommendations forcare of the insulin-resistant horse.)”

“Hooves that live on wet, poorlydrained ground, or during a wet sea-son, need much more frequent carethan hooves on dry terrain. Here inthe Northeast USA, it is a constantstruggle to keep hooves from flaring


and horses from going unsound. Wehave to trim every 2 to 3 weeks -- 10days during the spring -- and renewthe mustang roll between trims. Justa few days' overgrowth allows a newflare to form which can make thehorse unsound for weeks.The combi-nation of "horse-unfriendly" climate,together with the lack of movementin domestic horses' lives, makes hoofcare a major part of the horse'supkeep in this climate. We are start-ing to recommend walking the horseup to half an hour daily on pavement,to give better concussion. Thisstrengthens the white line byincreasing circulation in the hoof.”

In Conclusion: The reasons forall the material presented here is toshow that excessive toe length cancause a great deal of grief for thehorse. To quote from Dr. Bowker -“Short toes are the best thing you cando to a foot!”“His simple recommen-dations, which he calls thePhysiological Trim, are short toes,short heels, and trimming for the 1/3-2/3 balance of the foot: 1/3 of thefoot in front of the apex of the frog,and 2/3 behind it.” Flares are preva-lent in domestic horses and theseflares cause the horse stress.As longas we humans nail steel shoes onhorses we will continue to see theabove issues with horses. In my expe-rience with steel shoes nailed to thefoot, the foot gets oblong in shaperather than round. If one was to lookat the natural foot of a feral horse –the foot is round, not oblong. Theoblong shape is due to the steel shoe– the toe tends to extend to form thisoblong shape and from this shapeflares start to occur, along with con-tracted heels, thus causing heel painand since we humans put the steelshoes on our horses from a very earlyage, the frog, digital cushion and thelateral cartilages never hit theground.Therefore are never stimulat-ed, so these structures remain softand lack the fibro-cartilage strengthof a natural hoof.

I don’t expect any one to stopshoeing their horses.The purpose ofthe paper is to show another per-spective of ‘The Horse’s Foot’. Thisresearch is the basis for the IJA rulechange – the rule change is not toput anyone or horses at a deficit inshowing horses, but to put forth aneffort to get the horse to a more nat-ural and healthy foot.This paper willbe followed up with a few more,hopefully not this lengthy, papers onthe horse’s foot. Yes, I will go intoshoeless or barefoot in these laterpapers. I would not expect any oneto follow suit unless the perspectivehuman does an extraordinaryamount of reading of the web sitesthat follow in this paper.

OK, I’ve said quite a bit about theinternal and external structures ofthe foot. What do these folks that Ihave quoted think a healthy and nat-ural horse hoof should look like? Thefollowing figure is the bottom viewof a healthy foot.Figure 12 is the courtesy of MarjorieSmith

“Domestic hooves will not be asshort as {this example}. Most of ourhorses don't travel enough dailymiles on hard ground, to have a total-ly healthy, tight white line.The whiteline is weakened and stretchy, there-fore the coffin bone (which "hangsunderneath" the sloped hoof wall)has a lower position inside the hoofcapsule. In domestic horses we canexpect toe lengths of about 3 1/4 to3 3/4 inches (8 to 9.5 cm) measuredfrom the hairline to the ground.”Theabove (figure 12) the hoof length is3”.

“If you try to trim a domestichoof as short as this, you will have tothin the sole to do it, and this willmake your horse very sore.”

I will go into the domestic trimto achieve the above foot (figure 12)in later papers.And yes, this is a bare-foot horse that has been barefootquite a while. Again, the averagedomestic horse that has been shodits entire life will have more of anoblong shape to the hoof and thefrog will not look like the frog in fig-ure 12. The frog of the domestichorse will look narrower and not ashealthy.

I will also go into the healthyfoot as seen in figure 12 and theeffect on gait in later papers.

With all the above:This is the rea-son for the four and one half inchrule change.The health of the horseis the primary objective.

*Acknowledgements The Lame Horse by Dr. James Rooney is available from the Russell Meerdink Company, Ltd., 1555 South

Park Avenue, Neenah, WI 54956 or on-line at www.horseinfo.com for $29.95 plus $7.00 shipping.

Marjorie Smith’s web site is www.barefoothorse.com

To quote from The Horse’s Hoof – “Robert Bowker VMD PhD is a Professor of Anatomy and Director ofthe Equine Foot Laboratory at Michigan State Univ. College of Veterinary Medicine. His most importantrole is that of veterinary researcher, and through funding support from the AQHA and Grayson Jockey

Club, Dr. Bowker has been able to spend the last decade and a half studying the function of the equinefoot. Much of his research has been on the microscopic level, and through the dissection and study of

literally thousands of cadaver hooves.”Gene Ovnicek - www.hopeforsoundness.com

Pete Ramey – www.hoofrehab.comOther sites: www.horseshoes.com/farrierssites/sites/rooney/ • www.thehorseshoof.com

www.tribeequus.com • www.ironfreehoof.com • www.aanhcp.net. • www.equinepodiatry.net


NEWS AND NOTESNEWS AND NOTESLook for TWH Coverage inAugust Horse Illustrated!

The August issue of Horse Illustrated featuresTennessee Walking Horses as its breed of the month.The focus differs slightly as it is about the versatileTennessee Walking Horse. Several FOSH farms andtrainers joined together to purchase a full one-pagecolor ad with beautiful photos of natural TWHs.What is exciting about the ad is that the advertisedfarms are from East to West and from North toSouth. FOSH truly has a national membership baseof individuals that support sound, naturally gaitedWalking Horses. You may also want to look for anEquiTheater featured article at the Horse Illustratedwebsite. Even if you do not subscribe to HorseIllustrated, you may want to keep your eyes peeledfor this issue at the newsstand.

Proposed IJA Rulebook Changes

Each November at the FOSH Board of Directors’meeting, the Board considers and votes upon pro-posed rule changes to the IJA Rulebook. If youwould like to request any IJA Rule Book changes,now is the time to submit to your proposal. Theform for submitting proposed rule changes is in theIJA Rule Book on page 104 and can be downloadedfrom the FOSH website. The Rulebook is located atthe “Shows and Events” tab, IJA Rules and Judgesoption. The mailing address and instructions forsubmission are on page 103 of the Rulebook. Weask that your request be postmarked no later thanOctober 15 to allow sufficient time for the Board toconsider and research the request before its annualmeeting. If you have any questions, please do nothesitate to contact the Director of Judges, DianneLittle, at [email protected]

FOSH Sponsored TrailCompetition to be Held in IdahoFriends Of Sound Horses will be one of the co-sponsorsfor the 4th annual Idaho State University Ridge Riders’Rendezvous Sept. 20, at the East Fork of Mink Creeknear Pocatello, Idaho.

The 10 mile ride will have 10 judged obstacles alongthe well-marked trail. Each horse and rider team will bescored from one to 10 points for how well they completean obstacle.

Several thousand dollars worth of prizes have beendonated to be awarded to participants. Lori Northrup,FOSH president, has donated a Parelli halter and leadrope to the FOSH member that earns the highest score.

The cost of the ride is $25. There also will be aDutch oven meal after the ride for a small fee.

The competition is a fundraiser for Idaho StateUniversity’s Riding Instruction Development andEducation (RIDE) program. This offers adaptive ridingfor physically challenged people, riding classes for collegecredit through the university and lessons for beginningriders in the community.

The event is open to all breeds of horses and all agesand levels of riders. Registration for the ride will begin at8:30 a.m. The ride will start at 10 a.m.

The event is organized by Jolynn Angle, ISU.Further information is available by contacting her at 208-604-2302.

Innovative Trophy Award forIdaho Show!The Friends of Sound Horses, FOSH, members will havean extra opportunity to be recognized at the EIGHAannual show at the Eastern Idaho Sate Fair.

This year’s judge, Susan Moses, Utah, is anIndependent Judge’s Association member and qualifiedto judge pointed FOSH shows. Dianne Little, IJADirector of Judging, has donated a beautiful trophy thatSusan will award to the FOSH member horse and riderteams that best exemplifies partnership and communica-tion throughout the show.

FOSH members will wear arm bands to identifythem as eligible to compete for the trophy.

The horse and rider selected as Judge’s Choice willhave their picture and a short story in the following edi-tion of the Sound Advocate, the FOSH bi-monthly mag-azine.


The Southwind Rider’s Retreat was a FOSH sanctionedevent that promoted the use of sound rescue horses.Debbe Woodbury, a Park City, Utah, jewelry designer,

has run her own horse rescue program for several years. Shewas inspired by several books on using horses for therapyand decided to bring horses and people together for threedays at the rustic Moon Lake Lodge in the High UintaMountains of Southern Utah.

“The first retreat was an experiment to see how every-thing would flow and go,” Woodbury said. “We broughttogether people with a variety of skills and specialties.Theyreadily shared their gifts with all the people there.The hors-es, as always, were wonderful.”

Three of her rescues, Beautiful Jack, Orion andWinchester,quietly offered rides to inexperienced beginners.She gives what she calls gentle riding lessons that mayinvolve no more than a person being led around until theyget the confidence to guide their own horse. Riders couldchoose from dense pine forest, mountain trails and sandybeaches.

Barbara Clendennen, Park City,Utah, also brought somerescue horses and guided rides.

Karen Duker, Silver Creek, Utah, has studied T-Touch withLinda Tellington Jones. She offered instruction for interestedparticipants.Andrea Arel, Park City, Utah, a professional mas-sage therapist, brought a portable table and treated everyoneto a free massage.

Julie Morgan, Park City, led morning and evening medita-tions.

Some FOSH members, like Linda Bean, Salt Lake City,Utah, and Kathie Lambson, Mackay, Idaho, brought their ownhorses.“Galloping on that beautiful beach was a moment I’llnever forget,” Kathie said. “The wonderful riding with ourhorses is what I’ll treasure most.”

Debbe and her husband, Jordan, cooked three gourmetmeals every day. Guests dined under an easy up canopy oraround the fire.

“We asked everyone to make suggestions to improve thenext retreat,” Debbe said. “We all had a great time with thisone, learned a lot and will make the next one even better.We’re grateful FOSH could be involved and we support whatit is doing to help horses”

Southwind Rider’s Retreat

Paula Davis, Julie Morgan, Debbe Woodbury and BarbaraClendennen, event organizers.


The inaugural Sound Horse Conference attractedmore than 100 representatives of various interestsin the equine world.

The conference was held April 11-12 at the OhioState University College of Veterinary Medicine. It wasorganized by Friends of Sound Horses (FOSH,) and co-sponsored by FOSH, The American Horse ProtectionAssociation, The Humane Society of the United States,The American Assn. of Equine Practitioners and theTennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Assn.

The program addressed the Horse Protection Actenforcement, or lack there of, new technology to identi-fy soring, pressure shoeing and road foundering and howto prevent or eliminate soring from all breeds of horses.

A panel called “Prevent Soring Within Your Breed”specifically addressed soring with gaited mountain horses.

Sandy McCart, Harrodsburg, Ky., became involvedwith Rocky Mountain horses when she went to work as atrainer for Rea Swan, first RMHA president. She went onto her own training operation and served first on theRMHA show committee and then on the board asDirector of Judging.

“People said ‘this is not a show horse,’ in the begin-ning, so they didn’t think strict showing rules were nec-essary,” McCart said. “Then, some barns adept at show-ing came and started winning with horses that weredoing just a little more. By the time the RMHA decidedto become more strict about enforcing traditional stan-dards, it was much more difficult to go back to the orig-inal horse.”

Thereafter McCart worked for the KentuckyMountain Saddle Horse Association and produced boththe UMH and KMSHA magazines for five years. Whenthose two organizations split, McCart continued as edi-tor of the KMSHA magazine and became show directorand manager for the association until her resignation in2007.

“In every association, I see the judges picking thehorses that are stepping higher and doing more,” shesaid. “I showed the UMH and KMSHA high point trailpleasure horse in 2001. I feel that horse would not becompetitive in the same division now.”

The tendency of judges to reward more animatedhorses results in “bracket creep,” said Dianne Little,Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Director of the IndependentJudges Association. She said this is something seen in

Prevent Soring Within Your BreedPanel Discussion from Sound Horse Conference

most breeds. The placing of higher stepping horsesinevitably leads to soring to get more action to remaincompetitive.

Forcing the horse to go in an unnatural way is notonly painful for the animal, but results in long-term phys-ical problems long after they have left or becomeunsound for the show ring.

“We have to focus on the welfare of the horse so thatthey are happy, healthy and sound,” Little said. “I’ll bethe happiest person in the world when education dealswith the entire horse, not just the feet and legs.”

Denny Hales, vice president of the Ohio QuarterHorse Assn., said his breed association has taken serioussteps to stop abuse in their show circuit. “Our problemsare heads and tails,” Hales said.

He said mind-altering drugs were used and horseswere forced to go with an unnaturally low neck carriage.Tails were deadened because points were taken off for ahorse that swished its tail in the ring.

The AQHA implemented mandatory random drugtesting and paid for it by increasing show fees slightly. Italso put stringent penalties in place for violators. They arewarned once and given life-time suspension the nexttime. Violators’ names are published and they are notallowed on show grounds.

“You might say we slap their wrist the first time andcut off their hand the second,” he said. “We saw theUSDA mandating requirements for the walking horseindustry and we wanted to solve our problems on ourown. We’ve come up with our own machine to test fortails being altered.”

All the panelists said forcing judges to select winnersby breed standards, not personal preference, was the keyto eliminating soring, “fixing” and bracket creep in theshow ring.

It becomes the responsibility of the governing bodyof each association to assure that judges select appropri-ately. Judges who don’t select by appropriate breed stan-dards should no longer be hired, they said.

“We don’t have all the answers,” Hales said. “But, weare doing all we can to sincerely address the situation.”

Little agreed that soring could be eliminated by vig-ilant breed associations. “The tools are there to preventsoring and uphold breed standards,” Little said. “Butfirst, ya gotta wanna.”

In depth information from the entire conference isavailable at www.soundhorseconference.com.


Sean Whalen holds the reins of his Rocky Mountain Horse duringjudging Saturday at the inaugural Morgan Riggs RockyMountain Horse Show at the 4-H fairgrounds. Whalen’s horse wonits category, Junior Confirmation. The show was in honor of Riggs,who was well-known in the RMH world.

Paulette Klein, the organizer of the Morgan Riggs MemorialRocky Mountain Horse Show, Saturday at the 4-H fairgrounds,said she was pleased with the day’s events. Despite having tomove from the main arena, due to wet conditions, the show ransmoothly.“Even though that was the case, people still stayed andhad a nice day,”she said.“It turned out very good for the very firstday. I appreciate all the horsemen coming out and all the towns-people coming out to support it.”

The show ran until around 7 p.m. Saturday and featured 35classes for Rocky Mountain Horses. Klein organized it in memo-ry of Riggs, who died a year ago. He was her mentor in showingthe relatively new breed of horse.

There were many volunteers, including several young peo-ple, who Klein said were instrumental in making things runsmoothly. “I couldn’t have done it without them,”she said. “Thekids that volunteered... really did a fabulous job.”

The Kentucky Equine Education Program sponsored rib-bons and awards and Friends of Sound Horses (FOSH) checkedall the animals to make sure they were fit for entry.The DQPs dida great job checking the horses.FOSH DQP Walter Moyer trainedthree DQP apprentices, Foster Bartlett, Paris, KY, David Klein,Cynthiana,Kentucky. They were courteous and respectful of theexhibitors and handled the horses with TLC.Thanks to the mis-sion of FOSH our horses will be sound, naturally gaited horses.

“That’s what Morgan really promoted, was the preservationof the breed, the soundness and the natural gait of the horse,”Klein said. “In addition to the DQP, we used FOSH’s list ofIndependent Judges to select a judge for the show. Ottis JeanLane of Wellington, KY, did a very thorough job during the 8hours of classes and we appreciate her ability to “keep at it” inthe intense heat of the day. During this show, we also used theHorse Show Time software program. Our show secretary, RuthPurcell, practiced the program during the month of March.Theinitial stages of class entry were a bit touchy, but she was soonup to speed and the show software proved to be an excellentasset.The Morgan Riggs Rocky Mountain Horse Show is the firstin the RMH Association to use FOSH DQPs, the IJA and the ShowTime Software Program. And I’m proud to be the first ShowManager to bring them into the association. My hat’s off toFOSH!!!”

First Morgan Riggs Memorial HorseShow gets Spirited Support

BATES GAITED HORSESRocky & Nya Bates • Melba, ID. 83641Phone: 208-495-1606Website: www.batesgaitedhorses.com

Training of all fine gaited flat shod horses to include TWH, SSH,KMH, RMH, RH.& MFT using basic Saddleseat and Dressage fortrail, plantation pleasure and field trial. Lessons Available; NyaBates, trainer

Standing natural barefoot TWH stallions Go Boy's Windwalker(TWH Heritage Society Certified) and Cruise With the Limo at stud.

Sales of well gaited, sensible, quiet and willing mounts.

QUILTED MEADOWSBill & Vicki ChattenPO Box 41, Schoolhouse Lane • Tuckahoe, NJ 08250Phone: 609-628-2075Email: [email protected]

BAREFOOT WALKING HORSES for trail show or just pure pleasure!

Martha Chatten, riding instructor for gaited and non-gaited breeds.IJA judge. 609-743-1094

WYANT’S WINTER SPRINGSLaura Wyant ~ Lifetime FOSH MemberCheshire, Oregon (near Eugene)Phone & Fax: 541-998-2803Email: [email protected]: www.WyantsWinterSprings.com

Standing at stud 2009 to limited approved mares: JUST MY SIZE,reg. SSHBEA (SMHA # pending). Bred to be pony sized, expectedto mature @ 13 hands.

Occasionally have foals/horses for sale

THE ETERNAL FLAMETWH Stallion • Winner of 2007 NAC Western Pleasure GrandChampion; Shown barefoot. Excells in dressage and trail obstacle.Athletic, willing dispositions. Proven sire. Shipped semen available.$500 stud fee-plus shipping.Standing at Walking The Dog RanchOwners: Bucky and Nancy Sparks18173 C.R. 22 • Cortez, Co. 81321Email: [email protected]: 970-882-4520Website: www.blessyourhorse.com

FOSH FarmsLooking for your next trail horse, trainer, or breeding stallion? Check out these fine farms...

Training Services

Breeding Services

For Sale


SEND YOUR VIDEO FOR A FREE EVALUATIONof your EquiTheater routine. EquiTheater Clinics or Instruction avail-able. For mor information, email: [email protected]

*Advertise your training or breeding service in FOSH Farms foronly $50 per year! All listings are also posted on the FOSHwebsite FREE!!

* FOSH is unable to verify that each advertiser is a sound horse resource, whether farm, breeder or trainer.

SOUND ADVOCATE DEADL INES(articles, photos, ads, and calendar items)

Sept/Oct IssueAugust 15, 2008

Nov/Dec IssueOctober 15, 2008

See inside front cover for advertising information and rates

Our Thanks!

Our appreciation to Action ShotsPhotography for supplying the 2008

NAC photos used in this issue ofSoundAdvocate.

To order your photos, visitwww.csyoung.smugmug.com

or contact: Danny YoungEmail:

[email protected]: 540-383-7268 or 540-574-3207


FOSH Regional Championship tobe Offered in MidWest!

For those of you who may be itching to show inOctober,GaitWay Horse Association (GWHA) is hostingthe FOSH Region II Championships on October 11 and

12 in Columbia, Missouri at the Boone County Fairgrounds.This is a new location for GWHA and there are high hopesthis turns into a great venue for future shows as the cost isreasonable. How reasonable you ask? $30 stall fees for theweekend with $20 for a tack stall while RV hookups are $10a day. For those of you unfamiliar with Missouri, Columbia ismidway between St. Louis and Kansas City with Columbiaabout 2 to 2 1/2 hours west of St. Louis.

What can you expect? Forty-nine classes for TennesseeWalking Horses, Spotted Saddle Horses and Open GaitedBreeds with qualifying and Versatility classes on Saturday(including EquiTheater with paybacks) and additionalVersatility classes (including dressage) and Championshipson Sunday. Some interesting and fun classes are offered thatare not usually available; i.e., Freestyle Reining, OGB SpeedRacking and TWH Ranch Horse, so please take a look at theshowbill at www.gwha.org, Showbill Menu, “Fall Gaited

Calling all FOSH Members WhoWant to be More Involved!

FOSH is interested in hearing from members who wouldlike to add some volunteer hours to their life by applying

for a one-year term position on the Executive AdvisoryCommittee (EAC). EAC members who enjoy their time onthe Committee and want to dedicate more time are eligiblefor a position on the FOSH Board of Directors. Good EACcandidates should be interested in assisting with one or moreof the following: recordkeeping and administration activi-ties, writing, public relations, marketing and promotion andmost importantly, fund raising. Skills that could assist includegraphic design and layout, media and audiovisual, technologyand website development, editing and proofing. Candidatesmust also have frequent access to email as the Board and EACcommunicate extensively throughout the year via email inaddition to about half a dozen teleconferences a year.

FOSH members, and the Board and EAC develop manywonderful ideas each year; however, insufficient peoplepower means that most ideas are not developed nor promot-ed. If you are interested in seeing FOSH grow and have con-sidered devoting more time to stop the abuse of soring, wehope you submit your name for a position on the EAC. Pleasesend your background information or a resume and yourname to Teresa Bippen, [email protected],with a sub-ject line of “FOSH EAC Position” no later than October 1. Or,if you want to discuss your interest and qualifications in moredetail,please send an email to Teresa and she will contact youto provide more in-depth information.

Show” tab. Who knows, maybe you will be tempted to trysomething new with your trusty steed?

One class that is expected to attract some competitivesouls is the “Heritage TWH”class which is designed to rewardthe truly natural Tennessee Walking Horse in all aspects—thehorse that gaits with natural angles and without long toes orthe addition of weight. This is the horse that exemplifies thehistorical background of the breed and horses will be evalu-ated on quality of gait, pleasure horse qualities, stamina andground covering ability regardless of style, frame or anima-tion. Shoeing is limited to keg shoes without trailers or caulksand barefoot horses. The Heritage class is fairly new to the IJARulebook, and the Regional Championship may be the firstshow where this class has ever been offered.

The Regional Championship show is a FOSH AA+ ratedshow and double points are earned for FOSH high pointchasers. For those of you that covet points from the PonyExpress Horse Show Commission or Missouri Horse ShowAssociation, the show is also pointed with those two organi-zations. IJA Judge Gail Stevens will be judging.

As Autumn approaches along with cooler weather (andwith a bit of luck, lower fuel prices), we hope you head toMissouri, either as an exhibitor or spectator, to catch up withfriends, acquaintances and some good times to make thisregional championship one of the best and biggest ever!

Annual IJA Clinic—First TimeEver in Europe

As reported previously, history will be made when DianneLittle, FOSH Director of Judging, presents an IJA judging

clinic in South Germany, prior to the European Championships.Little will present a two-day judging clinic July 30-31 prior

to the European Championships in Kreuth on August 1-3.Attendance is limited to ten people.

The European Championship will feature TennesseeWalkers, Peruvian Pasos and Paso Finos. The show is the resultof a combined effort between the European Breed Associations.Mary Donald, Rupert, Idaho, is the IJA judge selected to officiateover the Peruvian Pasos at this show. As we go to press, IJAJudge Bill Coon is attending in addition to Little and Donald.

An interesting highlight of the clinic is a dinner buffet inthe dirt combined with fun classes. According to Little’s under-standing, the buffet is in the arena with horses moving aroundthe tables. This is a new experience for Dianne. Who knows?This may result in fun some ideas for FOSH shows and events.

The request for a sound horse clinic came after manyEuropean walking horse owners became disillusioned withunnatural and sored horses. They formed The Natural WalkingHorse to protect their horses and honor a natural way of going.

“I felt the promotional value of FOSH/IJA representing thesound horse in Europe was huge,” Little said. “Being the firstorganization asked to provide a gaited horse judging clinic inEurope would outweigh any adverse effects of the lack of ajudging clinic in Florida this year.”

The Sound Advocate will provide all the details of theEuropean IJA Clinic in its next issue.

IJA Judge: Diane Sept SuttonContact: Keith Dane • 410-795-6144 • [email protected]

6th Annual All Gaited Jr. Benefit Horse ShowAugust 9 & 10, 2008Location: Solano County Fairgrounds, Vallejo, CA 94589IJA Judge: Debbie RashContact: Nola Giddings 510-758-7786 Email: [email protected]

Ohio Championship RMH (Affiliated)August 9, 2008Location: Springfield, OH • Classes for: RMHContact: Ruth Purcell • Telephone: 812-637-3606 • [email protected]

Tri-State Chris Kilburn MemorialChampionship RMH (Affiliated)August 10, 2008Location: Springfield, OH • Classes for: RMHContact: Ruth Purcell • Telephone: 812-637-3606 • [email protected]

FOSH Fox Trotter Show (Affiliated &Sanctioned)August 22, 2008Location: Mansfield, MO • Classes for: MFTContact: Patsy Climer • Email: [email protected]

Oregon State Fair (Sanctioned)August 23 & 24, 2008Location: Salem, ORIJA Judge: Bobby Clark-RappContact: Nancy Erketich, 503-947-3247 • Website: www.oregonstatefair.org

Indiana Championship (Affiliated)August 23, 2008Location: Hoosier Horse Park, Franklin, IN 46131Judge: Travis SmithContact: Ruth Purcel, 812-637-3606 • [email protected]

Tri-State Championship RMH (Affiliated)August 24, 2008Location: Franklin, IN 46131 • Classes for: RMHContact: Ruth Purcell, 812-637-3606 • [email protected]

FOSH/MWHA Sponsored Trail Trial forGaited HorsesAugust 30, 2008Location: Hobby Horse Farm, Carlton, MN 55718Contact: [email protected] • Website: www.mnwh.com

JulyKY Heritage & KY State Championship(Affiliated)July 11 & 12, 2008Location: Bowling Green, KY • Classes for: RMHContact: Tabitha Locher • 270-392-1031 • Email: [email protected]

United Pleasure Walking Horse AssociationCharity Horse Show (Sanctioned)July 18, 2008Location: Frick Park Arena, Oak Grove, MOHosted by: United Pleasure Walking Horse AssociationIJA Judge: Sally FronesContact: Joyce Guillemot, 816-690-4515 • [email protected]: www.upwha.com

KMSHA KY State Championship (Affiliated)July 18 & 19, 2008Location: Lawrenceburg, KYContact: Chastity Atkins, 606-255-0197 • Email: [email protected]

Evergreen Gaited ClassicJuly 19 & 20, 2008Location: Puyallup, WA • Classes for: OGBContact: Emmy Capizzi 360-876-5291 • email: [email protected]

Annual IJA Judge’s Training ClinicJuly 30 & 31, 2008Location: Kreuth, GermanyContact: Dianne Little • Email: [email protected]

AugustEuropean ChampionshipsAugust 1 & 2, 2008Location: Kreuth, Germany • Classes for: TWHs, Peruvian Pasos & Paso FinosIJA Judge: Mary McDonald

GWHA Lincoln County Fairgrounds ShowSeries (Sanctioned “C” Show)August 2, 2008Location: 6:00 p.m., Lincoln County Fairgrounds, Troy, MOHosted by: Gaitway Walking Horse AssociationJudge: Vicci Eaton • Classes for: Gaited and Stock Horse BreedsContact: Sally Naumann • 636-528-6059 • [email protected]: www.gwha.org

The Gaited Classic at Howard County FairAugust 4, 2008Location: Rt. 144, West Friendship, MD 21784


2008 FOSH Sanctioned/Affiliated* Shows & Events“Sanctioned” A show which uses the FOSH guiding principles regarding humane exhibiting of gaited horses. Show will be designated as an A, AA, AA+ or AAA. “Affiliated” A show orevent which uses FOSH DQPs for inspection. Show will state “Affiliated.” Listing includes equine expos and events where FOSH and sound horse supporters will be distributing soundhorse literature. *The shows and events marked by * have been reported to FOSH to be sound and to embrace the FOSH Principles of Sound Horsemanship. Many of the shows listedbelow use a FOSH IJA judge and/or the FOSH IJA Rulebook, yet the show has not applied for FOSH sanctioning nor applied to use a FOSH DQP. Some shows may use rules more restric-tive than FOSH.

FOSH Membership Application and Order FormFOSH Membership Application and Order Form(All annual memberships include bi-monthly issue of the Sound Advocate and an Educational Packet)

(check one)

FOSH Individual Membership ❑ $ 30 Organization Membership (For your Gaited Horse Club or Association) ❑ $50 (Please Print Neatly)Name: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Address: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _City: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _State: _ _ _ _Zip Code: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Phone: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _E-mail: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Breed(s) of Horse(s): _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Additional Donations: ❑ $20 ❑ $30 ❑ $40 ❑ $50 ❑ Patron $100 ❑ Benefactor $300 ❑ Life $500

Patrons, Benefactors, and Life members receive a one year subscription to The Gaited Horse magazine.

Available Merchandise

FOSH Standards Video—America’s Walking Horse, Poetry in Motion—

First tape/DVD for FOSH members: _ _ _ _ _ _ _$10 ea

Additional tapes/DVDs: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _$20 ea

FOSH Full-color poster _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _$10 ea

2008 Independent Judges Assoc. Rulebook _ _ _ _$10 ea

*All prices include shipping*

Total Enclosed: $_________Payment by check or credit card(please make checks payable to FOSH in US funds)

Card #___________________________________________

Expiration date___________________

Credit Card authorized signature

________________________________________________

Send your payment to: FOSH 6614 #105; St. Louis, MO 63117FOSH is a charitable, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization SA V8 I 2008


2008 Events (continued)

SeptemberEastern Idaho Gaited Horse Assoc.Championship ShowSeptember 1, 2008Location: Eastern Idaho State Fairgrounds, Blackfoot, ID 83221Judge: Susan MosesContact: Jane Howlett, 208-235-1879 • Email: [email protected]

*GWHA Lincoln Co Fairgrounds Show SeriesSeptember 6, 2008Location: 6:00 p.m., Lincoln County Fairgrounds, Troy, MOHosted by: Gaitway Walking Horse AssociationClasses for: Gaited and Stock Horse BreedsContact: Sally Naumann, 636-528-6059 • [email protected]: www.gwha.org

C&M Farm Cool Down Dressage ShowSeptember 13 & 14, 2008Location: C&M Farm, Pocatello, IDContact: Christy Taylor, 208-637-2855

RMHA International (Affiliated)September 16-20, 2008Location: Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, KYHosted by: Rocky Mountain Horse Association • Classes for: RMH

Ridge Riders’ RendezvousSeptember 20, 2008Ten Mile Judged Trail RideLocation: IdahoContact: Jolynn Angle, 208-604-2302

*GWHA Lincoln County Fairgrounds ShowSeriesSeptember 20, 2008Location: 6:00 p.m., Lincoln County Fairgrounds, Troy, MOHosted by: Gaitway Walking Horse Association, Proceeds donated toLongmeadow Rescue RanchClasses for: Gaited and Stock Horse BreedsContact: Sally Naumann, 636-528-6059, [email protected]: www.gwha.org

B.L.E.S.S. Your Walking Horse Clinic (Auditors Welcome)September 27 & 28, 2008Clinicians: Bucky and Nancy SparksLocation: Williams Lake B.C. CanadaContact: Donna Marie Cyr 250-392-5531

OctoberNPWHA Futurity (Affiliated)October 3-5, 2008Location: Los Angeles Equestrian Center (LAEC), Burbank, CAContact: Janie RobertsTelephone: 951-471-3426, email: [email protected]

The Carousel Charity Horse Show has affiliated their show with FOSH for thelast two years – this after a thirty five year history of being an NHSC showand offering classes for stacked, chained horses. What a huge victory for thesound horse movement!

It is in support of this show that Walking the Dog Ranch will hold a chuckwag-on supper, B.L.E.S.S. clinic and guided trail ride in beautiful south westColorado. Save some vacation time and help support this worthy cause!Dates are set for August 15th-18th, 2008. We are near Mesa Verde,Telluride and the Durango/Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.

If you wish to spend additional time touring, we can board your horse at areasonable fee. Space is limited to eight for the clinic so call early to reservea spot. Cost is $500, extra person charge $150 which includes food, camp-ing and auditing. This event is for adults, children under eighteen must beaccompanied by a guardian. Companion dogs must be leashed.

FMI Contact:Bucky or Nancy

Sparks(970) 882-4520(970) 739-1353

Walking The Dog Ranch tohost Fundraiser for Carousel

Charity Horse Show


The Mountain Horse exhibitors keep it a family affair.While holding hands,mother Jill and daughter Michelle Blanchard won the Pairs class with MakingMusic and Miz Diamond Broker, owned by sister/aunt Pam Toms. Dad Dennismade a successful transition from groom to exhibitor winning multiple classeswith Elvis’ Rock-A-Baby including the UMH Open Trail PleasureChampionship. Eilise Jolley with proud grandma Marianne Jolley made hershowing debut on Rebel Ridge Jeremiah in the Lead Line class. The new FOSHcoloring book was a big hit with the junior exhibitor.

Mary Stuart Hatton riding PBF’s Sudden Eclipse won both the UMHNonPro Classic Pleasure class and the UMH Open Classic PleasureChampionship.

Veteran exhibitor Vicki Chatten and Blackjack’s Starlet Queen (TWH)took the honors in OGB Country Pleasure 2 gait Championship.

The Best Gaited Horse Class (no canter) wrapped up the show with excit-ing performances by all the breeds represented at the North American. Entrantswere asked to demonstrate their horses gait individually and then on the rail asa group. After a nail biting workout, Fashion Sunnie Attraction (TWH) withRebekah Jackson aboard for Dr.Thomas Willis earned the honors.

From the Cover

Top (l-r):Fashion Sunnie Attraction (TWH)with rider Jennie Jackson for ownerDr.Thomas WillisPlayboy’s Sampson (MFT) with riderTori Blankenship for owner Bud andTori BlankenshipChampagne Watchout (TWH) withrider Jennie Jackson for owner Walkinon Ranch

Middle:Making Music with rider/owner JillBlanchard and Miz Diamond Brokerwith rider Michelle Blanchard forowner Pam Toms

Bottom (l-r):Silver Moon Friday (RMH) with riderTammy Phillips for owner BreezkrestFarmI’ve Been Spotted (TH & TWH) withrider/owner Dede MarshallElvis’ Rock-A-Bye Baby (AGMH) withrider Dennis Blanchard for ownersDennis and Jill Blanchard

A big thank you to all our exhibitors who traveledfrom near and far to attend the show and all our hard

working volunteers who made this show a success and apleasure to run. For a complete list of class populationsand results visit www.horseshowtime.com. Click on the

name of the NAC show and click Show Results.

NAC Highlights from page 2

Digger’s Sun Up Delight (RH/TWH) withrider/owner Steve Luoni

Blackjack’s Starlet Queen (TWH) withowner/rider Vicki Chatten

I’ve Been Spotted (TH & TWH) withrider/owner Dede Marshall

Frostbite (Tiger Horse) withrider/owner Faustina Duffy

Skjalfti (Icelandic) with riderMegan Milloy for owner Rich Moore

Snowline Romeo (Tiger Horse) withowner/rider Faustina Duffy

Friends of Sound Horses, Inc6614 Clayton Road #105; St. Louis, MO 63117

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Documents

Advertising Rates - FOSH 08 SA.pdf · Lexington,Virginia.The schedule comprised 3 very full days and nights of classes for TWH, Spotted Saddle Horse, Racking, Missouri Fox Trotters,