United States Eventing Association

The two-day educational symposium, Evaluation of the Young Event Horse Prospect, kicked off today in Ocala, Fla. with the focus on Future Event Horses (1- to 3-year-olds).

Drs. Shauna and Gareth Spurlock headlined the morning classroom session at the Ocala Jockey Club with an informative presentation, “The First Three Years: How Management Can Effect Conformation and Soundness”. The veterinarians’ talk centered on how breeders and young horse owners can manage conformation issues through nutrition, exercise, proper shoeing and veterinary care to set foals up to succeed.

Quotes from Dr. Shauna Spurlock:

• Conformation changes with rapid growth. The window of opportunity to have an impact on conformation is very short. Growth plates on foals close from the ground up – knee down is done changing in five to seven months.
• If you are going to do something to change your horse’s conformation do it early. Help when it is possible. Surgery is not original equipment and will never be able to live up to full potential the way mother nature meant it to be.
• The farther from the ground it is the worst the implication.
• Evaluating conformation in an adult horse is not looking at what you can change, but looking if you can live with the flaws.
• Hoof care can’t wait until they are 3 years old to do it – its too late at that point.
• Better have someone in your court that is helping you with good nutrition if you want to create healthy babies.
• Bad conformation is like walking with a rock in your shoe. Your whole leg gets sore because you are protecting the one spot on your foot from the rock.
• If you want a horse to stay sound, build a horse that will stay sound. Don’t look at things in a syringe to fix conformational flaws.
• The foot is a mirror to the horse’s health and wellbeing.
• We can pick out the extremes – that’s easy. We all know what is perfect. What we don’t really know what side of perfect is acceptable.
• The greatest problem is overfeeding our broodmares. Being fat is a disservice to them. Feed to body condition.

The shift then focused to the USEA’s Future Event Horse program with committee chair, Susan Graham White, explaining the new rules passed for 2016 as well as going over statistics for how the program has grown over the years.

New FEH Rules for 2016:

• FEH horses may be subject to drug testing
• A handler or groom may only hold one horse at a time in the warm-up and on grounds
• Score of 70% in required to qualify for the Championships
• The jump chute will now be incorporated into the Championships for 3-year-olds. The score sheets of both the in-hand and jump chutes will be added together and averaged to determine the winner.

Robin Walker then took over the microphone to discuss the new 3-year-old jumping class at the Championships in more detail. In July 2015 there was a jump chute clinic held at Loch Moy Farm to introduce potential Championship horses to the chute as well as film an educational video that will be available on the USEA website. Walker went through the video and discussed with the attendees the format of the chute as well as evaluated some of the demo horses.

Information Walker shared included:

• Top concern is safety which is why the chute is built with 7’ walls. Preifert is an official sponsor of the USEA Future Event Horse Program and are able to build custom panels to suit the program.
• All people in the jump chute should be wearing helmets, appropriate footwear, gloves and carry a 3-foot piece of cotton rope to catch the horse through the bit and easily let him go.
• The horse needs to be comfortable in the environment he will be in which is why it is important to school in various environments. However, make sure that you are choosing a place that has established footing. Horses on the loose can destroy footing very quickly.
• Don’t put your horse in a box. Show them to the best of their ability so know what distances to set the jumps at for them. A range of allowed distances is offered. A judge can only judge what they see on that day.
• It is up to you to decide if your 3-year-old is ready for this and to make the decision if they need more time.

During the lunch break, Richard Trayford gave attendees a brief ‘tour’ of the Ocala Jockey Club grounds and pointed out where the cross-country course is being built by Michael Etherington-Smith in preparation for their debut event in November. The show will be hosting a one, two and three-star. Trayford also plans to include 6- and 7-year-old classes in the one and two-stars similar to the FEI World Breeding Eventing Championships at Le Lion d’Angers.

After lunch the Symposium moved to the covered arena at Longwood where volunteers generously brought a group of yearlings, 2-year-olds and 3-year-olds to be evaluated. Professional handler, Phil Silva, presented many of the horses and also shared some advice for many of the breeders in the audience on how to better handle their young horses.

• You have to be grounded yourself to ground the horse.
• My policy is to not tell the judges the bloodlines. Each horse should be given the opportunity to win. I want the blue for my clients.
• You have to bring them out for them to learn.
• Everything I do is to protect myself and make the horse comfortable.
• Never turn a horse towards you because they can knock you over. Turn it away from you.
• Train the horse from the ground.
• Don't go into the trot until you have a good walk.
• Don't want to get in a tug of war. They will win.
• You can change a horse’s stride with your stride. You bounce and the horse will loosen up. You bend down and the horse will follow you.
• If you don't have something perfect on the horse don't show it off.
• Don't let the whip person block the judges view.
• Fast doesn't men they will show better. If it's a forward horse you want to lift it up. Practice so you know how best to show your horse
• Pressure on the poll limits the movement

While Silva was sharing his expertise with the handlers, Graham White and Walker led an evaluation of the horses and worked with the audience to explain what they were seeing on each horse and their judinging methodology.

• We are not expecting yearlings to have a wither. They just need to have room to grow one.
• This is the time in a horse’s life when it should look their best. No splints, hunter bumps, bogs, curbs, etc. Scars and wounds are okay though.
• Have to have room to move their hocks so slightly turned out is okay.
• You have to judge the best strides you see
• If they are beautiful and balanced as a 2-year-old then you may have trouble as a 4-year-old
• By the time they are three there are no more excuses. Start to see beginning of the top line. Hope they have a good enough background that they can show well.
• Trim the hair on the legs so the judges can see the bone and angles. (Unless you want to hide something!)
• Not your job to play vet or farrier but you can take off for problems you see.

Tomorrow the Symposium moves on to the Young Event Horse years (4- and 5-year-olds) with Marilyn Payne, Daniel Marks, VMD, Kai Steffen Meier and Leslie Law all leading discussions and evaluations.

The USEA would like to thank its Future Event Horse (FEH) Sponsors: SmartPak, Standlee Hay, Professional’s Choice,Merck Animal Health, and Presenting Sponsor Priefert.

The USEA would also like to thank its Young Event Horse (YEH) Sponsors: Fleeceworks, Priefert, Event Clinics, Standlee Hay,Merck Animal Health, SmartPak, and Professional’s Choice.