We’re about halfway in our walk through the Blue Spur curriculum, and now it’s time to turn our attention back to Horsemanship. For the next couple of months the blog will look at the requirements for Horsemanship Level 3. Whereas Level 2 was simply a more in-depth version of the Level 1 topics, in Level…
Horsemanship Level 2: Riding in Groups Much of the last item on the Horsemanship 2 checklist 9. Rules for riding in a group is covered in the Riding 1 post, Safety in Numbers. At the second level however, you will also be asked about group etiquette and safety when riding outside of the ring and…
Horsemanship Level 2: Saddlery Care In Dom Duarte's 15th century treatise on riding, horsemanship and mounted combat, Bem Cavalgar, he states: We must take good care of the saddle, the bridle and the stirrups, ensuring that they are strong, that they have the necessary resistance and are of good quality to avoid failure of any…
Horsemanship Level 2: Tacking & Untacking There's really nothing different about tacking up and untacking in Horsemanship Level 2, except this time we ask that you do it on your own: 7. Tack up and untack unassisted So rather than repeat myself, I'll refer you to the Level 1 post on the same subject: Another…
Horsemanship Level 2: Equine Warning Signs Take a look at this painting by George Stubbs. Who is the angry looking bay in the middle threatening: the happy bay in front of him, or the oblivious human and palomino behind him? (Answer below)Reading your horse's moods is one of the most important skills you can develop. …
Horsemanship Level 2: Grooming By the time you are testing Level 2 you should be able to groom your horse quickly and confidently. On the checklist for Level 2 is: 5. Groom horse; three reasons for grooming; common sense around horse. Grooming, and the reasons for grooming are pretty well covered in this level one…
Horsemanship Level 2: Leading at the Trot At level 1 we asked that you demonstrate how to safely lead your horse for the simple purpose of moving him about from stall, to cross-ties, to arena. You can review this here. For level 2 you will also need to demonstrate leading at the trot. 4. Lead…
Horsemanship Level 2: Routines of the Horse There are many different equine lifestyles for the domestic horse, from grazing loose on the range 24/7, to kept in a barn with a variety of supplemental feeds, and everything in between. At level 2 we don't expect you to be able to descibe all the various horsekeeping…
Horsemanship Level 2: Identification Part II: Points, Colours and Markings Last week we looked at breeds and types, which is the most general way of identifying horses. This week we'll narrow down and look at more specific identification. Points Your horse's anatomy forms an important part of his identification and is helpful in communicating with…
Horsemanship Level 2: Identification Horses come in many shapes and sizes; display strange colours, such as chestnut, bay, buckskin and skewbald; have exotic body parts, such as pastern, stifle, dock and chestnut (no relation to the colour); and have other interesting markings such as black points, ermine spots, snips and stockings. This is not just…
Our Horsemanship curriculum, like the Canadian Pony Club system it stems from, is designed to deepen and expand students' knowledge in the key areas of horsemanship with each progressive level. What starts as simple identification of colours, breeds and markings in levels one and two, becomes measuring and identification in level three, and conformation, teeth…