Bad Behaviour in Showing Classes

QueenOfCadence

QueenOfCadence

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So HOY happened a couple of days ago here in SA and like every year, people have been complaining that the showing horses were badly behaved and that it was horrific that some of them were placed

I honestly don't have a problem with the behaviour of the horses at HOY as most of the problems happened in the young horse classes and the stallions 3 - 5 years old

It's a big show and I can honestly understand a horse (especially a youngin) being freaked out by it (not to mention the rain we had, which mind you we aren't as accustomed to as you UKers, which I feel was a factor)

How do you feel? Do you think that the behaviour of showing horses is unacceptable? Do you feel it's a recent development or has it always been this way?

I know that you guys don't have info on SA's HOY - I'm asking for opinions on any showing since it seems to be a worldwide epidemic :p
 
As you say, don't know about SA but generally in my opinion they should behave as manners are important. A small shy at something truly spooky may be forgiveable as they are not police horses but general poor behaviour should not be acceptable.
 
I think manners have a big part to play in showing.
Obviously at bigger shows allowances should be made for the atmosphire ect and younger horses may not be as good as older ones.
But at a local show I was annoyed when I was beatern in the inhand championship by a welsh mare who was trying to kick it's handler, Trying to kick the other ponies in the ring and there handlers and even kicked out at the judge. :eek: She should have been sent out the ring in my opinion :mad: She wasn't even a better example of her breed than Herbie is of his :( Herbie was amazing as were all the other ponies in the ring that morning despite the mares antics. I'm not saying Herbie should have won but that mare certanly shouldn't have.

Although at the other extream I think it was bad when a friend of mine had her championship taken away from her when her yearling wouldn't stand to have the sash put over his head. He had been amazingly well behaved all day esp as it was his first ever show :(
 
LauraWheeler said:
Although at the other extream I think it was bad when a friend of mine had her championship taken away from her when her yearling wouldn't stand to have the sash put over his head. He had been amazingly well behaved all day esp as it was his first ever show :(
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^ That's sad :( :( :(

My ponio is usually the one being the nutter in showing classes (nothing serious, sometimes a buck but usually just getting over eager when everyone is asked to canter) and even though he doesn't do breed classes (he does riding horse classes like Show Hack) and he usually fares quite well, even when being a nutter

However I was furious at a show I did last year, it was inhand for geldings 14.2hh and up (my boy is 14.2hh on the dot and was the smallest in the class), he was placed second next to a LOVELY thoroughbred (fair enough, it was a good looking horse) BUT it never once trotted and kept to a canter, it lashed out at other horses and nipped at the judge when he was stood up, that can't be acceptable:(? Excitement/hotting up is one thing but being a danger to everyone else is another
 
i think behaviour plays a very vital part of showing.
When i show i do like to have a horse/pony who shows off a bit i.e forward, eager and strikes out in there strides not a horse/pony i have to drag around lol

I showed a welsh c once very grumpy old mare (was 22) although i had a red ribbon in her tail as she does kick anyone and anything she was put into 2nd place, as we stood awaiting rosettes she kicked the horse in 1st! so they didnt place her but the steward was so kind and gave us a special rosette instead :) (the other horse wasnt hurt at all)

a perfect show horse is one that shows true elegance in there walk, trot and canter (obviously just walk and trot if inhand) is straight moving, calm, active in their paces and very aware of what their rider/handler asks of them.... You see none of this when the horse is all other the ring therefore shouldnt be placed! even if conformation wise it should be 1st!
 
A lot of the problem is down to the Judges themselves regardless of where in the world they are.

If they did not tolerate bad manners, I am not talking about a bit of spooking (eg the sash incident) or acceptable excitement taking into account the whole situation (fair ground noise, tractors, crowds, hot air balloons, carriages, llamas:eek: etc) but of the unruliness and lashing out etc, and put the horses down the line, or simply sent them out as they have every right to, then handlers would soon pull their socks up and do some more preparation at home.

It's easy enough to say though, to practise at home until they are foot perfect, but on the day it can be a whole different ball game.

For instance, my foals all load perfectly - into a ramped trailer which is all I have currently, at home, with just me there. When the trailer is a step up, a new person is handling them and there are lots of people about then they either make me look very good, or at worst a downright liar! Same at shows, maybe the nippers and the kickers were just thoroughly over excited and just boiled over on the day.
 
i think as well judging now days is just stupid!
Some judges will judge what they like rather than what the class is, my friend has a bay roan coloured horse, entered him into a coloured class and he was placed last as the judge doesnt like roams,
It makes you think why does the judge even do a coloured class if they dont like that colour!?
I also did the same class at the same show for 2 years, it was a hunters class inhand, the first year all the ponies were placed at the front and horses last, the 2nd year all the horses were placed first and ponies last!?

If the horse is being a danger kicking out at the judge, other horses, riders or handlers the judge cant get a very good look at the horse or his way of moving in his paces therefore only placed that horse/pony in the top few as they 'liked' that horse if that makes sense, they didnt judge it on the class
 
humblepie said:
As you say, don't know about SA but generally in my opinion they should behave as manners are important. A small shy at something truly spooky may be forgiveable as they are not police horses but general poor behaviour should not be acceptable.
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I agree.
 
I watched the Racehorse to Riding Horse finals at HOYS in the UK this year and was concerned to note that the horse that won was bunny hopping and kicking out though most of the class. I thought a HUGE part of a RoR class should be based on the manners of the horse, but no the class is apparently judged on the horse that is most likely to be like a show horse, this horse winning because it looked most like a ‘hack’ (I’d have not wanted to hack it behaving like that!), I think manners should be up there with looks and confirmation.
 
Sorry- can't quote on phone but bay roan isn't a coloured so would expect it to be at the bottom of the line up- if not asked to leave.

I agree with the manners thing my youngster has been in hand for two seasons. He's a well mannered quiet young man and will stand for hours... Most of the time! Allowances have to be made for the atmosphere and spooks but downright loss of manners is unacceptable. I think if more were asked to leave the ring on dangerous mounts the teaching of basic ringcraft would increase somewhat- why bother if no-one else does?!

Personally- I wouldn't take a ridden horse into a class without first trying it in a similar situation (group clinic or something) and making sure it can cope- I'm there to do well, preferably win, and it's up to me to present a judge with a lovely picture to give us the best chance of doing so.
 
I did an in hand hunter pony class many moons ago when my old mare was about 2, we got pulled in 3rd on the first pull in but were moved to first in the final result. The judge explained to us all that apart from conformation etc we had been put first as my mare was the only pony not to take off across the ring when they caught sight of the pigs in the field next next door, she then went on to say that as potentially a childs hunter she expected the ponies to behave appropriately, a spook was one thing carting a full grown adult across a field was another.
 
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Having only ever done a small amount of showing, I always thought that quite a big part of it was about the horse being well mannered.

If the horse is used to the showing environment, then yes, they should be well mannered and well behaved. Understandably, if it is their first show then they may have their eyes on stalks and be wary of things.
 
Surely it depends on the class.

Hacks, like childen's ponies, should (I think) be near perfectly behaved. A 4 yr old hunter can (in my opinion) be forgiven a spook, or even a little buck. There is obviously a scale in between.

When judging, however, it's not quite so clear cut. You see many things that the ringside judge does not (which can make you look an idiot!). It's up to the judge to evaluate the horse as a whole, and weigh up the various faults as, let's face it, there's no such thing as a perfect horse. Some of this will come down to personal preference and that is what, after all, you sign up to when showing.

So when watching a class and wondering why the judge put the horse that spooked before the 'lovely, well mannered bay' - did you actually notice the bay's seriously turned in foot that may well result in long term unsoundness?

Which would you prefer to buy?
 
I did a bit of in-hand showing with my rising 3 yo last season. He's a big lad, and was your typical 2 year old, but on the whole is a well mannered chap.
We came 3rd in the youngstock class on our first outing, against some cracking m&m babies, and were placed below a gorgeous sec C colt and a small hunter type that thoroughly deserved to win, so I was delighted.
Our final outing of the season, we were placed 4th in the 'first season together' class at a local RC show, below a pony that dragged its tiny child handler out of the ring and into the distance before finally stopping at someones lorry to eat the haynet, and a cob that double-barrelled the horse next to it in the first line up. Granted, my boy wasn't perfect, he did a little rear in our individual show, and I had to circle him a couple of times as he didn't fancy standing still for long when the other competitors were trotting up. And yes, I know, poor little kiddy needed a rosette for trying after being dragged to Timbuktu by the devil pony only to be forced back into the ring crying by overbearing Pony Club mum. But I do feel nasty cob should have been asked to leave, as its ears were flat back in malice every time another horse dared to go within 10ft of him.
To balance it out though, my lad had soaked up the atmospere enough to be chilled and generally marvellous in our next class, which he duly won, and we came home with Coloured Champion.
Swings and roundabouts, eh?
Showing will never be fair, and we always think our horse is the nicest (what I have dubbed 'Proud Mumma Syndrome'), and I will keep taking the boy out for the experience for as long as we both enjoy it!
 
As a judge i would certainly mark something down if it mis-behaved. Not if it was something tiny like a little quirk the horse has (i.e swishing tail or small buck into canter) but for something which continually is being naughty i agree with above whereby i think manners are a huge part of showing and would expect anything to behave impeccably irelevant of how nice it was otherwise. One thing that really bugs me is horses that cant stand still in the line up :) However, if there were other horses behaving in the class better but not suited to the class or not ridden well then i would porbably place bad behaved ones (to a certain extent) above this. It is always really difficult as a judge as all judges have different opinions so they will always be up for some criticism or another :)
 
I was always taught that showing was about how well mannered and trained your horse is (as well as conformation, way of going and being a good standard of the breed).

If your horse isn't well behaved then its probably best to leave the showing until he is :rolleyes:
 
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