BHS Stage 2 tips and hints

SaffronWelshDragon said:
Thank you both!

Foxy O - Yes I must remember to come back to trot after each jump, and to be dead centre on the approach.
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Only come back to trot if you have the wrong lead for the next corner - your round needs to be rhythmical. Use your eyes to check you lead, not your whole head. You syllabus states that your round needs to be fluent.

For your tail plait, comb the tail out well so you have no tangles. Then wet the sides really well, the hairs behave better when wet. Keep pieces small and keep plait tight and close to the dock.

Bandage, ensure that you wrap away from you over the tendons. Make sure the last couple of wraps are over the top of each other with no angle. If the bandage has ties make sure they are smoothly flat and no tighter than the bandage, tie with a bow and then fold the top layer of the last wrap over the ties and bow to reduce the risk of them coming undone.

Feed, think of the size of a Rugby ball - that's about the size of the horses stomach and he shouldn't get more than that volume per feed. 75% fibre/forage to grain. 1.5 - 2% of body weight required daily for maintain acne! depending on current condition and work.

You folks are so lucky that your knowledge requirements are set out so indepth, when I took my Stage exams many decades ago the syllabus was on two sides of a small A5 piece of paper.

Good luck for your exam. Enjoy it and bear in mind if you stuff up you can retake. So have fun. And don't forget to get back with your report and results
 
tescoexpress said:
7-10 days. The only other faux pas were a front leg bandage went a little high and my plaiting (esp tail) was not perfect (mane ones had to be be with bands and I defy anyone to make them look neat). Stopped by 2 examiners for giving Stage 3 level answers and the third told me she learnt something from me (putting desiccant gel packets in with tack for long term storage to prevent mildew). During stable design I managed to slip in that I designed my own ones and in grassland management I rattled off the selective herbicide spray types and dosages/hectare that I use.
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Sounds promising. You must come back and tell us your feedback. BTW what did you wear in the end?
 
Thanks for that Tnavas! You're right about retaking them, I would love to get it all done in one go, but it's so easy to put yourself under pressure and forget that you can just retake any units failed, it's no big deal :)

At the moment i'm trying to memorize the average daily requirements per height i.e 12hh = 6.5kg, 13hh = 8kg, 14hh = 10kg, 15hh = 12kg, 16hh = 13.5, 17-18hh = 15.5kg. I usually work it out at 2.5% of bodyweight, but it takes a bit longer to work it out in my head, if I can remember those figures and adjust it depending on build it'll be faster.

I had a lesson at my local RS yesterday (not the one I'm taking exam at), and RI said I shouldn't have any trouble with my flatwork (did lots of trot/canter with no stirrups on a huge cob) and she made approving noises when I jumped him. I'm so sore now though because of the stirrupless stuff, he made my Welsh Cob seem incredibly smooth!

Well done tescoexpress, you sound like you impressed them :)

I like to think my tail plaiting has improved quite a bit :)
 
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Hi again everyone! Got my results at the weekend - I PASSED! I'm still grinning to myself :D I did you a big write up on the day which is on this thread and my blog: http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?684050-BHS-Stage-2-Exam-notes

Thought I'd just update this thread as lots of you were kind enough to help, and not sure if you'd seen my new thread. Can't wait to start working towards my PTT!
 
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