Official Measurement (JMB) advice please

Height in horses is very deceptive. My gelding regularly gets comments about how big he is....he's 16.2 maximum at home on a not very flat surface, and I think on an official measurement he would be between 16 and 16.1. The midget mare is measures 15.1, but she looks half the size, because she is so midgety.

I do know of people who take some appalling measures to get their horses to measure as small as possible, but I do think people prepared to do that to their horses are few and far between, and they do moat certainly get caught out from time to time.
 
My show cob was 155 cm on the dot, I actually once had a dressage judge rush out of the box (we were the last test of the day) to ask me where I bought him - she was convinced he was 16.2hh - he just had that presence which made him look bigger.
In a class of LW Show Cobs, however, we were almost always the smallest....says a lot.

My baby HW coloured cob although currently roughly measuring around 154cm at home, if/when I get his AHC next year, I'm convinced he will be 153cm or below - which is good for BSPA coloureds but will mean he looks tiny probably, in a class of "full up" HW show cobs.
 
conniegirl said:
When they measure you at the hospital it is not for the purposes of competition so an inch or 2 out doesn't matter.
That said they do ask you to take your shoes off and stand up straight and if you have a big puffy hair do they will squash your hair until thier stick touches your head not your hair.
I'm 5ft 3 but give me enough time and back combing I can bet 5ft6 easily, or better yet I could probably make 5ft 9 with high heels on and big puffy hair

With judicious plaiting and cobra plaits I can add an inch and a half to my horses wither.

A horses height is supposed to be measured to the highest skeletal fixed point, if you want to include hair in that then let's just measure them to the tip of thier ears and have done with it.
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What is you back combing your hair got to do with measuring horses? You cant measure from the ears as people would have their horses with their heads on the floor.!

The hospital needs an accurate measurement. They have nothing to gain by making me taller or smaller than I am, so they put me on a pad and measure me. They dont shave my head with a surgical blade or do anything to my feet, or have me slouch, or teach me to flinch down away from the stick, etc all things that are done to get ponies to measure in. Thats because there is no benefit in the hospital making me smaller than I am. They need an accurate measurement and thats what they get. There is every benefit in having your show pony be the biggest in its class, so the results are fiddled. You know it, I know it, everyone involved in showing knows it. Its hardly a secret :)
 
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