Showing experts-what is "Natural State"

leskaneen

leskaneen

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Advice please.I have a nice looking but slightly bonkers sec D geilding.Anyway after months of patience & schooling took him to his first show on Sunday,having decided that a nice quiet showing class would be the best option.In all fairness to pony he exceeded all expectations in term of behaviour in first class(disgraced himself in second but my fault-should have taken him home!)-but here s where my confusion lies:-in the schedule it said M & M s should be shown in "natural state",however the one that won had a very neatly pulled(longish) mane, NO FEATHERS at all,and a lovely chess-board
pattern on its quarters an looked like it hadn t seen a muddy field in its life-is this usual for a M & M class at a local show coz if it is i m confused !
 
I used to do county M+M and M+M working Hunter and I know what you mean. The norm at local level is to see show ponies that are just not plaited up!!!!
The mane has to be of a minimum of 4 inches long, some say 5 or 6 is ideal. The term natural state is used loosely for some competitors. you will often see m+m ponies go in the m+m class with their manes and tails unplaited and even with quarter markers sometimes and five minutes later you will see the same pony heading upto working hunter fully plaited and turned out. Usually judges like to see neat long straight manes and not a mane that you would see on a gypsy cob. At a higher level the M+M people who just do M+M will have their horses manes perfect and usually quite long but then this will be the only class they do. As for feathers, yes they are meant to stay for M+M but ponies that do more then one class will usually have none or very little tidy feathers. It depends on the breed. For example connemara's should have no feathers, as for welsh's the only ones you usually see at shows with feathers are the sec. D's and sometimes C's. The norm is to trim around the hoof, and just below the knee, leaving a small fist sized amount around the back of the fetlock near the ergot. It not not OK for shire like legs.
Advice for you section D: I would trim his ears, nose, whiskers and chin, no straggly hair on the face. I would have his forelock coming to between the eyes or a little lower and it should be U-shaped not straight. His mane I would say should be neatly trimmed to around 5". It should be thinned in the middle so it is of equal thickness all the way down and it is a good idea to go over the mane with a razor blade after to make it look natural not pulled. You should not have a bridle-path but a small plait at the top of the mane is acceptable but not so common these days. As for feet I would trim them so they look neat and leave a small amount of "ankle hair" No hair should be below the point of hoof all the way around. I would not put quarter marker's on. The tail should be just below the hock trimmed straight when it is lifted and I do usually pull slightly around the top to neaten up the tail but certainly not a full pulled tail. Remember, all your tack must be black or brown, inc numnah and girth and you bridle should be flat heavyweight leather. Your clothes must also must the colour of your horse and saddlery. Gloves, hairnet, cane etc. but I imagine you will not all that. Just remember a person although it is wrong is judged before they even do their show so first impressions are most important, even if your horse is turned out it should definately have no mud or dirt on it a quick brush, wash or rug on the night before the show would help.
 
We show at Hoys and Rihs with M&Ms. the only trimming you are allowed to do at affiliated level must comply with breed society regulations...with the welsh ponies and connies you are able to do a bit more trimming than say a dales or highland.
We have sec B's, C's & D's we do not touch their feather at all they have there jawline & muzzle trimmed ..tails are not cut straight across to shorten i.e banged that is a big no no and looks dreadful.
We do not pull there manes though I will thin the thicker ones I shorten using an old clipper blade which leaves a natural line ...some ponies suit there mane longer others that say need a bit more top line would have it trimmed a bit shorter as otherwise a longer mane could leave the neck looking a bit weak.
 
I agree Marymary, sorry I didn't mean the tail should be cut like a show horse or hunter I was just trying to imply that I hate it when you see M+M's with tails that are bushy at the top where the horse has rubbed its tail going off into thin rat's tails that nearly touch the floor!! I just like to see them "neat but still natural". Like I said at County level and above it is quite different to local shows. M+M's at local level are a different sight to M+M's at a higher level, that are usually allrounder types that happens to be part bred something and shaggy! You tend to find the ponies that look like slighty heavier show ponies (some even with pulled manes and tails)will win over a correctly turned out dales or highland everytime at local level which is quite amusing.
 
Marymary is right. It is the difference between "natural" and "unkempt"!
The trouble with local shows is that judges often don't have a clue what theya re looking for. Sounds like this was the case at your show.
 
what the breed standard says and what you see winning at shows is quite different. my yard owner has a county welsh cob and his tail is switched to the level of his hock and his mane pulled to a length of about 4-6 inches. he wouldn't be seen with quarter markers on him though and his feathers aren't touched.

have shown my welsh d locally and he is turned out similarly although i like him to have his tail as a fly swat, so i leave it fetlock length, but neat and tidy.
 
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