Working hunter HELP

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ImmyB

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Advice needed please!
I have a 14,2 full connie mare who has a pulled tail and mane due to hunting.
I want to start entering her in working hunter classes but I know obviously she can’t be entered as M&M due to her turnout.
My questions are, can I enter WHP classes as plaited and the judges won’t frown upon my choice of turnout for my connie??
Also I am 21 years old, 5ft 3, so am I too old to enter WHP classes? What classes can we enter as a pair if I am too old?
Help please and thank you- pony pictured below
 

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Connies are turned out with pulled manes, maybe not as short as you have but they are not really long and flowing, many will also have a bit taken out of their tails not a full pulled look but still tidy so I would suggest you stop pulling a little earlier next season and do M&M classes which are really the only option for you as a young adult on a pony.

At local level you may find you can do plaited WHP if there is no age limit, there are some classes with a higher age limit, up to 25 I think but there will not be that many and she is too small for most open WH classes so your best option is the M&M if you can allow the tidy look to grow out, I have shown connies and NF's fairly well trimmed and it has never been commented on although I would not take them to county level unless they had a reasonable growth, once you stop trimming most grow a fair bit within a month or so.
 
TBH, so long as the mane isn't plaited you should be fine in M&M classes. Several others will also actually hunt their ponies, so will be in a similar state. I have certainly seen similar turnout to yours in M&M WH classes, it is good to show what they can do outside the showring.
 
Just don't pull it quite so short. You don't need to plait natives to hunt either so you can allow a little more growth. From the photo it looks like you might have shaved the side of the tail rather than pulling it? If that is right you might have to wait until that has grown back to a more natural state.

But at lower level you would be fine in M&M as you are. They are Connies - they are designed to do everything!
 
Thank you for the amazing advice! I would love to show her as M&M but was very worried regarding her tail. She has good breeding and moves well. How do I attach a photo of her tail currently to show you how its looking currently? It keeps saying that my photo is too large to attach!
 
If it is on your phone you can reduce the size of the file by taking a screen shot of the photo and then posting the screenshot
 
That is fine for local level and probably wouldn't get noticed especially in a working class where the jumping is a priority, I would plait the bottom while damp to give a bit of a wavy appearance that will distract from the top being a bit short.
Loosely plaiting the mane so it lies flatter and the ends are not so obviously neat will also help stop it looking so pulled.
 
Leave the tail bandaged until you go in and you’ll be fine. She’d be an overt 143cm obviously and there’s no age limit :) Enjoy :)
You could plait her still (lots at top level even do both...) especially if she’s quite ‘horse’ in movement, I think under 153cm WHP is up to 21 and there’s an intermediate class for up to 158cm up to 25 but not sure if at 148cm she’s too small for intermediates. The bsps and nps rulebooks are online.
 
You'll be fine in the m&m class. There are a lot of Connies with child riders that do both plaited and m&m and so neatened tails, manes, fetlocks etc are well accepted generally.
 
We also have a Connie with a pulled mane, tail, trimmed feathers etc. as he does eventing and working hunters and we have never had a problem in M & M classes and he is regularly in the prizes! As long as they are neatly turned out that's all that matters :-)
 
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