Originally printed in the North American Selle Francais Newsletter

Breeding and Showing In-Hand
Go Hand In-Hand

By Christine Smith

	As a breeder of high quality Selle Francais horses I strive to produce a well bred horse with a good start on ground manners. I have been showing my horse in both the Dressage Breed Shows and the Hunter Breed Shows.  I tend to go to the Dressage shows more, however, because of the way the classes are run and judged, even though most of my young horses will go on to jumping careers.   
Youngsters learn more than just the basic manners necessary to be solid citizens in the grown up world of being a show horse.  They learn the advanced lessons that will be necessary later in their lives. They learn how to load quietly in a trailer, how to act when off the farm and how to behave with many new stimulus beyond their quiet farm.  They learn how to behave around unfamiliar horses which is advantageous, especially with colts that might someday be stallions.  They learn how to stand quietly for all the advanced grooming involving baths, mane pulling, braiding, and electric clippers.  They become well versed in spray bottles, hoof polish and flapping papers on a clipboard. Big hats and flowing skirts won’t faze them in the least.   Imagine being able to take a young horse anywhere and show it to a buyer; being able to depend on it to behave like a lady or gentleman.  The edge you have provided your young horses for sale or for your own performance horses showing career is invaluable.
For my foals, some of the preparation starts as early as about three weeks of age.   At this age, I like to get them proficient at loading on a trailer.  The temperature is usually cool when they are just a few weeks old and I am still able to physically push through them, cradling their chest and hips in my arms.  My trailer is parked close to my barn and it is in an area where there is fencing on both sides of the driveway. This provides both a visual and a physical support barrier for the foal. The barrier prevents the foal from avoiding the ramp.  I set the mares feed in the trailer so she is just thrilled to get on and eat with not too much concern about her foals initial distress.  One person leads the mare onto the trailer and, without tying her, stands with her.   I then cradle the foal in my arms.   I work with the halter on and the lead line in my left hand. My left arm gently cradles the chest so the foal has freedom to look around with an unrestricted head.  My right arm corrals the hindquarters.  I face the trailer ramp and the foal is sideways to the entrance of the trailer.  I start walking through the foal up the ramp.  The foal moves its legs to keep balanced as I walk through it.  We start up the ramp and the foal has to dance a little to stay balanced.  The foal may trip a couple of times but we are moving slowly up and towards the mare.  Once in the trailer I tie the mare and allow the foal to be loose in the closed trailer while mom eats.  Unloading is done in reverse slowly.  Jumping off or rushing is not allowed.  Usually by the second or third time feeding on the trailer the foal has figured out that if it turns forward to face the ramp it is easier to walk and it does not trip at all!  Once it has learned to walk forward up the ramp then I can feed them on the trailer, loading with just one person.  I hold the foal’s lead with my left hand to gently steer.  I hold the mare’s lead with my right hand and am still able to cradle the foals hind end for forward motivation.  The mare usually provides the forward drive.  I generally feed, on the trailer, once a day, and during the coolest time of the day. I do this for about 2 weeks and I have a happy self-loading foal! 

	The young horses have to go through all the rigors of preparation which an adult horse is used to.  This gives them a leg up for the owner when they have to start all the prep work for showing.  Most of the time when my horses are young they are turned out constantly.  If I did not take them to shows they would have no experience at how to act during the prep work.  I put them in cross ties and then the fun begins.  When the foal is a suckling, the mare is in the cross ties and the foal stands tied in a corner near his/her dam.  This gives the foal the support it needs to be relaxed.  I use a bungie tie on the foal for safety and to reduce the fear of “hitting the end of the rope”.  
I start off by clipping the dam.  The baby hears the clippers nearby and knows that it is not a concern for its mother.  When I first start with the baby I have the clippers in my hand and just take hold lightly of the halter with the same hand.  Head tossing does not make the clippers go away and soon the foal just stands quietly.  At that point I can start moving the clippers around on the foal.  Even if I have completed a body part, if the foal is not being good or resisting, I continue clipping that area.  I give myself a lot of time to prep a foal for their first time.  It is easier to maintain patience when you are not under a time crunch.
Once the clipping is completed and the baby is behaving well, then we move on to bathing.  Again, I start with the mare.  I allow some of the water to splash on the foal so that it starts to gets used to the water.  Once the mare is completely bathed then it is babies turn.  I start low on the legs and feet with warm spray from a hose.  I don’t start moving up onto the body until the dancing has come to a stop.  I move from one part of the body to the next only after the foal has accepted each new place.  The process of soapy water and sponges starts on the body for safety and then branch out from there.  Again, I don’t leave an area until I have achieved compliance.  We use scrapers all over the body.  
Fly spray and show sheen are then applied.  I start low and move up only after the last area is calmly accepted.  I braid the babies before I braid the mares so the foal can be untied sooner.  Keep in mind that foals have a short attention span.  It is not fair to correct bad behavior if that behavior has been created by over trying the foal’s patience.  It also helps if you can braid fast!  I am willing to forgo the “perfect braid job” the first few times to assure the foal has a positive experience.  Winning is fun and exciting but remember that the foal is learning.  Keep the focus on the great learning opportunity that each show represents.  When people come to look at my young stock they are frequently amazed at what seasoned pros they are and how many show miles they already have under their belts.

	To be competitive and to have tools to show a perspective buyer, I go the extra step and show my young stock in-hand.  At the Dressage shows you receive the judges completed score sheet with his/her comments about their conformation and movement.  When a specific trait is repeated by several judges or inspectors you can be sure that it is really noticeable. That can be good or bad!  If it is a negative comment I adjust my breeding program and select a stallion to compensate for that weakness.  There are no perfect horses but we should always strive for continued improvement.  
	When a person calls or e-mails me to inquire about a particular horse, I am able to point to specific results and judges/inspectors comments.  The people do not have to take my word for it that the horse is wonderful!  I have several score sheets with scores and comments.  I am able to enthuse about a particular horse and then FAX the score sheets to the perspective buyer.  What a powerful tool and it makes my horses stand out from the crowd.  I don’t make excuses for negative comments.  That is what that judge saw that day.  It might be accurate or it may have been a growth spurt. 

	There is a wonderful new and growing trend at the Dressage breed shows.  Buyers are being solicited to attend for the shopping opportunities that exist en mass.  What you hear more than anything else as a breeder in the US is: “you can only see large quantities of horse, in close proximity, in Europe”.  This is what has been repeated and unfortunately has become accepted as truth.  Most buyers go to Europe and have to buy youngsters under 2 years of age due to the quarantine requirements on mares and stallions. They can buy geldings of any age.  Here in the US, with no quarantine requirements, buyers are not limited by age or gender.  This opens up a whole unrestricted shopping venue at the breed shows.  Often, over half of the horses are for sale at these shows. When buyers go from farm to farm each farm has a different appearance or feel to it.  The breeders are all on even footing for a facility to showcase their horses.  At a show all the horses are in the same type of stall and taken into the same arena.  As a buyer all you have to do is sit in the grand stand and watch as the horses are brought to you.
	Many people don’t have confidence in their ability to select young horses and that is taken care of at the breed shows.  The judges help them with the sorting and quality control.  This is just a helping hand to be used as a guide or a place to start.  The horses at the dressage breed shows are often just as suitable for jumping as they are for dressage.  Potential buyers call during the show season and I suggest to them that they come see my horses at a show.  I have to get the horses ready for the show and they are looking better than they would ever look for a farm visitor. The buyers also get to see how the horses behave in a show setting.  This also gives buyers a chance to feel like their trip is really worthwhile and they can use the whole day to look at all the horses in the show.  Even if they buy someone else’s horse, they will go home and tell all their friends where they saw so many nice horses in a single day.
	It is not necessary to hire a professional handler to show for you, just do a little research and prepare the horse and yourself in advance.  The most important thing to remember is to keep the experience positive for both you and your youngster.  This is the first building block to a successful and happy show career.  People will be thrilled with the horse they have purchased from you because that horse has a “jump” on the competition.
	See you at the breed shows!