November 2008 Paddock Paper
Northern New Mexico Horsemen's Association
President’s Message
The summer winds down along with all the other political stress. The great thing about being Equestrians is spending time horseback. As the Christmas season nears, take time to let your horses know how important they are to giving us peace of mind during such stressful times. The Christmas party will give us all a chance to relax and enjoy wonderful friends. We look forward to seeing you all on December 6 if not before.Eldon
October Meeting Minutes and Announcements
NNMHA Vice President Betsy Walker opened the meeting with an announcement about the Christmas Party. Sue Stevens has offered her house for the party which will be held on December 6th. An e-mail will be sent to all members with directions to Sue’s house (also see Calendar of Events on page 2) and an RSVP request. When you RSVP to Sue she will let you know what to bring for the pot luck dinner.
Bob Larison announced that the Rio Grande Mule and Donkey Association will be having an exhibit at El Rancho De Las Golondrinas on Sunday, November 16th. There will also be a blood drive from 12-4 that day. Call El Rancho for an appointment to make a donation.
Shelley Green announced that in Kansas last weekend Elmer Bandit, a half arab, set a lifetime miles record in competitive trail riding.
Board Meetings are open to the general membership and are the second Wednesday of the month at the Plaza Southside Cafe.
October Speaker
Our speaker for the evening was Douglas Thal DVM from Thal Equine, LLC. He spoke on the topic “Some Factors for General Consideration in Selection of Horses”. Dr. Thal has begun breeding quarter horses on a limited basis and included pictures of his horses to illustrate the points of his presentation. His goal for this presentation was to open our eyes to some of the factors that go into conformation. His advice for purchasing a horse includes:
- Always have a pre-purchase exam
- Know basic anatomy and the basics of conformation and how it relates to soundness and performance
- Be aware of the pedigree but don’t over emphasize it in making your decision
- Pay attention to performance records
- Watch out for arbitrary characteristics of physical appearance
- Look for a responsive, trainable horse
- Determine your intended use. Decide what you want to do with the horse.
- Determine the effect of care and conditioning on appearance. See through this to what the horse is really like.
- Form helps define function
- Consider breed & suitability for intended use
- Open your mind to other breeds for consideration
Characteristics
- Size – nature dislikes extremes. When in doubt, go with a medium sized horse
- Foot – no foot, no horse. Large foot for the size of the horse is good. Should show balance from front & back and from the side. More mass of the foot should be behind the widest part.
- Bone – the larger a horse is, the harder it is for it to have adequate bone. Smaller horses tend to have better bone. More primitive horses have better bones compared to more “evolved” horses. In general, smaller horses with big bones don’t have lameness problems.
- Neck – length and shape is important. The neck is the rudder and balance of the horse. Dropping and lengthening is necessary to engage the rear end and round the back, a requirement for collection.
- Downhill vs. uphill build – downhill is rough to ride and difficult/impossible to collect.
- Loin – the “transmission” of the horse. Assess by the lumbar span.
- Hip – the “motor”. Length of hip has implications for performance. Pay attention to coupling to the loin and the position of the lumbosacral joint
- Shoulder – steep vs. low angle
- Color – keep in mind that pink skinned horses will burn in summer and snow at our altitude. A high percentage of gray horses have melanoma.
- Behavior & trainability – look for a sensitive, trainable disposition.
- Heart – This is intangible. Great horses have lots of heart.
- Gelding vs. mare – must deal with cycles in mares. Geldings have sheath issues, especially geldings who have been stabled in shavings. Either one must develop a relationship and respect for people.
- Lameness – bone spavin is arthritis of the hock. The two lowest joints are most susceptible. Manage with joint injections
- Corrective shoeing – can help as horses age. Don’t depend on shoeing to correct problems when buying. It does not fix the problem and can lead to other problems.
- Resources – good resources are books by Deb Bennett and Hillary Clayton
Thal Equine, LLC is located at 69 Bonanza Creek Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Dr. Thal can be reached at www.thalequine.com or at 505-438-6590. Dr. Thal also distributed a handout regarding the Purchase Exam which can be found on his website.
Ridge Riders
Our last ride of the season was on October 18 at Aspen Vista. Only five riders met at the show grounds to drive almost to the Santa Fe Ski Basin; two others came late. It was a flawless day for a four-mile-one-way ride where we stopped for lunch and took in the views at 11,400 feet. We’d missed the aspen color by about two weeks but the scenics were breathtaking nevertheless. Lots of hikers and two other horsemen partook of this day. Go to Ridge Riders > Aspen Vista for lots of photos.
Calendar of Events
Monthly meetings are held the last Wednesday of the month (excluding September and December) at the Plaza South Side Café, 3011 Cerrillos Rd. at 7 p.m. Speaker begins at 7:30 p.m. Good idea to get there by 6:30 if having dinner. For more info contact Eldon or Betsy.
November 26 – Shelley Green – Shelley is a 2nd year competitor in NATRC, National American Trail Ride Conference. She will discuss what it takes to compete: gear, riding ability & conditioning of the horse. She likens NATRC to a two-night campout with 30 – 40 of your horse friends. They have social time as well as a group pot luck. Oh yes, they ride a few miles over two days!!!!! Come see what the fun is all about.December 6 – Christmas party at Sue Stevens’ home on Saturday at 6pm. Bring a food or beverage; when you RSVP Sue will let you know what she still needs pot-luck-wise. We’ll do our famous NNMHA gift exchange, so bring a gift (keep it valued under $10). Call or email Sue Stevens at 992-0344 or suestevens02@cybermesa.com
Directions:
- Old Pecos trail to the intersection with Zia
- Turn east on Zia
- Go one block
- Turn left onto Calle de Sebastian
- Four houses down on the left is #2142
January 28, 2009 – Stephanie Lockhart – trainer, and director of the Baca Horse Conservancy in Belen, NM will share the fascinating history and current information on the rare Colonial Spanish horses. The Baca Horse Conservancy was recently formed to secure the future of this strain which is unique to New Mexico. Stephanie will have a short documentary to view, photographs, literature about the horses, and information on how people can get involved in the preservation efforts, followed by a question and answer period.
February 25, 2009 – Amy Gloman – Equestars - A non-profit dedicated to providing the proven benefits of therapeutic riding and equine-related activities to those with special physical, emotional and cognitive needs. We are currently looking for people to help volunteer in our lessons on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays. We also need help with implementing our new program Horses for Heroes (helping veterans). And of course we always welcome any riders that would like to receive lessons from us.
March 25, 2009 – we have a tentative arrangement with speaker Jacqui Present, a masseuse who specializes in working on riders and horse folk.
May 27, 2009 – we are working out details of a special visit to Dr. Mark Meddleton’s new facility in Algodones. We’ll get our own NNMHA personalized tour!
NNMHA Open Shows
Check out the photos from our June 15 Open ShowOther Equine Activities
Be sure to check out the Other Activities Around Town webpage for more fun events to attend.