Page 1022 - Adams and Stashak's Lameness in Horses, 7th Edition

988 Chapter 9

of movement, and then as the level raises, so does the
demands on lateral work and collection. Under the
VetBooks.ir as “training” and then first level through fifth level that
USEF governance, competitions are progressively ranked
corresponds to international competitions. In Europe it
is divided in three progressive levels (L, M, and S). S cor­
responds to international competitions. International
competitions (under FEI governance) starts at Prix St
Georges, Intermediate I, Intermediate II, Grand Prix,
and Grand Prix Special. Shows are also classified by
order of competitiveness and difficulty as CDI*
(Concours de Dressage International) to CDI***.
Competitions are judged by anywhere from one to five
judges who score each one of the movements/figures,
giving a score from 0 to 10. The scores of each figure are
added and converted into a percentage.
The training and competition surfaces are usually
well cushioned, most often artificial. Between show
grounds, the surfaces are very consistent and close to
ideal and therefore rarely blamed for contributing to
lameness problems.
Dressage horses do not perform any speed work or
high impact work, which shields them from acute trau­
matic orthopedic injuries. Their training does involve
repetition of similar exercises, and this makes them
more prone to chronic accumulative stresses, resulting
in subclinical injuries that can ultimately or periodically
cause decreased performance, unwillingness to perform
some tasks and sometimes chronic lameness.
The collected and lateral work (Figure 9.39),
together with the fact that the saddle is placed rela­
tively far back and that the rider is almost exclusively
sitting, places unique strains on the dressage horse.
This is accentuated by the fact that they have relatively
long careers; as many compete until 15–20 years of
age, most are at their peak between 8 and 14 and com­
pete after that at lower levels with less experienced rid­ Figure 9.39. A dressage horse executing a half pass.
ers (as schoolmasters).

Jumping Hunters are trained to jump in a relaxed fashion,
giving the impression of jumping effortlessly, with the
Young jumper prospects are often free jumped before jump being a smooth continuation of the previous strides
getting broken (between ages 2 and 3). In some breeding (jumps “in stride”). Completions are scored subjectively,
programs, weanlings are free jumped, and a first selec­ on the style and cadence of the horse and rider. The
tion is done at 6 months, based on their jumping style. height of the jumps starts at 2′6 and increases with the
One study found that superior jumping style could levels but does not exceed four feet. It is not uncommon
indeed be detected at such age, although with some vari­ practice to ride hunters or lunge for a long time just
34
ability. Also, foal jumping technique was found to before the competitions to “take the edge off.”
improve with training and had a positive impact on For jumpers, less attention is given to the style of
their jumping technique at age 4 when compared with moving and jumping. The competitions are scored
untrained foals, although the difference did not carry objectively based on fallen rails, possible refusals and
over when horses reached 5 years of age, rendering the time of completion of the course. Height of rails varies
early training unnecessary. 35 between 0.90 and 1.50 m depending on the level of com­
After they are broken, training of the hunter jumper petition at the USEF level (although can go higher in
involves basic flat training, similar to basic dressage Puissance), and up to 1.70 m for FEI competitions.
training, emphasizing collection and engagement work. There is a multitude of classes and levels depending
After a few months of training on the flat, they are on the status of the rider (amateur vs. professional) and
brought over fences. As the training continues, the fences his age (adult vs. junior) and the age, experience, and
usually get higher, but also horses are trained to jump quality of the horse (i.e. young horse classes). As the
combinations of fences and jump fences at different level rises, so do the height of jumps and the technicality
angles, at different speeds, and from different distances. of the courses.
A lot of work is put into teaching them to modulate The competition season can be exceptionally long for
their stride length and speed while approaching the hunter and jumpers as there are shows running every
fences. single week of the year. It has become the norm for