1966-Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1966 July Voice RS | Page 32

TENNESSEE
WALKERS
IN TEXAS
year-old sorrel mare, Gloria’s Valentine, from the
Barnwell Stables in Shreveport and plan to show them
in all the shows this season. ERNEST PICKLE 0f
Tyler is very pleased with the progress that his four,
year-old, Gypsy’s Raider, is making under the train­
ing of JULIA HORNE. Ernest is an old-time Walking
Horse man in this area who can usually be seen at
just about all the shows. Mrs. A. J. (JANICE) LOCKE,
also of Tyler, will be showing her four-year-old gelding^
Merry Tom, recently purchased from C. C. WILLIAMS
of Harleton, at the shows this season. DENISE DODSON
says she has Mr. Cap in top form — and proved it
by taking the blue at the Starville Show.
Fr
He
(Continued from page 16)
Mrs. Edith Puckett
Route 4, Box 110
Tyler, Texas
TENNESSEE WALKERS IN TEXAS
Grab your saddles, load your horses, and let’s go
to the shows! You can just about pick your time and
place to go. Looks like there will be at least one show
■within driving distance every weekend. But I need a
favor from show chairmen — let me know several
weeks in advance when and where the shows are, and
I promise I’ll spread the word.
Fun is the word for the Tyler Saddle Club’s Third
Annual Gaited Horse Show. Everyone seemed to have
a good time and we had some of the best horses in
the country. Check the show results — I believe you’ll
find six world champions listed there, but they had
to work for what they got in Tyler. Judge LEE
SHIPPMAN was such a hit with everyone, we almost
decided to keep him here. JASON SUMMER’S music
had the crowd in the right spirit from the very first.
And this atmosphere continued right through the
exhibitor’s party, where we were entertained by Miss
SUZY PRICE and Miss BEVERLY GILMER of Pales­
tine, Texas, with folk songs — in a very professional
manner. Mr. ABE POUNDS’ lake home was the set­
ting for the barbequed chicken dinner served to ex­
hibitors and friends. Mrs. MAXWELL HERRING was
hostess for this party and she did a fine job of making
everyone feel at home.
An important "extra” of the show was the presen­
tation to Miss LUCILLE HOLMES, Tyler Saddle Club
Treasurer, of a silver tray for her outstanding service
to the Club. Miss Holmes, who does not ride or own
a horse and is the youngest seventy-year-old we know,
devotes most of her time to club activities. Lucille,
we love you!
Proud new Walking Horse owners in this area are
the EAKIN family — TOMMY, MARY FRANCES,
KERRY, CONNIE and KELVIN. They recently bought
a four-year-old black stallion, Ptomaine, and a five-
32
Most trainers who favor a Bitting Rig for starting
a horse will suggest a broken Snaffle Bit with large rings
A good recommendation is a rubber port bit with large
rings. This will assure the protection of the horses mouth
and will lessen the prospect of him hurting his mouth
if he should act up at first.
After you are certain that the horse is “off the bit”
and that he is responding well to your actions with the
reins and to your commands of “go and stop,” you are
probably ready to put him under saddle. Be careful when
you ride him for the first time. Have someone hold him
while you mount and get on and off several times before
positioning yourself firmly in the saddle. It is important
that you be very careful on his mouth at this point or
else you can “undo” all the ground work you have
accomplished with the Bitting Rig.
You have received the basic approach to the use of
a Bitting Rig or similar device for the training and starting
of young horses. It has been our experience however
that most Tennessee Walking Horse trainers utilize a
similar device for “corrective” purposes as opposed to
primary training purposes. We recently noted that a
trainer had a make-shift device on an aged stallion. On
questioning him, we found that he had made an excellent
piece of equipment that was simple and inexpensive. He
stated that he had used it for years to help set the heads
of those horses who had either “never had their heads
set” or “had developed bad habits regarding the bit.”
The devise is made of a piece of soft cotton rope about
eleven feet long. It has swivel snaps on each end and two
pullies with snaps on each side. (See diagram). The idea
is to use the device exactly as you would a double rein
bit. The snaps on the pullies are attached to the end of
the shank and the snaps at the ends of the rope are
attached to the buckles of the stirrups, after they have
been pulled all the way to the top under the skirt of the
saddle. This puts the pullies in exactly the right position
to gently work the horses chin in and his head up.
The trainer using this device pointed out that it had
been a great aid in correcting the problems of setting the
heads of some horses. It is not described as a “cure-all
but could be put to good use around most stables.
Many times the difference between the first place
and the second place horse is his looks both along the
rail and parked. One of the outstanding qualities of ^
show horse is the way he sets his head and it could he
that your horse is carrying his head two low or too high,
affecting the “looks” of him as he competes. If this is one
of your problems, perhaps a rig similar to the one 'vC
have described will be of assistance.
VOICE of the Tennessee Walking Horse
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