4-H Horse Program Leader's Guide: Horses and Horsemanship and Horse Science1
Horse Program Leader's Guide (4H HSL 20) is an animal sciences publication that accompanies the Horse and Horsemanship Unit 1 (4H HSM 10) and the Horse Science Unit II (4H HSM 11). These two reference manuals discuss the many aspects of the horse and go into great detail.
In EDIS this publication is DLN 4H 173.
Visit the 4-H Youth Development Curriculum Web site for more information on related project material.
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Objectives of the 4-H Horse Project
The 4-H Horse Project aims to help 4-H members to:
Develop leadership, initiative, self-reliance, sportsmanship, and other desirable traits of character.
Experience the pride of owning a horse or pony and being responsible for its management.
Develop an appreciation of horseback riding as a healthy and wholesome form of recreation.
Learn skill in horsemanship and an understanding of the business of breeding, raising, and training horses.
Increase knowledge of safety precautions to prevent injury to themselves, others and their mount.
Promote greater love for animals and a humane attitude toward them.
To be better prepared for citizenship responsibilities through working in groups and supporting community horse projects and activities.
Your Job as a Leader
The Challenge
Your responsibilitly as a local leader is both a challenge and an opportunity. Yours is a key position in the 4-H Club program. If you enjoy working with young people and like horses, you will find the time spent working with the 4-H horse program most rewarding. You'll find great satisfaction in watching boys and girls develop new knowledge and skills under your guidance. The horse project gives them special learning opportunities in animal care, outdoor activities, safety and participation in group activities.
Through your efforts, club members will learn many things that will better prepare them to assume places of leadership in their community. Your own activities will be varied as you:
help members plan their own programs
attend their club meetings
supervise their training
visit their homes to see how they are progressing
advise them on the care of their animals
accompany them on trail rides and to events outside of the county
You are the club member's friend who is close by when the boy or girl wants advice or help.
A successful leader is the person who has the confidence of the group; keeps ahead of them, yet seems always with them, understands their viewpoint; is tolerant, patient, and sympathetic in working with them. He recognizes work well done in such a way that young people will be encouraged to do even better; make friendly suggestions that will afford them larger responsibilities as they become more experienced.
Boys and girls are prone to look upon such a person as their ideal. This places a great responsibility on the leader for setting the right personal examples. Here is your opportunity to inspire club members to emulate attitudes and ideas that make for upstanding manhood and womanhood.
You don't have to do the job without help. There are others in your community who will be glad to assist. In addition, older club members can serve as assistants and junior leaders. They can do many routine jobs.
The Youth You Lead
The broad objective of the 4-H Horse program is to help boys and girls develop leadership, character, and effective citizenship. Each boy and girl is an individual with his own background, personality, talents, experience, and aspirations. Why do they behave as they do? Why is one so different in behavior from another? An understanding of these differences can come from working with each individual.
As a leader, you will find that getting to really know each boy or girl will help you guide them as they gain confidence in working with a group. It will help you in adjusting 4-H activities to fit their needs and in increasing the pleasure and satisfaction they will derive from their club experience.
The Subject Matter You Teach
As the leader and teacher for the 4-H Horse Project members in your club you will want to appraise the subject matter offered in Horse and Horsemanship Manual and the Horse Science Manual. Your study of these materials will prepare you to assist your club members in planning a series of meetings for the entire club year or perhaps for two or three years. Following is an outline of the subjects offered in the two manuals.
Horse and Horsemanship Unit - This unit includes sections on:
Glossary of Horse Terms
Breeds of Light Horses and Ponies
Color and Color Markings of Horses
Judging Horses (2 lessons)
Gaits of Horses
Horsemanship (including aids)
Equipment & Tack and Its Care
Grooming and Preparation for the Show
The Show Ring: Are You and Your Hourse Ready?
Showing Light Horses Feet and Legs
Training Your Horse
Safety Rules and Precautions
Horse Science Unit - This unit includes sections on:
The Nature and Behavior of the Horse
Functional Anatomy of the Horse
Unsoundness and Blemishes of Horses
Determining a Horse's Age by Its Teeth
Principles of Reproduciton in Horses
How Inheritance Works
The Digestive System of the Horse
The Nutrients and Their Importance
Feeds for Horses
Balancing Rations for Horses
General Health and Sanitation Principles
Disease Problems of Horses
External Parasites Affecting the Horse
Internal Parasites Affecting the Horse
Visual aids such as films and slides are available from many sources. Your county Extension agent can provide you with a list of materials most readily available to you. Make a real effort to find visual aids appropriate to each subject presented in your club meeting. It is appropriately stated that "a picture equals a 1,000 words."
Teaching and Supervising the Project
You can use a variety of methods to teach the project. Choose the one that is suited to the subject at hand and that allows the members to participate actively in the learning process. If you arrange for an outsider to teach at one of the meetings, be sure he understands that boys and girls usually learn more by doing something than by just sitting and listening. It is easier to obtain teaching help in you can give the person you ask a concise outline for the job - including the degree of learning desired for the club members.
You will want to encourage each member to complete the work he starts. SAee that he meets theminimum requirements for the 4-H horse project.
Home Visits
The earlier in the club year a home visit can be made, the better. A home visit will encourage the member, increase the interest of his parents, and give you a chance to see how the member is progressing and if he needs special help. Home visits are especially desirable for the first year members and members whose interest is lagging. These visits give you the opportunity to talk to both parents and members about the project. If you like, you can use the "Home Visit Checklist" in the appendix to help members get off to a good start and to offer suggestions for future work.
Records
Records give members business training and help them see their progress and achievements. Records are also the basis of many 4-H awards. Club members must complete the record book before they receive a 4-H pin at the end of the year. Check to see if records are up to date. Encourage record keeping by having club members add a blank page to the record book for pictures of the club and themselves with their horses.
Demonstrations
Showing and telling others how to do something is one of the best ways for a club member to learn how to do it himself. Giving a demonstration helps a member -
Develop new skills.
Develop initiative.
Develop poise and confidence.
Gain greater knowledge of the subject.
Gain ability in expressing himself.
Receive recognition from others.
Encourage each member to give a demonstration at least once during the club year.
Here are some suggestions for demonstrations -
Approaching, haltering, and leading a horse.
Saddling, bridling, and adjusting the stirrups.
Mounting and dismounting, proper seat and posture of rider.
Use of aids in controlling the horse - voice, hands, legs, position of body.
The different gaits and their influence on posture of rider.
Changing leads.
Teaching a colt to lead.
Picking up and cleaning the horse's feet.
Hoof trimming.
Proper shoeing.
The longe line and its use.
Showing at the halter.
Clipping and grooming.
Braiding mane, foretop, and tail.
Care of equipment.
Repair of equipment - sewing and riveting.
Judging horses.
Determining age by the horse's teeth.
Detecting unsoundnesses and blemishes.
Teaching the horse to jump.
Safe hauling, loading and unloading.
Feed mixing.
Opening and closing gates from horseback.
Ground tying.
Useful knots and restrainting devices.
Hobbling and picketing horses.
You and the members can also probably think of many others. Help each member choose a demonstration that is suited to his level of ability - one that he will be able to do well and that will also help him learn more about the project.
Judging
Judging is a good technigue for teaching club members to -
Know standards for an ideal saddle horse.
Make accurate observations.
Weigh and balance for comparison.
Arrive at a definite conclusion.
Beginning members need help in learning to judge. Slide sets, movies, and pictures are helpful and may be available through your county Extension office or horse breed associations. The best job of training is done with small groups and live horses. Train members in proper showing of horses at the halter during the judging sessions.
When you have the responsibility of selecting horse judging classes, plan each class to teach a particular lesson if possible. Judging can also be used as a teaching technique in many other situations. For example, clue members could judge feed rations.
Club Tours
Besides stimulating interest and enthusiasm of individual members, club tours serve to improve the quality of project work and strengthen parent interst. For tours to be of most value -
Arrange a suitable meeting place.
Invite parents and other leaders.
Plan transportaiton.
Plan exhibits or teaching assignments.
Plan refreshments and lunch.
Exhibits
Some time during the club year, have an exhibit for parents - a special occasion or club meeting with refreshments and entertainment. This helps members get ready to take part in fairs, too.
Or you many want to have members set up an exhibit for the club. This could be of equipment, parts of the horse, etc.
Communtiy Service
Let members work together to help someone else. Community service can be as simple as painting farm direction signs or helping clean up a park.
Special Events
Use special events and activities as teaching aids. Events of special interest to 4-H horse project members are judging schools, horse shows and schools, horse auctions, field days, farm and ranch tours, and local, county, and state fairs. These events let members meet new people, make new friends, and receive inspiration for better 4-H club work. Events and activities are usually something which members work toward. An effort should be made to keep these activities in proper perspective to the overall project.
When well planned, such events help maintain interest, give valuable training to members, and stimulate re-enrollment. Members should help in the planning and carrying out of all progrmas. County and state events have a place in the 4-H program, but do not take the place of local 4-H events planned and conducted by club members. Always remember that these events - and other teaching tools - are not the important thing in themselves, but are only a means of helping boys and girls develop.
Achievement Recognition
To youth, recognition is a symbol of accomplishment, achievement, public appreciation, and praise. It should come as a result of real effort on the part of the club members. We should use it to bring about desirable growth and development. Day-by-day recognition often helps stimualte. Recognition can be given by -
A pat on the back
Telephone calls
Letters
A chance to perside
Appearing on adult programs
Leadership responsibilities
Helping to plan
Achievement awards
Publicity
Pins
Ribbons
Certificates
Medals
Scholarships
Gifts
Trips
The eyes of 4-H club members should be focused on their project, club activities, and helping members of their club - not on recognition awards. The greatest awards come from service to others and personal achievement and growth, rather than from trying to "out do" other members of the club.
Footnotes
This document is 4H HSL 20, which superceedes 4H-194, one of a series of the Florida 4-H Youth Development Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Published; 1965, revised; October, 1990, reviewed January 2009.
Publication contact: Nancy Johnson, 4-H Publication Coordinator, 4-H Youth Development, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611.
The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal
Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational
information and other services only to individuals and institutions
that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed,
color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital
status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations.
For more information on obtaining other extension publications,
contact your county Cooperative Extension service.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service,
University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative
Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Millie Ferrer-Chancy,
Interim Dean.
