Engaging Education, Equine Style: Horse fair for beginners

By Irene Graves

Ever been to a horse fair? Today’s horse fairs had their origins in medieval Europe. Stallions were owned by the aristocracy. One day each year the stallions were displayed. The peasants chose the stallions to breed to their mares. As with all events, the vendors and the educators came too. When the stallions became privately owned, the horse fairs became major educational events.

Dr. Tresa Roster, Windcrest Veterinary Clinic, gave them an "inside view" of the horse's mouth.

The 3rd through 6th graders from Sanborn Central and Woonsocket Schools attended a horse fair for beginners. The educational event was held May 4, 2011, at the Sanborn County 4-H grounds in Forestburg, S.D. The children were given a taste of what it is like to own and take care of a horse. The children were divided into seven groups and rotated through the learning stations. The children came to see the horses and left with expanded knowledge of where and how horses fit into our society.

Parelli Natural Horsemanship Instructors Farrah Green, 3 Star Certified Parelli Instructor, Level 5 Parelli Student and Erin McCord, Level 3 Parelli Student, Assistant Instructor instructed the children on how to handle a horse. They began by explaining to the children they were not horse trainers, but people trainers. The children were taught how to ask a horse to move sideways, forward and back.

Devonne Hansen, saddle restorer and owner of Hansen Saddle Shop, volunteered to speak to the children about tack. She demonstrated how saddles and bridles should fit. The discussion led to how the saddle changed over time, then to why the way people rode changed.

Dr. Tresa Roster, Windcrest Veterinary Clinic, gave them an “inside view” of the horse’s mouth. Dr. Roster brought her two models, Lucky and Tango. She explained the basics of horse dental care. The children got to remove the teeth from the jaw.

Dr. Dave Schultz, from the Sandcreek Veterinary Clinic, talked about vaccination. Dr Schultz showed the children the locations on the horse’s body to administer a vaccination. He explained what kinds and when to give the vaccinations. The children listened tentatively as he compared the effect of West Nile Virus on humans and horses.

John Madison, South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension service educator, talked about horse nutrition. He brought feed samples for the children to feel and explained how the horse’s body used the feed. The children were intrigued with the fact that horses eat some of the same foods they do.

Cheryl Schmiedt, 4-H volunteer, was in charge of the Breed Row. Here the children saw live horses from the 38″ mini horse to a 64″ tall Thoroughbred. A geography lesson developed as she explained the horses’ physical traits and “where in the world” the horse came from.

From left to right: show coordinator Irene Graves, speakers: Devonne Hansen, Farrah Green, Erin McCord, Dr. Tresa Roster, John Madison, Dr. Dave Schultz, Della Amdahl and Cheryl Schmiedt and Snickers.

Energy accumulated from listening at the educational stations was used up as the children pretended to be horses by running full scale barrel racing and pole bending patterns in the 4-H arena. After this exhausting exercise, the Sanborn County 4-H Leaders Association provided juice and cookies.

In the evening, the public was invited to visit the Horse Fair for Beginners. The families visited the educational stations, vendors, concession stand and the grand finale. At 7:00 pm, the Parelli Natural Horsemanship Demonstration featured an awe-inspiring demonstration. Farrah and Erin demonstrated educational methods that provide the foundation of horsemanship skills essential to all breeds and disciplines.

The event was coordinated by Irene Graves, South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension Service educator, and Della Amdahl, 4-H leader.

Sanborn County Warren Pals and Gals 4-H Club, Sanborn County 4-H Leaders Association and the South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension Service sponsored the event.

Tags: 4-H, education, Equine, equine education, veterinarian

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 21st, 2011 at 3:33 pm and is filed under NCTA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.