Taking the OTTB to his first show!

[LawsofMurph]

I can’t believe I’ve owned this baby horse for nearly 8 months! And we are prepping for his first Dressage show in December! Our expectations are so low. We’re just doing Suitability and Intro A, but I am so excited to start his journey.

We’ve been on a few field trips and he’s finally stopped thinking traveling equals race time. But, he likes to look at EVERYTHING. So, I plan on spending our first day there literally letting him just explore the property. Ring, warm up, etc.

Any other advice for a 4yo OTTB first show?

Picture of the best baby horse!!

[MunchingonHay]

Have a wonderful time!

baby step and just take everything in stride.

and don’t forget to have FUN!

[ParadoxFarm]

I definitely agree that getting there a day early is huge. When I showed my new horse for the first time in September, I got him off the trailer and walked him around for about 20 minutes before doing anything else. It really helped. He was a good boy. So have time. On show day, get ready very early so you’re not rushed into the warmup and show ring. Use this show as a learning experience, and just have fun with it. If he’s not perfect during the test, just smile and go with it. I had to do that two weeks ago when it poured rain and the arena was one big puddle. My horse doesn’t like water on his belly, so it was a challenge. What can you do? Smile and carry on.

[endlessclimb]

Lots of handwalking, with as much grazing time as you can fit in there. Have fun!