.:EQUUS:.

So there were some women being shown around the stables today.  They were from Racing Victoria and Racing Tasmania.  A couple of weeks ago we had two new staff start at the stables and one is keen to do track work.  Through these women, it was determined that in January, Racing Victoria is holding a track riders camp, where he may be able to be assessed and given the correct licensing to be able to legally ride track work in Australia.

For those keen on the idea of pursuing a career riding racehorses, Pony Club or a riding school can be a great place to start at a young age.  Racing Victoria offers a Cert III in Racing (Track work), which would be worth pursuing for those in their teens or higher.

• Further information on the training package can be found at http://training.gov.au/Training/Details/RGR30108
• Also check out http://www.racingvictoria.net.au/p_Track_Riders.aspx

“It is easier to attach reins to a freight train and practice pulling to a halt than it is to slow down some of our horses.”

So one of my students is actually undertaking an equine course to gain a qualification to attract clients.  What does she do?  Look after people’s horses for them whilst they’re away on holidays - what a great idea!

At this point I only have one horse, and that is enough to worry about when I’m heading overseas!  To know that there is someone who can come into the property and deal with rugging and unrugging, checking waters, feeding and turning out horses and mucking out would be great!

Of course, there are places where perhaps you could send your horses and have them looked after.  But to have someone come to me, that’d be something I’d be up for!  I haven’t grilled this person for information, but thought it unique and another worth mentioning.

“If anybody expects to calm a horse down by tiring him out with riding swiftly and far, his supposition is the reverse of the truth.” - Xenophon

It’s coming around to that time of year again.  For those considering the study thing, be it full time, part time or via distance education whilst working, there are a multitude of horse courses out there!

To draw your attention to two in the Melbourne, Victoria area:

• Certificate II in Equine Industry
• Certificate III in Agriculture (Horse Breeding)

Both courses are on offer at Box Hill TAFE, and the open day is this Sunday, August the 28th from 10am.  Open Days are a great opportunity to find out what a course offers, see how it is delivered and meet the knowledgeable teachers.  It’s never too late to start learning and gain a qualification!

tag: equine education, horse course, distance education

We had a Care for Horses workshop this week for the Certificate II and III equine students that I help to teach. One area the students looked at is neglect and horse welfare, with some questions based around the equine organisation, Project Hope.

That got me thinking about neglect and horse welfare in general and I thought it worth a post on such equine organisations. Perhaps your passion is to see horses restored to the physical condition they should be in, rather than the one that they sometimes find themselves in.

Organisations such as the RSPCA and Project Hope can be heartbreaking. Such a job that can showcase so graphically how cruel and ignorant horse owners can be is not for the faint hearted. However, if this is where you feel called to be, perhaps pursuing volunteer work in such an organisation would be a start.

Being organisations, the larger ones – such as the RSPCA – may have the opportunity to offer a limited number of paid positions, which may be able to be worked towards once you have a foot in the door by volunteering. When considering the health of horses, knowledge in the areas of wound care, nutrition and exercise may be of benefit to help restore equines to their full potential.

Consider the likes of short courses or even doing a subject here and there at a local TAFE or university to assist in this area if you find you are lacking.

“If your horse says no, you either asked the wrong question, or asked the question wrong.” - Pat Parelli

tag: equine education, horse welfare, short course, online course

Back in January of this year, I posted about an incredibly cheap offer for one of Equinology’s equine sports massage subjects/courses.  Always curious about courses on offer, I mentioned this to my boss and she, a workmate and I all ended up signing up for the course.

Course moderator Debranne Pattillo has recently posted to the group announcing the two year anniversary of this course - congrats to the crew at Equinology!

For those of you interested in anatomy and physiology of the horse (bone and skeletal structure specifically) and the idea of massage, the Equinology site and it’s courses is well worth exploring.  The joys of many online courses is they can be carried out part time or at your own place, alongside work or other study!

“You cannot remain unmoved by the gentleness of conformation of a well-bred and well-trained horse. . . more than 1000 pounds of big-boned, well-muscled animal, yet forever a menace with it’s innocent power. . .but when it greets you with a nicker and regards you with a large and liquid eye, the question of where you want to be has been answered.”

tag: equine education, equinology, short course, online course