HEY RAY: How do I approach my mare, Koda, and train her not to bite or kick the heck out of our other horse, Eddie, while eating?
— Ryla Haday, Sonora

HEY RYLA: The easy way to resolve this problem is to stop feeding Eddie. That way you take care of the biting, the kicking and the other thing.

All kidding aside, I understand that not taken care of, this problem can result in one or both horses getting hurt — as well as yourself. First, please understand that what Koda and Eddie are going through is absolutely normal and natural. This kind of thing happens with horses all the time, especially in the wild. This is how the species has evolved and preserved itself — survival of the fittest.

Having said that, the moment you bring a horse from a “wild environment” to the “stable environment”, the rules of survival change. Because you, the caretaker, are now in the mix, the horse’s role needs to change. You have a role in this — it’s your responsibility to help him realize he needs to act differently than the way he feels he should since he doesn’t need to fight for food and water anymore. Your horse will “evolve” into a more civilized horse. I suggest you do this in 10 easy steps:

PASO ROBLES – Entering the Open finals fence work at the 2010 National Stock Horse Association Futurity, Jake Gorrell knew exactly where he and Playin Ace High stood. Two rivals ahead of him after the herd and rein work — Phillips Ralls on Dom Dualuise and Todd Bergen on Red It One Time – were three points ahead of him. Then came the draw for order of go of what looked to be a thrilling finish to a week’s worth of top stock horse competition.

“It’s funny because I drew, then Phillip was right after me, and Todd Bergen was right after — the top three horses were all back-to-back-to-back in the same set,”

Marcia Morgan photo

Percynality Mercedes Benz and Eduardo Menezes

DEL MAR – Riders from eight nations vied for victory and World Cup points in the $50,000 Grand Prix of Showpark CSI-W event Sept. 4 under the lights in the Del Mar Horse Park.

Course designer Anthony D’Ambrosio endeavored to build a course that would test both the scope of the horse and eye of the rider. Four earned a spot in the jump-off, where Percynality Mercedes Benz and Eduardo Menezes clinched the win by virtue of the only double-clear performance.

Other riders who had advanced to the final round included East Coast

Jimmy Flores and Peppinic

SALINA, Utah — Peppinic, a 9-year old Quarter Horse stallion shown by Jimmy Flores for owner Choice Transportation, made an impressive August trip to Utah Aug. 13-15 when he earned the 2010 AQHA Region 7 All Around Open title at the Blackhawk Arena.

On their way to the All-Around Open title, Peppinic and Flores won both the Senior Working Cow Horse and Senior Reining championships, and they also took Top 5 in Senior Cutting and Senior Performance Halter.

“He had a really good show — they really cleaned house again!,” said Flores’s wife, Robin, adding that her husband has enjoyed success in

DEAR DANA: I purchased a 10-year-old cutting horse. How can I teach him to set his head for western pleasure classes?
–Susan Meade, Placerville, Calif.

DEAR SUSAN: It’s complicated, but not impossible! Training for cutting is very different than western pleasure, and he will need a lot of new training. First, in order for a horse to set his head he has to use flexion in his head and neck — he must must flex in the jaw, pole and neck to set or bridle his head. When you touch his face with the reins, he must soften in the jaw, give or break at the poll and flex in his neck. Here you will need to retrain his response to his rein cue.

Start with a lot of lateral flexion exercises, such as bringing your hand out to the side asking him to bend through the neck, and bend his head around toward your toe. Ask him to walk forward as you take a hold of him. Start on one side or the other, and if he starts out stiff, keep gently pushing and asking until he gives.

CapturedMomentPhoto.com photo

Jaime Azcarraga and Celcius, winners of the $40,000 Showpark Summer Classic Grand Prix presented by the California Horsetrader, is pictured with (from left) Case Wilson, Lily Wilson (with trophy), Horsetrader Publisher Warren Wilson, Horsetrader founder Carolyn Read, Blenheim EquiSports Marketing Director Melissa Braunstein and President Robert Ridland.

DEL MAR – The final outdoor grand prix of the season, the $40,000 Showpark Summer Classic Grand Prix, drew 60 entries to the grass at Del Mar Showpark on Aug. 28, and rider Jaime Azcarraga continued to shine.

On the 10-year-old German-bred Celsius, Azcarraga finished ahead of 14 other jump-off rivals.

“I think the 14 clean says something about the quality of competitors coming to this show,” Azcarraga said. “This is a beautiful place to bring the horses and compete.”

German course designer Olaf Peterson, Jr. created a challenging 16-effort track. He said he wanted to suit the diverse range of entries in the large field of rookies and veterans.

“It was a difficult field to set for,” he said. “There were young horses

Oh – those beautiful Friesians! They are coming the the Del Mar Arena next month for the 2010 International Friesian Horse Association World and Grand National Championship Show – so mark your calendars, get your horses ready, and be part of the spectacle. The California Horsetrader is the Official Publication of this event, and it’s a great issue to advertise in as we head into the fall. The show will be held Oct. 13-17 in the beautiful, covered Del Mar Fairgrounds facility, and it will offer 200 National and World classes, exhibitions, clinics, stallion parades and service auction, vendors, a sale barn – and a special Saturday night performance to benefit Rick Roberts Warrior Foundation. The show is USEF regular A-rated for Friesian and Part-bred Friesians, and it is USDF recognized. For a schedule, class lists and more info, call Nancy Nathanson at (805) 448-3027 and see the ad on Page 18 for more info.

VALLEY CENTER — Faced with onerous county zoning ordinances for horse boarding facilities, a group of horse advocates is working its course for change, and it’s reached the next step: a survey.

“The equestrian community of San Diego County has an exciting opportunity to work with the Department of Planning and Land Use on a new `tiered’ system of permitting,” said Sally Cobb, spokesperson for the group that has had two workshops with county staff. “This will alleviate the major use permit requirement for small to medium-sized horse businesses — this is good news!”

Small, boutique wineries, faced with their own unreasonable major use permit demands, worked with the county recently to enact an equitable tiered system of permitting, and Cobb is optimistic equestrians are taking a similar path. She says equestrian input on the survey is critical now.

“Without the survey, the DPLU cannot move forward with the new ordinance,” she said. “We need equestrians tp participate inthe anonymous if they are an equestrian property owner, occupant, or manager — including private homes with one or more horses, to public stables with numerous horses.

San Diego County residents must complete the survey by Oct. 15, Cobb said. Find out more at the website http://www.equinezoning.com.

Susan Wilson and Knowtorious

AMARILLO, Texas — The 2010 Adequan Select World Championship Show featured 1,142 entries competing for 41 world championships in a variety of classes — a big field by any standard. Coming home to California with the top amateur title was Susan Wilson of Ramona, who showed her Quarter Horse, Knowtorious, to the Farnam Select All-Around Amateur Championship after the pair had earned 73 points in six classes. Included in her performance at the show, held Aug. 29-Sept. 4 at the Amarillo National Center, was a world championship in hunt seat equitation and a pair of reserve world championships in showmanship and western riding, respectively. She also finished eighth in trail and was a finalist in performance horse halter geldings.

With the title, Wilson received $10,000, a bronze by Lisa Perry, $1,000 in Farnam products, a WeatherBeeta embroidered horse blanket, and a rose bouquet.