Liberty class

[Kawgirl]

I am thinking about entering my new gelding in the liberty class at a fun show. Do those of you who do the liberty class have an area for your horse to "practice" at home? Have you ever turned your horse loose in the ring and it did nothing?

I've never done a liberty class and I don't have a grassless area where he could "practice". Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[Rebecca]

I go to a neighbor's ring to free lunge my horses, as I don't have one of my own. After a while they know what to expect when I enter the ring and get very excited to run and stretch their legs, I love to watch the liberty classes, as the horses are just having fun being themselves. The biggest thing you can practice at home is catching your horse. You want to be able to catch him as quickly as possible when the music stops, and remember he will be a bit wound up after running around! The first few times I did liberty my horses didn't want to be caught but now they know the drill. It's a fun class!

Hope that helps! Have fun!

Rebecca

 

[Marsha Cassada]

At a show I attended recently I saw my first Liberty class. Some had a helper with them that went to the other side of the arena. Some had swishy things, like cheerleader pompoms on the end of a whip, which they used to direct the horse in a broader range or more movement.

I asked the judges what they looked for. They like to see a horse in all his gaits. They like to see them using most of the arena--not just a small circle at one end.

While most of the horses seemed to enjoy a chance to get out of the stall and run and frolic, I did see a couple that were frankly frightened.

 

[Rebecca]

At a show I attended recently I saw my first Liberty class. Some had a helper with them that went to the other side of the arena. Some had swishy things, like cheerleader pompoms on the end of a whip, which they used to direct the horse in a broader range or more movement.
I asked the judges what they looked for. They like to see a horse in all his gaits. They like to see them using most of the arena--not just a small circle at one end.

While most of the horses seemed to enjoy a chance to get out of the stall and run and frolic, I did see a couple that were frankly frightened.

Good post! I've seen lots of things in the ring to get horses going, shakers, bottles filled with rocks, plastic bags on the end of a whip, etc. Chances are if your horse needs to be chased all around the ring to be a liberty horse, well, then, they just might not be a liberty horse! And they probably aren't having fun. I like using just a plain lunge whip, and often have a helper at the opposite end of the ring with another lunge whip. Some horses need a bit of encouragement and some just like to GO!

In any case, this is always a fun class to watch!

 

[Kawgirl]

I don't think catching him would ever be a problem. He always meets me at the gate and stays right beside me when I'm at the barn or in the pasture.

I think I would have more of problem getting him to leave me! Anyone ever had that problem? I've watched him playing in the pasture, he's a beautiful mover! I wouldn't want to do anything that might make him nervous, he's going to be my driving horse. He was a bit nervous when I first got him, but has settled down a lot and he really trust me. What would be the least scary thing I could do to get him to move away from me?

 

[Deb E]

We just did our first liberty class at a local show in July. We practiced in a small grassed lot, which is not an easy thing to do, just so she would understand what I was expecting. I used a clicker at first to train her to come to me, and then I started substituting clucking for clicking. When your horse performs and comes to you in a field of clover, you know they like what they are doing. I just love how excited she gets when she sees me get my whip out because she knows that is what we are going to do. She just dances and prances all the way to the practice area. I also show her in halter, so this is great exercise to keep her in shape.

 

[MindyLee]

It acutally might be a good thing that your boy likes to hang on you as you might be able to catch him way faster. I put my stallion in Liberty and because hes my pocket pony, hes way easy to catch. So might be the same for you as your getting timed on how fast you can catch him as well...

GOOD LUCK!