Part 1 - So You Want To Show Halter Horses

By Ken Adkins

In this four part series, I will discuss selecting, conditioning, training and showing a halter horse. 

Before we start, I know you think your horse is beautiful, and I'm sure he or she is but ...there is more to showing halter than meets the untrained eye.  That's not to say that Butch or Lady are nags, but are they really suited for the weekend show in the halter division?

I have shown halter horses successfully at every level and the one thing I can tell you is, dress it up as you may a dud is a dud no matter how much makeup you put on it.  Whether it is an older horse or a young prospect, in halter, above all, you need a horse that represents the breed traits of the type horse you are showing.  Even though I have shown many breeds of horses, I will concentrate on stock type horses.

There is more to it than just being pretty, although it helps.  Every horse has faults but you need to choose a horse that has an overall appearance which is pleasing to the eye. Let’s start with structure.  Selecting a horse that has balance is a place to start.  The hip and the shoulder should be equally proportionate.  The horse should be balanced in length.  The length I refer to is from the poll to the withers and from withers to hip.  The head should be pleasing to the eye as well.  Not every horse has a tiny head, but the horses head should be proportionate with the body.  The head should be short in length with some width between the eyes. The ears not only need to be short but set in a way that allows the horse to look alert.  The neck needs to tie in high at the shoulder so that its base does not look thick and the throatlatch area needs to be clean, not thick and flabby.  The neck can be sweated but you will only be able to make a nice neck look better.  Don’t think you can sweat off a short thick neck or a thick flabby throatlatch.

The legs of the horse should be straight.  I love that statement, but what is straight?  When looking at your prospect, you should be able to draw a line down the front and back legs of the horse and the line should run straight from top to bottom right through the center of the hoof.  The front legs should be equally straight when viewed from the side.  A common problem here is knees that set out over the lower leg causing the horse to shake or “bump” and not lock in.  The hind legs when viewed from the side should neither be straight up and down or “posty” nor set up under the horse too far “sickle hocked”.   

Once you have determined that the horse is structurally correct, then you can start to look at muscling.  Ideally, the horse should have well defined, heavy muscles that are uniform from front to rear to include the chest, forearm, loin, hip, stifle and gaskin.  If it isn’t balanced muscle, it is no good!  I love a big hip more than anything, but it has to have a front end to match.

Movement, although it varies from horse to horse, should still be correct.  The horse should walk with a fluid four beat gait without dragging its feet or taking uneven strides and jog or trot with a fluid two beat gait that is not too slow and “draggy”.  Try to watch the horse from the front, back, and side as it moves in a circle both directions to evaluate soundness and correct movement.

Pretty.  Now we can talk about pretty.  When I say pretty, I mean stand back and view the horse as the judge does - from a side profile and ask yourself…Is this a pretty horse?  Most people I meet may not know all that goes into picking halter horses but they almost always will tell me that they think the good ones are pretty.  Pick a horse that is free of scars and blemishes if possible.  I know the rule says don’t count off for scars but judges are human and all things being equal, I take the pretty one.

I want to go back to something I said when I started.  Every horse has faults.  You want to choose one to show in halter that has as few as possible, that is structurally correct, has uniform, well defined muscling, is a clean mover, and is pretty to even the untrained eye.  If you do that, you have a horse that will work in most halter pens big or small.