>>----- Original Message ---- From: Judy Ryder <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> But someone has to open the dialogue or it will just happen by default. Anyone?
Ashley, what are your thoughts on how and what to do? Judy<< I was hoping the many creative brains on this list would have some ideas to toss around, but Karen's idea of a "foal conformation video" is a good one and maybe NOW is the right time to do it. Also, the idea of having the judge travel to the farm is a good one, and it doesn't bother me that it would cost something ...its a choice after all to use a travelling judge or to do-it-yourself using a video reference. Actually, now that I am thinking of it, why not have a mail-in video option for this process? Foals and young horses are always of interest, so they will be at events, people want to show off their younglings, people want to see what others are putting on the ground...so REQUIRE the process of looking at foals be a less formal style...say, in the paddock with mother at natural movement. Owner/trainer leads the mother at walk, and a faster gait twice around the perimeter and the diagonals while judge watches the foal...how hard is that? The evaluation of foals is preliminary and not "rated" like the older horses, so it should be open and educational. The book page decribed with room for comments leads me to think that there is already some intent for foal evaluation to be informational/educational and not a private fixed rating. This gets me to thinking- why the push for horses younger than 2 to be evaluated...do we need validation from an expert that our foals are spectacular? Its not as if we were going to eat the ones who don't pass muster...or do we just like to show other people our foals we know are superb and this is the only avenue to do that? Prehaps an evaluation affiliate through the USIHC could set up a you-tube type foal video site so people can share and/or evaluate their foals online to answer both of these needs. I would love to see those and hear how the judges work through the conformation and gaits!! Probably would not be free, $5 to post your foal video for others to see, $50 to have your foal video-evaluated. Stan, any thoughts on that??? Ashley
