pony club Parent's Guide

Helping out Mum and Dad

Communication Is Vital!  We are keeping our numbers small to ensure that all members' individual needs are met. If your child cannot attend an event, then it is important that the instructors are contacted. If you feel you cannot invest the time to spend with the pony club, then let us know and someone from the wait list can take your place. This is a sport that requires dedication and we teach valuable lessons in every activity. Attendance is very important - and though it's fine to miss an activity on an occasional basis, members are asked to attend as many activities as possible so as to remain at the same skill level as their peers.

Parents - We Need Your Help  Fundraising is an important aspect of pony club. This Spring our members will have the opportunity to participate in Regional Pony Club Activities such as the Regional Rally and Quiz. To help keep the cost low for these activities, fundraising is important. If you feel you can help in this area - please let us know!

What Are They Talking About?  A parent's quick guide to some FPC translations:

ADC - Assistant District Commissioner
Bay - A brown horse with black mane and tail
Bit - What the horse wears in his mouth - attached to the bridle
Canter - A 3 beat gait. The 3rd gear of the horse.
CEF - Canadian Equestrian Federation
Chestnut -A brown horse with a lighter mane and tail
Colic -Not a happy story! A very nasty ailment caused by feeding ponies what they shouldn't eat… (refer to 'treats' and 'vet' below!)
CPC - Canadian Pony Club Cross Country - The art of galloping through a path or field and jumping anything that gets in the way.
Diagonal - When a rider is doing rising trot, they are on the correct diagonal if they go up at the same time as the inside hind leg DC - District Commissioner
Dressage - Figure skating on horseback. This is when horse and rider perform a set pattern on the flat.
English Riders - This is what we are. We use small (rather than larger 'Western')saddles. We don't 'drive' the horses. Neither are we jockeys (Kentucky Derby).
Escape Artist -Why we make sure that all stall doors and paddock latches are securely fastened and that ponies on cross ties are supervised.
Eventing - A sport which combines Dressage, Cross-Country, and Stadium in the ultimate test of horse and rider.
Farrier - He puts the shoes on our horses.
Feed - Twice a day - hay, grain, vitamin supplements -- Yummy!
Flat work - A lesson that doesn't involve jumping
FPC - Fredericton Pony Club. That's us!
GGirth - Goes around the pony's tummy -- holds the saddle on (always good to check that it's tight before you get on!) Gymkahana - Games on horseback -- lots of fun!
Hack - as in "Going on a hack" -- a trail ride through the park
Lead - When a horse is cantering, the front leg that stretches farther in front Lead Line -What we always use to ensure that ponies safely move from one area to another (see 'escape artist' above)
Lunge Line - aka longe line. This is essentially a long rope attached to the horse's bridle which allows the instructor to control a horse from the middle of the circle as the horse goes around her.
Meds - Medications that the animals sometimes have to take…. 'Yeech'
NBEA - New Brunswick Equestrian Association Over Fences -Jumping obstacles
Parents -Those lucky souls who drive their kids to pony club, open their wallets regularly and get to wash slightly aromatic shirts and breeches…..salt of the earth!
Refuses -What a pony sometimes does when jumping….. "You want me to jump that?………I don't think so…..!"
Rising Trot - aka Posting Trot. This is when the rider rises and sits to the rythym of the trot.
Shod -Horseshoes have been attached to the animal's feet
Tack -Saddles, Bridles, Bandages, etc.
Treats -Very Important!!!!!! Carrots or apples (cut up) - not chips or gummi bears...
Trot - A two beat gait. The 2nd gear of the horse.
Vaulting - Gymnastics on horseback. The fastest way to impress your friends
Vet - Provincial equine veterinarian - sometimes needed in a hurry!