REGULATIONS AND WHIP USE REGULATIONS AND WHIP USE

Under equestrian Australia (eA) and the Pony Club Association of Australia rules riders can be sanctioned for misuse of a whip on a horse (e.g. an eA Yellow Card).

The equestrian Australia (eA) and FeI Dressage Rule Books specify that when a rider is on a horse, a whip in its entirety can be no longer than 1.20m. When a rider is on a pony, a whip in its entirety can be no longer than 1m. At International FeI Dressage events, whips are not allowed in tests for ablebodied riders, however they are allowed in the practice arena. Whips are allowed in tests for Para equestrian riders at International FeI Dressage. At eA State and National Championships whips are allowed only up to Advanced, but at other dressage events, whips are allowed up to to grand Prix level in Australia.

In the racing industry some controls are now in place, but unlike Norway where whips have been banned in racing for decades, a jockey in Australia is allowed to use a whip every stride in the last 100 metres of a race. Critics of Australia’s rules on whips in racing argue this goes against well accepted learning theory on training horses and other animals, where an animal must be given an opportunity to react before an aid is repeated or increased.

When race horses cannot respond to the whip because they are too fatigued, they are being whipped for galloping as fast as they can. This defies the logic of operant conditioning in learning theory.

Defenders of the racing rule claim that horses have tougher skin and feel pain less than humans. Professor Paul Mcgreevy from the University of Sydney School of Veterinary Science and his colleagues have completely debunked this argument. After 10 years of research, they found that horses have not only evolved to feel as much pain when whipped as a human would, but that there is “no compelling reason to whip horses in races at all” (Mcgreevy).

Professor Mcgreevy found “no significant difference” between humans and horses in the concentration of nerve endings in the outer layers of skin, nor any difference in thickness of this skin layer. “This was not surprising, as horses, like humans, need robust yet sensitive skin to respond to touch, say, from flying insects or other horses,” reevy.

Whips use has been restricted in the racing industry.

Generally people prefer to carry the whip in their dominant hand - for most people their right hand. Experienced trainers will vouch for the fact that skill with the whip in either hand is essential. Many horses bend readily to the right, these horses tend to bulge through the left shoulder, and fall out on the right rein.

Experienced breakers will tell you horses that spin will spin predominantly to the left, and experienced jumpers will tell you most horses are likely to run out to the left if an obstacle has similar material either side of the fence. Carrying a whip in the right hand will not help in any of the above situations, in fact, it may even increase the likelihood that the situation will arise!

Riders need to practise, so they are equally skilled at carrying a whip in either hand. Deciding on which hand to carry a whip in depends on the situation.

Horses are generally inclined to move away from a whip, so when safety may be an issue, riders should bear in mind that a whip in the correct hand can help if something happens suddenly.

Riding on a road verge or along a ditch, it may be wise to carry the whip on the ‘road’ or ‘ditch’ side of the horse, so it jumps away from the whip, and away from the road or ditch.

Riding a spooky horse in an arena, the whip is generally best kept in the inside hand so the horse is deterred from spooking away from the edge of the arena to the inside.

Riding a horse into an indoor arena to compete in a dressage arena, when it is unaccustomed to the arena, it is often wise to carry the whip in the inside hand to keep the horse from jumping into the arena before the bell is rung.

Riding a ‘green’ horse that is likely to fall out on a corner or circle and canter on the wrong lead, it can help to carry the whip in the outside hand (and perhaps tap gently on the horse’s shoulder) to help the horse to be straighter so it achieves the correct lead.

Riding a more experienced horse, the whip is often carried in the inside hand to help to activate the inside hind leg.

Whip Tips

If a horse has difficulty getting the correct leading leg in a canter transition, holding the whip near its shoulder in the outside hand often helps to keep the horse straighter, and therefore more balanced, leading to greater success at cantering on the correct lead

Riding along the wall of an indoor arena, if the kickboards are not sloped away at the top, riders often like to carry their whips in the inside hand so the whip does not scrape the kickboards, distract the horse, and wear the tassel off the whip!

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Because vision in horses allows them to see objects in a pathway about 45 degrees behind them on either side, it is important that the whip is held so it is outside their line of sight unless the rider intends the horse to see it.

This can explain why inexperienced riders often believe their horse is frightened of a whip. If their thumbs ‘fall down’ towards each other, and their hands are unsteady, the whip will come into their horse’s line of sight and will be moving. Seeing a waving whip out of the corner of its eye can easily cause a horse to become distressed. Often, when a more experienced rider carries a whip steadily inside the line of sight, the same horse will relax, and demonstrate that it is the sight of the whip rather than the feel of it that is unsettling to many horses.

Holding a jumping whip at a competition – plaiting elastic round the middle finger and in a figure 8 over the handle of the whip.

If a rider does not wish to change their whip from one hand to the other in the course of a cross-country or showjumping round, it is possible to secure the whip to a middle finger so it cannot be dropped, even if the hand is momentarily completely open.

Use the same cue when riding or handling a horse from the ground. e.g. If you want it to move its quarters to put a rug on or hose its other side, instead of pushing its haunches away with both hands, nudge it with the butt of the whip where your heel would nudge it to step sideways.