The American Vaulting Association Horsemanship Program has been established to promote the development of confident, safe, well educated vaulters, lungers, trainers, riders, coaches, and horse owners. The AVA Horsemanship Program provides an educational curriculum and standards of proficiency in horsemanship as well as recognition of excellence in horsemanship for AVA members through evaluations/testing and certification of proficiency. In addition AVA members may also receive recognition of excellence in vaulting skills through the AVA Medal Testing Program.
Here are a few important links to explore the Horsemanship Program:
- Standards of Proficiency For Horsemanship Levels 1 & 2
- Guidelines for Local and Regional Horsemanship Proficiency Testing
- AVA Horsemanship Proficiency Exam Signup(cookies must be enabled)
- AVA Horsemanship Website
- AVA Horsemanship Facebook Page
- Educational posters (printable)
It takes a very special kind of horse to become a Vaulting horse. The ideal Vaulting horse does not have to be pretty and elegant. It has a wide chest and strong legs and since some of the exercises are done right on its neck, it is better if the neck is short and thick. Good character and temper are essential. The vaulting horse must be very fit as it must be able to canter for long periods of time. It carries a lot of weight and does not mind that the weight keeps changing
- Horse Anatomy
- Disaster Preparedness for Your Horse by UC Davis
- Heat Stress in Horses by Gary P. Carlson, DVM, Ph.D.