PHAA National Championship Show - 3YO Western Pleasure Horse 

If the judge doesn't see an exhibitor doing that, then it's just smart horse training.

Shut up

I understand where you are coming from but the horses aren't "Tripping around the arena" This is how westerns ride, with kindness, unlike most English. English they pull their horses heads in and whip and use foul bits ect. These horses are fairly well trained as the riders are using body language insted of pulling and ordering the horse around with there hands. This shows great natural horsemanship that most englsih riders don't have.

***** I love western pleasure and am not against it but this is just flat out abuse! I'm glad someone else sees that too!

All but one horse shown in this video is wearing a bosal which has no bit and very minimal metal on it. Even normal western pleasure show bridles which contain a lot of silver are not adding an excessive amount of weight. If you are worried about the metal on the bridle being a factor of "abuse", you clearly have never held a western pleasure headstall before. While I agree that many horses except for maybe the top two placings in this video are not moving correctly, that does not mean that all western pleasure horses move this way. Trainers who overwork their horses and use harsh training tactics are not respected or reputable in the business. Many of these horses are slow legged and deep hocked just based on purely breeding. While these aspects are obviously exaggerated and brought out in this discipline, a correct western pleasure horse does not move unnaturally and maintains a four beat walk, two beat jog, and three beat lope. Any other variation is considered incorrect. The new trend in western pleasure is to have a lot more forward motion and impulsion at the lope. Horses that move at a consistent and ground covering lope will place above other horses who do not show this and it is definitely not about the "slowest" horse in the class. There is a bad side to every discipline including dressage so all I am asking is if you would educate yourself before you make assumptions and respect our discipline as we respect yours.

That "metal" on their bridle is called a bosal. Like Allie said, it has very minimal amounts of metal, if any. Don't try to prove me wrong, you're the one that needs to learn more about western pleasure before you go commenting shit like this. Oh, and it's called a western headstall not a bridle. You people annoy me so much.

Aleyna Dunn I ride a horse at my stables that is trained I'm western pleasure but when you ask her to gallop she'll gallop fast and when you ask her to do western pleasure shell do western pleasure, it's not unnatural it's just the way they're trained :)

think this is bad look up Arabian western pleasure

+Big Iron Girl LOL These aren't dressage horses. This isn't even English riding.

😂 a good dressage horse would be able to keep up

omg 😂

The horses heads aren't "Down too low" Western riders are kinder to their horses then most English as they don't force their horses heads in , letting them droop. making it a more natural and kinder way of riding.

​@@Tallbuff How is it "natural"? Never in my life have I seen a healthy horse limp around an arena with their head drooping down like this. This is not a natural or relaxed gait. The horses look like they've been sedated.

I would think the same if i didn't understand too. :) The riders allow their horses heads to droop as this gives the horse a reward and is much kinder to the horse. Unlike most english that cruely pull there horses heads in. I've been in the natural horsemanship side of things for awhile now, if you'd like to know more feel free to ask. :3

Not all breeds of horses have naturally elevated head carriages. These horses are bred to have a level topline and are comfortable with such.

Lesley Richards shut up

Gabi. T. Shut up

The english way of riding is actualy more painful to horses. When riding horses letting the horse droop it's head is kind. Like if you rode / if you ride your horse will most likely try to pull the reins out of your hands as it's more comftable to have it's head drooped.

they have a naturally low headsets. and no it doesn’t hurt them. it allows them to stretch their back out

these look more natural then the Arabian western pleasure horses

Neither is English riding this is the more kinder, natural way of riding, after all it's called Natural Horsemanship!

they move like that as babies too