Rule 1 – PRESENTATION FOR SHOWING

The permissible methods of presentation for showing the registered British Miniature Horse

are:

(a) Freshly clipped, or in natural coat.

(b) It is not permissible to razor/shave to skin level anywhere on the horse. This should result

in the horse being disqualified from a class.

(c) Tails to be at least 5cms from the ground and should not be below fetlock level.

(d) Mane and tail are to be natural and without extensions or additions, natural or artificial.

(e) Hooves are to be unshod in all in-hand events. The feathers must be removed.

(f) Hooves may be shod in the normal manner for driving events.

(g) Manes and tails may be pulled or plaited or natural.

(h) Whether the horse is presented clipped or in natural coat it is NOT permissible to remove

the whiskers from the muzzle, nostrils or within the ears. Bridle paths should have clear

definition and not be longer than 5cms. Any regrowth of the bridle path must be at

least 5cms and from 2027 no regrowth will be permitted. The mane should not cover the

horse’s shoulder.

(i) Neat leather or biothane bridles / show halters are acceptable. Lead reins should have

buckle fastenings and not clips. Yearlings and two year olds MUST NEVER be bitted.

Horses 3 years old & over may be bitted. Suitable snaffle bits only. The Judge’s discretion as

to suitability is over-riding.

(j) The use of leather or biothane couplings in place of metal chin chains and couplings is

encouraged and will not be penalised.

(k) No alteration or attempt to hide or enhance the natural colour or markings of the body

including legs, mane and tail of a horse by any dye, bleach or paint or any other means is

allowed. Discreet use of equine makeup to enhance but not mask facial features is allowable,

although we do not encourage excessive use of makeup. It is the Society’s right to enforce

this rule regardless of the occasion. The Society shall have no liability in respect of any such

disqualification.

General preparation and presentation will be at the discretion of the owner, but the Society

requires that the horse must be shown to its best possible advantage in order to promote the

Miniature Horse breed as one of beauty, intelligence and gentleness.

Any transgression of the above will be the responsibility or the owner/handler and will result

in immediate disqualification.

Rule 2 – ELIGIBILITY FOR SHOWING

 

(a) Criteria for entry to affiliated shows are published annually on the BMHS website.

(b) To enter a show the exhibitor must use the complete name of the animal as it is shown on

the horse’s Passport. No substitutions or changes are acceptable. Horses shown under false

identity will be automatically and immediately disqualified; the protest fee is waived.

(c) Horses may be shown if the exhibitor furnishes proof that the registration has been

received by the BMHS office allowing reasonable time to process. Where a horse is leased,

notice of registration of the lease must have been received at the BMHS office, with all

requirements having been met at the time of entry to the Show.

(d) When a member has been suspended, all horses owned by said member at the time of

suspension will be excluded from all BMHS affiliated classes for the length of the suspension

at the discretion of the disciplinary committee. Should the member then transfer ownership or

sell a horse during the suspension period said horse can still be excluded from BMHS

affiliated classes until the end of the suspension at the discretion of the disciplinary

committee.

(e) Any Owner, Handler, Producer or Horse that is banned for any period of time as a result

of any disciplinary action taken by any member body of The Showing Council may not

compete in BMHS Affiliated classes at the discretion of the BMHS Board/Committee. Any

action taken by the BMHS against any Owner, Handler, Producer or Horse may be shared

with the other member bodies of The Showing Council.

 

Rule 3 – HEIGHT VERIFICATION 

(a) The show age of the horse is determined from the 1st of January preceding its birthday:

• Four Year olds and over must not exceed 87cm. in height.

• Foals/Weanlings must not exceed 76 cm.

• Yearlings must not exceed 82cm

• Two Year olds must not exceed 84 cm

• Three Year olds must not exceed 86cm

For BMHS Open Classes horses may be 92cms and under, any age.

(b) Horses must be measured annually prior to making an entry for a HOYS qualifying class,

unless in possession of a life height certificate, at one of the designated measuring venues.

Horses may compete in RIHS qualifiers as long as they have arranged to be measured within

28 days thereafter. Any failure to comply with this will result in their qualification being

invalid.

(c) Horses may be offered a life height certificate once it reaches the age of seven years at a

cost of £20.00 providing it has been measured, within height, for at least three years

previously from the age of four or more. 

Rule 4 – JUDGES

 

(a) Whenever possible, all British Miniature Horse events will be judged by a BMHS panel

judge.

(b) A judge shall not attend a show exhibitor’s party, or any other activity connected with a

show on the day previous to the show at which he/she is officiating where that party or

activity may cause the said judge to have contact with a breeder, owner, exhibitor or

Miniature Horse entered in the following day’s show.

(c) A judge shall not visit the horses’ stable area or speak with owners, trainers, exhibitors or

owners’ representatives nor inspect or discuss any horse entered in the show before judging is

completed.

(d) Judges may be asked to give fair and reasonable commentary on placings and decisions

after each class.

(e) Handlers must not converse with the Judge except to briefly respond to questions.

(f) To ensure fairness, integrity and impartiality in all BMHS competition regarding judge

familiarity, individual members must not compete, or allow any horse owned, under their

control or produced by them to be competed, under any BMHS panel judge with whom

they have a personal or professional relationship that could reasonably be perceived as a

conflict of interest. This includes, but is not limited to:

(i) family members, close friends, or individuals with whom the member has a longstanding

personal relationship.

(ii) individuals with whom the member, their family, those who live at the same address or a

business partner has a current or recent professional relationship, such as trainers, coaches

or business associates.

(iii) any individual with whom the member, their family, those who live at the same address

or a business partner has had a financial or voluntary show related relationship in the

current or previous three years.

NOTE: It is of the utmost importance that the Judges take into consideration that there

are several different types of Miniature Horse, and that in each class the horses are

judged as to the best horse of all types to be the winner. They should not be prejudiced

to the horse type of his/her background.

Rule 5 – STEWARDS AND OFFICIALS

 

(a) Any reputable person may act in the capacity of ring steward.

(b) The ring stewards must help the judge, not advise or give opinion to them.

(c) The steward must refrain from discussing the horses or the exhibitors with the judge.

(d) Wherever possible ring stewards refrain from showing or having horses shown that are

registered in the above’s names, where they are officiating.

Rule 6 – FORBIDDEN SUBSTANCES, DOPING AND ARTIFICIAL IRRITANTS     

 

(a) No substance can be administered to a horse before entering or on a showground

which may mask an underlying health problem, enhance performance or bring about

sedation, whether that horse is intended to compete or not.

(b) Penalties for positive evidence of such doping will result in investigation and

disciplinary action of the Responsible Person, be they owner, handler or

producer/groom. Any qualification gained at said show will be forfeited.

(c) Any Responsible Person, be they owner, handler or producer/groom or Horse that is

banned for any period of time as a result of any dope testing disciplinary action taken

by any member body of The Showing Council may not compete in BMHS Affiliated

classes at the discretion of the BMHS Board/Committee. Any action taken by the

BMHS against any Owner, Handler, Producer or Horse may be shared with the other

member bodies of The Showing Council.

Rule 7 – PROTESTS

 

All protests shall be handled according to the following:

Any protest must be made to the show attended and in accordance with their rules. There is

usually a time limited requirement (typically from one hour after the incident) together with a

fee (typically £25 upwards) to be paid.

Rule 8 – GENERAL RULES AND RING PROCEDURE

 

(a) Dress code for showing British Miniature Horses in all affiliated classes including

Royal International Horse Show (RIHS) and Horse of the Year Show (HOYS)

qualifying classes and the championships.

WOMEN AND MEN

Hats – velvet or dark coloured riding hat / beagler, a flat cap or a bowler.

Clothes – tweed/twill showing jacket, navy or black showing jacket, black suit. Ankle

length smart trousers. Straight, knee length, navy or black or tweed skirts may be worn

with flesh coloured, or navy or black tights. Shirt and tie or stock may be worn. Ankle

boots or shoes. Waistcoats maybe worn but must be under a jacket. Neutral coloured

gloves.

CHILDREN (UNDER 14 YEARS)

Showing jacket, trousers/jodphurs, jodhpur boots or suitable leather shoes. Shirt and

tie. Riding hat of velvet or dark colour with appropriate safety harness to current BS

Standard. Neutral coloured gloves.

Evening Performance Wear

MEN– black suit, white shirt, bow tie. Hat and/or gloves may be worn.

WOMEN – Black trousers, black or white top/jacket. Arms must be covered. Hat and/or

gloves may be worn.

Normal showing attire may be worn.

Handlers must not wear clothes carrying any form of advertising except for a badge of the

Society.

At all times the exhibitor of a registered British Miniature Horse must be aware that both

horse and handler are on display, and hence present themselves in a neat, appropriate manner

in order to promote the breed and Society in an appealing and proper way.

(b) All horses including foals should be led and shown throughout an entire class by the same

person. Should additional handlers be required due to physical limitations or emergencies, the

ring steward must be notified. At no time will handlers let horses stand unattended except

when the class calls for it.

(c) Names of horses being exhibited will not be made known to the judge prior to the show.

Exhibitors will be issued with a number for each horse, to be displayed on the back or arm of

the handler, whenever the horse is in the arena/ring. The number will stand for the entire

show.

(d) Handlers must stand (not kneel) at all times in the show ring during classes and prizegivings

to ensure safety for all exhibits and officials.

(e) Conduct designed to distract the horse or otherwise interfere with the showing of an

exhibitor’s horse, will not be tolerated. Offenders will be asked to leave the show area. If the

offender is an exhibitor, they will be excused from the ring and barred from the show area for

the duration of the show. Their horses, however, may compete.

(f) An unruly horse should be excused from the ring by the judge or ring steward for safety

reasons.

(g) For horses of all ages, at all stages during preparation and training, welfare is paramount.

This includes, but is not limited to good horse management, training methods, farriery, use

and fitting of tack and transportation, on and off the showground. At no time should welfare

of the horse be subordinated to commercial or competitive interests.

Cruelty, abuse or inhumane treatment of any horse in the show ring, on the showground or

stable area will not be tolerated. Any offender will be barred from the show for its entire

duration.

(h) Biosecurity means the methods we use to promote good health and reduce the spread of

infectious disease.

(i) The risk of spreading equine disease is significant when attending shows.

Exhibitors should not attend a show if there is a disease outbreak at their yard or

nearby, even if the horse appears well, because some diseases have an incubation

period of up to 21 days.

(ii) Exhibitors should be aware of their horses’ usual temperature and vital signs in

order that they can identify when they deviate from the norm, potentially indicating

that they are incubating disease

 

(i) Conduct by an exhibitor, trainer, owner, or immediate family member, of an

unsportsmanlike, abusive, or detrimental nature will not be tolerated including, but not

limited to, threatening, abusive, or intimidating conduct (physical, verbal, or written) toward

any show official or fellow Exhibitor.

(j) Exhibitors and/or owners may not protest to the judge directly, or by inference, regarding

the placing of any horse.

(k) Children under 16 years may not show or handle a Stallion of any age on the showground

other than a current season’s foal.

(l) Horses should enter the showring/arena on the right rein and be shown in hand at the walk

and trot. During the individual show section, handlers should move as appropriate to give the

judge the best view of the horse. They should be walked away from and trotted towards the

judge to show straightness of limbs and movement. Horses must also be viewed in motion

from the side, and judged on the priority of:

1. Conformation

2. Way of going and manners

3. Quality and body condition

4. Presence

5. Type

(m) Horses are not to be shown stretched which means the head and neck are not pulled

up or stretched forward and all four feet are flat on the ground and at least one front

and one rear cannon bone remain perpendicular to the ground. STRETCHED

HORSES WILL BE PENALISED after the initial warning by the judge(s) in each class.

IT IS PERMISSIBLE TO HAND SET THE HORSE

(i.e. physically move the horse’s foot/leg with exhibitor’s hand.)

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