The United States Pony Club Manual of Horsemanship: Advanced Horsemanship B/Ha/A Levels

this book is a great overview and introduction to advanced horsemanship and riding. it covers lunging, teeth, systems of the horse and anatomy, stable management, pasture care and fencing, teaching, young horses, trailer care, position on the flat and over fences, basic training principles, conformation and lameness, diseases and prevention, tack, and parasites. the best part is the charts or different diseases, parasites, and drugs with causes, symptoms, treatment, etc.. it also has charts for conformation and unsoundnesses with the relationship between the two. i would also recommend the intermediate "c" manual as a additional reference - it works well in conjunction with this one. overall, the "a" manual provides a great overview of advanced horsemanship and is a fantastic reference covering many topics for the horse owner and is readable. it's much cheaper and usually better than comparable books.

This book has helped me so much! I began reading and studying it at age 10 when I was still a C2, and throughout my ratings and progression it has answered my endless questions and supplemented the material from the D and C manuals. While the B, HA, and A manual is very informative, it should only be read by those who can thoroughly comprehend and extract inportant information from the text. I was always a very mature reader, but at times I even had to reread pages to be sure I understood correctly. This book has helped me through my B, HA, and just recently helped me pass my A, so this book is the best way to go to becoming a good rider! Thank you so much for making this Manual! Love, Anna

This book is great for learning about the body systems of a horse.It also briefly explains how to manage a stable with things such as how to make a stall have good drinage. It is the best book to get if you want to meet the requirements of Pony Club levels A, HA, or B. But I recommend getting this book only if you are at the advanced levels in riding and horsemanship because otherwise you will find that the book overwhelms you with information.I may suggest that people buying this book should consider buying Pony Club Manuals on levels C and D before or perhaps in addition to this manual.Overall, a good book for learning about the horse.

This is a great follow-on to the first two volumes of the USPC manuals. Together, they are the best "curriculum" on horsemanship available, bar none. (I say that, owning 900 horse books! The three USPC Manuals are the most useful of all.) As another reviewer said, it's not "complete"--one should read the first two volumes, first, as, like the USPC Standards of Proficiency, the Manuals build upon each other. I am a long-time riding instructor (over 22 years), especially with the US Pony Clubs. The three-volumes of the USPC Manuals would be a solid foundation of a good equestrian library.

This is the third of a series of three volumes of the United States Pony Clubs' Manual of Horsemanship. While similar in scope to the British Horse Society's one-volume book of the same title, the USPC has taken the approach that the horseperson can read one volume when starting out, a second when they have assimilated a bit more, and finally this third volume when they feel like they know just about everything there is to know. I can promise you that no matter how much practical, useful information you had before you pick up this volume, you will put it down having acquired much more. While it is very readable, it is not a "page-turner". I found that I would read two to five pages, go off and think about it for a day or two, and come back again for more. If you liked the first two volumes in the series, you will like this one. If you approach this book without reading the first two volumes, you will probably find the book incomplete and coverage spotty. The book is written to match the Pony Club standards, and provides the necessary information to advance to the highest ratings -- remembering that the higher ratings in Pony Club build on the lower ones. It is hard to believe that anyone in America today could consider themselves a serious horseman without digesting this volume. Bravo to the USPC for the whole series!!