Posted: December 19, 2023
Two teams of Pennsylvania 4-H members recently participated in the hippology contest at the All-American Quarter Horse Congress, the world's largest single-breed horse show. Held at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, the show attracts 650,000 people and is hosted by the Ohio Quarter Horse Association, a state affiliate of the American Quarter Horse Association.
Cloey Barrick, Delaney Barrick, Aubrey McBride, and Clayton Hetrick
The team from Lebanon County placed 10th out of 20 teams and included Rachel Bohr, Madeline Ingraham, Mikayla Metzger, and Sophie Schaffer.
The Cumberland County team, consisting of Cloey Barrick, Delaney Barrick, Clayton Hetrick, and Aubrey McBride, earned 11th place.
During the show, 4-H, FFA, and collegiate members can compete in several knowledge contests, including public speaking, presentations, hippology, horse bowl, and horse judging.
Kirsten Dubbs, Penn State Extension 4-H animal science specialist, explained that hippology is an equine skillathon that tests 4-H members’ knowledge on a variety of horse-related topics.
It involves a written test, identification slides, or stations where participants must identify items such as types of horse bits, hay, or feed. Contestants typically judge a class of horses as part of the hippology contest. This means they evaluate and rank the animals, providing oral justifications for their rankings.
"Participating in animal science knowledge contests certainly teaches youth about their 4-H animal science projects and increases their knowledge level about those projects," Dubbs said. "In addition, these contests provide opportunities to learn and practice a host of other life skills, such as decision-making, teamwork, evaluating on the fly, memorization, and recall."
The Pennsylvania Livestock Association provides financial support to 4-H teams traveling for these types of contests. The Pennsylvania 4-H Horse Program development committee also helps sponsor teams traveling and registering for horse-related contests.
Administered in Pennsylvania by Penn State Extension, 4-H is a nonformal educational youth-development program of the United States Department of Agriculture that helps young people develop knowledge and skills to become capable, caring, and contributing citizens. To find your local program, visit the Pennsylvania 4-H website.
