There are so many things I like about Phillip Dutton's Advanced Dressage test on March 9th.  His mount, Mystery Whisper, has beautiful, expressive movement.  He's a treat to watch!  And of course, the horse wouldn't be  successful without his expert rider and trainer, Phillip Dutton.  Throughout the test, the rhythm of the trot and canter stay very consistent throughout the working, medium and extended gaits.  The shoulder-in and half pass display beautiful, consistent bend.  The rein back and final halt are very clean, and of course the flying changes are too.  Along with many other fans, I'm on the Phillip Dutton/Mystery Whisper bandwagon and will be following them during the 2012 London Olympics!  Go USA!

For the first time, I was able to observe an equine dentist in action.  Wow, what an impressive process!  After the initial exam, Dr. Boal sedated the horse, applied the mouth speculum, and used a bright spotlight to illuminate and thoroughly examine the mouth.  Custom made dentistry tools, which are design to shape the horses teeth without injuring the soft tissue of the mouth, were used with amazing precision.  You can literally run the tool heads against your thumb and they won't cut, but run it against a hard surface, and the results are quick and obvious.  From adjusting the plane of the molars, to removing the hooks and sharp edges from all teeth, the dentistry job was extremely thorough and precise.  Much to the relief of the horse (and owner), frequent breaks from the mouth speculum were given throughout the process.  If you've not had a professional equine dentist work on your horse's mouth, I highly recommend it.  You'll get to see just how far equine dentistry has progressed.  It's impressive!