There are not many things that feel better than seeing your beloved horse winning in the showring. However, this is not easy and there is a lot of preparation to do if you want to succeed at showing.

The main thing to consider, is whether your horse has correct conformation for his breed. You may think your horse is beautiful, but if his overall conformation is not very good, he will not make it as a top showhorse. There are several tricks that can be used to hide slight imperfections, but obvious abnormalities will hamper your chances of doing well in the showring.

The most important preparation is at home. If you want your horse to perform well and to look good, you need to make sure he gets the best of care – and is well schooled both under saddle and from the ground. There will be many horses in top condition, with impeccable manners, at the show – so you need to make sure your horse can measure up.

Training for the show
The first thing to look at is feed. Showhorses are kept in a slightly fatter condition than the average workhorse. They have shiny coats, bright eyes, strong solid hooves, long flowing tails and full manes. They need to be in superb condition. These qualities come from the inside. A good quality concentrate feed as well as top quality tef or eragrostis and lucerne are essential. Many showhorse owners feed omega oils or corn oil and vitamin supplements, to help bring out that healthy shine in the coat.

The next important factor is muscle. Your show prospect must have a good amount of muscle coverage over his body. Strong muscles are part of the overall picture of health. Your horse will need regular schooling in the correct round frame, where he is using his hindquarters properly, in order to develop the correct muscles for a silhouette that impresses the judge.

Hill-work is a wonderful tool for developing muscle over the top-line and hindquarters of the horse. Find a long hill of decent slope and walk up and down in a round frame, with a forward pace. Work this into your regular schooling routine.

Set him up for success
When it comes to schooling for the showring, the way to success is to set your horse up for success. The showhorse needs to be calm, focused, bombproof, soft and obedient. This means you need to structure your schooling routine so that your horse not only works softly in the correct frame for your discipline and breed category, but also keeps his focus on you and not on all the new sights and sounds around him.

Expose your horse regularly to things he might encounter at the show. Teach him in a gentle way to approach and pass scary objects calmly. Give him immediate reward with praise and a rub when he responds calmly or ignores them. You can also work on this from the ground. Set up a "playground" obstacle course consisting of objects and sounds he may experience at the show.

These may consist of objects such as red and white tape, chairs, bright umbrellas, potted plants and flowers, white arena markers, arena letter markers, flags, groups of people, and so forth. If you are entering a utility, working riding horse or Western trail class, be sure to add objects such as a gate, barrels, a water tray, a hay bale, poles in chute, square and fan shapes, and trotting poles.

Walk calmly with your horse past the objects. When he does this calmly, walk him to them. Encourage him to touch them, and praise him well as soon as he does. This will encourage him to be courageous with strange objects and to investigate, rather than try to get away from them.

Set your obstacle course up with a radio and loudspeaker as well if possible, as many horses are disturbed by these loud sounds the first time they hear them.

Turnout for the show
Showing is the "beauty pageant" of horse shows. Your horse needs to be turned out impeccably. A well turned-out horse and rider combination can make a big difference in the judge's decision – often, when the judge cannot decided between two horses, the one with the better turnout will be placed higher. Make sure your horse is correctly finished off from muzzle to hoof!

Turnout varies slightly from breed to breed, if you enter breed classes. Make sure you know how best to show off your horse for his specific breed. However, there are common denominators in all showing classes, consisting of the following:

• Coat – must be "squeaky" clean and shiny. Tip: Don't wash the day before (unless your horse is grey) as it makes the coat look fuzzy. Rather wash a few days to a week before, and try to keep him clean until the show, grooming often with a good rub and a sheepskin to bring out shine. Be careful to only use coat shine spray on the morning of the show before you go in, as it collects dust if put on earlier.

• Quarters – should be marked with a quarter-marker. Tip: Choose a mark that best shows off your horse's quarters or hides faults. For example, squares make hindquarters look large and horizontal arrows "widen" overly sloped quarters.

• Face – must be clean, with whiskers of muzzle and inner ear-hairs trimmed (except in some native breed classes).

• Eyes, ears and muzzle – clean and wiped with a tiny amount of baby oil (be sure to avoid getting it in the eye).

• Anus area – must be clean and wiped with a small amount of baby oil.

• Mane and tail – should be trimmed/pulled neatly and plaited, including the forelock, for most classes. The style of plait or length of hair required varies from breed to breed. Tip: Plait on the morning of the show, for the neatest results. Leave plenty of time for this. Don't wash the mane and tail thoroughly at the roots the day before the show, as this makes the hairs slippery and more difficult to plait. If a plait is unruly and won't lie flat, or hairs are sticking out after he is plaited, trim the long loose hairs, and lay the rest down carefully with some extra-strength hair gel.

• Legs – excess hair must be trimmed, except with native and heavy breed classes. Coronet bands must be neatly trimmed as well. Socks must be very clean. Tip: Carefully wipe a little bit of baby powder over the socks on the morning of the show – this makes them shine whiter.

• Hooves – must be clean, and neatly painted with hoof polish. Dark hooves are painted with black polish, while white hooves are painted with clear polish. Tip: Carry a small cloth in your jacket pocket, so that you can quickly wipe any dust, grass, or grit from the face and then the hooves just before you go into the arena.

• Tack – the type and style of tack varies depending on your discipline. However, in all showing classes, tack must be clean, in great condition with not a stitch out of place, understated, and brown in colour, unless your horse is grey. Numnahs and girths should match the colour of the tack or the horse, except in Western classes. Horse boots are usually not allowed in any showing classes. Ribbon browbands are allowed in some English classes. The type of bit allowed depends specifically on the discipline and on your level of riding or your horse's level of training. Make sure you know the rules concerning which tack to use, well before the show, so that you may obtain the correct equipment. Tip: Do not oil your saddle seat and skirts before the show, as your saddle will be slippery, plus you will end up with brown oil stains on your show pants, which will get you marked down!

At the show
How to lead and stand your horse for your ­­in-hand classes, and know what is expected of you in your ridden classes. You do not want to have done all that preparation, only to be eliminated for incorrect presentation of your horse! Make sure, when you tack up, that everything is in its place.

Untack your horse between classes and give him fresh water and grass. Don't let him graze or share buckets with other horses, and minimise his exposure to other horses, as this is how diseases are picked up. Lock your tack and equipment away when not in use as tack theft is common at shows.

Checklist for the show
Be sure to have a list of the following items, and tick each one off as you put it in a bag to take to the show on the morning:
Grooming kit, especially body brush and hoof pick.
Scissors.
Show shine spray.
Hoof blackener and a brush.
Baby oil for the face.
Baby powder for socks.
Hair gel.
Quarter marker.
Cloth and sponge.
Show halter.
Travel halter, travel boots, tail guard, poll guard and sweat sheet/day sheet to protect legs, tail, poll and keep dust off your horse while travelling in the trailer.
Water bucket and stored water if necessary.
Tef net and tef/eragrostis.
Saddle, numnah, girth.
Bridle and correct bit.
Treats for your horse.

After the show
You may be exhausted after the show, but remember, your horse will be, too. Do not forget to take out all the plaits, remove the hoof polish, wipe his face clean of the oil, and reward him with a good roll in the paddock. Make sure your horse eats his feed that evening, and drinks lots of water. Taking your horse out for a long gentle walk the following day is a good idea to prevent both you and your horse from stiffening up.