AMMY ARMY GENERAL ORDERS

THE AMMY ENTHUSIAST ARABIAN HORSE ASSOCIATION (AEAHA) AKA, AMMY ARMY

Keeping with the military theme I would like to propose a set of GENERAL ORDERS, known as GOs. Every army needs regulations to keep it together and help everyone thrive. If you disagree with any of them just sound off. I know where the delete button is on this thing:)

GO #1 - RESPECT IS MANDATORY: Let's not reduce this to a rumor or negative site. Let's not bad mouth anyone, not even trainers or other AHA members.

GO #2 - FUN IS MANDATORY: In the absense of fun, what is the point?

GO #3 - HALTER IS A NON-CONTACT SPORT: I think horses are like women in this sense...They are incapable of doing anything that would justify hitting them. Now, they certainly will test you, they will irritate you and they will frustrate you, but nothing they do will every justify hitting them. If you have to twist a lip of a nibbler go for it. That is not what I am talking about....I am talking about striking an animal. If you believe in hitting an animal please feel free to continue reading our discussions but you are not invited to sound off.

GO #4 - THE WHIP IS A TOOL NOT A WEAPON: Eventually we are going to present a whip to our friends. We are going to use it to steer them and get their attention but never as a weapon to strike them. If you believe in whipping the animal refer to GO #3.

GO #5 - WHY? IS A VALID QUESTION: Telling you to do something without explaining the "whys" is not going to help you succeed. If anyone providing advice fails to explain the "why", sound off and ask.

GO #6 - WAX ON, WAX OFF: Like the movie we are going to be doing things that have a purpose even if we don't see it at the time. Like building a house you need a solid foundation. The WHOA that we are working on now is the foundation for everything else we are going to do. There is no point to taking the wax off (moving to the next step) before you get the wax on. If that means you have to "back up" to enforce the foundation, that is what you HAVE to do. Don't be in a hurry. Everything we do will make sense when the whole package is put together.

GO #7 - THE ENEMY GET'S NO VOTE: For this one, the enemy is anyone that tells you that you CAN'T do something. I have found that when someone tells someone else that they can't do something they are typically speaking about themselves. Make sense? YOU define your goals and success, don't let the enemy sound off.

GO #8 - WE OWN THE WORLD: I have heard that over 90% of Arabian owners do not show their horses. The reasons they don't show are varied but that is why we are doing this....to encourage them to get out there. People are going to say that we can't go into the MR and beat the BNTs....refer to GO #7 Good thing General Washington did not believe that about the British, huh? That may be true today but we get to dictate what happens tomorrow. If we flood the ring I will bet my bottom dollar that some of us are going to finish in the ribbons. BNTs have the advantage of political clout and name recognition but we are NOT without advantages. We don't have to train 20+ horses so we get to build a relationship with our partner and we outnumber them.

GO #9 - THE AEAHA IS MEMBER OWNED: I have been getting private messages from people that are making suggestions about the things I have said. They typically agree with the points made but think that I might have "missed" something. This is NOT MY thread. It is OURS. Please add any post you think will help others. Just refer to GO #1 when you do it and ask yourself why you are doing it. Are you doing it to cause trouble or are you doing it to enhance the experience and help out fellow members? If it is the latter, sound off:)

GO #10 - THE GATE IS HARMLESS: When you and your friend show you are paying for the opinion of three people on a specific day. Their opinion that day may be that you deserve nothing. NEWS FLASH...you WILL survive:) I can't promise that the sun will come up tomorrow but I can promise that you will survive the gate. I truly believe that when a specific horse dies and the owner adds up the wins and the losses the total will be zero. It all balances out. Besides, if you are showing for yourself, your family, the crowd and to have fun with your friend who cares about the gate. Everybody that shows, even the Champion, has to use the gate to get out of the ring. When you compete at anything you run the risk of winning or losing. You can't control that...you CAN control your effort and attitude though. Stay positive.

GO #11 - WE ONLY OWN ONE THING: Many of us go through life thinking we own a ton of things....Our horses, our homes, our cars, our clothes, etc.....Bad news.....we own none of those things. We can loose any of those things at a moments notice. They can die, they can be taken away by the bank, they can be stolen....There is only ONE thing we own that CAN'T be taken away from us.....OUR HONOR....No one can take it away from you. It is the one thing that you have to GIVE away, and once you do that you are bankrupt. You forfeit your honor when you cheat or cut corners. Work hard, leave the ginger at home, and let the cards fall where they may....Even if you get the gate you won't be bankrupt.