Laura Gentry is bringing a new clip-clopping rhythm to the School of Animal Sciences by starting an equestrian class this fall.
Working with the Baton Rouge Parks and Recreation’s Farr Park Equestrian Center, Gentry is instructing animal science students on how to handle horses and their equipment. The students will also learn how to properly ride the horses.
Gary Hay, director of the School of Animal Sciences, said the class consists of two hours of lecture and two hours of a hands-on lab each week. The Equestrian Center provides the horses, equipment and location among other tools necessary for riding and working with the horses.
The students are required to pay $500 each to BREC, which totals $25 per hour of lessons. Hay said this is half of BREC’s normal fee for lessons.
Hay said although the program took more than a year to arrange, Gentry was the driving force, as she owns horses and competes in horse events.
Student interest in this program is high, Gentry said. Students of all years will learn how to communicate with horses, move with them and be safe while working with them.
She said the course’s main focus is to teach students how to work with horses and build a relationship between the students and their assigned horses through communication and trust.
A big impact on how a horse responds to someone is how people handle them, Gentry said. Safety, quietness and respect are key, as are “soft hands,” meaning not being rough or jerking the horse. Gentry said the horses move by applying a small amount of pressure to their bodies, and this pressure is released once they move how the rider wants.
She said another thing that impacts cooperation with a horse is being in tune with the animal.
“If we know what they’re trying to tell us, we can better communicate with them,” Gentry said.
She said the goal of these methods is to make the horse want to do the work and make it seem effortless.
“We’re trying to get them to be true horsemen, be safe and communicate with their horses,” Gentry said.
Each student is assigned to a horse for the duration of the class through self evaluations and evaluations by the Equestrian Center, said Melissa Wood, the center’s special facilities manager.
She said two instructors help with the class and assist Gentry in instructing the students.
“We are very excited we were able to join forces with LSU and make this happen,” Wood said.
Aryelle Stafford, animal sciences sophomore, said this experience is unique because it takes the students outside of the classroom.
“We’re really lucky that we can actually come out and work with real instructors who love horses,” Stafford said.
Mary Kendrick, also an animal sciences sophomore, said horses have a lot of personality, and their personalities change from day-to-day.
“It’s never going to be the same ride twice,” she said.
Hay said the course, Animal Sciences 2030 or basic horsemanship, has a prerequisite of Animal Sciences 1011.
It currently has 44 students enrolled. Gentry said she aims to expand this class into several other classes of instruction.
Hay said ANSC 3030, advanced horsemanship, is already in the works. The department is also thinking about constructing an Equine Science and Management curriculum for animal sciences majors.
 
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Contact Meredith Will at [email protected]