Rules

A PDF of these rules are available for download here.

Exhibitors

1. Open to all registered Belgian draft horses.
   a. Weanlings have until September 1st to be registered with their respective
   breed registries or forfeit weanling points and standings.
2. There is no entry fee or sign up necessary to participate.
3. Canadian breeders, owners, and horses will be recognized in the same manner as
   American breeders, owners, and horses.
4. It will be the responsibility of the owner or exhibitor to monitor their animal’s
   points through the show season on the Corporation’s website and address all
   concerns and questions to the Corporation immediately.

Participating Shows

Each state is allowed one show to represent them in the Belgian Merit Program®. In the event that the state does not have a state fair that represents the Belgian draft horse then a show can be chosen by the Belgian Draft Horse Corporation Board of Directors to represent the breed for that state.

If there is more than one show in the state that has a well attended Belgian draft horse show, the show may petition the Belgian Draft Horse Corporation prior to December 1st to be accepted into the Belgian Merit Program® the following year, provided it meets the following criteria:

• Must be at an index level of 3 or above (greater than 75 head of registered Belgians shown at halter.)
• Must maintain an index level of 3 for 2 years out of 3.
• Show must be open and unrestricted to all registered Belgians.

Following are the current recognized state shows (each show's results will be available via PDF format - Adobe Acrobat or Reader needed - downloadable free from Adobe.com)
NOTE: Any event/class with an asterisk (*) after it, means it has been updated. .

Recognized state shows:

• Indiana State Fair
• Ohio State Fair
• New York State Fair
• Iowa State Fair
• Keystone International Livestock Exposition
• Michigan State Fair
• North American International Livestock Exposition
• Wisconsin State Fair
• Minnesota State Fair
• Illinois State Fair
• Georgia National Fair
• Idaho State Draft Horse Show
• Kansas State Fair
• Missouri State Fair
• Nebraska State Fair
• New England Show
• South Dakota State Fair
• Washington Extravaganza
• Vermont State Belgian Show
• National Western Stock Show*
• Virginia State Fair
• West Virginia State Fair
• North Carolina State Fair

Recognized regional shows:

• Mississippi Valley Fair
• Southern Ohio Draft Show
• Michigan Great Lakes International

Points Awarded

The first five animals in each class will get the following awarding of raw points:

• 1st gets 10 points
• 2nd gets 7 points
• 3rd gets 5 points
• 4th gets 3 points
• 5th gets 2 points

The following 10 classes will be recognized (current points results downloadable via PDF format).

• Stallions 3 years and older
• Stallions 2 years old
• Stallions 1 year old
• Stallions weanling
• Brood Mares Five and Older
• Yeld Mares Five and Older
• Mares 4 years old
• Mares 3 years old
• Mares 2 years old
• Mares 1 year old
• Mares weanlings
• Registered Geldings 3 years and older
• Registered Geldings 2 years old
• Registered Geldings 1 year old

The participating shows must have classes to match those of the Belgian Merit
Program® for points to be awarded. Example: Stallion classes of 3 and over would be
accepted but stallion classes of 2 and over would not be accepted. Mare classes of 4 and
over would be accepted along with mare classes of 5 and over, but mare classes of 3 and
over would not be accepted.

The champions will get the following awarding of raw points:

• Senior champion gets 2 addiitional points
• Junior champion gets 2 addditional points
• Reserve senior champion gets 1 additional point
• Reserve junior champion gets 1 additional point
• Grand champion animal gets 4 additional points
• Reserve grand champion animal gets 3 additional points.

Recognized hitch classes

• Registered Gelding/Stallion Cart
• Registered Mare Cart

These overall raw points will then multiplied by the index of the show to give the animal the total points earned at that show.

Index multipliers are determined by the number of registered animals shown (not the number entered) at that show that year. The index of the show will not be known until the completion of the show. Recognized hitch classes may be mixed breeds, however, points will be awarded only for the number of Belgians the exhibitor beats in the class. The index is determined as follows:

• Index of 8 if > 200 registered head shown
• Index of 7 if 176 to 200 registered head shown
• Index of 6 if 151 to 175 registered head shown
• Index of 5 if 126 to 150 registered head shown
• Index of 4 if 101 to 125 registered head shown
• Index of 3 if 76 to 100 registered head shown
• Index of 2 if 51 to 75 registered head shown
• Index of 1 if 0 to 50 registered head shown

Show Season

The show season will run from January 1st to November 25th of each year.

As soon as the points are received by the Belgian Draft Horse Corporation office and tallied they will be posted on the Corporation’s website for viewing. No additions or changes will be accepted after November 25th.

It is the responsibility of the owner or exhibitor to proof their animal’s points as they go through the show season and address any concerns or questions to the Corporation immediately.

Recognition

The recognition of the top three individuals of each class will be done at the annual meeting of the Belgian Draft Horse Corporation.

The owner of the animal will be awarded a gold, silver, or bronze halter.

If the animal has been transferred during the show season the owner who accumulated the most points will receive the award.

The breeder of the animal will be recognized with a certificate-type award six- generation pedigree.

The gold, silver, and bronze winners for each class will be featured in the Belgian publications.

In the event of a tie it will be broken by adding the total points earned at shows where the two animals were shown against each other and the animal with the most points will be declared the winner of the tie. If the tie cannot be broken by this method both animals will be recognized as a true tie and awarded in a similar manner.

Recording of Points

The points for the current year will be recorded and tallied on the Corporation website for viewing and inspection.

At the conclusion of the year the points for each and every animal will be transferred to the animal’s registration records.

All points earned in an animal’s lifetime will be stored on their registration record.