PROPOSED THESIS: One may discern equestrian establishments based upon the dogs that frequent their aisles. Dressage barns tend to prefer Pembroke Welsh Corgis (yes, the sort of dog for which Elizabeth, Queen of the Irish Isles has a liking) while show jumping and hunter-jumper outfits have a liking for Parson Russell Terriers (the dogs popularly known as Jack Russell Terriers).

In spite of my undergraduate training as a student of the natural sciences (I was supposed to enroll in medical school at the end of four years . . . if both Mom and Pop were not dead you could ask them how they coped with the major gear shift that found me at the seminary instead. Tears were shed, I suspect.), I have only anecdotal evidence to offer for the thesis I stated above. If you are one of the clinical types who require a more controlled set of data prior to drawing a conclusion, you are hereby excused from today’s presentation. I wish you happy sailing to your next port of call on the World Wide Web.

My (admittedly non-scientific) study has to do with the prevalence of Pembroke Welsh Corgis in the vicinity of dressage barns by comparison with the high frequency of Parson Russell Terriers in show jumper and hunter-jumper establishments. What lingers from my years spent in the company of test tubes and lab rats spurs me to ask if this coordination of a dog breed with the type of sport practiced at these stables is more than mere happenstance? Is there something intrinsic to the dog breed that attracts us as human beings to pair one breed of canine with a particular equestrian discipline?

The proximate cause for my ruminations is the imminent celebration of Dressage at Devon. It was here – in the company of our recently adopted puppy, Fiona – that she and Ruth and I first noticed the abundance of Corgis compared to any other dog breed that accompanied their equine buddies to the show grounds. My mind began to cast about for memories of other horse shows and what types of dogs were in attendance at those shows. It was only then – someplace deep down in what I laughingly call “my mind – that I formulated the notion presented here. And I asked myself, “Self, what is there (if anything) inherent in the Corgi that makes it the appropriate dog for the sport of dressage while the Parson Russell casts its lot with horses who prefer going over jumps?”

Both of these breeds know how to mind their Ps and their Qs in the company of horses. Neither dog is unnecessarily loquacious in the barn or in the yard. Each knows enough to stay out from under hoof lest they end up squished. Both dogs have coat types that are fairly low maintenance (what horse owner needs more work after a post-ride washing and currying session?!?). Why, then, do those of us with a penchant for flat work lean toward the one dog while folks who prefer to be airborne have a liking for the other?