English Drecquitation

Since I’ve enjoyed ragging on WP so much, and inciting the rage of the various Western Drecquers, I decided to be non-partisan and take aim at the crappy English equitation in the breed show rings. Those of us that have shows USEF hunter under saddle usually consider stabbing our eyes out with sporks while watching breed show hunter under saddle. It really is too painful to watch.

For some reason the stock horse industry decided to take a perfectly good sport, that had traditions, and standards, for hundreds of years, and turn it into a mechanical nightmare. Slapping an English saddle on a WP horse does not a hunter make. Instead it makes about as much sense as doing dressage on a Paso Fino. You’ve got no extension, no impulsion and no collection. And for those of you that read the western version and thought I was in favor of tight reins: you’re wrong. I want collection. Collection starts in the rear end, rounds the back, and lifts the shoulder at the base. Collection doesn’t even require a bridle. What is does require is a seat and good legs. A bridled horse collects with a touch and tension on the reins is an illusion. You ride a collected horse with your seat first and your hands only when finesse is needed. Let’s take a look at a few English Equitation standards. This first one is a handbook drawing.



This is from an actual equitation handbook. The rider is slightly forward at the trot, the heel and hip are in line, the shoulder and elbow are square and going straight to the rein. The rider has contact but the horse is not over bent. The eye is level with the withers. This horse could take two steps into a canter and head into a fence with no problem. This is what hunt seat is about. The intent is that at some point your hunter could pop over a fence. If your horse’s head is below level he’s not going to be able to elevate in order to jump.





Here’s a photo I like of an actual rider. The horse is relaxed and has great lines. It’s driving under itself and is working well on the bit. The reins are slack, but you can see the horse is collecting and pushing from behind. For the record the child is ten in this photo and the horse was bought as a 10 year old rehab that had chronic barn sourness and run away issues when the child started showing it. So we can forgive a few flaws, but overall it’s a nice photo and the child won the class of 18, over adult and more advanced riders. (those of you saying I don’t appreciate stock horse breeds can note that this is an Appaloosa, who also has Doc O’Lena breeding, so can’t get much stock horse than that) And for the record this mare has won high point at open and breed shows.

Here she is again coming into a downshift transition. She’s straightened up for the gait change, sitting deep, leg in line, heels down, hands nice and even, reins in contact but relaxed. Mare has her nose poked out a bit, but considering she was one of the worst rooters I’ve ever seen three months prior to this photo this is pretty good head set. Mare is rounded, working under herself to slow down without propping on the front. Nice relaxed photo. The child is even smiling, she’s enjoying the ride, hell the horse looks like she’s smiling too.
Now we drop a few levels in ability, and rise a few levels in expectations. We’re going to compare some top stock horse HUS riders on top bloodlines to a ten year old on a rehab horse.









Boy, sure love that foot jammed forward and the nice duck butt this gal has going. How about those slack reins but over flexed head? Can you say picked at so much this horse’s tongue is probably black? The head is at least level with the withers, but overall it looks strung out, downhill and uncomfortable.











First thing I find wrong is the fact the heels of the rider are up. WTF is the deal with that? You can see her entire knee is disengaged and her toes are down. If this horse propped or spooked her ass would be riding air. The horse has poor cadence. You can look at the leg angulations and see that the hind leg angle does not match the front leg angle on what should be the top of the stride, since both feet are flat on the ground. Mechanically I can tell you that the front foot of this horse hit the ground well before the hind foot did, making for a four beat trot. Yuck! Loose rein, way behind the vertical. There is a spur stop and a lot of plucking in this horse’s past.







Where do I begin? Leaned forward. This horse is walking, wtf is the rush to the fire? The heel is up. The head is too low. It’s like the hunchback took off from bell ringer duties and decided to take in a HUS class prior to matins. Horse has no collection, strung out, over flexed and not getting any relief from those heels digging in. Of course a quick buck would remove the annoyance from his back, because her seat is so weak she’d flick off like a booger from a redneck’s finger.









If this horse dropped his head below his withers and she ditched the vest this pair could just about win a stock horse HUS class. Heels up? Check. Bad posture? Check. Poor collection? Check. Ass bouncing out of the saddle? Check. We have a winner!

Dreck! Dreck! and more Dreck!

Western Drecquitation

I’m back to bitching about equitation. I grew up riding on a military base, with some seriously equitation ingrained instructors. Nothing like an old cavalry man to make you keep your heels down. It used to be that equitation was based on a balanced seat. You could run a plumb from the rider’s ear to their shoulder to their hip to their heel. Then you could run a line from the rider’s elbow to the wrist to the horse’s bit. These should be straight lines, not ones that look like the peaks and valleys on a heart monitor.

We stopped by a local show this weekend and the kids in it ride better than some of the industries top trainers. Do you think I’m kidding? Then look at the following examples and tell me I’m wrong. I’ve black barred the horses’ faces so they won’t suffer further embarrassment from being ridden by such poor trainers.


Here we’ve got a rather prominent WP trainer. For some reason his arm is behind the line from his ear, shoulder, hip, heel. His arm is straight to the horse’s bit, but his elbow is too far forward. According to AQHA rules the horse’s head is too low. Page 210 of the AQHA handbook states: (l) Faults that will be cause for disqualification, except in novice amateur or novice youth classes, which shall be faults scored according to severity: (1) Head carried too low (tip of ear below the withers consistently)
(2) Overflexing or straining neck in head carriage so the nose is carried behind the vertical consistently.
So why is this style placed so consistently? It looks like SHIT!

Here’s another winner:
Terrible lines, horse’s head too low, not using its rear end, crappy hands. He shouldn’t be able to win tenth in a class of nine.
Why is this shoddy riding excused? Even if every horse in the ring looked this way the judges can surely refuse to place the shitty riding.

Here’s another jewel: This guy is famous for the “lean back” style, although this isn’t the worst picture of it I’ve seen. This is another “top” trainer that looks like SHIT. What is with the hands? What is with the forward foot? Horse’s head is too low, face out of vertical and he’s got that nasty butt slump that tells us he’s not using his rear to move, he’s just skating along like a waterbug. My niece rides better than this and she’s just a kid.
I love this one; there simply aren’t enough words to say how wrong it is:

I love this one; there simply aren’t enough words to say how wrong it is:Head too low, nose out of vertical, poor body lines, slump butt and the horse’s ears are pinned. He’s embarrassed, probably ashamed too. He’s probably hoping he could get into a respectable line of work like carting Las Vegas prostitutes around, or hauling drugs across the border.

This one doesn’t bother me as much, in fact she’s doing a few things right, so the judge’s probably didn’t place her.
Her position is better than the others, even though her leg is still too far forward. Her horse is close to vertical, but he is happier looking and her reins are almost where they need to be. The horse’s butt is rounded and he doesn’t look as slumpy tense. But if this is the best we have in the ring then the entire western pleasure industry is in trouble.

Strangely enough, when I go outside of the stock horse industry I find all kinds of good riding and properly trained horses. This Morgan is striking, balanced and correctly on the bit. His eye is almost level with his withers, his face is vertical, he’s rounded and ready to work off his rear. I didn't cover his eye because he has no reason to be ashamed of his rider. He looks relaxed and happy. Her body lines are nice and she’s got her rein hand properly squared for using a rommal rein. Why can’t QH people ride like this? Is it too much to ask that they sit upright and properly aligned? Is it too much to ask that the horse is lively, alert, balanced and on the bit? I can go to any Morgan, ASB and Arabian western show and see better turn outs, better riding and happier horses in the western classes than you can at any stock horse show. It shouldn’t be this way! When will AQHA, APHA and ApHC actually require equitation and collection from their riders? What we're seeing is dreck, dreck and more dreck!

Associations that don't protect the horse: tail blocking gone wild

One of my biggest complaints with breed registries is how they ignore, and in some cases promote, abusive methods. The TWHBEA is a classic example, and they provide a whole lot of fodder for those of us that hate animal abuse. I’m not really fond of the saddlebred or other gaited horse associations either. They all suck; they all promote unnatural and unhealthy methods. And don’t come ranting to me about the Rocky Mountain and Kentucky Saddlers or Pasos, you’ve got your share of abusers too.

The stock horse industry isn’t far behind the gaited horse abusers. Training methods are just as remedial and abusive and the drugs use is rampant. Look at any stock horse breed rulebook and the list of drugs allowed in the show ring would make a New York City crack whore swoon with delight. I’m personally surprised more crack whores don’t get into showing horses, just because of the ease of acquiring high end drugs that would make your average smack trip seem like a day of sniffing Sharpies.

But, this isn’t a post about the drug abuse, this is a post returning to one of my earlier statements: WTF is going on with the tail blocking? Why isn’t every single horse organization out there banning this shit and then fining into penury every asshole trainer caught doing it?
It serves *no* purpose except to harm the horse. It can cause extensive scarring and injury, as well as making it impossible for the horse to poop or switch flies. It is such a vanity operation and merely outlines how morally bankrupt the horse industry has become.

Now I have to do something I hate to do, and I rarely do: I have to commend the AQHA for taking action against tail blocking and checking for it at their major shows. Just pisses me off to admit they do something right, because they are the leader in the drug/poor riding/bad trends/over-breeding/genetic defects races. I scrolled through all the online rulebooks I could find and none of the other stock breeds specifically ban tail blocking, although they do have sections about cosmetic alteration.

I have personal knowledge that the ApHC will not do anything about tail blocking. Neither the CEO (who isn’t about to piss off his big trainer buddies) nor the show manager (who isn’t about to do any extra work) are *ever* going to do shit about it. The big trainers need their blocked tails, drugs and shitty equipment so they can pretend they know how to work a horse. Here’s a hint: if you didn’t squeeze your horse into such artificial frames and start them so young you wouldn’t need the drugs, tail blocks and gimmicks. From what I can tell the NCHA, NRHA, PHBA, ABHA, POA and the rest of the stock breeds have a don’t ask, don’t tell policy on tail blocking. Don’t ask us if our sorry assed trainers break rules and abuse their horses and we’ll pretend that the breed we were formed to protect is actually being taken care of properly.

The Horse.com had a great article on tail blocking a few months back and it showcased the hazards of doing blocking, even if a vet does it. http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=12310

The photos are graphic, so I suggest you don’t eat while reading it. I guess the big question is *why* most breed organizations won’t take action. This is such a simple thing to fix. It requires no major changes that affect the majority of members. It helps the horse. And it shows the public that they organization actually cares about the horse. Of course I doubt the ApHC will ever do anything, at least while they have the current CEO in office, but I’d think that NCHA and NRHA, as bastions of AQHA supporters would step up and enforce a ban on it. This industry is about the horse right, not just the dumb ass trainers that like to cheat?

How poor judges effect all of us

So sorry about the length between posts; I’ve had health, hard drive and time issues and have barely kept up with any of my online groups and blogs.

I’ve been watching the Olympics and I’ve been disgusted with the dressage. Why are the judges rewarding shit riding? The one competitor's horse stopped and fricking reared up. It balked once more in the pattern and still ended up in the medals. And I don’t care how well Anky’s butt stays in the saddle her horses look miserable. They drip with sweat, they drool excessively and they look tense the entire ride. She does not ride classical dressage; she rides gimmick dressage and should not be rewarded for it.

This brings us back to one of the sorest topics out there: Why do judges reward crap riding, poor behavior and muscle bulk over bone structure? WTF are they thinking? Do they not realize they are setting the standard for a breed or discipline? Can they not take responsibility for how their poor choices affect the horse industry?

I picked up an Equine Chronicle recently and just about spit my drink out over all the post-legged halter horses. These horses are National, World and Congress champions and have hind legs that are straight up and down. They are built like brick shit houses, but their legs are not going to support that heavy muscle mass long term. Why are the judges placing this shit?

Against my better judgment I read the Qh Journal and almost puked over their idea of a hunter under saddle. There can be no excuse for placing the shitty headsets and poor impulsion except that the judge’s seeing eye dog was sick that day and couldn’t bark the back numbers for him to write down. Who are the judges placing this crap? What is their motivation? Is there some super secret award for placing the worst possible mover?

I don’t have access to the Paint Journal, but I do read the Appaloosa Journal and Modern Arabian Times. The AJ is nothing but dreck on the editorial front, and the ads look just like the QHJ ads; post legged, bad movers and poor judgment. The MAT had some good articles, especially the one on sport horses in hand, but the saddle seat ads are a major turn off. WTF is the deal with the heavy hands and poor posture of the riders? I don’t remember seeing that crap to this degree when I lived in Scottsdale. Why do the judges reward poor riding that makes the breed look pathetic?

I really don’t understand how the industry tolerates self-interested individuals bringing it down. I hear big breeders bitch about the BYB all the time, but really the BYB isn’t the problem when a breed, or discipline, based magazine blatantly shows how biased and stupid the judges are. I don’t even want to hear: Most judges are not that way.
It doesn’t matter if most aren’t. Enough are that way to give the entire industry a bad name. Every post-legged halter horse that walks away with a national title is a disgrace to that breed. Every low headed, poor moving, hunter under saddle makes that breed look like a joke! Every single dressage rider that works a horse into a frantic lather and still gets high marks means the judges have quit considering the horse and only consider the mechanics. It’s a disgrace, when will it end?

The Walking Horse people are at it again

Just when you think the TWH industry might be cleaning itself up, we read about this: http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=12242

What can be said? It's an industry based on cruelty, vanity and abject stupidity. The TWH show ring is an embarrassment to the horse world and to the state of Tennessee. Disgrace is too mild a word for how the Big Lick horses are treated.

After reading the article I can't decide if we're supposed to be sympathetic to the poor Big Lick trainers that had to withdrawal or risk "overly aggressive" inspectors. Oh, you poor babies! Overly aggressive inspectors that might actually bust you for soring and cruelty!

Let's get back to the state of Tennessee and their endorsement of Big Lick cruelty. The state horse is the Tennessee Walking Horse, and the photo they show of this horse on their website is a Big Lick walker. Nothing like statewide promotion of such cruel practices.
http://www.tennesseeanytime.org/homework/symbols.html

You can even get a picture of one of the poor crippled buggers on your license plate and drive around advertising abuse and cruelty: http://www.tennessee.gov/revenue/vehicle/licenseplates/misc/misc.htm

There are several things in the horse industry that piss me off, abuse being the main one. But it seems the TWH show industry is the only one that supports abusive measures on a whole scale basis. They endorse it, promote it, and try to excuse it. They try to insinuate that the rest of us are stupid because we don't see the merit in putting a horse up on stacks and making it walk with chains around its ankles. How shortsighted of us!
Looks like even their own association is ashamed of the abuse:

http://www.twhbea.com/gaits.htm The pictures on this page show the big lick horses. But the videos that pop up first are all flat shod. What's the problem TWHBEA? Don't you want people watching horses stagger around throwing those stacks up in the air and struggling to make it around the arena? You have to click on the menu option of the video screen to see the "performance" horse moving. The canter gives me the creeps. There is no reason a naturally comfortable horse would move like that. http://www.twhbea.com/gaitsVideocanterFSH.htm

When is the horse show industry going to stand up and refuse to sanction anymore of this blatant and unnecessary abuse? At what point do we stand up and say: ENOUGH!