Things we learned about the horse show industry in 2008.

I went back and reviewed my blog entries and some of the replies and if I was to take them at face value as being reflective of the horse industry then this is what I’d think:

1) Any amount of abuse can be justified as long as you can blame another breed/discipline/organization for something you think is worse.

2) Rolkur is acceptable as long as people like Anky are doing it.
Forget that it looks like shit. Forget that it obviously hurts the horse's mouth. Forget that it can't be doing any good for the horse's windpipe. It's okay because some Olympic gold medalist does it.







3) WP riders don’t have a problem with tail blocking. Despite the fact it can cause long term damage and is uncomfortable for the horse. Nothing like having to wait for your human to remove the packed in shit from your rectum after they've numbed your rear end so your tail can't lift.

4) Some saddlebred people can’t read or understand a URL. I posted this link: http://www.meadowwoodstables.com/photos_and_sale/photo_detail.php?horse_id= and endured endless complaints on the trot.org forum that I mislabeled the horse. I didn’t do shit, the people that own meadowwoodstables.com are the ones that labeled the photo. I was merely commenting on the fact the horse’s tail had been done, which it is obvious it had.

5) Most WP people condone the use of spur stops, without having a clue what a real spur stop is. The most vehement proponents of spur stops actually described a leg/seat stop, which is normal. If you’re going to bitch about being in favor of something then at least know what you’re talking about.

6) According to the WP and HUS people trainers shouldn’t have to have good equitation because they are trainers. How fricking stupid is that? It’s a horse show. This means that the best of the best are competing. Not the best of the leaning back, mouth chucking, spur stopping, heels up, no riding pieces of shit trainers. I was actually shocked that people said things like “trainers don’t have to ride pretty”. Of course they do. “Pretty” is based on centuries of riding mechanics that complement the horse, instead of hindering it. If the horse is good with a shitty riding trainer imagine how wonderful he’d be with someone that actually had a good seat and knew how to use their legs!

7) It’s okay to ride two year olds because everybody does it. Forget the growth requirements of the horse’s frame. Forget the mental and physical stresses that a horse goes through, it’s okay because the Big Name Trainers ride two year olds, it happens in every breed and every discipline.


8)It’s okay for a judge to harass and abuse a child, because being a carded judge absolves you of all ethical considerations. Carded judges can do anything and get away with it because they belong to the Good Old Boys’ Club, also known as the “I’ll Scratch Your Back If You’ll Scratch Mine” Club.

9) The Tennessee Walking Horse Big Lick industry will never be reformed because there is too much money in blatant cruelty. Shame on the TWHBEA for being such a bunch of chickenshits that they don't put a stop to this crap once and for all.

10) The stock horse industry has no idea about what a real Hunter looks like, and they are blissful in their ignorance, to the point of being orgasmic about it.






11) People enjoy posting their brag photos all over the net, but go fricking crazy when you point out how crappy they are riding, or how bad they are making their horse look. They are as bad as people that walk up to a judge and say “Why don’t you like my horse?” Honey, it isn’t your horse that’s the problem. Most judges love your horse; they just hate what you’re doing to it.




12) The Pleasure Horse Forum will defend to the death their Big Name Trainers, even to the point of deleting posts against one, until it becomes a big story, then they pretend to be offended. If the pleasure industry hadn’t been turned into the stock horse version of Big Lick IE completely artificial movement and cruel training tactics, then there wouldn’t be so much abuse to bitch about.




13) The Icelandic show industry needs some serious revamping! There is no reason to have a curb bit and a dropped noseband. No reason to have horses hyperflexed. No reason to ride like a sack of grain sitting on the horse’s kidneys. Next to the ASB people the Icelandic people are in the most denial.





14) The halter industry, which is supposed to be producing each breed’s ideal horse, actually produces the worst conformations and biomechanically unsound horses out there. There is no flaw so bad that a big muscled ass and huge forearm can’t excuse it. I’ve come up with a personal slogan for the halter industry “Anything from the elbow down doesn’t count!”





15) Lip chains are okay, because being a lazy piece of shit trainer, that hasn’t a clue how to handle a horse, is the norm now. Forget training, forget the fact that being at a show means your horse, and skills, should be the best! It’s all about showing the public you are such a piece of shit you need to lip chain a weanling filly. Just how much more bad-ass can you be? Perhaps we should get you a basket of kittens or baby bunnies to torture, because they are sooooo dangerous at that age.





16) The WP and HUS riders really have no clue how to create collection, or what collection involves. The concept of collecting from the shoulder and rounding the back and hip is alien to them. To the WP industry collection is a vague term that means the horse isn’t running away with you in the arena. In other words, if you can tug/check that horse every other stride he’s collected.





17) Genetic defects are fine, as long as the bloodlines that produce them are high dollar horses. The stock horse industry has become the go-to place to get all kinds of genetic problems, which any self-respecting real horseman would never consider reproducing. Sadly it looks like the Arab industry is going there too.



18) The horse show industry is absolutely saturated with enablers. Doesn’t matter which breed, or which discipline, these people will defend every abuse, atrocity and poor training practice because it’s part of their traditions.

19) Some saddlebred people are in complete denial about the shit that goes on in their industry. Weanlings in bitting rigs? Never happened. Forget the video proof, it never happens! Yearlings in bitting rigs? Never happened! Forget that Mr. Big Name Trainer recommends it on his website, it never really happens. Tail gingering? Can’t be stopped. Forget that there is a very simple test for it! It simply can’t be stopped because everybody does it! I have to say that the ASB people that posted here to “defend” their practices were the most unknowledgeable group I’ve ever seen. They didn’t even know how the bits they use work. They don’t understand biomechanics, morphology or the laws of physics. It boggled the imagination to read their statements and realize that there is an entire show industry built on this type of ignorance. My respect for the breed skyrocketed because it takes the most tolerant and kind horse in the world to put up with the kind of shit that gets thrown at them.


Of course most of the above is tongue in cheek. I really don’t believe any of the “justifications” and “enabler” bullshit. The horse show industry is so piss poor right now because people are too lazy and too unethical to clean it up. It’s only when a huge case pops up, like Mr. Wells, that the stock horse industry even pulls its pointed little head out of the sand. Why the hell do you think that horse was abused to that degree? It wasn’t because he was a bad horse. It was because he was being beaten into a frame and way of going that are unnatural to the horse. He couldn’t do it because he’s not made that way. Yet in order to be considered worthwhile, and to promote the trainer that abused him, he had to conform to this artificial ideal of what a WP horse is supposed to be. This isn’t the first major WP abuse case, and it won’t be the last. The more the show industry encourages artificial movement and the abusive techniques used to get it, the more of these cases we’re going to read about.



I can only hope that 2009 will bring about an improvement in the treatment of the show horse, and the intelligence of the people responsible for it.

Big Name Trainer commits abuse UPDATED AGAIN

This story is breaking now:

Cleve Wells, a very big name QH trainer, has been accused of horse abuse.
Rather than repeat the whole story please go read it here:

http://fuglyhorseoftheday.blogspot.com/


You can see all the photos here:

http://horsemanslibrary.com/kb/NEWSview.asp?key=123

I actually had this story sent to me three weeks ago by a lady really close to the issue and was sitting on it until I could get a statement from the owners of the horse, but looks like Cathy beat me to it. Regardless, I'm glad the info is out there. When people posted inquiries about this on the PHF they got banned and their posts yanked, so once again the PHF is in complete denial about abuse by BNT.

I would be willing to bet a lot of money if the owners had not retrieved their gelding when they did it would have had a mysterious bout of colic and ended up dead and buried before they could get there to see it.

Here's another story on the abuse case, complete with veterinary statements and more photos.

http://gohorseshow.com/article.cfm?articleID=23415


Looks like Mr. Wells sponsors are not happy!

This is what his sponsor page used to look like, just last year:

http://web.archive.org/web/20070408091344/http://clevewells.com/sponsors/index.cfm

This is what it looks like now:

http://clevewells.com/sponsors/index.cfm

Also, Mr. Wells has written several books, one of them Going for Broke, ( kind of an ironic term considering the condition of the horse's jaw he abused) is published by Primedia Equine Network , http://www.workinggraphics.com/mockup-primedia2000-1.htmlwhich is the same group that publishes Equus, Horse and Rider, Dressage Today, Arabian Horse World and other magazines. They have the website Equisearch.com as well. Contact is Susan Harding. I suggest you let this company know what you think about their publication of his articles and books.

A New Year for the Show Industry

I hope everyone had a good holiday season. I'm ready for the New Year, because the last one had some real low points.

There is no doubt that the economy, war, and massive bailouts for Wall Street and the Auto Industry are going to hurt the horse world. It's costly to show, travel, train and even purchase a good horse. Those of you that train for a living will probably lose some clients, and not find new ones. Those of you planning to start training for a living probably need to reconsider, unless you can go out and win a very big competition in your first year, or you get one of those deep pocketed clients that has a lot of money and little sense, and you're willing to take the one as a bonus for putting up with the other.

My question to readers is:

How are you going to continue showing?
What economies will you practice?
Will you travel less?



The really bad side to the downswing in the economy is that it makes cheating more appealing, and more prevalent. People will *need* to win in order to make their bills. It won't be a case of someone just wanting a pretty blue ribbon, it's now a case of being able to pay the feed bill.
So horses will be started younger, training techniques will be harsher, drugs will be used more, anything that gets a horse into the top ten will be done, just so trainers can make a living. There will be less shows for judges to judge, which means that back scratching on that front will reach epic heights.

What can we do? Because if we don't do something we're not going to have a stable show industry in five years.

Leading Arab halter sire has genetic defect

I found this an interesting article:

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=13273


Quote:
A prominent Arabian horse breeding operation based in the United Arab Emirates recently became the first to publicly announce one of its stallions is a carrier of cerebellar abiotrophy (CA). Albidayer Stud released the news that World Champion Arabian stallion Marajj is a carrier for the inherited neurologic disease, for which a DNA test recently became available.
End Quote.

I have to applaud the owners of this horse for acting proactively in regards to this disease. I only wish the stock horse industry had done the same with HYPP, HERDA, GBED and OLWS.

http://www.marajj.com/news.htm

Does anyone have any more information on this disease and how it may effect the Arabian show industry?

Made in America

There is no doubt America is a great country. There is no doubt that the history of this country is very closely tied with the horse. Without the horse westward expansion would have taken twice as long, forests wouldn’t have been cleared, prairies plowed, cities developed. Of course, without the horse, wars would have been more difficult to fight and just maybe if our growth hadn’t have been so spectacular we might not have had the energy and vanity to destroy one of the things that helped us build this country: the working horse.

After World War II the horse experienced a decline of epic proportions. Farms were being modernized, automobiles were more affordable, and most cities were running out of spaces to keep a horse. The workhorse was on the way out, and horses as a mode of transportation were swiftly being replaced. However, America was not about to end its love affair with the horse. Racing was growing in popularity, as were polo, rodeo and showing. Equestrian sports replaced equine related work and the horse ended by being saved by the popularity of equine hobbyists. This is both a good, and a bad, thing.

There is no doubt that when an animal is bred to work he has a more balanced, mechanically sound conformation. You can’t plow with a horse that has a weak rear end. You can’t herd cattle for hundreds of miles with some muscle bound, tiny footed head case. You can’t deliver mail across 1100 miles on a horse that’s going to have a stress attack that’s been genetically bred into it. We all know that a true working horse is usually bred for soundness. This is where nature is our best friend, and we are her worst enemy.

What the American horse loving public has done to one of the most incredible biomechanical creations is a travesty. We should be ashamed of ourselves, really ashamed. We took an animal that could pull more than 3 times its own weight, carry 1/3 of its own body weight on its back, live on grass and water, give us affection and trust and we turned it into either a head dragging, short stepping, no impulsion pleasure horse, a bulky muscled, no brained, falling over halter horse, or some high stepping, artificial, head case. We haven’t improved on nature one single bit. We’ve created types based on aesthetics, without ever considering morphology or basic mechanics. Our vanity dictates the uselessness of our animals. And because we create such biomechanically unsound animals we then torture them to make them perform as we feel they should.

Let’s look at one of the “Made in America” breeds and examine what human vanity has done to a perfectly good horse.

The American Saddlebred comes from stock brought over from Europe. Its ancestors were originally pacing stock. They were crossed on English Thoroughbreds and the long production line that resulted in the ASB was started. Several prominent sires, including imported Messenger (Whom was also responsible for the Standardbred and some lines of TWH) Other sires that impacted the ASB are Gaine’s Denmark, Harrison Chief and during this century Rex McDonald. When you look at portraits of these horses you see balance, good legs, nice neck sets and feet that will actually support a horse.

In fact up until the 1900s a good ASB looked much like a nice TB in conformation: not as lean as the race type, but not as heavy as the hunt field type. The ASB was a working horse. It was a horse that carried generals through the Civil War and Plains Wars. It was a horse that traveled endless miles on plantations and farms, or down American roads to market. It had normal shaped feet, a natural tail and was ridden in the same manner just about every other horse was. What happened? Where did the ASB show ring go wrong and why?

I’m sure the Modern Saddlebred Breeder’s forum is going to go all freaky here, just like they did when they reviewed my blog before. According to them everyone that disagrees with their methods is a hater and just “doesn’t understand the ASB”. Seriously people, we get it. We understand exactly what you’re doing because we own horses too. We ride too. We care for horses too. And we know without a shadow of doubt that what you do to your show ASB’s is a complete and utter load of shit.




1) Why the set tails? There is no reason on this earth to break a horse’s tail, or nick the tendons. It doesn’t serve any purpose. It is vanity on your part and it subjects the horse to lifelong disfigurement. I think every exhibitor that subjects their horse to set tails needs to have their middle finger broken and tied back to the top of their hand. That way they can flip themselves off all day long for being such idiots. They should also get daily ginger enemas, just to make sure they step lightly and enjoy the day like their horses have to. Vanity and cruelty.

How would you like to sleep wearing this crap?

2)What is the deal with the long feet? Don’t try to bullshit us that it serves a purpose. Has no one in the ASB industry read a shoeing manual? Do you not understand the pressure put on the phalangeal levers by leaving that toe so long? Do you not get that creating tubed feet is just a quick trip to navicular disease? The hoof angle also impacts the knees, elbows, hocks and stifles. Poor feet can screw up the whole leg. Why don’t you shoe the horse correctly for a working horse and leaving the long toes to ballerinas?

3) What is the deal with your tack? Can you not handle your horses without bits that look like murder weapons? Don’t give me endless crap about “any bit can be cruel in the wrong hands”. Trust me, you guys are the wrong hands everyone talks about. There is no reason for a 9 inch shank on a double bridle. None. Ever. You have two bits at the end of the reins. The snaffle should be the one getting the majority of cues. I have seen ASBs shown where the curb is working almost parallel to the ground. WTF is up with that? Here’s a hint, when the horse does the thing with his chin and lower lip where he has it all wrinkled up it is because the bit and curb chain is hurting him! He’s not making faces to try to score a laugh out of the judges. He’s in pain.



10 inch shank Weymouth

And the bridoons you people use are just ludicrous. Can you not use a plain smooth mouth bridoon? Must you train with things that are better suited to sawing logs in half than being in a horse’s mouth?

4. Most of us understand the principals of saddleseat. Several breeds utilize the form and do so without making their horses look like strung out torture victims. Why can’t the ASB crowd?

5. Why do we do this to a breed we created? Other than the Icelandic Horse people, there is no European counterpart to a tail set, hyperflexed, torture gaited creature. We should be ashamed of ourselves.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60DFjMenFNI&feature=related
Scuttling movement, bad hands, horse is winging like crazy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4srDmPwQ-dw&feature=related
Looks like shit. The horse is hyper reflexed. He is wearing a bit that any non-tortured horse would flip over with. Don’t try to tell me that rider isn’t heavy handing that horse, I can see the strain in his arms. I can also see the hocks and stifles locking every few steps.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXeVQKfKM5g

If this is the best of the best at DC then the ASB is in trouble. I saw the chestnut horse lose his stifle about five times in one circle. The western horse looks like crap. I can’t figure out why the horses can’t move in a straight line. I get on WP people all the time about the canted moving, but this is way worse.

This is a weanling in a bitting rig, being lunged in a small circle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N_JNVqFsEI&feature=related

WTF is up with that?

Here's a yearling in a bitting rig being lunged in a small circle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTgLnM9S388&feature=related

These horses are babies! They shouldn't know what bits are for another few years. A weanling should not know what lunging is.

Oh, but this kind of abuse doesn't happen, we've been told so by ASB riders that have been in the business for years.

Evidently the same people that denied this crap happens in the ASB industry went over and chewed the ass of the video owner so he removed the videos. So for those of you that didn't get to see the videos here's a recap"

Bay ASB weanling in a full bitting and stretchies on his legs. He's being lunged in about a 20 foot circle, while a man with a whip/plastic bag thing chases him. His movment is jerky and stiff and his head is cranked in way to tight.

Chestnut ASB yearling in a full bitting rig. Same size circle. He moves better but is still way to tight and looks off on the outside hind leg. Asshole still has the whip/plastci bag thing.

Both these colts are verified as ASB registered.

And just because people whine that I never show the good stuff, here’s a saddlebred doing dressage. He’s relaxed, his tail is natural, he’s wearing snaffle, he’s got normal feet and a happy expression. He’s getting to do what every saddlebred should be allowed to do: show off what a horse can do without being tortured.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRpjVbiUIAA

I’ve seen good saddlebreds do everything from dressage to jumping to western pleasure to barrel racing. In 1984 an ASB won the Battle of the Breeds by competing in multiple disciplines and placing well in all of them. These horses can do just about anything you set them at, as long as they aren’t hampered by a vanity monkey on their back.

Look at these little training gadgets to keep the ASB on his toes:

The black rubber boot with the chain around the ankle is called a Ticky Tack Spat. Doesn't that look like fun to wear? The silver thing is a caulking boot! So much for the natural moving ASB.

Here’s my personal opinion: The American Saddlebred is a great horse. They have a level of tolerance that is found in very few animals. I don’t think any stock breed, Arab or TB would put up with the shit an ASB puts up with and not kill someone. I know my old horse would have dumped me and left home if I had even hinted that I was going to make him sleep all night with his tail crammed up his butt, in a harness to hold it straight. Had I used one of those shoddy bits he would have flipped over and refused to get up again. I think the ASB show industry has taken a naturally dynamic animal and turned it into a characticture of a show horse. By doing so they have earned the disdain of the horse industry. We know how talented the horse is, it’s the people we despise. When is the ASB show world going to throw off its cruel trappings and let the beautiful horse it tortures show its natural abilities? And to the saddlebred people that are going to label me a “hater”: You’re wrong. I love the horse, just despise the idiots it attracts.

And the trot.org people need to just save their breath. I'm not talking bad about the Saddlebred, it's a nice horse. I'm talking bad about the scum in your industry that you should have had the balls to get rid of years ago. I at least have the balls to speak out, which is more than you're doing. You're wasting time bitching about me when you should be kicking your breed organization in the ass and getting the cruel stuff banned.

A lot of different people contribute information to this blog. Some of the saddlebred stuff came from people within the ASB industry, so calling the blog ignorant means you're labeling part of the ASB industry ignorant.