Exttreme Training Techniques
The US is a fast food nation, meaning we demand instantaneous service, entertainment, and results, and... that mind set is destroying America’s horses. I’m Susan Allen stay tuned for OpenRange. At the arena I ride at I get to watch an array of horses in a wide variety of disciplines from dressage, gaming, and reining, cutting, jumping, barrel racing to roping and I am troubled to say that few riders do right by their horses. What do I mean? At Decembers 2009 American Quarter Horse Judges Conference, Jim Heird a popular thirty year veteran of judging rocked the room with his challenge to condemn extreme training techniques that focus only on wining and are cruel to the horse. We all know the obvious ones, soreing Tennessee Walkers, and performance enhancing drugs, dressage’s controversial over collection technique called rollkur. Yet just as detrimental are lunging or loping until exhausted, unnecessary whipping or backing using heavy handed jerking. All in his words examples of human habituation. Meaning training techniques once thought offensive, we now believe are necessary to win, often because we see successful people do them. Worse, Heird explained is when we ignore what we see happening to horses because we are afraid of being embarrassed and ostracized for speaking out. He reminded the audience that “The horse brought us to the dance. And now we forsake our original intent for winning at all costs.” Tomorrow more on how Heirds speech is a wake up call for the cattle industry as well. I’m Susan Allen