Contentious topics

HORSE Mag

HORSE Mag

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www.horsemagazine.co.uk
Dear all,

In a future issue of Horse, we want to discover the top 10 most contentious issues in the horseworld, and we need your input!

There are certain topics that seem to really spark debate - like barefoot trimming, cloning and natural horsemanship to name just a few, where some people are all for it, while others really aren't. We want topics where opinion is split, not things that are (hopefully) universally disliked, such as the live export of horses for slaughter.

For example, I am a huge fan of racing, but there are plenty of horse owners who think it's cruel and should be banned – so would that make the top 10? Which are the serious topics that provoke the most discussion on the forum?

Please do post your thoughts below, or you can email me on victoria_spicer@ipcmedia.com if you'd prefer.

We'll be running a poll online soon too – more details to follow.

Thanks

Victoria
 
Parelli
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People who say Cleveland Bays are stubborn and balshy - should be shot at birth - people not the horses
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You have to win the respect of a Cleveland, you then have it for life
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Is that contentious enough for you
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[ QUOTE ]
The RSPCA....
'Rescuing' horses

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats not just horses (although I knew of a horse that died because the RSPCA wouldn't do anything because it was "owned" by the dog warden!) The RSPCA are appaling. If there is a welfare issue I will ALWAYS go to an animal specific charity ie. dogs trust, World horse welfare, cats protection league. After watching them tryin to catch a cat with end stage feline aids (complete with eye hanging out of socket) for three days and other incidents they're not worth the time.

btw in the end we shot the cat to put it out of its missery.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
The RSPCA....
'Rescuing' horses

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats not just horses (although I knew of a horse that died because the RSPCA wouldn't do anything because it was "owned" by the dog warden!) The RSPCA are appaling. If there is a welfare issue I will ALWAYS go to an animal specific charity ie. dogs trust, World horse welfare, cats protection league. After watching them tryin to catch a cat with end stage feline aids (complete with eye hanging out of socket) for three days and other incidents they're not worth the time.

btw in the end we shot the cat to put it out of its missery.

[/ QUOTE ]

I meant to say

The RSPCA

Other people 'rescuing' horses(i.e. not the RSPCA)


I am split on the RSPCA issue TBH, I have seen them do some very good work but at the same time they gave my horse bute in the field(with other horses around) without finding out any history - they are too quick to point fingers without finding out the real story IMO.
 
My top list
1 - Hiz gear: To wear or Not to wear
2 - Hats: To wear or Not to wear
3 - Natural Horsemanship/Parerlli:- Tree hugger or NOT?
4 - Use of Draw reins/side reins/standing martingale/gadgets: Cruel or Not
5 - How fat/thin my horse is or How fat riders are on small pones/horses
6 - Troll baiting
7 - Ponies/horses breed for meat
8 - Postings which are advertising- grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
9 - Hunting: this old chestnut
10 - Bad writing, bad spelling, txt speak, no spacing within posting.......
 
Full livery versus doing your horse yourself
Whether it is cruel to keep horses without turnout or socialisation with other horses
Whether unsound/dangerous horses should be PTS, given away as companions etc
 
Agree the RSPCA is contentious, especially when they became more political. They are great at emotional advertising but not so good with the larger animals. Their policy of catching urban foxes and releasing them in the countryside is downright cruel. If they are a problem where they are then cull the numbers not transfer them into stable populations elsewhere to become an even bigger problem.
 
Excellent suggestions everyone, thank you. Any others to add?

Kick_on - your top 10 was really useful, though I think trolls/text speak/advertising are annoyances on all forums, not just horsey ones, so I'd better not include them in the list! (Though I do appreciate they're often the source of most debate!)

Cheers

Victoria
 
Loaning out useless/unrideable/lame/elderly horses/ponies because the owners haven't the balls to do the right thing and have them PTS...
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Instead of Trolls and bad written etc

i would replace with:

1 - Lack of ability to call a vet out when horse/pony is clearly lame. Or has been lame for a while and home remedies or doing nothing is not working!!!!
 
Flat racing - should we race young horses that aren't yet fully grown? We all know the damage that running an immature horse can do to it's legs. Would it not be kinder to insist the horses don't run until they are 4? Breaking a yearling in to get it on the track at 2 & then shooting it at 3 because it's legs are buggered seems a tad wrong to me! Don't have a problem with National Hunt thought
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- 'Show condition' versus 'too fat'
- Feeding bran: many seem to think this is outdated, and actually bad for the horse, whilst others still feed it!
- Hunting: dont really need to explain that one! To hunt, or not to hunt...
- Parelli! Again, no explanation needed: if you are in favour of Parelli, you have to seriously keep your head down on this forum...
- Gadgets - draw reins, bungees, Pessoas etc
- Bitting: some people believe a snaffle is the only thing to have, whilst at the other end of the scale, others are happy to try anything, no matter what it looks like or actually does to the horse
- Riding without a hat
- Keeping a horse on its own
- The farce that is the horse passport system
- Using a certain piece of equipment because it looks good or is 'in', not because you need it - eg. Mexican Grackle for a horse that does not cross its jaw
- The negative image of the equestrian world that is cultivated by the mass media (I am studying this at the moment for my dissertation
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)
- Shoeing: barefoot vs shod, length of time between farrier visits
- Discipline: what is acceptable vs what is not; some believe that a horse should never be smacked, others are happy to physically discipline when they deem necessary
- Nylon headcollars vs. leather ones
- Dentist/back specialist visits: important or not? regular, occasional or never?
- Euthanasia: shooting versus injection
- Old horses: keep, loan or PTS?

Those are just off the top of my head; it is a bit scary how many you can think of!
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Arrrgh!!! (Sorry just very p****d off that my b****y laptop has succeeded yet again in TWICE losing the piece that I was about to post! Grrrr) Anyway, rant over, and trying again :

Agree with many of the issues posted - it seems to me that the key ones are often related to market forces vs consideration of the welfare of the horse :

- 24/7 stabling of performance horses with little/no opportunity for them to enjoy themselves out on grass
- The use of very immature youngsters in flat racing leading to injury and short career - and the breeding (especially in the UK) of a flat-racing TB type that is increasingly bred for speed with few considerations of robustness or stamina
- The use of training aids to "force" the quick development of a certain type of going in young horses
- The tendency on the part of some continental breeders/producers/studbooks to push youngsters too hard too early ....

I forgot the "Warmblood vs TB" argument which seems to rage especially on some of the US forums, but occasionally flares up in the Breeding section here as does the "only continental European stallions are worth breeding to ...." vs "support British breeding"
 
The 'dumbing down' (for want of a better word) of the affiliated levels in this country.
ie W&T test in BD
BE80 in eventing
70cm in BSJA.

Should affiliated be open to anyone who has access to a horse regardless of their / horse ability
Or
Should competing at affiliated level be something to strive for and accept that not all will acheive this?
 
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