Eek =S

flamehead said:
I may only be 20 but I try my best but I'm still learning - as is everyone!
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I hope you have found your thread useful. You have now learned some more horse tactics which in fact are not cruel but are used as a means of encouraging the horse to comply while keeping the handlers safe.

Blind folding horses has been in existence for ever. It is a well known calming method used by vets and handlers alike.

Pulling tails down firmly and to the side prevents the handler at the rear being kicked by the horse.

You mention hobbling. If you think a horse can be led to a field in hobbles then you must not be familiar with why hobbles are used because it would take your hours to get a horse to a field wearing hobbles. They are used to prevent horses moving.

Yes you may young and are learning but you must see how your post comes across as extremely arrogant for some one with such inexperience?
 
As far as blindfolding goes, I'm told it's something that works a couple of times then the horse either gets used to it and continues to refuse doing whatever, or it has a really bad reaction. Either way it's not an ideal solution.

I believe that Picador's ride blindfolded horses, and they sometimes stuff their ears with wadding as well. These horses don't last long as the bull inflicts quite serious injuries to them, if they are not disemboweled in the ring, which is of course fatal.

Back then to the basic training.

Persuading young horses to go into starting stalls is not really a problem if they are trained correctly. Given they are corned to the eye balls and full of adrenalin on race day, you're bound to get the odd problem.

I really don't see how horses which are racing at 2yrs, can be anything other than very green. Whether or not they should be racing at that age is debatable, but, personally I don't think that they should.

People have always raced horses for as long as they've been ridden, and I don't think you could or should stop it.

It seems to me that the racing industry get to do almost anything they want with regard to the horses they use. It took years to stop the excessive use of whips for example, and this was most probably due to the televising of races, where the wider public viewed and became unhappy with what they saw.

Then of course came the introduction of the 'humane whip' now there's a contradiction in terms.

Ideally, the use of more mature horses would be ideal, rather than racing babies, but, the financial implications of this to the industry would be enormous. Imagine a racing yard having to keep youngsters till they were 4 or 5 before they could legally race.

The race them at 2 for a couple of seasons then scrap them approach, is economically the only way, as far as the industry is concerned. The training these horses get therefore, cannot be much.

Without root and branch reform in the industry, blindfolding and tail pulling are perhaps some of the more minor problems which exist, which in the short term, though, may more easily be addressed.
 
flamehead said:
I am aware that racehorses are ending up at sales in such a state. Perhaps I found it upsetting as, although I'm aware that to many people horses are just money making machines (mine seems to eat money, but never mind..!), mine are pets and I wouldnt ever treat them poorly just because I wanted them to do something they didn't (again, with the caveat about danger).

The comment about other horses having uncertain futures is unrelated - I feel strongly about the indiscriminate breeding issue but that is rather separate to racing.

In the future I shall just not watch the racing.
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Best not to watch it... I don't! Although I do strongly feel that there are horses who just get too excited with anticipation (it is not always down to panic and fear) To us horses are our passion and our joy, but sadly they are an industry too. I for one would far rather see the horse blindfolded etc than beaten into the stalls. This horse, strange as it may seem is one of the lucky ones, a few weeks ago there was a post on here about the TB/Passport free to anyone saga that was rumored to have happened at a local sales.

I think 99% of members on here are with you on the indiscriminate breeding thing (and those that arent are the ones that do it and don't see that they are doing it!!) But unfortunately, with the current financial climate even good horses that were being bred in a responsible manner are not wanted anymore.

I am sorry that watching it upset you, and commend you for trying your best to learn about it, I can safely say I do not beat or hurt my horses I love them to pieces and I would not hesitate to use this method again for either an excited or a panicked frightened horse, I have twitched, done the leg holding thing etc, they all have their uses LOL and when used by someone who knows what they are doing they are very safe and humane in my opinion often the best methods to deal with a horse in such situations.
 
Jaypeebee, I dont think I come across at all arrogant. I merely questioned a technique. The tail wasn't being held down, it was being pulled up and across (held by the rider sat on board). I have, however, found it extremely enlightening that 3 or 4 people on this board known to be rude are all pro-racing...!!

Andy Spooner I agree with you.

Queenbee thank you for your lovely post. xxxx
 
Its actually quite a natural thing, when my mares finding somthing hard to deal with (trimming/fussing round her feet ect) she puts her head on my chest and closes her eyes, 9/10 times calms her down enough to stop trying to kick out. And this is the least needy/cuddly/sweet mare in the world! She hates all the fluffy i love you nonsense :p
 
im glad someone mentioned black beauty in the fire !!!!!!
there are far worse things then blindfolding a horse ( my vet has done it !!) and as for the tail pulling would you preferred the stall lad to get a kick ?????

don't even get me started on rollkur or some of the stories we hear about other horse sports.
use your temper and annoyance and use it to do some good check out the brick kiln horses that will really upset you !!!!
 
Interesting thread, I once knew a mare that was broken for racing, on her first time out she refused to go ino the gates and one of the lads ended up with a broken hand, she went on to be a brood mare (some gorgeous foals) and I always wonder if she'd been blind folded that day would she have gone on to have a decent career...

As for race horses not wanting to race and being forced to race the majority of the time it's over excitement and once they're in the stall the excitment becomes more focused on being the horse at the front rather than dancng around, Iv seen a few horses load perfectly and then just stand there when the gate opens even as the other horses speed away, they seem to have just decided they'd like to watch the race rather than participate, maybe they know who'll win and have put a bet on lol.

Im completely for blind folding provided the person in control of the horse is experienced.

And I do agree flame head sometimes it does look like the horses are being forced against their will and pulling their tail does look painful but the time, money and effort owners put into their horses Id like to think they wouldn't waste it by potentially hurting the horse.
 
Rowenna said:
oh dear, here we go again, another thread solely for the purpose of starting an argument. For the rcord, ive blindfolded horses many time to get them in a trailer/lorry, ive looped my arms round the back end of horses many times to get them in a trailer'lorry and yes ive held tails around their sides so that they cant kick me. Ive got far better things to do with my time than argue with people who dont want to even consider another side of the story.
Laters.
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*thumbs up* i wish we could have 'like' buttons similar to facebook :D
 
Ravenwood said:
Really? Where have you been all your life? Or are you very young?

Its a common tactic ;)
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Honestly, I've only once seen a horse blindfolded and it didn't work. Perhaps it wasn't done properly. I HAVE steered LC where I wanted him to go by grabbing his tail like a rudder when he was a particularly opinionated yearling, but blindfolding... just doesn't sit easy with me.
 
PapaFrita said:
Honestly, I've only once seen a horse blindfolded and it didn't work. Perhaps it wasn't done properly. I HAVE steered LC where I wanted him to go by grabbing his tail like a rudder when he was a particularly opinionated yearling, but blindfolding... just doesn't sit easy with me.
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Mmm ... never had to blindfold a horse yet - although I have NO disagreement with blindfolding racehorses to get them into starting stalls! (Or getting them out of a burning building, God forbid!) It works! Horses who play up at the stalls have practiced them regularly in non-race situations - but the adrenaline rush of knowing they are about to race sends some a bit loopy - they're not frightened - they just want to GO! Blindfolding gets them into the stalls quickly with minimal risk to handlers and other horses.

Funnily enough, I DON'T like the use of the tail to steer youngsters - and my staff are instructed NOT to do it as I think it can cause back problems in babies - we use a bum rope for encouraging babies to move forward in the right direction. But the tail IS useful when you have to be close and want to deter a horse from kicking.
 
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