Inside Nature's Giants: Racehorse 20/09/11 Channel 4 8pm

Perissa

Perissa

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Just to let you know that they will be dissecting an elite racehorse - Tuesday 20th September Channel 4 at 8pm.

Sure to be facinating.

The paper says

Last in the documentry series. The team dissects an elite racehorse, revealing how the creatures exist on a knife edge between glory and failure, and exposing the spring system that allows the animal to propel itself to 45mph.
 
I'm extremely sqeamish but do plan to watch. Probably peering out from behind a cushion! I've learnt so much at demos where parts of the horse's skelton have been available for the audience.

Freeze dried legs really demonstrate the size of the horse's ligaments and tendons. I think every rider should get to see how the poll operates.

OP thanks for the reminder.
 
Want to make myself watch it for educational reasons, but finding it hard, can't help feeling sorry for the horse (I know many are put down every day, but it doesn't make it easy :( )

And :eek: at the person who offered up their horse, think of all their stable lads etc :(
 
amymay said:
I'm afraid I really have objected to this programme - and certainly won't be watching tonight either.
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I'd be interested in why you object too, the animals weren't killed to make the show - in one episode they rushed off in the middle of the night to a whale that had died after beaching itself - all the animals met a natural end and they look for signs of ill health to find possible cause of death too, it's a fascinating insight into how amazing nature really is!
 
Recorded it & watched later. Really fascinating - the actual size of the heart, the number of times a galloping race horse inhales & exhales per minute -140. The way the opening to the windpipe works or fails to work - much, much more. Worth looking up on i-viewer or similar, very worthwhile!
 
I have to say this was very educational on the bio metrics of a racehorse and to be quite honest any horse i am 50 years old been round horses since i was born but you can still learn things really good program well done chanel 4
 
maggiesmum said:
I'd be interested in why you object too, the animals weren't killed to make the show - in one episode they rushed off in the middle of the night to a whale that had died after beaching itself - all the animals met a natural end and they look for signs of ill health to find possible cause of death too, it's a fascinating insight into how amazing nature really is!
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I guess I'm opposed to animals being dissected on TV in the name of entertainment.

It's just gratuitous TV in my eyes.
 
Im GUTTED i missed this due a silly 13hour shift :( does anyone know if it will be shown again or somewhere i can watch it online. Hugely faciniated about this!! I dont think its entertainment i think its educational... I think we could all do to watch and realise just whats going on inside our horses may make us understand injuries a lot more and why they occur... Great programme!!!
 
I watched and found it really fascinating , especially the size of the lungs and also the foot disection , helps me understand a little bit clearer how laminitis would affect the horse. I was a little concerned ( and I know some people wont agree ) when the lady at the end was saying about how they've discovered a common gene that is more likely to produce winners , i just hope that this info is'nt used by unscrupulous breeders to try to make the ' perfect racehorse ' as i could imagine there would be a glut of failiures along the way..
 
wildcard said:
Im GUTTED i missed this due a silly 13hour shift :( does anyone know if it will be shown again or somewhere i can watch it online. Hugely faciniated about this!! I dont think its entertainment i think its educational... I think we could all do to watch and realise just whats going on inside our horses may make us understand injuries a lot more and why they occur... Great programme!!!
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Here's the link for 4OD - http://www.channel4.com/programmes/inside-natures-giants/4od#3234339

It was fascinating. Well worth a look if you can cope with a bit of gore. I was actually eating my tea watching it. lol.
 
Thank you Scrunchie.. will defo be watching this later.. bit of guts and gore will be fine im sure will just try not to be eating my tea at the same time lol.. xxxx
 
I watched it. I was very squeamish but found it absolutely fascinating. I wouldn't have said it was "entertainment", it was definitely much more educational than anything and nothing sensational about it (I know no one said the latter). It wasn't like watching X Factor and laughing at the silly auditions - I felt that the presenter (did he used to be a vet on a kid's TV prog??) was genuinely in awe of the horses.

I was most interested in the bit showing the horse being scoped and exercised. My last horse had that soft palate problem so it was interesting (if a bit gory, for me) to see it being demonstrated.

Really fascinating and I learnt a lot.
 
amymay said:
I guess I'm opposed to animals being dissected on TV in the name of entertainment.

It's just gratuitous TV in my eyes.
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Weeeell, technically speaking animals (beef/chicken/lamb) are dissected all the time for cookery programmes and those are also entertainment... ;)

I found this programme highly educational and as a bonus, it didn't make me hungry.
 
A bit of a shameless plug here for her I know, but I have been to a few of Gillian Higgins' (Horses Inside Out) dissections and they are truly AMAZING! She runs them every Winter, I have so far been to the internal organs and the cranium ones, but she also does the Spine and Fore/Hind Limbs and I cant wait to go!!

After being to Gillian's dissections, I was a little dissapointed in how little they appeared to actually focus on any other parts of the internal structures (organs, bones and muscles) that make up these wonderful and complex creatures and it sort of seemed a bit rushed to me? Indeed, the parts they did focus on specifically (the lungs especially and when they scoped the horse) were done VERY well, and I know they had to fit it all into an hour show but it just seemed a little rushed in places :( (Just my opinion!!)

Thank you to channel 4 though for helping to explain a little more about a very popular domestic creature that sometimes fails to get enough TV coverage!!!!
 
PapaFrita said:
Weeeell, technically speaking animals (beef/chicken/lamb) are dissected all the time for cookery programmes and those are also entertainment... ;)

I found this programme highly educational and as a bonus, it didn't make me hungry.
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LOL PPF.

It just doesn't sit well with me - but I do understand others interest;)
 
amymay said:
I guess I'm opposed to animals being dissected on TV in the name of entertainment.

It's just gratuitous TV in my eyes.
Click to expand...

Fair enough Amymay- everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I guess the beauty of TV is that if you dont like it you can just switch off!!:D

I thought it was awesome, as a science teacher I guess I am used to dissections etc. I cannot believe how amazing the TB physiology is- the lungs were AMAZING!- I really gave Av a good old stare and prod today, she must have thought I was well wierd!!:p
 
I watched it on Channel 4 catchup and thought it was a great programme. It was amazing to see the lungs, legs, heart etc. and learn about their incredible abilities, which we take for granted.

I liked the programme so much that I did a reply to the 'contact us' thing on Ch4 http://www.channel4.com/4viewers/contact-us in the hope that they might do more programmes on the horse.
 
wildcard said:
Im GUTTED i missed this due a silly 13hour shift :( does anyone know if it will be shown again or somewhere i can watch it online. Hugely faciniated about this!! I dont think its entertainment i think its educational... I think we could all do to watch and realise just whats going on inside our horses may make us understand injuries a lot more and why they occur... Great programme!!!
Click to expand...

Get yourself onto 4OD that's where I will be watching it.
 
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