Polo ponies rugged in hot weather - why? ?

[Odyssey]

Seeing the thread on rugging to prevent a yak jogged my memory to ask this question. I haven't been that way recently so I haven't seen them this summer, but in previous years I've seen these poor polo ponies rugged on hot summer days! ? Yet over winter they live out unrugged (which I don't have a problem with). They're rugged in turnout rugs with neck covers, not fly rugs, I hasten to add. This is so cruel, I feel so sorry for them. Why on earth would anyone do this?

 

[Winters100]

I also questioned this once. The owner I asked believed that the horses get used to one rug and adapt to it, and that I was creating problems for mine by constantly changing to different weights of rug or leaving them off altogether.

Needless to say I do not agree, in my opinion it is simply because generally in polo you have many horses, and it is quicker and easier if they keep clean and thin coats. Like with many things people will make up reasons that certain treatment is "better for the horse" when actually what they mean is "easier for the grooms / owners".

 

[Starzaan]

They are often rugged this way to help keep costs super short and muscles warm.
I was a polo groom for a long time and polo ponies are among some of the most well cared for animals I’ve ever encountered.
I am vehemently against over rugging, and was a bit shocked when I realised that I had to rug horses when it was warmer than I would like, but I never had a polo pony sweat up under a rug, and they were all beautifully looked after.

 

[Winters100]

I am vehemently against over rugging, and was a bit shocked when I realised that I had to rug horses when it was warmer than I would like, but I never had a polo pony sweat up under a rug, and they were all beautifully looked after.

To be fair this is true. Much as I worry about the rugs, when I questioned it the pro invited me to feel under any rugs I liked, and it was the case that they were warm but not sweating. There are some things that I don't overly care for in some polo owners, but in general my observation is that they have quite good lives, and that they enjoy living as a pack.

 

[Odyssey]

Thanks for your replies. I assumed that it was to stop their coats from getting too thick or something. When I've seen them rugged it has been a hot day - probably around 22-25c. Obviously I didn't feel underneath them so can't say for sure that they were overheating, but it was hot enough that I was just wearing a t-shirt on my top half, and thought that they must be very hot underneath a rug in those temperatures. They do look happy and in good condition; as Winters said I think they have pretty good lives, but still wouldn't want to see them rugged on a hot summers day.

 

[MagicMelon]

I dont understand why they would. Seems like a lazy way to not bother grooming them when they're to be ridden. All horses IMO should get the sun on their backs. Aren't they the same as us to a degree - needing vit D? I find it pretty sad they cant roll and be free of rugs. I really object when I hear people saying these sorts of horses are super well cared for... they say that about most racehorses too - yeah sure, they get all the vet treatment they need, the best feed, best stables etc. BUT so many aren't allowed to just do basic horse things... living outside, grazing, socialising with others etc. IMO a horse couldnt care less how clean its cell (sorry stable) is.

 

[Winters100]

IMO a horse couldnt care less how clean its cell (sorry stable) is.

I can assure you that mine do appreciate a clean box, and that they are inside at night for no other reason than their own comfort. I do not care to leave them outside in freezing / stormy weather, or indeed when there are millions of mosquitos waiting to make their night a misery. They get ample time in the paddock, usually dawn to dusk, and when the conditions are suitable they sleep outside, but this is by no means a solution all year even with a field shelter.

The weather described at 22 to 25 degrees is not so terribly hot, while I agree with OP that I would not personally want to rug at that temperature I doubt it was a welfare issue.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I dont understand why they would. Seems like a lazy way to not bother grooming them when they're to be ridden. All horses IMO should get the sun on their backs. Aren't they the same as us to a degree - needing vit D? I find it pretty sad they cant roll and be free of rugs. I really object when I hear people saying these sorts of horses are super well cared for... they say that about most racehorses too - yeah sure, they get all the vet treatment they need, the best feed, best stables etc. BUT so many aren't allowed to just do basic horse things... living outside, grazing, socialising with others etc. IMO a horse couldnt care less how clean its cell (sorry stable) is.

I know a former polo groom, who would not say that they have particularly good lives. Her remarks about 'polo sound' for instance were very telling. The wearing of rugs in hot weather is just ridiculous imo

 

[Tiddlypom]

I know a former polo groom, who would not say that they have particularly good lives. Her remarks about 'polo sound' for instance were very telling. The wearing of rugs in hot weather is just ridiculous imo

I was taking to a vet recently, and the subject of polo ponies came up.

Before this vet started treating polo ponies, they were a fan of the sport. No longer. Totally shut down and lame - ponies being 5/10 lame and still playing regularly is common. Owners not interested in resting or retiring them even when informed how crippled they are.

 

[scats]

I was taking to a vet recently, and the subject of polo ponies came up.

Before this vet started treating polo ponies, they were a fan of the sport. No longer. Totally shut down and lame - ponies being 5/10 lame and still playing regularly is common. Owners not interested in resting or retiring them even when informed how crippled they are.

I’ve heard exactly the same. Absolutely shocking stories of crippled horses being ridden. I don’t know much about polo but I really didn’t like what I heard.

 

[ycbm]

I don't understand how anyone who really watches a game can say they are well treated. I've said it before but I'll say it again, in every match, whatever level, there is riding that in every other horse sport would have you banned.

When the game is played without the draw reins and without the gaping open mouths on heads thrown in the air to avoid the bit pressure used for instant stops and handbrake turns, (in spite of the draw reins and standing martingales), I might start to accept it.

Until then, polo is an abomination in horse sport.

.

 

[HashRouge]

I’ve heard exactly the same. Absolutely shocking stories of crippled horses being ridden. I don’t know much about polo but I really didn’t like what I heard.

Me too. My sister worked as a polo groom for a few months and it was a real eye opener for her - and not in a good way!

 

[conniegirl]

I used to keep my horse on a yard with polo ponies.
i cannot say they were well cared for,
I even saw one with a fractured splint bone being played in a match just a couple of weeks after having fragments removed from its leg!
It should still have been on box rest at that point!

 

[Winters100]

I was taking to a vet recently, and the subject of polo ponies came up.

Before this vet started treating polo ponies, they were a fan of the sport. No longer. Totally shut down and lame - ponies being 5/10 lame and still playing regularly is common. Owners not interested in resting or retiring them even when informed how crippled they are.

I agree that there are some bad polo owners, but I don't think you can judge all by this standard. In the same way some dressage / jumping / recreational or retired horses are not kept well, but we would not say that all owners of recreational horses are cruel. Frankly speaking I know some good and some bad polo owners, the same as I do in other disciplines. Our yard has two parts, one for polo ponies and one for dressage. I really would not say that the polo ponies are treated worse, and there are some things that the dressage owners do which I don't really agree with, for example turn out in small paddocks alone, and what I see as fat horses with too much food and not enough exercise. But then I guess maybe they look at mine, who I consider to be fit and in good shape, and maybe they find them underweight and overworked.

I have never seen a polo pony from our yard played when lame, and they all receive veterinary care when needed. We have several who are retired or on light work, and so far as I know the owners are not looking to sell. I am not saying that all polo ponies are perfectly kept, far from it, and there are a number of things common in the sport which I would not do myself, but I believe that I can say the same of any sport.

I play mine at low level, I do not feel that they are stressed or unhappy, far from it, and I go to great lengths to see that they are happy and healthy. Of the 4 clubs in the area that I live I can say that 3 of them keep their horses well. The other I would not like to play at as I do not like how much their horses are used, but I believe if I looked at other disciplines it would probably be a similar ratio. The thing with polo is that owners have multiple horses, so when you see something that you don't agree with it is easy to think that this is a problem across the sport, but this is not always the case.

 

[ycbm]

You are ignoring the game itself, Winters. No dressage rider would be allowed to stay in the ring if they rode the way polo is ridden. They aren't even allowed to warm up wearing the tack.

The problem for me is what happens on the pitch. In terms of care, all sports have good and bad. In terms of abuse of the mouth and neck in stopping and turning, and risk to the limbs in riding off, polo has no equal.

Any sport which requires being played in draw reins should not be being played, imo. I have looked and I can't find a single video of a polo match right up to International without abusive riding within the first minute or two. I can only assume that those who think it's OK are focusing on the ball and the mallets going to strike it and not the pulling at the bit and the horses' rolling eyes, gaping mouths, and upside down necks straining against both draw reins and a standing martingale used together..
.

 

[Winters100]

Yes, I agree there are problems. But I still believe that not all polo ponies suffer. Mine certainly do not, I do not need to yank their mouths to stop and I know what is safe in a ride off...but yes I can agree that there are those players who are only focused on the ball.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Winters100, you are in a different country, is it Poland? Polo in England does not have a good reputation.

 

[Winters100]

Winters100, you are in a different country, is it Poland? Polo in England does not have a good reputation.

Yes, we are in Poland, but we have been involved in the sport in several countries.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

And people say racehorses aren't well treated ...

 

[Starzaan]

This makes me so sad. I have worked on numerous polo yards and grew up with a mother who played polo.
None of the polo ponies I have worked with have been badly cared for. I’m sure there are bad owners out there, but you simply can’t tar them all with the same brush. That is akin to saying ‘all cobs are lazy’. It just simply isn’t the case.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Yes, I agree there are problems. But I still believe that not all polo ponies suffer. Mine certainly do not, I do not need to yank their mouths to stop and I know what is safe in a ride off...but yes I can agree that there are those players who are only focused on the ball.

I think part of the problem is that many amateur polo riders are not horsemen/women, they look on the horse as a tool they need in order to play the game, rather than as a partner. Most of them would be better suited to a bike, frankly, which can also be said of some participants in other horse sports but not generally to the same degree.

 

[Winters100]

This makes me so sad. I have worked on numerous polo yards and grew up with a mother who played polo.
None of the polo ponies I have worked with have been badly cared for. I’m sure there are bad owners out there, but you simply can’t tar them all with the same brush. That is akin to saying ‘all cobs are lazy’. It just simply isn’t the case.

I agree, it is certainly not the norm for them to be ill treated in my experience.

 

[ycbm]

I agree, it is certainly not the norm for them to be ill treated in my experience.

This is the norm on the pitch, though. Gag bit, draw reins, standing martingale and two nosebands to clamp the mouth shut. You can get pictures like this through every match played remotely competitively.

 

[Odyssey]

It seems I've opened a can of worms! After reading about all the gadgets the poor horses are ridden in and that they're often ridden while very lame, I retract my comment about them having good lives! ? It's appalling, but the usual story that when people use animals for sport, sadly a sizeable number will be badly treated. The little I've seen of polo on TV has concerned me, the poor horses yanked around, and they certainly don't look happy. It looks a very rough game, and as stated above the horse is used as a tool to do the job, it's not a partnership as is the case with many competition horses and riders.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Yup, a game much more suited to motorbikes than a living animal.