OK Here I go again! The Anti-Slaughter issue is based on humane or more exactly in-humane treatment of horses. We are going so far as to make it a federal law to stop the slaughter and in-humane treatment caused by slaughtering, so what about the other in-humane activities that go on in the horse world and many times are accepted as general practice or as the way things are.

For examples – (now I will be talking from experience with all these topics, meaning I have either witnessed the occurence or have witnessed the after effects of the “in-humane” treatment)

Arabian Show horses – being gingered which entails applying ginger, a caustic substance to the anus of an Arab so that it is uncomfortable to place its tail down in the area. Although this is an “illegal” show activity, it happens many, many times as it helps maintain an appropriate tail flagging height.

Western Pleasure – Chemically denerving or blocking of the tail, causing the tail to be limp, so no flagging occurs during a show. Consequently, the horse can no longer swat flies either. Or my favorite since I am an animal chiropractor – tying the head up for hours and hours. Why? So that the head hangs low, the muscles are too exhausted to raise the head up, so it “teaches” the horse to ride with its head down really low. Oh and this last one is legal!

Racing – allowing young horses to heavily train so they can race when they are two. Reason – because otherwise you have to wait one more year to see if your investment will be a good one or not!?! Although the health of these horses are of the utmost importance when winning or trying to make a horse a winner, the big picture is lost by allowing them to train too early.

Jumpers – polling – using a long pole to smack the front legs of a horse as he comes over a jump to “teach” them to tightly fold their knees to avoid brushing the bar.

Saddlebreds – What can I say the entire process to make them do what they do. OK they have a natural gait but the techniques that “improve” or exaggerate those gaits can be very shocking and is widely accepted such as tail cutting and applying a tail set, which is cutting the lower ligaments of the tail allowing for exaggerated tail movement up over the back and applying a bar behind the tail and leaving it there for hours and hours to train the tail to be in that position. The shoes which create a long term defect in the feet, causing a pencil thin frog and crushed heels.

Halter horses – Forcing yearlings to grow so fast and large that they look like 5 year old studs and I am talking about the fillys!

I can go on and on about almost any of the sports and activities we do with horses. Are these next on the agenda for legislators? Are humane groups looking into these activities? Or is the horse world going to have to police itself and when the majority finds these activities inhumane will they stop or is the desire to win that much stronger?

I really do not have an answer to these questions and I have to deal with horses that have these things done to them on a regular basis. Am I contributing to their inhumane treatment by working on them, allowing them to continue to perform? What do you think? Do these activities really affect the horse’s health or are they even really in-humane?