Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

> I agree with everything you have said Heidi, but what happens in the
interim, during the learning process?  If riders don't have any
incentive for taking it easy and running a smart ride, horses are going
to continue to need treatment or crash at rides where owners are so
focuses on running that some subtleties can be missed or forgiven as we
are pushing harder on that day.

The incentives to "ride right" have been for the most part
increasing--veterinary standards have gotten tougher, we now have post-ride
exit checks so that completion is not automatic when you cross the line,
etc.  I can't quite buy into the concept that "the sky is falling"--we've
worked for 30 years to improve things, and despite the repeate hue and cry
from a few, we HAVE!  We are still in the process, but sometimes I think
this discussion loses focus on LEARNING and gets so sidetracked that this is
some sort of an emergency that we waste a lot of energy and effort going in
directions that don't further our knowledge.

On the other hand, we HAVE increased pressure in a couple of ways, and have
actually REMOVED some incentives, and I think that is sad.  We now have much
more emphasis on single high-profile rides--the PAC, the NC, etc.--instead
of on the long-term endurance of a specific horse.  It used to be the
"greats" of the sport WERE the ones that lasted--our National Champions had
to go entire seasons, and our heroes WERE the high-mileage horses.  With the
emphasis taken away from the notion that you always had to be ready to run
the next one, there IS more focus on the specific race itself--and I think
that has contributed to the problem as well.  That said--we also REMOVE
horses from competition much more readily now--and treat them when they need
it--instead of having them just go home afterward never to appear again.  So
while we have made problems more visible as a result, I truly believe we
have improved the welfare of the horses in this sport immeasurably.

We will NOT "solve" this problem overnight, nor will we EVER make the
problem zero.  So in answer to "what do we do about it" I would respond that
each rider and each vet needs to take each incident to heart and apply what
is learned from it to their riding or their vetting protocol.  It is
knowledge and vigilance that will do us the most good at this point in our
learning curve.

> If there is no way to know for sure that a
horse was pushed over its limit, how are we going to hold anyone
responsible when that happens?

I think one of the fallacies in our modern culture is that someone MUST be
held accountable and punished for EVERYTHING that goes wrong.  There really
ARE accidents and honest mistakes--and so while I feel strongly that we need
to pursue our knowledge and improve our horse care any way we possibly can,
I am not of the mind that we need to "hold someone responsible" for
everything that happens.  If horse abuse exists--then yes, we need to deal
with it as such.  But not all of these cases constitute willful or
unexcuseable abuse.

Personally, I'd like to see more detailed accounts of the actual treatments
at a ride like the PAC.  How many of these horses were truly "in trouble"
and how many were simply cared for aggressively BECAUSE this was a
high-profile event?  I DO expect riders at a championship to be trying their
best--and I expect to see the line of what is safe rigidly enforced, so that
even a tiny step across that line results in a pull.  So in one sense, a
high pull rate is NOT totally inappropriate.  What IS inappropriate is a
high rate of treatments that are TRULY serious--not a simple matter of the
treatment vets or the riders being safe instead of sorry.  And despite the
numerous "eye-witness reports" in this forum, we really don't have any
information about that other than in the case of Adios.  We know how many
"M" pulls--but how many of those were small errors that were safely gotten
out of competition by a good system (which includes smart riders and good
vets), and how many were really problems?

> I sure enjoyed the demonstration that you and the CAT people put on for
the showcase... maybe something like that, packed full of more
information (training, metabolics, vitals...), could be part of a
mandatory 'newbe' education training ride before anyone ever starts an
AERC sanctioned ride?  Sort of a certification and 'now you know' type
of thing.  I can't see that if anyone was really serious about wanting
to do endurance that they would think this was a bother instead of a
help.

I do think that such small "demos" and clinics would be wonderful ways to
help educate people.  And many of us are willing to travel to do them, if
local people will but organize them and ask us.  Others have expressed the
same willingness to travel and help.  (And heck, that one wasn't even for an
endurance group!)  If you'd like to see more of the same, get enough folks
together to chip in enough for plane fare and dinner, and I'll betcha  you
can call on several folks on this list who are knowledgeable and would be
happy to come help.

Heidi


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