Take a chill pill, Jim. I have been in this sport for more than a few
years, and have always been impressed with the efforts
of those who find themselves at the upper eschelons of leadership.
There may be several reasons why, in the early stages of increased
awareness
regarding horse deaths at rides, that information wasn't being handed
out at a feverish pace, like campaign buttons at a political rally.
Such a sensitive
topic requires much consideration and deliberation by the best minds
our sport can muster, in order to get a handle on such things as 1) Do
we have a
statistically significant problem with equine deaths as compared to
equally strenous equine pursuits? 2) Is the problem on the rise? 3)
What portion of the blame can
be attributed to rider error/ignorance/hubris? 4) What are the
appproriate ways to prepare for animal rights activist reactions?5)
What are the legal and liability
issues for the AERC,the vets,ride managers and even the riders
themselves (if they were riding a borrowed or leased horse)? I'm sure
those involved at the time
and currently on the HWC could add to this list.
We all are sickened by the premature death of a horse for whatever
reason. Expressing that anger more loudly and more angrily doesn't imply
a greater level of knowledge or caring than those with a more civil
tone. I think we are going to find that many of the deaths that occur
are going to be found to be
multi-causal in nature. There are so many stressors that an endurance
horse is potentially subjected to just to make it to the starting line,
that may predispose
him to metabolic distress on ride day, even when not overridden. A
short list off the top of my head includes, but is not limited to:
Pre-dosing of electrolytes, fatigue
from road vibration for several hours in the trailer (while breathing
exhaust fumes), standing tied all night (possibly in inclement
weather), changes is altitude from that of home, GI changes (nervous
diarrhea, possible changes in gut microbe populations) etc., .........
I could go on. Jim, if these things can and do contribute to what can
really get a horse into a life and death situation, it would seem
logical that your anger would rightly be directed at electrolytes,
horse trailer manufacturers, geographic terrain and bacteria. They all
potentially lead to equine death as much as overriding.
I mean no insult with my facetiousness. This is a multi-dimensional
problem calling for multidimensional solutions. Rather than being
against how you think
things were handled years ago, why not be for ever better
solutions that help us compete ever more safely with our equine
friends. I think cooler heads always prevail,
and that's where we are heading anyway. I know we could use your
help. Bruce Weary
