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RE: FW: [RC] [RC] horses at the track - heidiThis is interesting. Show and race horses bite more because either 1) it is a bred-in trait that goes along with good show and race performance or at least doesn't need to be bred out, and/or 2) it has to do with the way they are trained. In case 1, we will gradually get a divergence of breeds within breeds -- there will be one sub-breed of, for example, Thoroughbreds: "biting show/race Thoroughbreds" and one sub-breed of "nice everyday rideable Thoroughbreds", and because biting winners are bred to biting winners and biting stable horses are culled, the two sub-breeds will become more separate. We already have "sub-breeds" within most of the light riding breeds, with many of the intensively-bred show horses being not much fun as general riding mounts. In case 2, what seems to be being implied is that the traits of character and temperament that enhance competetiveness in the horse also enhance its aggressiveness towards humans. Trainers seeking prizes are aware of this and with their training are purposefully reinforcing the traits of aggressiveness and violence towards humans to maximize the horse's competitiveness, and themselves being tough and skilled, figure they can keep out of the way. Depends on what one defines as competitiveness. In many cases, it is a matter of "it doesn't matter" so no one pays attention to it as long as the horse can do a specialized job. Also keep in mind that the stressful circumstances of living stalled and being subjected to highly specialized training can often bring out the worst in a horse (something that really hasn't been mentioned yet)--causing problems that would not have necessarily been there, had the horse been living in a more "normal" situation. God help the novices that buy losers off the racetrack and the little girls who get their mommies to buy them horses to make them win at the show. Yep, both can be recipes for heartbreak... Heidi =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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