Scottsdale and horse abuse

This post is probably controversial but I hope that you can tell me what you feel after reading. Especially if you can clarify what AERC is doing about the WEC 2016 (although this post is not about that).

It's not often I speak so negatively, but I'm in overload right now, and the snow is thick on the ground. And the geocache we searched for in the snow went unfound.

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It's very overdue but I promised I'd write down my observations about watching the Scottsdale Arabian horse show live for the first time. What's neat about watching from a computer - you can instantly switch arena views to go see another class. Also, due to the time difference, I got to see a lot of 6 AM warmups.

The warm up ring is where you will see the ugly stuff, but honestly I saw no difference. The majority of what I saw wasn't what I call good horsemanship. In so many of the classes, the horses were ridden behind the bit. I know, I'm really sensitive to this after the Legerete stuff.

Sportsmanship I saw very little of. One lady fell off her horse, and when the ring master asked everyone else to stop, they didn't. They just slowed down and kept moving (it made me wonder if they were unable to stop). I saw such lack of respect for the rules, judges were in danger of being collided with in large classes but the riders would ignore the repeated request to stay on the rail. They simply were in the zone and wanted to be seen by the judges, by nearly trampling them. (If I had a nickel for every time I type vet instead of judge...: ))

I liked that some of the competitors knew each other and would chat in the line up, I liked this new thing where in addition to a gorgeous turnout, the riders actually smile the entire time they're riding. I found it funny how the horses in the line up would bob their heads up and down impatiently, what looked at times as if they were doing it to the beat of the music. But it was simply stress.

The worst thing I saw those 10 days was western pleasure. Oh wait, no, there was a reining horse with an obviously nerved tail. It was completely dead, hanging flat against his body no matter what movement he performed. That was worse than the horrible tail wringing I saw in other reining classes.

But in western pleasure there are artificial gaits a plenty.  I saw horses moving at a "tralk" that was neither trot/jog nor walk. I saw horses cantering 4 beats so disconnectedly they looked like two different animals. I saw one that looked crippled in all of its gaits, and the slow motion movement is absurd. The riders would yank on the bits repeatedly to no effect, perhaps as a threat to not move any faster. The horse's chins were already at their chests. I called them "dust kickers" because they were moving so slowly that little clouds of dust would be kicked forward with each hoof landing, in front of the horse, as it moved.

But then I saw this wonderful paint horse with true, free movement. He got jabbed in the mouth a lot too, but his gaits were pure. I was talking to my laptop at that point, "Oh he's gonna lose, there's no way they'll reward a good one." But they did. I was wrong. He got first place! Then the crippled one got 2nd. Hm!

There were some really cool classes - hunter equitation I think it was called. After riding a normal looking rail class, they all lined up and individually rode a dressage-type pattern. A serpentine rising, then sitting trot, and cantering for the last loop. Then halt and back, then hand gallop. And they even managed a real hand gallop, some of them. I was so impressed. Those kids had to memorize the pattern too (not sure if they knew it beforehand).

I saw so many tails dragging on the ground in performance classes, and what makes it worse, in some of those classes the horses are asked to back up. And they step on their tails, and sometimes the pain causes them to rear up. I wonder who decided it was attractive, because in my opinion it's impractical, ugly, and painful when stepped on - do the judges like rearing?

I didn't see nearly as many purebred Arabians as I would have liked. Perhaps it's the Scottsdale Half-Arabian horse show now.

I saw a few horses too stressed out to even give a victory lap  ("but we should be DONE by now and all the others are leaving!").

The halter classes were great. It was one of the only places I had a chance of picking a winner. And I got better over time. Then I saw David Boggs win each class I saw him in, and although it's likely he gets the very best because of his reputation, he won by an unrealistic amount of points, as if each  judge was terrified that his score would be the one that didn't let him win.

I enjoy the halter classes because I think the horses have fun. They get to show off, and then they get comforted, released by their handlers so they can relax, which they usually do very well, even letting people reach over the rail and pet them while they're relaxing.

I saw only one horse from Mag's birthplace, Michalow, but it looked like they didn't even wash it - the horse was yellow, and the handler could not get that horse to stand up for the life of her.

All in all I really enjoyed watching and trying to pick winners, and flashing back the 90s when the show ring terrified me.

I want to see horses ridden on or above the bit, and I want to see pure gaits rewarded. I look forward to that future.

I must share an interaction I had regarding this horse show last week.

First, I loved seeing the body clipped horses in February, shining and sleek. I don't like the razor (illegal) balding that occurs on their faces, but I disagree with so many Germans who consider ear trimming, etc, to be abuse.

Because the wife of the man whose truck was stuck next to our pasture is a Western rider of an Arabian horse, I thought she might be interested in streaming the Western classes too. She's in the process of getting her Abzeichen, a certificate that says she knows something about Western riding (which isn't a horse show, but instead a way to earn a piece of paper saying you know things). 

2 weeks passed without a word from her, then a sudden email hello, and I said, "Did you ever get my text and email regarding that Arabian horse show that I thought you might like?"

She wrote back, "I turned it off immediately after it began. I consider it animal abuse to cut the hairs from the face of a horse, especially the beard hairs - it makes them HANDICAPPED."

I wrote back, "I don't like the look of the balding of the faces either, but I thought you might have enjoyed the Western classes, oh well."

This isn't the first time I've heard from Germans that cutting a horse's facial/ear/muzzle hair is animal abuse.

I know I'm a typical American, you know how much I love the less hair look, but as much as I hate the look of balding a horse's face, I can't accept that it fits the definition of abuse. In my dictionary abuse is something that causes pain, suffering, and death. I know that clipping a horse does not do that. They may not have the feeling ability of a horse with whiskers, and they may miss that, and it may not be the most horse-friendly thing to do, in Summer when hair in the ears might help with bugs (does it, really?)  but it's not cruelty. And it grows back in a matter of days after the show.

Arabians with fine skin (which really means a fine haircoat) shed out to an almost naked face in Summer, like Mara, her face was nearly black naturally. It is a pretty thing. It can be natural, but people mimic that with clippers, and then with razors.

I think it takes a gorgeous thing and makes it into an ugly thing.

I wish my favorite breed was not subjected to looking fake and wrong. And abuse exists in every discipline, but the actual cutting of the hair is not abuse. Just...ugh.

I'll include a few images where they've taken beauty and turned it into the opposite:




This filly has huge eyes. Someone decided not huge enough, and balded her. Note the ears are flowing with hair. WTH. Remember the blog post I wrote about horses with full whiskers, and a balded face otherwise, full of grease? So conflicted.



In this and the photo above you can see the V on the forehead that is the custom for where to end the clip. That the blaze is now visible.....



You may be a pretty horse. I can't tell anymore.



Magnum Psyche. A photographer felt it was OK to show exactly how close he was trimmed. I believe he still has eyelashes. Again, I consider this ugly, but not cruel.



I love the necklace, and I love white on a grey horse. But someone messed up his face.



I hate to sound like a typical American but the word that comes to mind is "Seriously?" (And no, I've never said that outloud.)



I show this one because I love the new necklaces used in photos. This one clearly shows the reflector below the horse, forcing light from below the horse, like what we did with Mara, a wonderful effect. However I don't like what I've termed the Cocker Spaniel face some Arabians have, and I think I see that here.



Laheeb grandson. Mag's cousin, looking rowdy and perhaps photoshopped (where is the handler?). I assume because of the shoes he's a performance horse? I think it's a cute photo anyway.



But what's with the tablecloth thing lately? Maybe someone can explain this to me. I dislike anything that makes an Arabian look more like a doll and less like an athlete. But, anyway, good color choice.

It was my first time watching Scottsdale and I hope to do it again and see changes.

I also hope, that it's not too late, that the USEF doesn't send an American to the World Endurance Championship if it's held where they plan it. Cutting hair is silly. Endurance flat racing starts to enter the realm of abuse. I guess I don't need to post any photos of that, cuz you've seen them.