PETA Going after Dressage

KatyM · Well Schooled

PETA Going after Dressage

barnfrog · Advanced

The pix on the cover of the article is a JUMPER.

Starbuxchic · Yearling

Whats interesting is thats it on Totilas. I knew PETA would go after Dressage eventually just didn't think it would that stallion in particular.

Barbara F · Grand Prix

Good thinking on their part. Go after a vary famous horse AND trainer to get lots of exposure. I think it will be fascinating to see what, if anything, comes of the charges.

I don't need PETA to tell me that it's horrifically cruel to leave any horse locked in a box for 22 hours of the day and take him out only to work him (I mean, would you do that to a dog?). BUT is that the truth in Totilas' case? How would PETA know? An insider? And the rollkur training? Good. Let them go after that. Who else has the guts to do it?

I know people will says that the rest of us are next on PETA's hit list, but maybe some of us should be. Social isolation, tortuous training methods (not just rollkur), using the horse like a piece of equipment. Who among us can say that doesn't happen - frequently. This is a good opportunity for ALL of us to re-assess our own treatment of our horses, and a reminder to SPEAK UP wherever we see abuse.

KatyM · Well Schooled

barnfrog wrote:
The pix on the cover of the article is a JUMPER.

I'm confused - to which picture are you referring?

KatyM · Well Schooled

KatyM wrote:
barnfrog wrote:
The pix on the cover of the article is a JUMPER.
I'm confused - to which picture are you referring?

confuse OOOPs - after thinking about it, I must have made the original link to the wrong story - thanks to moderator for fixing it for me!

Figarocubed · Advanced

I'm sick of PETA. I'm sick of anyone who sympathizes with PETA. They are NOT friends of animals. They are over-the-top crazies.

dbliron · Advanced

Hi, Figaro!

While I agree that PETA often goes off the deep end, it's surprised me that they haven't jumped on this particular bandwagon before now. While I can be a tough trainer, there's no doubt in my mind WHATSOEVER that our sport has been exhibiting abuse for some time now. Warm-up rings are truly horrible places these days, and many of us are unpleasantly aware of what dressage horses are often forced to endure in the name of training.

I do think we have to be careful about what we call "abuse". While my horses enjoy pasture turnout every day all day, that's just not available to many horse owners, and it is really difficult in many areas in Europe, where space is at a premium. I know many horse owners, and trainers, who'd like to have the luxury of keeping their horses in wide open spaces, but the alternative to stabling is not having horses at all, and if we determine that stabling equals abuse we will close the book on the lives of many, many horses throughout the world.

I don't personally agree with Rath's approach, nor with his trainer/coach's approach, but calling stabling v. tiny turnout "abuse" is a very slippery slope.

barnfrog · Advanced

They HAVE been 'on this bandwagon' since the mid-80s....but they have never gotten on an individual. IF traditional riding were observed (what MR did initially when he got the horse), then the points (about stabling/horse keeping) would be moot...

Figarocubed · Advanced

Unfortunately, it doesn't matter how nice you are to your animals -- whether we're talking about horses, dogs, cats, birds, rodents, reptiles -- PETA wants to outlaw "owning" animals as pets, keeping livestock, eating meat. Ingrid Newkirk is a certifiable nutball. She's the one who famously equated a boy to a rat. She sees no difference in the value of a human life compared to that of a rodent.

Froggy, I don't think they care if Rath puts hock hobbles on Toto and rides him in a spade bit -- they've targeted a high profile horse and rider. They wouldn't care if Toto slept on a feather bed and was hand-fed all his meals by handmaidens. It's all grist for their publicity mill. They seek out "cruelty" everywhere -- even when in fact it doesn't exist. PETA would have us turn all our horses out in the wild so they can struggle to survive hard winters, die of worm infestations, be crippled by infections or be attacked and eaten alive by predators, just like their wild ancestors did.

If they love animals, I'm the Queen of England.

Their strategy is to slowly, over time, "educate" the public to eschew pet ownership, give up the consumption of leather, meat, and other animal products. bit by bit, piece by piece.

Yakkittyyak · Yearling

Personally, I am AMAZED at what some people are willing to do to their horses at a Public Venue, with the vast majority of spectators armed with a video camera, or phone with video capabilities...and youtube is only a click away! I recently saw some very sad footage of a prominent reiner puching pushing pushing his horse into the wall (without ever once letting his horse leave the wall or even change his postion!)...then the 'trainer' was furious than footage of this ended up on youtube, and was treatening the person who posted it with a lawsuit if the negative press affected his endorsements! Good Grief, what is this guy thinking??!! He chose to do this IN PUBLIC, God only knows what he does in private! I am light years away from being a 'bleeding heart' or a trainer who only believes in hugs and kisses, but honestly, this was just awful!!
I do agree that some of the special interest groups are gaining speed in areas that they know little to nothing about, and that could be dangerous for all equestrians (and other people who have animals), BUT I am all in favor of making public (or more public) what is happening at some of these venues...If you are 'Okay' with what you are doing to your horse, then you shouldn't mind if it goes viral...and if there are methods that are a 'Must' to achieve a certain level of performance in a horse, and they are deemed unacceptable by the general public, then maybe we need to lower the bar. Any thoughts??

Jackie Cochran · Advanced

Good luck in lowering the bar for getting high action from a horse. Seeing a horse pick its feet up high seems to trigger an addictive reaction in some people, they just want to see more of it, do not care what they have to do to the horse to get it, and use it as a purpose for their life. Logic and humanity have nothing to do with it.

Starbuxchic · Yearling

This topic reminds me of this video I saw. Guy claims hes a trainer and one min he is smacking the horse then patting it...talk about wrong and also mixed signals!

Then look at this dudes wife!

WTF...

deb · Well Schooled

Glad that they are going after anyone that abuses a horse, no matter how big or small, but no one, and I mean no one goes after racing, at least not here in Ontario! I personally know of cases that have been called up on (did the calling, husband before I married him did the calling, and had friends that have called on horrific things) and no one did anything... no athoritative figure/group did, including Human Society, and PETA, or police, ORC or otherwise... all that happened in my case was nothing, and that I had eight horses posisoned and one died... and nothing was done about that either-- so glad that PETA is going after this, but when it comes to really big business, ie racing, than not so much with the 'protecting' the horses... oh and I sued the ORC and left racing for 10 years... so no horses for me, and they got away with the abuse anyway...

So now, I carry a video camera with me, and if it gets to be bad enough, then I tell people that I will film them and take it to the Human Society, ORC etc... knowing that nothing will be done, but that I have to try anyway... also knowing that my own three horses are a target... you can't guard them 24 hours a day, unless you have your own property.. even cameras only work so well, the people might get caught, but your horses are still dead...

most of the time no one does crap around me now, they know I mean it... but I also know that no organization really does care except for their publicity...

am I bitter, yes I am, but after 30 years of trying to protect horses and failing miserably... because no authoritative organiation will protect the animals rights????!!!!

deb