I'm not a believer in the use of fancy gadgets
for the training of horses. I've seen some really weird things
that have been used on horses. Virtually all of them useless or
even dangerous. I do not believe in 'sacking' in any way, shape
or form or any other form of training that results in the discomfort
of the horse.
For centuries, there have been many devices
used in the training of horses. If you work with horses,
you’ve probably seen variations of most of them. As with any
training device such as bitting rigs, crops and various whips,
etc., there is a proper way and improper of using them.
Unfortunately, there are a good number of trainers and horse
owners that do not know how to use these devices properly. I do
not believe in the use of crops, whips and various
‘patented’ bits, at least by those who do not know how
to use them.
Crops, whips or any other devices should never
to be used for disciplinary ends. I cannot even tell you the
number of times that I have seen some trainers raise welts
on a horses hide with a crop simply because the horse refused a
jump or didn’t know what was being asked of him. There was
no justification for the use of force (not even, in this case, self-defense of
the rider) in any of these situations.
Recounting another incident that details the
abuse of a training device, I have seen bitting rigs used to
discipline a horse. One particular trainer that I knew punished
horse (for poor performance) by turning the horse out in a
bitting rig. When the trainer could not catch the horse later
that day (the horse was out all day without the ability to eat or
drink), he left him out all night and most of the next day. This
is why I do not like ‘gadgets’, especially in the hands
of those who use no common sense.
Various devices such as elevator bits and
martingales are often abused. Neither of these devises are
necessary. These devices, 99.99% of the time, do nothing but conceal the ‘holes’ in the horse. I do not use ‘gadgets’ because I have never needed to use them. I know why and how to use these devices, but I still
don’t use them.
In the next few days, I'll be adding more
information concerning this and other topics.
Remember, be kind to your horse. Give him lots
of turn-out time.
How many horses have you seen that are totally
bonkers because they have been locked up in a stall for days,
even weeks at a time? There are a lot of stocked up horses that
need to be let out for pasture time. Don't let yours be one of
them. It's vital to a horse's mental health to be allowed to be a
horse.
Written by Dan Gilmore. Reposted with permission.
