Here she Is

I got a call from Linda the barn owner at 1:00 AM telling me that Jazzy was going into labor. I rushed to the barn and sure enough Jazzy was going to have that foul that night. Some people might have thought that it was disgusting, but I found it to be quite amazing. Rev was born around four AM. It was a quiet labor and everything happened exactly as it should. Rev seemed to be a healthy foul. The first that that happened was we got her airways cleaned out so she could breathe properly. The complications started occurring when Jazzy would not let Rev nurse. It is curial for a foul to get milk with in the first hour of birth. It can be the cause of life and death between foals. Lucky were already prepared and had had a baby bottle ready incase this happened. I held Jazzy and Russell helped show Rev where to nurse. If I was holding Jazzy and he was holding Rev then everything was fine, but who can be out to do that several times a day. The vet was called and he told us to keep doing what we were doing for the next few hours and Jazzy would soon catch on. By the time the sun had come up and the dew on the grass was dry Rev was nursing on her own. When Rev was born she was a dark bay with a little dot of white between her eyes. Her legs were black all the way up to her knees. She was the cutest foul I had ever seen.

The experience

It is believed that most horses should have there first foul at least by the time they are 12. Jazzy had never been bread so breeding her at 15 brought about some concerns. The vet came and checked her out many times and said that she can probably get pregnant. Trying to breed her would do no harm to her so we went ahead a tried. She went to stay at Cornel Bradley’s and was around stallions to stimulate her go into heat faster. A horse can not breed unless she is in heat. A teaser pony is typical used for this. In the wiled it was very dangerous for a stallion to try and mate before a mare was in heat. The mares were also always the leader of the heard calling all of the shots.
We got a call from the breeders at Cornel Bradley’s telling us she was in foul. We were so excited the first stage was complete. It was really nice to bring her home as well. A horse is pregnant for eleven months. She started showing about five months into her pregnancy. I continued to ride her like normal until this point. When she started showing I started riding her with out a saddle. A lot of people believe that when a horse is pregnant they should not continue being in work, but this is not true. It is pretty much the same way with humans. Exercise is needed to keep the mom and the baby healthy. The type of exercise however is what has to change as the pregnant comes along. The feed that a horse has also has to change. The grain intake is not raised a lot, but a little. We also changed the type of feed to a feed that was specifically formulated for pregnant horses. The amount of hay that a horse gets goes up quite a bit. It is also important that a pregnant horse has plenty of clean water. Horses just like humans can get picky when they are pregnant. I noticed a big attitude change in Jazzy when she was about four months away from having her baby. She was grouchy and preferred to be left alone, but hey who can blame her. I can not imagine being pregnant for eleven months. It was funny to observe how the other horses reacted to her being with foul. I know a lot of people separate the mares that are in foal so that there is no chance of them getting kicked and causing damage to the foul. We kept Jazzy out with the same three other mares that she has always been with. I really think that the other horses knew she was pregnant. The leader of the herd KC really watched out for her. Jazzy is the lowest horse on the totem poll and it was obvious that she was keeping a close eye on Jazzy. During Jazz’s pregnancy she never had a scratch on her.

Jazzy and Rev

In the middle of July two years ago Jazzy a 15 year old Thoroughbred mare gave birth to a little Filly. Shortly after the filly was born she was given the name Rev. I was there when Rev was born and have had the privilege of working with her ever since. Training a horse from birth can be a scary thing. What a horse learns when they are first born carries over for there entire life. What if I did something wrong and missed her up? I read a lot of books about training and have had a very successful experience training Rev and I would like to share with the rest of you how I went about training her.
Jazzy is a very straight build horse and has pretty decent blood lines. She was bread to Cornel Bradley in July. Breeding Thoroughbreds are different then a lot of other breeding. There can be no artificial insemination it has to be done naturally. This is because the blood lines of a racing thoroughbred are worth so much. Breeding naturally proves that a horse has been breed with that certain horse. Artificial insemination can be taken to the lab and switched. It cost 1,000 dollars to breed Jazzy and that included a live foul guarantee. That is quite cheap for a race horse. Stud fees for top horses in Kentucky can go for millions of dollars. I can not imagine paying that much money for a baby horse that I haven’t even seen.

Rodeo

The English word Rodeo was taken directly from the Spanish word meaning round up. The Rodeo came about as a practice of cattle herding in Mexico, Spain, and eventually made it to the United States, Canada, South American and Australia. It originated as a sport for cowboys that had to have skills working hard on the ranches. Today is a sport designed to judge cattle and horses, test speed and skills of cowboys and cowgirls. Wyoming and Texas are the top leading states involved with the Rodeo. The season for the rodeo is between spring and fall. The weekend of July fourth is seen as the most critical day of showing in the rodeo. The rodeo has had some problems with animal cruelty and has been investigated.
The rodeo has been very popular for many yeas and is a constantly growing sport. There are several events involved meaning that there is something for everyone. Women have not always been a part of it, but thanks to the WRPA it is possible for women to compete.

Barrel Racing

Barrel racing is a popular event in which Quarter horses are used. IT is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider try to complete a patter around barrels in the fastest times. Men do compete in Barrel racing, but it is most commonly seen as a women’s sport. The horseman skills along with the horse agility are combined to safely and successfully complete the task. The pattern that has to be followed is in a clover leaf pattern around three barrels place in a triangle. The barrels are most commonly seen as three fifty five gallon metal or plastic drums. The challenge is to be the fastest one around the barrels with out knocking them over. The timer starts when the horse and rider cross the start line. At the end of the barrel pattern the horse has to be completely over the finish line before the clock stops.
It is judged purely on the time. There are no subjective view points that the judge has to decide. Precise control is necessary to winning especially in the top level. If a horse runs past a barrel or gets off patter then there is considered no time and they are eliminated. Five seconds a penalized if a horse hits or knocks over a barrel. Five seconds might not seem like a lot, but it almost always is that cause of a lost win. The horse and rider must trust each other and be able to work quickly and precisely to win.
Texas is believed to be the first state that started barrel racing. Women from Texas in 1948 were looking to make a place for them in the rodeo. The GRA came about from this which stands for Girls Rodeo Association. IT started off with only seventy four members and only sixty events. In 1981 the GRA officially became the WPRA known as Women’s Professional Rodeo Association. It is still popular today and is one of the most popular competitions. It has grown so much and is really popular often broadcasted on ESPN. The WPRA today has over eight hundred events. It makes over three million dollars and is now divided into twelve divisional circuits. Barrel racing is one of the fastest growing sports for women today. Top barrel racing horse can be priced up to 60,000 dollars.

Theraputic riding

Therapeutic riding is a term that was first used in Germany. Therapeutic horseback riding is also known as Equine Assisted Activity or Adaptive riding. Therapeutic horseback riding is used for a range of individuals with physical, emotional, cognitive, and social disabilities. Children are most often seen getting treated this way, but many adults are helped by horses as well. To put it in simple turns a special horse trainer teaches people with disabilities how to ride a horse. The environment around the horse also teaches students companionship, responsibility, leadership, vocational, education skills. The direct contact with horses makes the person feel that they are in control of the situation. To learn anything the student hast to pay attention to what the instructor is saying along with what the horse is doing. This provides a special environment in which to learn. There are hundreds of programs that are dedicated to using horses to help people. Most organizations run off of donations. Horses are also very unpredictable animals to it give the student a real life situation that they have control over. Thousands of people are helped by horses each year.

Horses like KC help millions of people every day. It takes a special horse to be involved with therapeutic riding. Quarter horses are one of the top breeds used for therapeutic riding. This is because of there solid frame and good nature. It is amazing to me how smart horses really are. When I first started riding KC and getting her ready for Linda to ride she was not perfect. When Linda rode her she was perfect didn’t do a single thing wrong. Horses know who is on them and just how much they can get away with. I really believe that KC knows that Linda is not quite as healthy as some people and needs to do things her own way. I had a quarter horse cross named Thunder. I love him because he was as ornery as can be it made my ride interesting. When I put people on him that didn’t know what they were doing he was perfect. He knew that I could handle him being a bit ornery, but the beginners would not have been able to. He was a really nice horse and would never do anything on purpose to get someone off his back.
Thunder was not a full quarter horse, but I think that this is the breed her resembles the most. He was short and stocky resembling more of the old type of quarter horse. He was very laid back; it took a lot to get this horse fired up about something. I rode him English dressage because that’s what I love to do, but he was not the best at it. I jumped him as well but his stocky body frame was not the best for jumping. I later sold him to a friend as a western horse. He excelled way beyond I had ever imagined. It has been researched that most Quarter horses excel in the western aspect of things rather then the English. I had a few little kids on him while I owned him and he did great. The calm personality was perfect for this. He was last on the totem pull at the barn he was at. He never got into a fright with any other horses just walked away if a horse pushed him around. However; he was living with three other mares so I’m sure that had something to do with it. He was really kind of a loner, but he was happy with that. I would never put a child on my Thoroughbred.
KC has a lot of the same characteristics a thunder. The main difference was that she was the leader of the herd of horses. I think this has to do more with personality traits rather then the breed. She is just as laid back and always has to be the one pulled out when little kids want to ride. It takes a lot for her to spook as well. KC and Thunder are my experience with quarter horse and now I will share with you some factual information about them.
Quarter horses are also very good at sprinting short distance races. The name Quarter horse actually came about because they are so fast at running a quarter of a mile or less. This breed is also known to excel at rodeos, horse shows, and working as a ranch horse. They are also commonly seen in reining, cutting, barrel racing, calf roping, and western riding. They are also shown English, but it is not as common to see them in this discipline. Quarter horses are the most popular breed of horses in the United States. There are over three million American Quarter Horses registered with the American Quarter Horse Association.
The modern Quarter horse is a lot smaller, shorter, skinner head and straighter profile. They are also a lot slimmer then some of the old types of Quarter Horses. They are still have a very muscular body and a big chest with powerful hindquarters. On average they stand anywhere between fourteen and sixteen hands high. There are two types of quarter horse the stack horse which is shorter and more compact with defined muscles. The racing hunter type is taller and muscles not as defined they look more like a thoroughbred. Quarter horses pretty much come in every color, but the most popular is a sorrel. They can also been seen as bay, black, brown, buckskin, palomino, gray, dun, red dun, grullo, red roan, blue roan, bay roan, perlino, and cremello.

What’s big mellow, and has many talents?
Yup you guess it a Quarter horses. Kiss Me Color is one of the greatest horses I know. She has a loving personality and is really calm. When kids come to our farm to ride we stay away from the thoroughbreds and the Arabians, but bring out the quarter horses. Kiss Me Color also known as KC has a really unique and heart lifting spirit.
KC is owned my Linda Wiggens who is a survivor of Breast Cancer and a massive stroke. She is a grade school teacher with a husband and two sons. The Breast Cancer came first and with a hard fight she won. The stroke followed a few years later. Linda was ridding her horse Jazzy when a tragic thing happened. Jazzy trip and caught Linda in the neck. Twenty four hours later she has a massive stroke. They told the family that Linda will never be the same. She could hardly speak and when she managed to get something out it was very hard to understand. Her memory was damaged and she even had trouble remembering her boys names. The doctors told that family that she would never be able to go back to teaching and may never walk again. He whole left side got paralyzed.
Through hard work, perseverance and with the help of a horse she proved the doctors wrong. It did not happen right away. Linda’s love for horses was put on hold for a long time after the stroke. All she could do was look out the windo and the magnificent animals. Her husband Gabe was willing to pay and take care of the horses just if she liked looking at them. What a perfect one of a kind husband. It was killing Linda to just watch the horses and finally agreed to start talking lessons at a therapeutic ridding center.
This is where what I have learned from being so close with linda ends and what my personal experiences with here were.
I met Linda when I was in seventh grade. She moved pretty slow and always walked with a cane. None of her horses have been worked so that’s where I came it. I did not have a horse of my own at this time so me and Linda were made for each other. I went to her barn every day after school and played with here horses. She would always be out there with me giving me pointers and enjoying being around the horses. The more and more she came out with me the more and more she wanted to ride her own horse. She would help me tack the horses up and brush them. I was continually encouraging her to ride KC. Finally she was up for the challenge. She tacked KC up by her self she is very well accomplished at finding ways to make things work for her. For example most people use two hands to pick out the horses hoofs. Well she doest have two good hands so she found a way around that. She used a bucket to rest KC’s hoof on so she could clean it out. KC was so god about it she didn’t care one bit. Most of the time when people put thing underneath a horse and they do not know what it is they flip out. Not KC and a lot of other quarter horses.
When it was time for her to get on Gabe pulled the truck into the field. From there Linda claimed onto the truck. I brought KC right next to the truck so Linda could slide on. It was so exciting to watch her ride she really did it well. KC was in a beautiful frame the two fit together perfectly.
The next thing I know Linda is on the horse at least two times a week and all the sudden I realize she’s running around with out using her cane. Looking back and thinking about the transformation is amazing. Horses are used in therapeutic ridding centers all the time. They have done so much for some many people. If Linda was to never get on KC I don’t know if she would be where she is today. It is said riding a horse at the walk has the same beat as humans walking on the ground. This helps people who cannot walk normal to get use to the fell and next think they know there walking normal as can be.
KC has been a great horse and I don’t know where Linda would be with out her.

Funny, but true horse facts

•A horse’s heart weighs nine pounds
oNine pounds! Wow guess that’s how they have so much spirit. 
•There are about 75 million horses in the world
oThat’s a lot of horses I would have never guessed it was that many.
•In the state of Arizona, it is illegal for cowboys to walk through a hotel lobby wearing their spurs
oHah that’s weird some cowboys mush have gotten into a fight with there spurs at some point?
•Arabians have one less rib, one less lumbar bone, and one or two fewer tail vertebrae than other horses.
oAhh I told you they were built smaller!
•A horse typically sleeps two and half to three hours a day
oNo way could I live with that little sleep. Not to mention most of that time they are not even laying down.
•Horses younger than 4 years can concentrate for a maximum of 10-15 minutes
oOhh so that’s why the two year thoroughbred gets distracted so easily.
•Horses lie down only about 43.5 minutes a day
oSee told ya not much
•Horses sleep longer in the summer than in the winter
oWell who can blame them in the summer they can sun bath all day in the winter they are stuck eating hay and moving around to keep warm.
•A zedonk is the offspring of a zebra and a donkey
oHunh I’ve never heard of a
Zebra and a Donkey mix wonder what that looks like.
















•No two horses are iden

You can say that again and they obviously don't all get along.
•The left side of a horse is called the “near side” and the right side is the “off side”
oYup every horse I have ever been on has had an “off side” or maybe that was just an “off day”
•A horse has approximately 205 bones
oGuess that explaines why they are so big
•A horse’s teeth can be used to estimate its age
oThat interesting just like a tree with the rings
•Horses generally dislike the smell of pigs
oI don’t know of anyone that likes the smell of pigs. Just goes to show how smart horses are!
•The "OLDEST" horse recorded to date is - "Old Billy", an English Barge horse born in 1760 who lived to the age of 62 years old.
oWow that is old! The average life span for a horse is between twenty and thirty years. I need to find out what kind of supplements this horse was on!
•The World's Largest Horse ever recorded was a Shire gelding named Samson, bred by Thomas Cleaver of Toddington Mills, England. Foaled in 1846, this horse measured 21.2 1/2 hand high ( 7 ft. 2 inches) in 1850, and weighed 3,360 pounds.Samson is also recorded as the "HEAVIEST" horse weighing 1524 kg (3360 lbs.)
oWOW THAT IS HUGE!!!!
•The longest horse mane was 18 ft. long and grown by a Californian mare named Maude.
That horse could walk and get tangled up in its own main!
•In the wild horse world, the mare decides when and where the herd will go while the stallion follows.
oWell that sounds about right. How it is with humans too.
My dad has never been and animal lover and I just don’t understand it. Animals are just people in a lot of ways. I can point out many ways they are alike just in these few facts. Horses sleep longer in the summer then winter. I cannot tell you how many times I have fallen asleep outside sun bathing. Horses love it just as much as we do. A horse less then 4 years old cannot concentrate very long. That sounds just about right I see a lot of kids running around and parents chasing after them. It’s that same thing as when I’m chasing the little filly around…right. No to horses are identical well I could have told you that one and I don’t think I even need to bother relating that one to people. Horses don’t like the smell of pigs. I find that very interesting. I move my horse a pig farm not to long ago and she was acting really funny. Now I know maybe it had to do something with the smell and poor thing who can blame her.
I just find it very interesting how horses and people can be so alike. But for all of you non animal people yah yeah I get your side too.

Uses

Arabians are known as a versatile breed. They are used in Saddle Seat, Western Pleasure, Hunt Seat, Dressage, Cutting Reining, and Endurance Riding, train riding, and working ranch horse. They are also very commonly found for children to ride. Of all of these disciplines they are most commonly found in Endurance riding. This is because of there high stamina. The Tevis Cup is 100 miles long in one day the Arabians are the most common bread to win. In the factual evidence it shows that they can be good at jumping, but that is not what I have found to be true. The Arab DC that I worked with would not jump a fence to save her life. My farrier has also told me stories about how Arabians horses are just not known to be good jumpers. I guess there’s exceptions to every breed. They are also very common in activities not just competitions. They are most commonly seen in fairs, movies, parades, and circuses. They movies they were popular in for example was The Black Stallion, The Young Black Stallion, and Hidalgo. In the movie The Young Black Stallion there were over 40 Arabians used to film this movie. They were in movies dating all the way back from the 1926’s. They are also great for showing off in a crowd. They are used as mascots for football teams like the University of Southern California Trojans.
Arabians are a really nice breed, short, but strong, smart, but hot headed. They are really balanced and I have always enjoyed working with them.

Arabians

Some people love the horse breeds of Arabians like I love Thoroughbreds. The Arabian horse is known to be very intelligent, spirited, and have great stamina. The Arab is one of the most recognizable breed in the world. This is because of there distinct head shape slender bodies and holding there tail straight into the air. Arabs have archaeological evidence that they are one of the oldest horse breeds. There are bones that resemble the modern day Arabians dating all the way back 4,500 years. They originated in the Middle East, but spread around the world by war and trade. They were traded to help other breeds improve on speed, refinement, endurance, and good bone. Arabian blood lines are fond in most breeds of horses today.
It is sad that because they came from the desert people would bring them into the tents with them to keep them warm and safe. The close connections to humans has made this breed good natured, quick to learn, and willing to please. The also were in war so this is where they got there high alert and endurance.
I trained an Arabian for about six years now. Everything the facts say I can personally relate to. The one thing that the text does lay out however is that being smart does not always mean having common since. I will agree that they are a very smart breed, but they can also be a bit of an air head. Arabians are one of the top ten most loved breed.

Style

The Arabian horses have a wedge shaped head, big forehead, large eyes, large nostrils, and small muzzles. The also have a slight forehead bulge between the eyes called a jibbah. This adds additional sinus capacity and it is believed to be a trait developed to help them adapt to there original desert climate. They also have a long curved neck witch is very distinct.
14.2 is genuinely the cut off between horse and pony, but of the Arabs this does not apply. The normally stand anywhere between 14.1 and 15.1 hands high. It is a myth that Arabians are so strong because they have a greater bone density, short cannons, sound feet, and a broad short back. The height has nothing to do with how strong they are.
Arabians that were of good discipline were allowed to reproduce. This is why the Arabian is often seen as a family horse of horse for children. The United States Equestrian Federation also allows children to be around stallions at shows which is not normal for other breeds. They can be considered a hot breed, mainly because of there intelligence they are quick to act. The Arabian that I worked with was a little hot headed, but nothing like most thoroughbreds. There are a lot of people that think the hot blooded horses are harder to train. This is not the case in most Arabians. There good nature overcomes the every now and aging hot heading thing to do. DC was the name of the Arab that I worked with and she is a spitting image of factual look of an Arabian.

Eventing

The last topic of thoroughbreds will be eventing. I would say it is the second most popular sport for thoroughbreds; racing being the first. I have the most experience in the sport and have shown eventing for several years now. It is a triathlon composed of, dressage, cross country, and stadium jumping. The three competitions all relate to one another. Cross country get the horse really fit so dressage show a really fit horse can still come together and be calm and supple. In cross country there is a lot of open room before the next fence, but in stadium the horse has to have as much power, but not necessarily the same speed.
Dressage is on the first day and is held in a small arena which is 20x40. It is all about the horse listening to the rider and the rider being able to communicate to the horse what is desired. There is a certain pattern of movements that must be done in a specific way. It is judged by one or more judges and they look for balance, suppleness, and rhythm. Some example of movements done in a dressage test are half-pass, shoulder-in, flying lead changes, counter canter, and piaffe. Each specific movement is judged on a zero to ten scale. Ten is a perfect where as 0 was not performing at all. There is not a set scale on total points because it depends on how many movements there are in a specific test. It is nice to be done this way because if one movement is really bad there is still a good chance it can be made up. To start the test there is a bell that will ring and then you know you have sixty seconds to inter the ring. If you do not enter on time it will result in elimination. It is also possible to get eliminated, if horse leaves the arena, if the horse resists more than twenty seconds during the test, and if there three errors on course.
The second phase is cross country preformed on the second day. The first thing this tests is fitness. The horse has to be in shape to make it to the finish line on time and for safety reasons. There is a time limit where points are taken off for being too fast or too slow. It is also really dangerous to run a horse cross country that is not fit enough. The fences are solid and therefore if the horse slips up and hits a fence it is likely they will flip over. The rider also has to be just as in shape to direct the horse safely over the fences. There are twelve to twenty fences at the lower levels and the upper levels consist of twenty to thirty jumps. Cross country is set in an open setting involving ponds, drop banks, hills, several jumps in a row. The penalties are more severe in cross country. This is because courage, endurance, and athleticism are very important and want to be enforced. There have been a lot of rule changes because of many major injuries at Red Hills and Rolex in 2008. If you fall off the horse at any time in the cores (even not approaching a fence) you are automatically eliminated. There is also a new rule where a two hundred and fifty dollar fine will be charged to any rider not wearing a medical arm ban.
Show jumping is on the final day. It is placed after cross country for a reason; to test the stamina of the horse and rider. It also tests the suppleness, obedience, fitness and athleticism of the horse and rider. The main difference from cross country is that it is in a small space and the fences can easily be knocked down. It consists of twelve to twenty fences and are set up in a ring. The fences are brightly colored and a few distractions are placed around such as flowers. There are four panatelas taken for knocking down one jump, and the first refusal. Elimination occurs for the second disobedience, first fall of rider, jumping a fence in the wrong direction, and an error of course not rectified. The winner is determined by whoever has the least amount of penalties.
There are a lot of rules and requirements for Eventing and it is very challenging. I have been competing for a long time now and am still discovering new ways and new rules that I did not know about. I love the challenging triathlon and cannot imagine competing in anything else.

Racing

Contouring on the topic of the thoroughbred I would like to go into what they are really good at. Racing is a big part of this breed. Horse racing has traditionally been a sport for the rich man. Today is still a sport that requires a lot of money, but there are ways around that. Partnerships are often used. This is when one horse is owned by multiple people. The 2003 Kentucky Derby winner is a good example of this. The winner was Funny Cide and was owned by a group of ten people. They were all organized from Sackatog Stable. It is critical for the partnerships to be involved with the same barn. This way there is less conflict on who rides the horse, how the horse is taken care of excreta. The winner of the Kentucky Derby in 2008 was Big Brown. He was owned by a stable itself, the IEAH horse racing hedgefund organization.
However even in a partnership it is still not cheap. A dry rate is normally played per month by the owner or owners. This is normally paid to the trainer and includes the cost of the farrier, use of facility, and veterinarian bills. There is also another fee that has to be paid; the cost for food and for the Jockey himself. In the United States is typical to spend around 15,000 dollars on training alone in one year. There are also regulations and control from the government. It is imposable to buy a thoroughbred and race it. There has to be one or more than one licensed owners. The trainer and other people that are involved with the horse have to be licenses as well. There are set racing dates and certain types of drugs that cannot be in the horse when racing. Horse racing is a huge industry and continues to grow every year.
If you do not own a horse or are not familiar with the horse industry this might be new information to you. I have been around the horse industry for a long time now and specifically dealing with the thoroughbreds in all aspects. I think the racing industry has a bad reputation for being cruel to the horse. I don’t necessarily agree with this.
First of all some people thing that racing the horse itself is bad and that it is hard on the horses and makes them aggressive. These people have obviously never owned a thoroughbred. Thoroughbreds live to run it is in their nature. They love doing it wither they are a specifically a race horse or not. If you ride your thoroughbred at a quiet trot every day and keep him in a small pasture he will go crazy I have seen it firsthand. The best rides I have with my horse are always the days after I take her out for a good gallop. When talking about making the horses aggressive, well that’s just part of the thoroughbred. They have always been a breed to be naturally competitive.
The second main aspect of racing that people assumes is that a lot of the horses are abused. I don’t really see how this can be stereotyped into racing. This is a problem in every industry and can involve any type of anima. It’s a horrible thing, but happens everywhere. The horses at the big facility in Kentucky for example live like kings and Queens.
At the end of the racing season there are a lot of horses for sale and for really cheap. The horses are auctioned off for very cheap. The buyer does not have much contact if any with the horse before it is purchased. I think this is where many people get the assumption that racing is bad. A lot of the horses for sale are questionable. It is a risk to buy one of these horses. The horses can be lame, or bad natured, and even untrainable. If people thought this trough then maybe they wouldn’t look at the racers so bad. This is really the only big industry that does this. If other horse sports had an auction at the end of their show season I believe that the same thing would be found; horses that are hard to manage. My horse was bought from a racing action and she is the sweetest horse not one thing wrong with here so good horses can be found.
I know that bad things can happen in any industry, but I don’t think racing should have a bad reputation in the horse world.

My Thoroughbred

I can relate to all of this factual information because of my 8 year old Thoroughbred mare; Rhapsody. She is one of the calmest thoroughbreds that I know of, but don’t be fooled this dose not mean she was a “calm” horse. There have been many times where one second we will be quietly trotting along and the next I’m riding a bucking bronco. She is calm for being a thoroughbred they are very alert animals. However this is one of the many reasons why I love them so much, it’s never boring. Horses that puts around and don’t really react to much don’t interest me, way to boring. However; they can be good for beginners and I suppose that’s what a lot of people like. Rhapsody specialized in eventing or at least that was until she pulled a suspensory. Her bad conformation was one of the main reasons for this accident and is why she can never jump again. She has long pasterns witch cause a lot of stress on her legs. She is still physically capable of jumping, but it will break her down quite rapidly. This however was not the worst thing that could happen. She is still rideable and now a beautiful dressage horse. Rhapsody will never be a million dollar horse, but I have worked with horses worth a lot of money. Those horses are taken better care of then most people around, including very high insurance coverage. There are good things and bad things about every breed. I love thoroughbreds and can’t imagine myself ever owning a different breed.

Throughbreds

The thoroughbreds that are around today came about from England in the 17th and 18th centuries. The native mares were crossed with Arabian Stallions produce the thoroughbreds as we know them today. Arabs are originally from really hot regions of the world. This is why thoroughbreds are thinned skinned and typically need a blanket in the cold of winter. Thoroughbreds are know for being hot headed, high spirited, and athletic. They typically stand any where from 15.2 hands to 17 hands high. These horses pretty much come in all colors including chestnut, bay, gray, and black. They are mainly used for racing, but are also good at polo, stadium jumping, combined training, eventing, and dressage. The prices of thoroughbreds depend greatly on pedigree, conformation and skill. The Keeneland Sales in 2007 sold 9,124 horses at an auction with a total value of 814,401,000. This gives an average of 89,250 dollars. The Jockey Club indicates that for a weanling sold it is about 44,407 dollars. Horses that are sold for this much have amazing pedigrees and skills or potential skills. Thoroughbreds have a very high accident rate along with health problems. Two horses every day suffer from career breaking injuries. It is estimated that one tenth of all thoroughbreds suffer from fractures or orthopedic problems. The health concerns are just as high. They are prone to have problems with bleeding from the lungs from exercise induced pulmonary hemorrhage. These breeds have an average of 10% low fertility, and 5% with abnormally small hears. When compared to there body mass they have relatively small hooves. The soles are thing and the walls lack cartilage mass this results in a sore foot.

People say that dogs are man’s best friends, but are they? Would we even be here if it weren’t for horses? Most people reading this are probably thinking “well dugh of course we would be.”
Horses were the first mode of transportation and without them many people may not have survived due to not being able to travel to find food an. Not only have used horses to help us travel to find food, but they have helped us produce food.
So would we have survived with out these magnificent creatures? The way I see it when this great country was being formed wherever there was a hoof print there was a foot print right beside it.
Today it is out job to give back to the horses. We not longer need them to survive so we use them for pleasure. Each horse and specific breed has something they are great at. For example Thoroughbreds are known for there fast athletic abilities so we typically see them in racing or evening. I personally am in love with Thoroughbreds and have owned. This will be the first breed I discuss and I will then go into more detail about what they are good at.

What’s the first thing that pops into your head when someone brings up a horse? Probably a pretty animal eating grass in a big field.In this blog I will discuss how the horse industry has grown and what horses are used for today. The disciplines today push horses to do things we never imagined possible. I have had the privilege of taking care of and riding an Olympic level horse “Tumble Dry.” Tumble Dry ran clear around Rolex twice. For those of you who do not know Rolex is an event that is the highest level or Olympic level. He is not a very tall horse just above 15 hands, but he has no trouble clearing over four foot jumps. A horse at such advanced levels requires a lot of maintenance and a lot of trips to the vet. Veterinary technology is just as advanced as our medical world today. My horse broke her leg this fall so I have seen first had what vets can do for horses. It took nine months to get her completely healed, but she is currently just as sound as she was before the accident. I am writing about this simply because I love horses. I love all the breeds and am interested in different disciplines. As I have already described I am very experienced with horses and know first hand what it is like to go to the barn every morning, afternoon, and evening to tend to them. I have done a lot of research and can provide a lot of helpful information.