Near riot over a Midget horse in Finglas

sup_dude wrote: »

As someone who's worked on these professional yards and knows a great deal about horses, I can only conclude that you don't know what you're talking about.

Go on...

catallus wrote: »

This is what equality looks like. You seem to have a problem with this. Well suck it up. We're all equal, like it or not.

I have been sucking it up my whole working life however, this is the exact opposite of equality.

conorh91 wrote: »

If that were the case, horses would be seized from every dressage yard in the country. Most serious dressage horses are locked up in stables for most of the day, and are exercised over sand, in enclosed arenas. The same usually applied to racehorses, during training season.

As a rule of thumb, the most professional horse owners won't keep their animals on grass.

It's a massive misconception that horses 'belong' in paddocks, when in reality they 'belong' in 12 x 14 ft boxes.

If horses keep some kids out of prison, then barring serious neglect, I'm all for those kids keeping horses.

Horses "belong" in fields, not boxes. You fool.

Why do the Gardai take so much crap.

philstar wrote: »

are irish chavs worse than english chavs?

I think that English chavs recognize that they are scum and are bizarrely proud of it. Irish chavs are in denial. They call themselves working class despite never working. Irish chavs are a lot wealthier too.

conorh91 wrote: »

Go on...

Horses don't belong in boxes and most professional and nonprofessional yards acknowledge the importance of turn out. Which is why in majority of yards, horses get a certain amount of turnout weekly if not daily on top of their exercise and longer breaks in the field.

Horses in professional yards are treated to the highest quality. Excluding some racing yards, horses get adequate out time in order to not develop vices. Obviously, every horse is different and some horses aren't suited to being stabled at all where some may be happy enough to spend their whole life in a stable.

To say they'd prefer to belong to travellers is laughable. Horses with most other people get treater very kindly and their welfare is at the foremost. There are hundreds of rules in all different sectors of the equine industry in order to make sure the horse is okay. Horses are trained properly and not put under stress. Their stables are as safe as can be (although, horses get themselves into all sorts of situations which leave owners scratching their heads). Compare that to most traveller horses. They're stuck into gigs when they're one, if not before. A horse isn't fully mature until they're four so by the time they're five, at a push, they're legs are so run down from the concussion of running on a solid road. Their muscles are twisted and torn from pulling gigs and traps and their sides are so marked up with bruises and cuts because you cam guarantee that they don't care if the tack fits the horse or not. The shelter they have, if any, is a few bits of metal stuck together which contain all sorts of hazards, not to mention how inadequate a shetler that is. If they don't have shelters, they're tied out until the headcollar starts to grow into their faces. They don't get wormed or treated for lice and if the animal is sick, they're mostly left to die. Shoes are usually stuck on by unqualified people who end up doing more damage than good and the shoes are left on until they fall off themselves. This could potentially tear through the nerves in the hoof and in worse case, puncture the frog (the highly sensitive part of the foot).

Now, you're telling me that horses would prefer that, because they get the occassional pick of grass? With studies being done continously to improve the life style of horses (and that's what I'm part of), you're telling me you'd prefer a horse to go to people who don't care about any of that? Don't get me wrong, you get the odd traveller who treats their horse with respect but they're a minority. Most take the word "breaking" literally. Nor am I having a go at travellers in general, but the way they treat their animals is horrendous and it's about time something was done about it.

Couch Potatoe wrote: »

Horses "belong" in fields, not boxes. You fool.

You sound like you know nothing about horses.

sup_dude wrote: »

Horses don't belong in boxes and most professional and nonprofessional yards acknowledge the importance of turn out. Which is why in majority of yards, horses get a certain amount of turnout weekly if not daily on top of their exercise and longer breaks in the field.

Not in any yard in which I've ever been. I am talking about the really professional yards. Obviously some two-bit riding school/ semi-professional will turn out school horses with yearlings or any motley crew of horses for days on end and never give it another thought.

But I gave the example of dressage horses. It is almost unheard of to turn out dressage horses during a competitive season. The serious racehorse trainers will usually not turn out during the season either. If a horse is turned out, he goes out with perhaps only one other horse, preferably a semi-comatosed schoolmaster, so as to avoid risk of injury.

This is normal practice. I have experience of one of the best-known racing yards where, during the season, horses only ever leave their boxes (i) to go racing, (ii) to canter, or (iii) to stretch and roll, in-hand, in an indoor sand school, or to go on the walker if suitable. No competent horse person would claim those horses are abused, despite being stabled for up to 23 hours per day, for most of the year.

I guess my bottom line is that people with less experience of horses tend to be too precious about horse welfare.

There are two types of horse owners. practical owners, and then, those with a permanent stock of sugar cubes up their sleeve, who write Valentine's cards to their horses. The latter are a great scourge.