To think that equestrian events are ridiculous

@Muminabun - could you point me in the direction of where you found the statistic that the average age of sport horses to be put down in the UK is 7?

I have had horses pretty much all my life. In order to afford it we forego holidays, new cars, don’t go out much, and don’t buy lots of stuff. I’m not complaining or saying “woe is me” but pointing out that just you don’t have to be rich because you have a horse - it’s just a question of what we spend our money on.

I have friends who go on lovely holidays twice a year, buy a new car every two or three years or who have football season tickets - I don’t assume they are rich or toffs because of the way they spend their money.

It’s interesting that ‘horsey people’ are largely deriding people who don’t agree that horses should be travelled to the other side of the world to compete in high heat, high stress environments. When actually it is more the none horsey people, who acting on the instinct, that are probably more correct and show a better understanding for what is good and not good for horses!

You understand that just because you've said the above statement, it doesn't make it true right?

Who do you think is more likely to know what is or isn't stressful or bad for any animal, someone who is an expert (as Olympic trainers, riders etc have to be as part of the job of being at the top of a sport), and the vets that are involved...

or someone who has never really interacted with that animal before?

Rather that than boxing. Which ought to be banned.

The Olympics should be reserved for elite athletes only.

Equestrians competing at National and international level are elite athletes

I love watching the equestrian events. Just switch off if you don't like them! There's plenty of other stuff to watch.

@BFrazzled Do you eat meat and/or dairy? If you do, give a bit more thought to those animals than the horses at the Olympics.

FYI I’ve been vegan since a child and love the equestrian events and used to ride myself.

I think I'll have to name change again after this... I've owned horses for 50 years and I now train people and horses (mainly people to be fair, the horses already know this stuff). I can work cattle at speed on my current main horse - without any metal in his mouth. He can spin, turn, carry out all of the lateral moves and elevated stuff you see in dressage - but he does it with a beautiful relaxed natural carriage and I hardly touch his reins. In an arena we do something that some call "cowboy dressage" - again with no bit in his mouth. He's amazing. And yet, if someone wants to compete in dressage there are requirements of tack that they have to use, and it's not allowed to do it without metal in the mouth.

Dressage is supposed to show a "happy athlete". There are very valid questions being raised in some parts of the equestrian world about how far dressage has strayed from that ideal. Whether judges are rewarding the right thing. A lot of horse owners will poo poo this and say that if you don't compete at that level you can't comment. They will say the horses are bred for it, and treated like royalty... Well, I don't compete at that level and would never aspire to win places in an arena where so much stress and force is rewarded. There are some great riders and horses out there... but watch some of the other videos - look at the pressure on the mouth, the expression on the horses, how the rider's legs are moving to constantly engage the spurs. Sometimes people who aren't involved in horses look more closely and are pretty shocked, they have a fresh eye that a lot of equestrians lack. After all, who would treat their dogs like that?
Some of the horses at the Olympics are trained using a method called Rollkur. Go to You Tube and see what that involves. The British team don't use it by the way.
I'll get attacked for this by people who will say I don't know what I'm talking about, but I do. I have trained and rehabbed horses of all shapes sizes and breeds for years. Ex high level dressage horses can be sad individuals - stretched mouths, damaged tongues, highly stressed in anticipation of forceful riding. I take all the crap out of their lives and start again in a simple halter (again, no bit in the mouth).

If you aren't "horsey" then just think about it. A horse can feel a fly land on their body and will twitch it off. They will move away from the touch of fingertips. Their lips are so sensitive that they can carefully pluck the flower off a thistle. Then - watch the videos.
I am NOT saying this is the case for all of them, much as I dislike how they are all ridden, but there are many dressage horses in the Olympics who are not being trained and ridden kindly. Sadly the judges reward the results. It's madness but awareness is growing.

MagicSummer In continuation from Polkadotties above, it takes YEARS to train a horse to this level.

I’m about to enter my first dressage competition at Preliminary level (just the second level up from Intro, so right at the bottom of the long dressage journey) on my tank of a gypsy cob who doesn’t look or move like a classical dressage horse. She is an ex-riding schoo,horse, so has been taught basics.

It has taken 18 months of repetition for us to bond, get to know each other and for her to understand what I want when I give those small signals.

The work begins on the ground before on board and the horse learns by a system called pressure-release - as soon as the horse responds to the slight pressure of a leg, hip, bum cheek etc you take the pressure away and give LOTS of praise. And repeat a few times and go do something else to keep them fresh and interested.

My horse goes like a train. She LOVES working and will always want to do more, but I know when to stop. She will never win awards at any high level, but she is happy to do dressage, jump and hack and is always keen to come in from the field and be with me.

It’s fantastic.

Have you ever tried to persuade any horse to do something it didn't want to do? grin

I have seen lots of horses ‘persuaded’ to do things that they don’t want to. Heads tied down below the vertical, beaten, whipped.
Tenessee big lick? Equestrians really let themselves down with this often repeated quip, it’s equivalent to two year old racehorses running because ‘they love it’ .

I am not a fan of dressage and not keen on the lack of hacking and the multiple aids used for the horses on my yard but Charlotte and Carl look after their horses very well as far as I can tell on social media. They were turned out as soon as they got home and allowed to display natural behaviour. I have no idea about the training of the other competitors or how they are treated.

And you sound pretty ignorant about sports you don't like.

What was inaccurate in my description? I know more about football than I want to because of blanket coverage in news programmes. It isn't news it's a game.

I dislike that some sports take on an unmerited importance when they really, really don't matter in the great scheme of things. They are enjoyable pastimes - like dressage.

It's great if people enjoy them, as I did dressage back in the day, but we shouldn't pretend they have any importance.

@GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman

Yeah my horse will jump anything for fun. When he was younger if you accidentally pointed him at a jump, you had to be quick about stopping him or you'd be going over it. It took me a long time to train that out of him. And he loves doing dressage, the more you work his brain the happier he is.

If a horse doesn't want to do something, you'll struggle to force it. Seen racers refuse to leave the start box, jumpers refuse jumps, dressage horses dump their rider and leave the arena. You get shit heads in every sport though and the ones that abuse horses are hated and if caught, are punished for it. Any actual horse lover treats their horses like gods.

Have you got some sort of source for this?

If a horse is very talented then it is treated well and then put to stud and retired. While training many are brought on too young and have injuries which means the average age for a sport horse to be put down in the uk is only 7 years old. Horses are very cooperative and will perform even if uncomfortable. I think the sport has huge value but there is a long way to go in terms of animal welfare for the horses.

As did the OP. But that's OK apparently. How about if you she wanted polite answers she asked a polite question? I'm sure the responses would have been very different. But as it is some people gave tried to explain and offered help.
As for cost, how much do people spend on a night out clubbing vs the cost of a riding lesson? People are free to spend their money how they like whether it be clubbing or a hobby and no one had the right to call them names like "toff" just because it's not how they spend theirs. I'm from a working class background, my DH is a chimney sweep. My neighbour works on a food packing line. Another horsey friend is a hairdresser, daughter of a teenage working class single mum. Yeah, none of us compete at the Olympics but what proportion of any sport compete at the highest level and quite frankly none of us are talented or driven enough to do so. But we go out and have fun at a level we are happy with, we help out at events and get to meet our heroes and even get to pat their horses.
I often explain to parents of pony mad kids how they can go and watch events for free or very low cost and they are amazed that it is possible even though the location is only a couple of miles away. You can't go and watch top footballers for nothing. Even a top event like Burghley or Badminton is cheap compare to Premier league football. Every equestrian competing at the Olympics could be watched for free.

Ha ha, yes I agree OP - as if it’s a sport, totally agree that the Olympic should be about human prowess. This weird horse stuff is totally for the privileged few who can afford all that too. I mean, hasn’t a royal won a few of the comps in the past?

Wherever you go on holiday, there’s often a chance to have a “pony ride” - just last week my daughter had a 15 min pony ride at centerparcs. So it is something that people can try as a one-off from almost any age.

This doesnt really prove that horse riding is accessible though (and I would say that a lot of sports are expensive including, as you say, motor racing) in that
a) centre parcs is not exactly a budget option
b) not many people would get very far with horse riding if it was limited to 15 min rides when they went on holiday.
Having said this when we were camping in France once we were next to a stables and they did a very good value lesson, I think for an hour, in a huge indoor area (sorry dont know the technical term) for the same price as just being "led" on a pony for half an hour in other places.

Lol at horses not naturally jumping.
There’s a 3 year old horse at my stables, for various COVID reasons she’s not been backed yet and hasn’t been taught anything. She has an amazing jump and I’ve personally seen her jump clean out of her paddock with practically no run up, then trot straight into the hay barn. Seriously her owner needs to get her started because she will be amazing…. However extracting her from the hay arm and putting her back in her field was not my favourite experience… because when a half tonne of horse doesn’t want to move it’s not going to move, and nothing little puny me can do will change its mind.

Olympic level dressage and other equestrian sports show the teamwork between riders and their horses. And the horses are praised - most people can name Charlotte Dujardin famous ‘valegro’ but I couldn’t tell you a single player in men’s hockey this year - from any country!!

I agree too. I think it’s cruel and unnecessary but it line with what humans do and think about animals in general, that they are solely there for our amusement and we can make them do what we want.

Horses love music and will often ‘dance’ in time to it of their own free will. Dressage combines this and their natural movements together.

I agree OP.

Transporting horses half away across the world to take part in some silly riding events is another throwback to the dark ages, same as Fox hunting! It really is time to ditch it.

The Olympics should be reserved for elite athletes only.

Haven't RTFT.

I was on a horse once who decided to jump something that I didn't want him to jump. This is not particularly unusual.

I've done a bit of dressage - not a lot, but just enough to massively improve my riding when I hack out. I've been pony trekking, and you use all sorts of stuff you'd also use in dressage to open and close gates without getting off. It gives you a better seat. It makes you think more about where your legs are and what you're telling the horse. You learn to read the horse better. And some horses genuinely enjoy it: they become very alert and keen, and you can almost hear them thinking, 'Oh, this is FUN! I get to do this... and this... and ponce about a bit... goodness, I'm clever!'

Honestly, if you don't like it, turn it off. I can't stand boxing, so I never watch it.