animal rights

["jsalas" <jsalas@tampabay.rr.com>]

Thank you, Howard. Even though we were not sanctioned, we did follow AERC rules for vetting criteria.

Since you brought this up, I did want to comment on earlier posts about vet checks, the responsibly to the horse etc,. One of the reasons I didn't sanction my ride was because I hate being told what to do. ( I know, I should have gone to therapy for that) I did get a call from an AERC rep who was concerned that because my ride wasn't sanctioned, horses could die. Now, I thought that was pretty absurd, and advised this person, sanctioning isn't what keeps horses safe, obviously as we still have many, many way too many horses pulled for metabolics. I have always believed the vets and checks were in place to help prevent this, not the sanctioning. Then he asked if my vet was an AERC vet. I asked what was the criteria for that and he said they must be a member. That's it? Oh, and a horse vet. Now he assured me he was not trying to shove AERC down anybody's throat, but I was gagging. I know Dr. Marcella gave a talk at the AAEP meeting some time ago to try and encourage vets to work these rides. I know he tried to give them info that would make them more comfortable when vetting rides. I think that is more the direction to go, instead of gold, silver, bronze, sponsors, qualifying for the next level, yada, blah, blah. I think we have a good many vets working the rides, and the current thinking about examinations is better than it was 8-10 years ago. But could there be more education in this area? A vet is a professional. We are horse people. (Although there are many self proclaimed experts) We pay for and count on the vets expertise when we attend these rides. Instead of just being a member of AERC and a horse vet, we might want to consider  requiring some experience in this sport. I don't need someone to hold my hand while I ride as much as I will depend on the expertise of a vet. Here in Florida, I have been to rides where some of the vets were actually 3rd and 4th year students from the university. That is a start.    

I will sanction my ride next year. Riders want their points. I will use the same vet and tell him the same thing. The vet has the final say, pull or not to pull. I will back him 100%. As I have stated before, the owner/rider has the ultimate responsibility to the horse. However, we depend the on the experience, and professional opinion of the vet to help us make those decisions. Lisa Salas, The Odd farm.

P.S. Howard, I don't get mad, I get even. I hope you are saving your money!