Re: [RC] [AERCMembersForum] The Way We Win: Should We Change the Endurance "Pay S... - DVeritas
In a message dated 5/4/2006 6:20:10 P.M. Mountain Daylight Time,
heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
In
closing, I'd say that there is an outstanding direction for those to go who
really like MMS's plan--it's called CTR, and it's alive and well. But it
isn't endurance riding.
CTR and endurance riding are not the end all when it comes to distance
riding.
For me, each (CTR and Endurance) have problems. It's just a matter of
which problems one chooses to live with
A recent magazine, Trail Blazer, Issue February 2006, has on the back cover
a picture of an endurance rider and her mount, loping along. The bold
words LEGEND MAKER at the top.
It says: "As a Hall of Fame endurance racer, _______________,has
gone more than the extra mile to earn her status as a legend. After more
than _______________ race-miles over rugged trails and challenging terrain,
she understands what it takes to be an enduring winner. Strength,
stamina, teamwork, and the best solution to equine joint
inflammation...........Ask your veterinarian about Legend today. It's the
one ________________depends on to take her horses all the way to the finish
line....."
(I left the name of the rider blank because the name doesn't matter....it's
the message.)
The subtle message that it takes veterinary modalities to do well, to
accumulate mileage, to be a Hall of Famer in the sport.
The image of endurance riders being insensitive to their mounts is
certainly not helped with the subtle imaging of the words used in this ad.
It's no wonder that many in the equine world view endurance riding with a
jaundiced eye.
I have nothing against the rider in the ad....in our sport, it is perfectly
acceptable to inject horses with prophylactic joint solutions, before, during
and after the rides.
I have taken calls from riders who tell me that so and so was so lame two
days before a ride or a multi-day, so they injected the horse and the next day,
the horse was perfectly sound and it's what they'll do to continue to get the
horse(s) to complete rides.
I know that I must be totally wrong to even consider that a horse whose
inflamed joints hurt so much that they can't compete without being injected with
a drug shouldn't be used mile after mile in sport.
I know that endurance is just fine the way it is being run and
promoted.
When we stop looking at ourselves with a critical eye, we will see horses
being used in the sport who, minus the drugs, would be retired from the
sport.
The argument that many use, "if an injection makes the horse more
comfortable and eases his pain, then that's what I'll do in order to compete on
him" is a terrible sentiment to be so casually accepted in our sport.
"Horse abuse" doesn't, for the most part, always happen with a whip or
a two-by-four, sometimes it happens one meaningless footfall after
another.
