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Coming in
Future issues!
May 2003- Kids Camp Issue -
featuring horseback riding camps from all over the southwest.
Watch for us at the The New Mexico Horse Fair, Albuquerque, NM
June 2003- City Slickers: Dude
Ranches in the Southwest
August 2003: Colorado State
Fair, Pueblo, CO
October 2003: New Mexico State
Fair • IAHA Arabian Nationals
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IN THIS
MONTHS ISSUE
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July 2003 |
On the cover:
Criollo Andalusian cross mare, Estrella, wearing
Costa Rican hackamore. Bits are rarely used for
ranch horses in Costa Rica. See Equestrian Travel with Judie
Framan on page 6. Photo by Elliot Framan
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Table Of
Contents
I’ll Never Have
My Own Morning
Show: Editorial
by David Lewiecki............... 4
Equestrian Travel: Exploring .... 6
Costa Rica on Horseback
by Judie Framan.
Origins of
Gait: Which Came First,
Gaited Horses or Trotters
by Rhonda Hart Poe....................
8
Horse and Rider:
Physical Punishment
by Christina Fleming............... 10
Just My Opinion
by John “Flint” Martin............... 11
Business Profile: Olsen’s Grain
by Starla Nicovich................ 14
Dressage Horse and Rider: Getting
Started in Dressage
by Dianne Fay.............. 12
Focus on Mules: Mule Shoe part three
by Sophia Sarember................. 13
Telling It Like It Is
with JP Giacomini................... 14 |
I’ll Never Have
My Own Morning Show:
Editorial
David Lewieck
I’ve often thought it would be easy to be a talk
show host, until I was summoned to do a 15 minute interview focusing on our New
Mexico Horse Fair. Although enthusiastic, I found myself losing my train of thought while
trying to provide as much information as possible as fast as possible. In the middle of a
sentence
I would think of the (hopefully) thousands of listeners on the receiving end of our
transmission and my thoughts (and words) would become garbled. I am sure this, like
riding horses, is a matter of experience, not to mention desire and natural ability. In any case,
you won’t hear me on the morning show any time soon.
Arizona, Colorado, Texas
We started this magazine and have been present the longest in New Mexico. So
naturally, more information comes in to us about the land of enchantment than our other states.
We need to change that. We offer FREE CALENDAR listings for
everyone even close to our distribution area and there are no other regional or local
magazines that will reach as many readers in the southwest as we do. Why not submit your
schedules to us? Better yet, add us to your mailing list so we can
receive your newsletter or calendar every month. We even review for
editorial in every club and association newsletter we receive and use what we can in our
News Briefs.
We are in this business to make a profit. And in the long run, the best way to do this is
to foster the equine industry, offer as much as we can for free in our Calendar and News
Briefs, keep our ad rates low for non-profits and associations and build loyalty throughout
the communities we serve. We are not out for your last dollar and feel strongly about
supporting equine activities throughout the Southwest, so please do not be intimidated
about calling us. We are usually friendly and
even answer our own phone. THT
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Horse and Rider: Physical Punishment
by Christina Fleming
If you have been around horses for several years, take a minute to look back on your
initial level of knowledge and what you know today. Did you think to yourself, “If I only knew
then, what I know now,” or, “I don’t know how I didn’t get myself killed!” Maybe you said,
“Nothing has changed, I knew as much then as I do now.” It seems that the horse can be a
very humbling creature when it comes to our
education. With your horse knowledge growth in mind, think about the following:
Is Hitting My Horse Necessary?
Before you answered yes or no, did you consider the context of the “hit”? Where you
would hit? The amount of force you would use? What behavior, if any, warrants a hit?
Every person that answers the question will undoubtedly justify his response based on
the amount and type of experience he or she has with horses. I would venture to guess that
the range of responses would vary from absolutely no force, to extreme force. Which
is correct? Or is the answer somewhere in the middle?
Don’t expect an easy answer from me! This month’s column is written to make you
think!
If you have a training system based on applying pressure, getting a response, giving a
reward (and removing pressure), how does hitting your horse follow that modality?
If you train with the principle that you are in charge and the horse must submit, does
hit ting reinforce that premise? Are you responsible for learning what
signaling behaviors are in the horse so you know when a horse is preparing to react
instinctively with kicking or biting? Is that even possible?
Can you be proactive instead of reactive? What about hitting only when you are in
danger such as with a horse that is biting or kicking? What if you are a small person with
little strength? What if you’re big and strong? What if the horse steps on you? What if it’s a
pony? What if it’s a draft?
What if?
The dictionary defines “justify” as, “show the rightness of an act”. With that in mind, can
you justify hitting a horse in the name of training? How important is being right?
Humans are far superior to horses. We have free will, language, technology, pollution,
divorce, murder and more! We are, by far, the better communicators. We can read and write
and treat other beings badly, even at great distances. Certainly these traits alone entitle us
to assert a physical punishment on the inferior
horse? As we all know, he is not too smart. We are much more capable of deciding what is in
his best interest, even though this often clashes with his intuitive drive for self preservation.
Horses live in a violent world, so hitting is natural to them. If this is the rationale, should
assault be legal too? After all, we also live in a violent world. Maybe we shouldn’t even
confine and work horses to suit our needs. They might be better off if we set them all free.
Maybe if the horse learned our language we wouldn’t have to use physical punishment.
If he leaned over and said: “Hey buddy, either stop that or I’m gonna spin around and bite
your hand like it’s never been bitten before!” Would we just go ahead and give him a
preemptive
hit before he did it? Or would we sit down and come to a compromise?
This column really wasn’t meant to be funny. If we look at how we treat each other,
it should be no surprise how we treat our horses. As children we hit out of ignorance, or for
lack of a “better way” of solving our disputes. As adults, we justify violence by saying that it
is necessary or the only way to arrive at a particular
end. Are we really violent creatures who need physical punishment or are we
taking
the easy way out? Education and communication are the keys to creating options to
“necessary” physical actions. On that note, as responsible horsemen it is our duty to
continually increase our knowledge of horses and their behavior. Years from now we should
look back on today and take stock of what we have learned. Maybe then we can answer the
question: Is hitting my horse necessary?
Christina Fleming is a lifelong horsewoman currently living in Cerrillos,
NM. She trains, gives lessons and offers clinics on a variety of subjects.
She has a BS in Biology and is a certified instructor, judge and guide. You
can visit her website at www.newmexicohorsetrainer.com or send her an
E-mail at NMVaquera@aol.com. |
Today's Horse Trader is Published by
Frankadette, Inc
P.O. Box 220279
Newhall, CA 91322
Toll Free 888-705-3711
Fax 661-253-1725
E-Mail: todaystrader@aol.com
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DAI COPYRIGHT 2002-2003 |
