Rescue Programs Representation....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4u8DL_B0pW8
This is a link to a video recently posted on youtube. And apparently the cause of a bit of trouble on a message board this past week.The trouble began when a poster questioned the condition of the horses in the video.They are all well fed and in good flesh, on that I think we can all agree. If they were lounging around at home, I don't think anyone would have a problem with how they look.The problem arose because these three horses are owned by a Rescue. And they were at Fair. The poster who got in trouble was reprimanded, by the Moderator of the Forum, no less, because they commented that the Mare needed grooming, the Miniature Horse still has part of his Winter coat, and "little Wilbur" is wearing a halter that is too big for him. All of these to me, are valid points, especially the halter issue. I keep looking at those big, floppy ears, and those long, spindly legs, and thinking that one attempt at an ear scratching could spell disaster for the little guy.The Moderator obviously privately e-mailed the poster, telling them to stop posting about the horses, because the poster addressed it on the forum. The Moderator's comment was something to the effect that the poster had made two almost identical posts on the subject. I've been a member of, and a visitor on a lot of Forums, and have never heard that there is a limit to the number of posts one can make on a subject, or that there is a particular way you need to word your posts. I can't help but wonder what caused the Moderator to feel they needed to step in and stop what seemed to me to be a fairly civil exchange of words?I've seen far more heated discussions on many forums, in fact, I've seen FAR more heated discussions on the forum where this took place. So I can't help but wonder, what is the reason for the attempt to stop what seemed to be a passing comment that appeared to be a valid one?Rescue programs are under scrutiny right now. If you choose to represent yours to the public, wouldn't you want your horses to be well groomed, with halters that fit? And if you are going to shoot a video and post it on the Internet, why wouldn't you go in and brush all of them off before filming? These were the questions that were asked that got the poster in trouble.You can take a look at the Video yourself, and ask yourself the question....What is your first impression when you see these horses, knowing they are from a rescue and at a Fair representing that Rescue facility?
written by R.H.2
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
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I wrote this in July, but it ties in with a discussion that I've been reading on the ABR forum in the last few days concerning Rescues, as well as the "Coloreado" blog.
ReplyDeleteI attended our county fair recently, and noticed a contrast between the animals in the video link and the ones there. I did not see even one horse that wasn't clean and groomed, or fitted correctly with a halter. There were plenty of wash racks available, and there weren't even any dirty stalls.
It was nice to see how well the horses were taken care of, and the pride the owners had in their animals.
RH2- sorry for the delay on this one, it was one of those that got "lost". I felt it was kind of timeless though and it ties in with all the things you mentioned as well.
ReplyDeleteI think what you were seeing at that fair, in contrast with the video, was real horse people's horses.
A lot of Rescues are made up of people that do not have much for Horse Sense Its made up of people that think they can give a pony that does not have a good home and good home... brushing... bathing.. fitting a halter is just something that comes with that HS I was talking about. Most Pro Horse people know how to fit a halter or brush a horse out or even clip and give a bath to.. oh yes and we also know how to use a shit fork.
ReplyDeleteWhen we take our horses to a fair we know that people are not only looking at our horses they look at us and how we care for that pony. We are PROUD of our horses.. we are not there trying to get someone to help with the feed and care of some horse. We are there showing our training and our ability to feed and care for that horse.
Once again this just shows that anti people or rescues are NOT Pro Horse people.
Jane D. Montana
Good point, Jane D. I would think, too, that a rescue asking for donations would want to put it's very best foot forward. Clean, well groomed horses with well fitting tack give the picture of a professional operation. A pen picked clean of horse droppings shows attention to cleanliness. When you are in the public eye, these things are really important. You are asking to be judged by the horses you present for the public to view. In my opinion, those horses should look their absolute best, as they are a representation of your operation, and how you do things. If you don't realy care how your tack fits, or how clean your horses are, or your pen is when you are out in full view of the public, one can't help but wonder how you operate day to day.
ReplyDeleteRH2.........VERY WELL SAID!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteJ Doe Montana
Well the miniature is a dwarf. And no matter how much you try and get a halter to fit, its not going to be perfect. These rescue places are getting the worse of the worse, and for a dwarf they have done about as good as they can with what they have. Big heads, high backbones, they will look better with a little hair on them, then they would if the were body clipped and cleaned up. All the bones are compact in a dwarf, luckily his feet hasn't rolled over at the ankles.
ReplyDeleteOk Anonymous let just say we forgive her on the mini, you have the others that could of sure used a good brushing... oh ya and then there is the lack of use of a shitfork... but then guess that dont matter to you none.. and as for the feet rolled over the ankles... i am sure as long as you keep up on the feet trimming that wont happen either. but heck.. that mini did not look like a dwarf to me but then they all look like that.. so guess that is what a mini is.. a dwarf.
ReplyDeletenit pick, nit pick, nit pick!!!
ReplyDeleteIf you new anything about dwarfs in miniature horses I would not even need to answer your dumb questions. Yes, dwarfs have many health problems, and most will never be corrected. You should contact a large miniature horse farm and ask them, don't believe me. I am just a poster who has been around them. That is why a large percentage of them die not long afte birth. Anybody who has ever been around a horse can a dwarf from a normal one.
ReplyDeleteAs far as grooming, you should go to some old town parades out west and watch the horses that come through the parade. Fetlocks not been trimmed in years. Mud caked on them, etc, etc.
You do know horses survived a long time without human interaction??