Monthly Archives: June 2008

Breeding a More Durable TB

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, horse health, horse racing, Racehorse Rescue, racing, Thoroughbred Racing and tagged with , , ,

The breakdown of Eight Belles in the Kentucky Derby this year and Barbaro in the Preakness last year started a lot of discussion about whether modern thoroughbreds are now bred for speed at an early age rather than durability.

The bloodhorse published a Stallion Durability List that ranks stallions by  the number of foals, the number of starters, the percentage of starters (which is how they are ranked) and then the average number of starts per offspring.  All the stallions listed have at least 100 foals on the ground.

The list has a special section on stallions whose progeny average more than 20 starts — certainly, those are sires that may pass along the durability gene to their offspring, making them good candidates for long and productive careers. Two points jump out to me when looking at the list: 1) the stallions whose foals have the highest average number of starts are not necessarily the ones with higher stud fees and Mr. Prospector2) Mr. Prospector (shown to the right) is frequently listed in the breeding lines.

The stallion that tops the list is Demidoff ($3,000 stud fee) who descends from Mr. Prospector and Secretariat. Eight-two percent of his progeny make it to the track and they average 27.9 starts.

Interestingly, the stallions with the highest stud fees have foals with a very low average number of starts:

Giant’s Causeway ($300,000) progeny average 7.4 starts;

Unbridled\'s Song                  

The progeny of Unbridled’s Song ($200,000), shown above, (which includes Eight Belles) average 11.1 starts;

Awesome Again ($150,000) progeny average 11.6 starts; and

Elusive Quality ($100,000) progeny average 11.7 starts.

Certainly, breeding is something to consider when evaluating thoroughbreds for post-racing careers, but it does make you wonder why the most expensive breeding stallions have progeny that race for such short careers.

Long Riders Guild Gives Two-Gun Nan a Thumbs Up

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, equestrian, equine, Equine Safety, horses, humor and tagged with , , , ,

Move over Hidalgo. After five years of research, conducted by Mary Higginbotham, the Long Riders’ Guild (LRG) has confirmed that in 1910-1911 Nan Aspinwall-Gable was the first woman to ride across North America (from San Francisco to New York) alone. At the age of 31 she rode 4,496 miles in 180 days, instantly becoming the stuff of legends.

Two-gun Nan

The LRG is a cool organization that celebrates equestrians that have ridden at least 1,000 continuous miles. Their web site is a treasure trove of equestrian adventures, profiling both men and women who have undertaken amazing rides across unforgiving and often hostile territory.

Nan Aspinwall-Gable was a celebrity even before completing her historic ride. She was one of the original showgirl cowgirls. She was a trick roper, sharp shooter, stunt rider, bronc and steer rider . . .  and a stunning woman who presented her feminine charms to her audiences as the lovely Princess Omene. She was the highest paid performer in the combined extravaganza that resulted from the combination of Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West  and Shawnee Bill’s Far East shows.Princess Omene

In fact, it was a discussion between these two men that spurred her to make the ride. They didn’t believe that it was possible for a woman to make that kind of ride alone. It was dangerous, it was difficult and a woman alone would have faced a lot of hostility from a population that still thought women should be constrained by Victorian ideals.

But not Nan. Nan rode her thoroughbred mare, Lady Ellen, on her trek and was completely responsible for her care; she even shod the mare 14 times herself. She made the ride wearing pants and split skirts, riding astride, which was likely still illegal in some parts of the country. And she packed a pistol that she was not afraid to use.

Contemporary news report of her arrival in New York state:

“A travel-stained woman attired in a red shirt and divided skirt and seated on a bay horse drew a crowd to City Hall yesterday afternoon,” reported the New York Times on 9 July 1911.

“They gazed upon Miss Nan Aspinwall who had just finished her lonely horseback ride from San Francisco. She had many adventures and once spent a week in hospital after her horse stumbled down a mountainside. ‘Talk about Western chivalry!’ said Miss Aspinwall. ‘There’s no such thing. In one place I rode through town shooting off my revolver just for deviltry. At another place I had to send several bullets into a door before they would come out and take care of me’.”

Equally skilled with a gun or a horse, the Los Angeles Tribune reported that while in New York upon completing her journey in 1911, Two-Gun Nan, “entered a 12-storey building and startled her friends by remaining in the saddle and ascending to the top floor,” (via the freight elevator).  

The Long Riders’ Guild is proud to announce the forthcoming publication of the story of Two-Gun Nan entitled “In Genuine Cowgirl Fashion.” This book contains all of Mary Higginbotham’s unique research and will be amply illustrated with never-before-seen photographs of Nan in the saddle and on the stage. For more information about this book, please email The Guild. And don’t forget to check out some of the adventures logged by other Long Riders.

Good Dressage Comes in a Small Package

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, dressage, equestrian, equine, horses and tagged with , ,

Lancelot head shot This mini-Appaloosa is more than just cute (and certainly, he is adorable!). Lancelot is also trained to work high-school dressage movements in hand and is working toward performing airs above the ground.

Lancelot was originally purchased to be a companion mini, but it turns out he has too much talent to waste it sitting in a field.

This video of him performing is wonderful! To access the video, you need to scroll down this Web page, I can’t embed it directly.

 

Lancelot in hand

 

How Not to Sell your Horse!

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, equine, horses and tagged with ,

We’ve all seen some pretty scary — or ridiculous — sales ads for horses.

This article provides an excellent round up of what not to do!

How Not to Sell your Horse

One example that we’ve all seen way too many times:

  • It is absolutely necessary to illustrate that your 3-yo grade stud horse is safe by including photos of a small, unhelmeted child clinging to its unsaddled back while loose in the pasture. Extra points if there are loose horses and other potential hazards in the background. Only someone unconfident of their horse’s perfect disposition would cringe at the thought of this.

Enjoy!

Elmer Bandit Still Competitive at 37

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, equestrian, equine, equine nutrition, horses, trail riding and tagged with , ,

Elmer Bandit, a 37 year old Arabian cross gelding, obviously doesn’t know that he’s past retirement age.He’s closing in on competitive trail riding history having logged 20,360 competitive miles, only 230 miles behind the current American record holder Wing Tempo. He’s already successfully completed his first two competitive trail rides in 2008 and has several more on his docket.

Elmer and his owner/breeder Mary Anna Wood started competitive trail riding in 1976 and still complete between 10 and 16 rides each season, typically covering about 60 miles in a weekend.

Elmer’s achievements in the sport are impressive:

  • 26 National Championship awards in Competive Trail Riding – Open Lightweight Class (1980-2007)
  • First in 26 National Championships in North America Trail Ride Conference (1977)
  • First in 4 Novice Rides (1976)
  • Grand Champion – Open horse with highest percentage score (1980)
  • First horse inducted into NATRC Horse Hall of Fame (1986)
  • High Point NATRC – Half arabian award given by Arabian Horses Assoc. (2002, 2003, 2004, 2006)
  • Saddle and pack horse for dude trail rides, pack trips and horse wrangling at Girl Scout, National Center West, Len Sleep, Wyoming (1976-1989)
  • First place in the NATRC Region 6 (2006)
  • Completed 20,000 miles in competition (2007)

Elmer stands 15.1 hands and weighs about 1,000 pounds. He was bred by his lifetime owner Mary Anna Wood and it is his excellent conformation, great attitude and superb care that has kept him in top shape.

Elmer is out of Wood’s Appendix Quarter horse mare (who has a touch of Percheron in her) and an Arabian stallion. Elmer inherited his sire’s color and endurance. From his dam, he got his good sized feet, plenty of bone and, according to his owner, an “optimistic view of the world.”

Elmer began his trail riding at a Girl Scout camp in Ten Sleep, Wyoming, where Mary Anna and Elmer led out six-day pack trips, during which they wrangled herds of horses.

Out on the trails, it became clear that Elmer has a phenomenal trot. He can trot for long periods; at times going as fast as 12 mph and sustain a pace of 6 to 8 mph. This has served him well in competitive rides: “When you think Elmer is maxed, Mary Anna gives him a little nudge, and he goes into ‘turbo and leaves you in the dust,” said Lucy Hirsh, DVM, a veterinarian and good friend of Wood’s, who has competed with her. “He has one of the fastest trots of any horse I’ve known.”

After so many years of competitive trail riding, Elmer is an old hand. He pickets anywhere, on the foot or on a line, and rolls and pees on command. Elmer has perfected selective grazing at the trot, Wood reports. He divides plants into three categories- edible (raspberry and mulberry), inedible (sassafras) and “will-do-in-a-pinch” (dogwood).

Elmer even mentors younger horses. “Several horse owners call him ‘Uncle Elmer’ because he’s good at leading an inexperienced horse into a trailer or baby-sitting a new horse down the trail,” said Wood.

Elmer is also known for having strong opinions. For example, Elmer doesn’t like to get his feet wet, so he is becoming an expert at keeping dry during creek crossings.

Elmer lives out on pasture 24/7 with about a dozen other horses. However, because his teeth are almost completely worn down, Wood has to make sure that he has adequate nutrition. He gets two meals a day, consisting of soaked beet pulp and a senior feed, plus up to two pounds of alfalfa cubes in water. Since Elmer eats slowly — it can take him up to three hours to finish a meal – Wood often naps while she’s waiting for him to clean up.

In contrast to the host of supplements fed to many aging horses, Elmer receives only a daily dewormer and Restore, a probiotic that helps keep the bacteria healthy in his hind gut. Other than a bit of arthritis in his hips, his health is excellent. His only serious health problem occurred in 1998 when a gray spot appeared in his right eye and an ulceration developed. Wood and Elmer’s vets believe his vision is hampered, but think he can likely still see light and shadow. Certainly, it hasn’t slowed him down.

When will Elmer retire? Wood believes that Elmer still loves his work and is happy to get out and see the country. She believes that he will tell her when he’s ready to stop.

Eyes on the Ground

Posted by Liz Goldsmith in Commentary, dressage, equestrian, equine, horses, riding lessons and tagged with , , ,

How appropriate that right after my last post (on choosing a clinician), I took a lesson. I hadn’t taken a lesson for months and I knew I had slipped into some bad habits. My husband can’t understand why I still need instruction; “after all,” he says, “don’t you know how to ride yet?”

In theory, of course, I do. I also pretty much know what I do wrong. I could easily print up some index cards with “Shorten your reins!” or “Don’t lean forward!” and just tape them in between my horses’ ears. It’s the subtle things that get away from me. It’s a co-dependency issue with my horses. They want me to loosen my reins, or ride slightly over to the left and over time it starts to feel natural.

It was a real shock to ride in a ring with mirrors and look at how I was letting my horse bulge through his right shoulder; not to mention he was evading leg yields to the right and not crossing over his back legs. I needed someone to remind me to stay quieter with my aids, to help me visualize my horse’s inside leg staying behind my shoulder, or giving me techniques on how to get my horse “unstuck” when he starts to suck back.

Time to type out a few more index cards, I think. Those eyes on the ground gave me new insights into what I need to fix tomorrow.