From Lauren:
Your Weekly “Why Does My OTTB (insert weird quirk here)?” Q&A
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The world did not end (Well-played, Mayans, you got us) and Christmas is TODAY. 2013 is upon us in just seven short day. Oh my, how the times flies! I hope Santa makes is through the mud to my house tonight (and to yours as well!) but until then, I have a few new answers to the scant few questions I received this week. I’ll give you guys a pass since it’s the holiday season but, come January, I expect for those questions to start rolling in! Grab a glass of Eggnog and a Christmas cookie from Santa’s plate and enjoy the second to last OTTB Q&A of 2012.
Sir Albert Earl is my OTTB. He is a winner of $10,060 in 10 races, has never received a Dressage score worse than a 32, and is really just an absolute saint. The one thing he does NOT do, however, is tie. If he senses that he is restrained to something solid, he will pull back and then take off, and RUN…as in FAR away. But if you just drop his rope, at least in the barn, he will stand for ever. What gives? (contributed by an EN reader Rebecca Marjean McIntyre)
I have discussed tying here before but it is worth noting a few things again. ALL racehorses tie. Honestly, every single, solitary racehorse that I have ever dealt with has eventually learned to tie on a single rope to a solid wall in a stall. Obviously, racehorses are not tied in the shed rows of racing barns because of the high traffic volume. But they do learn to tie in their stalls, often for hours at a time to be tacked and bandaged at the very least. What Al may be confused about, however, is the sturdiness of his tether. Most stall ties incorporate some degree of stretchiness. Actual bungee cords can be dangerous because, if they do break, they are prone to snap back with a great amount of force than can often injure equine eyes sometimes even to the point of removal. Stall ties are more commonly made of tire-type rubber, very dense elastic, or some combination of the two. Examples can be seen here:Stall Tie #1 and Stall Tie #2. So my suggestion is this: if trying to convince Al to reliably tie, start with an enclosed area such as standard 12×12 stall and with a stall tie similar to the ones above. Beginning with just a minute or so, give Al a reward when he stands quietly tied and begin increasing the time as it becomes a boring, every-day activity. It may simply be that, when tied to something that does not stretch, he feels just a bit too trapped or restricted. Good luck!
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Do Thoroughbred breeders ever geld and save (by freezing) the newly minted gelding’s “goods”? For instance, if he has outstanding bloodlines but gelding would most likely enhance his performance? If they do store it for later, is there a way to access it if the TB is no longer owned by the original owners who may have done this or a way to know? (contributed by EN reader Heather D)
The Thoroughbred breed registry (The Jockey Club) requires that all foals be conceived via live cover. This policy is in place to preserve the integrity and “blue blooded-ness” of the breed as a whole. Because of this, semen is not routinely frozen. In the HIGHLY UNLIKELY event that artificial insemination (or cloning, for that matter) becomes accredited in the Thoroughbred breed, there are probably a few breeders out there with frozen semen lying in wait. It is really very unheard of, though, for breeders to preserve any genetic material after gelding a horse (in fact, it would need to be collected prior to the actually gelding if we’re going to start splitting hairs).
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What are the whip cues racehorses are taught for racing? I did not get my OTTB, Sparrow, directly from the track but I have noticed a couple of times that, while not thinking or knowingly doing so, I have cued some interesting moves while either just switching my dressage whip from side to side or moving my crop while jumping. I have only ever seen racing on TV and via movies and a couple of times watching the broadcast of the Derby. I notice that they use the whip behind the saddle, but I have also seen them flick the whip by their heads. Hopefully, in asking this, I can save others from accidentally cueing the “Yeehaw, Let’s GO!” button! (contributed by EN reader Heather D)
Whip cues vary widely from rider to rider, stable to stable, and jockey to jockey. There are also an extensive set of regulations in place that dictate when and where and how many time a jockey is permitted to hit a horse during a race and what kind of whipping implement can be used. Of course, I can’t find a link to the actual rulebook (which vary state to state) right now but if you want any additional information on this, contact me privately and I can provide further details. As far as specific cues go, however, “showing” a horse the whip near his or her face is a common tactic of encouragement prior to actually hitting the horse or between flurries of swats. This has become an even more common practice with the new regulations. Unless a racehorse is “blowing the turn”, or bearing inward or outward on the track and in danger of impeding another horse’s progress, racehorses are not routinely hit on their shoulders during races. During training, I often carry a whip at the shoulder to rhythmically tap (literally, just a light flick of the wrist) a lazy horse but it is often not something I have to do for an extended period of time. They usually get with the program pretty quickly. During races, horses are hit behind the saddle in rhythm with their stride and are often his both left and right handed to discourage the horse from drifting one way or another away from the whip. When training, I only hit a horse behind the saddle during a breeze and even then only a lazy horse. As is their reputation, Thoroughbred racehorses do not often need a significant amount of encouragement to go forward. I do find that I must be cautious when switching my whip over on OTTB’s but it is something, that if done with regularity during schooling, will become par for the course in short order. Good luck and hold on tight!
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I do hope that some of my answers to the questions above been enlightening and even a little laughter-inducing. I encourage you (PLEASE! Even if you think they are stupid questions!) to send any further, horse-specific or general-knowledge questions to me via email ([email protected]) for more in-depth and on-point answer. The EN response has been great and I look forward to fielding more thought-provoking questions each week! Go Eventing, go gallop a former racehorse, and have a very Happy Holidays!
