Georgia, Again!

[AnnB (NE)]

The gal that rescued Georgia, met Georgia's original owner/breeder the other day! And that conversation shed some light on Georgia and the attitude she developed.
I knew that she had competed, quite successfully, in harness classes in her younger years. According to her breeder. she also won many awards in dressage!
So her problem wasn't that she was improperly brought over from harness to saddle like I had thought.
It sounds like what happened was a very sensitive dressage horse that was used to working in double reins & crossover noseband, and responded to such a light touch that, according to the breeder, she seemed to respond to her thoughts, ended up in a heavy western saddle, a totally unfamiliar leverage bit, and a single rein handled by a heavy-handed cowboy that made no effort to understand her.
I'd be willing to bet that her original problem was that she got confused, and it became a never ending vicious/abusive cycle.

Putting her into English tack could have as much to do with her change in attitude as anything -- it sounds like her early years when she was competing in dressage were good years for her.

It also seems that Georgia has had more owners than we thought, the person that she was rescued from claimed to have bought her from her breeder, but he isn't the person that her breeder sold her to. And her breeder, while having shown in her harness classes, is not the one that had the horse "sored" (her scars say she has been sored). And she's convinced that the person she sold her too wouldn't have done it either.
So, poor thing, there's no telling how many hands she's passed through and what she's suffered, but she has a 'forever' home now, she's happy, and that's all that really matters.

Ann B

[Kim in VA]

I'm glad that you've been able to give her the peace that she needs, Ann. You are wonderful!

Kim in VA

[Shawn]

Aug 18, 2009 23:51:17 GMT -5 AnnB (NE) said:

And her breeder, while having shown in her harness classes, is not the one that had the horse "sored" (her scars say she has been sored).
Ann B

ok, what does this mean?

[AnnB (NE)]

Aug 21, 2009 21:42:22 GMT -5 Shawn said:

Aug 18, 2009 23:51:17 GMT -5 AnnB (NE) said:

And her breeder, while having shown in her harness classes, is not the one that had the horse "sored" (her scars say she has been sored).
Ann B

ok, what does this mean?

"Soring" is a horrid (illegal) practice.
This is from Wikipedia
Soring is an abusive practice that is associated in part with the production of a "big lick" Walker. It involves using chemical agents such as mustard oil, diesel fuel, kerosene, salicylic acid, and others, on the pasterns, bulbs of heel, or coronary band of the horses, burning or blistering the horse's legs so that it will accentuate its gait. These chemicals are harmful, usually quite toxic and sometimes carcinogenic, and trainers must use a brush and wear gloves when applying them. The area may then be wrapped in plastic while the chemicals are absorbed. The chemical agents cause extreme pain, and usually lead to scarring. A distinctive scarring pattern is a tell-tale signs of soring, and therefore may be covered up by a dye, or the horse's legs may be treated with salicylic acid before the animal is stalled (as many can not stand up after the treatment) while the skin of the scars slough off. Other signs that a horse has been sored include:

The horse stands with its feet close together, shifting his weight to his hind legs
Granulation or scars on the pasterns or coronet
Wavy hair growth or hair loss in the pastern area
Pastern has darker hairs than the rest of the horse's coat
Hocks are carried low and may twist outward when moving
Horse lies down for extended periods of time, and is resistant to standing up
Horse resists handling of feet
Horse has difficulty walking, and may fall
Other methods of soring include pressure shoes, where the hoof is trimmed to the quick so that the sole is in direct contact with the pad or shoe. The horse may then be "road foundered," ridden up and down hard surfaces on the over-trimmed hooves, until they are very sore. Trainers sometimes place objects, such as metal beads, nails, or screws, under the pad causing intense pressure, although this practice has begun to decrease with the advent of fluoroscope to detect such methods. Abusive use of chains (such as using them with chemical soring agents) is also a common practices by sorers.

It's been illegal since 1970, but some people still do it. In fact, at the 2006 Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration, the USDA inspectors disqualified 6 of 10 horses from showing on the night of Friday, August 25, 2006.

Georgia has scars on the backs of her front pasterns that exactly match the links of a chain, and the scarring on the fronts of her front pasterns is consistent with having had chemicals applied.

Ann B

[Shawn]

UNBELIEVABLE.