What's happening to our performance horses?

My mind has been running in a different direction the last few days, pondering the discussion on Mugwump Chronicles about the video of Craig Schmersal and then geared up by the current editorial in The Quarter Horse News.

I have not looked at the video of Schmersal, but I'm pretty sure I have a good idea what it looks like. I've never had the money or wherewithall to compete at a high level, but I've been an observant hanger-on for quite some time, with friends that train and show. I've seen bloody sides, sore mouths and all sorts of mechanical devices and methods meant to make a horse be one thing or another. None of that was in the video. Apparently what has peoples' panties in a pucker is a lot of fencing, strong backing and a good bit of bit bumping/yanking-- the almost-fit-for-public-consumption pre-show tune up. I am torn between thinking, "geesh, you think this is bad, you should see what happens in the barn at home" and pondering whether this is all really necessary to make a "performance horse."

The flip side of this is Katie Tims' editorial on pp 14 of the June 01, 2011 edition of the QHN. It's not online yet, that I can find, but she discusses drugs and the performance industry. (edit, it's here, for now). She starts out by painting a picture of a winning broodmare, so crippled in the hind end that she's flushed because she can't bear the weight of a pregnancy. According to the story, she's crippled from all the loping and schooling it took to get her shown. The premise, seems to be, that if this mare had had some chemical mood assistance, she wouldn't have had to be loped down so much and she wouldn't be crippled. I've heard similar arguments from people who are mounting youth kids on high performance horses-- "What's a little ace, when safety is at stake?" Katie's column seems to be "What's a little tranq, when it can save some wear and tear?"

These two issues really put me in a "how the hell did we get HERE" sort of mood. Why are we talking about severe training methods, overworked young horses and a little help from the pharmacy? It's because someone else started doing it, and it won. Those reiners that are terrified to lift their poll above level and bury their head as soon as they stop? That's difficult to train/intimidate into a horse, but someone did it, and it won. Now it's "the look" that everyone is after. The winners do it. If you want to win, you better do it, too. That super hot, squirrelly cutter that they could barely get ridden at home? A few drops in the bloodstream and he can focus on a cow like no tomorrow and he takes the check. Same thing for the open horse that the non pro wants to show-- a little pharmaceutical safety insurance and he's safe for the bankroll to show. And he wins. Why bother trying to breed better minds when you've got all the cow and athleticism in the world and a syringe of chemical coping assistance?

I remember when some of the drug discussions were first starting. One of the big arguments against drugs was that it was a shortcut for trainers that didn't want to put in the work. They were thought of as cheaters because they didn't want to put in the hours and wet saddle blankets to really get their horses broke. Now they're trying to paint themselves as "for the horse" because they're saving wear and tear on the horse by not loping it into the ground. I have even heard that argument in the rail/show/lungeline horse circles-- don't ruin his legs, just give him a little "help." It's cruel to work them too hard when there are pharmaceuticals available.

But all of that begs the question, "Why DO these horses need so much physical work or chemical help?" Have we lost the brains on what should be one of the best minded horses out there? Have our performance standards become so unrealistic that they can't be met without help from a syringe or a Chinese Olympic Hopeful Training Camp type of training program?

I know that there has to be a "best" and that the best is defined as the sort of performance that only the unusually talented can attain, but our best has certainly not gone in the best direction for the horse. But, what really is the best for the horse? Do the horses care if they get a little chemical help or is it just offensive to our human sense of fair play? I don't know. It's something I'm still pondering and probably will be for awhile.