Do race horses know they are racing? Or do they think they are just running with other horses?

Question

Do race horses know they are racing? Or do they think they are just running with other horses?

Answer 1

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

by Lois Schwartz

A TASTE FOR SPEED

What makes a race horse different? Isn't a horse a horse? Do the visions of race horses dancing and prancing quell your desire to own one? Is it simply that Thoroughbreds are more difficult to handle or is there something you can do to make your race horse more manageable?

In general one has to admit that Thoroughbreds tend to be more temperamental. However, anyone who has been around horses long enough has seen very gentle, sweet tempered Thoroughbreds. How about Quarter Horses, Appaloosas, Arabs and Paints? Do they become more fractious when they race or were they bred that way for racing?

Most horsemen are aware that all breeds have certain bloodlines famous for producing difficult animals. If you are concerned about temperament and behavior, check the bloodlines and avoid those that could be a problem; on the other hand, you want your race horse to be aggressive. You want to see him pushing ahead of the other horses. Can you expect this aggressive behavior to stop at the finish line? You will have to decide where to draw the line on breeding, temperament and speed.

Certainly handling has a direct relationship to behavior. Bad habits learned early on would certainly aggravate your dilemma. Look into the early handling your horse received and inquire about the training methods and personnel in your horse's back ground.

But let's look further. Let's consider what training does to a horse. Have you ever ridden a horse that had been out to pasture for awhile? At first maybe he was testy, perhaps head strong and inclined to hop or buck. Then after 15 or 20 minutes did he settle down and become almost lethargic and lazy? On the other hand have you put the same horse in an intensive training program for competition and wondered why he became more and more difficult to handle as his training level increased?

Usually a horse in training of any kind has improved feed, supplements and is stalled. Can his rapid change in temperament be due to those changes or can it also be the result of making demands on the animal and asking him to perform to the best of his ability.

Personally, I feel that the entire training program, from feed to your own attitude, influences a horse's behavior. Any training makes demands of a horse. The more intense the training, the greater the mental and physical demands. However, when the training also gives your horse a taste of speed, its like opening Pandora's Box. You can forget the days of a quiet gallop in the park of the orange grove. Your horse will want to run. This may be due to actual physical and chemical changes produced by the release of adrenaline or it may be some sort of psychological change. No one seems able to determine the exact reason. The best you can do is be prepared to adapt to the changes your horse undergoes. Common sense and caution should be your guides.

Be prepared for your horse to be especially difficult on race day. Horses that live at the track are aware of subtle changes in their routine on race day. Consider the changes your ship-in faces on race day. Can you expect him to be calm, cool, and collected, especially if you are full of nervous anticipation yourself?

The big advantage ship-ins have is their ability to go home and be turned out. Horses that are permanently stalled and only allowed out on the track or a hot walker for a few minutes every 24 hours will certainly be more fractious than a horse that is allowed to be a horse. Turn out does not mean your horse will become a bomb proof pleasure horse, but it will allow him to blow off a little steam, relax and enjoy himself, which should make life easier for you.

What else can you do? Obviously, tranquilizers are out of the question, although some homeopathic remedies are acceptable on the backside, if you are so inclined. You can also hone your handling skills to lower the stress level of your horse and be sure that your groom will handle the horse quietly and competently. By all means on race day, try not to let your own nervous anticipation spill over to your horse.

Remember, once you give your horse a taste of speed, you have a race horse, not a pleasure horse. But then, don't our race horses bring us a great deal of pleasure?

Answer 2

I don't know what the horses think but I think; they haven't discussed this with me but fromwhat I do know about horses I would say that  due to the crop smacking them and their ears pointed backward to the rider on their back and not to the horses that they are trying to "beat" that they are not trying to win a race, they are trying to run for their survival.

In India and other places around the world, throroughbred racing will have the horses' ears pointed straight to where they are headed. This is the horse's choice of, course. You cannot train attitude into a horse. It is a wonderful sight to behold. If THOSE race horses are what you are asking about I will have a different answer for you. I would love to discuss this further.

Answer 3

trained racehorses know that theyre racing, they pick up the bit when a horse comes to them...some time back (shown in my profile pics) I jogged a harness horse at the old work track in sacramento for Lou Pena, a friend of mine, and while the horse was pacing another horse passed us...the horse instinctively picked up the bit to where I had to wrestle him to get him to slow down...oh yes they know alright...

Answer 4

Not only do they know they are racing, the good ones know when they win! You can school a horse in the starting gate in the morning but the same horse brought to the gate in the afternoon is an entirely different animal. Really on his toes and ready to go. Even a horse stabled in the barn area if located close enough to the grandstand can react in his stall to the roar of the crowd as the horses come down the stretch.

Answer 5

they do know they are running, and also know when there is a champion in the race....

Answer 6

Ok, i would say they know they are racing.

Although i dont have a race horse or am not really into it.

But those horses are bred from racing stock, they are trained all their lives to race and i think they would definately know they are racing.

Yes but now i think, do they actually know they are racing other horses? good question, they might, but they might just try to be the fastest they can for themselves or their own training to please the rider. They would have racing in their blood, they'd know! You could also ask a jockey?