Is Dressage Cruel?

Question

Would you say dressage is cruel? And do you think horses enjoy it? Same with any horse sport.

And what do you say to rodeo? It is terrible!

Answer 1

This question is like any question asking if any sport involving animals is cruel, I don't think it is fair to compare horse racing to say dog fighting or bull fighting.  I think it is the people involved in the sport that make it cruel or not.  There are bad trainers, riders and grooms in dressage, all sporting events have bad apples, but then, I worked for a VERY short time on the Arabian halter circuit, most wouldn't call that cruel...but I knew a trainer that would put staples in his horses' ears, eyelids and nostrils and kept a large magnet in his glove, really made the horses perk up when he waved his hand in front of their face, thankfully he was caught......I've never known a dressage rider that was as evil as I considered that one trainer and I never condemn a sport because I don't like what one person involved in it does.  That IS NOT fair to the sport.  While we're on the subject what about walking horse trainers that use noxious, skin irritating chemicals on their horses' legs to make their gaits more exaggerated?  That is much more prevalent, or how about the riders who see saw on their horses' mouths to get them to collect, as one rider told another rider to do on this forum, bad riders and bad trainers happen, this does not mean they are all bad.

Answer 2

horses generally love their sport as much as their riders otherwise they would just be lazy sods and refuse to work.  if you have worked and ridden with horses and witnessed cruelty only then can you judge.  but no, the majority of horses love it and i dont view any sport with horses to be cruel if the owners undertake it with care.

Answer 3

no i think that horses like to be with an owner that loves them and a lot of horses really enjoy sports like those

Answer 4

In so far as rollkur in dressage is concerned, the forced submission training technique of severe over-bending the neck which is held for long periods of time through the walk, trot, and canter, I doubt that there is a true natural horseman anywhere who would not agree that that practice is cruel and who would not say that the International Federation for Equestrian Sports has sunk to the lowest of lows in proclaiming that rollkur is humane and beneficial.

Answer 5

Well anything is cruel if someone has NO KNOWLEDGE

Dressage ,can be because their are so many different Opinions on how to ride

Some think being Submissive is to ""make the horse do things by force ! Wrong

The word can be taken in so wrong



I want to have my horse to be submissive by listening to me and understanding and doing what I am ASKING HIM TO DO !!!

Any thing is cruel running a horse that is sore ,

Riding wrong , Wrong bits E.T.C.



Rodeo ?? May be in some sports Yes ,, But to watch a well trained roping and a bull dogging horse. No !

That horse has to be his buddy and if not he will not perform for VERY LONG for him ,

and for the bulls They learn ,, and some love what they are doing

They do strap a rope on his FLANKS Not"" his pee pee

Just like horses It's on his flanks

I would rather them stop the bareback and bronc riding

Bull really love it when they Buck a cowboy off

I bet they would buck anyway if no strap was on them ,,

The most cruelest sport I have seen , is barrel racers

sorry But thats my opinion!!You did ask, so I said !



Any way any way you look at it,

If done right and nice and honest No !



But done wrong and with heavy bits gaga bits etc or haveing to use so much equipment YES

THAT just shows how much they do not know

TIE DOWNS IS A CRUEL THING TO USE



Hope this helps

Plus if you really get into every horse event and learn them You will see whats abuse and whats cruel and what right ?

How about Movie horse's

Answer 6

The first Kat is correct- dressage is NOT CRUEL, when it is done correctly and in the true classical manner, which is how I and most of the people I know in the sport learned to do it. In CLASSICAL dressage, the welfare of the horse is stressed FIRST, above all things. The whips which are used are used as a signalling device, NOT AS A PUNISHMENT, and in places like the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, ONE MUST EARN THE RIGHT to use such devices- it is a PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT, and if it is abused, it can and WILL be taken away from the abuser.  As for rodeo, I agree with the belief that it is barbaric and cruel, not only to horses, but to ALL the animals involved in it. Very few calves I know of enjoy getting their necks and backs broken- but this happens all too often at many rodeos. Rodeo is not sport- it's exploitation of animals for human entertainment. The same can be said of racing, at least to degree, though I believe that this sport can and should be made more humane and safe for everyone.

The second " Kat" however, obviously is ignorant about the true cause of Barbaro's death, as well as completely oblivious to the REAL REASON Barbaro's owners, the Jacksons, tried to save the colt's life. Roy and Gretchen Jackson aren't in racing for the money- and they were not in it for the money when Barbaro won the Derby for them. These people are independently wealthy- money is no object to them.  They were in the sport BECAUSE THEY LOVED THEIR HORSE- he was like a CHILD TO THEM. They could have cared LESS about Barbaro's potential as a sire- Gretchen Jackson came out more than once and stated very publically that they never even had the colt tested to see if he was fertile or not. No, they just LOVED their horse- and THAT WAS WHY they tried so hard to save his life. They were not the only ones who had their hearts broken when the colt died of laminitis- the vet who had treated Barbaro also got hurt. Why else would he have appeared on national TV IN TEARS ( yes, that's right, he was CRYING openly in front of the camera, just like we all saw Larry Jones, Eight Belles' trainer, do earlier this spring when his filly died) on the morning of Barbaro's death?? Do you REALLY THINK HE was in this for the MONEY, "Kat"?? Or why, might I ask, did this same vet, who is a HERO in the eyes of a lot of people, come out of the stall after putting Barbaro down, give his owner a hug, and say "I failed you" to her?? Does that sound like the behavior of someone who is only in this for the money, and who was only motivated by the colt's potential as a stud?? I HARDLY think so. It sounds to me like the behavior of someone who is in pain and grieving a tremendous loss, not someone who is greedy and could care less about anything other than the almighty dollar.  Clearly, there was more to this than money, "Kat"- and if you were paying attention, you'd realize that.

Barbaro died of a DISEASE, not because of his injuries- those had actually healed by the time he was put down. Laminitis, also called founder by those of us in the horse world, is a disease which has no cure and very few effective treatments. Many of the causes of it are not well understood, and science has yet to provide an answer about why some horses are more vulnerable to it than others. In any given year, on average, somewhere between 100,000 and 300,000 horses DIE from laminitis or its complications in the US alone- and many thousands more in Europe, Asia, and various other places across the globe. The incidence of the disease is on the rise, and the horses who develop it come from all walks of life. Most of these animals go unnoticed unless they happen to be famous, the way this colt was. One of the greatest blessings to come out of this tragedy, in fact, is that public awareness of the disease and its devastating effects has never been greater, and MILLIONS of dollars have now been raised for medical research into causes and treatments.  For my own part, while I am saddened by Barbaro's death, I look at this as a mixed blessing. We need answers as to why founder happens- and he has helped us to get to the point where perhaps we can actually find some of them. His owners are not cruel people- they did all they could for him, and in fact, they and the vet went further than anyone ever thought was possible. It's just that they were fighting a battle they couldn't possibly win, against an opponent which was bigger and stronger than everyone involved, and the colt himself. Laminitis is NO ONE'S FAULT- and it does not recognize wealth or power. Backyard ponies are just as likely to come down with it as famous racehorses.

These are just my own thoughts, of course.

Answer 7

No, I don't.  A horse should, in my honest opinion, be schooled through at least 2nd level before starting a career in any other discipline.  Dressage is, in the very simplest of terms, training to be in harmony with the horse.  Suppleness, collection, ryhthm, impulsion...all of the components of dressage are intended to create a harmonious and strong working relationship with the horse.  Only when you've achieved that can you and your horse, as a team, move onto another discipline.  I'm sure there are dressage riders out there with bad training methods but you'll have that in any discipline.  Dressage is not about being cruel, quite the contrary, it's about working with the horse.

Answer 8

Well in my country I have seen many bad trainers, They have the horse work hard and force them to do things thats all most impossiable  to do, they are heavy mouhted ,dont enjoy their work I have seen spur marks that turn to white hair on the sides..

same in the jumping ,, some do many things like tack poles electric shocks'

I enjoy racing we have it too Most are good trainers and horse enjoy it .

I have wacthed american barrel racing and think thats a bit cruel whipping and spurding horses do not want to go inside the arenas ,,

Rodeo is fun

I think the bull has fun bucking off the cowboys we get a big laufhing from it ..

the strap is on his senitive parts but not a tendon thats on leggs ,,

Americans can also be cruel in dressage I have seen some work and shows they are stiff and really hard to ride from being forced,

But not all I sell horses to only top trainers that we know wil not do those things to them

excue me my spelling

Thank You

Answer 9

nooooooooo dressage is what makes the horse jump good and relax and focus you have to be able to do dressage if you want to do anything else but i think horse racing is CRUEL!

Answer 10

Dressage - No way. And you say "OH but they use dressage whips!!" They merely tap there horses with it, and no way do they actually whip the horse.

Rodeo- Actually, most horses that have "cow sense" Enjoy it. I have seen QH's out in a field of cattle that chase them around.

Racing - It is NOT the best sport, and it does put the horse thorugh some greuling excercises. It is not htat great. The only pro of racing is for the horses that ENJOY running and racing.

Answer 11

No barrel racing is a fun sport for horses so is dressage.But when jockeys whip horses it makes me sick.

Answer 12

all sports can be cruel. It depends on how the owner/rider is training the horse. If they teach them rodeo with mainly whip and spur, yes it obviously will be cruel. But, if the owner uses a connection and almost makes the horse want to do it, there is nothing wrong. Some events are cruel in a rodeo. When I watching the BUcking Bronco at the local rodeo, I was in tears. That event is CRUEL! They tighten a leather strap around the horses most tender part of the body. The tendon I think. And the horse bucks to try and release it because it is so painfull. But, other events like barrel racing can be okay if the rider is caring and knows her horses limits. I hoped my opion helped.

I dont really think dressage is cruel because it develops a strong bond between the two and they only use a light crop to tap them.

I think racing CAN be abusive. It all depends on the jockey/owners style. SOmetimes if the horse is starting to get older (like 3) and the owner keeps pushing it, itll have a higher chance of an injry. ALso, if they start it too young, all of the bones may not of been fully developed.

All of theses depend on the rider.