Someone’s Always Watching
Environment Canada, the country’s conservation agency, protects the horses of Sable Island. They are no longer worked or auctioned, and by law, people cannot interfere with them. After 250 years of natural selection and little human interference, the Sable Island horses have become a distinct breed of their own. They are no longer Robinson Crusoes—they are successful colonizers who have adapted to an environment that still daunts men.
Singing Their Praises
Test your horse-song savvy—name the artist and the tune in each description.
1.The protagonist rides horseback through a desert observing birds, insects, and a dry riverbed.
2.A Nebraska girl chases her runaway horse through a blizzard.
3.A baby drifts off to sleep dreaming of dapples and bays, with the promise of seeing dancing horses in the morning.
4.The narrator catches a wild horse and rides her along a steep ridge but then plunges over the side of the cliff after a snake spooks the horse.
5.A dreamer refuses to let his spirit be broken and imagines flying with horses in a “race with the wind.”
6.A drifter runs from the wrath of his girlfriend’s father, duels with a gambler, and then returns home to find his girlfriend riding a mare.
7.A cowboy repeatedly chooses his love for horses over his love for Diane and can’t keep his promise to quit the rodeo.
8.A colt born in western Kentucky spends lazy mornings running through green pastures, awaiting his destiny as a champion racehorse.
For answers, turn to page 223.
On Guard!
Whether they live in the wild or on farms, horses in a herd usually take turns acting as guards. Small groups have just one guard horse, but large herds (12 or more) often have two or three on duty at a time. The guards remain standing and alert while the other horses in the herd graze or relax. Each horse stands guard for about 30 minutes. When his “shift” is over, he’ll lie down (or just return to grazing), and another horse will take his place.
More Believe It or Not
On page 67, we started our list of the myth-information (and some truths) floating around about horses. Here are a few more.
Horses communicate mainly through neighs and whinnies.
Myth. This false perception is based on TV and movies in which horses converse using long sets of squeals and whinnies. In reality, horses are relatively quiet. Although they do sometimes “talk,” body language (using their ears, nostrils, and eyes) is their main mode of communication. Should a horse flare his nostrils and lay his ears back, for example, you know to stand clear.
Some horses can go for days without food or water.
Fact. Throughout history, tribesmen and conquerors, including Alexander the Great, valued Akhal-Teke horses for their stamina and speed. Originally bred in the harsh desert of modern-day Turkmenistan, Akhal-Teke horses can withstand extreme temperatures and subsist for days on little food or water. When supplies are scarce, they survive on pellets of alfalfa and barley mixed with mutton fat. Remarkably, 28 Akhal-Teke horses traveled 215 miles across Asia’s Kara-Kum desert in 1935 without drinking any water. Today, the Turkmen are so proud of this horse that it is the centerpiece of Turkmenistan’s state emblem.
Horses are as smart as human toddlers.
Fact . . . if we’re talking math skills. British researchers have discovered that horses can count and have roughly the same mathematical skills as 10-month-old children do. In the study, horses kept track of the number of plastic apples placed into buckets and tended to choose the buckets that contained more apples. “The study absolutely proves that horses are more intelligent than people think,” says lead researcher Claudia Uller.
Horses can’t ride in cars or paint.
Myth. A remarkably humanlike pony named Patches is featured in a YouTube video with his two human roommates, brothers Robert and Herbert Thompson. As the video reveals, the white pony rides in cars, sits on the couch, fetches beer from the fridge, picks up the phone, and tucks himself into the queen-sized bed where he sleeps. When fun time comes, Patches loves to watch TV (his favorite genre is the Western . . . of course), eat cheeseburgers, and drink apple juice.
There’s also an artistic mustang/quarter horse named Cholla who paints masterpieces holding brushes in his teeth. Like Vincent van Gogh, Cholla realized his drawing and painting abilities relatively late in life (at 19 years old). Four years later, his splashy watercolors have been displayed in more art galleries and exhibits than many human artists hope for. His owner, Renee Chambers, donates some originals to animal fund-raisers and sells others for thousands of dollars.
Grab a Spot on the Carousel
In the 1100s, carousels were training tools for Turkish and Arabian cavalries. The Spanish who first observed the maneuvers named the practice carosella, which means “little war.” The early carosellas involved riders in baskets suspended from poles, fighting mock battles, and a game in which mounted soldiers speared rings attached to trees.
Carousels came to Europe soon after and continued to be used as training devices until the 1800s, when craftsmen reimagined them as a way to entertain. The carousel as we know it today—with carved horses on a rotating platform—took shape in Europe in the mid-19th century. In 1860, German carousel-maker Michael Dentzel sent his son Gustav to Philadelphia to test out the ride on Americans. They loved it, and the Dentzels set up a carousel-manufacturing plant in nearby Germantown. Today, Dentzel carousels are prized works of art, and many are still functioning; one of the most famous is at the San Francisco Zoo.
For the Record
From the stable to the track, horses have posted some amazing records.
Biggest and Heaviest Horse: Samson
Born in England in 1846, Samson was a shire gelding. Shires are known for being the tallest horse breed; on average, they grow to be about 17 hands. Samson stood an incredible 21.25 hands tall and weighed 3,360 pounds.
Smallest: Thumbelina
Guinness World Records made this record official in 2006 when it recognized the 17½-inch-tall miniature horse, Thumbelina. Five years old at the time, “Thumby” was so small that she spent more time with her owners’ dogs than with their other horses. In fact, she still usually sleeps with the dogs in the barn.
Oldest: Old Billy
Born in England in 1760, Old Billy lived for 62 years.
Richest: Cigar
Since he started racing in 1993, Cigar has earned nearly $10 million, taking home $4 million at the 1997 Dubai World Cup alone. He’s the great-grandson of Northern Dancer (the first Canadian horse to win the Kentucky Derby) and the grandson of Seattle Slew (who won the Triple Crown in 1977). Cigar was born in 1990 in Maryland and won 16 straight races in 1995 and 1996, the first American horse to do so since 1950.
Fastest Racehorse: Big Racked and Onion Roll
A tie for the title. Both horses posted a speed of 43.26 mph on a quarter-mile track. (Big Racked in 1945 and Onion Roll in 1993.)
Longest Jump: Something
In South Africa in 1975, Something (and his trainer, Andre Ferreira) jumped 27 feet, 6¾ inches over water.
Highest Jump: Faithful
A onetime Chilean racehorse, Faithful retired in 1944 and started training at the country’s cavalry school. He showed a lot of potential as a jumper and often went up against another horse at the school, Chileno. The two traded wins until 1948, when Faithful posted a jump of 7¾ feet and broke the South American record (which Chileno held until then). The time had come for a jump-off.
In February 1949, Faithful (now called Huaso, “cowboy” in Chilean) and Chileno were all set to duke it out. Chileno went first . . . barreling toward the 8-foot jump. But he crashed into it and never left the ground. Huaso went next. It took him three tries: first, he stopped short of the jump; second, he touched the fence; third, he sailed right over it.
Here Comes the Cavalry
In the Middle Ages, cavalries were the preferred method of fighting in Europe. But
long before gallant knights climbed onto their trusty steeds, the ancient Greeks hitched horses to chariots and drove them in battle.
One of the earliest literary mentions of using horses for military service comes from Homer’s Iliad, written around 800 BC. Homer includes several stories of warriors driving two-horse chariots to the battlefield and then dismounting to fight with swords and spears. Why not just fight on horseback? Greek horses at the time were too small to ride. That didn’t come until about 400 BC, when the Greeks had bred horses large enough to support a man’s weight. They took those animals to war and managed to defeat a group of Persian invaders.
Horses Are Therapists, Too
Imagine a loving, nonjudgmental therapist who helps those suffering from cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, or autism. Throw in an ability to ease the awkwardness of troubled youngsters, and that therapist might easily be called a miracle worker—or a horse.
History, Horses, and Healing
The combination of horses and healing was first noted more than two millennia ago in ancient Greece. The Greeks believed that horseback riding could help put into balance the “four humors” (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile) of people suffering from illness. Injured soldiers also rode horses to improve their health. In the 17th century, the “riding cure” surfaced again when English doctors prescribed it for gout. But it was Cassaign, an 18th-century French doctor, who first wrote that horseback riding could improve neurological disorders because it helped with posture, balance, joint movement, and psychological well-being . . . a finding that modern therapists confirm.
Horse therapy gained international attention in 1952 when Denmark’s Lis Hartel won an Olympic silver medal for dressage. Her win stunned the world because eight years earlier, Hartel had been stricken with polio. Her arm, leg, and thigh muscles had been affected, but Hartel, already an accomplished equestrian, was determined to ride again. With the help of supervised riding sessions, she improved her muscle strength and coordination. And even though by 1952 she still needed crutches to walk, she became a world-class riding competitor—and the first woman to win an Olympic equestrian medal. Hartel always insisted that riding improved her health, and doctors took note. Soon after her victories, therapeutic riding programs sprang up in Europe, North America, and Australia.
Healthy with a Horse
Today, there are hundreds of therapeutic and social programs involving horses. They generally cost about $100 for one session, which usually lasts for 30 minutes to an hour, and they offer benefits to people with all types of disabilities. A physically disabled person can improve balance, strength, and agility. A mentally disabled rider experiences improved sensory processing, focus, and concentration. A socially troubled rider develops a sense of responsibility and self-confidence. And for all three groups, the therapies are also a lot of fun.
There are three primary types of riding therapy:
•Therapeutic riding is supervised recreational riding for people with disabilities.
•Hippotherapy (hippo is Greek for horse) is more structured. It involves a trained professional who assists the patient on horseback—the motions and experience of riding are used as a therapy.
•A third program is equine psychotherapy for behavioral, social, and emotional growth. In this program, communicating and caring for the animal are key parts of the therapy.
Gaining Skills and Confidence
Some centers specialize in one particular type of program, while others integrate aspects of all three. A typical therapeutic riding lesson for a child with autism or Down syndrome might last an hour, with lessons in grooming and tack, mounting, dismounting, and riding. The first sessions might consist of gentle lessons like patting the horse or holding the reins, but as the children become more comfortable and learn more about the animal, they will develop independent equestrian skills. Eventually, the riders may even enter special horse shows and competitions, which also boost confidence and self-esteem.
Hippotherapy is often used specifically for children with physical problems like cerebral palsy. These sessions usually last about 30 minutes, while the therapist controls the horse’s movement and the patient sits on a riding pad rather than a saddle to better feel what the horse is doing. The horse’s body warmth combined with the rhythm of his movement promotes relaxation and reduces muscle tension. This allows the child to adjust his posture to the movement of the horse and remain upright. Some children with physical disabilities have even learned to walk during hippotherapy sessions.
During an equine psychotherapy program, each participant is assigned a horse. The children learn riding skills and the challenges of caring for a 1,000-pound animal. The program teaches the value of patience, focus, and commitment. A study showed that one group of teenagers who participated in equine psychotherapy programs became less aggressive, angry, and suicidal.
From the Horse’s Point of View
Not just any horse can be a therapist. Hippotherapy, for example, requires horses who can vary their strides as needed. Therapeutic riding horses also need to be flexible, move forward freely, and respond well to voice commands. In general, horses used for therapy can be of nearly any type or breed, but they must have good manners and a gentle disposition. (Stallions rarely make the cut.)
And how does the job affect the animals? In a study of 28 horses (who comprised 15 different breeds), veterinarians used behavior studies and cortisol levels to measure stress in horses working in equine-assisted therapy. Eighty-two percent of the horses had lower cortisol levels (meaning they were less stressed) after working in therapy programs than average working horses. Even for these “miracle therapists,” there seems to be a benefit to the work.
Watch out! Horses can kick backward, forward, and sideways (called “cow-kicking”).
Equine Intelligence
Horse lovers know that equines are among the smartest animals around.
“Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people.”
—W. C. Fields
“There will never be a time when the old horse is not superior to any auto ever made.”
—Will Rogers
“He knows when you’re happy, he knows when you’re comfortable, he knows when you’re confident, and he always knows when you have carrots.”
—Anonymous
“When I hear somebody talking about a horse being stupid, I figure it’s a sure sign that it has outfoxed them.”
—Tom Dorance, trainer
“They say princes learn no art truly but the art of horsemanship. The reason is, the brave beast is no flatterer. He will throw a prince as soon as his groom.”
—Ben Jonson, Renaissance playwright
Off to the Races: Citation and Ruffian
Get ready to ride two more horses who made racing history.
Citation: The Equine Millionaire
Citation was never meant to be an ordinary horse. In 1941, Warren Wright—the Calumet Baking Powder heir who owned Calumet Farms in Lexington, Kentucky—wanted to breed a great Thoroughbred racer. So he bought Hydroplane II, the daughter of English champions, to mate with his stud horse, Bull Lea. Moving Hydroplane from England to the United States was tricky because Nazi U-boats were sinking ships in the Atlantic. But Wright wasn’t dissuaded: he brought her via the Pacific to San Francisco, and from there, she traveled across the country to Kentucky. On April 11, 1945, Hydroplane produced a bay foal named Citation.
In 1947, two-year-old Citation ran his first race—and won by half a length. At his second race, he broke the Arlington Park record for five furlongs (five-eighths of a mile). That year, Citation raced nine times and racked up eight victories. (His only loss came to Bewitched, his stable-mate. Their trainer had said that whoever led going into the stretch should win, and Bewitched was there.)
But 1948 turned out to be Citation’s big year. In his first and second races as a three-year-old, he easily beat Armed, 1947’s Horse of the Year. In all, he won 19 of 20 races that ye
ar—the single loss (second place) was with a new jockey, Eddie Arcardo (after Citation’s original jockey, Al Snider, died in an accident). The horse easily swept the 1948 Triple Crown, becoming the first to win all three major races in 25 years, and he was voted 1948’s Horse of the Year.
Osteoarthritis kept Citation off the track until January 1950, but when he came back, it was with a major win. He took top place at Santa Anita—his 16th win in a row, a record for North American stakes horses that lasted 46 years. Citation also won the Golden Gate Mile, setting a world record of 1:33.6, which stood until 1966. But the now-five-year-old struggled with injuries and lost seven close races that season. Still, he remained in competition because Wright’s dying wish was that Citation be the first horse to win $1 million in race purses. In 1951, after losing his first four races, Citation took to the track three more times, winning the Century Handicap, American Handicap, and Hollywood Gold Cup and fulfilling Wright’s wish. Citation also earned a well-deserved retirement, entry into the racing hall of fame, and a third-place ranking in Blood-Horse magazine’s top 100 horses of the 20th century (behind Man o’ War and Secretariat).
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