Studies show horses display symptoms of pain and stress every few seconds when performing in elite equestrian sport. It simply isn’t possible to harmlessly use horses. The industry is collectively in denial, so intervention must come from without.
MARC BEKOFF: Many who enjoy watching equestrian sports and love horses do not know how the horses are treated behind the scenes. Julie Taylor, author of the book ‘I Can’t Watch Anymore’: The Case for Dropping Equestrian from the Olympic Games’, argues there isn’t much that people can reasonably demand from sport horses without detracting from their wellbeing. Seeing horses living naturally in their family or bachelor bands without interference of humans could help reverse their image as sport animals…
Accidents that marred equestrian events at the 2021 Tokyo Olympic games,… a horse named Jet Set having to be euthanized after the cross-country event, Saint Boy, a pentathalon horse, being whipped and punched by his trainer, and Kilkenny suffering from a bloody nose that was ignored by his rider and the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) jury—provoked global public and media outrage by horse enthusiasts and many others, and some groups called for a ban of equestrian events at the Olympic Games. There also were significant equine welfare concerns about the 2016 Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro…
I often wonder why people who say they love horses allow them to be routinely mistreated, and I learned that many people who enjoy watching equestrian sports and who love horses do not know about what happens behind the scenes of equine sport. When I asked a few people about this and how they dealt with their cognitive dissonance about horse abuse and being entertained by these highly sensitive sentient beings, they told me they didn’t experience any dissonance because they didn’t know about how sport horses were treated off-stage, a view supported by a recent poll.
I’m pleased Julie could answer a few questions about her landmark book that carefully explains who horses are and the compassion they need to live high-quality lives.
MB: Why did you write ‘I Can’t Watch Anymore’?
JT: I wanted to provide the International Olympic Committee (IOC) with the arguments it needed to discontinue equestrian events from the Olympic Games. That has been in the cards for ages but for some reason, it hasn’t happened yet.
There is so much evidence now that horses who perform at an international level experience pain, stress, and injuries because of it. It’s just not sustainable. People assume that because horses take part in the Olympic Games, they are treated well. That is unfortunately not the case, and I wanted the IOC and the rest of the world to know…
MB: What are some of your major messages?
JT: The horse welfare debate within equestrian sport is mainly centered around human interests. How can we keep exploiting horses for sport without being seen by the outside world as animal abusers? That discussion needs turning upside down if we are really being serious about putting horse welfare first.
Begin with the horses. What kind of animal is a horse? A social animal, a grazing animal, a curious animal. What then needs to be in place for a horse to live a meaningful life? A bonded social group, the possibility to roam, graze, and explore together. These criteria are difficult to fulfill in domesticity even before you start thinking about using a horse for sport.
Only once you get there is it relevant to ask yourself what you can then reasonably demand from a horse without detracting from their wellbeing. The answer is: not a lot. That is why international performance horses so often rely on drugs to function. That’s why coercive methods and equipment must be allowed at the Olympic Games. And that is why studies show horses display symptoms of pain and stress every few seconds when performing in elite equestrian sport. It simply isn’t possible to harmlessly use horses the way the equestrian federations are trying to use them today. The industry is collectively in denial, so intervention must come from without. SOURCE…
RELATED VIDEOS: