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Making the Transition
What's more, says Beach. "Standardbreds can make terrific saddle horses. They are already familiar with the feeling of girths around their bellies, verbal cues, and hands on the reins. They only need to learn to deal with weight on their backs and leg signals to make the transition." And they are so eager to please, Beach adds, that that is usually accomplished very quickly.
SRF provides support for owners breaking a standardbred to saddle for the first time. "When we tell people they're not broken to saddle," says Bokman, "they sometimes get nervous. They automatically think that there's going to be a real rodeo. But the reality is I've never heard of a standardbred who objected to being ridden, and I've never seen a single one buck the first time a rider got on. So we explain to people how easy it is, and we also hold clinics periodically that we call "Polish Your Standardbred" to help people and horses with the transition (from the track to a pleasure horse career)."
Marge Piwowarski, a Texas horsewoman who has owned many ex-racehorses, is an unabashed fan of the breed. "I can't say enough in favor of standardbreds. They have the best disposition of any breed I have worked with, and they behave as if they were born to try to please people. They're the fastest-learning, easiest to train horses I have ever encountered."
Although the majority of North American standardbreds are pacers, that does not necessarily mean that trotting under saddle is impossible. "Most people don't realize," says the SRF's Bokman, "that standardbreds are natural trotters and that many pacers put on a lot of their training miles at the trot. Usually, when you turn a pacer loose, he'll trot, so developing a trot under saddle is fairly easy."
Piwowarski suggests using trotting poles or cavalletti to encourage the trotting gait, but she notes, "When they get a little nervous or when the footing is bad, they will sometimes revert to a pace." Having owned both trotters and pacers, she suggests that pacers make "great field hunters and pleasure riding or driving horses." Trotters she seeks out for "dressage, combined training (eventing), and combined driving. They have no problem with extension or collection, and their basic sanity and willing attitude make them easy to train for anything."
Developing a correct canter or lope can actually be more difficult for a retired standardbred than developing an under-saddle trot. "They haven't been allowed to canter (at the track), " notes Piwowarski, "and most of them are reluctant to try it under saddle because their conditioning tells them not to. I like to turn them out with horses who do canter well, in the beginning, and let them amuse themselves galloping around the field. And since they jump so easily, I will often trot down to a small fence or gymnastic and let them canter away. Once they understand they have permission to gallop, they move as well as a thoroughbred."
Bokman remarks that in her experience, trotters often have a more difficult time learning to canter in a balanced frame than do pacers, because trotters "are very strung-out when they come off the track. They need to learn collection, and then the canter improves."
These difficulties are balanced out by some advantages. For example, says Piwowarski, standardbreds, because of their history in harness, "are accustomed to moving laterally to turn a cart, and it's pretty easy to get them doing nice lateral movements under saddle." (Dressage fans, take note.) In addition, "they all seem to jump easily and well. The same powerful rear ends that give them racing speed makes them natural jumpers. It is also ridiculously easy to get them to perform a running walk, and they are as fast and smooth as any Tennessee walking horse, who, after all, got his 'glide ride' from (the standardbred) in the first place!" The standardbred's natural stamina is also making the breed a increasingly popular choice for endurance riding.
Searching for a Standardbred
Shopping for a standardbred may be as easy as going down to your local harness-racing track and making some inquiries with trainers. When a trainer has a horse in the shedrow that has no future as a racehorse (whether because of an injury or because he's simply too slow), he or she may be willing to negotiate a fair price on behalf of the owner. Farriers and track veterinarians, too, will often know of horses who are "not working out" and might have potential for pleasure use. Often it's a matter of being in the right place at the right time--and being willing to take the horse on fairly short notice. If you use this approach, however, it's essential that you are experienced in evaluating past and current soundness problems. A novice can easily get stuck with an unusable horse.
A better method for finding a standardbred is by contacting an adoption agency. These organizations usually have a list of available horses they have "rescued" from the track or the slaughter-house. Some prefer to act as liaison agencies, matching potential owners up with horses right at the track or breeding farm. The horses available may be immediately rideable, or they may require some rest and relaxation before they can take on a second career. (Adoption agencies generally find it next to impossible to place horses that are irretrievably lame, but will sometimes accept horses that are pasture-sound, to be placed only in homes who ask for a companion or baby-sitter horse.)
Sometimes money change hands in the adoption transaction, and sometimes it doesn't. Many agencies accept only donated horses; others will offer the equivalent to what the horse would be worth for meat and ask the adoptee to cover that cost. These agencies invariably operate on a nonprofit basis, and may ask for a donation when you accept a horse, but it is seldom mandatory. What is mandatory at the SRF, however, is that you satisfy the organization's criteria for potential owners.
"We try to ensure that the new owner is a responsible, experienced horseperson," says Bokman. "There's a simple, four-page application form people must fill out, and we ask for references from a veterinarian, a farrier, and a friend with horse experience. We also reserve the right to reclaim any horse who is not receiving proper care. We're looking for lifetime homes for these horses. So as part of a contract the new owner signs, the horse may not be sold, raced, employed for any commercial use, or bred."
Each individual organization has its own programs and policies. To locate the organization nearest you, contact the USTA. The Standardbred Equestrian Program is now acting as a communications link with regional adoption and retirement agencies. Karen Beach sees the USTA's role as that of a central clearinghouse, an avenue for communicating information about the availability of horses on a national level. Call her at (614) 224-2291, or visit the USTA Website at http://www.ustrotting.com, which contains information on the Standardbred Equestrian Program.
Changing Perspectives
Karen Beach sees the idea of second careers for standardbreds gaining ground in the harness racing world. The reaction of racing horsepeople to the Standardbred Equestrian Program "has been very positive. I think most of the (racing trainers and owners) are compassionate people, and they see this as a good thing." Many trainers are now aware of the actions of their local adoption agencies, and will as likely call them as the "meat man" when it appears a horse is not going to work out as a racehorse. And through adoption agencies, many of these horses find a useful second life -- and an alternative to slaughter. So consider the standardbred: A hard-working, eager-to-please, and versatile horse who will reward you every day for your kindness. Although most were born to trot, they have plenty to offer out of harness, too.
About Karen Briggs
Copyright© Karen Briggs.
Published here by permission of the author.
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