Start Your Horse Young To Make Sure It's Damaged

I'm reproducing, in part, a great article by Robert Miller that is available in full here: http://www.robertmmiller.com/andthcaushol.html
as it's something more people should read.
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The Nation was shocked when Barbaro broke down shortly after leaving the gate at the Preakness. I saw the repaired fractures in TIME magazine. What I think happened is that the sesamoid bone fractured, a common injury. As a result, the fetlock collapses causing the pastern bone to explode into multiple fragments, probably with the next stride or two.

The news media focuses on great champions like these, but what most people don't realize is that such injuries are relatively common occurrences in horse racing.

Part of the cause is that we have bred athletic power into our racing breeds far exceeding what nature requires for the horse to survive in its natural environment. All wild horses need to do is outrun a big cat. We have selectively bred for speeds that the anatomy of the horse cannot always cope with.

In addition, we train and race them long before they are mature. The immature are often capable of spectacular athletic performance. Every time I watch an Olympics and I see gymnasts as young as 13, 14 or 15 years of age, I wince at the thought of the damage I know is occurring to some of their bodies. I started a year of gymnastics at 17 years of age, and I wasn't very good, but I still managed to do damage that manifested itself many years later. Fortunately, I was drafted into the Army at 18, which ended my gymnastic career.

Half a century ago, when I was cowboying, "colts" were started at four years of age or older. Once in a while, one might be started as a three-year-old. Despite some very hard work, barring accidents, those ranch horses were still sound and working into their 20's.

I'm not opposed to racing. It's a great sport and has motivated mankind to produce truly great horse breeds. But I am opposed to any practices which contribute to premature crippling of otherwise healthy horses.

Some years ago, the annual convention of the American Association of Equine Practitioners (A.A.E.P.) was held in Dallas. The same week, the national cutting horse futurities were being held in nearby Fort Worth. Three colleagues from Sweden told me that they wanted to see the cutting horses. So, one evening, after the day of scientific lectures had ended, I accompanied the three Swedish vets to Fort Worth.

After watching several horses perform, the senior Swede, a professor from the vet school in Upsula, Sweden, said, "This is incredible! It must take many years to obtain such performance from a horse."
"But," I answered, "this is a futurity."
"I do not understand this word," he said.
"These are colts," I explained. "These are just three-year-olds."
He looked shocked, turned to his companions and explained to them in Swedish and then said to me in English, "I have only two comments: One, it must take great skill to be able to train a horse to do this in so brief a time. And, two, what is happening to their poor legs?"