In many threads regarding whether a horse would be good for hunting you all mention that not every horse can be a good hunter. Was it this way in the days when there was more cross training going on and more people hunted their show horses on the off season? Were there still many horses that weren’t good for the hunt field or were people just better horsemen in those times? Or is the idea that everyone hunted their show horses on the off season an inflated exaggeration to encourage others to cross the discipline lines? Are more horses suitable for the hunt field that I am imagining?
My guess would be that the difference between “show horse” and “field horse” and what was desirable for each were less significant than they are now. What’s valued in show hunters is a fairly dead-stick ride (or a horse who LOOKS dead-stick) who gets ideal distances over a set number of fences in a sand ring, stylishly. That’s not all that useful when you’re traveling at speed, changing speeds, jumping natural or man-made obstacles on uneven terrain surrounded by other horses and a pack of hounds. Show hunters didn’t used to be about producing automatons (and in the hunter divisions, radically different from the US version, in the UK, they’re still judged on suitability in the field, not presenting a perfect picture.) It used to be in the hunter shows the object was to find the horse who presented as best suitable as a field hunter, while now it’s to find the horse who most closely meets the ideal ring hunter.
Well, I wasn’t around in the “old days,” but I certainly have talked to many that were. But yes, there were horses then, just like today, that are not suitable for hunting. But then, just like now, MANY horses are suitable for hunting, and would greatly benefit from the cross-training. What I usually find is that their owner is terrified that something bad is going to happen to them, since they paid much more for them then the majority of TBs in the “old days,” hence they never take them out of the ring. But in regards to the point of your questions, there are some differences to take into account.
First, one thing to realize is that most of the hunts of “old days” are different than hunts of today. As in, most hunts had more open territory, which equals more galloping room, more jumping, less checks in woods, etc., etc. So there are horses today that may hunt perfectly if they were in that same type hunt, but just simply can’t handle some of today’s modern hunt styles.
Second, 95%+ of the horses being hunted were TBs, who usually require a slightly better rider than many are today who only ride when hunting on the weekend, or who didn’t grow up riding. Many (most?) of them started at the track, where they learned to be in company, have others coming up behind them, etc., as well as being taught some basic manners from a early age. (even now, as a general rule, I would FAR rather hunt a OTTB than a non-raced TB). That gave them much more experience in already having to deal with the type of group scenario you experience when hunting.
Third, many riders today just don’t get much experience out of the ring, whether that be to a trainer’s control or just lack of space in which to do so. When they do go out hunting, they may be very tense, and if they are on inexperienced horses, they may be directly causing misbehavior through their nervousness.
However, yes, many people hunted their show horses (or rather showed their hunt horses?) during the 1920s-1940s. In the 1950s, less people started doing so as the circuits started to expand, and started keeping them as strictly “show” horses. That trend continued on, and really became the norm in the 1980s to the present day. Part of that was the transition from show hunters being on outside courses with flowing strides and few set distances that were suited to the TB’s forward style of going, to today’s perfect footing, perfect striding, WB-dominated show hunters.
how bad is it ???
after every show there is that bit of kvetching that the trainers do with the show management. what they liked and what they didn’t.
for about 50 years we have held this show outdoors and it has been the same 800 feet or so between the barn and the ring. a nice wide mowed path.
so this trainer goes on about poor nubbin having to be out in the wild with no fences. where he might decide [despite his rider] to go some where other than the ring.
parents are doing a disservice to their children [and their horses if they own them] by allowing such limited training that avoids the great outdoors.
it should come as no surprise that there are fewer mounts with suitable experience.
but indoors and under the trainers total control is where the money is.
[to paraphrase Willie Sutton]
I think most horses can actually hunt if introduced to it correctly. I have seen a lot of potential hunters ruined by just ploppong them in the hunt field and not preparing them for the group, hounds, waiting, running, etc. I’ve seen people insist on taking their eventer out because they can jump big jumps, but then the poor beast looses it - and never forgets.
I had a mare that would suddenly start to dangerously freak out on hound walk, and she was supposedly a seasoned field hunter. When I made a phone call about it, found out that she was always hunted with a “little ace” which the seller had not mentioned. I think that ruined her. I promptly returned that one.
