IMO the US must disavow him as well.
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Well I think a bit different…. I agree that he needs to be punished and controlled from now on…. But IMO he is not the only one training horses like this. I was in a big dressage barn at the beginning of the 80s and you could have taken the same video there 
. So nobody can tell me that he is the only one … it’s a big industry with a lot of money involved….
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Unfortunately true. And its not limited to the dressage world.
It would help if owners didnt support it. I have seen people excuse things like this my whole life in pursuit of glory. If the owners of the horses in training with the people who work this way pulled their horses they would go broke. If the grooms would quit, if the vets would quit, if the clients left, it would help.
Andreas and the many others are motivated by money and glory, but they couldnt get where they are without the support of the people who owned the horses from his beginnings. Sure, some owners may not know. But trust me, lots do. And they dont care. Beaming at those year end awards parties make it all worth while.
My future book title will be Horses Dont Cry… they are voiceless slaves.
I believe in God and that he loves all his creatures. I like to think that there is a special layer of hell for the Hegelstrands of the world and for those who support them.
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Wow. The DRF did not waste any time, kudos to them. And kudos for not stopping at the top of the house but looking into the riders as well. It seems to me that there have to be some US repercussions as well, but not sure what they can/should do. One can hope that possible buyers of their horses choose to go elsewhere - I would, if I were shopping for that type of horse.
As noted, there are dirty little secrets throughout the horse world - and someone has to be bold enough to do the exposure. Think about the Big Lick horses and those horrible videos. Took years of catching and charging trainers to shrink that mess.
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Isn’t Lars Peterson and his riders involved with the Wellington AH barn?
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Will be interesting to see what happens in Wellington now being that he owns part of WEF. My guess is there is going to be some quick restructuring of ownership
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They are.
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Press the translate button in your browser.
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This is probably what Helgstrand has to worry about;
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As we all know, it’s not limited to dressage. It’s the industry as a whole. There isn’t a person alive involved in the competitive horse industry on any scale who hasn’t witnessed animal cruelty. And many of us have participated in it out of sheer ignorance and naievete. I think back to some of the things my “trainer” had me do as a kid trying to compete QH’s. Mind blowing looking back. And the atrocities I witnessed working at a Standardbred breeding farm…
So this guy will get taken down, discontinued, cancelled whatever you want to call it. And rightfully so. And the industry will keep on keeping on because people as a whole value money and ribbons over animals.
Attach the tenets of capitalism to animals and this will always be the end result.
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Has nothing to do with “capitalism”…has everything to do with human nature.
You know…ego…pride…envy…and maybe lust - as in unbridled (pun intended) desire to win…and/or sloth, as in laziness and taking shortcuts in training…eg., some of the deadly sins of human (lack of) character.
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I worked at a Standardbred breeding farm and never saw anything terrible going on in any way. I saw and practiced care, compassion, understanding, horse sense…
I have also seen a Very Well Known Arabian Trainer at the time whipping at a horse wearing heavy blankets (so no marks) in the heat out behind the barns in the middle of the night at a regional championship show. We yelled at him to stop (if only cell phones had existed then) and he just laughed and took the horse back to his stalls. My fellow groom and I reported it to our trainer/boss… who angrily took the info to show management but warned us it would likely go no further because of who that person was. He was right. The tension in the hitching ring for the rest of that week between our barn and the Big Fancy Barn from the midwest (cough) made things awkward but we did not back down… 
Does that mean everyone behaves that way or is that arrogant? No. But the ones that are should be exposed.
I think we do need to remember that not every discipline/trainer/farm/rider/driver is cruel or irresponsible - and everything should not be painted with a wide, sweeping brush of condemnation.
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Yeah, I apparently worked at a bad one. It wasn’t pretty. I live next door to an stb trainer/breeder now and it’s a very different environment.
I would have to argue that if you removed money from the equation people wouldn’t be in such a hot hurry to win at the expense of the horse. Ego is certainly a large part of it, but if there wasn’t a 6 figure import market or stallion syndicates or any other number of things that attract wealthy investors and buyers, I’m guessing much of this behaviour would disappear. Right now the (monetary) end justifies the means in the minds of many.
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I also want to say - I’m not painting with a broad brush, just pointing out that while this big name is being exposed in a big way, we should never be complacent and think the one bad apple was taken care of. There’s plenty more where he came from.
Plenty of good ones too, thank goodness.
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Ever hear of Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan? Harding conspired to put a hit to injure Kerrigan, her Olympic ice skating rival…both were vying for an Olympic slot.
So, while I do agree that money can play a role, I don’t think people doing “bad things” (to animals or humans) will go away.
So I stick with my belief that ego is the main driver of this behavior. While money can be one of many measuring sticks of the pecking order, people’s fundamental drive to show up the competition will drive some of this behavior.
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Perhaps we’re saying the same thing. Your example illustrates my point.
Vying for an Olympic spot, secure sponsors and endorsements, secure spots on a skating tour post retirement/post Olympics… securing fiscal security in a sport that only cares about winning.
There are a lot of parallels to horses when I think of it.
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For skaters,endorsements and Disney on Ice contracts are monetary incentives to get to the Olympics. I do believe Nancy Kerrigan put her foot in her mouth when she dissed Mickey Mouse so no Disney contracts for her, but she did started touring and performing with several ice skating troupes that included Champions on Ice and Broadway on Ice after the the Olympics. Money is involved. Tonya and those around her saw a way out of being poor.
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Cell phones have opened the floodgates. The horses can’t do it, so we have to stand up for their welfare, and we have the tools — if we have the eyes and conscience. Having an entire arena full of #Helgstrand riders brutalizing their horses simultaneously, as is seen in the clips, is hair-raising. That’s not a single “rough rider” but a barn-wide culture of coercion. On Youtube the Helgstrand channel has turned off commenting, just in time. Outside input is only allowed when it leads to sales.
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While money and lucrative contracts may be involved as a result of Olympic medals, there is not an epidemic of skaters plotting to injure their rivals.
I say it is a character trait, not “capitalism” that drives poor behavior, be it against humans or horses.
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