So, You Think You Love Horses?

Some Reflections on the Nature of Horses and Man

• Vaulting

  [Equestrian Sport] Vaulting is a ancient sport in which the rider preforms gymnastic routines on the back of a moving horse. The horse is often controlled by a second person holding a lunge line. Interestingly enough the 1920 Summer Olympics Games featured men's vaulting but thereafter in was dropped and it currently is not a formal Olympic event. However, there are a number of other first rate competitions, including at the World Equestrian Games held every four years.

• Vaulting Surcingle

  [Equestrian Sport] A vaulting surcingle is a special surcingle designed for use in the sport of vaulting. It has a padded seat and handles and replaces a true saddle.

• Vices

  [Horse Behavior] Vices are any undesirable, stereotypical and purposeless behavioral mannerism expressed by a given horse. They may be viewed as "bad habits," or as indications of stress or boredom in a horse confined in a stall. There also is a sense that vices are not dissimilar to human obsessive-compulsive disorders and many seem to respond to treatment with the medication Fluoxetine. However, management should also consist of allowing animals more grazing time and introducing more novelty into their environment. Like people I believe animals in their own way may need a sense of purpose. Inactivity may be as damaging to a horse as it is a person. Among the more common vices are: cribbing, wind sucking, weaving, head shaking and wood biting. The fear that the these behaviors can somehow infect horses without them is not supported by facts.