Excessive Galloping Of An Unconditioned Horse

Excessive Galloping Of An Unconditioned Horse

Myth: My horse loves to gallop (run) for hours when I ride him. I only get to take him out of his stall and ride a couple of times a month, so I just run him wide open every where I go, because he loves it.

Fact: Whoa, lets hope this horse is still alive, sane and not permanently crippled. Lets handle the love to run bit first. Horses deprived of adequate exercise, on a daily basis, do like to run when they finally get out in the open and a chance to blow off pent up steam from forced confinement. They will naturally settle down, once they have burned off their stored up energy. As for liking to run and run and run, (In Nasty Neil's words) "It ain't gonna happen."
Horses out on the open range will run, buck and play for a limited time. Wild horses will run for hours if chased relentlessly. This horse is going full out, mile after mile, because he thinks that is what he is supposed to do. He thinks that is what you, his rider wants him to do. You, the rider have conditioned his mind to just keep going until he drops.
Now lets talk about physical conditioning. He only gets out, a couple of times a month, so we know he is not in good physical condition. He has not been slowly, steadily, daily, ridden to build up his muscles and stamina so he can handle this. Is he even being warmed up first and/or cooled down afterwards? Here are JUST A FEW THINGS that will or have happened to this horse already. Bowed Tendons, Splints, Windgalls, Sore Shins, Founder (Laminitis), Colic, Dehydration, Electrolyte Imbalance, Azoturia (Tying up Syndrome), Heatstroke and/or Heat Exhaustion. Horses can and do die of exhaustion. Horses can be literally run to death.
Race horses who are meant to run at high speeds and Endurance horses who are meant to go long distances without tiring are conditioned daily for months so they can handle what is asked of them without breaking down or in the worse case scenario, reaching a stage beyond recovery.