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December 2011 Entries
So here we are at the end of December and just like I said one year ago today another 365 days have rolled past us and we are on the verge of another new year. I certainly feel at least a year older. A new year is a reason for change and a new beginning. Just like I said last year what counts if you desire change is a new attitude. As you look back have you had a change in attitude. A revised view of the world and perhaps a change in your life because of a new outlook. Did you do it on your own? Probably not! Your changes required the support of friends and family because attitude is a group response. You are influenced by those around you. Together we achieve what we cannot manage on our own.
So again in 2012 let us all concentrate on Attitude. A strong Positive Attitude. The goal does not matter. What matters is that you attack each challange with a Positive Attitude. Share your positive attitude with all your friends. Being positive is contageous.
So if you didn't quite find success in 2011, try again in 2012. You can do whatever you need to do to be successfull in whatever venture you choose.
So carry on and make 2012 the year of the Super Positive Attitude, and as we say in the racing business may 2012 bring you many fast miles!
Tis the season and even Grumpy Old Jake can be jolly once in a while. Christmas at Tuff Stuff Farm revolves around animals not people. Horses, dogs and even the barn cats are creatures of habit and it is important that you not put their care on the back burner while you partake in the festivities of the season. Christmas morning here is not filled with presents and fancy breakfasts. Here the first chore is to ensure the horses, dogs and cats are all fed and checked over. The horses get their daily morning brushings and receive the same attention as any other day of the year. They do not understand waiting while you delve into festive wrapped packages. They want their routine. Only after the four footed creatures are happy does attention turn to the two footed beasts. So don’t put your horses on the back burner. Show them the spirit of the season and ensure they have as good a Christmas as you do.
And from the residents of Tuff Stuff Farm we send you the warmest of wishes for Christmas. That is quite a pile of wishes. From the horses – Airdrie, Dancer, Mac, Mister, Lady, Poconuts, Pampered and Jane. From the dogs – Allie, Monica, Cecil and Lexi. And never forgetting the cats – Sweets, Trixi, Millie, Timothy, Bert, Tippy, Tuffy, Snoopy, Sox, Ginger, Jelly Bean and Freeda. Geesh I think a name change is required to Tuff Stuff Zoo!
Best wishes to all!
Helping or Hindering. Many competitive horses are essentially stabled for everything except their actual training sessions. Many owners excuse for this is that it protects them from injury and they are therefore acting in the horses best welfare. Stall confinement has a significant effect on a horse’s behaviour both during times they are confined and also undergoing training. A study was conduced at the University of Goettingen, Department of Animal Science to see what effect allowing even short term turnout had on equine behaviour.
Using German Warmblood horses they tried 3 different regimens. Two hours of turnout before training, 2 hours turnout after training and no turnout. The researchers used video recordings, personal observations and GPS devices to monitor behaviour. At the completion of the study, the conclusions were as follows.
Stall Behaviour. Horses receiving no turnout were significantly more restless and even more aggressive than horses receiving turnout. These horses spent more time “doing things” (good and bad) than turned out horses. Horses in the turnout after training group stood alert and also dozed off more than horses with no turnout.
Turnout Behaviour. The horses turned out before training were considerably more active than when turned out after training. Horses turned out after training rested more. At the same time horses turned out after training covered less distance during turnout than horses turned out before training, however even trained horses covered more than 1 kilometre during turnout suggesting that that training did not necessarily fill the horses exercise needs.
Training Behaviour: It was noted that horses in the turnout before training group had a tendency towards being more willing to cooperate with the trainer’s requests resulting in shorter training times. The no turnout group showed less inclination to cooperate and required longer training times while the turnout after group were rated as “normal” in cooperation.
The conclusions: A horses stall and training behaviour is more relaxed when turnout is offered. They suggest that all horses be supplied with some degree of turnout. Very active or more difficult horses may benefit from turnout before training while quieter personality horses may do better with turnout after training. If you are concerned with potential injury, the researchers suggest turnout after training when horses demonstrate less activity.
The Sport of Kings, or The Sport of Fools? Thoroughbred racing is considered by many to be the pinnacle of horse competition with the potential for earning considerable amounts of money and peer recognition. An analysis of your chances to actually succeed in this lofty goal suggests that a great percentage of “Kings” might be blessed with more money than brains.
Melissa Jackson from the University of Melbourne in Australia conducted an analysis of 2773 race horses sold at auction in Australia to see how many actually gave their owners a return on investment. Analysts divided the 2773 horses into five different groups based on their purchase price at auction. Group 1) under $10,000: 2) up to $20,000: 3) up to $50,000: 4) up to $100,000 and 5) more than $100,000. All horses were assigned the same training costs for their first 2 years of $40,000 each.
If you are considering investing in a thoroughbred race horse the researchers found your best bet for you getting all your purchase price and input costs back within 2 years lies in buying a horse that costs between $50,000 and $100,000. The important (and sad) part of the analysis is that while category 4 was your best bet, you still only have a 7% chance of making money. No other category even came close. Your chances of making money with a group 1 horse is 2.7%, a group 2 horse 1.5%, group 3 is 5.3% and group 5, the most expensive group was 5.7%.
If your goal is simply to earn back the money you paid and you consider the training etc to be the cost of your hobby the horses in group 1 were the most likely to get your money back with 24.1% paying for themselves. As the purchase price goes up, your chances of getting your investment back drops. 16.3% for group 2, 12.9% for group 3, 11.2% for group 4 and 6.3% for group 5.
The net result according to the study is that only 14.5% of horses win back their purchase price within 2 years and only 5.1% make their purchase price and other input costs back within 2 years. The bottom line : race horses are not a good RRSP investment and you better really like what you are doing!
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