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Thursday, August 2, 2012

Animals / 2012 Mitt Romney's Pretty Prancing Pony Makes a Solid Olympics Debut

Posted by Paul Constant on Thu, Aug 2, 2012 at 10:49 AM

Overnight, Rafalca Romney, the prettiest dressage horse ever to be owned by a Republican presidential candidate, performed for the first time in the Olympics. BuzzFeed has the full, frustratingly unembeddable video. Instead, you should watch this video and pretend it's Rafalca:

The bad news is that Rafalca placed 13th, for a score of 70.213. Apparently, that's not a terrible score. Ann Romney says she is "thrilled" to "death" by her "consistent and elegant" dancing horse. If, like me, you've got Rafalca-mania, you should check out Politico's "10 things to know about Rafalca."

Or, if you'd like to know about the dark side of dressage and what some riders do to get their horses to prance forward and backward while keeping their heads in a low, reverential pose for extended periods of time, you should visit this blog. Someone in the office who is far more familiar with horses than I says that dressage is "foot binding for horses." The sad story of Super Hit, a horse that the Romneys allegedly kept doped to the gills on painkillers, is another indication that all might not be well in the world of dressage.

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The sad story of Super Hit, a horse that the Romneys allegedly kept doped to the gills on painkillers, is another indication that all might not be well in the world of dressage.

Paul, I think you're being too harsh. I mean it's not like they strapped Super Hit to the roof of their car and drove to Montreal.

Posted by Goldy on August 2, 2012 at 11:11 AM

Paul and Goldy, you draw a pertinent line between their treatment of the dog-on-a-roof to their acceptance of a "sport" that treats horses cruelly.

Is PETA on top of this?

Posted by Allyn on August 2, 2012 at 11:19 AM

re @2 turns out no, they're not.

Posted by Allyn on August 2, 2012 at 11:22 AM

Goldy, the dog wasn't worth $100,000. It was just luggage.

Posted by Mike in Olympia on August 2, 2012 at 11:25 AM

What a sport! A real embodiment of the Olympic spirit...look what us humans can do when WE put our minds and bodies to it!

Posted by ArtBasketSara on August 2, 2012 at 11:27 AM

I saw some dressage this morning and the horse was wheezing and seriously foaming at the mouth. The spit was all over its chest/front/whatever.

It did not look pleasant.

Posted by Urgutha Forka on August 2, 2012 at 11:39 AM

@6 the gold metal will make his effort worthwhile.

Posted by Allyn on August 2, 2012 at 11:49 AM

It was not just that they treated Super Hit in an extremely inhumane fashion, but also because they lied and scammed in order to sell a horse that could no longer perform. You can take a few key traits from this story:

1. Romney is a liar
2. Romney is willing to commit crimes to get more money
3. Romney does not care about ethical business practices
4. Romney thinks he is above both social and proper law, and other people
5. Romney thinks it is ok to abuse and mistreat animals

I do not know why anyone would want to put someone in a position of power who is the kind of person Mitt Romney is.

Gay Dude For Romney, can you explain why you want a lying, cheating, pompous, unethical abuser of animals in the White House?

Posted by Theodore Gorath on August 2, 2012 at 11:58 AM

Hyperflexion is awful and should not be allowed, but if you want a comparison to the horrific mutilation that is foot binding, which causes permanent deformity and can kill someone, you should look at the Big Lick horses. Shitty shoeing in general would also be closer to the damages of foot binding.

Inaccurate comparisons that don't focus on the specific abuses make it easier for people to dismiss the actual cruelty involved.

Posted by Zuulabelle

on August 2, 2012 at 12:14 PM

And if this had been Obama's horse everyone would be saying how wonderful it was.

Posted by Mindless Politics on August 2, 2012 at 2:02 PM

As an experienced horse person, I have to point out that Dressage itself is a difficult and beautiful sport. When a rider and horse have a good connection and partnership, the horse enjoys it (or seems to - who really knows?). Obviously, we have been reading about forms of animal abuse by certain owners and riders, but they shouldn't be all lumped in together. There are many riders who spend years developing caring, respectful partnerships with their horses, and this has allowed them to train the horses in a responsible manner to do their beautiful dressage routines.

@6 - I didn't see this performance, but a horse foaming at the bit is nothing unusual, and usually means that it has taken to the bit well.

Posted by BabaGanoush on August 2, 2012 at 2:48 PM

Didn't she sell this particular horse? And doesn't selling the horse make it no longer hers?

Posted by suddenlyorcas on August 2, 2012 at 7:08 PM