Abusive showing methods used in the Arabian horse world have now been immortalised by the model horse hobby scene. Snarky Rider (who’s now filling in for Fugly Horse of the Day) is rude about the hobby in this post, but the photo of the handler waving a big stick at the 1980s Hagen Renaker Arab is just a replication of what’s on view in many show rings (see this post for a nasty reminder). Larger image at the Sylverwyng Stables site: the stallion is called *Aneirin. As a former model horse collector and shower, I almost wish more people did this to highlight the absurdity of some real-world showing practices. What about some “big lick” Tennessee Walking horses with bleeding legs? There’s a Breyer model that’ll do the job nicely.
We fully admit we don’t quite get the passion some people have for model horses, but if you were to use as a means of highlighting the abuse that takes place in the show world that would be epic!
I’m not up to speed with the model world nowadays and my horses are in another country (hoarding is a-ok when they’re models) but it would indeed by awesome to have a model Carnival of Horrors – maybe to benefit a TWH charity?
I believe the model might be a bit frightening for a child, but clearly rather portray this image on a model than in reality. Please check out my website for information on horse care. horsecare