Standardbred: The Other Ex-Racehorse

July 24th, 2008 | by citizen.K | Print & Hang in the Barn

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When thinking of re-training an ex-racehorse, you think of a Thoroughbred. Thoroughbreds have been taken off the track and turned into Hunters, Jumpers, Eventers, Dressage horses, pleasure horses, gaming horses, and just about every discipline you can think of. Thoroughbreds have excelled at all these disciplines at one point or another, but, as we know, the Thoroughbred breed isn’t what it used to be.

So, why not consider a Standardbred?

“They don’t know how to canter, just trot or pace.”

Yeah. That may be true, but in all fairness, what does an off the track Thoroughbred really know (other than gallop)? A Standardbred IS still a horse, and all horses know how to walk trot AND canter. They have just been trained to trot and pace. Therefore, they need re-training to learn how to carry themselves and a rider through all the gaits. Not all that much different than a Thoroughbred, just a different approach.

The Standardbred has many qualities that people are looking for in a sport horse; strength, soundness, substance, all with an easy going temperament. So, why then are people not seeking out this breed to re-train?

The misconceptions I have often heard are that the Standardbred just doesn’t have a good canter no matter how much training you put into them. I beg to differ. While I’m sure not EVERY Standardbred has a great canter, neither does any other breed. Remember….one must look at the individual horse. Every horse in the world, no matter what the breed, is going to have individual strengths and weaknesses. I ask the people who claim that Standardbreds don’t have a good canter: How many Standardbreds have you seen re-trained?

Exactly.

Now, I have only worked with a handful of off the track Standardbreds, and I can say they were completely different than off the track Thoroughbreds, but not in a bad way. The four Standardbreds I worked with were all rescued by a woman who didn’t know much about horses and didn’t even know what a Standardbred really was. All four horses were off the track and had raced in harness. Only one of the four Standardbreds was a pacer. Interestingly, each of the four horses looked completely different. I mean all four were bay with just a little bit of white, but the only real similarity was that they were all long, though proportionally long (back, neck), and they all had a similar head type (a little blocky, but attractive).

All four of these Standardbreds were unflappable. They had extremely easy going temperaments and were happy to get to work. I was expecting the sensitive off the track “high” Thoroughbred type attitude, demeanor, and personality. But, these four were practically bomb proof. Two were very pretty movers and those two had the easiest time learning the canter. I don’t know if that was a coincidence or if their bigger, fluid, and balanced movement made the canter more balanced and easier to learn. The pacer wasn’t a very good mover, and he often went into a pace, especially when confused. It appeared to be his safety zone. He did eventually learn to canter, and although he wasn’t a very good mover, he turned out to be a pretty good jumper. The other one that wasn’t a great mover did have some soundness issues related to a tendon injury on the track; she turned out to be a great walk, trot, and canter school horse. Though the canter took some time, she learned all three gaits after four months off for injury.

The two good movers turned into fabulous show horses. One did really well on the A circuit in the Hunter ring (the green Hunters and eventually the junior Hunters), and the other turned into a adult amateur Jumper and was shown pretty extensively for a few years and then went on to do some Dressage. I unfortunately didn’t follow up on how he ended up doing in the Dressage ring, but I imagine with his movement, he probably did pretty well.

What I learned in re-training Standardbred ex-racehorses/ex-trotters:

The canter can be taught to a Standardbred, but it must approached very differently than if teaching an off the track Thoroughbred. With a Thoroughbred, the canter is their faster gate, so moving them forward brings about the canter. With a Standardbred, through trial and error, I found their trot and/or pace is their fastest and most balanced gate, so pushing them forward only creates a very fast trot or pace. Instead, balance had to be created at the walk, trot, slow trot, and collected trot; primarily with long lines, but also through their back. Eventually, the canter was the natural place to go, once after balanced and collected, with the right timing. I was able to cue either with either voice and leg, or voice and lunge whip while the horse stepped (not ran) into the canter.

Standardbred Sport Horse Use Weakness:

Probably not an upper level competition horse
Possible harness racing injuries (make sure they are vetted thoroughly)
Not real flashy (lots of white or chrome for the show ring)

Standardbred, Sport Horse Use Strengths:

Size and type vary considerably (14.1 hands to 17+ hands)
Generally easier keepers than Thoroughbreds
Great temperament
Sounder than a Thoroughbred as long as they don’t have racing injuries
Very affordable option for Dressage, Eventing, Hunters, and Jumpers

All things said, the Standardbred is a very viable and economical performance Sport Horse option. If looking into a Thoroughbred off the track, one might have better luck finding sound and sane equine companion in a Standardbred.

If you decide to go the Standardbred route, remember to find a good trainer willing to re-train them a little differently than an ex-race Thoroughbred. Or, if you are taking on the challenge yourself, make sure to do your research and talk with others who have re-trained the Standardbred. It’s not fair for the horse to have to re-learn in a less than productive environment.

There are plenty of Standardbred rescues, and you can always contact Standardbred breeders to get information on available horses that aren’t racing or possibly aren’t cut out for the harness. It’s a good idea to have any horse you buy or adopt vetted out. If you are looking for a horse to do more than trail ride, it is important that you find out if that horse is up for the job. Standardbreds, though probably falling in awareness on the side of “boring” Sport Horse breed options, fit the bill. When searching for a new equine partner, do not overlook this breed.

Tags: standardbred