Horses

A Brief History Of Horse Racing

Categories: General Category | April 13th, 2009 | by admin | no comments

It is believed that horse racing became a professional sport in this country in the 12th century, when the English knights returned from the Crusades with Arab horses. The Arabian Horse, which hails from Middle Eastern deserts, is acknowledged as being the purest and oldest of all horse breeds, and has incredible stamina – being able to carry its rider at speed across miles of open desert with little food or water. Today, almost every breed and type of horse has traces of Arab blood and all English Thoroughbreds that are used in horseracing in the UK today are descended from three Arabian stallions: Byerley Turk, Darley Arabian or Godolphin Arabian, which were imported to Britain in the late 17th and early 18th century.

Newmarket was the venue for the first horse racing meetings in Britain, and horse races became a professional sport and the subsequent legal betting and racecourses quickly followed, with Ascot being founded in 1711 by Queen Anne.

The Jockey Club was formed to oversee and control English horse racing, making horse racing the first regulated sport in the UK. The Jockey Club wrote a comprehensive set of rules for horse racing and sanctioned racecourses to adhere to them. Five races were designated as “classics”: ‘The 2000 Guineas’, ‘The Epsom Derby’ and ‘The St Ledger’ which together make up ‘The Triple Crown’, and the ‘1,000 Guineas’ and the ‘Epsom Oaks’ open to fillies only.

In order to regulate the breeding of race horses, the Jockey Club formed the General Stud Book which lists all Thoroughbred horses who were to be allowed race in this country professionally.
Millions of people began to watch horseracing with the technological advances of the 19th century, with a marked increase in betting and media coverage. Interest continued to escalate with the introduction of television, and was compounded by the opening of the first betting shops in the early 1960s.

Organised steeplechase racing developed from the English and Irish past-time of foxhunting - rough cross-country races known as “pounding races”, in which the winner was simply the one who out-lasted other riders. At the end of the 1700s, racers agreed on the end-point for a cross-country race – more often than not, a church steeple. The prizes back in those days tended to be money and alcohol! The word “steeplechase” appeared officially for the first time in the Irish Racing Calendar in 1807.

Two of the most famous steeplechase races in the world are the Grand National which started in 1839 and is run at Aintree in Liverpool, and the Irish Grand National, held every year over the Easter weekend at the Fairyhouse Racecourse in County Meath, Ireland. The Irish Grand National has a prize fund of €250,000 and runs over 3 miles, 5 furlongs, and includes 23 fences. An added bonus goes to any UK trained winner who takes the Irish Grand National after having also won the Cheltenham Festival Chase. So all very exciting stuff!

Today, online horse race betting continues to draw new audiences to the sport of horse racing – why don’t you get involved for the Easter weekend festivities?

Grand National Odds

Why Betting On Horse Racing Is Easier Than Ever Before

Categories: General Category | April 13th, 2009 | by admin | no comments

In recent years, there have certainly been many new developments that anyone who seriously likes betting on horse racing should take note of.

Of course, arguably the most enjoyable method is still to go to your local racecourse to enjoy a days racing, whilst pitting your wits against one of the many on-course bookmakers. But the new millennium has brought a multitude of outlets where you can bet on horses and in this article we are going to explore some of these new betting methods.

Some of these betting techniques are a bit more complicated than others and so are generally only used by the professionals, however for all of you that enjoy betting on horse racing, there is something for everyone.

Betting On Horse Racing Using The Net

Possibly the most profound change to betting on horses of the last ten years, has been the advent of the internet. With access to the world wide web, punters now have the opportunity to place bets on any race anywhere in the world at virtually anytime.

All of this can be done quickly and easily and from the comfort of your own home. The internet also enables you to monitor the best prices available on horses and of course with the introduction of betting exchanges, you now have the chance to bet against other punters.

This evolution has also caused a rapid increase in the number of horse racing tipster services that are now available. In the past, punters would have had to have telephoned their bets in and relied on horse racing tipsters placing advertisements in newspapers.

These days, the internet is full of options and so if you do your research properly, you should beb able to find a racing tipster service that is suitable for your requirements.

Betting On Horses For The Pros

The Internet has also brought with it a new age of ways to bet on horses, as well as other sporting events.

As well as the traditional standard betting and betting using the Tote, you can now spread bet on horse racing (which I have covered in a previous article) and also partake in what is called matched betting.

Matched betting on horse racing is essentially the same as standard betting in as much as you can bet on a horse to win, but the difference being that you can ‘create’ your own odds, rather that betting with the odds that are being offered by a bookmarker.

To take part in matched betting all you have to do is review the odds on a particular horse that other people have offered. Once you find one that is suitable you can match their bet. Alternatively, you can set your own odds and see if anyone is prepared to match your bet and price.

This is a method of betting that is growing in popularity, but I would recommend that unless you are well versed in betting in horses, that you stay away from this for the time being.

Fun Bets Are Now More Accessible

The internet has also helped introduce more people to some of the more exotic or fun bets, such as the Tote Scoop Six. The Tote Scoop Six guarantees a large win if you correctly pick six winners from six races, with the option to also receive a lesser amount of winnings if your horses place well.

The Scoop Six enables you to bet on any six races from any racecourse across the country on a Saturday afternoon, so that your note restricted to just one racecourse. This in theory gives you a wider opportunity to pick your winners and although this is a popular bet for many punters, I do not recommend it as a staple part of your betting activities.

Beginners Betting On Horse Racing Should Take Note

As you can see, whilst there are many new ways for you to start betting on horse racing, as a beginner I always recommend that you start with the basics rather than trying to be too adventurous too early. Particularly with betting on the internet, as you can lose a lot of money very quickly without even realising it.

Starting with the basics, for example by just betting on horses to win using an online bookie, will enable to get used to betting on horses in a structured manner. Once you are used to this process, you can then start to look at betting exchanges where you can potentially obtain more value for your bets.

And although you will see bets advertised such as the Scoop Six, Yankees, Doubles and Trebles, my advice is to avoid these at your peril, as they are purely designed, in my opinion, to take a punters money.

By: Cliff Thurston, horse racing tipster service

About Horse Rescue Shelter

Categories: General Category | February 5th, 2009 | by admin | no comments

While auctions might be a convenient and cheaper way of getting a horse, it might not be safest. Careful consideration should be taken before participating since the horse, at the beginning, might seem like a bargain, but, after some time, might become more than what buyer bargained for.

One of the things that buyers should be aware of is that some horses are drugged before the auction to make them appear calm during a bidding war. Unfortunately, once the effects subside, the horse may become very difficult to manage and may also become a danger. Another reason that sellers will drug horses is to mask its health issue, and real medication to treat the problem might be costly. However, a horse can be examined by a veterinarian for drugs, prior to the actual purchase. Buyers should also note that horses may not be as well ‘broken’ as they appear to be. Though the horse to be auctioned might appear well-mannered in the middle of the ruckus and noise found in auction houses, it only remains quiet as it is familiar with its handler. And so, when introduced to its new owners it might need a lot more training from a professional to turn it into a horse that will interact properly with a rider. Also, horses may have behavioral problems that the sellers will not disclose, such as cribbing, weaving, stall walking, refusing to load on a trailer, biting, kicking, etc. Lastly, buyers of auctioned horses are seldom given the chance to try before they buy the horse, and unfortunately, ethics that oversee private sales and auctions are completely different, so be careful and critical before bidding.

By: Enelra Myers, www.horserescueshelter.com/

America’s First Horse - Horse Chit Chat

Categories: General Category | January 21st, 2009 | by admin | no comments

When Paloma arrived at the barn, which was accustomed to warmbloods, she drew a crowd of people who were waiting to see in person what a real mustang looked like. Curiosity turned to even greater intrigue when her owner said that she was a “Spanish” mustang, not the feral mustang that roams free in the west. The timing was an interesting coincidence as most of the boarders had seen the movie “Hidalgo,” in which the equine star plays a Spanish mustang.

The Spanish mustang is a descendant of the horses brought to the Americas by the early Spaniards. On his second voyage to the New World, Columbus brought a number of Spanish horses, as the breed was considered to be the finest horses in the world.

In the 1950s, because they were on the verge of extinction, an effort to preserve the Spanish mustang type began through the selection of horses that best demonstrated the Spanish mustang breed characteristics. As a result, the Spanish Mustang Registry was incorporated in 1957. “This registry was formed to preserve and perpetuate the last remnants of the true Spanish mustangs,” according to the Registry. Twenty horses were originally entered into the registry, and current numbers show about 3100.

Like the Spanish mustang breed classification describes, Paloma was just under 14 hands, with short strong canon bones and round, muscular hindquarters. But her most outstanding trait that caught everyone’s admiration was her classic Spanish head with concave forehead and convex nose. Her noble head was set on a fully crested arching neck, and she looked like a baroque horse, such as the Andalusian or Lipizzaner.

A particular herd of pure Spanish mustangs was discovered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in 1977 and separated to preserve their purity of traits. These horses are known as the Kiger mustangs. To be considered a Kiger, according to the Kiger Mesteño Association, a horse must be the offspring of a registered Kiger or have documented proof it was obtained from one of the Kiger herd management areas. Additionally, Kiger mustangs carry the breed color traits, which include dun and gruel, among others, along with markings such as dorsal stripe, zebra stripes or facial mask.

By contrast, the American mustang is the descendant of escaped light riding horses and draft horses, mixed with the Spanish bred and others. In general, these horses are thought to have little-to-no remaining Spanish blood.

Charged with the oversight of wild mustangs and burros is the BLM, which manages wild horses and burros on the public land in a “multiple use” mission that considers natural resources and uses such as ranch livestock grazing. The BLM monitors herds for health and population size and offers individual animals for adoption. Since 1973, BLM placed more than 213,000 horses and burros in homes through its adoption program. In 2005, Congress enacted a new law to maintain herds at healthy population levels that requires BLM to place for sale horses and burros older than age 10 or for whom adoption has failed three times. According to BLM, this affects approximately 8400 horses and burros.

Formerly wild mustangs have found success in new homes. J.B. Andrews, a large black mustang, has successfully competed in dressage to Intermediare I while schooling at the Grand Prix level.

By: Mich, horses for sale