Scar marks on a horses face from being beaten by trainer with spurs on

Reining Trainer Spurs Mare in the Face

These confronting images are how a man finds his horse after being in training with a high profile Australian Reining Trainer. Badly spurred with spur tracks down her sides and shoulders and even a spur tracks near her eye. He reports that the horse also had a torn tongue on both sides. It was reported that the trainer could not get the young mare to do flying lead changes; she was just two and half years of age. A young mare that is just starting out her career under saddle.

Spur Tracks On Shoulder and Sides

A reining enthusiast has been concerned about putting this out in the open until now after seeing how much abuse goes on. Like many, he would consider his case to be unique, but people are quickly learning about other victims of abuse of their horses too.

Seeing the promotion of reining and select trainers, through marketing clinics and events, this man may have felt a degree of comfort from all the marketing, and the high profile individual marketed by the association.

So Who is the Trainer?

We are withholding his name at this time with the expectation it is the Reining Association or other reining trainers responsibility to ‘out’ the person.

However, researching online, the trainer states he is a multiple futurity champion, with many national awards too. Promoted by the association as one of the leading trainers in their country, this trainer travels the country giving clinics on training and horsemanship under the “Reining Trainers Professional” banner. An NRHA member competing in the show ring and a professional trainer. A known abuse offender being openly marketed and endorsed by the associations in that country.

Appearing on an NRHA affiliate website the trainer is endorsed as Professional Trainer with the following statement:

“Reining Professionals is an industry body establishing and governing standards for professional reining trainers in Australia. Members agree to uphold ethical treatment of horses in their training programmes and undertake continued education in the form of clinics, seminars and overseas studies to improve their service to their clients and develop the reining horse industry in general.

 A Reining Professional’s primary responsibility is to provide the highest quality service to their clients. They are to operate in a professional manner and at all times act with the highest degree of integrity. The list of Professionals below hold full financial membership and agree to be bound by the rules of the Reining Professionals ‘Code of Ethics.”

The standards of this Reining Professionals certainly need to be questioned if the person training this mare is one of their best in the land down under. The public in Australia should be careful and prudent if selecting or using a Reining Professional trainer based on the evidence presented to us.

The reining enthusiast says he is expecting threats against him personally by the trainer for posting these images but informs us that he is not concerned. Typical behaviors of trainers and their friends that we wrote about in our article ‘Who is looking after the welfare of reining horses’.

Reining Trainers Enigma has people contacting us that were concerned about the repercussions of speaking out but now are gaining confidence to do so, to stamp out abuse. Their stories are disturbing as to what is really going on. Only when this is out in the open will changes be made to the standards of Professional Reining Trainers and the NRHA Rule Book.

Reining Trainers Enigma is about stopping horse abuse. If you would like to report an incident and photographs or video of the damage, please send them to us via Facebook or our website.

Please do not forget to vote on Polling For Change. Now Closed.

© 2017 ReiningTrainers.com  All Rights Reserved

28 replies
  1. kim Fisk
    kim Fisk says:

    This should be brought out into the open. There are many cases of abuse and i have had my own with so called top trainers. They should be named and shamed

    Reply
    • kim fisk
      kim fisk says:

      I am really dissapointed at this site after hearing that this story is fabricated from people that actually know the person that is accused here. I agree that people that harm our horses should be made accountable but apparently you are wrong with this one. Please kindly remove my posts.

      Reply
      • Animal Welfare
        Animal Welfare says:

        So you are saying the horse owner made all this up??? You are being fed a good line. The mare is scared and she has spur hole in the shoulder in another photo we have not published. We have members of the reining horse community in Australia openly admitting to be aware of the damage to this mare two years ago and being fully aware of it. They have admitted they were told to ‘keep quiet’ and now regret it. There are other messaging the person’s name as they were up close to the situation. You can read it all on Facebook amidst the enablers comments. So either there are many liars in Australia or you must be getting your news from the ring leaders of ‘keep quiet’ and it will go away. Your conviction toward removing horse abuse was short lived as you prefer to listen to the pack that are hiding it. Interesting culture down under.

        Reply
        • kim fisk
          kim fisk says:

          Now you are coming across as just a nasty keyboard warrior making assumptions about me. At least i own my comments.. who are you?

          Reply
          • Animal Welfare
            Animal Welfare says:

            We have written who we are many times before who we are. Suggest you read the website, blogs, facebook about us and inform yourself. This is the place that change will happen from and we have over 24000 people worldwide watching and supporting us, including some very high profile individuals. We are intrigued on how vicious the people in Australia are now the light is shining hard on them for hiding abuse.

  2. Todd
    Todd says:

    Get over yourselves!!. This “story” leaves out more facts and circumstances than it includes. A horse on a hot day, being exercised, is extremely easy to leave marks on them. These marks are also old, who knows when or where they were done, we don’t know because we don’t have anywhere near the information one needs to draw a logical conclusion!!. The article also mentions a mark close to the horses eye?, where are the pictures of this, sounds a lot like they needed to add some unproved extraordinary accusation to add drama to an unfounded accusation of supposed ” trainer abuse”. Train your own horse if you are so knowledgeable of what correct training procedures are and leave professionals out of it!!. Unfounded and unprovable accusations just make one look uneducated and whinney.

    Reply
    • Animal Welfare
      Animal Welfare says:

      Thank you for your note but you are so wrong. The story was verified and we have presented the facts. The eye picture is sitting right in front of you. To print this without evidence and statements of confirmation would serve no purpose. The person is a professional trainer and we are getting more reports of trainer abuse by Professional Trainers. Obvioiusly you are one and that has got you in a fever. Interestingly down in Australia it seems people do know of the incident and are messaging people the person’s name on Facebook. Sad state of affairs for you living in denial rather than supporting getting rid of the bad apples.

      Reply
      • G
        G says:

        I hope ur work on bringing this stuff out, will help change the reining world. Sadly there are a lot of trainer that do the terrible things only for a competition. Who care about the horses?! If they brake physically or mentally, there are others horse to replace Tham…. some trainers should just buy a bike instead. Horse is a living animal with feelings and a heart…
        Also as regard the NRHA: nice etic rules but who is inside the system knows what going on.. only because most trainer do it doesn’t mean it is right… hopefully one day things will change but until money and ego win over values is not going to happen…

        Reply
    • Chez
      Chez says:

      If those marks are old i would hate to see what they looked like when they are fresh, also if you open your eyes the first and main pick clearly shows spur marks.
      Why are you so angry an apprehensive about this post, do you think its ok to do this?

      Reply
  3. Simone
    Simone says:

    The marks could be anything, what a crock. Track marks on shoulders – certainly not bleeding or holes; hardly abuse and a lame attempt at discrediting a horse trainer – pull your head in.

    Reply
    • Animal Welfare
      Animal Welfare says:

      Interesting that the reining community in Australia know who it is and that it is all true. People have seen the horse first hand. Your comments show you are an abuse enabler as you justify the abuse. A torn tongue, spur marks down the shoulders and on the face. We pity any horse you own or train based on your acceptance of spur marks on horses.

      Reply
  4. Maree
    Maree says:

    Where are the photos of the mare’s torn tongue ? Surely this would be more conclusive evidence of abuse than the photos of minor hair loss on the mare’s face and shoulder ?

    Reply
  5. Gone Cutting
    Gone Cutting says:

    Hey there from Down Under. The spur marks on this mare are real and it has been spoken about for two years. The mare has a huge spur hole in her shoulder still. Shhh don’t let the abuse out its all wonderful in reining land.

    The board knew about it – everyone in the inner circle knows. Ol’ mate got a pat on the back & told its just another stupid person that will go away. A current board member has known for 2 years and could not care less. The trainers rule everything. They run their own game here down under – no medications rules- the trainers canned it at a agm. They just pick which rules in the NRHA rule book they will use. Abuse – they all are doing it so how do you pick one out of the herd.

    Professional Trainer my backside – Professional SOB! And they promote him everywhere. They are all as bad as each other.

    Reply
  6. Krys Stewart
    Krys Stewart says:

    If this is the bloke I think it is my friend had a horse there and it was disguisting what he did. That poor horse went through hell and she could not get him out of there quick enough. Horse was ruined and never the same again. Shame on you all that hide this abuse and continue to want to hide it.

    Reply
  7. Sharron
    Sharron says:

    How can they promote someone as a professional trainer with a code of ethics and then ignore this. Member or not I don’t know but they should have taken action. Ethics people, Ethics. False advertising I say. What else is swept under the carpet.

    Reply
  8. Teresa Bippen
    Teresa Bippen says:

    How long are you waiting before revealing the trainer’s name? Although I commend you for publishing this story, it accomplishes nothing unless the trainer’s name is revealed. Only publicity, publicity, publicity will cause people to be humiliated and to change.

    Reply
    • Animal Welfare
      Animal Welfare says:

      There are two issues here. 1. the abuse. 2. the responsibility of the association to ‘out’ these abusers and get rid of them – complaints lodged or not. The silence of the association and the other trainers that have been fully knowledgeable about this for 2 years says it all. Does Australia, and other countries, have a culture of hiding abuse? You are right publicity will bring change and we have the spotlight far and square on the association and its affiliates that are not doing enough to bring about change and be rid of the bad apples.

      Reply
  9. Fair Dinkum
    Fair Dinkum says:

    This is just disgusting. I was at a reining event in Oz this weekend and everyone is talking about it. Everyone knows who it is !!! The fact he has a track record for breaking horses down and being too tough on them. Seems last year’s futurity horse is stuffed and broke down straight after the event at the show. He has spurred bark of many horses and done some really horrible things to them, so they say. Then in the next breath the reiners complained about it being made public. My view, they are all as bad eggs & don’t care about the horses, they are just nasty it gone public. I agree with this page, Make the Association Out Him and stop the nonsense of protecting their buddies. Unless they are all as guilty as too. Bye Bye reiners you are just cruel.

    Reply
  10. Helen Allen
    Helen Allen says:

    don’t care who the damn trainer is or who he works for, IF I SEEN A SPUR HOLE OR ANY MARK ON MY HORSE YOU BETTER KNOW I WILL PUT A SCAR AND OR HOLE IN YOU. someone like this is no one i want on my horse’s back. you don’t have to be a rough ass to train a young horse, trust is the first thing you work on with any animal. IDIOTS. you do not need to use abuse.

    Reply
  11. Berlinde
    Berlinde says:

    I surely don’t want to approve the behavior of the trainer – I despize it- but keep in mind that often the owner pushes the trainer to perform!
    I know a first-hand story, where the trainer told the owner that stop working with a horse would be the best, because if he’ld continue, the horse would be damaged beyond repair… And the owner did, but just moved the horse to another trainer, who didn’t show the same ethics, trained the horse, won the Futurity with it… but no one ever heard of the horse afterwards… because she was damaged beyond repair…
    So, don’t always shoot the pianist…

    Reply

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