How horse games promote bad riding 

How do you feel about the current state of dressage? Should the industry change? Be sure to support these creators: www.youtube.com/@eponatv www.youtube.com/@DressageHub www.youtube.com/@Milestone-Equestrian www.youtube.com/@RaleighLink

I remember back in the day when I played my niche, bargain bin horsie games there was usually a disclaimer at start up that said that nothing in the game should be taken as a point of reference for actual real life horse care, stressing that it's fiction. Perhaps Star Stable would benefit from this as well. They did dodge the bullet of giving the Ardennes a cropped tail option so perhaps not all hope is lost EDIT: I do think the animation should be changed, but when has SSO ever changed an animation? (COUGH FRIESIAN COUGH)

Finally somebody brought up this huge issue. It doesn't matter that is a horse game it still promotes bad riding and horsemanship. The amount of abuse I've seen in my equestrian journey is just ridiculous and disgusting.

15:35 ALSO everyone, notice on the right, how active the tail is ! How there's alot more foam at the mouth, and how harsh the hands of the rider are. Pain is written all over the horse.

As a gameplay animator myself, this is why I think disclaimers at the beginnings of a game should be emphasized. It saying that this is just a game and a fantasy setting and it nowhere near promotes acutal real life practices. Because there's no way in hell that an animator would know all this... Like despite this video was super detailed an informative, I my untrained eyes can barely see any difference between a good and a bad from. We usually have extremely limited time to do an animation, and we don't have time for extensive research. When I do an animation I have two hours at best to collect reference, which is usually me typing whatever into youtube and look for the most aesthetically pleasing results to use them as a starting point. If the team doesn't have a specialist, who can correct mistakes like this, then it's a bit much to expect from the underpayed and overworked animator to become an expert in a nieche field in their free time, because in your working hours you barely have enough time to finish your animations, let alone dig yourself into the nitty gritty details. It's nice when a studio has enough resource to make an animation as realistic as they can (like Red Dead Redemption 2), but it's really not an industry standard, and in smaller studios time and money is extremely limited.

i saw a documentation once about horse sports, and especially at dressage they explained the signs of how a horse shows unease and pain. because they are quiet, but their bodylanguage can be very strong. average people just cant read it. if people who watch horsesports would know about all this,and they really love horses, they wouldnt watch it at all. because most horses are totured and it is allowed by the rules.

That look of the high arch and lifted feet dazzle so many- but all it does for me is remind me of Black Beauty, and how Ginger was slowly ground down from being a carriage horse and then a hunting horse, and how Beauty himself was permanently lamed by his years being forced into that stance for the sake of appearance. It's not flashy. It's inhumane. I swear that book should be required reading.

This was EXTREMELY eye-opening. The bit about holding the horse's head inward and therefore inhibiting proper oxygen flow really broke my heart, especially seeing some of the horses showing clear signs of deprivation. It's made me reassess the balance between the relationship between human and horse. I just hope change is on the horizon. Thank you so much for getting the word out!

I grew up being taught dressage on a small family owned stable in the countryside of Northern Germany, pretty much right as I was able to hold myself upright unassisted and only ever stopped due to health issues. Over 14 years I spent working with horses to the point where I was assigned "problematic" horses that no one else was bothering to pick up for training. That's how I ended up taking care of an 11 year old gelding who had a birth-defect, his left hind leg was noticeably shorter than the others. He was originally bred to be a competition horse. He was a beautiful chestnut Hanoverian (Honnoveraner) but because of his leg he was scrapped and put on a paddock with a retired show jumper. He was never properly trained or socialized when I started working with him, it was like breaking in a baby. Jumpy and overly sensitive to any and all input, he was very excited about working with people and other horses but also always ended up anxious and easy to distract. You couldn't ride him like you would any other horse i had worked with prior. The mare I had before him was a national champion I inherited from her previous owner. She was extremely responsive and willing to cooperate and relinquish authority without compromising herself. Entirely different weight class as the scared but curious little boy that just got put in my care. That gelding was a mess when I first began training with him. He would either completely overshoot or completely ignore me. Stubborn and independent as he was he would often go against my cues and jump to the side or change direction on a dime if he felt like proving a point. It took months to build up enough trust in each other to actually get along in a way that allowed for propper dressage training. We ended up incredibly in sync as we taught each other how to trust and listen. I've never had as close a bond with a horse as with him and yet I still was never able to compete with him in the small local competition, one that i had previously participated in yearly and won more than I had not. He was simply too sensitive for the competition atmosphere. We tried once and decided that it just wasn't meant to be. He just wasn't made to be a flashy fancy show horse to make judges fawn and bring home medals. Now if only one of the stables dressage teachers understood that.... While I was working on balancing out his disability through strength training and cooperation between horse and rider that crazy woman made her students who also rode him treat him like every other, healthy horse and made them force him into performing those flashy over the top maneuvers. It ended up giving him severe ticks, where he would nervously throw his head up and down at the slightest pressure in the bit, he stumbled more and more and disregarded my input out of sheer uncomfortablity. He became unfocused and suspicious of every rider and it ended up in him tripping and falling with me more than once during training. He always picked himself back up imediatly and was never seriously injured but every time it happened I was terrified. He was more unstable in his gate than ever before and every day I was fearing the time he would fall and not get back up again, break his leg and having to be put down just because of some bullshit aesthetics. I, in my at the time 16 year old glory blew up at that teacher, listing all the things that have gotten worse and worse since she picked up my gelding for her lessons and telling her to stop ruining all the work I had put in to keep him healthy and happy just just so she could stroke her own ego and superiority complex. Unfortunately i was never able to completely take him out of her lessons as she was friends with the owner of the stable and could do pretty much whatever she wanted and the gelding didn't belong to me on paper, I was only the primary caretaker with the gelding belonging to some public entity managing equestrianism in the city. For a while my parents and i played with the thought of buying him but ultimately decided against it as we did not have the money to care for a horse full time with all the extra expenses that come after food and shelter like vet bills and getting him exercised when I'm not able to due to school. Dressage to me was never about the looks. Sure it was a bonus when it looked pretty from the outside but the real value in the sport always lied within the connection between horse and rider. Nothing is more beautiful than a horse that moves naturally without pain or fear.

i'm only at 7:06, but i feel the need to make the point that i literally couldnt even tell that the dutch warmblood's "special gait" was SUPPOSED to be an extended trot. literally in my review of it, i said i had no idea what "dressage move" it was because it never occurred to me (as someone who rode for over a decade) that that special gait was intended to be an extended trot. it was so over exaggerated & as you said, FLASHY, that it didn't even click. i feel like that says enough in itself.

It's sad that it's become the norm to break horses while riding them.... I just hope something can improve

My grandfather (son of a prussian horsebreeder) used to be a ridingteacher, and whilst I personally dont know enough about horses , he taught me enough to see when a horse is tense and when it is healthy. If he saw dressages nowadays, I am convinced he would cry. It is very saddening to me what this harmonious art has become. But all the more I am thankful for people like you bringing attention to it! Thank you, Rattle! Granp would have loved your video.

You are absolutely right. We shouldn't see in-game models inspired by abusing practices. The way you said FEI's prime goal is to display something "pleasing to the eye" no matter the cost for the athletes was really heartbreaking. How can things have turned so bad :( ig put money in the mix and it's always ending in unhappy and unhealthy horsies... Sickening

As a classical dressage rider (former modern) it has been so interesting to see the difference in the horses I rode then vs now. Especially as an equine welfare scientist now it is so fascinating to see the difference. I actually now ride horses in knight tournaments who have all been classical trained and omg they are a godsend to my disability! I can canter, side pass, courbette etc. everything I was unable to do with it when I tried to go back into modern once my disability allowed me to.

Thats a really good conversation to start. Can we also talk about how many of the horses have idle animations that are simply stress signals? Belgian warmblood throwing its head around, to try get away from bit pain? Or its bottom lip twitching which is also an indicator of stress? The jorvik pony literally tilting its head to the side and opening its mouth during a jump, once again from bit pressure. There are so many more examples of this in game and its extremely sad to see that horse stress has been normalized to the point where stress signals become "idle" animations.

This explains why when I was taking lessons at a horse riding place I used to go to it always felt weird when they strong armed me into dressage… the horse I was riding was originally a barrel racer, and that’s what I did at first before they decided to be more “sophisticated” at that ranch. Poor guy was always so stressed and tense when we were doing dressage. I ended up quitting when they refused to let me go back to barrel racing where the horses I used actually seemed comfortable doing the runs.

These ARE pixel horses that do not get hurt, yes, HOWEVER even pixels have impact on young riders, and even non-riders and many are not willing or care enough to take time to listen and understand or even care. As an ex-ballet dancer traditional polish and modern ex-dancer with 10+years under my belt, the core is SO important in SO many sports for humans so that we do not hurt ourselves and it is horrifying that we do not grant the creatures we partner with that same basic necessesity.

As a horse professional with a game developer partner. I'll make sure that if we ever make a game containing horses, they better be correct!

I feel so dumb for not even noticing, I really hope SSO is not intentionally adding this knowing what it is. It looks very much like the Big Lick. Also, ex ballerina here, it is very much true that you NEED a good core to pull off extravagant movements along with stretchy muscles. You'd be surprised at the amount of toned ballerinas there are.

I’m not a rider myself, though i have always wanted to be. It’s truly saddening to see professionals[!] sacrificing their horses’ health for their own gain and for appearances. No art is for everyone, and that includes dressage. Thanks for the informative video!

“I believed a lie” This is ultimately what happened in this sport. We are taught things that are nothing more than mistreatment, to the point where today, trying to change our mentality is very difficult. I was lost for a long time, no longer knowing how to behave with horses. I am lucky today to be in a club which (is far from perfect) but watches over its animals, which takes care of them and teaches you more responsible riding in harmony with them. Even today I have doubts, I hesitate, but by trusting my instinct more than certain riders, I realize that I am doing more good for the horse. The road is going to be long, not only for me but for other riders who no longer want this riding. But I really want things to change for the better...

maybe its because i'm spoiled by red dead redemption 2 horses which TO THIS DAY is still arguably the best horse game there is lol, but i always found it weird how star stable's story is constantly like oh you and your horse have a great connection, you and your horse are best buds, you and your horse-- it's like, weird, i think i've been riding a different horse for basically every single mission ever personally, I think a GOOD way to get these looks.. and also make them GOOD in the game, would be to allow them, but also have the horses have a tolerance level. Make it where you CAN ride in this flashy stupid way, but your horse will lower its level / buck you off / ect. Being able to LOSE friendship with your badly cared for horse would be such a cool addition to the game and make it feel much more immersive and also more subtle teach PROPER horse care to young people. Currently for the "Love between you and your horse knows no bounds!!" the horse is literally just a flesh vehicle with zero personality whatsoever, a common fault amongst horsey games red dead did such a good job with their horses that people REGULARLY don't realize that every single horse has the same AI regardless of breed, the fastest horse is only BARELY faster than the slowest horse, there is no horse 'bravery' stat so there is no 'bravest horse breed', no aggression stat so there is no "most likely to kick horse breed" or other things you might see youtube videos about. If more horse focused games did even a fraction of what red dead did, they'd be so much better for it! and it'd stop shit like this, horse games made by uneducated people who look up flashy videos and call it good

Small note: The training method wasn't popularized by Anky van Grunsven, but her husband: Sjef Janssen. He basically introduced it to his wife as well as the entire Dutch Team. Basically making the entire Dutch team a billboard for rollkur. In the end, it's his wife that won most. But I think the distinction is important, because it shows a systematic erosion of ethics in the top dressage world. If just one rider practiced it: Well that would be bad, but training an entire team of top dressage riders this way is just plain evil.

i'm not a horse person but thank you! more people need to point out subtle animal abuse in media without being called a killjoy!! just like goldfish being kept in bowls in children's tv shows, it leaves the wrong impression on what is acceptable

That was very well explained and very well thought out. My mum has been talking about this for 20 years and it's a sad state what dressage has become. The FEI are morally bankrupt for allowing this to happen to horses. The Spanish Riding School are the only riders worth watching, they haven't strayed from the classical principles of Equitation. Thank you for covering this, I hope those that watch this, listen. If it exists, it will influence no matter what it is. Be it an influencer with an exotic pet, or they simply have a specific breed of dog. Love your videos Rattle, stay hydrated ❤

I've dabbled in animating horses, but I never paid much attention if a reference I was using showing good and healthy techniques. As usually defaulted to looking up some videos for what ever gait/moments needed. After this tho I see now how important it is to due such research in my references.

i'm not an equestrian, star stable and roblox horse games fuel my knowledge of horses. i don't watch videos of real horse riding outside of my club friend that has a horse. i always thought the dutch warmblood's special gait looked... weird, and uncomfortable. but i thought "it's star stable. they wouldn't put something bad in a horse game for kids." yeah. wow. thank you for this in-depth video, rattle! in a lot of the clips you shown you can see the horses foaming at the mouth. it's wild that people can't see that it's harming the horse??? thank you for also bringing up the "games affect people's mindset" -- because it's not even just young children!!! i'm 17 and i had no idea about this.

I'm not even into dressage or horses in general (it's mostly surface-level), but the fact that I could still somewhat notice that the horses moved in a strange way when the improper references were shown just speaks volumes. I seriously wonder why a sport tied heavily with communication and trust to an animal is so heavily saturated with people interested in only the end goal...

Thank you Rattle for once again, highlighting important issues!! SSO seem to love copying off Google image/video results. Horse games inspire the next generation of equestrians and bringing light to these issues helps promote better welfare for horses❤

i feel like the dressage world is starting to be more like big lick where people will do anything for flashy movement

I remember when I was younger I saw on tv a mare known as Blue Hors Matine, everyone was clapping and whistling as this mare moved to the beat of music. When I was younger I thought this mare must be very happy doing this, such a big animal wouldn't do something it didn't want to, right? After all, I could barely get my parent's dog off the sofa. She died very shortly after that tv aired dressage event, a paddock accident everyone was told... I now wonder. As an adult I can now clearly see that the mare was not happy, the foam in her mouth that they tried hard to never let be seen as the rider Andreas Helgstrand celebrated, the fact that her tail flicked over and over again. I think it is very important for games that boast about simulation or realisim to not mislead kids or even adults into thinking these movements are normal for horses.

This is a very eye opening and educational video! As someone who can’t have horses IRL, most of my education on dressage (and most disciplines) comes from games and watching horse shows/competitions. Thank you for spreading awareness on these horrible practices! It’s to make equestrian sports about the horses again❤

Speaking from an animators point of view, I wouldnt be surprised if they referenced multiple pieces of footage with certain parts from the correct practice and other parts the incorrect pratice without even realising it. It's our job to analyse movement and convey it, but often times we end up missing important details like what you've discussed, sadly. Nordisk Games definitely needs a fact checker/expert on hand that goes over all art and animation to prevent terrible things like this! Since it can be asking a lot for an animator to be an expert on every creature they may animate, especially as they often work on many different kinds of games throughout their career (animators are often overworked/underpaid as it is) that may not have even a single horse, let alone a game specialising on them. The fact that this reveals they don't or if they do they simply don't care says a LOT.

Got randomly recommended this, and I definitely learned WAY more about horses than I thought I would. It's wild to me that these people are willing to sacrifice their health just for some flashy movements. Also, anyone who thinks a game can't influence kids has gotta be extremely ignorant, there is no doubt that games influence kids, and it's bag you really can't afford to fumble. They're way more attentive and intelligent than you think, so they're gonna pick up these specific movements and think it's normal. It doesn't matter what the game's about, it could be about aliens for all we care, the rules for handling details and certain subjects with care still remains.

When I first started riding I was in a stable that promoted that kind of cruel riding. It was fucking dangerous. For me my moment came at a barock stable. Those horses of course were up to some shananigans but they were happy. They were not dangerous. They actually enjoyed/didn t care too much about beeing ridden. . For me that was the moment everything changed - when I first rode a happy horse. It stops beeing a fight and starts beeing an adventure with a friend and if you make a mistake you dont end up in the sand. Often enough it will ignore the mistake because it actually likes beeing with you (or just knows after an hour it has done its job and will continue to be happy with its friends).

So what frustrates me with this trot is sso made sure to not make the horse wring his tail in absolute agitation and they made very sure to keep the horses mouth closed and not add any foam at all and MATCH up the legs so it looked better so they KNOW those things are wrong yet they kept the toe flick and the terrible head carriage in the gait...they almost had it! and yes thank for bringing this up becasue its so important that media portrays horses to be cared for and ridden in the appropriate way bceasue this is not onlt how kids learn but people as well, if you don't know anything about the subject what you see repeated on TV or in books your gonna think is the right way to do things.

so many leading dressage riders should be held accountable

As someone who knows little to nothing about horses, this was very informative to watch. So far SSO has been aware of not putting potential harmful stuff about horses, so I would assume this may get fixed if enough people draw attention to it

I very much noticed this as soon as I was testing out the horse with my friend I said “ ay (name) dosent that loook life big lick? “ and she agreeed w me

Congrats, this video has escaped the "horse" community entirely! This was CRAZY to hear about, as a total outsider to the sport... the fact that literally suffocating horses was ever considered professionally acceptable is unbelievable

its so unsurprising that this happened AGAIN considering how they literally had to change the marwaris special animation when it first came out due to people being outraged. ridiculous! and just recently a video went viral of a horse in dressage who's tongue was LITERALLY BLUE and fei didnt bat an eye, and they got super high marks.

great video as always. the current stage of dressage is indeed horrifying. i used to volunteer at a riding school, and several kids there did think these movements are what dressage is supposed to look like. unconscious normalization is powerful and shouldn't be underestimated.

I understand very little in this video due to my lack of equestrian knowledge but even from just looking at the animation(the white one specifically) my mind just sorta immediately went “that’s not how a horse should be moving!!” Which I feel like shows how wrong it all is if a recreation of it sets off the “that’s not how that animal moves” bell in someone’s brain

When Star Stable will openly state they won't be adding Saddleseat or Big Lick to their game due to it being controversial/harmful, but yet they will happily add in a modern Dressage movement without doing their due diligence to research it.... The contrast between the Lipizzaner, with it's classical high school movements, and the Dutch Warmblood with a disgusting imitation of 'Dressage'.. is incredibly telling. Thank you for bringing attention to this, it was about time somebody with some amount of an audience made a video on it. I too was a young girl with bright sparkling eyes, watching Totilas + Edward Gal and thinking, "Wow that's amazing!" - so much that Totilas was my first Breyer model horse. But now in my 20's I am more knowledgeable than ever, and I know now that it was awful and that poor stallion was harmed. On that extra note, I am tempted to make a resculpted Totilas to represent a proper extended trot - to honor what should have been, and what should be.

Wow this was so informational. As someone who isn't in the dressage scene, I recognize so many of the tense and "wrong" moves from watching dressage casually, I will never be able to unsee it now. The piaffe comparison was mindblowing and SO easy to see and understand when you get it visualised like that.

im not a SS player, but i AM an amateur equestrian. this video really helped explain what makes a good, proper gait. It disgusts me to know that higher-level equestrians are so willing to toss aside the sanctity of their sport and the well being of their athletes just to cater to laymen.

As someone who knows nothing about professional horse riding, this video was very informative and well put together, and helped me understand horse riding a bit better. If I ever make a game that includes horses and riding I’ll make sure to do proper research for the animations.

SSO; "How much abuse do you want us to add to the horses?" SSO higher ups; "Yes."

Just watching Black Beauty as a kid taught me about the suffocation of horses having their heads pulled back that tight when they were tacked up for carriage driving. My god.

As an equestrian myself, who does English and is currently helping *train* a horse, you are entirely correct on every point and the equestrian community applauds you :) We need better horse games to influence the next generation of riders. We need to stop allowing rolkur and behind the vertical line in dressage, and we need to fix the passage, piaffe, and extended trot. This extends past just "pixels on a screen", these are actual animals suffering because of the incompetency and greediness of big organizations and gold-medal-hungry riders. This was an another amazingly done video by you Rattle, thank you.

This is such an eye opening video. I have been skeptical of dressage for a long time now because every horse I have seen looks tense, that it came to a point where I wasn't aware there even is proper relaxed dressage that horses enjoy. This may have ignited an interest in dressage as an art form, thank you so much ❤

A little correction. The "on the bit" part is an outdated term. You do not need a bit to achieve collection. You don't even need a bridle after you train the horse properly. "Connected with the rider" or "on the hand" are more correct

I'm just happy there's not going to be saddle seat style gaits on the American saddlebred. (Because saddle seat movements can be used in really bad ways)

There is something ironic about getting a horse riding game ad right before watching the video

I’m a dressage rider who isn’t going to compete in higher levels because of how messed up the sport has become. It disappoints me that the worst parts of the sport are being represented and normalized in media. The sport is supposed to be about showcasing the horses natural abilities in a way that’s comfortable for both the rider and the horse. In my experience it is very uncomfortable to ride a horse who isn’t moving in a way that’s comfortable for them. It’s not fluid and it’s hard to work with your horse if they aren’t comfortable.

I’m so grateful for this video, I think it’s really important to spread awareness about proper horse care. Especially in game’s dedicated to children. I also hate when horse games punish you for putting your horses on a pasture, or only have stalls available.

Seeing all these horses OBVIOUSLY in pain and discomfort makes me so sad and is so hard to watch. Apart from the wrong movements you can feel their fear and pain by just looking at their faces. I really hope that things will change (back🙄) to the better and that people finally learn to appreciate these animals again. And you are totally right, horse games should definitely bear responsibility and help educating the younger generation (and even the older ones too ☺). Thank you for this informative and accurate video!

Dressage Hub AND Milestone Equestrian in one video? The FEI is shaking in their boots

Maybe it would be good if you contact the channel 'Raleigh Link'. She tries to educate public about Dos and Don'ts in riding and about horse abuse. In one of her last Videos she mentioned how alone she feels in the fight for changing the equestrian community. Maybe you could do a collab. Or find more creators with the same mission. A supportive network/community is priceless. Keep up educating people and calling out the abusers. You doing something important here. I don't ride myself but i love animals and hate how normalized certain abusive practices have gotten. Like Raleigh often says: "just because it's tradition doesn't make it right."

even as a lay person I always though the overly pulled back head looked painful, but I had no idea, it literally suffocates them, wtf

I'm SO Happy that someone said this! The next problem that needs to be adressed are the wrongly adjusted and bad bridles these horse games choose to implement in the games. We have tons of bridles these days, yet they choose the most harmful ones and fit them very ill onto the heads.

Thank you for talking about this. We shouldn't encourage such practices within games or at least put a disclaimer about these practices. It would also be cool/helpful to see games teach about how harmful these practices truly are. Adding on: I would love to see you touch on the horse game, Star Equestrian

Hii Rattle. I usually never comment, but after I saw your post on reddit and how negatively the people reacted, I decided to give my two cents. Many people in the comments started comparing SSO to other games, like GTA / RDR and while it's logical, for me it felt like whataboutism. Yes, they are right about comparing the two, but you're a RU-vidr talking and analysing *horse* games and not games in general, so I don't know why it was brought up in the first place. "Yes it sucks that SSO and other horse games promote and normalise animal cruelty to children, but hey, in GTA you can literally kill people, so what's the point😊". 💀💀💀 My second point, which I think is a lot more important, is awareness. People seem to forget that we as humans, but also as society have an understanding of how killing people, stealing and general violence is bad. Really bad. We judge and punish people who don't behave according to our societal rules. We understand that killing people sucks, even when we kill a person in a video game. We are able to differentiate between an actual murder and erasing a cluster of pixels. But animal cruelty is a different story, especially when it comes to horses. Horses in competitions are viewed as cash cows, as objects. Their value is determined by how much money they generate. Their physical and mental health is secondary. Equestrians, viewers, fans and the general public often don't know how animal cruelty looks like, since it got normalised heavily and often enough it doesn't get punished. I mean how would you know that rollkur exists and that it causes the horse to literally suffocate when it's an allowed practice in many countries and throughout many disciplines. That's the key in my opinion. There's no awareness, not enough knowledge and empathy for the people to know that what horse games promote shouldn't be done in real life. When we play GTA and go on a killing spree, we are aware that these things shouldn't be done, but when we play SSO and perform practices that are harmful, we aren't aware of the consequences that these practices can have in real life. Thank you for drawing attention to this topic. I love your videos

Probably no one will read this but I also thought, when they gave the icelandic horse an update, the Tölt, which is ideally a four beat movement truned into a flashy slow pace-like movement, which is also common in competition but biomechanically for real horses it is disastrous. I don't enjoy riding the new Tölt in SSO because it's just not right. They gave the Pasos a perfect Tölt with a nice four beat.

I'm not a "video games cause violence person" but unlike shooting people, most people don't know this is harmful to the horses. They don't understand the horse's body language, or how their bodies should move. Therefore having the horses do this in a horse care game and not giving any indication that this shouldn't be performed in real life is a bad idea.

Ive been watching your videos for a long while now as an ex star stable player who used to play way back in the day ( 2013 - 2020 ) , I would just like to voice my appreciation for your videos that very openly talk about these sorts of things without sugarcoating anything - I am no longer part of the star stable community even if it was a key part of my childhood , but your videos will always remain really nice to tune in to understand current happenings in the community :) ! Lots of love !

It frustrates me to no end to hear people say "Oh well it's just a game." over things like this, especially when it's a game meant for children. Children absorb a lot of info and will think things are real or true very easily, even if it's something from a video game or a TV show. Fiction can do a lot more damage than we seem to give it credit for. We shouldn't stand for abusive practices being shown and normalized in games as proper like this as children will see that and think that's how horses should be troting. I'd hate for them to end up abusing their horses by attempting this due to them being given improper information during their formative and more impressionable years.

I thought I was the only one who was seeing something strange with the Dutch Warmblood's trot. Thanks for this video Rattle and all of the people who helped, hope that some developper may come accross this, as it is already so common and sadly "normal" IRL. The dressage industry has so much things to work on and even if the mentality of people is changing, it is still degrading, with abusive/stressful behavior and bad riding becoming even more common. This industry should really change (and not only dressage, the equestrian world too). Something that I also can't believe is that for the FEI, it is impossible to do a higher level of dressage without a simple bit or bitless, so it is against the law, but abusive bits, hyperflexion, abusive gaits with the horse looking physically stressed and uncomfortable (eyes with white, too much saliva coming from their mouths and many others) is perfectly fine, and is heavily encouraged.

Very impressive video. I think the whole "they're just pixel horses" argument, which is already debunked by the fact that this is a game intended for easily-influenced children, can be further broken down by simply thinking about *how* these games are developed. The animation artists aren't just watching a single video and going "yup, looks about right, lets base it off of this one video". Animation artists watch MANY videos from different angles to get it *just* right. It's a sign of just how widespread these practices have become.

Until just now I’ve never realized how tiny these horses hooves are compared to their body 😭

I'm not a equestrian but thought, THROUGH GAMES, that these tensed up movements are correct and rollkur is the way to go. Only years later when i stumbled across a video or something i saw that rollkur is bad for the horse and only now know that these movements are tensed up

I am not an equestrian and only have a passing interest in horses as an aspiring biologist, but I am in awe of your wonderful explanations of things that, to me, seem so complex from the equestrian world! I love your videos and am always deeply respecting of somebody who looks out for the well-being of animals and healthy representation of them in media.

Add on to the rollkur thing: There is another, less known abusive training tecnique called "absolute elevation" which is still a form hyperflexion, where the rider pulls the horse's head high up an pushes it towards the neck.

Thank you not only for bringing light to this issue but also to providing good examples of both good and bad performances of each step you discussed. Not only is it helpful to the intended community, but it also helps your watchers in art communities interpret how each step works anatomically and depict more accurate poses in their work!

I don't understand why the higher ups didn't just accommodate the sport itself to make it more eye catching. Here's a simple one, dress up the horses. If the sport itself is boring, make the people doing the sport more pretty and eye catching, have a theme every year and give bonus points for the outfit. Idk there really so many different ways to have got eyes on the sport instead of just being lazy. I hate how rich people don't understand long term decisions it's insane.

Not gonna lie I thought they we'r talking about the big lick. It looks kinda similar, horrible bad riding is being normalized.

circus by britney in the background 😭

It's a different thing when you make a game directed towards adults, even then disclaimers are important, and make a game for children. The agrument that "These are just pixels, no one is hurt" is correct, but still not valid. When you create entertaiment directed towards children and younger people, you need to keep in mind, that no matter if you adertise your content as "Educational" or not, children will try to learn from it. It's what kids and teens simply do as a part of their development. When I was learning how to write stories for children, our teacher explained why so many bullies and villains in cartoons that are meant to be irredeemable are ugly and extremely stupid. It's not always because the writers are lazy, it's often because the story is for kids, and giving bad people anything kids can relate to or like can trigger "mirroring". Not sure how to translate it, it's when kids see something either cool or relatable in a fictional character and began to try to achieve it. I really hoped someone will bring this topic up without the stupid "Oooh, but it's pixels, lolz, maybe I'm overdramatizin teehee!!", because I need to admit, that I as a deadass adult wanted to learn these tricks because they looked cute and silly, but my riding instructor told me that there is no way, because it's abuse and they are not going to do that to their beloved horses. If I had a different instructor, who wold just wanted my money and didn't care about the horses, then probably I would have to end the training after seeing the harm I'm doing, and would drive into guilty. Also, this game is LITERALLY about building bond and trust with your horse. Bitless bridles would make so much sense for the plot, even the aesthetic of the game itself! Raising and training horses without the need to use force, just trust and friendship between two species.

I didn’t even know a thing about dressage or equestrian topics in general before clicking on this video, but your explanation made me actually get invested and curious the whole way through! I doubt I’d ever be in a situation where I could do something directly about it, but this is definitely going to be in my mind any time I come across something to do with it in the future, so thanks for educating me on this :)

This was an extremely well spoken, well researched video. Thank you very much for your work.

I am a beginner, I’ve been riding for about 6-7 months on an ex dressage horse, though I’ve always watched horse stuff, this is really educational and has helped me understand a lot and check my own horse for any of this, I will look out for it in others horses. 21:10 is extremely true, especially for people who don’t ride. I’ve struggled a lot with my horse but we have finally broken through that struggle and bonded alot. It breaks my heart to watch these high up level riders do this and still get high scores, I’ve always not wanted to say anything to what I’ve seen as I didn’t really know what I was talking about, this has educated me alot. Thank you (Sorry if this was all over the place I just had alot to say❤️)

Thank you for posting this! I’ve also thought this about the tack in sso!!! Nobody talks about it (at least from what I’ve seen). The dropped nose bands on some bridles are so incredibly sad. I hate that they even added them. They are horrible for horses. Ughh I get sad when I see someone riding around in one.

Yeah when I saw the flicking hooves I immediately thought of soring and thought it was an INTERESTING animation choice...

What i find absolutely hypothetical of sso is the fact that in their post about saddlebreds they stated that they wouldnt include saddleseat riding due to "bad practices" within it. Which i find quite funny seeing as how they have a RACE TRACK, flashes and other questionable tack, and lets not forget the passo's special gait or the DWB...like what..

I want to add, you can actually achieve all those dressage goals without a bit and force as well. I know people whom managed that, also had lessons from a very good centered riding instructor, all bitless. I learned from her the bit was invented for/during war, people noticed the horse then turned it's head quicker, not that it was for the good. About centered riding, it also focuses on the dressage there being for the horse, to help it carry it's rider in a healthy way. It also focuses on you as a rider, on feeling the movements. In my first I had to focus on feeling how the horses head moves back and forth, how belly goes in and outward, how the hindlegs sort of make a circle. It was so lovely, interesting and connective. Had to stop because of money but would love to take such lessons in the future again. To add, I'm so glad your'e sharing this, learned a few new things too. I knew about the rolkur, not as much about the piaffe. Ugh that video with Anky doing the rolkur, it just looks terrible, not proud of that as a dutchie, poor horse.

The amount of research that went in to this is sooo appreciated. The grey horse that you kept using as an example for correct movements is gorgeous! That piaffe took my breath away, I've clearly never seen it performed like that before which is worrying. Great video, Rattle!

never watches a horse riding video before, but am an avid gamer, and i found this very interesting

Fantastic video! You explained everything so clearly and with valuable reference sources so you could show what you meant, really found it very interesting to watch! 💜

You convey some very important points in such a professional manner here. Bravo!

i don’t play any horse video games and don’t have much interest in them - But this is the BEST commentary on the failings of modern dressage i have ever seen!!

For anyone who says it's just a game, I raise you a question. Do rabbits need baths? The answer is no. They groom and clean themselves. Baths stress rabbits out and can even kill them. However, it is still normalized in media despite rabbits not needing baths unless extremely dirty or soiled, most often caused by neglect and/or illness. It's not "just a game."

Those animations remind me of Big Lick competitions and it makes me really sad. It's a competition that encourages owners to wrap their hooves in heavy weights, acid soaked wraps, and sharp metal to make Tennesee Walking Horses walk a certain way :(

I don't know a whole lot about horses, but this confirmed my feelings that "professional dressage" looks stiff, inelegant, and choppy. I always felt that dressage, as a performance, should be about connection, balance, and beauty. Professional stuff just looks like torture.

I'm not very involved in the industry or pastime itself, so I never knew much about the history or the scoring of this, but this was so upsetting to watch. Will definitely be looking out for it more in the future. Amazing video, really well researched. Sad to hear about, but I hope that videos and causes like this raise more awareness in the casually-interested people like myself.

I loved this video. I’m so glad you spoke about it. Almost every gen 3 horse in SSO are based on bad gaits. I also want to add that bits were created specifically for the quick submission of the horse. People knew they hurt, they knew and that’s exactly why they created them. Also, school moves were invented to better move the horses in the war after inventing firearms. Because the purpose of the horses wasn’t to run into people anymore, they had to find another purpose. It turned out to be dodging bullets (though it’s said that those moves probably weren’t used in that chaotic context but still gave humans a boost in their ego to control the animal like that). A form of piaffé was used in wars to keep the horse on moving, so they could gallop any instant. Everyone knew the bits hurt, everyone had a purpose to use horses. Nowadays, we don’t have excuses and we shouldn’t keep on hurting them for the sole purpose of entertainment. Thank you for your work, Rattle. It was a great and necessary video❤

This was a super fun surprise from my recommended! was also super informative, all of my experience growing up has been in deep wilderness or labour contexts so dressage has always been a massive blindspot for me. Sure I can see the discomfort in the horse but I could never pin point what it was supposed to look like. As an artist and animator I can see the argument that the flick and other exagerated movements could be abstractions to sell a movement but based on the way all other animations are approached its clear the style is meant to be documentary. Reguardless of why these references were chosen I don't think its at all unreasonable to expect better. thank you for the insight!

Dressage needs to go back to being FOR the horse, not using the horse for dressage.

Thank you for covering this in such an accessable way! All of the thorough visual examples really helped! I wasn't aware of this problem, but I'm glad I am now so I can watch out for and not support this kind of abuse. I don't think I'll ever have the money to actually be able to ride or train horses, but if I did id love to do dressage... If it was actually a way to work together and build trust and companionship and help exercise the horse. Flashiness should never ever ever come at the expense of the partner you are asking to work with you

This! I also feel like a lot of star stable horses lack hind end impulsion and don’t track up properly. I thought it was a little funny that we got bell boots, which are often used for an overtracking horse, when lots of horses just barely track up

Unfortunately I think what's happening is animators just base their work off videos they find online, and most videos display wrong practices