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Final Portfolio Subject: Animal Rights By:Cammi Gustaveson

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Memoir:

A single moment can define who a person is or what they will become in their life. For me that moment was when my parents bought me my first horse. It not only was the happiest moment of my life, but also changed my life substantially. I learned so many life skills from riding horses and I am now happy to say it is my career. I had been riding horses for multiple years before I was given my first horse. For my eighth birthday I received three riding lessons at a barn. I had wanted to learn to ride horses for so long and whenever asked what I wanted for Christmas the reply was always a pony. Unfortunately horseback riding isnt exactly a cheap and not an easy sport to get into. It requires a lot of practice, a lot of money, and parents willing to put their childs life in the hands of a 1000 pound horse animal that is unpredictable and has a mind of its own. But once I sat on the back of that horse during my first lesson, I never wanted to get off. After those three lessons the rollercoaster started. I wanted to keep riding and talked my parents into having one lesson a week. But sadly for my parents it didnt stop there. All of a sudden it turned into multiple riding lessons a week, followed by leasing a pony (like renting a house) and finally competingshowing. My collection of riding equipment also quickly doubled. Starting with a helmet and riding boots then growing to show clothes, grooming supplies, and tack. Horseback riding was an addiction, it had its highs and lows but I wanted nothing more than to be on the back of a horse and when I wasnt, I was wanting wanted to be ridingon one.
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This process continued for several years and continued to escalate until finally, at age 13 my trainer talked my dad into traveling to a breeding farm to look at horses to buy. I was so excited when I found out that I might soon have a horse of my own! My trainer, Dad, and I traveled to Omaha Nebraska for three days. When trying horses its a lot like Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Some horses are too old, some horses too young, some too difficult, and some too much money. We tried so many horses and had it narrowed down to two but the three of us liked both but couldnt agree on which horse would be best. So when the barn owner asked what horse we would like to buy, my trainer and I looked to my dad to see what his final say would be. My dad kindly told him that we liked both horses and was having a hard time choosing. Then the barn owner asked simply Why dont you just buy both? and my dad easily responding Yeah I guess we could. This marked the happiest moment of my life. Finally my dream had come true and I not only got my first horse but two horses! The idea that I got these two incredible horses with so much talent was almost too much to handle. It truly changed my life and made it so that I would fall in love with horses so much I would turn it from my hobby into my career. Five years later I still have my same two horses, they have brought me incredibly far and taken me to beyond my dreams. It wasnt always easy and I had my hardships learning to ride new, young horses but soon we were finally clicking and working as a team. They also turned into my children and I wanted them to have to best care which often involved many hours at the barn taking care of them. Having two horses allowed me to learn to ride with different techniques since not horses have the same attitude which helped me learn how to work through problems. They have carried me to so many championships and first place

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winningswins. I am always told by clients and other riders that I am such a graceful and beautiful rider but I always reply that I just have good horses because they taught me all I know and deserve the credit. Most of all my horses taught me that I wanted to not only ride for the rest of my life but wanted to make a career out of riding. I wanted to ride horses and teach people how to ride for the rest of my life. Looking back at that moment when my dad so easily agreed to spendingspend way too much money on a couple of four legged beasts animals for his daughter, and was marked the beginning of my true passion and changed my entire life. I dont know where I would be or what I would be doing without horses. Now a very successful rider/trainer and getting paid for what I love to do, I couldnt thank my dad more. Waking up every day and going to the barn to ride beautiful horses, and teach many lessons is my dream come true. These animals have taught me more than I could ever hope to learn and for that I am truly grateful. I am the little eight year old girl who never grew out of the I want a pony stage.
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Evaluation:

When there is a problem, the only way to solve it is by standing up for what you believe in. Being involved in an industry that is solely based around animals, Ive run into a lot of i ssues that not many people have heard of or understand. Every year it seems like another problem arises with animals rights, and it is often a long, unsupported battle. The reason being that many people are uneducated and dont know a lot about animal care or even the industry that animals are involved in. It is often unheard until someone discovers the cruel treatment first hand. Being involved in the horse industry, Ive seen a lot of crazy things. From mistreatment / or poor care of a horse to using drugs to enhance performance. Just like professional athletes that use steroids to better their performance, it is the same with horses. Horses are often givn drugs to make them perform better. There are many reasons behind drugging and include everything from dopamine (used to for calming) to pain relievers. At a competition, there is a lot of money and pressure for the horse to perform at its best. A lot of time parents who are spending tons of money at a competition and , want to of course see their child win. With all that pressure there is a lot put on the shoulders of the trainers. Jennifer Meyer, writer in Horse and Rider states that A trainers financial well-being often rests on his or her ability to win in a competition. By putting the trainers money on the line, it puts a lot of pressure to win. That also means on the horses end,people they are expecting perfection and putting the chance of winning in the hands of a four-legged animal. Also maybe the horse is feeling a little sore or lame the day of a competition, the trainer often scared of telling clients that it cannot perform

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that day, give in under pressure and dose the horse with strong pain relievers to it will appear fine. Sometimes trainers unknowingly will give a horse a deadly mixture of drugs, killing it or severely damaging the brain. For example, on April 29, 2009, twenty-one polo horses died of an overdose on the drug selenium in Wellington, Florida. With such an expensive sport, people want to see good results and often the pressure put on trainers have them turning to drugs for help. Even though there are rules and limits to the substances that can be given to a horse before the competition, they very rarely drug test or monitor what horses have flowing in their systems. This makes it easy for trainers to administer drugs, often at the owners discretion, to the horses. Meyer agrees that Defining abuse in horse training isnt as wasy as it might seem (Horse Training or Abuse?). It is hard to often say what is acceptable and often depends on the person and what they define as abuse. With so many different opinions of training techniques, it is hard to pin point what should be allowed and what should not. The same thing can be seen in the race horse industry. Horses that are worth millions of dollars and expected to perform perfect every time. Not only do the trainers feel pressure to win, but the owners who invest millions of dollars into horse flesh often become reckless. Also with racing, and betting on horses, it puts a lot of pressure in just one race to either make it or break it. It is human greed that pushes these harmful actions. Once again, there is a huge pressure and a lot on the line to win so people go to the extremes. Illegal substance use isnt the only abuse going on in the horse industry. Many people do not know the scary reality of the racetrack. Horses are started racing at age two. At this time

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they are not even close to full grown and mature (horses normally are fully mature around 6 years old). Their bones, still soft just like a child are expected to take a huge amount of pressure. Its like asking a toddler to run a marathon. These animals are also breed to have long legs so they can cover more ground which has created a huge problem., horses Horses are unfortunately flawed animals in that they are 1500 lb animalspounds and expected to run on toothpicks for legs, and adding the extra long skinny legs on these and young horses race horses are bred for, makes a disaster. There are hundreds of injuries on the race track from a pulled tendon to even a broken leg, but often go unseen. For instance, the 2008 Kentucky Derby, a young filly named Eight Belles was euthanized on the track after breaking both of her front ankles in the race. Out of all the disciplines, racing is by far the most destructive on horses. Horses that race are often out of their prime racing age by about 5 (which is still considered very young) and then many are sent straight to the slaughter house. Most people are just not educated enough to see a problem and help those without voices., and continue to let this poor treatment happen. Its Sadly its not only horses that are experiencing abuse. Many industries capitalize on themanimals. Just look at Sea World, huge whales to perform in front of an audience, and when something goes wrong, its blamed on the animal. A scientific study by Newcastle Univeristy discovered that dolphins in close proximity to humans experience extreme stress which makes it difficult for them to rest, feed, and nurture their young.These findings would also support the reason why these animals often lash out and try to harm the handlers/trainers. These creatures are wild and not meant to be a human attraction. Same instance with elephants used for rides and circuses. These creatures are not domestic animals and not meant to be kept in

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small, confined areas with a lot of human attention. People are just asking for trouble trying to tame these creatures that regardless of how humanized they seem, still have wild instincts which they can still act on. There are very few laws regarding fair treatment of wild animals being used for human entertainment and domesticated. oOnce again without education and people willing to stand up for those who cant speak for themselves, animals will keep being blamed and punished for something that isnt simply their fault and is simply just their natural insticts. There are also a slew of domesticated animals being abused. Just turn on your TV and youll see the typical animal abuse commercial showing images of distrested dogs and cats to the tune In the arms of an Angel. Unfortuantely domestic animal abuse is by far the most common since almost every household in America own a cat or dog. These animals are also so easy to obtain which allows many people to pay a small fee and then responsible for the care of the animal. Sadly these domestic animals really only need to have the essentials to survive such as food, water, and shelter, but unfortunately these simple things are often over looked. Those who abuse animals are often linked to domestic abuse. According to PAWS-people helping animals- reported that 71 percent of women seeking shelter from a domestic partner, also reported their spouse to abusing a family pet. Domestic animals abuse is often unseen and rarely stopped before the animal is in critical condition or dead. Since these animals cant physically say they are in pain or being mistreated, no one knows and they continue to suffer silently.

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Animals are the symbols of innocence. They are almost like children and cannot be blamed for others problems. It is sad to see so many different species suffer in different ways because of inhumane treatment. As a horse and dog owne/trainer, it is hard to imagine how someone could never see the true potential in all animals. The problem of animal abuse and rights is often overlooked because of the lack of support but hopefully the more people see the problem the more they will try and help those without voices.

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Work Cited:

Animal Legal Defense Fund. Animal Protection Laws of the United States of America and Canada. alfd.org.web.

Cohen , Andrew. The Ugly Truth About Horse Racing. 2014.web.

Meyer, Jennifer. Horse Training or Abuse?. Horse and Rider Magazine. 2011.web

PAWS. The Animal Abuse- Human Violence Connection. People Helping Animals. web

PETA. Horse Racing. web.

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Reflection Essay:

I think that in this class I learned new and valuable ways of writing. I would say that I learned especially a lot in learning how to analyze other people's work and if they were or were not persuasive in getting their point across to the audience. I also learned that everyone has their own style and that the style you choose to use gives each author a unique voice. I also learned how to write in completely different ways. First off all the writing that is done in high school is pretty much a strict 5 paragraph paper on a novel with an intro, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Before this class I really had no idea how to write outside of this format at all. I also always struggled writing essays on novel and I actually find that I enjoy and better at critical writing. In both essays you can see that I also learned to have a voice and kind of a writing style of my own unlike the essays I wrote in High School. In the two papers that I wrote I also learned that you need evidence to back up your claims so that it doesnt sound like you are just blowing hot air. When you add evidence to your argument in makes it seems educated and well researched. I think the most helpful thing I have learned in this class is to think outside of the box and to have a voice of my own when I write. I have also learned what to look for in an essay and what factors make a paper persuasive or not. Finally I think I learned that writing doesn't have to follow a certain format and can be more free and open to use your own format and ideas as long as it is well written, analyzing, and includes strong evidence.

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