Am I the only person who doesn't like this video

Well to be fair if the horses didnt like it, they arent being forced to stay are they? They could at least walk away from the girls but they dont. Seem quite content although perhaps a little bemused about what they are being used as climbing frames.
 
I have to admit I was a bit unconvinced but just as much with the tag line that that meant every pony wants a small girl in their life. I don't think the horses were bothered but I'm not sure it is the best thing that has ever happened to them that means all the other horses will be jealous either :D
 
NZJenny said:
Same. Reading some of the replies, I get the feeling "the child" has been extinguished from a few people. As a teenager, I played cowboys and Indians, Badminton and thought nothing of charging up and down the beach bareback, wearing shorts and sneakers in a halter, because swimming the horses afterwards was the best bit.

We would happily ride all day jumping anything we could find, and daring each other to all sorts of mad stunts. I never did manage to perfect the flying leap onto a moving horse though ....

Oddly enough our horses were fit, bomb proof and never needed a saddle fitter, a chiro or an animal communicator. How did they ever cope.
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Rarely if ever got laminitis either if anything were skinny from overwork and ignorance. We used to ride daily for hours jumping and swimming in the river. playing silly games like who would jup over their own height jump you had to be able to walk under the pole without bending or knocking it off. We used to lie under the pole and the horse would jump over us. each hold one end of the pole while the otherone jumped over it. Ride without hats, slide off hay stacks and other hugely dangerous stuff but it was fun. Used to walk for a lesson 6 miles across fields on my own to save the bus fare so I could have twice as long riding then walk home again maybe not arriving back is 8pm. All without any thought of danger and yes it was far more dangerous then from stranger danger than it is now
 
NZJenny said:
Same. Reading some of the replies, I get the feeling "the child" has been extinguished from a few people. As a teenager, I played cowboys and Indians, Badminton and thought nothing of charging up and down the beach bareback, wearing shorts and sneakers in a halter, because swimming the horses afterwards was the best bit.

We would happily ride all day jumping anything we could find, and daring each other to all sorts of mad stunts. I never did manage to perfect the flying leap onto a moving horse though ....

Oddly enough our horses were fit, bomb proof and never needed a saddle fitter, a chiro or an animal communicator. How did they ever cope.
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This, when I was that age no one had ever heard of an arena or rode their ponies in an outline. We used to gallop around bareback everywhere, jumping logs in the woods sometimes doubling up, vaulting on the ponies in the field then making them gallop off whilst we faced backwards.

I will never ride at the Olympics but all these adventurous activities as a child/teenager has given me an extremely secure seat.
 
Horses like cool water on a warm day, I am guessing that this is in the US, and those are probably QH types who are renowned for their tolerance. Regardless, those horses could have removed themselves if they had wished to, they weren't being held, they were just being, nice and cool and mostly out of bug range.

I frequently take my horse and stand in a pond :)

As for the H&S aspect, they have done it, they obviously didn't die, there was an adult (or an adult sounding person) close by watching, chill out those of you who object, didn't you ever have fun as a kid? Why does everything have to be dissected and criticised nowadays?

This is what childhood is all about, making fun out of what you have.

Many of us have probably done the same.
 
Yup. Relaxed horses. Perhaps overly relaxed parents but the OP was talking about the equines I think and I've certainly never seen e.g. a horse in an Olympic dressage test looking as happy as those two do.
 
Goldenstar said:
It would have to be hotter than Scotland unless the ponies were attempting to escape the midges and children where in wet suits to stop them getting exposure .
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They sound American to me not this country. Think if horses didn't like it they'd have been outa there
 
silv said:
This, when I was that age no one had ever heard of an arena or rode their ponies in an outline. We used to gallop around bareback everywhere, jumping logs in the woods sometimes doubling up, vaulting on the ponies in the field then making them gallop off whilst we faced backwards.

I will never ride at the Olympics but all these adventurous activities as a child/teenager has given me an extremely secure seat.
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This. Climbing on horse back using its leg as a climbing rope, going as far as possible in the woods and then let horses find the way home, riding double... you name it...

Our horses usually spent time in the summer camp on the farm, roaming free as a heard (I watched stallion fight there once - absolutely terrifying yet beautiful) and in hot weather (and we talking about 30+) when flies driving everyone nuts, horses were sitting in the water just like that, literally only noses and ears pocking out. You could jump of them, sunbath on them... no reaction whatsoever.
 
Toffee44 said:
Obviously just being a grinch....

Just wouldn't use my pony as a platform to jump on and off its spine into the water.

Swim with pony yes. But stand on its spine and leap off... No
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The kids weigh next to nothing. This is no worse than teenagers vaulting on ponies that were too small for them 5 years ago, and leaning down off them, pulling the saddle to one side (aren't we always told NEVER to do this?) to do mounted games? I used to get up to all sorts of stunts when I was a kid, that my mother would probably have had kittens if she had known what I was up to. But back then we weren't kept in cotton wool. At under 14 I would be off on my own, cycling at least 5 miles away, lobbing bricks down mineshaft, shinning up trees, swinging off branches. The only rules were don't speak to strangers and if you are out with the cattle, take a thick stick. Jeez, mother didn't even know I was vaulting on and off the cows backs and riding around the field on them (they were remarkably tolerant too, I only got dumped in the nettles once).
 
The thing that makes me uncomfortable about that video is more the girls jumping into the water behind the horses, which seems like a really good way to get kicked and is not something I'd be encouraging my children to do. I'm glad the girls didn't get kicked and had fun, though, and certainly don't begrudge them that!
 
Toffee44 said:
Obviously just being a grinch....

Just wouldn't use my pony as a platform to jump on and off its spine into the water.

Swim with pony yes. But stand on its spine and leap off... No
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Ah, not bothered. Those girls are very light for the size of the horses and the.wster is supporting them as they get on... Far more worried about the spines of virtually anything on those horrendous "do I look too big" threads you get on here. (Yes, in general you do look too big, for the horse/your health... Please loose the flab and get brave enough to ride something in proportion! Not directed at OP or anyone specific... Just general impression)
 
Agree with Thursdaynext.
Horses don't appear to me to be 'shut down', in fact probably enjoying the cool water, the only thing that annoys one of them is when it gets splashed in the face, so moves it's head.
Not even worried about the children not wearing a hat in water.
As a child my parents insisted I wore a hat to ride which I did (secured with a bit of broken elastic) but would regularly catch in and canter to the top of the field, bare back, head collar and other horses present and no hat - obviously because that wasn't proper riding it was ok!!!
Wouldn't do it as an adult but those small, light children look like they are having great fun.
I would confidently say no ponies were harmed in the making of this film!
 
Dry Rot said:
I'm in my 70's but we didn't have a river. What we did have was head collars made from baler twine (because Red Indians don't have proper bridles), sliding down ponies' necks because there was no saddle, nor hats either come to that. Do kids still climb trees or is that politically incorrect these days without a hard hat, ropes, and a thorough risk assessment?
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Many years ago, after arriving back of holiday desperate to see my horse and being told he was being ridden by my friend who was looking after him whilst I'd been away I walked over said field in my jeans and stiletoe heels and clambered aboard for a quick canter! Everything is Health & Safety mad these days, and whilst applicable on building sites to follow site procedures and rules to ensure safety is paramount, it seems like todays kids can't do anything. Banning conker fights is one of the silly rules enforced by schools these days! Apparently the risks of getting sun cream in ones eyes is greater than the risk of sun cancer. My friends kids came back with a note from pre-school the other day to say that their class are no longer permitted to apply sun cream to themselves anymore in case they get it in their eyes! Friend is now applying long lasting sun cream to her kids before they go to school and said she will go to school at lunch time wait in reception until someone get her kid out of her class and will apply it to her children!
 
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tbf most children with an umbrella are pretty lethal. We weren't allowed them 30 years ago :p Waterproofs and wellies.
 
No, I don't like the video either. Couldn't watch it until the end. Horses in too deep water to be dosing. Children are in danger doing such a stunt. As a parent, I wouldn't allow it, let alone film it.
 
ester said:
tbf most children with an umbrella are pretty lethal. We weren't allowed them 30 years ago :p Waterproofs and wellies.
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School kids can be lethal with anything :D

Kids with umbrellas are not as lethal in Portugal... I had quite a surprise after moving back to UK and daughter couldnt get her head around why she could there and cant here :lol:
 
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RaposadeGengibre said:
School kids can be lethal with anything :D

Kids with umbrellas are not as lethal in Portugal... I had quite a surprise after moving back to UK and daughter couldnt get her head around why she could there and cant here :lol:
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Children are weapons of mass destruction!

Umbrellas in almost anyones' hands are nasty things. My own mother nearly took my eye out once when she turned around to speak to me during a rain storm. She's a couple of inches smaller than me these days and the tip of one of the spars caught me on my eyebrow.
 
About a hundred years ago, I worked at a riding school about two miles from a pretty big river. In the summer evenings, if the horses weren't working (they usually only did Tuesday and Friday evenings) we were occasionally allowed to ride down to the river and swim them. The only warning we ever got were not to get saddles wet and to be careful of their front legs catching us if swimming alongside. Memory fails me but presumably we all rode back the two miles dripping wet. Don't remember that but do remember it as fantastic fun and something the horses enjoyed as much as we did. The field at the river was a major canter spot as well so presumably we all hooleyed up it and jumped the log at the end, dripping wet and bareback :)

These horses look completely chilled out about it and probably much prefer it to working.
 
We did such stupid things on our long suffering ponies when we were young. Children need to take risks and the ponies look fine to me.
 
just-wait said:
No, I don't like the video either. Couldn't watch it until the end. Horses in too deep water to be dosing. Children are in danger doing such a stunt. As a parent, I wouldn't allow it, let alone film it.
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Oh for goodness sakes. if the horses felt they were in danger of drowning they would move, haven't you seen the video of the two blowing bubbles.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...C5F1A243A1EB479F2BDBC5F1A243A1EB4&FORM=VRDGAR

The kids can swim. there was someone watching.

I would not dream of questioning your own parenting skills. Our own kids have the ability to scare the heck out of us with the what ifs don't they?

I once watched my 10 year old gallop flat out down the side of a mountain racing with her friends (out hunting) I almost died, my heart was in my mouth, and then I reminded myself that I did just the same when I was her age, not that that made me feel less like screaming "Slow down! Watch that rock! Mind the gully! Oh God! I can't watch !"
 
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The video itself didnt bother me, I think the issue was the title. Something like " every pony deserves girls like these".

Sure the ponies are well trained, and not really fussed, but I think the title is a bit daft.
 
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