Can we cope with ban on spurs/whips etc.?

[CanteringCarrot]

could there be an element of when pushing a horse faster than it needs to go at any time from backing onwards by use of heavy aids, dodgy bits etc is what is leading people to question riding horses at all, because they feel something is not right when riding a horse that has not gone completely through the long process of being allowed to develop every muscle necessary to give that great feeling that tells you, ` this is a well broken, well trained horse who enjoys its work`

we all know fad and fashion are components that filter down

judging by the disillusionment expressed on here about modern top level dressage, `cant bear to watch` its probably time things did change from the top down, in this case or the bottom up

and from the early training which is critical to making a horse, that very expression, making a horse is exactly what happens, not rushing through the early stages like a blind lemming, and expecting results and judging it by competition scores but learning to make a horse from scratch instead of destroying it, and then sitting there blaming the horse, or saying should we not be riding horses, when its out own stupid fault and there is nothing wrong with the horse, only our methods which have failed

I think you've missed or don't understand why some of us have these "should we really be riding" thoughts. It's not because we're destroying horses, blaming them, or not recognizing our faults. It's not necessarily that our methods have failed or that we're stupid, or even that the horse is seemingly unhappy.

I don't know how to explain this feeling, exactly.

Trust me, I do not rush training and really focus on a "whole horse" concept as well as a well rounded functional education. This feeling is not out of frustration. I'm also in no rush. It's not even that I think my horse doesn't like his work exactly.

 

[tristar]

its the element of doubt that says , something is wrong, and inability to express what exactly it is that says everything

i do understand exactly why people question riding

 

[CanteringCarrot]

its the element of doubt that says , something is wrong, and inability to express what exactly it is that says everything

i do understand exactly why people question riding

Ok ?

 

[tristar]

sorry CC, just can`t bear to see some of what goes on so not commenting any further on this thread

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I can't bear to see what goes on sometimes. So I don't perpetuate it. Sometimes that's all I can do.

 

[Peglo]

I also feel conflicted with riding. I’m enjoying so much having a riding pony again but at the same time I find myself constantly wondering if she enjoys it. I didn’t ride much over the winter and she was really like a pet like my other 2 retirees but I’m slightly taken aback at how much closer we are now I’m riding more and taking her out to events etc. she seems like she wants to interact with me more and enjoying our time together. I guess that’s good though as when/if she says no, clearly something isn’t right and I can adjust.

when out at the cross country (our first try) I just rode in my normal nosebandless bridle. Tali ran out a couple of times at a few jumps she was unsure about and took herself a gallop after a jump. I know why she did it. I didn’t ride her properly. I know I made mistakes and need to improve. I was shocked to be told I would have more control if I rode in a nose band or even better a flash.
i don’t need more control. I need to ride better. So I won’t be bothering with either.

 

[NinjaPony]

Bits are also tricky. Better to ride very lightly with a stronger bit than hold on too much with a snaffle, but that can often get used as a shortcut to training.

IMO you should be schooling in some type of snaffle for the training side, with a stronger bit out hacking/jumping if you need it.

There also needs to be a better understanding of bits and noseband interplay. 9 times out of 10 if the horse opens its mouth when schooling, it means either you need to have better hands, or it needs a different bit, rather than strapping the mouth shut.

Then again, mine hacked in a grackle because he could get quite excited in company and the grackle gives a lot of clearance for nostrils (he had breathing issues). He made his feelings quite clear on flashes so we never used one.

I always feel that people on HHO are usually more educated/aware of these nuances than the wider equine owning population, so most of us already have that self awareness and desire to work with the horse as far as possible. (Probably self selective by being on/contributing to debate on a horse forum). Problem is how to filter it out more widely.

 

[Miss_Millie]

My general observation day to day is that people would rather use harsher bits with more leverage and strap their horse's mouths shut than do the training on the ground. They'd rather whip to punish than train the desirable behaviours and they'd rather wear spurs than train light responsiveness in the saddle. So overall people prefer to use more force, do the 'quick fix', than actually put in the effort and do the groundwork. The result is a dictatorship rather than a partnership imo.

I particularly cringe at the sight of a horse with a tight flash on that's dripping all over the floor because it can't swallow properly. And I think this is at all levels, but if the top riders are using excess force on their horses then it doesn't set a good example.

 

[milliepops]

Oooh this leads me to a dangerous thought, for here at least... learning to ride better and training your horse well can be a lot of slow boring work that requires concentration and effort. It's the main issue i have with the "riding is supposed to be fun" brigade

Riding is supposed to be.... erm.... well, it *ought* to be ethical and with the horse's interests at heart. that may or may not be "fun".

 

[NinjaPony]

Strong agree @milliepops

Riding for soundness means lots of slow warm ups, careful hacking, focus on flexing and stretching and small gains. People used to give me strange looks when I explained that I wouldn’t canter on hard ground, or on boggy ground, or when I said I wouldn’t hack for more than an hour in walk because my pony was coming back from a break and I was building up his fitness. People love short cuts but sometimes riding is slow and boring, with a higher goal in mind…

 

[palo1]

Oooh this leads me to a dangerous thought, for here at least... learning to ride better and training your horse well can be a lot of slow boring work that requires concentration and effort. It's the main issue i have with the "riding is supposed to be fun" brigade

Riding is supposed to be.... erm.... well, it *ought* to be ethical and with the horse's interests at heart. that may or may not be "fun".

Totally agree. The 'Riding is supposed to be fun' unfortunately covers a whole gamut of situations and responses that may definitely not be fun for the horse!!

I take the view that engagement with animals in their ethical keeping, understanding and even training and competing is good for us and them, bearing in mind that we cannot stage an immediate retreat from any and all animal keeping! I don't think that would be ok either actually.

It is always a privilege to keep any animal and we all have our own lines in the sand about what we are comfortable with but the whole idea of animals as 'fun' seems dodgy to me. Keeping any animal should be serious and pretty hard work - both in understanding their needs at any one time and also providing them with the very best situation that we can. I would like to see less competitive 'goals' and more emphasis on horsemanship and passion for maintaining appropriate environments for horses but competition tends to focus the human mind and provide a context for seeing big picture improvements and thus potentially realisation of personal goals for those that are competitively minded. It really is at the base of our horse culture that we need to work though; badly or over-bred bred and poorly handled horses and ponies living in pretty unnatural or very poor situations (this may also apply to some competitive settings) because that is easiest for people to cope with financially or in terms of time. I mean, of course, I blame capitalism - it's my stock blame-mate so I don't really have proper ideas how to address the issue but from the ground up we do need to see ourselves more as horsemen/women/people than those just seeking 'fun' or status related goals. We need an equine meritocracy with ethical management at the heart of that. I think that is virtually impossible in a consumer, capitalist society as everything is commoditised and thus loses any non monetary/secondary monetary value. But at least this is a discussion in the public arena now.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

My general observation day to day is that people would rather use harsher bits with more leverage and strap their horse's mouths shut than do the training on the ground. They'd rather whip to punish than train the desirable behaviours and they'd rather wear spurs than train light responsiveness in the saddle. So overall people prefer to use more force, do the 'quick fix', than actually put in the effort and do the groundwork. The result is a dictatorship rather than a partnership imo.

I particularly cringe at the sight of a horse with a tight flash on that's dripping all over the floor because it can't swallow properly. And I think this is at all levels, but if the top riders are using excess force on their horses then it doesn't set a good example.

I see this a lot where I live. It's all very forceful. It's also all about everything being the horses fault or mistake. It's also not a partnership and is more of a dictatorship, as you mentioned. When this type of relationship fails because the horse is forced and doesn't have actual faith or trust in the rider, it's usually a catastrophic fail and/or meltdown.

I know of one trainer who is rather forceful, and unfortunately the younger crowd that watches said trainer just imitate what that trainer does. They also just don't know any better.

Oooh this leads me to a dangerous thought, for here at least... learning to ride better and training your horse well can be a lot of slow boring work that requires concentration and effort. It's the main issue i have with the "riding is supposed to be fun" brigade

Riding is supposed to be.... erm.... well, it *ought* to be ethical and with the horse's interests at heart. that may or may not be "fun".

This is an interesting point. Sometimes I do say that it should be fun, but usually it's because the rider is paired with the wrong horse and it doesn't ever have the potential to even be pleasant for either of them.

It's very rare that I find things boring, but it can be a bit slow and steady at times. Or sometimes you even regress a bit. It's all part of the process though.

I'm a bit of an oddball at the yard in that I do groundwork. One other person kind of does, and some are interested but don't know where or how to begin. I was so giddy the other day when I was doing this pole exercise on the ground and I figured out how to exactly manipulate a hind leg to go exactly where I wanted using previous training/buttons that I had installed. Sounds totally lame and simple, but it was cool ? no one at the yard would probably understand my excitement but some might find it interesting. I mean, people are flabbergasted that my horse will stand next to any object for me to get on him, and will stay there until I ask him to move on. This is basics 101 to me ?‍

Another rant is that people think he's easy and that he was just born that way. As if he came out of his mum knowing how to ground tie ? as if he wasn't a nervous hectic mess in the beginning (they weren't there for that!). Sure he's sensitive and rather smart, but his handling has shaped him. A lot of it was many hours on the ground, but people around me are all about the riding. That's it. So of course my horse functions a bit differently because my focus hasn't been solely on the riding.

Then there's the issue of instant gratification. People want to horse to know it, know it now, and fully know it. Small steps? Nope!

I was explaining the beginnings of teaching my horse piaffe in hand and explained to my friend that in the beginning stage he just shifted weight off of the hind limb, but didn't bring it up yet, but that was an ok place to start. Building blocks. She was amazed that I would find that acceptable and that it turned into the piaffe he has today. She's the type that if it isn't a piaffe on the first try it's obviously not working and is wrong ?‍ but has opened her mind a bit.

 

[milliepops]

Totally agree. The 'Riding is supposed to be fun' unfortunately covers a whole gamut of situations and responses that may definitely not be fun for the horse!!

I take the view that engagement with animals in their ethical keeping, understanding and even training and competing is good for us and them, bearing in mind that we cannot stage an immediate retreat from any and all animal keeping! I don't think that would be ok either actually.

It is always a privilege to keep any animal and we all have our own lines in the sand about what we are comfortable with but the whole idea of animals as 'fun' seems dodgy to me. Keeping any animal should be serious and pretty hard work - both in understanding their needs at any one time and also providing them with the very best situation that we can. I would like to see less competitive 'goals' and more emphasis on horsemanship and passion for maintaining appropriate environments for horses but competition tends to focus the human mind and provide a context for seeing big picture improvements and thus potentially realisation of personal goals for those that are competitively minded. It really is at the base of our horse culture that we need to work though; badly or over-bred bred and poorly handled horses and ponies living in pretty unnatural or very poor situations (this may also apply to some competitive settings) because that is easiest for people to cope with financially or in terms of time. I mean, of course, I blame capitalism - it's my stock blame-mate so I don't really have proper ideas how to address the issue but from the ground up we do need to see ourselves more as horsemen/women/people than those just seeking 'fun' or status related goals. We need an equine meritocracy with ethical management at the heart of that. I think that is virtually impossible in a consumer, capitalist society as everything is commoditised and thus loses any non monetary/secondary monetary value. But at least this is a discussion in the public arena now.

yeah. I would broadly agree with this. and thats why my first response was that seeing bits and spurs as the big bad is just missing the point! to me, that's very much tinkering around the edges.

I understand why edge tinkering is appealing when this stuff ^^ is too big and intangible to really get a hold on. But let's see it for what it is.

FWIW CC i don't find the tiny steps forward boring either, in fact, as time has gone on I came to see the incremental stuff as totally absorbing and fascinating. Once you throw yourself into really trying to understand your horse and figure out how to communicate in such a precise way then it's hugely rewarding. but how many people post on here that they hate "going round in circles"... no s* sherlock, we all do... that's not the point of training

 

[Miss_Millie]

My mare had a specific fear-based issue when I first got her, and the advice I generally got from much more experienced/long term horse owners was 'give her a smack and then she'll do it'.

I ignored this - with gentle consistency I managed to train the correct behaviour within the space of a couple of weeks, no force needed at all, now she does the thing all on her own no problem, because she understands what I'm asking for and that it isn't as scary as she initially thought it was.

Honestly it's disturbing that the default response from most people to a horse not doing something you want is to hit them. As if that's going to teach the horse anything valuable?

Interesting discussion on whether we should even ride horses at all. I admittedly love riding, but I would also just happily spend time with my girl every day, giving her a groom and a fuss, just being in her company. I do think that people and horses can have mutually beneficial relationships when ethics is the top priority, but imo this is not the most important thing to the majority of people. There's a lot of ego in the horse world.

 

[sbloom]

Loving how this is progressing - slow, boring...but only if you don't FIND interest in it. I think those that are open to the truly horse-centred work, that works on tiny things, one at a time ("can my horse abduct this leg?") is utterly fascinating and leads to a connection that the "leap on and go" crowd will never get with their horses. Many won't want to put the time in. That was me years ago. Growth is perpetual.

And I hope those that worry about riding their horses will find the new ways that people are finding to give their horses agency and choice in all things. You can't just add it on to what you're doing, but it may be possible to undo all the learned helplessness (which is much more subtle, and common I think than most of us realise, after all most backing processes are based on this) and allow your horse to truly be a partner.

 

[palo1]

Loving how this is progressing - slow, boring...but only if you don't FIND interest in it. I think those that are open to the truly horse-centred work, that works on tiny things, one at a time ("can my horse abduct this leg?") is utterly fascinating and leads to a connection that the "leap on and go" crowd will never get with their horses. Many won't want to put the time in. That was me years ago. Growth is perpetual.

And I hope those that worry about riding their horses will find the new ways that people are finding to give their horses agency and choice in all things. You can't just add it on to what you're doing, but it may be possible to undo all the learned helplessness (which is much more subtle, and common I think than most of us realise, after all most backing processes are based on this) and allow your horse to truly be a partner.

I do think more and more people are genuinely interested in their horses and do notice the more subtle stuff but it isn't central to the values of our existing horse-culture; which is largely the result of military necessity. As someone who owns both domestic and feral horses I think there are huge assumptions that are made that seem really difficult to me too. The whole thing about partnership is tricky as well; most of us struggle to manage close partnerships with other human beings who largely speak the same emotional and contextual language!! Even so, it should be entirely acceptable at any level to say 'I didn't do x/y/z because the horse didn't really seem to want to.'!! Even this isn't particularly straight forward though as horses may not feel like doing something or enjoy something for a whole host of reasons. If we take all of those things into consideration then our riding aspirations must become far more diluted and although I don't compete I feel personally sad and uneasy about stepping away from that magical potential tbh.

 

[Caol Ila]

I completely agree with all of you guys.

People at the yard wonder about the snail's pace at which I am bringing on my Highland, but if outsiders can't see the training, it's good training because it's quiet and subtle. And the horse is making progress. Had a dressage lesson yesterday with a classical trainer, and he was consistent enough in his rhythm and in the contact that we could work on other things, like baby lengthenings and my crap position. That's a huge change for a horse who had no steering in the arena ten months ago. I've just been slowly chipping at it, nicely, because there is no value in fighting or forcing. Pitting myself against native pony stubborness is not a road I want to go down. And the little guy is definitely keen on a partnership with his humans, so long as he understands what they want and isn't frightened. Hence, we go slowly, and I always make sure he can "win" by doing the right thing.

The slow-and-boring approach isn't widely followed, sadly. Everyone wants to gallop and jump, fun things, as if the horse was a mountain bike. If the horse gets too strong, get a bigger bit, rather than go back and address training issues. I felt a bit guilty a couple months ago when I helped someone fit a Myler combination bit to their horse. I had ridden Fin in one for a while, so I was obviously the expert on that bit. This person wanted it because their horse was taking off in a Dutch gag, and she'd been advised that the Myler combo was even stronger. All I could do was explain to her how the bit worked and why I used one (it helped my funny ex-feral horse understand the bit, and I always rode with a super light, soft hand because it can be very harsh). I am not sure it made this horse's life better. I think it was a quick fix, and the owner had zero interest in re-evaluating their riding or training. Still, I made sure it was sitting in his mouth correctly. Justified it to myself by saying she was going to use it anyway, so it might as well fit, and at least I could prattle about my training philosophy while I fitted it.

The alternative horsemanship we are talking about in this thread is widely available on the web if you start looking, more so than ever, but it hasn't made inroads with your average punter at a livery yard.

 

[TPO]

I think this awareness that "people are watching" is spreading. Perhaps it's not filtering down to every yard and every person but I do think people are a lot more aware in general. For example you just need one person to film you doing *something that doesn't look good* and you're life can be ruined.

Not a great example and I don't want to start a rerun of the previous thread but I don't imagine that things are too rosy for the teacher who hit and kicked the pony at a hunt. I know that's an extreme example but most of us have probably witnessed similar at one time or another but there weren't any cameras....

Coincidently there was a post about the same sort of thing on a fairly big American horse instagram account the same evening that this thread was made.

It was on a story so it'll probably be gone now but I think the account names is Cowhorses. There's a big Derby on in Arizona (I think) and the competition is split into three events; reining, cutting and fence work (with cattle).

This account posted a couple of pages similar in a similar vein to this OP. Basically that there were seeing a lot of open mouths, horses being hauled about and some less than refined riding. In this case all of the horses are in snaffles and no nosebands. They posted cropped screenshots of a few horse heads and it was the "typical" yawning mouth as the bit is pulled back/across.

They too spoke about the lack of refinement, for want of a better word, in the riding and put forward possible reasons then opened up the comments for others to join the discussion. Of the replies that they posted they were mostly of a similar ilk and many named riders/trainers who rode beautifully in snaffles and hackamores with happy, well trained horses who managed to do what was required and place/win without having their heads hauled off. So it can be done!

I just found it really interesting that this way of thinking is penetrating western "cowboy" events in America. I know it's just one person/one account so I might be jumping the gun. But again this was all snaffle bit riding and a lot of people, based on the replies, weren't too happy about it either.

That account posted a quote that I'll badly try to paraphrase but it was along the lines of "it's doesn't matter that you got it done, it's how you do it". I think that rings very true.

How many people jump X high, compete BE X level or have done A. B. C but it's been by the skin of their teeth and not pretty etc. The hope would be that it would be, as Milliepops posted above, ethical and putting the horse's welfare first

 

[Caol Ila]

On second thought, I should have said above that something is filtering. There are a few people at the yard who have taken a vague interest in groundwork, which is awesome, but it's a fuzzy version of Parelli stuff, which entails a lot of rope waving and jerking on horses with rope halters, which is less awesome. Their hearts are in the right place, but I don't think muddled rope halter work is brilliant for horses, either.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Part of the problem I find these days is kids are taught to sit on ponies. They are not taught to ride them. The number of kids we have coming into the yard saying they can ride and have ridden for years but they can't tell you what is going on underneath them. They can't tell you if the horse is lame, if it's moving well or shuffley, how it actually worked on the gallops etc. They think so long as they go from A to B and B to A without getting tanked with its all good.

 

[stangs]

On second thought, I should have said above that something is filtering. There are a few people at the yard who have taken a vague interest in groundwork, which is awesome, but it's a fuzzy version of Parelli stuff, which entails a lot of rope waving and jerking on horses with rope halters, which is less awesome. Their hearts are in the right place, but I don't think muddled rope halter work is brilliant for horses, either.

I reckon this is reflective of a general lack of critical thinking in society. People mimic what they see the NH 'pros' do without questioning how it works beyond a shallow understanding, how exactly it's going to benefit the horse (not the owner), and why do this specific method in the first place. Alternatively, it's just a part of the traditionalist --> 'natural'/alternative pipeline, that seemingly everyone goes through a phase where everything in this new world of horsemanship is perfect and cannot be critiqued.

(ETA: I went through that phase in part, just not with NH, so not one to talk!)
.

 

[catkin]

yeah. I would broadly agree with this. and thats why my first response was that seeing bits and spurs as the big bad is just missing the point! to me, that's very much tinkering around the edges.

I understand why edge tinkering is appealing when this stuff ^^ is too big and intangible to really get a hold on. But let's see it for what it is.

FWIW CC i don't find the tiny steps forward boring either, in fact, as time has gone on I came to see the incremental stuff as totally absorbing and fascinating. Once you throw yourself into really trying to understand your horse and figure out how to communicate in such a precise way then it's hugely rewarding. but how many people post on here that they hate "going round in circles"... no s* sherlock, we all do... that's not the point of training

I find this stuff incredibly inspiring, especially when the reaction from the pony is that they've been thinking about it too.

This maybe semantics (and I could be kidding myself more than a bit) but 'riding should be fun' actually could be applicable in this case, and for both horse and human , with that sense of pride of accomplishing something.

 

[eahotson]

I don't think there is anything wrong with trying to have some fun with your horse so long as its not at the horses expense.One of my best memories with the old boy is a western clinic we went to.He was brilliant and did stuff that no one else could do,even some of the quite expensive quarter horses.I did enjoy it all.When we got back to the yard I took him off the trailer and he had his head held high.You could see him think "YES!!! I was the business wasn't I?"

 

[eahotson]

I reckon this is reflective of a general lack of critical thinking in society. People mimic what they see the NH 'pros' do without questioning how it works beyond a shallow understanding, how exactly it's going to benefit the horse (not the owner), and why do this specific method in the first place. Alternatively, it's just a part of the traditionalist --> 'natural'/alternative pipeline, that seemingly everyone goes through a phase where everything in this new world of horsemanship is perfect and cannot be critiqued.

(ETA: I went through that phase in part, just not with NH, so not one to talk!)
.

I went through an NH phase and there is some good stuff in there when it is practised properly.I think because I had seen so many people think that the answer was to hit their horses very hard for all sorts of reasons.It was like a breathe of fresh air.They said that there is a kinder way.Then I started to look a bit more closely and saw that NH could be as abusive as any other way in the wrong hands.

 

[oldie48]

Putting aside the question of whether it's ethical to ride, surely the main problem is that many of us just don't ride well enough or have insufficient knowledge to made considered choices? As someone who started riding very late in life, I don't have a problem in admitting that for years my riding was pretty dire and I probably fell foul of every equine ad that told me if I used this or fed that, I and my horse would be super stars! Fortunately I have had some good people around me, had regular lessons and gradually my riding has improved and because I am very interested in most things to do with horses, my knowledge has grown and I have become more competent. What I do know is that if I lived for another 70 years, I still wouldn't know everything there is to know, I would still make mistakes and I would still probably change my mind about things as I gain more experience. If people slap spurs on to make a horse go faster, it's not the fault of the spurs it just demonstrates a huge gap in their knowledge. If people think a DB is an instrument of torture, then again perhaps they haven't ridden a well schooled horse in a DB. A schooling whip is just that, something to help educate the horse, no-one I know would dream of using it to beat a horse or inflict pain. Why would you, it would be totally counter intuitive? I don't know how you encourage people to accept that by improving their riding they almost certainly making life a lot nicer for their horse and by improving their knowledge they are much less likely to cause their horse pain but I don't think you do it by banning equipment that, if used correctly, is perfectly safe.

 

[Regandal]

I often ponder the ethics of riding horses. Bits bother me. Hard metal against soft tissue, that can’t be right. Why does a horse pay more attention to a strong bit, if not for the simple fact that it hurts when pressure is applied.

 

[palo1]

I often ponder the ethics of riding horses. Bits bother me. Hard metal against soft tissue, that can’t be right. Why does a horse pay more attention to a strong bit, if not for the simple fact that it hurts when pressure is applied.

Well yes but bitless bridles also exert considerable pressure, though in different places. Both can be sympathic, communicative or abusive

 

[stangs]

Well yes but bitless bridles also exert considerable pressure, though in different places. Both can be sympathic, communicative or abusive

At the same time though, a bit does limit the movement of the tongue, and its weight alone results in a certain amount of pressure. Hence, a bit always has some 'action', even when there's no contact, unlike a bitless bridle.

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Maybe if we started with people who are just starting to learn to ride as well, it's all about what the rider wants to achieve, there is generally no consideration to whether the horse is happy or not or maybe changing the plan of the lesson suit both the rider and the horse. I know that's hard because obviously everyone needs to start somewhere and has to learn somehow but maybe instead of the just make the horse do it, if you started right at the beginning helping people to look for why the horse isn't cooperating instead of just pushing on. I know when I started learning many years ago there was no thought to what suited the horse you were on just do this and this and this should be the result, obviously the intended result was never great because the basics weren't great to begin with, but if you learnt to ride while also considering the horses feelings and really getting the basics right everything else would be so much easier.

I love doing the basics, I was thrilled the other day doing groundwork with my 3 year old that I could direct each individual foot one at a time over a pole forwards backwards and sideways and we practiced parking by the mounting block while I climbed up and bashed about kicking the block and making noise and he learnt to just stand there and wait, we also park next to walls and logs while I climb up them because when I come to ride him that will be very useful. I don't find the basics boring at all, I think it all depends on the mindset you approach it with, if you just look on it as something dull that has to be done and just go through the motions it will be dull but it doesn't need to be dull for you or the horse.

 

[blitznbobs]

Very close to my surface too. I enjoy riding and training horses deeply but the mental gymnastics to justify it is tough. I thought the other day that perhaps i'd just let my homebred doss about and be used for cuddles, something she willingly participates in!

I just look at it like this… i dont think
My horses hate me riding them - in fact some of them seem to actively enjoy it, and even if its not their favourite they do need exercise. If a human was asked to work 5 or 6 hours a week in a job they weren't that keen on but in return would have all their needs taken care of then I’m sure lots would go for it especially at the moment…