change my mind - what controversial/guilty horsey things do you do and not feel guilty for??:)

[Red-1]

I do many, many things 'wrong'.

I will just leave this here... (and no, there was no field gate, plus there was a tractor in the field, starting ploughing, so we had to go get the photo right then and there, or I would have dressed nicer!).

Not very BHS approved

 

[Chippers1]

I do most of the things mentioned my worst is probably opening all rug straps and pulling it off from the back end, my excuse is that his rugs are always staticy so if i pull them straight onto the floor like that they don't give me a shock
I've only been caught out my leg straps once or twice....luckily Buzz just stands there until I free him!

 

[cauda equina]

I think it's good that there is a 'BHS method' which you can use as a starting point with a new horse, but see no reason to stick to the bits that turn out not to be needed

 

[J_sarahd]

I do most of the things mentioned my worst is probably opening all rug straps and pulling it off from the back end, my excuse is that his rugs are always staticy so if i pull them straight onto the floor like that they don't give me a shock
I've only been caught out my leg straps once or twice....luckily Buzz just stands there until I free him!

I do this too. Again, thankfully Pony is very good.

I also do the sliding on from a mounting block. Was told by someone at my old yard not to as I could break my pelvis...

 

[Lipglosspukka]

Oh. Sometimes when I dismount, I swing my right leg over the front of the saddle instead. Just on the ponies.

 

[ycbm]

I do most of the things mentioned my worst is probably opening all rug straps and pulling it off from the back end, my excuse is that his rugs are always staticy so if i pull them straight onto the floor like that they don't give me a shock
I've only been caught out my leg straps once or twice....luckily Buzz just stands there until I free him!

I had absolutely no idea that was supposed to be wrong!
.

 

[cauda equina]

I used to do the leg over the front dismount until I got a sticky seat saver; then you just hang there

 

[Chippers1]

I had absolutely no idea that was supposed to be wrong!
.

Don't think we'd be passing any BHS exams

 

[teddypops]

I am so mentally scarred by an old yard routinely letting 10 in at once to find their own stables... I think I'll be leading mine in until I hang up my boots ?

On a yard I worked at, we had about 25 ponies to get in and tacked up every day. The gate was opened and they all trotted down the lane and into their correct stable or stall!

 

[jnb]

ooh I've just remembered, I change rugs in the field with just my OH and a pony nut (in the dark) as well.
And I hunter clip my cob who lives out 24/7, I cba with lines and he gets hot & I have good rugs /shelter so why not?
I never use hoof oil (barefoot) - usually forget at shows as well
I agree about routine, horses out or on a sole owner yard, you don't need one. horse knows they're fed when you turn up.
On a yard with multiple owners, much more tricky (but then, controversial post! I don't really like other people so avoid yards like the plague anyway - lockdown has been heaven in many ways!)

 

[teddypops]

I do the rug flinging thing too - often in the middle of a windy field.

I also do the, “Stay there!” thing if I need to close a gate or grab my gloves etc.

I do the sliding on from the mounting block too.

I often take off my jacket or jumper whilst riding, without dismounting, and fling it over the fence as I pass.

I also ignore the ‘fastenings to the outside’ rule for chest clips on rugs and throat clips on head collars. This, however, unlike my other breaches of pony club protocol, is intentional and not just laziness. I’ve seen those clips on head collars get caught on hay nets and I suspect there’s a possibility of the same sort of thing happening with rug clips, so they all go to the inside (and I try to buy cheap head collars without throat clips).

I thought the rule was the clips to the inside so as to avoid them catching. I’ve had ponies for 45 years and no one has ever said to do it the other way round!

 

[Trouper]

Don't think we'd be passing any BHS exams

I fell over a youtube clip of "How to tack up" the other day. By the time it had finished I was totally dizzy so don't know how the poor horse felt. If they clipped and unclipped the headcollar once to squeeze around the front end of the horse it must have been done a dozen times. Did up the throat latch to check it was the correct tightness - and then undid it again to pass round the twisted reins!!!!! Never once moved round the back of the horse so how does it ever learn that handling happens at both ends.?!!
In what world........

 

[LEC]

I don't feel guilt which is very helpful with horses. It also means I never worry about other people and what they think. Some horses let you get away with slightly slack management and others don't. I just think as long as you learn from your mistakes and have an open mind then its all good.

 

[Chippers1]

Who has the time for that!

 

[Keith_Beef]

I fell over a youtube clip of "How to tack up" the other day. By the time it had finished I was totally dizzy so don't know how the poor horse felt. If they clipped and unclipped the headcollar once to squeeze around the front end of the horse it must have been done a dozen times. Did up the throat latch to check it was the correct tightness - and then undid it again to pass round the twisted reins!!!!! Never once moved round the back of the horse so how does it ever learn that handling happens at both ends.?!!
In what world........

I remember as a child being told to never walk or stand behind a horse, but when you have a line of them tied outside their stables being groomed and tacked up, how to you walk past them, along the path?

When I was helping my daughter tack up, she told me that you can go behind a pony but you approach it from the side so that it sees you, and you put your hand on its rump to reassure it. This way it doesn't get a tiny glimpse of movement behind out of the corner of its eye, and react instinctively as if a wolf is there.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I thought the rule was the clips to the inside so as to avoid them catching. I’ve had ponies for 45 years and no one has ever said to do it the other way round!

I've always done clips to inside for millions of years, and in the past gone ballistic if not ?

 

[windand rain]

I do everything with the baby horses as I would with an adult and dont expect trouble. I dont ever lunge a horse without a rider and only then for a lesson. I teach bareback riding and jumping.

 

[McFluff]

When I take off a rug, standing on the horse's left side, I fold the front half over the back half, then roll out up from the bottom and use the long straps to wrap around it almost like a bedroll, then find a way to hang it either from a ring or (if there is one) a line strung along one wall.

I don't know if this is the "correct way", but it seemed to me to keep everything neat and clean and make it easy to put the rug back on afterwards.

I wish the others at the yard would do this, too. I hate to find a rug dumped in the feed trough.

Worse is when I'm helping give out the feed, and there are horses still out, either in the arena or on a hack, and I find a rug dumped on the floor in the straw. Not only will there be straw all over the inside of the rug, but I have business of a hungry, greedy horse charging in towards the trough and getting tangled in a mess of rug and straps.

I almost never tie up for grooming and tacking up our picking out. I'll put a head collar on the troublesome ones, and only tie the horse up of it's getting impossible.

I don't dismount, I jump down (unless the saddle has got bags and rolls attached for long distance riding).

Rugs crumpled up in a heap (especially if they are wet or damp, in the way, or on bedding) is a pet hate of mine. Although I use the fling method to put them on (my excuse is that I am short) - and I slide them off the back (oops!) - I always hang them up neatly to keep the insides clean when I take them off a horse. It's funny how different things are important to different people!

I've also always been told to do rug clips to the inside, otherwise they can clip themselves onto wire when stretching over a fence. Been shouted into me since I was young.

 

[southerncomfort]

I do many, many things 'wrong'.

I will just leave this here... (and no, there was no field gate, plus there was a tractor in the field, starting ploughing, so we had to go get the photo right then and there, or I would have dressed nicer!).

Not very BHS approved

View attachment 68720

Nope. But very, very cool! ?

 

[southerncomfort]

Re: youngsters going out on their own. I am definitely coming round to this way of thinking.

To be honest, my youngster doesn't take a lot of notice of his walking companion and we often end up quite far ahead and have to wait for her to catch up.

She was definitely useful the first couple of times a car approached from behind, but I think we might be better off alone now (also she is lame ? ).

 

[Hallo2012]

rug fling
never tie up
pull the stallion around by his forelock
gallop in the same place alllllll the time
zero routine
never lunge
gallop in the same place even in the dark in winter and 100% rely on the pony to see the track
lead them up and down garden steps to avoid having to go the long way to the field
solid tie

 

[conniegirl]

1. I absolutely fling my rugs on from when they are young

Ride all my newly broken horses out alone on hacks right from the start.

Let my horses put themselves into the field and bring themselves in from the field.

I give my horses treats for no reason other than that they are adorable! They aren't nippy, so I don't see a problem.

I travel always with a haynet

all of the above!

I will smack my horses muzzle if they bite me, unsurprisingly they only ever do it once. I don't have nippy horses and i've never yet made one head shy..
I don't do matchy matchy
I don't change my saddle cloth after every ride,
I ride in my yard boots unless its a show.
I weigh more than 10st and ride a 13.2hh pony.
I clip my natives out fully (except legs) in january as I can't be arsed dealing with getting winter coats out.
I quite happily hack out bareback (even on the roads)
I clean my tack before shows and if it gets a proper soaking but thats about it.
I change feed sometimes without introducing the new feed slowly as I don't see the point when you are just changing from one chaff to another or from one pony nut to another.
I change between hay and haylege without warning too as I pick what looks like the best bale of whats on offer.
I use bribery to load my horses

 

[Auslander]

I solid tie my horses. Most people are pretty horrified by that one.

Me too. I rarely tie up anyway, and if I do, it's so I can do something to them, so I'm right next to them if I need to untie quickly. The only incident I've had in the last few years was a horse pulling back whilst tied to baler twine. I have a bent gate to remind me why I hate baler twine!
I have heavy duty cable ties everywhere for everyone else to tie up to.

I sit on the floor to clip Alf's legs

 

[cauda equina]

I change feed sometimes without introducing the new feed slowly as I don't see the point when you are just changing from one chaff to another or from one pony nut to another.
I change between hay and haylege without warning too as I pick what looks like the best bale of whats on offer.

Me too
Whenever I've had one living out 24/7 and suddenly needing box rest they've always coped with the complete change of diet so I don't overthink it in other circumstances

 

[catkin]

I do a lot of these things
especially
doing stuff with ponies untied
out and back hacks with youngsters - though usually I do 'something' at the turning point such as go to village shop, visit a neighbour as the pony 'sees the point' and learns to stand as well.
always solid tie when required.


one thing I won't do is fling rugs on - if you or pony get caught by a flying buckle it blumming well hurts!!! always fold in half crossways and carefully place over the back.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

Considering some of the reactions I get on here quite a lot of my stuff isn’t BHS but then I wasn’t BHS taught ?

Personally if it works and you aren’t putting your horses and others at risk then who the hell cares how you do something ?

 

[Slightlyconfused]

Ride all my newly broken horses out alone on hacks right from the start.


Trim feet (tack up, groom, etc) without the horses tied up.
.

Definitely these two.

We walk our horses out in hand everywhere alone before backing and once backed do not rely on hacking with friends as I refuse to have a horse that cannot hack alone.

Once baby spotty came back from being backed he went out hacking on his own with someone walking with and each time just a little bit further away and then set off on their own met up half way then went separately again.

 

[DorisTD]

Rugs have to be flung - how else are you going to get them up there? Unless it's the shitland, then it is more of a 'drop on', and kneel to do up his rug strap.

 

[SOS]

Do lots of the above... also...

-Leave doors of stables open when rugging/skipping out and expect the horses to stay in there.
-Travel with full tack on and tail bandage. Only thing I don’t put on is the flash which I do very loose through the bit and then put this on when I arrive.
-Transfer horse to horse when riding and leading without getting off.
-Mount either side dependant on where I easiest to mount.
-Clip all year round or in March/whenever suits
-I get my horses shod (only h&h controversial)
-I don’t rug my hunters at all until they are clipped (normally mid September)

 

[Widgeon]

Do lots of the above... also...transfer horse to horse when riding and leading without getting off.

Now THIS I would like to see