Difference between riding school horses and privately owned

I believe I am a much worse rider since having my horse at home. For many years my daughter and I had a mum & daughter share on working livery at a RS. we got the best of both worlds as we alternated in lessons between our horse and a RS horse. We have had our horses at home for 8 years and I am a complete mess if I ride anyone other than my Flicka. The horses at our RS were all gems. Some couldnt tolerate the changes and routine, these tended to be used for staff/better riders and would often be sold on when thtey were going nicely. Others seem to enjoy the familiar routine. My Flicka wasnt very happy as a working livery. She gets quite uptight if people are heavy in the hand and seat but can tolerate my ineptidue very well.
 
I have ridden all sorts of horses and some of the best I have ever sat on have been RS horses/ponies. I think that the type of RS horse you get depends on the RS! My last RS had some lovely horses and I only left as I got my own.

Incidentally JenTaz could you please PM me the name of the RS that had your horse before you got him?
 
RDO, I would have had steam coming out of my ears by the end of the first week, and exploded by the end of the second. Or else my family and friends might have got to me first!
 
blood_magik said:
Further to what bluewhippit said, personally, I don't see why I should pay for a lesson to be given a horse that refuses to respond or teach me anything.

I've had this before - I paid £40 for a private lesson on a horse who I couldn't get to canter. I wasn't allowed a whip and was told to get on with it. Needless to say, I never went back.
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Thanks god it's not just me...... i was told the exact same and felt like a cr*p useless rider after wards, even though i've ridden for nearly 20 yrs on all sorts of horses.

That said i have ridden some lovely, nicely schooled RS horses/ponies it mainly seems to depend on the school/instructor/trainers. And the routine that they are in, if the horses/ponies have variety they seem happier, if they trot round the track doing the same thing then anyone or anything would be bored and switched off.
 
Hi, Sorry never ridden a bad one yet, they were all complete angels, the dead to the leg ones, the spooky one,who decided we would be better off on top of a ditch because of a killer water tank. the sad ones,who just need a cuddle, the ones who tanked off with me,instructor advised me we had to work on our speed control and our brakes, the ones who reversed with me, refused jumps, and the ones who ditched me, because in the end they all taught me to ride better. I love them all.:)
 
Hi there, I don't post here very often but as someone who grew up riding in riding schools, the main difference I found was in me and my attitude, rather than the horses.

I'm a fairly average rider, but in a riding school, surrounded by people all the time, I was happy to ride a wide range of horses, from just broken youngsters to older schoolmasters. I often got the quirkier or green horses and I didn't mind. Then I shared a very 'hot' mare for a while, and didn't notice much difference as I nearly always rode at the same time as the owner on her other horse. In both cases, I had company and support if things went wrong. It gave me confidence.

Then I got my own horse. And on my own, in a livery yard, frequently the only one there riding at the time - I suddenly got nervous. What happened if my horse put in one of her trademark 180 degree spins and galloped off when I was on my own in the school or out hacking? Would I stay on? What if I didn't?

So I lost my nerve a bit, and for a while my horse got worse and worse. All my fault - not hers. But unlike in a riding school, no-one else was going to help school her for me or improve her, or work through her issues. Or help sort out mine. When it's your horse, it's your responsibility and yours alone and in most cases you're the only one riding the horse. So the big difference I found wasn't so much the horses themselves (who are many and varied whether RS or privately owned) but the lack of a ready support system and instruction when something went wrong.

Suddenly it's all down to you.

Thankfully, I worked through these issues with the help of a good instructor, but it was a culture shock I wasn't prepared for at first.

Going back to the original post - the only comment I'd make is that in my experience some privately owned horses can be trickier to ride than some riding school horses - for instance where they don't get enough exercise to remain sensible, or they've become attuned to just one person over a long period of time. When my horse was off work, another livery very kindly let me ride her lovely youngster who had only ever been ridden by her, and it took a little while before we started to understand each other. I was clearly giving the aids in a slightly different way to his owner, and the poor boy was quite confused at first.

Does that make sense to anyone?? :confused:
 
I've been to about 6 different riding schools around Dublin so I know the different levels of horses. Many of them would generally be numb and stubborn to your leg but I honestly don't blame them, you should see how some schools treat these poor ponies! I took a break from riding for 2 years (only came back last August) as I couldn't find a yard right for me.

Finally when starting in August I found a yard where I was amazed by the RS horses, they were really responsive to your signals but I mean they wouldn't necessarily do what you asked unless you were clear and the yard had a variety of horses, from green ones to calmer ones but none that are dead to the leg. I believe it's how the environment of the yard is and how the horses are treated that results in the ponies behavior to riding. This is the first yard that I've ridden at that the instructor makes me ride a different horse every week to learn how to ride, one week I could be on a 14hh green as can be jumper who you don't use leg or hands a lot on and then the following week a 17.2hh eventer who really makes you use your legs and hands. I think this is the best way to ride and I can proudly say my riding has improved by miles since joining this yard over the past year than in the past 5 at my other yards.
 
Originally Posted by Shilasdair
They are just horses, for devil's sake. They don't 'refuse to do things' - YOU are not asking them properly.
Learn how to ask properly, instead of flouncing home when some effort is required, and you might find you develop a relationship with the horse (yes, you can develop a relationship in the space of one hour's lesson) rather than a battle.
S
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This is very true. No use blaming the "lazy" horse for our lack of skills.

However, people go to riding schools because they are learning. You can't expect a beginner or novice to have correctly mastered all the aids.

A good instructor will set the learner up for success by putting them on a good schoolmaster and giving them a lunge lesson if necessary so the learner can focus on their seat and leg aids and learning to ask and sit to the canter without worrying about steering or pulling on the horse's mouth.

Then once they're confident and balanced on the lunge, get them off the lunge and give them back the reins and they can canter around the school.

I've seen good, sympathetic instructors teach terrified newbies how to canter in one seamless lesson.
 
Morganlafaye said:
Hi there, I don't post here very often but as someone who grew up riding in riding schools, the main difference I found was in me and my attitude, rather than the horses.

I'm a fairly average rider, but in a riding school, surrounded by people all the time, I was happy to ride a wide range of horses, from just broken youngsters to older schoolmasters. I often got the quirkier or green horses and I didn't mind. Then I shared a very 'hot' mare for a while, and didn't notice much difference as I nearly always rode at the same time as the owner on her other horse. In both cases, I had company and support if things went wrong. It gave me confidence.

Then I got my own horse. And on my own, in a livery yard, frequently the only one there riding at the time - I suddenly got nervous. What happened if my horse put in one of her trademark 180 degree spins and galloped off when I was on my own in the school or out hacking? Would I stay on? What if I didn't?

So I lost my nerve a bit, and for a while my horse got worse and worse. All my fault - not hers. But unlike in a riding school, no-one else was going to help school her for me or improve her, or work through her issues. Or help sort out mine. When it's your horse, it's your responsibility and yours alone and in most cases you're the only one riding the horse. So the big difference I found wasn't so much the horses themselves (who are many and varied whether RS or privately owned) but the lack of a ready support system and instruction when something went wrong.

Suddenly it's all down to you.

Thankfully, I worked through these issues with the help of a good instructor, but it was a culture shock I wasn't prepared for at first.

Going back to the original post - the only comment I'd make is that in my experience some privately owned horses can be trickier to ride than some riding school horses - for instance where they don't get enough exercise to remain sensible, or they've become attuned to just one person over a long period of time. When my horse was off work, another livery very kindly let me ride her lovely youngster who had only ever been ridden by her, and it took a little while before we started to understand each other. I was clearly giving the aids in a slightly different way to his owner, and the poor boy was quite confused at first.

Does that make sense to anyone?? :confused:
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Totally with you here. Riding school horses can give you a false sense of confidence in some cases, and then you get your own first horse and are on your own with it and things can get very *exciting.* :eek: I think this is when we *really* need a good instructor.

Also maximum turn out helps, because then they have less energy for naughtiness! ;)
 
brigantia said:
Totally with you here. Riding school horses can give you a false sense of confidence in some cases, and then you get your own first horse and are on your own with it and things can get very *exciting.* :eek: I think this is when we *really* need a good instructor.

Also maximum turn out helps, because then they have less energy for naughtiness! ;)
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Completely agree with this, good riding school horses can often instill a false sense of security, a privately owned horse is often quirkier, that, to me is the real difference between the two.

I also thinkl it does depend on the riding school, I once went on a horsey holiday, they put me on a four year old who had only been there for a few weeks, I loved him, he was responsive and fun to ride, if a little green. I went back about 18mths later and was really looking forward to riding him, sadly he had turned into an unresponsive unhappy horse, who needed to be booted to get a tune out of him.
 
Well can I beg to be different and put my hand up and say I can not/will get a good tune out of every single horse I ride? and am highly suspicious of anyone who says they can! Getting a tune out of a horse takes time. I expect to be able to cover the basics but will allow I would need time to progress. I currently have 3 very different horses to ride, will sometimes sit on friends horses for a different feel but I am not the rider I could be if I was riding as the professionials do. I recently spent an afternoon at a dealers yard, getting on and off different horses. My riding shot up because I had to get on with it but did I get the best out of those very different horses? no!
 
Shilasdair said:
These threads always amuse me.
I love the way that you apportion blame to the RS horses when you can't get them to canter, etc. It couldn't possibly be your riding - oh, no, the horse isn't 'responsive enough'.
A decent rider can ride ANY horse...
S :D
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This! I started riding at the age of 8 and went on as a teenager to sort out problem ponies for people, started several etc etc. At 18 I became an instructress at a local riding school and that is when I learnt to 'ride'!! I thought I was a good rider up to that point, until I was in the school for my interview and couldn't get the horse to trot let alone canter! Ah, Saturn, bless him!! I was taken on because the other girl at the interview was very free with her whip (and still couldn't make him work) whilst I didn't carry one and eventually got him going. I quickly learned how to ride properly and I could (and would) ride anything. This has still stuck and, whilst I may not have the best position in the world, I can still ride anything and make it work as it should.

We have 2 local schools that I know school their horses continuously, they are not dead to the leg or hard mouthed. Even the children are taught to ride 'properly' with consideration for the horse. TBH I thought the 'kick, kick, kick' mentality was long gone, sadly, it would seem from the posts on here, not at all RS.
 
Luci07 said:
Well can I beg to be different and put my hand up and say I can not/will get a good tune out of every single horse I ride? and am highly suspicious of anyone who says they can! Getting a tune out of a horse takes time. I expect to be able to cover the basics but will allow I would need time to progress. I currently have 3 very different horses to ride, will sometimes sit on friends horses for a different feel but I am not the rider I could be if I was riding as the professionials do. I recently spent an afternoon at a dealers yard, getting on and off different horses. My riding shot up because I had to get on with it but did I get the best out of those very different horses? no!
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I don't think (though I could be wrong!) that anyone has said that they could get the best out of every horse. If they can, then we'll do very well at London 2012 ;) However as you noticed, it makes a difference if you ride a number of horses and a decent rider *should* be able to get a schooled horse to work in an half-decent fashion in walk, trot and canter in basic school figures. BHS Stage One expects you to be able to do this on two strange horses and I'd hope that any horse owner can pass Stage One!!
 
PonyIAmNotFood said:
So people are saying that complete novices should be riding horses that respond to your every move and request? Cue a lot of riders on the floor on their first lesson never wanting to see a horse again let alone ride one. Agree with shils
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Actually, this is precisely how they teach riders under the German system as I understand it (it's also how a Finnish friend of mine learnt, she is shocked at the horses in riding schools here and can't understand how anyone here can learn to ride correctly!). However work will start on the lunge so the rider learns how to give correct aids and develop their feel for a correctly-working horse.

There is more than one road to Rome!!
 
I went to a lesson once, and paid £50 for 45 mins. The horse was completely dead to the leg. The instructor was even lobbing bits of rubber from the floor at the school at the horse and it did nothing!

I think before anyone has a lesson, there should be a free ten minute assessment on different horses to test their ability. Put them on the plod just isn't effective teaching. Its lazy!

Grrrrrr:mad:
 
brigantia said:
This is very true. No use blaming the "lazy" horse for our lack of skills.

However, people go to riding schools because they are learning. You can't expect a beginner or novice to have correctly mastered all the aids.
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Just reviving this thread rather than starting a new one as have just had a very dispiriting riding lesson. Have been feeling really excited about my riding recently as have just come back from an amazing riding holiday where I learnt a lot and went for my last lesson at my current riding school today.

Although the horse I was on did w/t/c, it just felt like a battle from beginning to end to keep him going forwards and I feel very down about it.

At the end, the instructor told me that he would have done everything well if she had been riding him which I know is true and I know it is because I am not a 'half-decent' rider yet that he won't do it for me but it just makes me wonder how I am going to ever get to be one!

I was told at the end that I should have pushed him on my seat and leg more but throughout the lesson was never told how to do this.

I feel like all my aids get worse if I am on a very unresponsive horse as I just end up panicked about not getting him to move at all whereas when I am on more responsive horses I am able to think more about my position, seat etc rather than just 'keep him going.'

I understand the need to ride horses that are more challenging/will only go if asked perfectly/will only work if they think the rider means business but it is terribly discouraging when that is all you get to ride so early on.
 
merlin84 said:
Although the horse I was on did w/t/c, it just felt like a battle from beginning to end to keep him going forwards and I feel very down about it.

At the end, the instructor told me that he would have done everything well if she had been riding him which I know is true and I know it is because I am not a 'half-decent' rider yet that he won't do it for me but it just makes me wonder how I am going to ever get to be one!

I was told at the end that I should have pushed him on my seat and leg more but throughout the lesson was never told how to do this.

I feel like all my aids get worse if I am on a very unresponsive horse as I just end up panicked about not getting him to move at all whereas when I am on more responsive horses I am able to think more about my position, seat etc rather than just 'keep him going.'
I understand the need to ride horses that are more challenging/will only go if asked perfectly/will only work if they think the rider means business but it is terribly discouraging when that is all you get to ride so early on.
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I'm sure that as we become better riders coordinating the two gets easier but I know what you mean about trying so hard to get forward motion that your position suffers. Guess this is what they call independent seat and legs :)
I've been fortunate enough to be put on a very forward horse and my riding has really improved but when I get occasional lessons on a less forward RS horse I find it really hard work to keep him going in canter. However I get swapped between the two so that I learn to deal with this. They all have lessons to teach us. :) Are you happy with your instructor? You seemed to feel positive about riding again until you had the lesson with her.
 
No not happy with instructors- as I mentioned in another thread, they are all unqualified teenagers so am making enquiries at another school.

That was the thing- I felt so positive before this, was keen to work hard to improve and then it all went wrong with no advice during the lesson and I'm back to feeling useless again. If I can't even keep a horse in a working trot after a year of lessons (and countless more as a child) then really there is no hope!

But then on another horse I'm doing good school figures and feeling over the moon!

Not that is in any way the fault of today's horse- he's a stunner and I actually really like him! Sigh!
 
I've seen really active ponies/horses shut down emotionally within 2 weeks of becoming riding school horses..
One apparently came from a hunting home, was very sensitive to all aids, within two weeks, totally dead to the leg. Some horses just don't suit riding school life and I think all horses should be assessed every 3-6 months, and maybe sold on if its found they're not riding school material.
 
'was told at the end that I should have pushed him on my seat and leg more but throughout the lesson was never told how to do this'


I find instructors at riding schools give instructions to beginner/novice riders and assume that you already know what to do. They will ask you to do D assuming that you already know how to do ABC.

In my experience instructors focus on teaching the school movements of w/t/c without any real instruction on how to give the correct aids. How to develop the correct seat/hand etc.

I would be interested to hear other peoples views on this.
 
Can completely relate to this! When I think back to when I first started to ride more privately owned horses I always found them really responsive and I had a 'hot seat' from being used to riding riding school horses which were quite unresponsive and needed to be ridden forwards. I thought I was fairly experienced but looking back I really wasn't! :p
 
There are good and bad RS, good and bad instructors, good and bad horses. I know one ex RS pony, dead to the leg, but his owner rides him beautifully and he responds-to her, because she knows how to ride. Her sharer is not as clued up and has a hard time with him sometimes.

I went to three RS and believe it was my fault that I couldn't properly work some horses. With experience, I learned better how to ride. I don't think even a 'dead to the leg' horse can't do as asked, but you need to ask the right question. ;)

The RS where I livery has a variety of ponies/horses, some easy, some hard. If the child is good, they get the harder pony, simple equation.
 
In defense of "badly schooled" riding horses, can i just point out that their "schooling" is the regular lessons they are used for, in which they are ridden by inexperienced riders. To produce a well schooled horse you must give it regular CONSISTANT work your average riding school horse will get all sorts of riders at varying stages of ability and will have to try to make sense of all kinds of aids, and its no wonder they never get a chance to develop any sensitivity to subtle aids.
 
(Sorry hit send button by mistake). i also wanted to add that some riding schools do manage to have beautifully schooled horses which are a plessure to ride, especially if they are training centres for people who are working towards a career in riding/ teaching riiding.
 
It's not the horses - its the instructors! I feel very sore about one 'lady' I paid £20 a week to for about a year. At the time I knew no better but what I realised was I was paying her to say stuff like....

'now trot a twenty meter circle at A, push her on, ride her forwards, push her on, shorten your reins, push her on, go large, go to walk at A, pick up trot at C, canter at D, keep going, go the whole way round'. You get it?

My current instructor says things like 'How does she feel? Is she soft? There, there, that feeling, there's your outline, now you soften, give her reward, take her back up again'.

See the difference?

Grrrrr wish I could name and shame that first 'lady'. The last straw was when I couldn't keep my mare in the canter one day and her 'instruction' was 'you're not trying' 'I am trying really hard' I said 'no you're scared of her - you're not trying'. Ermmmmm see ya!
 
I recently loaned my little monster to a RS (I used to ride there and did some training with them) to get him back into work while he was up for sale with the rule that he only be used during the week in Junior camps (same rider all week) as he is wonderfully responsive and wouldn't enjoy all the changing around. I went to visit him at the weekend, which he was supposed to have off and found he was in lessons. I was not impressed to say the least! Especially as he is mainly a SJ pony and he was being used as a "point and go" pony (which he's not) for kids learning to jump better. He was far too long and getting way to deep to the tiny fences and jumping as if he was going over a 4 footer with me he was so deep. I was quite upset, especially as when I visited during the week a tiny spanish boy was doing amazingly on him! I had words with them, and they agreed to limit his workload, but soon after I found a buyer (in the Channel Isles!) and he went over on the ferry and is winning and placing highly in all his comps! :D RS horses wise, I have been able to move on horses others have been unable to, but often I think it is a case of understanding the horse you are on and getting on well with them. If you don't understand each other 45 minutes isn't really enough to get to know them well enough to get results unless your instructor is really helpful and explains the horse to you...
 
Just been to a riding school for a lesson today. I wanted to work on my jumping position while my horse is coming back from treatment. Due to him being off work for a while I have rode a few other horses and found it hard work, I have got very used to my horse and found it difficult to adjust.
The horse I had today was terrific. Well schooled and responsive. The instructor was knowlegable and able to work out where I was going wrong. Within half an hour I was jumping better than I have done for ages, over higher fences as well.
Only problem is that now I realise just how awkward my horse is :(
 
Having never really ridden at a riding school always having my own I'd never experienced riding school horses until the last year.
As I'm doing my bhs stages I have now ridden a range of riding school and college horses.
There was me on my first day at college thinking they will be super easy to ride compared to my ish who was fit and eventing. But no I find riding school horses hard to ride, well more precisely college horses! I've ridden the dead cob, the trotter who won't canter, the bucker, the bolter also had a few lame ones and told yes he's lame but carry on! The nicest horse I've ridden recently at college/ridding school is a 22 year old ex broodmare says it all really.
But then you see how they get ridden and you understand why they're like that.
I can imagine after riding rs horses all your life riding a 'normal' horse must seem like heaven. There's nothing worse than riding a horse who doesn't enjoy they're job.
 
maresmaid said:
In defense of "badly schooled" riding horses, can i just point out that their "schooling" is the regular lessons they are used for, in which they are ridden by inexperienced riders. To produce a well schooled horse you must give it regular CONSISTANT work your average riding school horse will get all sorts of riders at varying stages of ability and will have to try to make sense of all kinds of aids, and its no wonder they never get a chance to develop any sensitivity to subtle aids.
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True. The one I usually have lessons on is difficult to ride so complete beginners don't get put on him but he still gets confused with having too many different people riding him in different ways. Luckily he scares enough of them off with his whizzing around and refusing to halt if he does not like their hands :D shame as he'd make a great horse if he was in the right hands. The horses used for total beginners have the worst deal and they just close down and do as little as possible. Self preservation I suppose.
 
I once found a great RS with lovely forward horses, who were a pleasure to ride. As the weeks went on though, they became less and less forward. My favourite went from the type of horse you'd never dream of using a crop on, to one who needed a whack for every upward transition. I honestly believed it was my fault. He still had a nice tune in him once he got going though.
Ive since found out that most of the horses and ponies were only there for a short while before being sold on. Do with that what you will. It was quite a nice place though.
 
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