Disturbing horse owner behaviour

Buds_mum said:
Actually spat tea over the laptop, BRILLIANT! Haa. I also get mothers day cards and birthday cards and presents from Buddy, my dog and my hens haha :p
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Oh god...my OH does this, he draws hoof prints and paws on the cards too :(. I smile and pretend it's really great..anyone who knows me knows I find it cringy.
I am boss to my horses and I pay their wages, I do care about them almost as much as my children mind you, still doesn't make me their 'mummy'
 
Well, someone asked for a controversial thread lol! And yes, my 2 have an Kat, Zara, Lynn, an uncle Marc and a grandma too. Hormonal? Moi? No not really, replacing the space for children with horses and a dog? Possibly, but I don't want children, never have, I wouldn't want to lose what I have with my horses, they bring me so much enjoyment and fulfilment. Ebony is always mummy's girl, Ben occasionally gets called mummy boy although more often than not its reprobate or beast or something that rhymes with git. Incidentally my
Cat has just run up the stairs soaking wet and howling, I found myself grabbing a towel and saying 'come on shrimp mummy'll dry you' (not mollycoddling- I would have ended up with wet cat on my bed)!
The thing is, I don't refer to my animals as 'my babies' but I do refer to myself as their mommy, and since when was a mum not able to be a boss too? :D
 
tallyho! said:
I can just imagine a load of 17 year olds walking about with great big clubs looking for ponies......
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Gosh, now there's a thought!
No, really think more a group (erm... a small group) of us sitting round in matching pony club fleeces, drinking tea while discussing proper turnout or how the local drag "hunt" is a disgrace or how great pony club is (deadly serious!).

Title of 'bad pony clubber' is awarded if one of us brings an unpulled main to pony club or wears a coloured hat silk for a dressage lesson :p
 
What's wring with ponio? I always say ponios!! Lol

Anyway.... i don't think as my ponios as I'm mummy, they are my friends though however someone calling themselves mummy seems pretty harmless, a little wet perhaps not an issue with me. On the other hand people who call themselves 'boss' makes me think of people who have no respect of their horse and would happily beat it into submission. But that's just an image that I get in my head like others do about people who call themselves mummy to their animals!
 
I'm called Conn's 'mummy' because he's such a baby about life and runs to me at the slightest thing that scares him but my mum and dad call him the 'preferred' child over my brother and I :p
 
Oh I also refer to them all as ponies (which I got from Nicola Wilson) no matter how big they are and occasionally ponios but hey, I don't have owt else to wory about :p

I don't see myself as his boss because telling him never works, instead I call him 'mate' or 'buddy' most of the time

Although I would like to add that the only reason Conn has dinner is for his medication and he is braving it without a rug tonight even though he is a wimpy 4yo TB!
 
hmmm...disturbing in my eyes, would not be a maternal connection...but one of the 'other half' nature. That would just be beyond wrong, even in name only..glitter hoof varnish...have you stumbled across that yet? Hoofs Inc :D I wonder if they do french manicure too...and crackle varnish???:cool::eek:
 
diluteherd said:
What's wring with ponio? I always say ponios!! Lol

Anyway.... i don't think as my ponios as I'm mummy, they are my friends though however someone calling themselves mummy seems pretty harmless, a little wet perhaps not an issue with me. On the other hand people who call themselves 'boss' makes me think of people who have no respect of their horse and would happily beat it into submission. But that's just an image that I get in my head like others do about people who call themselves mummy to their animals!
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I'm a 'boss' in work too, I treat my staff as I do my horses I guess, with care and respect. I support them through any problems, direct and train them. I expect them to do a job and support them to do it. No decent boss beats anyone into submission or treats them with disrespect, what a shame that's what 'boss' means to you. :(
 
I do it, I call mine my babies, well the stallion I do, and his mum, I was there when he was born, and he had problems as a foal, so was handled a hell of a lot and we bonded, but I will add, he is one of the best mannered stallions I know,

I cant see the problem, its not hurting anyone, and to me, mine are part of the family, I live alone, and if I didnt talk to them I would go bonkers, and Im the same with the dogs... I do have a grown up daughter but she is in the UK now, I dont see them as replacement kids though,

I dont have a problem with Ponio either or calling rugs, PJ's , or if people want to bling and glitter up their horses... .. each to their own,

life is far to short to worry about stuff like that.. and cant see why someone would find it disturbing...
 
It is a shame... I wish I did think of it differently, I guess what images are engraved in our mind from words are what meaning we have impressed on us from what we learn from life.

If you have a space at your work mozlar let me know... id love to have a boss like you!! :)
 
diluteherd said:
It is a shame... I wish I did think of it differently, I guess what images are engraved in our mind from words are what meaning we have impressed on us from what we learn from life.

If you have a space at your work mozlar let me know... id love to have a boss like you!! :)
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You'd both be on here all day!!
 
Kitty B said:
I don't as a rule refer to myself as my animals 'mummy', though I have in the past in jest. I know I'm not their mom, and I care for them all as animals, not people. I don't see any harm in calling yourself your pets 'mummy' or whatever, it isn't hurting anyone. I certainly don't think that referring to yourself as such means that you aren't caring for them correctly, or spoiling them and letting them become ill-mannered. To each his or her own, I can't really pass judgement as someone who regularly has one sided conversations with my animals. :o I think I'd rather see the ones who care so much that they call themselves 'mummy' than the ones who seem to think their horses are machines. Just my two cents worth. :)
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^^ this. I occasionally call myself 'mean horse mum' as a joke. Actually the last time i called myself this it was in reference to the fact it is winter down here (in NZ) and I refuse to rug my youngster (or indeed any of our hairy monster horses) In fact he has only worn a rug for about 5mins in the 7 months I have had him when I tried on the only rug we will ever own, his Cool Heat rug, bought strictly for emergencies only.

I love my horses and care for them very well but spoilt/overfed/over rugged they most certainly are not.

What I find strange is overly dramatic thread titles. When I saw this I thought it was going to be about something way more serious.
 
newbie_nix said:
What I find strange is overly dramatic thread titles. When I saw this I thought it was going to be about something way more serious.
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^^ This. Far more "disturbing horse owner behaviour" out there than people calling themselves "mummy". Delightfully melodramatic.
 
rockysmum said:
Yep guilty as hell

Mummy to my old Rocky and Granny to Kayla and Tilly, although seeing as my daughter doesn't want them any more I should be RockyTillykaylasmum or if I used their real names RocklinestriderAustbyMathildaPromqueensmummy

Dont think it would fit on here :D:D

If thats the worst thing you find to wind you up, you are lucky, there is a lot worse going on in the horse world than us :D :D

Plenty of people out there who treat them like machines, far worse in my opinion.
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This.

OP - it may well get on your buns about people feeling so close to their horses/animals and using such words (which may, by the way, be said in complete humour rather than them ACTUALLY being serious about the 'mummy' and 'daddy' side of things!), but tbh if that is more horrendous in your head than neglect and ill treatment then you need to get a grip. Does it make a damn difference to the horse what they are referred to as?!! What does make a difference is whether the owner 'loves' them so much that they refuse to have them pts when they require it, or when they rug them to the high hills every time a cloud comes out because they think they are going to disintegrate like a salt mound. These are real welfare concerns, not the crap that you are on about.
 
Regandal said:
Having been away from horses for years, I find myself bemused by some of the stuff I read. However, one thing which drives me insane is the way some people refer to themselves as their horses' "Mummy". Excuse me, but why? It sets my teeth on edge something awful. There are "proud Mummies", "evil Mummies", "worried Mummies". Ye Gods. It gives me the same feeling as meeting old women with girly things in their hair, slightly creepy. Haven't noticed any horsey "Daddies" yet. Is this a female thing?:confused:
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:D I can assure you, after 'being away' from horses for 25yrs myself, this will probably be one of the mildest irritants you'll come across...

Baby talk, pink stuff, sparkly stuff, matching stuff, 42 rugs per horse, jods for the supermarket shop, equine PJs and more feed types than you can shake a stick at... Lots of changes and each to their own... :D

McNally said:
My daughter was promptly put in her place when i over heard her tell her pony " Be a good boy "GRANNY" is riding you today" WTF!!!!
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:eek: Yeah, I think my daughter would have found 'Granny' to be less than impressed at that... :D
 
Nope never Mummy to my girls but they are referred to as s***bag and bog pony occasionsy .. :rolleyes:
My dog has a nanny (because we needed to be able to mention the word nan in a sentance without him rushing to the door and practically putting his own lead on :p) but it's my nan, and she spoils him rotten so he loves her rather alot!
 
I don't do it. I see myself more as their leader/boss but I think it's harmless, rather sweet actually..the creepy description made me laugh though.
 
Mummy? - where my horse is concerned i am merely the maid who runs round catering for her every need - hence my forum name!
 
What on earth does it matter whether people refer to themselves as their horses mummies. Or dress them in sparkly pink fluff. As long as they are well looked after, I doubt the horses care. I suspect that, if I were a horse, I'd rather be thought of as a much loved family member than as a bit of sports equipment.
 
Oberon said:
Because to engage the maternal instinct makes us feel better than to understand that we are no better than slaves who pay through the nose for the privilege of being treated like slaves ;)
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psml!!! This is it exactly!

We are utterly slaves to our two, and to be these slaves costs us a fortune in terms of cash, time and heartache. Referring to our selves as mum and dad (OH does it too lol!) slightly raises our status in our eyes rather then being quite as low as we are!

Neither are bad mannered/over rugged/fat etc, but we do love them enormously and seek to protect them from harm and distress in a parental manner. Doesn't mean they don't have to be horses and we are humans with the say in how things run!

Just to alienate a few more people, my 15.3 mare is my pony, and OH and I both give cards from us with hoof prints - only to each other though! They are a huge part of our lives and I like it!
 
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I do know what you mean, but I have to be honest, there are plenty of other things some horse owners do that I find much more worrying. Quite frankly, some of them frighten the life out of me.
I realise your post was intended to refer to the harmless oddities of some owners, but if that was all some poor horses had to put up with, I'm sure they wouldn't mind. Sadly it often goes hand in hand with killing with kindness.
 
The mummy thing doesn't bother me particularly, its pretty harmless.

Much more cringe worthy are 'it', 'ponio'. lammi and 'Badder's'.

Yuk, yuk, yuk. Sounds like it came from a Ruby Fergison book.
 
ThePony said:
We are utterly slaves to our two, and to be these slaves costs us a fortune in terms of cash, time and heartache. Referring to our selves as mum and dad (OH does it too lol!) slightly raises our status in our eyes rather then being quite as low as we are!
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Raises status - Really !!!!!!!

I take it you dont have kids then :D :D If you did you would know that Mummy has all the duties and costs incurred by those who are slaves to their horses. Unfortunately it carries far less status and respect from human children :p:rolleyes:
 
Yes horserider I'm with you there.
I hate stally and broody, foaly drives me nuts. Probably because mummy and daddy usually comes from pleasure/pet horse owners, whereas the above are used by people breeding. All sounds a bit unprofessional to me.
Must be getting old, but I like to think people breeding and producing the next generation would be a bit more serious about what they were doing.
 
rockysmum said:
Raises status - Really !!!!!!!

I take it you dont have kids then :D :D If you did you would know that Mummy has all the duties and costs incurred by those who are slaves to their horses. Unfortunately it carries far less status and respect from human children :p:rolleyes:
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Nope, kid free! Makes me feel better anyhow, anything has to be better than slave?! At least with kids one day they grow up and leave and you can keep hope that they might look back and value you lol?!
 
It's a term I don't use but I think it is far better for people to think of themselves as 'Mummy' & love their horse than to be a 'Wicked Uncle' who has no care or empathy with their animal. There is far to much cruelty about & I am talking real mental & physical cruelty.
 
Billie1007 said:
Yes! Threads where the horse is apparently 'typing' do my head in. That has to be worse than calling yourself the animal's Mum surely? Adverts in the first person are a killer 'My mummy is very sad that she is having to sell me as I am such a good boy and she says that I am really good for a beginner or someone who likes to jump.....'

Urgh. Kill me now!
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Ouch. Poor Hovis, whose 'Mummy' has done more for the welfare of horses than most of us combined.

On a scale of importance this surely has to rank down beyond the bottom. All that ultimately matters is that our horses are cared for, not what we call ourselves or them.

My mare whose name is the same as my log-in is currently called Popsicle! Does she care? Not one jot as long as she gets the expected standard of care. Oh, and her cousin (!) writes articles occaisionally... if it gets a message across does it matter?
 
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