Do we amateurs overcomplicate things for ourselves? :p

milliepops said:
Dunno, but I feel that places like this forum drum some stuff into you like gospel - only use a snaffle, only use a cavesson, must do different work, must do this, mustn't do that... whereas the people who actually make the big time don't appear to be concerned by the same things! lol!
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Yes, no matter which group of people you talk to about horses, there always seems to be a tendency to develop a received wisdom about how to do things, even in a group of horsey people as disparate as HHO. I've noticed the same thing on established livery yards - you'll find all sorts of weird quirks e.g. Everyone obsessed with bitting, and not to worried about any other piece of tack, or lots of people using one particular training aid while condemning all others, whole yards of people who hack little or never (despite good hacking being available), yards where the vet may as well move in....
This forum just seems to tend a little towards the puritanical collective viewpoint.

I think where amateur riders really fall down from over complicating things is when they don't hold their nerve and keep going with something that does make sense. Constantly chopping and changing with routines, feed, tack, training regimes, workload etc etc. does horses no good. IME you are better to stick with something that isn't quite perfect than mucking the horse around constantly.

The most contented yard I ever encountered was a pro yard producing show jumpers. Staff consisted of me, one other and the owner, and we all rode and did yard jobs. The horses were never turned out, they were hacked out every day they didn't compete, plus went on the walker once a day. Each horse competed at least once a week. It's not a routine many would be happy with, but if I was to objectively pick one method to follow it would have to be that one as it was far and away the most 'successful'
 
....... rash at the thought of putting a 3yo in a flash noseband but the logic was clear - teach the horse - without force - that the contact is comfortable and not to be questioned, at the most impressionable time in their ridden life, and then you don't store up a problem to be fixed later on.
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Or is he teaching the horse learned helplessness that using its mouth to express discontent will not be tolerated?
 
ycbm said:
Or is he teaching the horse learned helplessness that using its mouth to express discontent will not be tolerated?
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it depends on how you think horses learn or how horses accept things i guess.

If you have an olympic standard pair of hands on the end of the reins, every day, and the horse has A class care and management for it's body, then is there any reason to think that a 3yo would not have a positive experience of the contact pretty much every time it was ridden? and therefore not need to express discontent?

I'm not viewing this through rose tinted spectacles, I don't believe that all pro yards are perfect, but I do believe it is possible to teach a horse from day one that the contact is a positive thing, yet I can see that it would make sense to have a back up aid to prevent the adoption of a negative habit, whether that be something innocuous like lip flapping or something more significant.
 
DabDab said:
The most contented yard I ever encountered was a pro yard producing show jumpers. Staff consisted of me, one other and the owner, and we all rode and did yard jobs. The horses were never turned out, they were hacked out every day they didn't compete, plus went on the walker once a day. Each horse competed at least once a week. It's not a routine many would be happy with, but if I was to objectively pick one method to follow it would have to be that one as it was far and away the most 'successful'[/QUOTE

interesting, an example of horses not only not having read the book, but not even knowing the book exists :D
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Another good topic!

I certainly think some amateurs over think and therefore over complicate things, when I teach one one of the most common issues is to ask riders to do less, and be clearer, from a riding point of view the rider who overcomplicates often gives very muddy signals.

From a more general point of view I think, as ever, every horse is an individual, and thats the most important thing. For example, we are all told how great hacking is for our horses, and I agree with this, and hack my horses, but I have had one that just hated it, to the point of being dangerous, so that horse didnt hack, simple as that. If I tried to take my psg horse on a fun ride, I think he would kill me, so I would never do it! But my gp horse would be absolutely fine, it all comes down to respecting the individual. I do think a certain amount of variety is helpful for competition horses, but its a balancing act between the positive benefits and the risk involved, and you have to really think what is constructive for each discipline.
 
I am the Queen of overthinking, so guilty as charged, but I do have some pleas in mitigation:
1. Professional riders and most very experienced amateurs will have forgotten more than I will ever learn, so things that are second nature to them, both regarding riding and horse care, are things I need to think about and/or work through from first principles, chat through with other people, and perhaps even post about on a forum of some sort!
2. These people have the skills and stickability to be able to sort out most problems they are likely to encounter, so they are generally quite happy to just crack on with stuff and worry about problems if they appear. For example, load up a 4yo, take it out for school hire/course hire and then crack on with proper competing. I, on the other hand, don't have the same toolkit to draw on, so I will break things down into much smaller steps and do things more gradually. To them it would probably seem a bit daft/pathetic, but for someone like me it is a sensible way to do things.

I also think it's relevant that pros' horses are being trained for a different job to most horses that belong to amateurs and leisure riders. Their job is to be a single discipline specialist, my horse's job isn't. They have a living to earn from those horses, a 6yo that's still faffing about at prelim or novice or even at elementary has lost them a shedload of money. And every hour that a pro spends playing over jumps with their dressage horse or whatever is an hour's wages that have to be paid, or an hour that isn't spent doing something that directly helps that horse learn and do its job better.

I keep my horse at a yard where there are plenty of leisure riders but also a few pros competing at the upper levels, and producing young sport horses for sale, and it's really interesting to see some of the differences with how 'normal people' tend to do things.

If a pro horse needs lots of variety to keep its head straight, that's not necessarily going to be a horse that's going to be a success as a professional competition horse. Being able to move well or jump high is all very well, but they also have to want to do the job, or at least be reasonably cheerful about it. Any that can't cope with that life will be moved on. And, as I was told a week or two ago, 'you're not going to get to grand prix hacking twice a week and mucking about over jumps'.

I think it's also relevant that many of these top dressage horses are bred and trained to be razor sharp. Not many of those would perhaps give a rider the most comfortable feeling in the world on a hack that involves idiotic drivers passing fast and close, lorries, buses and massed local cycling clubs. So if they're not blessed with idyllic off road hacking, are many pros really likely to do much hacking on horses worth more than lots of people pay for their homes?
 
I definitely see the point of your first example, in fact I've just done that very thing with my baby connie.

The second. .. not so much, I'd look at jumping as being good for the horses head (if they enjoy it obviously ) as well as their joints and muscles...

Great discussion point :)

Fiona
 
We definitely overthink things. Often from a horse management point of view, but oh-so-very-often from a training point of view. If Dobbin is having an off day, we want to find a squillion reasons not to train properly. I'm really *REALLY* working on not making excuses for myself or my horse anymore.

My instructor is encouraging me to insist on quality. And if he's being stiff or uncooperative or distracted or strong, that is no reason to back off. Don't get emotional and try to come up with a list of things that might be bothering him/me that could excuse him/me. Find a cold and stubborn core of yourself, and quietly but very firmly insist on the quality of the work that you want.
 
Am just coming back to this, because the flash thing is really bothering me. I've spent an age looking at videos of youngsters in training on Yootoob and the lack of flash is a paucity. There is an argument, albeit not much shouted about, that the flash, or drop, serves to stabilise the bit in the horse's mouth. I confess I ride in a drop because I have a chewer but have recently reconsidered this and she's back in the cavesson. The stability argument is rather defeated if you ride in a loose ring, the purpose of which is to aid the counteraction to your horse leaning on the bit.

Sue Dyson and her team have been doing some research recently - it's certainly not a new topic but because it's Sue I guess the research is solidifying/getting a PR boost - on facial expressions. If you prevent a horse from opening its mouth, how can you know that what you are asking it to achieve is not causing issues that will be compounded in the long term? (Or am I overthinking this?). We know that training a horse for the upper echelons of the dressage world requires significant muscle development and the contortions (for want of a better word) we ask the horse to go through to develop those muscles are for what we deem self carriage, a target of efficiency in carrying our weight and performing. And for comparison, I am sure gymnasts and other athletes go through the same. To achieve those appropriate muscles and stances the training can be tough. Show me a gymnast not gurning whilst swinging on the bars or rings ;). But at what point are we, like ycbm says, "teaching the horse learned helplessness that using its mouth to express discontent will not be tolerated?"

If we tie up his mouth, how do we know he's really not happy as opposed to 'Urgh, this is difficult but hey, no pain no gain...'?


[video=youtube;JKzwPrIShTY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKzwPrIShTY&t=84s[/video]
 
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I think that we overcomplicate things in terms of trying to achieve the "ideal" scenario, when in reality, "ideal" may not suit the horse in front of us.
I spent a long time trying to get Alfs shoes off, with all the accompanying diet/exercise stuff going on too. In reality, I can't work him hard enough for his feet to cope barefoot, and he is uncomfortable hacking without shoes. I promised him a long time ago that I would do whatever it took to keep him pain free, and so I put the shoes back on him. It's not what I wanted, but it's what works for him

I also took the flash strap off a horse I have here to produce. I explained how much I disliked flashes to his owner, and she was fine with me taking it off. He's a bit of a gurner, and no amount of sympathetic riding/dentist/chiro persuaded him not to be gobby. Put the flash strap back on him a few weeks ago, and he promptly stopped gurning. Lesson learned

I'm reminded on a daily basis that every horse has it's own preferences/needs. Trying to make them all fit in with my "ideal" makes life difficult - and I'm not doing it any more!
 
I don't have the best hands in the world. I'm inconsistent, and can be snatchy. My current cob has done more than any instructor to improve me. If my hands are bad, his mouth is gaping wide open. If they're good, it's quietly shut. If he'd had a flash or drop on, he wouldn't be able to teach me like that.

Flash nosebands are a fashion that's been around write a few years now. I'm waiting in hope they die out for the sake of the horses that don't need them. It breaks my heart to see horses in the hunting field unable to open their mouths even to yawn, for hours at a stretch. I accept that they are a useful piece of kit for some horses, but not the number that they are on now.
 
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I was thinking about cross training last night as I stumbled around some 50cm fences. I have quite happily jumped a 90cm course in the past on (relatively) experienced horses but teaching a horse to jump is complete alien territory for me. We are learning together, I am not particularly fussed as I think I will always enjoy schooling more but we are making small steps in progress.

But it made me think about the pro/semi pros I see on social media. Lots of them seem to love their horses jumping occasionally...HOWEVER they do seem to get the 'resident showjumper/brave teen' to do most of the jumping. I'm sure George would do much better under the guidance of someone else. I could pay/beg/ask someone to do it for me, but would he gain more in terms of physical benefits? Or physical benefits? Probably keep him on his toes more as he has to do more thinking than me!
 
ycbm said:
I don't have the best hands in the world. I'm inconsistent, and can be snatchy. My current cob has done more than any instructor to improve me. If my hands are bad, his mouth is gaping wide open. If they're good, it's quietly shut. If he'd had a flash or drop on, he wouldn't be able to teach me like that.

Flash nosebands are a fashion that's been around write a few years now. I'm waiting in hope they die out for the sake of the horses that don't need them. It breaks my heart to see horses in the hunting field unable to open their mouths even to yawn, for hours at a stretch. I accept that they are a useful piece of kit for some horses, but not the number that they are on now.
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this is a different question then to the one originally posed - you're bringing your own baggage to the table ;)

The horse that was demonstrated was ridden for 20 minutes, definitely could open its mouth if it wanted to, in fact it softly chewed the bit at times when it was figuring out the right canter transition, and the noseband was there not to shut its mouth, but to prevent it from gaping. I think that's different to a horse ridden for hours, with the mouth strapped shut?

I also have a gape-er, making no bones about it she was badly ridden as a young horse and carries a lot of tension - I've had to retrain her about the contact and when she's soft to the contact then her mouth is closed. I ride her in a loose drop when in a snaffle to prevent her from getting control because if she gapes her mouth, her neck goes tight and then I can't help her through her tension. Would you call that learned helplessness? Well all riding is, to a small degree, because we need the horse to learn to prioritise our instructions over their own instinct. Is it covering the problem? No, because I can still feel if her jaw gets tense, it's just quicker and easier to help her to release it.
 
What a good thread!

And I totally agree that we over complicate things. Every little thing that goes wrong I think there must be a problem, I spend my whole time being stressed about him being sore, not enjoying his work, being unhappy... the list goes on! It's actually exhausting.

But I think the age of the internet doesn't help, if you air any issue it is immediately questioned as to whether it's saddle, ulcers, kissing spine etc etc... and don't get me wrong it is so important we are aware and have horses welfare at the forefront but sometimes I guess we should just crack on to an extent.
 
I reckon it'll be a cold day in hell before I come around to the idea that specialised training is superior to cross training. I do think horses need to work on a variety of surfaces and do different forms of exercise for their long term health and soundness (and yes, I accept that all forms of exercise come with a risk a injury). I also think that young horses should work across, and be turned out on, varied surfaces and "rough" or imperfect terrain - to facilitate their proprioceptive learning as well as musculoskeletal development. There are certainly professionals out there who do these things - it isn't a pro - am divide.

For an amateur's horse, I think these things are important as few amateurs can guarantee a home for life. I wouldn't sell my two, but I could walk under a bus tomorrow. It falls to me to make my horses as desirable and useful as possible, so that their lives may continue to be secure. Professionals may sell horses, but they're usually high performance animals who are more likely to get a home with a serious competitive amateur (or an over-ambitious idiot, but since the professional is less likely - on a mathematical basis - to be as emotionally invested in the horse's future, does that matter?).

Does this over-complicate things? Maybe... But I didn't buy horses to have a nice, simple life and work in a metaphorical straight line towards a goal. I could do that in many sports - the wonders of equestrianism, for me, come from all the weird little blips that horses throw at you, and the creative circumnavigation with which you have to respond. They're animals, not machines designed to do one job. I believe that good horsemanship comes from working with the whole horse, not just the bits which are useful to you.

That doesn't mean that every horse should do every job. If your horse hates jumping, is lethal to hack, or has soundness issues that mean a form of exercise (be it jumping, galloping or schooling) is inappropriate, you work with the individual. But you work the horse across the whole spectrum of work that is available to it, as far as is possible.

Oh and yes - I do have form for internet equestrian evangelism. But I don't hugely care about a correctly fitted flash (although I personally wouldn't use one unless I had an issue arise which necessitated it).
 
I've been asked why I've got Nova in a flash (from day one of being bitted). My answer was almost word for word what Gareth has said.

Similarly, I've been quizzed over why he has a bungee on. Same thing. Throwing your head around and knocking yourself off balance isn't an option. It's not tight, it doesn't encourage an outline. It just stops him hollowing to the point that it actually makes the work harder for him.

On the flip side, I received a bizarre amount of congratulatory comments regarding riding Fig in a snaffle for a season at PSG. The tack suited the horse at that particular moment of training. If he had been happy in his double, he would have remained in it. Nothing about 'being kinder' to the him, just what he preferred!

With regards to varied training - we do what makes the horse (and ourselves) happy. Professionals and their horses usually have access to private hacking, walkers, treadmills and canter tracks. And the rest of us usually don't, so it's up to us to vary it. I take Fig to the gallops because our hacking sucks and we enjoy it. I do jumping because it tightens his grass belly, strengthens his back and we enjoy it. But I do agree with GH that it's the dressage work that gets Fig fit for his 'job'. I can't build the strength for the pi/pa any other way than by working the pi/pa. Everything else is a bonus/add on.

There's a trend for 'nice to see XXX treated like a horse' when a fit competition horse is seen hacking, or out in the field. Well... What if said horse doesn't like hacking, or going out in the field? We've had bad hackers, and Fig is a prime example of a horse that isn't hugely keen on turnout. What then? And why does that (sometimes) mean we are to presume those not offering such options to their horses are lesser owners?

I think of it like this: horses haven't read the textbook, rarely do they comply with them. Think outside the box and stick to your guns. Far too often do I see people doubt themselves, change their processes to suit what others dictate and then end up not quite where they want or should be.

P.S. I do a little facepalm (sometimes in my head) when I see/hear 'oh I don't like spurs'. Oh ok then, you just carry on pointlessly waggling that great big whip and nagging the horse then... You mean you don't like spurs used incorrectly. Sure. Horses don't like spurs used incorrectly either.
 
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nikkimariet said:
I've been asked why I've got Nova in a flash (from day one of being bitted). My answer was almost word for word what Gareth has said.

Similarly, I've been quizzed over why he has a bungee on. Same thing. Throwing your head around and knocking yourself off balance isn't an option. It's not tight, it doesn't encourage an outline. It just stops him hollowing to the point that it actually makes the work harder for him.

On the flip side, I received a bizarre amount of congratulatory comments regarding riding Fig in a snaffle for a season at PSG. The tack suited the horse at that particular moment of training. If he had been happy in his double, he would have remained in it. Nothing about 'being kinder' to the him, just what he preferred!

With regards to varied training - we do what makes the horse (and ourselves) happy. Professionals and their horses usually have access to private hacking, walkers, treadmills and canter tracks. And the rest of us usually don't, so it's up to us to vary it. I take Fig to the gallops because our hacking sucks and we enjoy it. I do jumping because it tightens his grass belly, strengthens his back and we enjoy it. But I do agree with GH that it's the dressage work that gets Fig fit for his 'job'. I can't build the strength for the pi/pa any other way than by working the pi/pa. Everything else is a bonus/add on.

There's a trend for 'nice to see XXX treated like a horse' when a fit competition horse is seen hacking, or out in the field. Well... What if said horse doesn't like hacking, or going out in the field? We've had bad hackers, and Fig is a prime example of a horse that isn't hugely keen on turnout. What then? And why does that (sometimes) mean we are to presume those not offering such options to their horses are lesser owners?

I think of it like this: horses haven't read the textbook, rarely do they comply with them. Think outside the box and stick to your guns. Far too often do I see people doubt themselves, change their processes to suit what others dictate and then end up not quite where they want or should be.

P.S. I do a little facepalm (sometimes in my head) when I see/hear 'oh I don't like spurs'. Oh ok then, you just carry on pointlessly waggling that great big whip and nagging the horse then... You mean you don't like spurs used incorrectly. Sure. Horses don't like spurs used incorrectly either.
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Hmm ,not entirely sure you re not a professional even if you dont earn your living by horse bothering. Lot of common sense in this post .
 
Not only from a schooling perspective in the traditional sense, but I find that as of late, every single time a horse does anything "naughty" that more and more people jump straight to the 'horses never ever do anything naughty on purpose' thing and that they must definitely be in pain or completely confused.

I'm not convinced. In that case why do some horses require very experienced riders in order to not be bucked off? Surely not all 'not a novice ride' horses are in pain, some of them just question things or react far more obviously than other horses.

Almost every professional I've spoken to is completely unperturbed by a horse who might buck out of exuberance in between jumps (and yes, I do think that sometimes it is just that - exuberance), or a horse that questions things and may protest a bit when they're asked to start doing more advanced dressage work or put under more pressure than usual. The pros tend to just crack on and ignore it - but amateurs tend to investigate everything and worry about what might be wrong, whether it's because we're inadvertently blocking him through our slightly wayward left hand or whatever and tbh sometimes, all the horse needs is a bit of quiet but firm determination to get through a difficult patch. Whether that difficult patch is two minutes or two weeks.

But yes, in answer to the question. I think us amateurs do tend to overcomplicate things. I think a lot of it is due to a lack of certainty or belief in your own training systems and so on. You're likely not riding 12 horses per day, and you probably aren't riding at least one horse at almost every level of training at a given time either.

So we run into issues that perhaps another horse hasn't presented before and we aren't sure how to handle. Or we go from an established 10yo to a young 4yo (or even vice versa) and now we aren't sure how to address their training. Perhaps you stagnate with a horse who already knows everything you were working on with a youngster, or you find that just taking a light outside contact and a squeeze of the leg doesn't get your green 4yo forward and round like you're used to - so you try a different approach, or you carry on wondering what to do without actually doing anything, whereas a pro would probably just stick with their progressive method of schooling that they KNOW will work if they are just patient and consistent. How do they know? Because they've seen it work time and time again with loads of different horses.

Of course, the other thing is that if there is the occasional horse who really doesn't suit their schooling system, they can move along to a horse who does.
 
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A really interesting thread. As amateurs, we probably panic more about things because, lets face it, we've invested a lot of time and money into one or two animals that we have probably fallen in love with, so we are more likely to try and fix an issue or find an underlying cause. A pro would, if a horse was not going to do the job for whatever reason, move it on.
I'm as guilty as anyone, I have a field ornament ISH, who has clearly been a self-harming idiot all his life (he'd had 6 homes in his first 7 years) and I have thrown that much money at him in an attempt to fix or sort his various issues over the last 6 years. I dread to think how much he has cost me. It hasn't got me anywhere, he's now living out, albeit happy as Larry, with navicular, kissing spines and some other weird and wonderful ailments. I bought him to event, but was willing to change my plans to fit whatever he could manage.

I often think back to the 80s and even early 90s and how different things were. Only one or two horses on our yard of over 80 horses, had a physio. Something that bucked excessively might have the back man look at it, but in absence of anything obvious found, a gutsy rider was usually just made to ride it until it stopped or the owner got used to sitting them. I don't think anything was diagnosed with kissing spines. A grumpy horse who hated being girthed was growled at, ulcers just weren't considered.

On the subject of flash nosebands, a shocking amount of affordable bridles come with them attached, so I do wonder whether more novicey people or first time owners just leave them on because they think it's all just part of the everyday kit.

I had a cracking JA pony as a teenager, but she did not stand to be mounted. If anyone held her she went up and over backwards, and had done with previous owners, so I learnt to leap on on the move. She did not stand at Road junctions either, you had 7 seconds before she was on her back legs. So I simply just became clever at slowing her walk and timing it so we hit junctions at the right time. We often ended up rearing at passing cars, but I found it oddly hilarious (I'm not sure I'd have quite the same outlook today!)
I could forgive all this, however, because she was an absolute machine in the ring and won everything.
I'm not sure that that type of behaviour would be acceptable today really, or people would be looking for a reason for it.
 
AlexHyde said:
Ah yes it should only be done on the balance it is beneficial, I was taking the fun part out of it.

Cross-training in my mind can take many forms and fast work/ galloping is actually more use for stamina building for Topaz than jumping, the jumping is great for suppleness over her back.

In my mind, the idea that a professional (or anyone really :o) can say it's ok it broke doing the job it's 'suppose' to is probably what I object to, if a bit of variety might have meant it didn't break at all because it was using different muscle groups, placing strain on different areas (not the same tendons and ligaments all the time, like hocks in dressage horses) and maintaining a healthier hoof/leg/body function.

I think that is what I find upsetting about some of the systems out there, never mind the horse might be overall healthier, I cannot do XYZ because it is a 'discipline-specific' horse and I cannot justify if it hurt itself doing it...

Different kettle of fish to managing a horse with specific physical (or mental ;)) issues where you then make the call on what is appropriate for that individual.

Hope that makes sense :o...

Stopping problems before they start, not sure on this as it's not something I've considered... Skylla was backed in a cavesson and I do not use a martingale/ bungee/ side reins/ or really any other sort of thing. It may explain why she's taking longer to settle into a contact (though her build is what makes a longer/lower outline a struggle). Might ponder this some more as I have been debating a drop/flash to give her some extra stability...
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agree.
I think cross training is excellent for horses. even if you aren't bothered about the mental stimulation there are definite physical benefits.
 
Great thread!

I cross train Gypsum, who's primary job is dressage, because she gets bored in the ring and if there is too much dressage, she gets quite behind the leg and lazy. Mix the dressage with jumping and hacking, she is happy to do it. In other words, she is the perfect amateur all-rounder but wasn't going to be any pro's competition horse. At least not for dressage. She would have made someone who was less chickensh ** t than me a great eventer, because she is a machine at cross-country and showjumping, but that ship sailed when I bought her.

My first horse thought dressage was the implement of the devil and all she wanted to do was trail ride and jump. I gave up moving up the levels with her, but pushed the dressage issue enough because the strength training benefited her jumping and trail riding, extending her working life as she wasn't a conformational wonder.

But yeah, people faff. So much faff. I faffed a lot when I first got the horses because I had all these behaviour issues and the horses weren't easy to ride and handle, especially Angie, the first horse (Gypsum less so because she came issue free, from a nice competent breeder and had a nice, competent first owner). But there were people at the barn I was boarding at who showed up, tacked up their horses, and schooled or hacked them without any drama. Meanwhile Angie was nippy, kicky, balky, and had decided she didn't need to stand still, ever, except when she didn't want to go somewhere. I wanted to be those people, the ones who had friendly, compliant horses. So I faffed with all the groundwork stuff, TTEAM, natural horsemanship, different equipment, vet checks, whatever, and it took a couple years but I did reach my goal of being able to show up at the barn, ride that horse without any hassle, and the horse was happy about it. All those training systems (and the barn I was at) had something to offer, and the same underlying principles of developing a horse who is happy and comfortable with its job of carting a rider around and easy to handle on the ground.

You make things complicated when you haven't had a zillion horses through your program and you don't know what works and what won't. But that's okay. What I think is less okay are the owners who faff and overcomplicate without any real sense of direction, or the inkling that with the right work, their horse *can* be easy to ride and handle. They look at the ones who are and shrug it off: "Well, her owner is lucky she is such a nice, sweet horse." As a result, they have an insecure, anxious, confused horse who stays that way. The chronic faffers. The horse plays up a lot and the owner writes it off as "cheeky." While I think horses can do "cheeky" things, most of the behaviour I see described as such looks like anxiety and confusion.

A lot of pro horses might not live ideal lives in terms of turnout or company, but most of the ones I've come across look reasonably content when ridden. The ammie horse might enjoy life more when they're not dealing with humans because they're out in a field for 23 hours a day with their mates, but often their interactions with humans seem stressed. A pro rider (lets say the kind, ethical ones for the sake of argument, and not the ones soring Tennessee Walking horses and the like) provides clear direction and training, so the horse can confidently do his job. Horses prefer that. Horses don't like waffle. Obviously lots of ammies are very capable and can provide effective training as well, but lots aren't.

Hardest thing in the world to explain to people. When I was doing freelance training, the most challenging part of it was explaining that there was no magic horse training wand I could wield that would make their animal into an easy beginner ride. Sure, I said, I could ride the horse myself without any major fuss, but for the owner to achieve that, they had to reflect and work on how they interacted with it every single time they went into field. That sounded like hard work. They just wanted me to fix it.

So yes, ammies faff more than pros because we have to, but if the faff improves you and your horse, that's a good thing. If you faff but remain stationary with the same problems you had years ago, then you perhaps should consider how you're faffing.
 
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