Do you consider your horse as a ' Pet?'

TicTac

TicTac

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One of the liveries ( person A ) at my yard was bitching about another this evening ( Person B ) and remarked that person B tended to treat their horse more as a pet than a horse. This comment came about as we were talking about seperation anxiety. Person A is new to horse owning and they are derermined not to let their new horse become attached to person B's, however as they tend to do everything together, the two horses have become attached but not inseperably.

Person B likes to bring their horse in during the day in an effort to control it's expanding tummy but person A doesn't agree with this and feels that horses should be left in the field no matter what. This is despite their new horse trashing the paddock and fencing over the last week as it doesn't like being out on it's own.

I couldn't care less what they do with their horses but the comment about being pets got me thinking.

My horses have an easy life, they are well looked after, settled and fit for what I want them to do, they do not earn their keep and I don't begrudge spending money on them so in a way I do consider them as pets.

Is it wrong to label your horse a pet?
 
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Is it wrong to label your horse a pet?

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Isn't that just what they are for the majority of us???
 
yes they are all pests, i mean pets even the shire who did earn his keep doing wagon rides untill the end of last summer.
 
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yes they are all pests, i mean pets

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in some ways, yes, but other ways no *will try to explain!*
I think they are a pet mostly unless they are "working" horses but - I also think of them as a lifestyle? I mean, a goldfish is a pet and so is a cat, but how much more work is a horse than either of these? I think I don't like the word pet as it seems to me to not sum up the time, effort and money?
 
I am very sad in that I look on my horses as my friends my old boy(19) is my best friend and as such he has looked after me throughout his career eventing my other two are very good friends also
 
Well neither of mine are currently rideable (one LOU, one being investigated for lameness) so I think the ONLY way to describe them is as big fat pets
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No I don't consider mine a pet. He and I have a totally different relationship from the one I have with my true 'pets' (the cats). I regard him as my friend and I love him dearly (very dearly, I have paid almost double in vet bills and transportation than he cost me in the first place) but he is a horse, a working animal. I expect him to do his job and in return I owe it to him to make sure he is as fit, happy and comfortable as possible without dressing him up like a dolly and treating him as if he was made of glass.

I have said 'him' but this goes for both FB and MoM
 
QR - If someone casually asked me if I had any pets, I would probably include talking about my horses when I answered them. They certainly aren't dependent on their ability to work to be with me (and that doesn't apply to every horse I've ever owned). However, I tend to call them my family
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I don't consider horses pets, but more a lifestyle! And also you have to respect horses in a completely different way to how you respect your dogs/cats.
 
Mine absolutely is not a pet. I have him primarily to do a job, and whilst I am fond of him, he is not a people person and certainly doesn't want to be affectionate. Whilst he owes me nothing and I will to the best of my ability always make sure he is looked after, I have a very different relationship with him and attitude towards him than I do my cat, who is a pet.

The cat doesn't have a job, and can sit on my lap and be stroked - he is not in any way useful and he gets to live with me regardless. The horse does have a job, cannot invade my personal space in any way and his tenure is nowhere near as secure.....
 
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The cat doesn't have a job, and can sit on my lap and be stroked - he is not in any way useful and he gets to live with me regardless. The horse does have a job, cannot invade my personal space in any way and his tenure is nowhere near as secure.....

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LOL! This reminds me of when you met Be. As you know she would love to sit on your lap (if she could) and be stroked, loves to share personal space and is ultimately just an oversized lab!
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The cat doesn't have a job, and can sit on my lap and be stroked - he is not in any way useful and he gets to live with me regardless. The horse does have a job, cannot invade my personal space in any way and his tenure is nowhere near as secure.....

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LOL! This reminds me of when you met Be. As you know she would love to sit on your lap (if she could) and be stroked, loves to share personal space and is ultimately just an oversized lab!
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When you come and meet my B, you will understand why he is not allowed in my personal space unless I happen to be sat on him! If he was more like your horses, both of whom were affectionate but polite, then things might be different
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If person A. Thinks horses should out 24/7 regardless, then I hope her horse never gets laminitis.

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I think that my horses should be out 24/7 - it doesn't mean I am reckless about their risk of getting over weight
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I consider my horse to be a member of the family, so yes he is a pet in so far as the dogs and cats are also part of my family.

Certainly if he wasn't able to be ridden or worked, he will always have a home for life, even if I could not afford another horse and would have to give up riding to keep him.
 
LOL! You caught Star on a good day
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And she must have got a good vibe from you
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I know where you are coming from though. My old TB, Billy, I wouldn't have felt the same way about him if he couldn't have been worked. I would never have kept him as a pet, and it worried me greatly about what to do for the best when his riding ability was in question...
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mine are pets well mostly brodie (she does think shes a dog though) ive had her since she was a baby she is like a best friend weve kind of grew up together and if id let her she would prob come into the house at night and curl up beside the dogs
but mine are out 24/7 purely because they hate coming indoors for long periods of time
 
No not at all.Most, truth to tell, are at least partly pets.You do have to understand that its a very large animal though, and not a little pussy cat, and you can't treat it like that either.
 
Yes...my horses/ponies are all pets. Just as much as my dogs and guinea pigs.
I treat them like horses/ponies and I treat my dogs like dogs but they are all pets.
 
hmmmm interesting, not thought about this before really. One of mine can be described as nothing more than a pet since iv retired her, sometimes shes called chief lawnmower to make her sound more important! The old ponio doednt really feel like a pet though and I've had him for ever, he still works but rarely with me and is a companion to the chief lawnmower. He is more of an institution than anything else! My youngster actually gets called 'the pet' or sometimes 'the dog' because he thinks a life of following me around and getting stroked would be just up his street, he would probably even learn to retrieve a stick just to uphold this dream! But I don't really class him as a pet either, he sort of forfills a purpose, I love him very much (and let him be a little dog like) but I don't really think of him as a pet
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this topic has me all confuddled....I'm not really sure WHAT exactly they are!
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Yes they are pets - I don't depend on them for a living, whilst they do work, Cairo spent several years doing little hacks but his job was to make husband relax and smile after a stressful day at work - which he did so well.

My cats don't work either - no hunting but again they do snuggle up and give us pleasure and relaxation.

Luckily our horses are very affectionate people types, love to have fuss and cuddles.

To date I have never sold one of my horses and maybe this is the difference between house pets and horses - often they are sold on when they are outgrown or no longer required, whereas cats etc tend not to be as a general rule.
 
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No I don't consider mine a pet. He and I have a totally different relationship from the one I have with my true 'pets' (the cats). I regard him as my friend and I love him dearly (very dearly, I have paid almost double in vet bills and transportation than he cost me in the first place) but he is a horse, a working animal. I expect him to do his job and in return I owe it to him to make sure he is as fit, happy and comfortable as possible without dressing him up like a dolly and treating him as if he was made of glass.



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This sums it up for me too really. Also my OH isn't horsey and doesn't often have anything to do with Boo. That means he would never be a family pet in the way the cats are.
 
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