Do you think it's selfish to never let anyone else ride your horse?

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MizElz

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The only people who have ever been on Ellie (since I've owned her) are myself, my SJ trainer and my dressage instructor. The former actually took a bad fall from her during gridwork (funny, so have I!) and snapped his leg in two places. It's not that Ellie is a dangerous horse, but I just dont let other people ride her. My mum has never ridden her, as she is worried she wouldnt be able to cope with her, and I ran a mile when our landlady dropped hints that she would love a horse 'to exercise every now and again.' At pony club, when everyone used to swap ponies/horses at the end of a rally, I always stuck to my guns and stayed put.

Thing is, there is no real reason; I dont rate myself as a better rider than any of my friends. It's just that Ellie is my baby, and if anything bad ever happens to her, I want only myself to blame!

Is anyone else a bit like this?
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TBH the only person that really wants to get on my horses is my 12 year old son!

I would let anyone have a "sit" on my horses, as long as the horse is sensible but if my horse was a bit quirky, I would be very selective as to who rode it/them.

So no, you are not mean, I would say you are very sensible
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I think you can learn alot by riding different horses so always swapped at PC...... and would take any offered rides now as i think it can only improve your riding..

Never had a problem with other people riding mine, (when he was alive obviously) as long as I was there to supervise.... for the first few times at least...
 
I don't think it's selfish, shes your horse so you have every right to say who can and can't ride her.
However I do think it's a bit short-sighted. You can learn a hell of a lot by riding other horses and watching others ride yours.
 
I dont mind as long as horse and rider will be ok together, The_Psephologist came to ride Lance today, Im happy for people to ride as long as they wont be detrimental to the horse.

Im more fussy with who rides Beau because he is young and has never put a foot wrong, I dont want to spoil that, but anyone i trust can ride my gee gee's.
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Oh I do agree - and I'm a complete hypocrit because I would think nothing of riding my neighbour's horse for her if she asked me. It's just Ellie; I can't bear the thought of anyone else on her! When my instructor got on her, I stood there with my fists clenched tight, it was a horrid feeling! I think perhaps knowing she had badly injured my SJ trainer doesnt help, even though it wasnt her fault at all.
 
No I don't think it's selfish at all - because that would imply that people wanted to ride him, and I was refusing.

I am choosy who gets on my horses - and am the only one who has ridden Thumper since I bought him.

However, generally I quite like seeing others on my horse, as they are more often than not better riders than me and get a much better tune out of them.
 
I don't think your selfish at all you pay and care for her, but I do agree with other's that you can learn a hell of alot riding others and letting other people ride yours. I used to let any competant person ride mine as I didn't want him to end up as a one person horse, if you understand what I mean. It can be beneficial for the both of you.
 
My trainer has ridden my youngster but no one else. He asked why I didn't let anyone ride him and my reply was that I didn't know anyone good enough.
Not being funny but I don't want the world and his egg on him. I bred him for me.
I handled him from birth, I backed him and I broke him without any trouble or assistance.
 
I wouldn't like other people riding my horse, unless it was for his benefit, ie schooling/needs more exercise, or if a friend wanted to sit on him, even. I certainly wouldn't let someone else ride my horse because they 'fancied a potter round now and again'! I'd tell them to buy their own bl**dy horse! I don't let other people drive my car, or take my dog out, or wear my clothes, so why should I let them ride my horse?!
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No, you're definitely not alone.
In this age of litigation, I would not let anyone else ride him unless I was there and I knew they were competent riders. I don't mind friend's kids having a sit on him, again with me there, at his head but nothing other than that.
Early in the summer, I did let the daughter of a local ex-pony club leader take him out (she works away as a a professional groom) as she wanted horses to exercise while she was home. A friend told me later that she'd spoken to them on their way back to put him in his field, and Min was sweating buckets, foaming loads, the veins in his head were all enlarged and he seemed quite stressed. He'd only been hacking lightly in the weeks leading up to that and was not overly fit. Apparently she'd hacked him out for an hour, then taken him down to their school and lunged him hard for another hour (her usual exercise regime with her horse) then hacked him home. I was not impressed.
Also despite asking her to leave his tack in his stable, so I could ride that night after work, she took it home with her and I had to personally go down and collect it two days later.
So no, I don't let anyone else do anything with him unless I'm there. (sorry for the rant but this girl was supposed to know what she was doing and she knew about his level of fitness as I'd told her beforehand)
 
No I'd agree your right to be very selective or refuse anyone to ride your horse. My mare had been used in a college environment for a couple of years before I got her and is really not happy with lots of different riders, it took me a long time to get anything out of her but now she is working happily no way will I chance just anyone getting on her although I don't mind someone having a sit on her for 5 mins they aren't going to school her, jump or do anything else I haven't OK'd. I even took my tack home while I was on holiday as one girl was really keen to exercise her and I didn't want the risk. I don't rate myself as any better but she is sharp and if anything happened I'd feel responsible.
 
Well anyone can ride Holly as she is sensible and sane and adapts to her rider, ie can be naughty with experienced people but can be safe and good with novice or beginners who sit on her.

Blue on the other hand i've decided to not let anyone other than instructors and myself ride now, have had people ride him in the past and either they fall off and hurt themselves, or they get attached and want him themselves!
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There are very few people I'd let borrow my big horse because he's very accident prone anyway and I'd never forgive them if something happened to him because he's so precious to me.

The little horse - anyone can ride her - she's tough as old boots!!
 
I don't think you are alone. I am very picky about who I let ride my horse - he's not overly complicated just v.spooky and v.sensitive. So far my instructor, my mum and two friends have ridden him (oh and a couple of the young girls down the yard have had a sit on him). I did get Lucinda Green to ride him as well. I am v.fussy about who I would let ride without supervision as well

I am more fussy about who I let jump him as he used to be very very nervous about jumping although I have built his confidence up, it wouldn't take much to knock it. So far my mum and a friend have popped over some little fences (under supervision) and my SJ trainer is going to have a ride next lesson.
 
We are the same as you, daughter is the main rider, occasionally her mum hacks the lad out & the only other people that ever get on him are the flatwork trainer & show jump trainer. I don't have any problem with that.
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I dont have a problem with other people riding my horses - mostly its a friend and my instructor, both who ride better than me and thus get a much better tune out of them than me - however i have a couple of mates on my yard who I know wont do them any harm so they are free to ride them should they ever want too - plus one of mine has been used to teach my friends kids to ride as he is much better on the lunge than their pony!!!

I love watching a good rider on my horse and feel i learn a lot from it.
 
I dont think its selfish, in fact i think its very understandable ! However, I am VERY grateful to the people who are prepared to let numpties like me ride their horses (Finn McCool and the lovely Cazza spring to mind)
 
Interesting... I think if my situation was different then I might feel the same as you - especially with my new horse as he is young and I have only just got him...

But - I don't have the option - so I am quite laid back about other people riding him. I only get to see him at the weekends and if others didn't ride my horse, he wouldn't get much exercise... But I know all of the people that ride him and I know they will do a good job. And my YO will lunge him if there is no-one who can ride - she doesn't just let anyone do it.
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I don't think it's selfish - If you own a horse then you say who rides it and who doesn't.

I've sometimes felt sorry for people who have their horse out of work due to veterinary reasons, they have nothing to ride when someone could offer their horse up?

I would say, though, that it is normally beneficial to a horse to have different riders (especially if it is going into the show ring and will be ridden by judges).
 
I probably am selective about who rides Yak because it would irritate the hell out of me if I saw him getting away with murder through being ridden badly. I know he will try things on and then if he wins will carry on trying it on.
The other horse anyone can ride am always pushing people to ride him as he is so set in his ways nothing anyone can try and do to him will change him!
 
I don't think it is selfish, its really your choice.

I've never been too bothered about who rides my horses [when I had them], I think its interesting to see how they respond to another rider. I wouldn't let somebody totally crap ride them on a regular basis but I think it does good for the horse to experience a different style of riding every once in a while.
 
I have a really quirky horse with a very fussy mouth due to an accident last year. As such, im really protective over him
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My trainer used to ride him when I was in the UK as she was a much superior rider to me, I agreed with her methods and she knew Jack well. The head groom there sat on him once also but they managed to upset each other as he can feel very threatening when you're on him and said grooms reaction was to grab the front end

No one has ridden him since ive moved to Denmark. The head guy on this yard is quite tough with the horses and im not really sure how jack would take to it.

I dont think its selfish at all to not have others on your horse. At the end of the day, its entirely your choice to make and no one should judge you for that!
 
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