Falling off in company on a hack - what would you do?

Decision on whether or not to stay with friend should always be based on the following:

- how much do you like friend
- how much is horse worth

Simple
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I'm with you and Rowreach, Naturally. I was taught on the riding school that loose horses can cause car accidents and such things = a hazard to other peoples lives, so if the rider isn't seriously hurt, always follow the loose horse in case you get a chance to catch it.

E.g. if I don't fall off myself and my horse decides to run after its friend, I'm sorry but it would take a lot for me to jump off at full speed. On other hand, if the other rider seems unconscious, I might be prepared to take a bigger risk to get off, so I think it simply comes down to the situation then and there.



Besides people doesn't always do what they should in unforeseen situations, I know of someone who when there was a fire in their house (it didn't burn down but a few rooms were damaged and the whole house got filled with smoke), with smoke down to her waist, this person decided that it was a good idea to go to the toilet for a pee before leaving the house, because who knew when she would have a chance to go again...
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And there was me bursting for a pee but thinking it was a bad idea to go to the toilet in, what I thought, was a burning house, I decided to go around one of the gables of the house and peed in the garden instead.
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Make sure the person's ok, call 999 if needed, then worry about the horse.

Happened to a girl at our yard a couple of years ago, she was out with a friend, her horse bolted and she came off. They were in a closed field near her house so the other girl let her pony loose as well and took her home ... she went out to look for the horses shortly afterwards, her friend's horse had somersaulted off a bank and killed itself
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really sad, but it would have been worse if it had been the girl, and that would probably have happened whether she went after the horse or not.
 
This has happened to me many times in the past, when I was younger (aged 12 to 16) we used to go hacking in groups for hours and were forever been run off with and bucked off
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. Nine times out of ten the rider immediately got up and wanted you to go after their pony. Obviously if someone is seriously hurt then I'd stay with them and hope someone else catches the horse.

One time when I fell off out hunting my horse bu88ered off down the sand gallops at tilford and my sister managed to gallop up alongside him and grab his reins - I was very impressed! Despite now being 20 I still hunt on a pony so get assigned the task of catching loose horses and it's not always easy.

All of our horses have discs on their saddles and bridles with phone number and yard postcode on, and local riding school does the same thing as clients often fall off whilst hacking in the woods.
 
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I would personnly stay with the person, ring for ambulance for person and back up for horse. Horses no matter how special can be replaced people cannot. Human life and well being has to be no 1 priority.

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Totally with you here
 
Only once , I was out hacking and my big warmblood, spooky nightmare of a horse, spooked at a dog, spun round in half a second and was gone in the other direction, leaving me hanging on, never completely recoered my position from the momentum of the spin, and came off, he never stopped, he kept going, and ran into a residential grounds of children with learning difficulties........... I got up pronto, knowing, that if anyone was out walking, they could end up being run down...#
luckily, the gardener seen him coming, and he seemed to have stopped for himj. he caught him, and I walked him home, brute!!!, Thankfully, his bolting, as ceased, and he is much more confident now, but oh, boy I was glad to see him in one piece, without causing injury to anyone else.
Not Nice.
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ive had a really bad fall whilst out hacking alone and my horse tanked off home without me - crossed one main road, over a roundabout and down a country lane all at full pelt gallop fully tacked up, by the time I limped home he was standing at the yard gate with back leg resting waiting for me, was so embarressed walking along fully kitted out, hat on, mud down one side and crop in hand BUT no horse.

my sons old pony was the best for this sort of thing - as soon as she managed to dismantle him she'd just put her head down and eat the grass - so much easier
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I came off my mare in the summer (saddle slipped cantering around corner of field so she rodeod!), she didn't stop to stay with her mate! She pissed off up the field, along the track through the woods and proceeded to gallop flat out down the main road for 4 miles!


My friend came back to see that I was ok (I was fine) and I sent her after the horse. My friend figured she'd head in the direction of home so went that way. When I got to the main road a car stopped to tell me they had passed her a miles or so back (she was going away from home!). Several cars passed and just said that they had passed her then finally a lovely olf couple stopped picked me up and said they'd take her to where they last saw her.

Luckily a 'man in a van' had gone after her when she went off the main road and down a lane and had eventually caught her for me and put her in the paddock at a holiday cottage.

She has dog tags on her bridle and her saddle with my number and my boyfriends number but he didn't notice these and actually phone! I guess if no one turned up then eventually someone would spot the tags and call?!
 
Its happened to OH and me twice. First time our new horse was so excited at being allowed to gallop he put in two big bucks and OH got flung off. I didn't even stop to see if OH was OK I cantered after my new pride and joy
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OH was not injured (except his pride) and all was fine.

Second time I was attempting to lead my share pony past a tractor (stupid, stupid, stupid, should have stayed on board) she knocked me flat and cantered off with me clinging on to the reins like my life depended on it and getting dragged along the road (again stupid, stupid stupid should have let go) I eventually let go when OH screamed at me to do so. He wanted to stay with me and make sure I was OK but I made him follow her and catch her cos I was terrified of injuring someone elses pony. As it was I was OK but did end up in hospital and the pony's owner told me I should have let go and she was insured.

Guess which one of me and OH is the caring sharing people person .
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BHS would tell you that your first duty is to "secure the scene", ie prevent further injuries from happening. So it rather depends on the circumstances as to what you would actually do
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The thing is though you have potentially 2 scenes to deal with.

My friend was leading in hand her 2 horses when they bolted she was trampled but not badly hurt but the horses both bolted down the couintry lane and ran straight out onto a main rd...one horse ended up in a deep ditch on the other side and the other did not stop until caugth my someone nearly a mile later.

so no they do not always stop and come back when alone...and it was pure luck that a car did not hit the horses as they ran out into the main carriageway..I could so eassily have been hit by a car carrying children (there is a secondry school a few yards down the main rd) causeing serious injury or even death.

So which scene do you cover the rider or the potential crash the horse is going to cause?

I would say if the rider is concious and breathing...secure the horse
 
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