Hoofprints
New User
I'm sure that responsible parents would be the first to intervene if they felt their child was dangerously overhorsed.
But what would you do if your child said they weren't compatible with their pony/horse? For example, many many years ago I was very lucky as a child to have my ponies bought for me by Mum. They were very young (often difficult!) and she always taught me to persevere with them. However, at about 12 I outgrew my beloved welsh section B and we got a 14.2hh. Perhaps she was not the best choice because although I'm ashamed to admit it, I soon found I didn't really enjoy riding her very much. Although I wasn't massively into whizzing about and jumping, I did like to do a bit of eventing alongside dressage but I found this pony very difficult to get moving forwards and she didn't seem to like jumping at all. We did have all relevant checks done but said pony just seemed to be a bit lazy! Eventually I wrote a letter to my Mum (!) to explain that I'd really rather change onto a different pony (I didn't want a 'better' one, just one that enjoyed competing too!) but I think she was rather annoyed about it at the time. In due course I outgrew the pony anyway, she was sold to a hacking home who were delighted with her as she was pretty and very quiet, and I moved onto a little thoroughbred who I had a great time with.
What would you do if your child said that they weren't compatible with their horse or pony? I think it's a tricky one, after all it is often you the parent who has paid for the horse, and perhaps it might be seen as very ungrateful for a child to complain. I also think its very important for children to learn perseverance and hard work with horses. At the same time, if you are paying upkeep for a horse a child doesn't like, then perhaps its not worth it? Any thoughts?
But what would you do if your child said they weren't compatible with their pony/horse? For example, many many years ago I was very lucky as a child to have my ponies bought for me by Mum. They were very young (often difficult!) and she always taught me to persevere with them. However, at about 12 I outgrew my beloved welsh section B and we got a 14.2hh. Perhaps she was not the best choice because although I'm ashamed to admit it, I soon found I didn't really enjoy riding her very much. Although I wasn't massively into whizzing about and jumping, I did like to do a bit of eventing alongside dressage but I found this pony very difficult to get moving forwards and she didn't seem to like jumping at all. We did have all relevant checks done but said pony just seemed to be a bit lazy! Eventually I wrote a letter to my Mum (!) to explain that I'd really rather change onto a different pony (I didn't want a 'better' one, just one that enjoyed competing too!) but I think she was rather annoyed about it at the time. In due course I outgrew the pony anyway, she was sold to a hacking home who were delighted with her as she was pretty and very quiet, and I moved onto a little thoroughbred who I had a great time with.
What would you do if your child said that they weren't compatible with their horse or pony? I think it's a tricky one, after all it is often you the parent who has paid for the horse, and perhaps it might be seen as very ungrateful for a child to complain. I also think its very important for children to learn perseverance and hard work with horses. At the same time, if you are paying upkeep for a horse a child doesn't like, then perhaps its not worth it? Any thoughts?
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Their shenanigans amused me, I loved riding them, but they scared the stuffing out of her. Should I then just have said "Oh get on and stop being such a flaming wimp!" to a child that visibly shook with fear when she was put up?