pooperscooper
New User
Hello everyone! 
My name is Maggie, but I go as Pooperscooper because I have two kittens and I do nothing else but scoop the poop morning, day and night.
I'm 22 and I while I come from the Czech Republic, I study English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University in the north of England. I'm just finishing my 2nd year, just one exam to go and then I'll be free for the summer!
I have always loved horses, ever since I was a little girl and it took a lot of work to convince my parents to allow me horseback riding lessons as they are both doctors and safety is a huge thing to them. But I managed and I started riding when I was 12, almost 13. But I have never hurt myself, even though I fell more than once, so my parents are a lot more relaxed than they used to be
I started riding on an eco-farm near my home where I used to go to summer camps when I was little (8-9 years old). The owner still remembered me, because I was a natural in the saddle and I befriended an old donkey that always followed me around. And because I once said there that I love the smell of horses and don't mind the smell of their poo I was (and still am) a really weird child, so people would remember me for doing all kinds of weird stuff
When I was 14, my trainer (the owner of the farm) allowed me to ride her son's horse who at that time was overloaded with work and was not able to go home as often as he used to. The horse was the VIP horse, that kind that is of a very complicated nature, extremely well trained and behaved but does not let just anyone work with him. He was a darling and kids would occasionally groom him, but due to his sensitivity, only a handful of people (the owner/my trainer, her son, the vet) would ride him. So imagine how I felt when I was given the opportunity to be his friend! We clicked instantly. He was absolutely amazing, a true teacher with whom I realised that I am very gentle with horses and while riding, that I don't pull on the horse's mouth, that I don't kick, but I connect with the horse and am able to do things I was never able to do on school horses before. At that time I was going through some really heavy things, bullying at school and bad grades and family issues and stuff, and when I was on him, with him or just around him, I felt so much better. He made me so, SO happy. I was working with him mostly from the ground as he was recovering from a hoof injury, so I was not able to ride on him for quite a long time. But I didn't care, I just loved being with him.
The first time I rode him I was over the moon. We went bareback on a little bit of a trail, we trotted and even though he was still in a bit of pain he was absolutely incredible and I didn't even have to ask for a trot, I just thought of it and he trotted on. After ten minutes I just let him stand in the tall grass where he was happily munching on daisies while I cuddled him from his back. It was a Wednesday that I will never forget. He passed away the following day from a heart attack. It was no one's fault, it was due to a defect he was born with, but I have felt incredibly guilty. I tried to continue riding but I gradually stopped because I just could not bear the guilt and grief.
I had mental health issues most of my life which went undiagnosed for a very, very long time and due to which I don't really remember my late teens I tried many times to get back into the saddle but it just never felt the same, I was terrified and sad and although I loved the cuddles, riding started to terrify me. So I stopped trying and just occasionally visited the farm to say hello and get some cuddles or go for a walk with the horsies (maybe once a year?).
Fast forward to 2022. I have a boyfriend (a brand new fiancé actually, haha) with whom I have been for over a year. We have a bit of an age difference, but the relationship is incredibly harmonic and absolutely lovely, his family is amazing and we have two kittens (Fishie and Chippie). We met while playing Dungeons and Dragons together He's a Swede by the way His mother and sisters (12 and 30) all ride and the older sister owns a couple of horses which we visited in January when I was there to say hello and give them apples. I met this horse, a warmblood, named Elvis. A tall American boy with a messed up past who had a broken leg and nose, who was malnourished before my boyfriend's sister took him in back in 2016 (I think?) and who, for some reason, received the most cuddles from me. But I did not think much about it as I was not feeling 100% on that day and it's all a bit foggy.
I saw him again before I left back to uni in April. I was offered a ride which I took. And while I was nervous as hell and I realised how I forgot everything and how my muscles are not where they are supposed to be, it felt so different. The sun was shining and the Swedish spring was just starting, ravens were yelling at each other... it was absolutely beautiful. And Elvis was incredible, very responsive and sensitive, I was absolutely delighted about riding again. The whole trail was in walk as I was afraid since I haven't been riding properly since 2015, but later on in a field I asked for a trot. It was bouncy and weird and I had to get used to it, but I felt amazing. He got a hug later, a big hug and tail scratches. And my boyfriend and all the girls were with us the whole time, just laughing and smiling. The sister told my boyfriend "well, you obviously have to get her a horse, it's time to get one!" to which I laughed and said "hell yeah, it's been far too long". When we returned home, my boyfriend told me, that his sister told him, that she would be willing to sell/give away Elvis if it was to a family member. And they don't know we are engaged yet
So here I am now, ready to start riding again with a horse that might become mine in the following year as I am moving to my boyfriend's place to Sweden next summer. And while I am still extremely anxious about riding and I definitely forgot how to do most of the things I used to know, I am super excited about this adventure that awaits. And after years and years of struggling with mental health, maybe this is the time when things finally start to look a bit brighter?
My name is Maggie, but I go as Pooperscooper because I have two kittens and I do nothing else but scoop the poop morning, day and night.
I'm 22 and I while I come from the Czech Republic, I study English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University in the north of England. I'm just finishing my 2nd year, just one exam to go and then I'll be free for the summer!
I have always loved horses, ever since I was a little girl and it took a lot of work to convince my parents to allow me horseback riding lessons as they are both doctors and safety is a huge thing to them. But I managed and I started riding when I was 12, almost 13. But I have never hurt myself, even though I fell more than once, so my parents are a lot more relaxed than they used to be
I started riding on an eco-farm near my home where I used to go to summer camps when I was little (8-9 years old). The owner still remembered me, because I was a natural in the saddle and I befriended an old donkey that always followed me around. And because I once said there that I love the smell of horses and don't mind the smell of their poo
I was (and still am) a really weird child, so people would remember me for doing all kinds of weird stuff When I was 14, my trainer (the owner of the farm) allowed me to ride her son's horse who at that time was overloaded with work and was not able to go home as often as he used to. The horse was the VIP horse, that kind that is of a very complicated nature, extremely well trained and behaved but does not let just anyone work with him. He was a darling and kids would occasionally groom him, but due to his sensitivity, only a handful of people (the owner/my trainer, her son, the vet) would ride him. So imagine how I felt when I was given the opportunity to be his friend!
We clicked instantly. He was absolutely amazing, a true teacher with whom I realised that I am very gentle with horses and while riding, that I don't pull on the horse's mouth, that I don't kick, but I connect with the horse and am able to do things I was never able to do on school horses before. At that time I was going through some really heavy things, bullying at school and bad grades and family issues and stuff, and when I was on him, with him or just around him, I felt so much better. He made me so, SO happy. I was working with him mostly from the ground as he was recovering from a hoof injury, so I was not able to ride on him for quite a long time. But I didn't care, I just loved being with him. The first time I rode him I was over the moon. We went bareback on a little bit of a trail, we trotted and even though he was still in a bit of pain he was absolutely incredible and I didn't even have to ask for a trot, I just thought of it and he trotted on. After ten minutes I just let him stand in the tall grass where he was happily munching on daisies while I cuddled him from his back. It was a Wednesday that I will never forget. He passed away the following day from a heart attack. It was no one's fault, it was due to a defect he was born with, but I have felt incredibly guilty. I tried to continue riding but I gradually stopped because I just could not bear the guilt and grief.
I had mental health issues most of my life which went undiagnosed for a very, very long time and due to which I don't really remember my late teens
I tried many times to get back into the saddle but it just never felt the same, I was terrified and sad and although I loved the cuddles, riding started to terrify me. So I stopped trying and just occasionally visited the farm to say hello and get some cuddles or go for a walk with the horsies (maybe once a year?).Fast forward to 2022. I have a boyfriend (a brand new fiancé actually, haha) with whom I have been for over a year. We have a bit of an age difference, but the relationship is incredibly harmonic and absolutely lovely, his family is amazing and we have two kittens (Fishie and Chippie
). We met while playing Dungeons and Dragons together He's a Swede by the way His mother and sisters (12 and 30) all ride and the older sister owns a couple of horses which we visited in January when I was there to say hello and give them apples. I met this horse, a warmblood, named Elvis. A tall American boy with a messed up past who had a broken leg and nose, who was malnourished before my boyfriend's sister took him in back in 2016 (I think?) and who, for some reason, received the most cuddles from me. But I did not think much about it as I was not feeling 100% on that day and it's all a bit foggy.I saw him again before I left back to uni in April. I was offered a ride which I took. And while I was nervous as hell and I realised how I forgot everything and how my muscles are not where they are supposed to be, it felt so different. The sun was shining and the Swedish spring was just starting, ravens were yelling at each other... it was absolutely beautiful. And Elvis was incredible, very responsive and sensitive, I was absolutely delighted about riding again. The whole trail was in walk as I was afraid since I haven't been riding properly since 2015, but later on in a field I asked for a trot. It was bouncy and weird and I had to get used to it, but I felt amazing. He got a hug later, a big hug and tail scratches. And my boyfriend and all the girls were with us the whole time, just laughing and smiling. The sister told my boyfriend "well, you obviously have to get her a horse, it's time to get one!" to which I laughed and said "hell yeah, it's been far too long". When we returned home, my boyfriend told me, that his sister told him, that she would be willing to sell/give away Elvis if it was to a family member. And they don't know we are engaged yet
So here I am now, ready to start riding again with a horse that might become mine in the following year as I am moving to my boyfriend's place to Sweden next summer. And while I am still extremely anxious about riding and I definitely forgot how to do most of the things I used to know, I am super excited about this adventure that awaits. And after years and years of struggling with mental health, maybe this is the time when things finally start to look a bit brighter?
