If not horses then what?

[canteron]

Golf - I played golf (very badly) for a year or so while I had horses - but nothing to ride, but golf in the winter is even more miserable than looking after horses.

 

[Tarragon]

I had to "retire" my main riding pony, aged 16, due to an unknown lameness for the foreseeable future, and within a couple of weeks of the news coming out I had one friend who was looking for a companion pony contact me and another friend with a pony that needed more work and time that she was able to give due to other commitments get in touch and we are now all sorted!

 

[windand rain]

Gosh I wish I knew the answer to this - I was told only last week I now have to have both hips replaced, possibly surgery on my SI joints and injections into my lower spine to try to alleviate problems there, they doubt very much I will be able to ride again, ever. Plus after the cyber attack on our health system here it looks as though it will be sometime now before I actually get anything done. I do intend to do everything in my power to ride again and prove them wrong but I suspect at my grand old age and all the damage that I have done, they might be right.

My main riding horse has now been returned to his ex owner, temporarily to start with, but it is now permanent arrangement as even if I do ride again it wont be a 17.3 chunky monkey thats for sure. I still have my retired mare and two donkeys - but my son and OH have to help me with those as I am less mobile by the day. They also now walk my two labs for me as I am not able for that either.

I have gone from riding almost every day and walking my dogs several miles just a year ago to nothing and I am hugely peed off about it all, I keep asking people what do other old ladies do with their time when they become immobilised - any suggestions don't appeal to be honest. I have always been outdoors 'doing' stuff, any ideas and suggestions very welcome. I confess I do still half heartedly trawl adverts looking at ads for little 15 hand leg in each corner, carry your grandmother safely sorts, just in case.

I feel for you I need new knees and cannot ride due to back pain Luckily I can still do the ponies just get frustrate by the fact I now have to employ someone in spite of little free money to do things I used to do with ease OH does what he can but he is not very good on his pins either he needs a new knee and has had surgery for a syrinx in his brain/spine axix so we are both crocked up. We manage the required work daily but the youngster will be having pro groundwork lessons and we wont have a puppy once Willow is gone she is 11 and happy to potter now. I love pottering in my garden but it is tiny for a reason and over the years I have made it as easy as possible. Take care and do what you can when you can as active people make better patients than couch potato types and you might surprise yourself and find a nice not too wide chunky monkey to plod about on.

 

[Carlosmum]

Mainly, I am a farmer and my pony is very much my hobby, even though I grew up on a stud. OH & I are now approaching 60 and beginning to think about what to do when we finally retire form daily farming. Our plan is to buy our own narrow boat and go cruising the canals several months at a time. But for the moment we cant afford the 60-90K it would cost for the boat and our son is not ready for us to leave him to it yet!!

 

[JGC]

I had to retire mine at 14 after years of ups and downs with his help and I couldn't face starting all over again.

I did a lot of cycling and running, bought a lot of clothes, did some camping trips and did a lot of clothes shopping.

I got a share fairly quickly, which wasn't too expensive, meant I could ride independently but still have lessons and meant less responsibility and running around like a blue-arsed fly.

 

[angel7]

I bought an ebike and lost 4 stone after my last horse was PTS.
Its kinda like buying a horse in that you need to check out a few bikes to find the right fit/type for you, get all the gear, transport sorted and finding places to go. I'm still really enjoying it 3 years later.

 

[JesterandPatch]

I had my boy PTS last Friday and rehomed his companion who is now having the time of his life being pampered and ridden by a lovely young family.
It broke my heart loosing my boy and just knew that it wasn't the right time in my life to look for another, especially since I have been their sole carers for the last 9 years without a break ( private yard) so enjoying the break although I must admit I feel a little lost and the dogs are confused as they always came to the yard with me.
I started running last September and love it so continuing with that, lots of very long dog walks and loads of time pottering in the garden growing veg etc.
Going to also use the time to decorate inside the house and have a good clear out.
I don't think I will buy another horse but tempted to look for share.

 

[skint1]

I've been pondering this as I am not riding my horses for various reasons, I think I would like to have a dog and help my daughter more with her dogs and baby

 

[mariew]

3 years almost now (where does time go??), i do want another but i don't have a steady income at the minute and horse prices are crazy which is probably mostly what is putting me off.

Where do i start on hobbies that take up my time, i have an allotment, which i love as it means i spend a lot of time outside. (Our garden is stamp sized so not an option). I also love creative stuff involving fibres which is currently focused on sewing, tablet weaving and hand sewn leather work is the latest one. I also knit and crochet. Reading is another one. One trap is to fall into too much wasting time on social media which is not so good. You could also grow indoor plants but space is limited. I also want to start swimming again.

I do ride once / week up at the riding school and help someone look after their horses when they are working so i am not totally devoid of horse life, but it is not the same thing. I haven't necessarily missed getting up at 6 or 7 am with a winter like the last one, but i would still rather be a horse owner again at some point in the next year or two.

 

[pistolpete]

Share seems the logical way forward. I just need to find one.

 

[Cortez]

Oh gosh - EVERYTHING. Travel (when we can again), studying various things and language courses, dog walks, art galleries, museums, returning to playing an instrument and taking lessons, rowing, an exercise class of some sort, theatre, painting, cheesemaking....There's so much outside the world of horses that I've yearned to do but not had the time or energy. As a slightly crocked person who's over 60 after a lifetime of professional involvement with horses, the decision to give up was easy.

 

[mariew]

Oh gosh - EVERYTHING. Travel (when we can again), studying various things and language courses, dog walks, art galleries, museums, returning to playing an instrument and taking lessons, rowing, an exercise class of some sort, theatre, painting, cheesemaking....There's so much outside the world of horses that I've yearned to do but not had the time or energy. As a slightly crocked person who's over 60 after a lifetime of professional involvement with horses, the decision to give up was easy.

Lol this made me giggle, looking forward to a bit of horseless time? Horses definitely does suck up a lot of time and money. I forgot to mention i have time to play instruments now too. It's amazing how much spare time you get when you don't do horses 24/7. (Unsurprisingly I am not rich yet as i have found other ways of spending money).

 

[conkers]

I did the sit around and eat and drink too much approach when I stopped riding. Then I realised I needed something else in my life as the days seemed so long and pointless.
I seriously considered taking up knitting or crochet but didn't know how to do it and found out it is an expensive hobby and quite pointless as I wouldn't know what to do with the output (I wouldn't wear it or anything practical like that.)
Then I discovered virtual walking challenges and that has been a game changer. So far, I've walked the distance of the English Channel, Hadrians wall and around the Giza Pyramids I am about to finish the Cabot Trail, which is in Nova Scotia and will be starting the Grand Canyon next. I get a nice medal at the end of each walk and have surprised myself with how driven I am to get that bling.
Walking these challenges have also made me realise that I need a walking companion - my old dog can't do the distance. So I am getting a whippet puppy this weekend with the hope he will join me when he is old enough.
It took a long time to reach where I am now but can't imagine how I fitted horses in 7 days a week. I go and visit my old boy once a week and won't be replacing him when he goes.
Life has moved on in an unexpected direction as I thought I would always ride but it is possible to find a replacement, it might just take a little time.

 

[Shilasdair]

I would maybe go back to sailing (racing).
At the moment I have two retired horses, and work two jobs, so have no time for anything...

 

[daydreamer]

I retired mine last summer and them he was PTS in November. I definitely miss the routine and the chores!

I have a youngster so I see him most days and do bits and pieces with him. I ride a friend's horse twice a week. I was riding another twice a week but he moved yards. I'm hoping another share might come up over at the yard I go to when the current sharer goes to uni.

Other than that I have done more DIY and gardening at the weekends, done a bit more housework and done lots of reading. Oh and a bit more cooking/spending longer making meals.

I have also been able to attend many webinars when normally I would be doing horsey stuff. I subscribe to YourHorsemanship who normally have a demo or Q and A session a couple of times a month and also to Masterson Method education who have a couple of live webinars a month. I have also attended one of the HorsesInsideOut webinars.

I have also recently been doing some stretching every day. I decided to do some yoga every day in the month leading up to my 40th birthday. I subscribe to LesMills On Demand (hmm, guess all these subscriptions are where my livery money is going!) so do their yoga/pilates based videos. So far I have done 14 out of 16 days ranging from 15 mins to 55min timewise. Sometimes I also do one of their other programmes - some dancing or bodycombat.

 

[WelshD]

I very nearly gave up earlier this year, I had the worlds biggest tantrum and nearly a nervous breakdown.

I didn't give up - what I did was change the way things were done so that I was able to free up some time (and money) I sold my youngster and put my other pony on livery (previously had a little private yard) We are on DIY livery but I have some help and when things are done at the yard I go home and concentrate on my home life.
I am a keen gardener but the garden had taken a back seat so that's now coming together and I feel so much better not having to worry about everything.

I'm so glad I didn't give up now, pony and his rider are absolutely thriving (as is my husband who has more of my time) and I am really enjoying it all. I think it took facing the possibility of saying goodbye to ponies for me to question what I actually wanted in life and get some balance back.

Perhaps look at what you could change that may help without having to give up horse ownership?

 

[Cortez]

Having lived the vast majority of my life as a "horsey person" and associating mostly with same, I have always known that there's more to life. People whose interests do not stray outside the one area can be a trifle, erm *whispers....limited.

 

[splashgirl45]

i revamped my front garden(very small bed), then did the back, got a greenhouse and started growing veg, some success so far, improved my cottage, then got another dog so 3 now.....am in the process of booking a hack at a local r.school as i cant find anything else to do that makes me feel as good as being with horses, even though it will be a cob and ive always had more finely bred horses, a safe cob is probably best for a first ride in 2 years

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

If I didn't have horses I would have the time to write a book.

And procrastinate more.

I have been off of work on holiday since Monday - I haven't had more than 2 days off in a week and even then it was only on 5 occasions, since last June. So I have had plenty of time to crack on with things and I just haven't. Well I have and I haven't ? I have put a fair few hours into the Shetland show I am putting on in September but have only done about 4,000 words of my novel which was part of the reason I took the time off ?

I could write a book on procrastination but then I would probably never finish it!

 

[EchoInterrupted]

During my 8ish years out it was all about dogs - I fostered dogs for a rescue (and worked for a pet welfare charity haha) and trained/competed in agility. I was going to multiple training classes a week with my various dogs and doing several dog sports. It filled the void so well I almost forgot about horses until I went to ride my partner's mum's horse last year. Now I'm hooked again and thinking that when my current dog eventually passes I might not get one again for a while in favour of having a horse (mainly because of the time aspect - dogs are no where near as expensive as horses haha).

 

[atropa]

I gave up once for several years and all I did was socialise, go out, spend money on frivolous clothes and my appearance.
There were a few weeks when I was between my loan horse and buying mare #1 and all I did was watch TV.

I guess if I didn't have them now I would travel more, but as it stands (pre Covid) I'm lucky enough to own 3 horses and still take a few nice holidays a year. I manage to fit in walking at the weekends, gardening and reading in the late evenings, golf a few times a month. A bit of gaming here and there, some diamond painting when I fancy it.
I feel lucky in that I'm able to do all the things I want to do alongside my horses, I don't feel like they really are taking my time away from other hobbies.

 

[Lucky Snowball]

I can't imagine life without horses and horsey friends at the moment. My best friend gave up and put on about 5 stone in a couple of years.

 

[Moobli]

Dogs (and sheep, but mainly dogs).

I was never particularly horsey. I have had four over the years, but only one ridden. I have always been passionate about dogs though and they form a huge part of my life. I suppose if I were forced to give up dogs then I don't know what on earth I would do, so guess that is the same as people who are very horsey. I would maybe get another horse if I had to give up dogs

 

[sunnyone]

When I was long-term working away from home, and therefore away from partner, horses and dogs, I'd mainly stay in hotels which kind of limited my options.
Up until 8 p.m. or so it wasn't too bad as I could sight see and walk round parks and streets, then eat.
After that time? I settled on getting a post- graduate diploma with the Open University. My fees were paid for as well by my employer. Weekends were a bit hectic as everything at home needed doing and I'd regularly have assignments to concentrate on producing as well.
I've been very grateful to have the genuine reason to go out of the house to see my horses during Covid lockdowns.

 

[Flicker]

Triathlon training - absolutely love it and can’t wait to enter my first one. I started training after losing my mare in late 2019 and had planned to enter a sprint event in May 2020 but...
I’ve kept at it though and am the fittest and strongest I’ve ever been. I also have new respect for horses and what we ask them to do - I couldn’t imagine doing all the stuff I’m asking my body to do while carrying any weight at all. I also now understand why it is so important to condition the body carefully before asking for athletic performance. I have twice had to stop training due to injury - once when I went over on my ankle and once just from repetitive strain.
The next horse I get will definitely have a more scientific exercise programme!

 

[catembi]

When I had an enforced break (sold one equestrian property; purchase fell through...everyone was farmed out too far away for me to ride as it was supposed to be v temporary) I got into long distance running & competed up to 20 miles. It's so < insert swear word > boring though...!! I also did a lot of v tedious heavy lifting on my doctorate & got a lot of very hard work done.

Am now fully horsed up again & loving it

 

[GinaGeo]

Probably be driving everyone in my life crazy.

In seriousness, probably would spend more time traveling in the camper with partner and dog. Partner hopefully bought it last year and keeps telling me about all the exciting places we can go. I think it will be an awful lot more comfortable at Side Saddle Nationals than a tent.

I can’t really imagine myself without horses though. I am at my happiest faffing with them and nothing sorts my head out after ‘one of those days’ quite like a carefree, wind in you face, gallop.

 

[maya2008]

When I was pregnant and couldn’t ride, I swam every day. Kind of similar in terms of exercise and the feel good factor afterwards. I still had them all to visit though.

 

[teapot]

I've never had my own and tend to run, walk, take photos as my main free time hobbies. Not even riding weekly at the moment

 

[MuddyMonster]

Every horsey person I know, knows there's more to life than horses. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't miss them dearly in my life if I was to stop owning tomorrow.

I'd try to keep up riding regularly if I didn't buy another. Most likely either sharing or a mixture of lessons and hacking. I think I'd probably try something new like dressage school masters, western riding or side saddle.

I'd do more running, as at at the moment, it just gets fitted in around riding and horses. Ditto dog training. I'd like to compete in both but I struggle for time at the moment.

I think I'd volunteer more, especially for local horse events and our local dog rescue.

But otherwise, I already go on a few holidays a year and manage a few long weekends so I dont feel I miss out on that side of things because of horses but I guess we might do a few more?