If you could give one piece of advice or insight...

Queenbee

Queenbee

Well-Known Member
Joined
20 August 2007
Messages
12,020
Location
Cumbria
Visit site
What would it be?

I've learnt so much in my ridden life, but discarding the handling, riding stuff... For me it's what I learnt and have lived by in the last twelve months... Truly appreciate and enjoy your horse every single day... Ride in the rain... It may be your last ride.

How about everyone else?
 
To trust your instincts and listen to them for the sake of your horse.

Recently I did not, I trusted the vet, luckily the horse is recovering but he went through far more pain, stress and trauma than he should have and has taken months to get to this stage:(
 
be positive said:
To trust your instincts and listen to them for the sake of your horse.

Recently I did not, I trusted the vet, luckily the horse is recovering but he went through far more pain, stress and trauma than he should have and has taken months to get to this stage:(
Click to expand...

This. The vet told us Bee was just badly brought up, and that's why she was being so aggressive and difficult. Mum and Al knew that it wasn't her- she was a quirky monster sure, but she was friendly. Blood tests came back showing mum and Al were right and Bee was PTS the next day- aggressive ovarian cysts causing pain and high aggression levels.

Following on, enjoy them while you can. Things might seem rubbish and all may seem hopeless but if you have a healthy horse be grateful and try and enjoy them. Who knows when it'll all get taken away.

And finally if someone offers advice, consider it before you discard it.
 
be positive said:
To trust your instincts and listen to them for the sake of your horse.

Recently I did not, I trusted the vet, luckily the horse is recovering but he went through far more pain, stress and trauma than he should have and has taken months to get to this stage:(
Click to expand...
Bp what happened? I was off here for a few weeks...
 
Definetely to trust my instincts .. I stuck on my old yard for so long because I was determined not to let the other person win. But my pony was being targetted the whole time, she became really thin and a nervous wreck. I thought it was just stress and settling into the new yard that meant she wasn't putting the weight back on but kept getting the 'that can't be all it is..' feeling.
Turns out her liver was struggling, possibly due to poisoning (ragwort was the only thing ruled out) and had been for a long time and would have started around the time there were problems on my old yard.
Mysti went through hell, I nearly lost her as eventually the liver caused an impaction colic :(
That's when the bloods showed the liver issues.

I had thought about having a blood test done a few weeks before as she was too quiet :(

But she came through it and has come back fighting and looking better than ever :D

So yes, definetely learnt to trust my instincts!!
 
Don't worry about what others think;

I was an adult riding a pony for many years, my pony was a 13.2hh Arab/Welsh and I am 5`6" (and considerably lighter than I am today!) and I put up with some pretty hideous comments from "horse riders" ...

I remember one was from a county standard judge in an in hand class; he asked me what I did with my pony other than show him, I answered honestly, hacking, fun rides and that we were getting fit to dabble in endurance, at which he looked at me like I was something he would wipe off his boot and said "may I suggest you are slightly underhorsed" and walked away, I was mortified. His comment really knocked my confidence and it took me a good few weeks to think "sod him, and his biggotted views, I don't want a horse, can't afford a horse and I am happy with my pony" ... me and my pony went on to do 30 and 40 mile endurance rides, he was never spun at a vet gate in his whole career, we hunted, and we did do some more showing with quite some success.

And I still don't ride a huge horse, I have a 15hh Vanner cob today. Although it was quite by accident, I bought him as a 6 year old at 14.1hh not expecting him to go up another 3 inches!!!! LOL!!!!!:D
 
be positive said:
To trust your instincts and listen to them for the sake of your horse.

Recently I did not, I trusted the vet, luckily the horse is recovering but he went through far more pain, stress and trauma than he should have and has taken months to get to this stage:(
Click to expand...

This^^^^

I have had mutiple times when everyone else, including vets have told me one thing, I've been sure there was something else and have eventually been proved right. Early on I didn't listen to my gut and push with it and my horse was the one who paid for it. I have since learnt to trust my instincts and even if I don't know why something is wrong, I always know when something is wrong with my horse
 
I have learnt that I may not be an expert but I know my horses and what they need better than anyone else...no matter how 'knowledgable' they think they are and that a teaspoon of activated charcoal in my ex racers evening feed means I get a good nights sleep.
 
Don't believe everything you read on online forums ;) and certainly don't take everything that's said on them to heart!
 
Listen to your horse.

My mare was off lame for a year because I didn't listen to her. We knew something was wrong... she refused at a jump and got VERY stressy just standing there sort of stamping her foot. We thought she just refused (we then carried on jumping 1.15/1.20 for an hour no problem) and that she was being a stressy TB. 2 months later and she was hoping lame for 9 months (only in trot)! Didn't get to the bottom of it, just know it was in the foot and wasn't navicular, so a ligament or something, but no insurance meant no MRI (only way to know for sure, and we might have not got an answer even then!). She's 100% now and I can no longer ride her until I lose weight, so she's ridden by a little girl from the village and they're doing really well together.

But if we had listened to her that time, and maybe stopped the lesson, she could have been fine. Baring in mind those 2 months before she went really lame we were competing at 1.05/1.10 and having weekly lessons jumping 1.20. Should have calmed it down a little :( but hindsight is a wonderful thing!
 
Like others have said, trust your instincts. I knew there was something wrong with my horse for ages but as it was nothing apparent to anyone else I got the lines of "she's just a lazy cob.." etc. She had a liver infection, luckily still caught it early and she's fine now but I had that niggling feeling straight away and wanted to do blood tests
 
Like others have said, trust your instincts and listen to your horse, not the other 'experts' on the yard.
Don't take any notice of other people's opinions of you. I have made myself thoroughly miserable in the past by trying to keep up with so-called 'friends', or being made to justify every tiny thing I did with my horse. My horse is alive, fit, happy and healthy after 5 years of having me as his owner, so I can't be doing too badly.

Most importantly, for most of us amateurs, it's about ENJOYMENT. So if you fancy a plod up the road on a long rein in the sunshine, go for it. And if you're knackered after a hard day at work, there's no law that says you have to ride. Be proud of what you're good at and enjoy, and listen to what your horse enjoys too.
 
Listen to the horse.

And as Noblesteed says remember that most of us keep our horses for enjoyment, not to impress other people - it really doesn't matter what other people think.
 
Always go with your gut. That way you can know that you couldn't have done any better.

If I had listened to my gut I wouldn't now have a lifelong back issue :(
 
The best advice I was ever given was to never ever allow the horse you are riding to think that they are in control. This single and simple piece of advice made me think seriously about what I am doing when I ride or handle horse's.

Also like others.. I've learnt to trust my own instinct with regards to horses.
 
As above really, trust your instincts and listen to the horse :) I truly believe horses are not nasty or dangerous for the sake of it, one of the horses I loved most of all was deemed worthy of being shot by many a "professional". There is only one other horse who has ever made me smile as much as he did!

Also tell your horse you love them every day, you never know when that might be the last time. (sorry I know that is 2)
 
Use common sense and if someone / anyone tells you they have THE answer for your horse - all they are demonstrating is their lack of experience - horses are as individual as people and there is no one answer suits all.
It's great to listen to other people so you can add to your list of possible answers from others experiences but you might have to try 10 things before you find one that suits your particular horse.
 
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.
 
noblesteed said:
Like others have said, trust your instincts and listen to your horse, not the other 'experts' on the yard.
Don't take any notice of other people's opinions of you. I have made myself thoroughly miserable in the past by trying to keep up with so-called 'friends', or being made to justify every tiny thing I did with my horse. My horse is alive, fit, happy and healthy after 5 years of having me as his owner, so I can't be doing too badly.

Most importantly, for most of us amateurs, it's about ENJOYMENT. So if you fancy a plod up the road on a long rein in the sunshine, go for it. And if you're knackered after a hard day at work, there's no law that says you have to ride. Be proud of what you're good at and enjoy, and listen to what your horse enjoys too.
Click to expand...

Well put! :)
 
The one idea that changed my whole attitude to horses came from Mark Rashid "Take as your starting point that your horse wants to please you and do what you are asking of him, so long as he physically can and so long as he understands what you are asking."
That rules out all the anthroporphisms such as taking the pee, sulking, being difficult, being naughty etc etc etc. And clarifies how we puny humans can get half a ton of horse working with us.
And makes you take a step back and ask yourself how you can be clearer, or train better, or be aware of pain and other physical issues.
 
Take your time. If you aren't confident enough to do something with your horse - don't do it. You are more likely to fall off or scare your horse and set you back even further. There is no rush and you have nothing to prove to anyone but your self so be proud of every achievement!

Enjoy every moment with them and don't always be so serious. have fun with them!

You know your horse better than anyone else so trust your instincts if you think something is wrong and get it checked!

Be patient.

Our horses forgive a hell of a lot of mistakes we make, its only fair that we extend the same courtesy
 
Last edited:
I have 2 ....

Listen to and trust your horse and his instincts. My tb amazes me - he once played up out hacking across a field and I thought he was being silly - seconds later a gunshot went off. Another time he got a bit funny near a railway bridge - about 30 seconds later a train came past. He must have heard / felt it miles away!

Number 2 - cherish every day. My boy survived a broken leg over 2 1/2 years ago. It has taken us this long to slowly get him better. He's now 19 and so fit and we'll - I am so lucky to still even have him that I just enjoy every single day with him now. Everytime I read a sad post from someone who has lost their beloved horse to a broken leg I realise how lucky we are to still have our boy. And I never leave the yard without telling him and my pony I love them.

Oh - can I add number 3..... Don't wear a thong / g-string if you are going for a 3 hour hack!! :)
 
Remember it's all for fun. However much I might moan about mucking out when it's-7C at 7am on a Monday in January or howling gales and pouring rain, I do it and I have a horse because I love it and I'd never want to not have one.

One other thing I've learned is that you don't know what pain is till you've got in a hot shower with saddle sores :eek:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top