Just had the most horrible terrifying ride.

OP - Your mare is amazing!!! My boy has hunted and is fine with the hounds but out on a hack a terrier nipped his fetlocks and Boxer kicked it and spun round to see it off. The terrier yelped all the way home. The owner of the dog said it was it's own fault and it would not do it again now it had been kicked.

I was once out riding and a dog stared circling the horse I was riding. I asked the owner to take the dog away and she said "oh, he's fine with horse". My response was my horse kicks dogs - she soon put it on a lead.

How dense can people be?!?!

Glad you are ok and the story didn't have a horrid end as it so easily could have done.
 
I inherited my mum's sheepdogs and they are terrors for chasing anything (apart from rabbits which they ignore). Our own two were brilliant around sheep and horses etc but I have had to do some serious retraining with mum's. I've now got to the stage where they don't chase joggers and cyclists but haven't succeeded in stopping them chasing the Post Office van. I am seriously paranoid about whether they might chase horses and I put them on their leads if I think there's any chance of there being one where we're walking. I don't think my two would do any actual damage as they "round up" rather than attack.
But I'm "horse aware", being a rider and having been chased by dogs in the past and a lot of people are not and don't know about the whole prey animal/predator effect that comes into play when some dogs meet horses. I'm not excusing anyone but think this is a problem we all face when we hack.
 
Sounds awful and I hope you are both ok.

Check her for injuries. Aside from the owner committing a criminal offence under the dangerous dogs act (sometimes the animals act as well although a lot of it has been supplemented by the dda), technically, the owner may have caused criminal damage.

I was discussing this with a senior barrister friend of mine who has won a case whereby a horse was injured by a dog, and it was found that the owner was responsible. The horse can be considered as property, and the dog can actually considered to be a weapon!

Probably not likely to be the case here, but worth bearing in mind if, god forbid, anything like this should happen again.
 
God how scary!! Glad you're both okay, you poor things! People who can't control their dogs make me furious, yes some horses are 100% with dogs but others are not and if it was a child or a nervous horse that situation could have been a million times worse, your mare is a very brave girly. Shocked that they didn't even yell an apology or anything at you! Hopefully it will now be in their heads that their dogs should be on leads as they blatantly have no control over them. Agree with what somebody else (can't remember who sorry!) said about reporting the incident to the BHS so that they and other riders are aware of what happened (http://www.horseaccidents.org.uk), and the police too. It could have ended up a lot worse, as I'm sure you realise! Hope you never have to come across anything similar again and that your girl isn't made nervous of dogs from what happened :( x
 
Sounds horrible OP, but at least you are OK, but your poor horse. You may need to very gently get her used to dogs again; tho' she may well still be very wary for a long time to come.

Bleddy people who can't/won't control their dogs; there's two alsations on a bridle path where we go and 99% of the time they're behind a wire fence BUT very occasionally they're out and the stupid numpty owner has to call them back (as long as he's not round the front of the house or whatever), so I can identify with your awful hack.

Tell dog warden and the local police; plus buttonhole your local parish/district councillor and make them aware too.

Then go pour yourself a stiff drink; and some calmer for your mare! Poor love. She sounds like she really looks after you.
 
Not nearly as bad, but a friend and I had an out of control whippet jumping up at our horses legs both back and front he was barking but not biting, owners couldn't get hold of him and even when they managed to get him to follow he shot back for another go. He was very lucky not to get kicked into next week, or stomped on, both horses were very good, my boy got more worried by the bloke running towards us, but it could have been a different story with horses not used to dogs.
 
Shocking really. If that was Jess and me id of been off her like a shot and basically thrashed the dog to death with a crop. Then id of gone after the owner!!!

Theres no excuse..if they knew the dog was iffy then they should leave it on a lead always..and muzzle it.

I hope you get the police involved.
 
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