Really upset - just watched someone thrashing a horse

[kit279]

I'm posting for a bit of advice - really upset about it actually. I went to visit an old friend's horse today - I learned to ride (properly) on him and he was always a quirky little thing, odd and stubborn, but really good tempered and had a great sense of humour. The lady who owns him allows people to come ride him and learn to ride on him because he's safe and bombproof. The problem is he's got really sour over the years and has started to be really lazy and not go forward, althugh he was at one stage a lovely little dressage horse and very talented.

He was in the school and the girl riding him was wearing spurs but couldn't ride very well (she had her knees really bent and her heels really high up trying to get him to trot) and she was just whipping the sh*t out of him. Whip whip whip, accompanied with ineffectual kicks. She really thrashed him. The thing that guts me is that the girl's mum was just sitting in the corner of the school like there was nothing wrong! I didn't say anything (didn't know them) but I really want to tell the lady who owns him. Thing is, she knows that he takes a bit of a hard time from all these beginners and I think she'd like to loan him but I just wonder if she knows just how much they kick him about.

Just wondering if I should tell her, don't really want to 'snitch' on other people and we all have to learn sometime but I just don't see that beating the horse helps. Poor little thing is so good about it as well, he doesn't even buck when beaten, he just stands still and looks upset... What should I do?

 

[Taboo1968]

I'm sorry, but I could not stand back and watch this happen and my reaction would have been going over to the young lady in question and treating her in exactly the same way! (but then again thats me!)

I really think you should tell the owner. The horse does not deserve to be treated like this.

 

[Penguinboots]

I'd tell the owner, or perhaps get her to watch this girl ride (although she may act differently with owner there....)

 

[CheziBrown]

Yes definately tell the owner. Think I would have gone over and dragged her off but understand can be awkward etc.

 

[Tangaroo]

I totally agree with Ovidius. I would have given her a taste of her own medicine and see how fast she would move!! I would also be telling the owner of the horse immediately.
No horse should have to suffer that abuse at the hands of an novice incompetent idiot!

 

[sikaran]

Tell the owner. How would you feel if it was your horse being ill treated and nobody told you? I don't think its interferring, its putting the horses wellbeing first. Good luck x

 

[fanamelody]

id would ov dragged her off n whipped her!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[NeilM]

Strange as it may seem, it was this sort of mistreatment and appallingly bad riding that got me interested in horses again. I have seen it all over the place, from unaf jumping to the Badminton charity ride and it makes me mad every time I see it.

I have made comment in the past, and received 'comments' back, and I have also watched many a 'proud mum' gaze at their offspring thrashing a perfectly good pony.

In this case I would talk to the owner, and advise that she take a surreptitious look the the youngster riding her poor long suffering pony.

 

[henryhorn]

Perhaps offer to show them how to get him going without the necessary whipping might work?
If there was an instructor teaching have a word afterwards and explain he doesn't need that much additional help.
So sad, if none of the above works tell his owner, she I'm sure wouldn't allow that to continue.

 

[MizElz]

It always interests me how many people say 'I would march over to the girl and whip her to see how she likes it' or something to that effect. In all my years in the horse world, I have sadly witnessed many occasions where a horse has been mistreated, whipped, spurred, beaten etc. Yet on very few occasions have I seen someone actually march up to the person in question and try to stop them doing it. It is easy to say, but not so easy to implement. My mother is perhaps the only person who I have seen have the guts to stop someone - she used to run one of our local shows, and she did actually call a girl by name over the tannoy and bawl her out for whipping her horse incessantly when it stopped three times in the ring. "If I see you hit that horse one more time, I will make sure you are unwelcome at every showground in the area." It worked (at least that day!)

But my point is that often, when people such as this OP post about an incident they have seen, a lot of people immediately jump in and say 'I'm sorry, but I would have gone up/dragged her off/beaten the rider' and 'How can you stand and watch this happen?' It is not always easy to butt in, especially if you are a stranger or have no authority in the situation.

FWIW, I think the owner should be told - this, to me, seems the best way of dealing with it.

 

[vennessa]

I would be telling her right now. And the girl would have received a thrashing.

 

[the watcher]

If it was my horse I would want to know.

 

[vennessa]

[ QUOTE ]
It always interests me how many people say 'I would march over to the girl and whip her to see how she likes it' or something to that effect. In all my years in the horse world, I have sadly witnessed many occasions where a horse has been mistreated, whipped, spurred, beaten etc. Yet on very few occasions have I seen someone actually march up to the person in question and try to stop them doing it. /quote]

Have done Just flipped at someone. Showed them how it felt. It was a bad day. The yard was shocked as i am very quiet. I cannot stand by. If people are not politely spoken to about it discusseing alternate ways they don't learn any better.

 

[MizElz]

[ QUOTE ]


Have done Just flipped at someone. Showed them how it felt. It was a bad day. The yard was shocked as i am very quiet. I cannot stand by. If people are not politely spoken to about it discusseing alternate ways they don't learn any better.

[/ QUOTE ]

Fair play to you. I know I couldnt cope with standing by and watching it happen, but my point was that I am always stunned by the number of people who stand and make disapproving noises, yet do nothing. At the end of the day, we all have bad times with our horses, but cruelty is downright wrong, and people should be put in their place. Just not so many people have the balls to do it

PS. My mum once got chucked off a yard (when she was a teenager) for attacking a girl who was beating her pony to get it in the trailer

 

[Kenzo]

Tell the owner, your not a snitch, its called being concerned for the animals welfare, hopefully they won't take it badly and perhaps teach the girl how to ride correctly to get the best of her pony and use spurs properly if they need to be used at all!

 

[YorksG]

I have told some-one to stop hitting their pony in a collecting ring while I have been stewarding Working Hunter class. I informed them that I would have the judge disqualify them if it continued. It stopped. Many of the people around had been making the disaproving noises, but I suppose that I had some 'authority'.

 

[kit279]

I would like to have said something but he isn't my horse - I'd never met the people on him and they don't know me from Adam. If it was my horse, I'd have had a very great deal to say about it. Including 'get off and get out and I hope he kicks you when you get off'. But because it wasn't my horse, I just glared and tut-tutted at them. But I will certainly be telling the owner. I just hope she doesn't just ignore it. Stupid thing is, the horse goes SO much better when you don't whip him so it wasn't productive in the slightest?!

 

[Stella]

[ QUOTE ]
Perhaps offer to show them how to get him going without the necessary whipping might work?
If there was an instructor teaching have a word afterwards and explain he doesn't need that much additional help.
So sad, if none of the above works tell his owner, she I'm sure wouldn't allow that to continue.

[/ QUOTE ] I agree with giving advice how to do things properly. I would have gone over and said that wasn't the way to go on and suggested an alternative, but I would also tell the owner immediately, not wait to see if the advice worked. I'd be horrified to think that someone treated my mare badly when I wasn't there and I would truly hope that someone would tell me.

 

[bhpride]

If it was someone riding your horse in your absense you'd want to be told asap, one other person hacks my horse for me without me there but many times before this I went with her to watch how she rode and to get to know her, only then would I trust her enough to leave her to get on with it.

 

[MagicMelon]

Tell the owner of course. And a beginner shouldnt be wearing spurs in the first place... so I would have said something about that at the time.

 

[Fantasy_World]

I would tell the owner promptly!
There is no way I would have stood back personally and let someone whip a horse like that.
A whip can be used to reinforce the leg that is true or when the horse fails to act to the leg, or even as a short sharp reprimand. That is all in my own personal opinion.
I do not and would not agree to anyone whipping a horse like that and clearly not giving the horse a chance to respond. I see it in horse racing sometimes and I deplore that too. I don't condemn the use of whips in any equestrian sport full stop but what I cannot condone is whip abuse and the OP's post sounds like a very clear example of that.
If it was my horse I would want to know and that girl in question needs to be monitored the next time she gets aboard that horse.
I also think the mother needs a good chat about horsemanship and the correct use of the whip too!
Caroline

 

[slingo1uk]

I would defo tell the owner asap ,you say she knows he has a bit of a bad time with beginers , i would really make her feel guilty enough to do something about it.

Dont be afraid to speak out when something upsets you and you know what is happening is wrong, you will only make yourself feel guilty for not doing /saying something.

I personaly wouldnt of been able to stop myself taking the whip off the kid and useing it as a frisbee on the mother.

 

[SirenaXVI]

Definitely tell the owner, poor lad.

Other thing is - why was a beginner with no leg control wearing spurs

 

[Murphy3]

It is a very simple thing - you walk up to the person doing the thrashing and remove the whip! When I get the blood up I don't care who it is, I got out of my car and took a length of piping off a kid who was whipping a pony up and down the road in town. He was too surprised to react.

I always carry a whip when I'm riding - a teacher I had years ago had a great saying re. whips: "if he's not listening you give him one sharp one behind the leg and then put it away". We all know misuse of whips and thrashing horses is just bad temper and a waste of time. Why was that girl riding the horse and who was teaching her?

 

[Donkeymad]

QR
I have to say, I have OFTEN seen such things with people tutting and huffing, but have never seen anyone actually do anything. I guess it's some sort of fear.
I would advise the owner and maybe suggest she watches them without them knowing, just to see for herself.

 

[Zoobie]

I had taken my horse to another yard for a schooling session and the competition next door had a cross country cross that you could see from the school we were using. One the riders started really whipping a horse that had repeatedly refused a jump. I shouted over calling the rider a few choice names. The next thing the horse dumped the rider and peed off. You should have heard us cheer.