Should we take responsibility for the horses we take hacking?

[Leo Walker]

I'm not sure how I feel about it TBH but I'm just pondering having read the thread from the person who was held up behind a trotting horse and a situation that occurred this week.

My boy is currently being schooled and I got a message on Thursday to say he had reacted to a motorbike and leapt about and tried to sod off. Hes being ridden by a pro rider and the fact she thought to say he had done that made me think it wasnt something I would ever want a "normal" rider to have to deal with on the road.

My first thought was that I couldn't guarantee he wouldn't ever meet a motorbike so he wouldn't be going on the road again. It would have been a nightmare for me as hes predominantly a driving horse so the plan is he will spend a lot of time driving on roads.

It turns out he was in the school at the time and it backs on to a cafe that is a biker hang out. Apparently as my rider got on about 10 big bikes started up with an almighty roar and he reacted. I can forgive him this as the school fence is 6 feet from a wall and behind that wall is a biker cafe and even I've felt a bit twitchy hearing the noise sometimes. I feel ok about him hacking on roads as the aforementioned bikes have driven passed him in convoy on the road and he hasnt even flicked an eyelid. It was just the sudden and unexpected noise that he couldnt see the source off that set him off. But it there had been an incident on the road then that would have been it without lots of work and me being confident he was ok again. But I'm still not sure I would have trusted him again given how busy and fast most roads are now.

Should we be taking spooky/sharp horses on the road? Obviously all horses can spook but some are spooky by nature. But is it ok to hack on the road with them? No horse actually needs to go on the road. Worse case scenario you dont have to ride them if thats your only option.

I'm not totally sure how I feel so would be interested to hear peoples thoughts

 

[Pearlsasinger]

When I buy horse, these days, I want to see it ridden in traffic, as I don't want to take a spooky horse hacking. The roads get busier every day, even though our local roads are fairly quiet. I do avoid school drop off/collection times and rush hour though. I think as riders we have a responsibility to ourselves, our horses and other road users to be sure that our horses behave sensibly on the roads.

 

[KittenInTheTree]

Well, they can all spook, of course. But no, I won't hack out on or with anything that I personally know to be inherently unreliable. This includes other riders, BTW.

 

[Pigeon]

I think we have a responsibility to make sure we (and other road users) remain as safe as possible. If horse is scared of motorbike sounds you could try desensitising with recorded sounds and and a radio. Or even find a friendly motorcyclist to rev around the yard a bit.

 

[Goldenstar]

Of we are responsible for the horses we take out hacking .
Horses can be trained to accept things and be confident .
That's our job.

 

[Dave's Mam]

My cob when I was young spent his holidays in a field with a railway on one edge & a dual carriageway on the other. The only way to get them used to traffic is to expose them to it. Dave will be walked out as part of his training. His field has some good noisy traffic going by it just now.

 

[Sleipnir]

My own horse can be very reactive to motorbikes due to past trauma/traffic accident (done "everything", nothing has worked to relieve his reactions), so I just don't take him out hacking in the traffic. We're very lucky to have some local woodland areas to hack in, so that's where we go - I'd feel very irresponsible to others and endangering myself if I ignored that.

 

[asmp]

Although I wouldn't want to ride anything that wasn't good in traffic, horses are animals and even the best horse with traffic can get upset by something else. My horse won't bat an eyelid at huge lorries, trains going over him, even tanks when we lived near a military camp but the bit of blossom on a bush blowing in the breeze scared him yesterday!

My daughter's youngster is just as good and I believe it's because his field is next to a busy road, his wingman (my horse) doesn't care about the traffic and, because she's always ridden my horse, my daughter doesn't think about him spooking at the traffic, which in turn gives him confidence.

 

[ycbm]

I've lived near someone who has had a number of horses, and one by one they become afraid of traffic. When you meet her on the road you can see her 'training' them.

It's our job to make horses not scared of traffic if we want to ride in it. If a horse comes to me afraid of lorries, it's taken up to the main road and ridden up and down inside the fence along the main road until it's not afraid of lorries.

I ride two horses. One I will happily take out on a local fast road, they other I won't quite yet. It's not the traffic, it's that he can't be trusted not to spook at a butterfly or freeze.

 

[Goldenstar]

I've lived near someone who has had a number of horses, and one by one they become afraid of traffic. When you meet her on the road you can see her 'training' them.

It's our job to make horses not scared of traffic if we want to ride in it. If a horse comes to me afraid of lorries, it's taken up to the main road and ridden up and down inside the fence along the main road until it's not afraid of lorries.

I ride two horses. One I will happily take out on a local fast road, they other I won't quite yet. It's not the traffic, it's that he can't be trusted not to spook at a butterfly or freeze.

This is very true some riders do train horses to be afraid .

I also have a major issue with people hacking out on the road who don't ride well themselves weak positions too long stirrups with poor balance on roses who are clearly not trained to be on the aids in that position you are completely reliant on the horses reaction because you can't influence the horse quickly .
Hi viz won't save you from your own inadequacy.
Harsh but I feel it needs saying .

 

[ester]

Well I'd be speaking nicely to said bikers and doing some work with them.

We have one not 100% with big stuff who had an accident with a skip lorry as a 4yo, she had lots of desensitisation and a solid partner in crime for 12 years but still reactive.ost of our hacking is single track so she stays on that and you trot on and find a quick gateway where she will stand and shake but not move. - it is mostly a local ag contractor so very big kit but he knows her well!

 

[pennyturner]

If people who breed and start horses invested some time walking or long-reining their youngsters out in hand to see the world, this just wouldn't be an issue. Anyone ever met a gipsy horse that's bad in traffic? No? Thought not.

It is true though, that some riders train horses to be afraid. One of my daughters causes an otherwise bombproof pony to 'react' to motorbikes and buses - he only does it for her, so I'm pretty sure it's her who's reacting, not the pony!

 

[SEL]

This is quite a timely thread. When long reining as a youngster mine got completely spooked by a TNT van shooting past at 40mph on a single track road - she ended up in the ditch with the straps around her leg. I was lucky she didn't bolt home.

I'm trying to work out how to get her to relax without putting her or anyone else in danger. Our single track road is really quiet and she's fine with the odd car or tractor that comes down it. At the end of the lane is a busy A road that I would think twice about taking a more experienced horse on.

She's put to shame by two b&w cobs that have come onto the yard from gypsy homes. They will both trot along the A road with buses, motorbikes etc 2 inches from their whiskers without a care in the world!!

 

[FfionWinnie]

It's about training but if you have one with real fear it's very difficult. I live on a narrow road and passing tractors is frightening for one of mine. For years I've tried to force her past and she got gradually worse because she's genuinely afraid. I now get off well in advance of it getting to us and she is not frightened to the same extent. I hope in time she will start to improve. However she's only small so it's not a big deal with her (having to get off). If she was my only horse and I was on livery she would be somewhere she didn't need to pass tractors. As it is she's at home so she has to deal with it. My road while narrow is not busy so it's not the end of the world. Incidentally she will pass my own tractor in confined spaces without fear. And she is welsh. Enough said.

Yes absolutely we have a duty not to take something idiotic on the roads and I wouldn't take this pony anywhere more challenging than I already do for that reason.

 

[JenTaz]

I have a horse who is spooky by nature and we hack every day, and he spooks at the same things every time we pass them, he is very spooky at tractors, will refuse to go past them no matter how much work we have done with them in the yard (he is liveried on a farm so we have had lots of practice walking past them when they are running, but its a different situation on a country lane) so I get off him and lead him passed, a lot of people will shoot me down for this but he has never once got away from me in the 10 years we have done this, as he has alot more confidence when I am on the ground.

I always take responsibility for my horse when hacking on the road, he is 99% bomb proof in traffic, artic lorries, milk tankers, 4x4 and trailers and motorbikes are no issue but god forbid there is a different shade of green in a bush or a puddle on the road but the other 1% of the time he is very predictable at what he will spook at so i ensure i am always paying attention

 

[stormox]

I've lived near someone who has had a number of horses, and one by one they become afraid of traffic. When you meet her on the road you can see her 'training' them.

It's our job to make horses not scared of traffic if we want to ride in it. If a horse comes to me afraid of lorries, it's taken up to the main road and ridden up and down inside the fence along the main road until it's not afraid of lorries.

I ride two horses. One I will happily take out on a local fast road, they other I won't quite yet. It's not the traffic, it's that he can't be trusted not to spook at a butterfly or freeze.

Exactly this. How do you get traffic proof horses if they never meet traffic???

 

[Cortez]

OF COURSE riders are responsible for the horses they ride, who else is? All our horses are good with traffic, but I haven't ridden on the roads for 15 years: far, far too dangerous. Any horse can spook, but it is the drivers who keep me firmly in the fields or arena.

 

[Carlosmum]

If we could guarantee ALL road users whether they are cars/lorries bikes or other horse riders would treat each other with the respect we all deserve, then road riding, spooky horse or not would be ok. However, this is never going to happen in a month of Sundays so for the time being I choose not to ride on the road unless it is unavoidable.

 

[Sukistokes2]

Yes it's the responsibility of the rider to ensure that their horse is as safe as possible to be on the roads. I think it starts young, both the horses I last started and backed walked on roads from at least a year old. First in company and then on their own, both were totally happy with all forms of traffic by the time they were sat on. That's not to say that they didn't try it on but then that's horses. I ride on single track roads and for the most part drivers are very good. If I didn't ride on roads I won't ride at all, I don't have fields or a school to ride in. So needs must. However with Kevin playing up I can assure you he will not be ridden on the road until questions are answered , that is only sensible. So that's my opinion ....riders need to be sensible about using the roads.

 

[scats]

A previous horse I had used to hack out brilliantly, never particualarly bothered by any traffic, he was the type more likely to spool at a bird in a hedge than a truck, but riding in the school one day, grandson of the YO whose yard I was on at the time came racing down the lane on a motorbike without a silencer and the thing popped like a machine gun being fired and my horse panicked, bolted and threw me off.

No matter what I did after that, I could not get this horse to relax around motorbikes and I had to stop hacking as I felt his behaviour on encountering motorbikes was dangerous and if I came off, I was worried for his safety and those on the roads.

 

[alainax]

I have a youngster who I graze in hand on a verge while the traffic goes past. He's not broken yet, i just see this as part of his education.

As the for too long stirrups comment, I prefer to ride long so I can wrap my legs around the horse, particularly useful for a big spook.

 

[ycbm]

This is quite a timely thread. When long reining as a youngster mine got completely spooked by a TNT van shooting past at 40mph on a single track road - she ended up in the ditch with the straps around her leg. I was lucky she didn't bolt home.

I'm trying to work out how to get her to relax without putting her or anyone else in danger. Our single track road is really quiet and she's fine with the odd car or tractor that comes down it. At the end of the lane is a busy A road that I would think twice about taking a more experienced horse on.

She's put to shame by two b&w cobs that have come onto the yard from gypsy homes. They will both trot along the A road with buses, motorbikes etc 2 inches from their whiskers without a care in the world!!

Can you find a place like I've got? I can use a field where there is one wire fence and a foot of grass verge between me and a major A road. I can choose to go as close as I want, and the lorries don't slow down because the horse is inside the field, even though it's only three feet away.

 

[touchstone]

It is definitely our responsibility to have safe, confident horses, but traffic proofing them in itself needs to be done safely.

I knew a rider who had a traffic shy horse that would bolt and she insisted on riding it on busy roads, risking herself, her horse and every other road user.

I also knew a cob that came from the gypsies that had been hit by a lorry. She could never be desensitised to traffic after that and luckily ended up in a home that had completely off road hacking.

Unfortunately our roads are getting busier, and often faster and riders have a huge responsibility to school their horses and ride properly on the roads. I hate to see a slouch backed rider with reins in loops while they chat on their phones or to other riders, oblivious to what's going on around them.

That being said I drove past about five horses yesterday, and only one didn't bother to acknowledge my slowing down, so I think the majority of riders try to do the right thing.

 

[FfionWinnie]

I've got 3 horses that came from Ireland. All three are totally traffic proof. They don't even look at traffic or appear to notice it. How do they do it?

 

[milliepops]

Of we are responsible for the horses we take out hacking .
Horses can be trained to accept things and be confident .
That's our job.

^^ this for me

Both of mine are completely traffic proof, they have been trained to feel confident and although I get wound up by poor driving around horses, it doesn't cause me a problem.
We get a mix of everything on the lanes around me - big lorries, big tractors, bikes etc.

It's perpetual training though, you can't ever take an animal for granted. If I'm riding and leading then I'm a bit more vigilant to things approaching from behind and will sometimes turn around so that i can ride past a big vehicle rather than be stationary while it passes me - that keeps the horses thinking forward and positive rather than having to squish into a small space and wait. Just managing their instincts so they always have a good experience. That's my job IMO and it keeps us all safe and happy.

 

[Wagtail]

My days of hacking on a road are over. It's not just the traffic shy horses, but the fact that a horse can be bomb proof in traffic and a pheasant can fly out in front of it sending it into oncoming traffic. I'm afraid I don't believe that horses belong on the roads. This is not said because I don't think we have the right, just that it is so darn dangerous nowadays. I can't believe I used to ride bareback leading another horse down a busy A road with bumper to bumper tankers coming from the oil refinery.

 

[Goldenstar]

My horses would not go into oncoming traffic because of a peasant they would starte then go peasant and continue as if nothing had happen .
From the moment mine arrive even when they were born I teach them that getting a fright is allowed a moment thought of reaction is allowed but doing anything is not .
I am in charge ,nobody runs until I say it's dangerous .
Honestly they all just go along with it .

 

[Wagtail]

My horses would not go into oncoming traffic because of a peasant they would starte then go peasant and continue as if nothing had happen .
From the moment mine arrive even when they were born I teach them that getting a fright is allowed a moment thought of reaction is allowed but doing anything is not .
I am in charge ,nobody runs until I say it's dangerous .
Honestly they all just go along with it .

I have had many horses like that who will just startle, but I had one that I thought was like that until a sheep jumped out of the hedge in front of his feet and he dumped me. Thankfully then just stood and waited and I happened to land on the side of the road and not the middle. Then there's the drivers that are just going too fast round blind bends. It's all up to the individual riders of course, but this one has decided that horses and roads equal more danger than I am prepared to risk.

 

[touchstone]

It doesnt have to be oncoming traffic though; my mare was totally bombproof in traffic, but on one stretch of A road the road was extremely narrow and we had to pass a pipe bridge which she always looked at. I would always wait for a gap in the traffic as one tiny side step and we would have been under a wagon.

Riding on the roads can never be risk free on even the most bombproof horse.

I certainly dont enjoy it now, and it's one of the reasons I won't get another horse.

 

[indie1282]

OF COURSE riders are responsible for the horses they ride, who else is? All our horses are good with traffic, but I haven't ridden on the roads for 15 years: far, far too dangerous. Any horse can spook, but it is the drivers who keep me firmly in the fields or arena.

This.

I moved a few years ago to a new yard that has loads of off road riding in woods and it's been the best thing ever. We dont have a school ( although we can hire one just down the lane) but I would never ever move! Plus it's 5 mins from my house.

I trust my horses to behave on the road but I don't trust drivers - I've had too many near misses and seen too many videos on social media to risk our lives.