Things that surprised you about horse ownership

That no matter how windy it is, how deep the mud, how freezing cold it is, how hard it's raining, how deep the snow is, how slippery the ice is, how dark it is, how low my bank account gets, how much my muscles ache, how much I'm covered in hay, moulting coat, sweat and flies... I still absolutely love them to the bloody moon and back. 🥰
 
HJJ said:
That no matter how windy it is, how deep the mud, how freezing cold it is, how hard it's raining, how deep the snow is, how slippery the ice is, how dark it is, how low my bank account gets, how much my muscles ache, how much I'm covered in hay, moulting coat, sweat and flies... I still absolutely love them to the bloody moon and back. 🥰
Click to expand...
Same here! On the inside I still love them like Agnes from Despicable Me loves unicorns.
 
From horse owning in the early 80s to now....how many ways there now are to end up poor, physios, dentists, saddle fitter, bridle fitter, special shoes because normal aren't good enough and oh my dear god the RUGS! It never fails to shock me.

The underlying bitchiness just about everywhere, even on "nice" yards.
 
How sensitive they are to routine. I didnt go up to put hay nets in yesterday morning (had to stand for 3 hours without when coming in til i got there), youngster decided to get hay stuck in her eye ! And I wonder why I end up thinking about them 24/7
How much Id stress over them...
Oh and the mud, mud everywhere...
 
Brummyrat said:
From horse owning in the early 80s to now....how many ways there now are to end up poor, physios, dentists, saddle fitter, bridle fitter, special shoes because normal aren't good enough and oh my dear god the RUGS! It never fails to shock me.

The underlying bitchiness just about everywhere, even on "nice" yards.
Click to expand...
Coasting cheekily on this, as someone who was a baby in the 80s...

some people try and keep a horse going on £40 a week and act completely APPALLED when vet care and maintenance costs more than a tenner. Like nobody told them they were an expensive creature 😂

I am perhaps a freak in that I had several iterations of a budget spreadsheet before I started looking to buy, but you have to know!
 
smolmaus said:
This is going to sound bitchy, but how... different people's standards of care can be 😂 but its gone both directions for me! And the horses are all fine!

(I'm getting judged for letting my horse be WET)
Click to expand...
/\ THIS!!!

My fatties are currently naked - I'm hoping the rest of the winter will help them loose a few pounds before spring. But I'm waiting with bated breath for someone to tell me I'm cruel (beside the ponies who are shouting it very loudly already).

I meet a friend for a catch up frequently and she always starts with ' so and so is doing this that and the other with her horse' and 'that woman can't ride one side of her new horse' 'she never cleans her tack' and the likes. Everyone's horses are either over weight or under weight and I loose track of who she likes and dislikes in the horse world. Once she gets her opinions out of her system we have quite a grown up conversation 🤣 . I can see why a lot of people don't have time for her as they never get past the opinion stage.
 
I have found that there are as many different ways to manage and work with horses as there are to parenting. Some are obviously wrong, but many are just different.
As you get older, you work out what works for you and ignore the rest. I love this cartoon! Personally, I am the one on the right ;-)
Poor Horse.png
 
Last edited:
How much it is like when you have a baby! Suddenly it is open season for strangers, family, friends, other horse owners to come along with their advice and judgement (and on the same things - how covered they are in cold weather, what they eat, how they are "trained" 😂).

And how you feel obliged to read up on all the different methods of achieving that holy grail of the perfect relationship then reality hits and you end up bribing them with sweets.
 
Brummyrat said:
From horse owning in the early 80s to now....how many ways there now are to end up poor, physios, dentists, saddle fitter, bridle fitter, special shoes because normal aren't good enough and oh my dear god the RUGS! It never fails to shock me.

The underlying bitchiness just about everywhere, even on "nice" yards.
Click to expand...
This. And a lot of it is unneccessary.
 
How unprepared I was to have solo responsibility of a horse despite having been in sole charge of yards before here and there.

I had to decide on feed, shoes or not and how often, find my own farrier/hay supply/choose a vet etc. Decide on eugging or not and which rug weight. All little things that add up.

How that friend who is extremely knowledgeable doesn't know everything and you're best to do some research yourself.

My NF cut her leg, whatever, treat it and carry on. A week later the newish Arab cut his leg - OMG, panic station. He's young, his legs are thin, vet called. - I'm more relaxed with him now but the worry that I might break my new horse before ever getting to the ridden stage was madness. - this was 15 years into horse ownership.

How bit*hy some yards can be. I'd never seen it until I was on a livery yard.

Yes the anxiety of checking weather daily, hauling rugs up the field in driving rain to find ponies happily grazing. Highland used to tell me she needed a rug by spinning in circles. Having a field shelter and cameras makes me less stressed and after the first few months I no longer check them obsessively.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top