Those who own but didn't grow up with horses

[Miss_Millie]

I'm just curious as to whether there is anyone on here who owns a horse(s) but didn't grow up with horses/wasn't born into a horsey family? If so, did you find it hard to get to the point of having enough experience and knowledge to own your first horse? I'd be interested to hear people's stories

 

[splashgirl45]

i had my first riding lesson aged 11, just once a week..eventually i started to help out at the RS and got my own horse after saving up at 21. i kept him at the RS for the first few years then moved to rented grazing with friends, i did feel a bit scared about the responsibility when i left the RS but soon got used to having to make my own decisions without any back up from the RS owner..best thing i did as my horse could have plenty of turnout which he didnt get at the RS..

 

[Errin Paddywack]

I was horse mad from a very early age but parents weren't. I read every instructional book I could lay my hands as a child then had my first riding experiences on pony rides at local fetes. Finally found a riding school and started riding there. Very basic stuff back then. Started working at a riding school when I was 17 back in 1965, worked there for 4 yrs then bought my own pony, then another and another, started breeding horses and did that for many years. Have to say it never occurred to me to wonder if I knew enough but things were very different back in the 60's. I have always learned as much as I could from books and practical experience.

 

[Trinket12]

I didn't have a horsey family in that we had horses, but encouraging of horses. My Mum rode when she was young, so we had some horsey holidays and my grandparents lived in Scotland, so when I went to visit I would get dropped off at the local trekking centre :-D In terms of my knowledge of horses and horse care, that's really come more from the last five years. I started to volunteer at a therapeutic riding center and am now an instructor and was able to get serious about riding the last four years. I have a lot of support from my coach, friends I ride with (who have way more experience than me) and self learning from courses etc.

 

[Peglo]

I wasn’t born into a horsey family. Far from it. My dad hates horses and has never taken any interest or helped in any way but I’m quite independent and like that I managed without his help.
my granny got me my first pony and first horse. I was 13 so technically did grow up with horses. I was extremely lucky and I loved the work probably more than the riding. My granny was pretty old school so my horses probably got fairly basic care. Feet trimmed, wormed, food and shelter. No physio or chiropractor etc and because we didn’t do all that (never knew it was a thing) everything was simpler and easy. And I learned so much from the horses. (I still have my first pony, 17 years later so couldn’t have done everything wrong.)

But I was/am envious of all the people who got to go to lessons, shows, got help and lifts, that got all the chances to do all the stuff I never did and are much better horse riders than me. But most of them now don’t have horses, have little interest and never put in the hard work I did.

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

My older cousins had a pony and they are the reason I discovered I loved horses but they lived 300 miles away so only saw them and their pony a couple of times a year.
My mum liked them from a distance although she did bravely lead me round in my first few lessons, my dad thinks they're a money pit that bite and kick and can't understand why anyone likes riding them or owning them. I started going for weekly lessons as soon as I was old enough probably about 5 then started helping at weekends as soon as I was old enough to do that and was basically there all day at the weekends and school holidays. Then when I was about 13 I started sharing my friends spare pony. I did a horse qualification at college because my dad was determined that I was going to go to college to study something, then went on to work mainly on racing yards.
Although neither of my parents were horsey at all they did support to do as much as they could afford for me to do, apparently one of my dads proudest moments was watching the riding part of my college interview when the horse I was put on took off bucking rather violently round the school and I managed to stayed on.
I finally got my first pony when I was in my twenties and my dad still lectures me now about how stupid I am to have them and what a burden they are, but I think he secretly might like them a little bit.

 

[PeterNatt]

My grandmother used to take me for a ride on a Donkey on Hampstead Heath in London when I was 5 years old and then got me a few riding lessons (hacking out on te roads and beach) when I was 6.

Then I started riding at college and then at 27 shared my first horse which was lost in agambling debt so eventually I bought my first horse aged 29 and kept him at a Livery yard in London!
I learnt a lot about horse management by sharing a horse and eventually bought my own place so that I could keep my horse at home.

 

[Jellymoon]

Me. My parents weren’t horsy, my dad hated the things and wanted me to do other sports, anything but horses. I was determined though, and they came round in the end and bought me a 12.2/14.2/15.2 before sending me off to boarding school (awful).

I learnt at a riding school in the village, and then kept my ponies there, did pony club etc.
When I had my first horse that I bought myself as an adult, I had the basic idea but was pretty clueless as I’d had adults telling me what to do all the time.
i learnt from trainers/yards/books/this forum! Still do!

 

[Lipglosspukka]

Yes. Riding schools don't teach the right things. You learn to muck out and tack up etc but we never learnt useful things like about feed or how much hay a horse should have or worming or first aid etc etc.

My first pony as an older teenager no doubt had a tough first year with me.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Well my paternal grandfather used a horse-drawn cart to sell fruit/veg and eggs from door to door. The horse (a Welsh Cob) stayed at livery during the week and then Grandad drove him home for the weekend, where he spent time grazing on the farm next door. But that stopped when my Dad was about 8, so it depends what you call a 'horsey family'.

 

[milliepops]

My family is not at all horsey. When I was taken pony trekking about 7, mum put the saddle on back to front ?‍

I devoured horse books though. Absolutely inhaled information. When they eventually agreed to get me a pony I'd been having lessons with a really old school instructor who reinforced the basics. And then later pony club filled any subsequent gaps. Basically my parents knew they wouldn't be much use but made sure I understood the enormous responsibility, looking back I think I did stuff in a very BHS-ponyclubby way but that was safe and OK from a horse welfare pov.

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Yes. Riding schools don't teach the right things. You learn to muck out and tack up etc but we never learnt useful things like about feed or how much hay a horse should have or worming or first aid etc etc.

My first pony as an older teenager no doubt had a tough first year with me.

My riding school did try and teach us at least a basic understanding of that. We had to help make up the feeds and we were taught about the different feeds, how much to give etc and then randomly quizzed on it. Same for worming but only on a very basic level, although to be fair I'm still regularly confused now about all the different choices available, back then it was all straight feeds and seemed a lot more simple.

 

[ycbm]

No horses in my family. I was sat on a pony for half an hour at 7 on holiday and I was hooked. I wasn't allowed lessons until I was a teenager and then I had a1/2 hour every 2 weeks, which then increased to an hour. I stopped when I left school then bought my own in my early twenties instead of paying for riding lessons. I knew almost nothing except how to muck out and what I'd read in the Pony Club manual, but in those days livery stables were run by horse people and I got plenty of sensible guidance.

Forty plus years later .....
.

 

[PSD]

I wasn’t from a horsey family though my mother claimed to have rode when she was younger.

my first riding experience was on a Blackpool donkey called whiskey aged 4 ? then I had my first riding lesson when I was 5/6 and I worked my way up on the RS until I persuaded the yard owner to let me work there on saturdays aged 8 (bonkers really when I think back!). I worked in exchange for a lesson and I LOVED it. Spending all day at the yard mucking out and helping to tack up etc it was a dream come true. I had my own pony assigned to me and I adored her, I didn’t own her though but I loved her as my own.

Then we moved out of the area and I struggled, but wandered onto a local yard (where I’m now a livery!) and asked the YO could I help. She snatched my hand off as she bought and sold horses from Ireland (still does) and they used to give me some tack and pick one out of the field for me to ride. Most had never been sat on, needless to say my experience mostly came from these years! Mother then bought herself a horse when I was 13, I adored her. But mother constantly reminded me that the horse wasn’t mine and never would be (vile really) despite me being the sole carer and rider of said horse, I did everything with her my mother hardly showed her face at the yard and I was heartbroken when she sold her. Fast forward 6 years and I bought my grey mare with my own hard earned cash and the rest is history…25 years later!

 

[Dave's Mam]

Non horsey family here too! Dad begrudgingly paid for lessons & camps, then I worked in exchange for riding at riding schools & private yards.
Moved from NI to Scotland in 1998 & pretty much forgot about ponies.
A few years ago I got the offer of a part loan & that was me started again! I got Dave when I was 43, my first ever Own Pony!

 

[Emilieu]

Me, that’s actually why I joined this site. Learned pretty much everything I know from reading every single thread for 2 years just in case it might apply!

 

[smolmaus]

I had my weekly lesson from 7yo till I was... 24? I think? Never a question of owning one, just absolutely wasn't the money or the time. None for pony club or loaning either but I am grateful for what we did get. Same instructor took me and my sister from hellish little Shetlands to instructors own dressage schoolmasters so really can't complain. Horses are in the family technically, my Great Uncle bred flat racers for many years but never a chance of getting a sit, mother was too sensible, and none of the land ever came our way either!

Took a break from everything horsey when I moved out by myself. I didn't learn to drive until I was 29 (anxiety reasons) but the first thing I did when I passed my test was book riding lessons again, then started volunteering at a horse sanctuary. At 32 and a bit, I just got transport booked for my little rescue pony for Friday morning so I guess I don't quite know for definite if I know enough to own one yet (more anxiety reasons) but cross your fingers for me ?

I love these threads ❤

 

[Pippity]

My family is so unhorsey that I had to change out of my 'stinky stable clothes' in the garage before being allowed in the house! I spent my childhood working for lessons at the local shoddy riding school, and riding anything I was offered. Once I started work, I didn't have time and horses fell by the wayside (other than one disastrous attempt at sharing a coworker's OTTB which resulted in a fractured spine). About ten years ago, I was living with crippling depression and decided to try taking up riding again. Weekly lessons led to sharing a horse and, finally, buying my first horse at the grand old age of forty.

Sharing was essential. I'd have been completely stumped without having had that experience, and I'll always be grateful to the people who trusted me with their horses. Even so, the leap to owning was enormous and terrifying. The day my horse arrived, I went home and cried, and nearly called the dealer to send her back.

 

[meleeka]

My family weren’t horsey at all. I had a friend who had a pony and used to help her. After about a year she decided she didn’t want me to share her pony anymore and I was devastated. My mum went to speak to her mum and came back with the words “I’m not having that spoilt brat calling the shots,that’s it, you’re having your own pony!”. Gobsmacked doesn’t cover it ? I was 13. I was on a yard for a long time and received a lot of help, and my mum learnt too. She even ended up working at the yard to pay my livery. There were a lot of ups and downs in the beginning and I had to learn quickly, especially how to stay on an opinionated part bred Arab mare. I owned her for 27 years and still miss her.

 

[Nicnac]

Not at all horsey family. We lived all over the world so lessons were sporadic to say the least and the quality wasn't great. Riding Western in the US was fun though! Having my own was out of the question. I was horse mad. My grandparents lived in the Cotswolds so I stayed with them as often as I could as they had a farm behind them and I rode there with the farmer's kids as often as I could when on holiday in the UK. Rode a bit at boarding school too. Started riding frequently at 26 with weekly hacks and lessons with colleagues in Belgium. Bought first horse at 28 and was on full livery for next 6 years learning all the time.
Transferred to UK with 2 horses and bought a house with land and stables. 27 years later still here with my 3rd horse, daughter's horse (her 5th) and a shitland. I am rather envious of my daughter who was brought up with horses, did all the PC stuff and is a far better rider than I'll ever be!

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Well my paternal grandfather used a horse-drawn cart to sell fruit/veg and eggs from door to door. The horse (a Welsh Cob) stayed at livery during the week and then Grandad drove him home for the weekend, where he spent time grazing on the farm next door. But that stopped when my Dad was about 8, so it depends what you call a 'horsey family'.

Sorry I only answered half of the question!
We have photos of me aged about 2,sitting on a seaside donkey, probably at Bridlington. I started regular riding lessons aged 12 and got a very good grounding in most of what I needed to know, except feeding. Fortunately our 1st horse knew his job inside out and was very easy to do and keep.

 

[cold_feet]

My family were not horsey at all. I tagged along on a Pony trekking week with a school friend when about 10, and was hooked. No money for lessons though so used to hitch hike every weekend to help out at a riding stables. Then senior school, work, marriage, children, and nothing horsey until in my 40s when I finally had a few lessons. The daughter of someone I worked with had horse, and I spent the next 20+ years hacking for her, and finding out so much about horses and stable management. 6 years ago aged 60 finally I bought my own.

 

[Xmas lucky]

I started riding lessons once a week when I was 5 my parents hated horses with a passion and i has uncle who was a farmer who hated horse riders and constantly referring horses as burgers. My parents separated my mother couldn’t afford to give me a horse but my mother started to like horse so I was able convince her to get my own horse paying everything myself at 18 years old.

 

[Gloi]

Non horsey family here. I started weekly riding school lessons with friend at ten. She soon packed in but I carried on and used to help mucking out and doing lead reins etc. Got my own pony for 14th birthday who had been a livery at the rs and helped pay for his keep by working Friday evenings in the local chippy. My dad knew the people who had owned the pony before and paid them for him. I always went up on my bike and I'm not even sure he saw the pony before I got him ?

 

[Caol Ila]

My parents are not horsey. I was obsessed with them since at least age 2. Took riding lessons from about seven onwards with trainers who were hard, scary people, but I stuck with it despite them. They were really scary. I begged for a horse. For years. I would have done anything to have a horse. I used to pretend all my Breyer models were real horses. When we had to do research projects for school, I did mine on how much it would cost to own a horse. Contacted boarding barns, vets, farriers, etc. When I was 13, my parents bought me my first horse. My mother figured it was cheaper than sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll. She was probably right. I never got arrested as a teenager, and the same cannot be said for my younger brother. The deal was that they would help support the horse, but I would do all the work. If I'd gotten at all disinterested or reluctant to go to the barn, she would have been sold, but that never happened. Luckily, I was boarding at a large, busy barn with a lot of knowledgeable horsemen and women around, so they kept me and the horse out of most trouble, and I learned so much from them. My parents were happy. They knew where I was after school and what I was doing.

 

[CrunchieBoi]

I'm the opposite in that I grew up in a sort of horsey family, but even when I was younger I struggled with a disability that has gotten worse as I've grown so now riding and such is very much a thing of the past.

I keep saying that when we retire I'd like to get a little land and have a couple of pet rescue ponies but that's a bit off yet.

 

[Lammy]

Non-horsey family too but been horse-mad since a kid. Took every opportunity to beg for a donkey/pony ride whenever we went on holiday to the seaside ? my friend took me to my first riding lesson for my 12th birthday as she rode there already and that was it! Paid for a lesson once a month myself with paper round money and my mum paid for one too. Managed to convince her to let me go once a week after a while, helped every Saturday in return for an extra lesson every so often. Was often the crash test dummy and used to ride all the naughty ponies, I was just happy to get the extra rides, my mum didn’t understand why I liked riding the naughty ones ?

Got my loan pony when I was about 16, paid for her totally by myself thanks to a part time job I got. Mum never gave me lifts, I had to bike to work and bike to the stables morning and evening. Bought the pony a couple of years later and the rest is history really!

 

[skint1]

I was born and raised not far from NYC in the US. i didn't grow up around horses but I always loved them. There were no stables within an easy distance of my home so I only had a handful of lessons and went with my friend to her lessons and did chores in exchange for the odd little ride. I read every book, watched any tv or film, including racing and westerns (both of which my dad loved)... I have a lot of random knowledge of the US flat racing scene from mid/late70s to mid/late 80s. I avidly collected Breyer horses and made tack and stuff for them,and each had its own story!

By time I got to my mid teens, we moved to England and even though there were a lot more horses around, I just kind of assumed you needed a lot of money to have one and i didn't so I kind of put any horsey dreams I had on the back burner a few years later my daughter got into it and I was surprised how easily accessible it was both in terms of money and distance.

She started helping at riding school, then had one of their ponies on part loan, then had a friend's pony on full loan, then I bought her a horse. My friend wasn't on a livery yard, which was probably good thing in hindsight, she is kind and knowledgable and never made me feel stupid as I learned the basics of horse care.

So I got lots of care and management experience before I ever rode. When I was about 42, we had moved to a livery yard and there was a lady there that had a suitable horse and was happy to teach me to ride, after a few months of riding nearly every day another horse on that yard who was perfect in every way for me came up for loan, then for sale and I bought her, she was just amazing, i rode literally all the time, I lost her in 2015.

I then got a slightly more forward and cheeky gelding, my confidence issues began to emerge but looking back, he was never dangerous, but it was a struggle to keep him reliably sound so he retired in 2019, I then bought an ID mare that put me in mind of my first horse, but as I have got to know her, she's definitely 100% herself haha. It's turned out she's not really ridable at least right now, so I have 2 lovely horses and haven't ridden regularly since early 2020. I was never a great rider, I lack feel, timing, coordination and of course confidence, I was hoping to have more lessons etc but it hasn't worked out. I am in my early 50s, maybe if I am lucky I might get some more riding in before my increasingly creaky body and general health gives out hahaha

I do wonder if I might have made better decisions about my daughter's horses and my own horses if i had come from a horsey background, but of course I can never really know, and i have seen plenty who are from very horsey backgrounds hash things up at least as much as I have

 

[daffy44]

Parents totally non horsey, my Dad worked very hard to try and stop me riding, my Mum was more indifferent, she didnt mind when I was younger as she thought it kept me out of trouble, but she was anti me riding by the time school exams happened. I was totally obsessed from a very early age, I was taken to a riding school when we were on holiday and I was about 4yrs old, and I was hooked from then on, lots of nagging etc, and when I was 7 my grandad paid for me to have weekly lessons at the local riding school. It was also a livery yard, and I became really good friends with two girls that had their own ponies, their dad was an Irish horseman and he always had lots of horses and he used to put me on every horse he had which was fabulous fun, I then had a pony on loan that I kept with them and learnt a lot about care etc. I also read every book, watched every video etc going.

When I was 14 I started to work at a local dealing yard, and there I did everything, riding, grooming, competition grooming, backing, all aspects of care and I was like a little sponge, and by the time I was 16 I was head girl and ran the yard, I learned so much in that yard, I am still so grateful for all opportunities they gave me, I doubt it would happen now, children of my age wouldnt be allowed to do what I did. I got the bus/walked everywhere and worked myself silly, thought nothing of mucking out twenty before I started riding, and the work ethic i developed there has never left me, I suppose they taught me the cause and affect of hard work to achieve your goals.

 

[paddy555]

Sorry I only answered half of the question!
We have photos of me aged about 2,sitting on a seaside donkey, probably at Bridlington. .

I too have pics on a seaside donkey at Brid. Could have been the same donkey.

then I moved onto the donkeys at Roundhay Park at Leeds. Lots of them Did you miss out on those?