Uncontrolled dogs (again)

[MurphysMinder]

But NickyJ surely you didn't believe that the things that frightened your horse should be erradicated, or kept on a lead with a muzzle, so that you could ride untroubled through the countryside?

If you work on that thinking, there used to be some young bullocks in a field up the road that should certainly have been muzzled, and probably had their legs tied together, if you saw the reaction Murphy had to them every time they ran up to the fence. I was a very out of practice rider and wasn't particularly impressed when he used to spin and try and leg it, but can't really say I was terrified. Oh and some very dodgy sparrows in the hedges too.
I do agree that dogs should be kept under control, but in this instance it would seem the dog wasn't exactly a wild slavering beast, and was returning to the owner, and I think there was over reaction by both parties.

 

[AmyMay]

Oh and some very dodgy sparrows in the hedges too.

I find lambs the worse. Talk about mental breakdown (horse not me). If only I could track down that farmer to tell him to do something about them..........

 

[ester]

they tend to travel about in gangs too amymay... F is determined they are akin to hoody yooths

 

[AmyMay]

they tend to travel about in gangs too amymay... F is determined they are akin to hoody yooths

They do, and totally out of control with all their running about and bouncing!

 

[RunToEarth]

Riders often ARE terrified ... as I keep repeatedly saying, we are not all Mary King's - many of us, maybe even most of us, are just good basic riders, nothing special and are indeed TERRIFIED if dogs cause our horses to bolt, run backwards, sideways, whatever. My ex police horse, having been a Metropolitan boy, would freak at sheep, cows, tractors, combine harvesters, squawking chickens, pheasants, you name any countryside thing and my boy was petrified of it. He could run forward, backwards and sideways in a split second, and call me a wimp, but I was very scared at times. So I can quite understand how the OP felt vis a vis the collie incident.

Sheep, cows, combine harvesters, chickens (squawking or otherwise) and pheasants are all things that are reasonably found in the countryside - if you/your horse are terrified of them and you are so out of control I think it is nothing short of mindlessly irresponsible that you are anywhere near a public right of way with your out of control horse.

Jesus, you would have brown pants if you had to ride past the light air field I do on most exercises if you get hot under the collar for a pheasant. Agree, stick to the arena.

 

[AmyMay]

My ex police horse, having been a Metropolitan boy, would freak at sheep, cows, tractors, combine harvesters, squawking chickens, pheasants, you name any countryside thing and my boy was petrified of it. He could run forward, backwards and sideways in a split second, and call me a wimp, but I was very scared at times. So I can quite understand how the OP felt vis a vis the collie incident.

I suspect your ex police horse was taking the proverbial....

 

[Tiddlypom]

they tend to travel about in gangs too amymay... F is determined they are akin to hoody yooths

Omg lambs are the worst! We have lambs in next doors field in the spring and they play chase me Charlie's round and round over the muck heap, leaping right out from the top and then round again! My horses have decided now that this is normal lamb behaviour but I pity anyone else riding past them! But as has been said previously, it is up to us as riders to have our horses sufficiently under control to deal with such things, otherwise stay on your own land.

 

[4x4]

Just come back on this forum, for clarity, the track was nt a bridleway it is PRIVATE and the dogs and owners had no permission to be there.

 

[AmyMay]

Just come back on this forum, for clarity, the track was nt a bridleway it is PRIVATE and the dogs and owners had no permission to be there.

It's almost irrelevant to be honest. The dogs did no harm and were not out of control.

 

[Mince Pie]

And on the point of the riders being terrified, Nikki J you said it yourself "fear runs down the reins". I suggest that it isn't the horse who originally had the problem, but is picking up on the riders fear...

 

[Lizzie66]

It's almost irrelevant to be honest. The dogs did no harm and were not out of control.

This !

 

[JFTDWS]

It's gangs of wayward, leather jacketed, smoking pigeons lurking in the field which do it for us. Snorting, bouncing Fergus all the way I can't believe the police won't do anything about them it's disgraceful - I shouldn't be intimidated walking my horse down my own byway!

And the alpaca... Christ when they do that weirdly squeaking noise?! You'd think the farmer would have their vocal chords slit for my poor pony's sake!

Oddly the low flying aircraft and helicopter which was so low it blew the leaves off the trees the other day are ok though...

 

[ester]

as always, ability to actually kill you = fine
very very unlikely to kill you = run away! (python stylee)

 

[EllenJay]

Clearly, you are a confident, experienced and extremely competent rider. Not everyone falls into the same category. Horse riding is one of the most dangerous sports, mainly because horses are flight animals, unpredictable and hence the reason horse riding is categorised by insurance companies as one of the most dangerous sports. My cousin, who had been riding since she could walk, and rode for her university, hunted, evented and was an exceptionally good rider, was killed in her 30's when her horse was spooked on the Yorkshire moors we think by low-flying RAF aircraft. The horse, a youngster, came galloping into the yard minus my cousin, a search found her in a coma from which she never recovered. Even for the highly skilled, expert riders such as yourself, accidents happen and for the more novice riders, such as myself and the OP, a loose dog can be terrifying. I believe it is incumbent on dog owners such as myself to keep our dogs firmly under control when we see horse riders approaching.

How on earth did you deduce from my comments that I am "Confident, experienced and extremely competent" - I am not. I am, however, a happy hacker, and as such firstly train my horse to get used to things, ride him as if I expect him to behave, and I don't fret about what the rest of the world is doing. may do or have done. If I panic, my boy will panic - which is exactly why I am not hacking out by myself currently - not because he is naughty but because due to very little riding this summer (my illness and horse illness) I have lost my confidence. In the Opening post the rider reacted, if she had ignored the dog nothing else would have happened.

I have 2 very bouncy terriers x, who are regularly off lead along bridleways. I make sure they are close by and I keep an eye out for other users of the bridleways. When I see a horse rider I call my dogs to me and because they are little, it is easier for me to crouch down and hold their harnesses, as if I put one on the lead she jumps and jumps and jumps. I had one horse rider screech at me that I was scaring her horse - no doubt if I had let my dogs stay loose I would again have been screeched at because the dogs were loose!! Someone who is that nervous should not be aloud out in public on a horse

 

[Copperpot]

My horse who is usually scared of nothing is petrified of alpaca's! Don't know what it is about them but I can feel his heart thumping thru my boot when he see's one!

 

[JFTDWS]

I have a new mantra I recite on hacks...

"Who's more likely to hurt you, fergus, the little pigeons in the far field, or me, sitting on your back with spurs in your side and a whip in my hand?...

Good call, pony, good call."

 

[Nikki J]

But NickyJ surely you didn't believe that the things that frightened your horse should be erradicated, or kept on a lead with a muzzle, so that you could ride untroubled through the countryside?

Absolutely not! But i do not think that any rider would be unreasonable if they asked me to put my two boys on a lead (hypothetical because they are always on the lead around horses, but I am using this purely as an analogy). It is all a matter of respect really, and good old common sense.

 

[Nikki J]

Sheep, cows, combine harvesters, chickens (squawking or otherwise) and pheasants are all things that are reasonably found in the countryside - if you/your horse are terrified of them and you are so out of control I think it is nothing short of mindlessly irresponsible that you are anywhere near a public right of way with your out of control horse.

Jesus, you would have brown pants if you had to ride past the light air field I do on most exercises if you get hot under the collar for a pheasant. Agree, stick to the arena.

When I took the ex police horse on on loan, I was ignorant of the fact that he freaked at all things rural! And yes ... I think I probably did have brown pants on more than occasion!! But you see, he wouldn't have been frightened by aircraft - he was a metropolitan police horse, so nothing frightened him like that. But try and ride him past a flock of sheep, a herd of cows, a combine harvester, a tractor, and the stupid horse ran backwards, sideways and forwards all at once in a second, and scared me witless, I am not ashamed to say it! But we all have to learn, and once I discovered this, I would make sure that I did not ride out alone, and avoided riding around livestock but stuck to the arable fields with their set-aside at the back of our house. My husband would come out with me on foot to add moral support, and gradually I did build up my confidence on him. He was a TB cross Cleveland Bay, a beautiful boy, but jesus he was scary!

I didn't have the luxury of an arena unfortunately, else believe me I would have never left it. He taught me a lot though, that horse.

 

[Nikki J]

I suspect your ex police horse was taking the proverbial....

He most certainly was!!! He went fine for my OH, who wasn't a scaredy cat like me!! However, I adored the horse, he was such a character and very sweet with it. As gentle as a lamb to handle in the field or stable, with my dog, with children, he was the perfect gentleman - just terrified of all things rural, him being a London boy!

He knew full well I was frightened and took full advantage!!

 

[Nikki J]

And on the point of the riders being terrified, Nikki J you said it yourself "fear runs down the reins". I suggest that it isn't the horse who originally had the problem, but is picking up on the riders fear...

Exactly, I totally agree. But every expert rider, was a nervous novice at one time. We all have to start somewhere, and I am merely saying how I can empathise with the OP in her situation.

Fear does indeed run down the reins ... and it took me some time to learn to keep calm and not let my fear register to the horse. The last horse I had was an elderly but quite forward-going if you allowed her to be TB cross New Forest, and she soon learned that she could not take off with me, and so therefore didn't. We had the perfect relationship BECAUSE I learned to conquer my fear and not let it run down the reins.

 

[Nikki J]

How on earth did you deduce from my comments that I am "Confident, experienced and extremely competent" - I am not. I am, however, a happy hacker, and as such firstly train my horse to get used to things, ride him as if I expect him to behave, and I don't fret about what the rest of the world is doing. may do or have done. If I panic, my boy will panic - which is exactly why I am not hacking out by myself currently - not because he is naughty but because due to very little riding this summer (my illness and horse illness) I have lost my confidence. In the Opening post the rider reacted, if she had ignored the dog nothing else would have happened.

I have 2 very bouncy terriers x, who are regularly off lead along bridleways. I make sure they are close by and I keep an eye out for other users of the bridleways. When I see a horse rider I call my dogs to me and because they are little, it is easier for me to crouch down and hold their harnesses, as if I put one on the lead she jumps and jumps and jumps. I had one horse rider screech at me that I was scaring her horse - no doubt if I had let my dogs stay loose I would again have been screeched at because the dogs were loose!! Someone who is that nervous should not be aloud out in public on a horse

From your description as "schoolmaster" ! Sorry for my presumption, no offence meant, I was actually complimenting you!

I disagree with your final sentence though "someone who is that nervous should not be allowed out in public on a horse". That is extremely patronising if I may say so without causing further offence. When I first started riding at the age of 11 when I went to boarding school, I was absolutely petrified, scared out of my wits, and regularly had fits of sobbing on my darling new forest pony Star who never put a hoof wrong, but still little wimp that I was I would blub from time to time. Our wonderful Weedon instructor and his assistant were kindness and patience itself, gently but firmly encouraged me (because they could see i was absolutely besotted with horses, just lacked in confidence) to keep riding and gradually I improved and continued riding until I was 19. I then had a long long gap of no riding until I was about 40, and then another gap to 45 or so, when I took the DWB on on loan. I was petrified to start with, but again he gave me huge confidence to keep going, which I did, and now provided I am riding something sensible, I am no longer nervous.

Never ever ever though did I allow myself to just stick in the menage because I was too scared to venture out. You are never going to get over your fear like that, you need to get out in public, in company until you are confident enough to get out on your own ... hence the reason why i say I disagree with your sentence!

 

[YorksG]

From your description as "schoolmaster" ! Sorry for my presumption, no offence meant, I was actually complimenting you!

I disagree with your final sentence though "someone who is that nervous should not be allowed out in public on a horse". That is extremely patronising if I may say so without causing further offence. When I first started riding at the age of 11 when I went to boarding school, I was absolutely petrified, scared out of my wits, and regularly had fits of sobbing on my darling new forest pony Star who never put a hoof wrong, but still little wimp that I was I would blub from time to time. Our wonderful Weedon instructor and his assistant were kindness and patience itself, gently but firmly encouraged me (because they could see i was absolutely besotted with horses, just lacked in confidence) to keep riding and gradually I improved and continued riding until I was 19. I then had a long long gap of no riding until I was about 40, and then another gap to 45 or so, when I took the DWB on on loan. I was petrified to start with, but again he gave me huge confidence to keep going, which I did, and now provided I am riding something sensible, I am no longer nervous.

But the point is that you cannot expect the world to stop what it is doing, put its dog on a lead and muzzle it, just because you have decided to go out for a ride that day! I had an Appaloosa who was genuinly frightened of large vehicles, we could never cure her of it, so she always went out with a 'nanny' horse, as I could not expect all the large vehicles to get off the road. The current Appy is fine with all traffic, something which I had to remeber when we got her, so that I didn't undo all the good work. The Young Appy is getting used to all sorts, before she goes out on the road, so far she is fine with angle grinders, strimmers, electric saws, nail guns and small but loud tractors, as long as I am not frightened of them, neither will she be. I will admit that I don't quite know what to do about the current Appy's aversion to purple flowers and different coloured tarmac!

 

[4x4]

To put the record straight I am not nervous, the horse has hunted, hacks out in very heavy traffic, is dog proof with my own dogs and is hacked out on roads/tracks/through rivers/over dual carriageways/under motorways whatever. However it is a horse not a piece of wood and will react if frightened.

 

[AmyMay]

To put the record straight I am not nervous, the horse has hunted, hacks out in very heavy traffic, is dog proof with my own dogs and is hacked out on roads/tracks/through rivers/over dual carriageways/under motorways whatever. However it is a horse not a piece of wood and will react if frightened.

Yet, you're the one that shrieked.......

 

[Spit That Out]

It's a shame that other people get in the way of us horse owners/riders...what's happening to the country when you can't hack freely across fields without the inconvenience of dogs, cows, ramblers, mountain bikes, bird scarers and gates that don't open.
Curse you car drivers and motor bikes for being on the roads when I want to ride.
Shame on you RAF for flying your planes fast and low...shut your engine off when you spot a rider in the distance...you have radar after all?
I shake my fist at people who have wind turbines!
My hobby is the only one that matters, anyone who thinks otherwise is just rude.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

Well....I have 4 dogs and Id like horse riders to tie their horses hind legs together so they cant kick out at my dogs. :rolleyes3:
I've not read the likes of the idiocy spouted by some on this thread in a long while. Yes people with dogs/bikes/cars/lorries/alien aircraft should be courteous to riders but it works the other way too. We as riders expect dog walkers to have their charges under control but, radical train if thought here, what about training your horse??
Walking dogs where there are lots of riders likely to be is stressful these days as although my dogs are fab with horses on or off the lead, I invariably have a rider screeching at me to "control" my dog...the one that looked up from sniffing the undergrowth and wagged its tail as the horse walked past..???
So as a rider AND a dog owner this kind of attitude drives me nuts.

 

[ester]

To put the record straight I am not nervous, the horse has hunted, hacks out in very heavy traffic, is dog proof with my own dogs and is hacked out on roads/tracks/through rivers/over dual carriageways/under motorways whatever. However it is a horse not a piece of wood and will react if frightened.

exactly the point.. and what the are frightened by isn't always logical, hence making it not always the 'terror's' fault.

 

[RunToEarth]

To put the record straight I am not nervous, the horse has hunted, hacks out in very heavy traffic, is dog proof with my own dogs and is hacked out on roads/tracks/through rivers/over dual carriageways/under motorways whatever. However it is a horse not a piece of wood and will react if frightened.

So 120 posts later - it clear that you weren't injured, your horse spooked mildly and as a result no one was injured. The dog was recalled without maiming any livestock/ramblers/horses but you have reported them to the police for good measure, having a dog loose on private land they may or may not have had permission to be on.

If this post does not appear demonstrative that a lot of horse riders are mildly unhinged in their expectations of other people around their horses then I'm not sure what is.

 

[Nikki J]

From your description as "schoolmaster" ! Sorry for my presumption, no offence meant, I was actually complimenting you!

I disagree with your final sentence though "someone who is that nervous should not be allowed out in public on a horse". That is extremely patronising if I may say so without causing further offence. When I first started riding at the age of 11 when I went to boarding school, I was absolutely petrified, scared out of my wits, and regularly had fits of sobbing on my darling new forest pony Star who never put a hoof wrong, but still little wimp that I was I would blub from time to time. Our wonderful Weedon instructor and his assistant were kindness and patience itself, gently but firmly encouraged me (because they could see i was absolutely besotted with horses, just lacked in confidence) to keep riding and gradually I improved and continued riding until I was 19. I then had a long long gap of no riding until I was about 40, and then another gap to 45 or so, when I took the DWB on on loan. I was petrified to start with, but again he gave me huge confidence to keep going, which I did, and now provided I am riding something sensible, I am no longer nervous.

But the point is that you cannot expect the world to stop what it is doing, put its dog on a lead and muzzle it, just because you have decided to go out for a ride that day! I had an Appaloosa who was genuinly frightened of large vehicles, we could never cure her of it, so she always went out with a 'nanny' horse, as I could not expect all the large vehicles to get off the road. The current Appy is fine with all traffic, something which I had to remeber when we got her, so that I didn't undo all the good work. The Young Appy is getting used to all sorts, before she goes out on the road, so far she is fine with angle grinders, strimmers, electric saws, nail guns and small but loud tractors, as long as I am not frightened of them, neither will she be. I will admit that I don't quite know what to do about the current Appy's aversion to purple flowers and different coloured tarmac!

I don't, didn't and never will expect the world to stop for me or anyone else!!

 

[Nikki J]

Yet, you're the one that shrieked.......

Well shoot the OP down then for having the TEMERITY to shriek!! The OP is a human being, not an automaton - although it is unwise to do such a thing on a horse, it is not a cardinal sin, but was a natural consequence of being taken by surprise! I have an extreme startle response - when I am concentrating, I will half jump out of my skin and perhaps not shriek, but go "oh" rather loudly if someone comes up behind me unnoticed by me and says something.