What are your "fun" bits of horse ownership. Remind me..

I really am loving reading all these, though I'm sorry some of you have similar times of feeling very down about it all. Last night I thought the plan was definitely to give up but today I feel more upbeat, maybe because the sun has been out here. There is still no magic solution but I have been actively trying to see good things today! One of the things I think I need to do is separate the chores time from trying to enjoy myself. So if I've been shovelling poo in the dark, that is not the time to then spend 3 hours grooming to within an inch of it's life (for me anyway). I need a cup of tea, and some of that homemade cake, to distance myself from the hard work part.

I am wondering about the longer term solution for our set up and again this thread is giving me plenty of food for thought.
 
My own place. Cobbled together stables, currently no electricity & only tap at the end of a 1/4 mile drive. Clay soil so mud a go-go. 2 kids & a completely non- horsey husband.
Bad bits.....I refuse to see them. There are people who would give anything to have what I have, mud & everything.
I get on the yard at 05.15 to feed, ride one & turn out because I have to be home, usually by 07.30 for school run/work.... & I love every minute of it. Yes sometimes the weather makes it all character building & I joke there isn't much I couldn't do by the light of a headtorch but in all seriousness there is something so satisfying about keeping going when it's a bit crap!
 
I had had enough last winter, I had stopped enjoying any of it, didn't even look forward to going up to see them. This was after a very wet summer where everything was cancelled and a soggy winter where my boy had an abcess that just wouldn't clear up. I was sick of the wet, sick of the mud, sick of the 20 minuet drive to see them, sick of endless poulticing, sick of spending money and not getting any joy out of it.

I am ok now, enjoying looking after them again but I am wondering if I should give up the idea of trying to do more, get back into competing, etc and just settle to being a happy hacker / pony patter and sell my endless amout of gear and just keep the basics..
 
marmalade76 said:
I had had enough last winter, I had stopped enjoying any of it, didn't even look forward to going up to see them. This was after a very wet summer where everything was cancelled and a soggy winter where my boy had an abcess that just wouldn't clear up. I was sick of the wet, sick of the mud, sick of the 20 minuet drive to see them, sick of endless poulticing, sick of spending money and not getting any joy out of it.

I am ok now, enjoying looking after them again but I am wondering if I should give up the idea of trying to do more, get back into competing, etc and just settle to being a happy hacker / pony patter and sell my endless amout of gear and just keep the basics..
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Funnily enough I am thinking just the opposite! I love working them, seeing improvement, competing, the social side of that, going out in my beautiful lorry (that's sitting in the drive doing nothing), for me that's the bit that does make it all worth it. Although a lovely hack on a nice day is also rather uplifting for the soul. If you aren't worrying if your horse is going to make you go splat... I think that's where the balance is all wrong wrong wrong. I barely have the time, facilities, energy or enthusiasm to ride at all, let alone bring her on and compete!
 
I could answer this by a piece as long as war and peace .
But the noise of them eating forage and the smell of them .
And the feel of them when you ask them to to come under and lift their withers and they just go up a gear it's like magic .
And the feel of a good hunter when a run starts and the smell of an experianced event horse when their adrenaline starts to run in the start box and ......
 
Ok .. Not a fan of the weather right now .. Well mostly the mud ;) but it does brush/ wash off .. My boy is on DIY ..I love the simple things .. I love it when I call his name ( when he is the in field) and he lifts his head and canters over :) really makes me smile .. The fact he could stay with his friends ..but comes cantering to me ! Bless him .. I love it when he sees my heading to his stable first thing in the morning ..he starts licking his lips ..hahaha .. Today we hacked for 2 1/2 hours in the rain ..and loved every minute ( we have moved to a new yard and we had no idea where we were going .. But that added to the fun ! ) I like sitting in his stable with a cappuccino and sharing ginger nut biscuits with him .. I could spend all day watching him happily munch his haylage :) love that sound ! I love the fact I hardly see anybody at the stables :p I pop in Sunday evenings on my way home from work .. And it's pitch black .. I love just popped in to see him , give him a brush , tell him about my day ..tell him OH is at home making my dinner ..and I'm
Here cuddling him :D
I have own him 4 years and I love his bones..he was very ill last winter and it broke my heart .. But with a lot of tlc ..he has made a full recovery .. So everyday I thanks my lucky stars for him ;)
 
DIY Livery.
Bad bits: getting up at 5:30am every week day. Dragging my horse half a mile through mud so deep it covers your ankles, from the stable to the turnout, because she would rather be in a nice warm and dry stable.
Good bits: The nicker of greeting every morning, her letting me cuddle her when she is lying down, just sitting down in the stable and being with her. The smell of the stable (straw, hay, poo). Seeing the progress we have made over the past few months; canter becoming more balanced, coming on to the bit more often with her legs coming under her. Having her relax and start to lean against you when she had been stressed over something. I even like the beautiful lateral moves she makes and her eyes coming out on stalks when she sees something scary. I wish we could do pirouettes like that in the school.
 
now_loves_mares said:
Funnily enough I am thinking just the opposite! I love working them, seeing improvement, competing, the social side of that, going out in my beautiful lorry (that's sitting in the drive doing nothing), for me that's the bit that does make it all worth it. Although a lovely hack on a nice day is also rather uplifting for the soul. If you aren't worrying if your horse is going to make you go splat... I think that's where the balance is all wrong wrong wrong. I barely have the time, facilities, energy or enthusiasm to ride at all, let alone bring her on and compete!
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See, I used to do all that, hunt, compete (unaff only, mind), funrides, RC, lessons all regularly - then I had children! I have always planned to get back into it ( not as much as before and only at a very low level) but lack of time, money, facilities, a fit / sound horse at times, confidence, lessons/practice and good weather has been preventing me. Now I am wondering if, like you, I really have the energy and enthusiasm and perhaps I should just accept life as a happy hacker. Things are harder, I'm older, have other responsibilities now, other people to consider. I live much further away from the yard than I did when I was doing lots and it all adds up (perhaps I should point out that they have lived out since I had the children so can be as low maintenance as I choose now). And I have hundreds of pounds worth of gear cluttering up my house that I rarely get to use and I'm considering cashing it in!
 
Aw, come on people! It's horses; it's winter - of course it's going to be the pits (unless you hunt, in which case this is the only time of year which is worth having). The best bits: warm, snuggly horses munching hay in a "set fair" stable; steam rising on a cold day after some fast work; riding when the sun is rising/setting (if you can see the sun through the fog/rain/hail/sleet....); grooming a fit, clipped horse and seeing the muscles and the shining coat.

The worst bits: hair, mud, cold fingers, traipsing about looking for black horses in the dark, mud, anything frozen, mud, deciding you couldn't be ar*sed to ride because of all the aforementioned.....

On balance I'd say it's still worth it.
 
My pony has been out on loan for 2 years and I've just given notice on his loan and found a yard to move him to. His loaners have looked after him wonderfully but I miss him and I even miss mucking out.

He comes back on 1st April. I am SO EXCITED and can't wait to give him cuddles every day. I miss his soft nose, warming my hands under his mane, stroking his ears and telling him all my troubles. And I can't wait for my little girl (19 months old at the moment) to see him all the time because she adores him. :D
 
DIY and the constant rain is a misery. However, for the first time in a while, I managed to get to the yard before dark today. I then had time to have cuddles with my boy and he just cuddled me back, nuzzled in and was generally adorable. Not 'fun', but a reminder that I love my horse, he loves me (or anyone who feeds him!). Lovely.
 
Well rain and mud is kind of gonna be life in England lets face it.

However... I love the whicker in the mornings, the hay-breath hello and the "where's me breakfast" look. I love the getting hot mucking out and the cooling of the rain on my cheeks. I love the chatter with fellow liveries. I love seeing the cows and saying hello to the calves and watching my girl say hello too.

I love calling her at the gate and she coming over at a trot and skidding to a halt at exactly at the same spot, just enough room to swing the gate.

I love the smell of mud and the satisfaction of brushing it to reveal shiny soft fur.

I love making a nice think bouncy bouncy bed and filling the manger nice and high and.... My favourite..... Haring the blow of restfulness and the satisfactory swing of tail... Like a "thanks mum, this is nice".

I love having a horse to love.
 
TickyTavey said:
Spent 10 years saving and plotting to own a horse again after a pony-filled childhood curtailed by uni and getting a job. Can honestly say I love every minute with mine. I even enjoy just being on the livery yard and seeing other people's horses. Love the smell of wet hay and hoof oil and shoeing, arriving in the half light and listening to contented munching, sound of hooves hollow clopping on the road in the rain. I guess an enforced break from horses means I'm still in the honeymoon period and being on part livery helps too :-) Peolpe sacrifice a lot to own a horse, but it's a big privilege. And it will stop raining. Sometime.
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Almost me, no ponies from leaving home till kiddies old enough to be responsible and had enough time and money. So many years later, have had pony for 2 1/2 years and the joy is still there, even taking them ( look after mine and 2 others full DIY) up the mountainside bog one at a time to dry grazing every morning, the pleasure once they have got through the worst of the bog and then race and buck and roll makes all the toil worth while.
 
I suffer from depression which often gets worse over winter, which doesn't help the winter mucking out blues. On a DIY livery yard so am up early before work/school and straight down after.

I think what helped me was having someone to fall back on. A family member helps out and will do nights after work or the odd early morning. Little things like that really help me to take a step back from the responsibility and see it less as something tying me down, and more as something I miss when not there.

I love hearing my horse shout to me when I come down in the morning or when I get him from the field.

I love the 6am peace and quiet with just me and him.

I love looking at photos from the summer of dry ground, summer coats and rich green grass.

I love being invited to go on a hack, so even on the worst days where I feel down I know someone is thinking of me and wants my company.

I love, after a couple of days being stuck in due to howling wind and torrential rain, being able to turn the horses out and seeing them run, roll, buck, fart, bite, play and muck themselves up.

I don't know if this is of any relevance, but I know my depression gets worse over winter and is more frequent due to Seasonal Affective Disorder. I found a 3 minute sunbed every now and them seemed to help a bit with a quick burst of warmth to your bones.

Hope you feel a bit better soon x
 
What is so wonderful about this whole thread is the obvious love everyone has for their horses in spite of mud, lack of money and time etc. After all I think that is why the majority of us own them because we love them and mostly they love us.
 
Born in the city but had a few riding lessons when I was 10ish and got the bug but was never able to have my own horse. Did a few treks on holiday in my 20s but didn't start riding again properly until I was nearly 50. Bought my first horse at 50 and got a second at 60 retired last year at 65.....SO, for the first time in my life I can ride when I like and I do. If it's cold, wet or windy I still ride, I love it all, I even resent going away on holiday (a bit). I'm trying to make up for lost time, desperately trying to be a good rider before my body gives out, but like everyone else, looking forward to the spring/summer except that it's another year of my life that I won't have. I just want to say to everyone who's been lucky enough to have horses all their life, stop bl...dy moaning and be grateful for what you have!
 
now_loves_mares said:
Lots of good responses so far but would love more!

What strikes me is that many of you are finding sheer joy in simple things. Right now I can barely look at mine with anything other than mild hatred. Not very healthy, for a hobby that takes all my time, my money and my energy. SKint - sucking the life out of me sounds about right. And it's not just winter, although that does make it way way harder, of course.

Full livery, huh? Mine are at home. Only time I tried proper full livery I hated it, as they were a bit rubbish, I ended up re mucking out every day, they never gave him enough hay etc.
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Although I would love to have my horses back at home with me I would now miss the camaraderie of the yard. I have made lots of friends, we all help and support each other, share transport and go for yard outings and I think it would be very lonely to be at home with just my 2 horses and my daughters pony. Although DIY can be very frustrating sometimes, if you get the right yard it can make the hard bits seem easier in a way because everyone else is going through it and you can complain together. A problem shared and all that!
 
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