What are your most hated pieces of equipment?

Pale Rider said:
Well trained and responsive enough, 'really?'

Whether or not Fox-Pitt wants his horses training properly is really a matter for him. Somehow I doubt it, he seems happy enough with what he's got.

The real problem is that people who follow the 'celebrity'
riders who are much acclaimed for all the wrong reasons at the end of the day. One only has to look at the disgraceful treatment of horses by Anky van Grunsven to see what these people are capable of. I see Matthias Alexander Rath is subject of some critism now with Tortilas.

It really is a crying shame to see talented riders having to resort to such poor techniques and battle with their horses and cause pain and discomfort.

Yet the audiences are still there clapping and cheering like some medieval crowd at a public flogging.

I didn't bring WFP into this someone else did.
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Sorry mate but if i had the choice of you or WFP training anything i owned, it would be William all the way
 
Pale Rider said:
The peice of equipment I hate the most is the 'flash' noseband.

The reason for this is fairly simple. Leaving aside the muppets who use one because it came with the bridle, the horse opening its mouth or putting his tongue out, is normally the first sign of a problem, the horse is trying to make his feelings known.

Once the dentist and the sadlle fitter and everyone else has had a poke about and decided that there is no physical reason for this behaviour, the problem is simply solved by strapping the horses mouth firmly shut.

My view is that the problem in the majority of cases is a lack of confidence in the rider by the horse. The rider, or trainer has failed to properly prepair the horse, and will never have a proper relationship with that horse from the day they decide to strap his mouth shut. The rest of the crap that follows, which it will, like side reins, martingales and harsh bits, all stem from the fact that the horse is unconfident in the rider and majority of subseqent riders of the same ilk.
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I don't agree with this at all! I restarted my dressage warmblood about six months ago in the simplest tack possible, all correctly fitted, with reguar imput from trainer and physio and have now moved up to using a flash attachment on the noseband.
This is because as I ask for harder movements his form of evasion is to open his mouth and after battling with this for months I have chosen to use a flash strap so that I can be more effective and subtle in my riding. This desision was taken after consultations with my physio and trainer and has completely changed my horses way of going. He is now relaxed and supple through the contact and is working with me reather than against me.
Please give tell me how this so bad, how this is destoying my relationship with my horse!!
 
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marydoll said:
Lol what a thread,:D:D and we wonder why yards are a hot bed of busy bodies, gossipping and bitching about what others do and dont do with their horses.
Personally i'll put on tack i think is suitable for the horse and its way of going, and shock horror :eek::eek: what suits one might not suit the other.
And i might need to use more than a snaffle :eek: and shock horror a martingale as well :eek::eek::D:D.
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Exactly..and having had to reschool a young horse initially in a stronger bit who i am now riding in a snaffle, it's about understanding why, rather than making blanket statements about what's right and what isn't.. :)
 
3Beasties said:
I don't think theres anything that I could say I hate, if used correctly I think most horsey equipment serves a purpose. That said even a simple snaffle can be legal in the wrong hands.
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+1

I try to use as little 'kit' as possible and teach by getting a good bond however I think that used correctly most kit is good. Stronger bits in lighter hands can be better than a 'kind' bit in heavy hands etc.

I used to hate choke chains on dogs until I learned how to use them properly. I think they're absolutely fantastic used right but can kill dogs in the wrong hands. Same goes with horses.

I know someone who finished their horse off by a leadrope being used incorrectly :mad: So ultimately equipment is rarely hated (bar the post recently about bottle caps on poles etc, where it is designed to punish) it just needs to be used in the right hands

Pan
 
Fools Motto said:
Seeing kids riding horses is also a pet hate...
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In reference to over horsed?

Local girl got a horrendously expensive nutty horse for her 'first pony' after being warned away and spent several months being not able to even sit on it and then turned into a field ornament. Ridiculous.

However as a kid myself I was on Clysedales and cobs as a young kid and would probably teach my own kids that way as found them so much nicer and easier to do than ponies (maybe that's just from bad encounters with lots of grumpy ponies!)

Pan
 
Wonder what a horse would say. My best Gues is his most hated piece of 'equipment' is a harsh rider.
 
Shoot me now...

I own two pairs of spurs (a normal pair and smooth roller ball ones) - I hunt my horse with the roller ball spurs whilst he's wearing either a grackle or cavesson/flash noseband, with anything from a waterford snaffle to a pelham to a waterford gag! To all those who think it's cruel and he should be "more responsive to the aids" and "better schooled" in the first place (which is usually the argument put forward on these threads), he goes in a French link with either plain cavesson or a drop noseband the rest of the time... I'd challenge any of you to hunt him in that and come back in one piece! The horse loves his job and pulls like a train. He's 17hh, I'm 5ft4 and don't weight 9st so stronger bit and spurs are needed sometimes!

I have also be known to ride him in draw reins on occasion, which are not used to crank his head to his chest. I own a Monty Roberts Dually headcollar and have had sessions with a Kelly Marks RA in the past... horse is well mannered, well adjusted, happy and obedient.
 
I think the most hated bit of equipment at my yard has to be a sweeping brush as hardly anyone seems to know how to use one!

Personally, I don't 'hate' any particular gadget and I firmly believe that they all have their place, as long as they're in the right hands. One thing that really gets my goat though is the amount of novices who seem to be about at the moment who *think* they know what they're doing and are too arrogant to listen to any advice. I'd like to add that I know that everybody needs to learn how to do things, but there is a difference between the people who genuinely wish to learn and those who have a horse/pony just for the sake of being able to say they have a horse/pony and have little or no regard to its welfare.
 
Pale Rider did not target WFP (a set up perhaps?:rolleyes:)

Nobody has to agree with everyone but these co-ordinated attacks are getting really tedious. She has a right to say whatever she wants and not belittled simply because she's a western rider ....defend to the death for right of speech and all that.

I use a stud chain. In the chin groove, over the nose and if things are really lively, through the mouth.

and I couldn't care less what you think.
 
Fellewell said:
Pale Rider did not target WFP (a set up perhaps?:rolleyes:)

Nobody has to agree with everyone but these co-ordinated attacks are getting really tedious. She has a right to say whatever she wants and not belittled simply because she's a western rider ....defend to the death for right of speech and all that.


and I couldn't care less what you think.
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She is a he. And you're sounding paranoid. People are allowed to share similar opinions without it being a 'co-ordinated attack' or a set up :rolleyes:

And you obviously care enough to make completely unfounded accusations...
 
Another vote for drawreins. I also hare flashes and waterford bits. I agree about spurs. Should only ever be used for refinement of the aids by advanced riders, not for extra speed, impulsion or getting the horse to listen.
 
Wagtail said:
Another vote for drawreins. I also hare flashes and waterford bits. I agree about spurs. Should only ever be used for refinement of the aids by advanced riders, not for extra speed, impulsion or getting the horse to listen.
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Um, I think you'll find that "refinement of the aids" IS about extra impulsion and getting the horse to listen....
 
rhino said:
She is a he. And you're sounding paranoid. People are allowed to share similar opinions without it being a 'co-ordinated attack' or a set up :rolleyes:

And you obviously care enough to make completely unfounded accusations...
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Well, talk of the devil. Is your mate on her way?:rolleyes:
 
Faracat said:
Chainsaw bit.

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I actually think the waterford is getting on for as bad as this bit.
 
Fellewell said:
Is your mate on her way?:rolleyes:
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Why, would you like one? Don't you have any?

If you're all for free speech, you have to allow everyone to have that right, or the whole system fails. My opinion was that Pale Rider was showing a great deal of ignorance in his posts. Obviously others agree.
 
Wagtail said:
I actually think the waterford is getting on for as bad as this bit.
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really? I'm no great fan of waterfords (took my first horse out of his when I bought him and never used one since!) but I don't think they compare to this monstrosity?

Fellewell, afaik, rhino has a great many friends on this forum - who exactly were you expecting?
 
Deseado said:
Um, I think you'll find that "refinement of the aids" IS about extra impulsion and getting the horse to listen....
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No it's not. Any horse should work off the lightest touch from the leg. Spurs can just make this more precise when asking for more advanced dressage movements. If a horse does not immediately react to a small squeeze and offer impulsion, then they have been badly trained IME.
 
Not a piece of equipment but ignorant riders who treat a horse like a machine, expecting it to be perfect even if they hardly ever ride it.
 
JFTD said:
really? I'm no great fan of waterfords (took my first horse out of his when I bought him and never used one since!) but I don't think they compare to this monstrosity?
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Not AS bad, no. But a nasty bit all the same. The narrow bars of the lower jaw are held between the nobbles of the waterford. You don't need a vivid imagination to envisage how this must feel when pressure is applied to the reins, and if the rider pulls the bit to one side. A good rider should ensure the bit stays level and still in the mouth, but in faster events such as cross country or hunting, this is not always a given.
 
Fellewell said:
Pale Rider did not target WFP (a set up perhaps?:rolleyes:)

Nobody has to agree with everyone but these co-ordinated attacks are getting really tedious. She has a right to say whatever she wants and not belittled simply because she's a western rider ....defend to the death for right of speech and all that.

I use a stud chain. In the chin groove, over the nose and if things are really lively, through the mouth.

and I couldn't care less what you think.
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Oooh! Am I in a clique now? How exciting!

He flippin well did - or I wouldn't have used WFP's name. Read what he said...
 
welshstar said:
I'm sorry but I really don't agree with this!! My horse that I had years ago didn't need a flash/grackle etc or a martingale to jump so we didn't put one on. But my current horse does need a grackle and does need a martingale to jump! It would be a lovely world if all horses could be ridden in headcollars (or stuff that- nothing because we're in tune with them!) But horses are not machines, I could school mine all day long and he is as calm as anything. But he enjoys his jumping and those things are needed when the jumps go up. Infact, I jumped him at home the other day without his martingale (because I forgot it) and I definitely do need it!

If you look at just about every event horse at this years Olympics, I bet they will be be wearing strong bits/martingales etc. I'm not one to tell William fp what to do. These are not far off a tonne of horse and sometimes a little human needs a helping hand! This is not always though lack of training and is just because the horse is not a machine!! We can not programme them to have no personality and train every ounce of horse out for every second that we ride them!!
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This is the post that brought WFP into the mix, not me. So Auslander, close, but no cigar.
 
Pale Rider said:
This is the post that brought WFP into the mix, not me. So Auslander, close, but no cigar.
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I didn't say that you were the first person to mention him. I simply suggested that your statement that he wasn;t very good because he sometimes rides in stronger bits/martingales etc was complete nonsense.

You still haven't bothered to answer my question about your own credentials. I'm far more interested in finding out more about who you are, and what makes you so confident that your way is the only way, than I am in banging on about my ex boss!!
 
Auslander said:
I'm far more interested in finding out more about who you are, and what makes you so confident that your way is the only way, than I am in banging on about my ex boss!!
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This is something I will never understand on forums like this one. Why do some people want to find out WHO others are? I could understand wanting to know their credentials, but not actually WHO they are.

*disclaimer* not siding with anyone here, just curious as to this, to my mind creepy behaviour on some forums. Also accept that Auslander may have been using the word 'who' in a general and not specific sense.
 
Fellewell said:
Pale Rider did not target WFP (a set up perhaps?:rolleyes:)

Nobody has to agree with everyone but these co-ordinated attacks are getting really tedious. She has a right to say whatever she wants and not belittled simply because she's a western rider ....defend to the death for right of speech and all that.

I use a stud chain. In the chin groove, over the nose and if things are really lively, through the mouth.

and I couldn't care less what you think.
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Excuse me, i commented on his post, and im not part of any coordinated attack,i commented because i disagreed with the nonsense he was spouting
 
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