Whats the biggest mistake you made on/around horses?

bought a beutiful reg hanaverian knowing that it bolted whilst u were turning it out it was such a nice horse and lovely ride got him home had it 1 week and it pulled my shoulder strait out of the socket morrel of the story go with ur head not ur heart
 
Mine is standing in front of a yearling whilst trying to teach her hoses arent scary - she spooked, ran straight over the top of me!!!!

I also hate myself when I lose my temper.
 
I have had a few, but can't really remember. But my most resent one was, with my 4 yr old tb. When i got her i knew she'd had some work towards being ridden, but wern't sure how much, so i took her in the school, and did all the usual, introducing the tack, and long lining. She had obviously had this done as she was completly calm with everything. So i started jumping up as if i was going to get on, again she was fine, so, i got on thinking that she'd just not been schooled, but before my backside had even touched the saddle, she when mad and chucked me off!! I couldn't move of 5 mins!! i really thought i did some damage, but thankfully i was just left with a really big brusie on my back. Turns out that, she just done the ground work, no one had ever got on. They really could have told me!!!

So now i know, not to assume that a horse has been sat on, because it's calm with everything
 
Sending my pony of to 'Professionals' for help, will never forgive myself for that as they made her the difficult pony she is today.

Also hate it when I loose my temper!
 
Ignoring advice about taking someone experienced with me to buy my boy
I love him to bits but hes not how he was described and now im more experienced i can see i was conned
Basically he was sold as a bombroof hacker - he is, if someone is walking along side him lol
So now im having to work very hard to get him to walk out alone, with no other horses or peopel walking beside him
Yes he was bombroof when my daughter rode him on a hack - but his opwner was walking alongside - she never hacked him out alone, something he hates the big wuss.
He is georgeous though so i do forgive him and his previous owner - i just guess i was too novicey to realise he was only good when walked out with other people beside him xxx
 
Soooooooooooooooooo many!

I bought my 16yo daughter a a 3yo ex racer 2 months out of racing as her 1st horse coming off ponies without really knowing nearly enough about it. She was tired, sad and skinny looking and I felt sorry for her. I basically spoiled her and turned her into a monster, then i was scared of her, it took my daughter and her friends a lot of work to turn her around. to this day i don't really handle her if i don't have to, she is much better for it.
 
Letting people tell me what to do, and not screaming at the girl who hit my horse with the lunge whip should have left the yard then when it happened.

Not really my fault but injecting my mare as she hates it so much and once caused a hematoma (sp?) on her as she wouldnt let me do the other side for next injection.
 
Having a break for 6 years. I've gone from having a horse on share and having a good knowledge about most aspects of riding and care, to riding lessons where the instructor is the same age as me :o, My position is now dire, and I feel like a complete beginner again.
 
Trying to get to my first RC rally which was just at another yard up the road from ours. And pony and I were still sorting his major napping out. Just through the village and he napped because football match or cricket match on in local playing field. We were causing mayhem to traffic so I hopped off thinking I would/could lead him past. Tried to get back on once we got past and he kept spinning for home so I just couldn't mount. And in the end he started for home with me having to almost run alongside him to hang on to reins to try and control him. I know I must have hurt his mouth as I was hauling on his reins. We got back to yard and I was SO angry more out of how much he'd scared me taking off for home like that on the road - and the risk of him and me possibly being killed by a car...went to take him into school to make him do some work. Thankfully 2 good friends came straight up and said no, you're too angry so one calmed me down and the other got on him and calmly got him to do some work for about 10 mins. I was horrified at myself on reflection as my anger must have really scared him too. The good news is through time and patience we got our napping sorted. But I hated myself that day.
 
When I was about 10, making an arena in my pony's field out of sisal string and sticks/cones. Started schooling, pony's leg touched string. He bolted with string up to top of field, where stable block and tackroom were. I had left the corrugated iron tack room door open. He galloped past it & caught my shin. I must have chipped the bone; it was blue for months and in certain lights now, I can see the dent still there (decades later).

Another time, standing in an open field in front of a group of loose horses. Something spooked them & they ran straight over top of me. No injury at all, luckily!
 
Losing my temper once with foxy when he pinned me against a wall and hitting him with the crop too hard. I know I scared him that day and I don't trust myself to carry anything else than a crop with a fabric hitting bit rather than leather.

Also jumping without a BP and fracturing my ribs
 
Being influenced by others telling my my horse is dagerous/stupid etc and trying to ride him through it rather than getting a vet out and finding out he has kissing spine :(
 
I was 13 and my friend was 19, we doubled up bare back and rode the 16'2 she owned down to the field which were about 3 miles from the stables! Bus passed us the air brakes went off, horse spooked she fell off and the horse stood on her finger and the tip fell off!
 
It has got to be when I bought my lovely horse Rocky, I borrowed a horsebox off of a friend of a friend which turned out to have a rotten floor and my lovely new horse fell through it. Luckily he didn't hurt himself too badly but it involved having him sedated and poking his legs back up through the holes, putting wood underneath it and driving back to the yard where he came from with him still lying down in the back. We managed to get him to his feet and unload him and to my amazement he was fine.

Then it turned out that my friend had taken the lorry from a load of pikeys without asking and then put it back again without telling them.
When they found out what had happened they came to me telling me to pay for a new floor! It was all very messy :(
 
Not knowing better and going XC training on a horse I was going to event for a friend - her saddle had the knee rolls on the outside of the saddle. Horse hit a fence with its forearm and somersaulted over the fence-thanks to the knee rolls I stayed stuck in the saddle, bit right through my lip and actually broke my BP (I know, better BP than me)

listening to someone who persuaded me to change my shoeing (won't say which method) but had hysterics when I saw how butchered my horses feet were - and it took me nearly 3 months to get them right again.

Buying a horse that I hadn't fallen in love with but knew she had the talent to go far. She did, but not with me, we never clicked, I never enjoyed her and she never seemed that "in" to me.

Selling my lorry cheaply because I fell for the con of the guy who came to see it - then found out from the original vendor that that all bollx and they would have bought it back for what I had paid for it.!!
 
Getting off when challenged by a horse, instead of persevering.
And not being confident enough catching a horse that would bolt when you lead it out of the field. He used too move a couple of steps, then spin round and bugger off. And I foolishly would let him get on with it, and get some one else to get him. But at one point I got so fed up with him, I chased him round the field. With head collar and lead rope in each hand, herding him up to the gate, catching him and then dragging him out. Admittedly I lost my temper that day, but it didn't do him any harm. :)
 
Biggest mistake was thinking I could jump in a treeless dressage saddle with dressage length leathers having not jumped my new horse ever, nor jumped for 3 years or longer!!...... now sat here with a broken leg!!! ooops! :rolleyes: :(
 
The usual: losing my temper and listening to people I shouldn't - but also:
When I was a teenager agreed to do evening stables for a colleague, we each had a block so I didn't know the horses in hers that well. I was rushing and went charging in to one stable practically already flinging the rug on. Horse freaked completely, bit me on the shoulder and flung me across the stable. I've still got a scar. I found out later that he'd been beaten in the past by a stable lad, and although he was fine out on the yard he was still iffy in the stable - especially in the evenings.
 
CarmaandFlin said:
Biggest mistake was thinking I could jump in a treeless dressage saddle with dressage length leathers having not jumped my new horse ever, nor jumped for 3 years or longer!!...... now sat here with a broken leg!!! ooops! :rolleyes: :(
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oh eek - done that too! how could I have forgotten? that was the straw that broke my confidence completely - trying to jump my green would be eventer in a straight cut dressage saddle, came off badly over a very large oxer and we both threw the towel in. Took me nearly 4 months of riding other horses/jumping before I got back to the same point.
 
Letting sentiment get the upper hand over common sense.

Laminitic pony suffered horrendously before someone gave me the rollicking of my life, knocked some sense into my selfish little head, and called the kennels in to put the poor creature out of his misery.

I was 16.

It was a very long time ago and shaped the way I think about having horses destroyed to this very day. So, those of you who may think I am harsh, no, I'm not, I just don't allow the heart to rule the head and will not keep a horse in pain.
 
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CarmaandFlin said:
Biggest mistake was thinking I could jump in a treeless dressage saddle with dressage length leathers having not jumped my new horse ever, nor jumped for 3 years or longer!!...... now sat here with a broken leg!!! ooops! :rolleyes: :(
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that sounds like what im goin gto do haha

horse never jumped before - me not jumped for 7 years.... dressage saddle.

fun fun fun!! :D
 
Listening to people who I believed in their methods and for the good of the horse, only to be sadly disappointed about what goes on when no one is watching.

It happened to my lovely homebred lad and never again, I didnt know enough at the time to stand up and shout they were wrong it what they were doing, the final straw came when he was beaten on the lunge with a lunge whip in side reins so much so he went over backwards smashing the school fence, by a "respected" professional.

Even today, people that lecture over what they believe in and you shouldnt do xyz and yet totally go against their beliefs for quick results to the detriment of the horse.
 
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