Why do people get stroppy with there horses? (in an angry way)

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Nicki85

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I don't get it!

Our yard is big and there are all sorts of riders there. Most are lovely people, completly genuine and love their horses.

But recently there is one girl who i have noticed there who is so stroppy with her horse! If it doesn't stand still she jabs it in the mouth/ shouts at it. Her parents stand by and watch... Its a sweet looking ponio bit fidgety and sharp by the looks of it.

Its just odd, why get stroppy and angry? My horse sometimes fidgets and is a pain in the a*** but she's a horse! Sometimes the lack of patience that people have with their animals really gets to me. Its horrible watching a lovely natured horse being shouted at for fidgeting cause shes talking to her parents by the gate.

Does everyone else feel the same? I know everyone can lose their tempers but acting angry and impatient cause your horse is not doing the right thing... surley thats not the right way to go abouts things!

I think i will have a word with my instructor and see what she thinks....
 
I dont condone jabbing him in the mouth but i would probably shout at one of mine if they were fidgeting on the yard.
 
Most of the angry, bad tempered jockeys I've witnessed are pretty inadequate as riders and get aggressive either:
1. because the pony won't do what they are telling it to because they are crap riders or;
2. to cover their inadequacy and, probably, fear

Not big, not clever.

Like AmyMay, I don't think I could keep my mouth shut
 
I hate to see this
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I've told people off before for jabbing their horses in the mouth for no reason - it really winds me up. I find a lot of the time it is due to frustration as they are unable to communicate what they want to the horse, so lose their tempers. Lessons would probably me more helpful than jabbing in the mouth though.
 
I have told people to stop what they're doing while they are in the process of doing something I think is unecceptable (running after a clearly terrified 4 yr old with a hosepipe, trying to spray it's head with water). I usually keep my opinions to myself, so the surprise of me telling them to stop is usually enough, and also most people know when they are doing wrong- and when they know others are aware of it, most tend to come to their senses.
 
Next time she does it you ought to ask her whether the horse understands it is being jabbed in the mouth because it moved, or whether she is just blindly losing her temper- it will certainly embarrass her!!

If she is brazen enough to say "yes the horse understands I'm jabbing it in the mouth for xxx" you should highlight that it isn't a very effective way of teaching because she does alot of jabbing and the horse still fidgets! ... The chances are however she will say "no" and mumble something about not knowing what else to do- be on hand at this point to offer some constructive advice
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[ QUOTE ]
Most of the angry, bad tempered jockeys I've witnessed are pretty inadequate as riders and get aggressive either:
1. because the pony won't do what they are telling it to because they are crap riders or;
2. to cover their inadequacy and, probably, fear



[/ QUOTE ]

I couldn't agree more, that's it in a nutshell.

Maybe offer her some help in handling her horse, that would bring her down a peg or two.
 
People can lose their tempers for a huge variety of reasons. It may be because they are the bullying sort, or it could be because they feel threatened or intimidated by the animal. It could be because they are tired, or emotionally drained, or frustrated. I agree with smacking a horse if it won't do what you repeatedly ask it to do (providing you have taught it to do what you ask previously). This is how it learns. But I hate it when people really take it out of horses when they fall off them for example, or when they stop in a course of jumps. This is because they feel stupid and have been made to look bad by the horse as they perceive it, in front of others. We all lose our tempers at some time or other with our animals/pets but the thing to remember is that if you feel it is becoming a problem on a regular basis then the route of the problem of our anger really needs addressing in order that we are fair to our horses.
 
Jabbing in the mouth is totally unacceptable!! I would have to say something, or if it is a professional yard then the YM should tell her.

It needs to be said.... I would ask her if she would like me to jab HER in the mouth so she can feel how much it hurts the horse. Sorry but that kind of thing makes me bloody mad, her horse is not there as a tool for her to take out her anger on
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A bad workman blames his tools. Parents are watching and the owner is embarrassed by their own incompetence, so takes it out on the horse. Now my parents would have leathered me for being cruel to an animal but sadly, times have changed...
 
I sort of agree... horses are indeed horses and a certain amount of fidgeting is to be expected...

But I am equally annoyed by horses who constantly paw at the ground/walk around on the end of the tie etc when they are just being tied up for a few mins, or keep fidgeting when you are trying to pick out feet etc.
 
We used to have a girl who would stand her horse outside the stable, not tied up, and if he moved a foot she'd smack him and shout at him! Just seemed completely unecessary, and if something had spooked him he would have been GONE.
 
Fear or misunderstanding, usually a combination of both. Sometimes people lose their tempers for some external reason - just having a bad day - but if it's a regular thing it's usually the above.

The difficult part is though that many people do silly/stupid/even cruel things with horses and honestly don't know they're behaving that way or at least don't know any other way to behave. If you ask them they will honestly say they don't lose their temper or hurt their horse or make a bad situation worse, they are "training" or the horse should "know better" or something similar. In such a case it's not usually very productive to just take the person to task, you have to show them how to do it differently and why a more reasonable approach will actually yield better results. Alas, people with anger management issues have, well, trouble managing their anger and making them embarrassed or defensive often makes the situation worse. I'm not saying people shouldn't be taken to task - especially kids who, by definition are still learning to control themselves - but then they need to be given a better, more effective alternative. Just like training horses, offering a positive is much more productive than just punishing for the negative. (Which is exactly what these people are doing in the first place . . . )
 
I hate it, infact I have threathend to put the bit in the offending persons mouth and jab it to see how they like it
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I find it is people who do not know what they are doing and think that pain=discipline, aand also because they are in a rush, I was always told if you cannot take your time then do not even think about rushing anything with a horse.

Also some of the old school think that the beating up of any animal gets results, so if she has seen this it is not her fault, I have seen it a lot, plus much worse
 
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