mle22
Well-Known Member
Thanks to the last two posters for talking sense
I'm very glad you don't know many horses that feel the need to protect themselves like this. The horse was defensive not aggressive, he was running away and kicking out as he went not turning on her and attacking her. Horses don't lie and he was expecting a beating - whether that is due to the rider herself or a past experience.
I'm afraid I do to a certain extent. Horses are not toys, they are big and powerful and you shouldn't be in charge of one if you haven't the sense to stop and either get off or calm down if you are losing your temper. I'm not just referring to after the fall, she was already obviously furious and at loggerheads with the horse before then. It is no different IMO than driving a car or motorbike when very angry, which often has the same serious repercussions. I say "to a certain extent" because I'm not sure her age so it may be the parents, horse's owner, riding instructor etc who is at fault for letting her ride unsupervised or without sufficient understanding, or even allowing her to think getting angry with the horse like this is okay (I have known one RI who seemed to almost encourage it).
Horses should not kick people, any more than they should bite, barge, strike or otherwise act aggressively. I have dealt with several abused horses and none of them have ever attempted to kick.
Watched this vid a few times and still stand by that you reap what you sow. Made my non-horsey OH watch vid and he thought the horse was scared of being hit again.
Wisdom oft come from the mouth of babes.
I am actually very surprised of many of the replies as well. 'I would not expect/tolerate/train' etc a horse that kicked out at a human, no matter the perceived threat, no matter the situation.
I fail to understand the line of human tolerance to equine instinct.
If one horse crossed the line with another and didn't listen to obvious 'don't attack me' warnings and then 'defender' had to boot it to get the point across, what's the difference?
Do posters believe that when around humans, horses must lose their natural instincts just to conform to our ideal?
I don't need to see anything longer than this clip to see why this horse reacted the way it did. Pride often comes before a fall. The vid shows wounded pride and the possible consequence of that human emotion. The horse only reacted with instinct.
If I was that rider and put myself in that situation, reacted the same way and got kicked, I'd blame myself.
when she gets up and runs towards it - i was thinking ive probably done the same a load of times i've fallen off in a field. often your adrenaline or shock from the fall doesn't have you thinking straight and often my first instinct would be to get to the horse quickly and get the reins so it can't run off onto road etc. Once i get up my first instinct is usually to get the horse safe. I never in a million years would even consider that a 'normal' horse might do this.
If one horse crossed the line with another and didn't listen to obvious 'don't attack me' warnings and then 'defender' had to boot it to get the point across, what's the difference?
Do posters believe that when around humans, horses must lose their natural instincts just to conform to our ideal?
The vid shows wounded pride and the possible consequence of that human emotion. The horse only reacted with instinct.
If I was that rider and put myself in that situation, reacted the same way and got kicked, I'd blame myself.
Watched this vid a few times and still stand by that you reap what you sow. Made my non-horsey OH watch vid and he thought the horse was scared of being hit again.
Wisdom oft come from the mouth of babes.
I am actually very surprised of many of the replies as well. 'I would not expect/tolerate/train' etc a horse that kicked out at a human, no matter the perceived threat, no matter the situation.
I fail to understand the line of human tolerance to equine instinct.
If one horse crossed the line with another and didn't listen to obvious 'don't attack me' warnings and then 'defender' had to boot it to get the point across, what's the difference?
Do posters believe that when around humans, horses must lose their natural instincts just to conform to our ideal?
I don't need to see anything longer than this clip to see why this horse reacted the way it did. Pride often comes before a fall. The vid shows wounded pride and the possible consequence of that human emotion. The horse only reacted with instinct.
If I was that rider and put myself in that situation, reacted the same way and got kicked, I'd blame myself.
That's interesting. My first thought on seeing the broncing was that the horse was reacting to a pinching saddle or similar.I have read that this horse had had a back operation and the girl in question had been told not to ride it. I don't know if this is true or not, but would explain the broncking and initial tail swishing.
I have read that this horse had had a back operation and the girl in question had been told not to ride it. I don't know if this is true or not, but would explain the broncking and initial tail swishing.
(!!!!Don't read this paragraph if you don't like graphically hearing about injuries!!!!) My friend used to work at a racing stable when she was 16 and was putting a youngster into the walker and was reaching down to close the gate behind him and somehow got double barreled straight in the face. Totally accidental, not aggressive on the horse's part at all, just a slip of judgement I guess. It was truly AWFUL, all her front teeth were knocked up into her nasal cavity and it took a great deal of reconstructive surgery and metal plates to put her face back together. Her cheek and lip were torn into a flap by the shoes and her nasal bones were pushed up towards her brain - VERY lucky to be alive. She was so beautiful before. She's 23 now and still has a massive scar across her lip and chin - she's still beautiful, but she looks like a completely different person, it's totally changed her face. It has a massive psychological impact on her also. So, I can't possibly say the girl in this video "deserved it". She certainly was acting very stupidly and nastily whatever the circumstances, and really, I think she should have expected some sort of unpleasant reaction in response to her own unpleasant reaction - but especially after seeing this kind of injury first hand, there is no way she "deserved" this kind of trauma. Good lord.
A nasty business all round. I have taken to wearing my skull cap to turn out and bring in my youngster and will keep wearing it.
The horse reacted the way a horse should in the given situation. Nobody is 'judging' her and hell, nobody deserves a broken face! BUT, what else did she expect chasing upto the horse like that. I don't know a horse that wouldn't of kicked out.