# Can I teach kids to ride?



## DraftyAiresMum (Jun 1, 2011)

I only know of one certified instructor in my town (doesn't mean there isn't more, I just don't know of them) and she charges a small fortune. My BO gives lessons and she's not certified. I helped give lessons at a Girl Scout horse camp and I'm not certified. Heck, one of the best people I've ever learned from was a lady who gave me lessons for free on her horse because she loved doing it. She wasn't certified, either.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Dustbunny (Oct 22, 2012)

Maybe you could also consider going to their place. That might expand your client pool.
Make sure you have liability coverage!


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## Yogiwick (Sep 30, 2013)

It may depend on location. Where are you?

Not that it's actually enforced but I believe to be an instructor you need certification in MA. Our barn has a few "everything but sent in the paperwork" instructors and they are only allowed to teach when a certified instructor is on the property (one has since been certified and was literally waiting for the paperwork to come in and the other just needs to take the test and only fills in when necessary as she is primarily a trainer).

Depending on the area it will definitely help you though. The test in MA is supposedly be "laughably slam your head into the wall easily obnoxious" and it's primarily the apprentice hours that do it.


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

What does MA stand for?


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

What would liability coverage cost?


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## alexischristina (Jun 30, 2009)

Liability coverage would cost you an arm and a leg, considering you're under 18 and not certified. You'd have to charge a LOT more than $10 a lesson to make up for the cost and unfortunately, without liability coverage you are just putting yourself (your parents, actually) at FAR too much risk should somebody get hurt and decide to sue (even on their own horse, if you are instructing them, you are at risk). If I were you I would try to find an insured instructor to apprentice under, as in many cases their insurance will umbrella over you. And you might just learn a whole lot. :wink:


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## InsomniacsDream (Mar 6, 2014)

At my barn we have waivers people sign just to be on the property and then waivers they must sign to be able to ride our horses. It is part of our insurance and we cannot be sued if a rider is injured (that being said we are still extra cautious with our students). I am not certified but I give lessons and I tell people up front that I can teach beginner to intermediate and even just show people how to care for horses and anything else they want to know. 

The only real trouble you are going to find is your insurance and if you go around saying you are certified ( I know your not) and you can't charge the same price as a certified instructor obviously so less than $20 is a good start. Being honest with potential customers really is the best way to keep them. To show your competent enough to teach their kids maybe show them your riding abilities as an assurance that you know what your doing. 

Hope this helps you in anyway!


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## alexischristina (Jun 30, 2009)

The waivers your barn has are part of their insurance process, unfortunately if you don't have insurance, waivers are NOT going to do you a lot of good, they're a layer of protection but they aren't "really" legally binding in that they'll protect you from a lawyer.

Giving lessons at you barn means you're likely covered under their insurance.


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## RegularJoe (Aug 26, 2014)

InsomniacsDream said:


> ...cannot be sued if a rider is injured


Wavers don't mean you can't be sued, they just mean someone who does is less likely to win. Here in Minnesota, and in many other states in the US, there are laws that protect horse barn owners from liability due to the inherent risk of riding activities. Nevertheless, if someone gets hurt, there's a good chance you'll get sued, and if you do you're going to need a lawyer to defend you, even if it's just to show up in court and wave the statute and a liability waver in front of the judge to get the case dismissed. If you think the farrier and the vet are expensive, wait until you see what lawyers charge. 

That said, liability wavers and even these laws never protect you in the case of negligence. If someone gets hurt, and a lawyer can prove a barn was negligent (by, for example, letting an uncertified juvenile conduct unsupervised lessons on large, dangerous animals), they can collect actual and punitive damages. That's why people carry liability insurance. If they get sued, the insurance company covers the cost of defending the lawsuit and of the settlement if they lose. 

And if you're not working at a barn, but at your home or the student's, then those lawyers are going to go after your parents. If they win, and your parents' homeowner's policy doesn't cover liability for horse lessons - as it almost certainly doesn't - they're going to collect every last nickle you all have in cash or a bank, your college fund, your parents retirement fund, any investments they have, your horses, cars, or anything else of value you all own, including your house and the land it sits on.


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

Ok. I live in a really small town, so there aren't even any certified instructors here, trust me I've looked. There aren't any riding barns or stables here either, but the rodeo arena is open for public use, so I was planning on just doing it there. Doing it at the clients house is a good idea too. I may have to find something else to do. I really need a job and I'm not all that good at anything outside of horses, so my options are really limited.


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## alexischristina (Jun 30, 2009)

Many public facilities won't let uninsured "instructors" teach on their property, and many charge a fee if you are going to be making a profit using their facility. 

Honestly, I think you need to find a different job. After counting gass, insurance, etc. $10/hr for something that's going to be inconsistent at best, you'll end up LOSING money. You'd be better off getting a job at McDonalds (or another similar fast food joint). More money, more reliable, might not be fun but hey thats life. Then you'll be able to enjoy horses as your HOBBY and not worry about making a profit off of it.


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## BugZapper89 (Jun 30, 2014)

Your parents would need to carry the liability insurance , since you are under age. No sane adult would want to do that, as it. Would be very expensive and just plain asking for trouble You can flip burgers for 10 dollars an hour by me


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## beverleyy (Oct 26, 2011)

I think it would really depend on location and what your area requires as far as insurance goes. Around here (now I'm not 100% positive on this) there is the certification program, but also insurance that essentially anyone could get instead of an actual certification. 

I live in an area with big hunter/jumper barns, international riders and coaches, etc etc. That being said, there seems to be an abundance of really awful coaches who ARE certified. The best coach I have ever known was not certified in any way, yet had years more experience and in higher levels. She frequented the A/AA circuits in hunters, regularily winning in the 3'6" ring, and also did some 4' stuff down in the states. Not only did her experience level appeal to me, but also the fact that she cared so much for the horse and was actually a GOOD rider who didn't need to use gadgets all the time to cover up training flaws (unlike a lot of the certified coaches in my area).

The only problem with not being certified in my area seems to be that a good chunk of people will not care to use an uncertified coach, and also a lot of barns do not wish to have an uncertified coach on property as it could be a liability to their own insurance.


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

Ok I appreciate the advice. I would be fine with getting a job at a fast food restaurant, but the thing is, there is Subway and Taco John's here and that's it. It's really that small.  I don't think they hire under 18 anyway. I already lost one job about a year ago at a pizza place because I was too quiet. Go figure another quiet horse person.  I wish I could a job mucking stalls or something, but like I said there are no barns here. Good grief there's literally nothing here lol. Oh well, I guess I will find something eventually.


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## RegularJoe (Aug 26, 2014)

FaithFamilyHorses34 said:


> there are no barns here.


There may not be barns that take in boarders, but I bet there are farms, and farms always have work to do. Surely someone has poop to scoop, lawns to mow, or babies to sit.


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## alexischristina (Jun 30, 2009)

Where there's a will there's a way. I've experienced small towns, I know people from TINY towns and it was not impossible for any of them to get jobs. Hand your resume in everywhere, even if they don't have a 'hiring' posting, grocery stores, butchers, drug stores, restaurants, fast food joints, coffee shops. There's usually more available than you realize.


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

RegularJoe said:


> There may not be barns that take in boarders, but I bet there are farms, and farms always have work to do. Surely someone has poop to scoop, lawns to mow, or babies to sit.


I'm terrible with kids, but I'd definitely go for the poop scooping :lol: I will certainly be keeping my eyes open for such opportunities.


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## Eolith (Sep 30, 2007)

FaithFamilyHorses34 said:


> I'm terrible with kids, but I'd definitely go for the poop scooping :lol: I will certainly be keeping my eyes open for such opportunities.


If babysitting isn't up your alley, then giving lessons may not be the best course of action. Honestly, teaching a kid to ride shares a lot of common ground with babysitting. You need to keep the kid engaged, make sure that they understand the importance of listening, and be ready to negotiate behavioral issues (lack of attention, impatience, etc). 

Babysitting really isn't my thing, either. :lol:


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## xJumperx (Feb 19, 2012)

I'm going to second what Eolith said. You have to be good with kids if you're planning to teach kids 

But if you said teaching kids at summer horse camp was a great experience that worked out well for everyone, then you've already proven that you're better with kids than you think!


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## Cielo Notturno (Sep 12, 2013)

Underage + underage + horses = bad bad bad. 

Even if you are the most wonderful instructor, there are so many wild cards. 

Summer camps care to get the most bombproof horses that they can find. You'd be teaching with the horses they have; they could be saints, they could be hot and difficult to handle, or just too much for the child, and most important thing: you don't know them. You don't know if lazy bay pony who doesn't even want to walk, starts bucking if you try to make him move with a whip. You don't know if apparently calm little horsie is perfect, but has the nasty habit to rear when he doesn't feel like doing something. You'd be teaching kids without knowing a thing about their horses. 

Then, it is a public arena. So you can potentially have noisy children running and screaming outside of it, motorcycles passing by at full speed, and who knows what else. A lot of things that might distract or scare the horse. 

Scary thing that came to mind, it really happened in front of my eyes: 
Good barn, certified instructor and all. A lot of people around, 5/6 horses doing different things in the arena, people watching the horses from outside. Kid on big pony, kid is not a beginner rider, and he is galloping near the fence. Toddler manages somehow to go inside the arena, and kid on pony runs right over him. I don't know if he didn't see the toddler, or if he didn't realize he should have changed direction, or what. Thanks to some miracle, the toddler was bruised but not seriously harmed. If something worse had happened, it would have been a nightmare of sueing and insurance troubles for the instructor.


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## AnrewPL (Jun 3, 2012)

Were I you, I would steer clear of the whole idea. without some form of qualification and insurance you are leaving yourself, or your parents, vulnerable to wreck and ruin if something goes wrong. 

Think of it this way: if you are teaching some kid to canter their horse and the kid falls off and gets hurt, even if you did nothing wrong, even if the kid did everything wrong, that kids parents will come after you every way they can. If you don't have insurance you are up for a lot of money, could creep into the millions if the kid had a broken neck. If you have no insurance, are your parents able to fork out millions in medical costs for a broken necked kid? 

So what can you do? Get insurance of course. BUT, I highly doubt any insurance company, except the dodgy ones based in Nigeria or the Kaman Islands (which will never pay out anyway), will cover you if you don't have qualifications. 

If you want to teach people to ride, and it seems there might be a niche there for you, go and see what it will take to get it all done above board in a way that protects you as a business, see what it takes to get insurance, set up a business etc.


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## FaithFamilyHorses34 (Mar 4, 2014)

Ok  I am going to an equestrian college where I will become qualified, but that is in two years so I was just wondering if there was a way to start early. I guess it is worth the wait.


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## AnrewPL (Jun 3, 2012)

Well, the thing is, you probably could do it early, but the costs of a mistake could ruin your life, so it just wouldn't be worth the risk of doing it early. 

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm in the process of starting my own business in which I will teach people, kids down to maybe 14 years old, and in an activity, though quite safe, always has the inherent risk of injury. I have been teaching this stuff for 14 years, for someone else, and have decided its time to do it for myself.

In this thing, there have been people sued, for up to and into the tens of millions of dollars, mainly where people have been turned into quadriplegics (ironically if someone is killed its cheaper than debilitating injuries). In order for me to be covered for something like that I have to have insurance, for me to get insurance I have to be accredited, for me to be accredited I need to be qualified. 

I have been qualified for years, my accreditation lapsed wile I was living in another country so I have had to get it renewed, now I'm in the process of joining the relevant associations in order to get the good insurance, after all of that I can start for myself. Until then, I could still do it, but if something goes wrong, if someone gets hurt, then I am entirely libel for damages. And I don't have a few million lying around.

Its been a full year so far of preparation, and I'm still not there yet, but the way I see it, its better to do it right the first time round because the consequences of rushing in and getting it wrong are too great. 

If teaching kids how to ride a horse is something you really want to do, and if there is a decent prospect of you being successful at it, go for it. But do it right the first time, Find out what you need to do, how to do it, and if the price of doing it is worth the rewards you will get, and you are willing to pay the price, effort, time, a bit of hard work and possibly sacrifice on your part. Then go for it. but do it right the first time.


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## SummerShy (Aug 3, 2014)

If you want to start it early aren't there close friends or family members you could practice your teaching on? Maybe even somebody who doesn't need lessons but will still guinea pig for you? Take notes, start a blog or something, and document the progress you make in your journey. That's what I do 

I'm envious btw. I wish I could go to equestrian college.


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## RegularJoe (Aug 26, 2014)

AnrewPL said:


> ...that kids parents will come after you every way they can.


Even if the parents don't, their insurance company might.


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