# Is it okay to get after people who don't groom properly?



## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

Hello! I'm a working student/groom at my barn and I'm getting fed up with my instructor's students, even though I do my very best to avoid them entirely. I was lunging my horse in the indoor arena when a lesson kid came in with her horse. I went over to ask if she needed the arena to be empty, and some how ended up talking about the lesson horse. She then told me "Oh, I didn't groom her before I saddled her because she looked clean when I took her out of the pasture". I wanted to tell her to unsaddle and brush her horse, but it wasn't my place so I just told her that she must groom before she tacks up or she could give her horse saddle sores. She told me that it was too much trouble and went on with her lesson. I left the arena and went into the barn, to find a working student brushing my instructor's pony's face with a metal curry comb. While I was timid, I politely asked her to stop. Mind you, this girl has her own horse that she has had for over a year, and has taken a great deal of lessons at my barn, so she has no excuse to be so ignorant. I have started to notice that none of the lesson kids know the names of basic grooming tools, nor how to use them properly, while they have been told countless times by my instructor. Is it okay for me to get after them when they do something harmful with their grooming or lack of grooming?


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## SEAmom (Jan 8, 2011)

Speak with their instructor. If they aren't doing anything dangerous, then it isn't really your place unless the instructor gives you permission.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

I'm not sure what you mean by 'lesson kid' but I have never worked or ridden anywhere where people that paid to have lessons were expected or in most cases allowed to groom the horses - that was a job done by the people who worked there either working students or general staff.
That's something you'd need to discuss with the Barn Manager
The metal curry comb thing - that's something I would have spoken up about there and then - not something you want around a horses face & eyes especially
The other 'holes' you're seeing - why not mention it to the manager and suggest a few training classes and a demonstration, perhaps with the barn giving out their own certificates on completion
In the UK they now have Riding Schools Tests which cover Stable management and can be a great way for prospective horse owners to learn in advance so it might be a way for your barn to help people get more knowledge and make some cash at the same time
Test Materials


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## cakemom (Jul 4, 2010)

We occasionally have "grooming clinics" where the students are "reminded". We are such an integral part of the barn where Sarah lessons that she helps now with camp and things and watches over the younger Students. Students are made to catch groom tack untack cool down etx- horse care is as or more important as riding.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

The instructors I have had the the ones here expect you to be able to go get your horse as well as groom and tack. It is part of what you are paying for here and the length of the lesson allows for it. It's part of what you'd need if you ever own or lease in most cases so it makes sense.


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## Incitatus32 (Jan 5, 2013)

I'd simply talk with the instructor. Kindly let her know what you're seeing and then leave it at that. Now do speak up if you see something dangerous (like the metal curry) to the horse and rider, but aside from that leave it to the discreation of the 'adults'. 

(On an off topic note, I've never.... NEVER been at a place where the horse was groomed for me. If we did get someone to groom for us my instructor would make us muck all 60 stalls of the barn by ourselves, and then groom all the horses purely for our benefit. Needless to say when I teach I make my clients groom.)


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## Chasin Ponies (Dec 25, 2013)

Around here it's common to have the lesson students do a quick, decent grooming and then tack up but only under supervison of the instructor. The instructor in your situation is to blame and is obviously too lazy to teach grooming or supervise.
I do agree with everyone else, in that except for the metal curry comb issue, it "really isn't your place" as you say, to say anything even though it bothers you. To keep your job safe and not come off as too nosy or bossy you probably better learn to ignore it.:?


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

Definitely let your instructor know. 

The girl who is using a lesson horse (at least, that's what it sounded like with the first scenario?) absolutely needs to groom the horse properly. I'd be ****ed if I were an instructor and my horses weren't being properly groomed before a ride. 

As for the curry on the face.. It's dangerous and no bueno, but I'm honestly not sure I'd say anything. It's her horse...


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## BlueSpark (Feb 22, 2012)

whats with people these days? I know someone who had their horse out for training in an English discipline this spring, just as they were starting to shed. The trainer never brushed the horse!!! I went out and it had huge mats of hair where the cinch would go that had never been brushed out, and the horse was being jumped and schooled like that! The trainer was ticked off when the horse, that had never bucked before, started bucking regularly. I wonder why??

back to the op, only your instructor can really fix this, so unless it is something obviously harmful, like the metal curry to the face, you should talk to the instructor and leave it to them.


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## Elsa (Jun 20, 2014)

I absolutely expect my working students to speak up when they see something dangerous or harmful happening but nitpicking about or arguing with clients is not permitted, they can bring up issues with clients at the morning meetings and if it is needed I will handle it. It sounds like you are not sure where you stand and I think you should have a sit down with whoever runs the working student program and find out what is expected of you. 

I do have one question, you say you were hired as a working student/groom and this other working student was also grooming? Why would the barn owner have multiple working student grooms on hand on the same day but not have either of you doing the job? Sounds like a communication breakdown IMO, or a really bad/unstructured working student program. Often in the horse industry "working student" is code for unpaid labor.


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## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

Thank you! Yeah, I though that it wasn't my place to be correcting them, so I won't do that anymore unless it's something dangerous.  The lesson kids at my barn are required to groom and tack up their lesson horses under supervision, but if you've been taking lessons for a year or so you are allowed to do it it alone if you ask. But, it seems that most of them either don't know how to groom and tack up properly or they just don't care if they brush their horse well. I talked to my instructor about this, and she said that she'll oversee the grooming of the lesson horses instead of just taking the lesson's kids word that they groomed properly. A grooming clinic sounds like an awesome idea! I'm going to ask my instructor if she'd be willing to do one sometime.


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## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

Elsa said:


> I do have one question, you say you were hired as a working student/groom and this other working student was also grooming? Why would the barn owner have multiple working student grooms on hand on the same day but not have either of you doing the job? Sounds like a communication breakdown IMO, or a really bad/unstructured working student program. Often in the horse industry "working student" is code for unpaid labor.


She was not supposed to be grooming, the instructor had asked her to turn out the pony but she was instead grooming her. (with a metal curry, to make it worse). I had finished grooming the horses I had been assigned to and was spending time with my horse after I checked in with my instructor,and she had told me to go check on this girl to make sure she was doing what she had been asked to do (she wasn't, of course). I have been working at this barn for about five years, but I only moved my horse there recently (due to moving houses, this barn was closer that the others I used to board at). She's new, and my instructor is giving her a chance to work in exchange for lessons, since she had been taking lessons for the past year and bought a horse from my instructor. I still consider her a lesson kid because she doesn't take her job seriously, but I think that that is now the case since my instructor did not ask her to come back to the barn next week. Sorry for the long explanation, but that's the scenario.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

If someone, adult or child, books a lesson then that is what they get. I would never expect them to catch, groom or tack up their mount. 
If they turn up early and want to learn then I will show them. 

I would not expect to have to do the work if I was paying for a lesson - especially if it cut short the time I was expecting to have in the lesson.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

I totally agree Foxhunter - I certainly wouldn't be paying money for a lesson and then find I was expected to groom the horse I was riding when I turned up - that's like being unpaid labour!!! 
Its the staff and students (if a place has them) that are paid to do the grooming and all the other stable duties - or else what are they there to do?
I think stable management clinics are a great idea and if the yards insurance allows for it working in return for rides is good but lessons cost too much money to expect people to work as well


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## Larissa (Jan 25, 2014)

I see it very often here. Everybody that got lessons at a barn I went to prev that I left for some reason, had to groom, and tack the horse. Cool out after, untack, and groom again along with turning out or putting back in a stall. It seems to be rather common honestly, at least from the barn I have been around.


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## Larissa (Jan 25, 2014)

barns* not barn


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## SEAmom (Jan 8, 2011)

I've never seen a lesson barn in this area where you weren't expected to get your horse ready as part of the lesson program.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BugZapper89 (Jun 30, 2014)

This is the instructors job to deal with. In my area the quality barns have staff which clean and saddle both the lesson horses and the clients if
They wish. The client calls when they are in their way and the horse is ready then hands it back when they are done to be cooled out and cleaned up.


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

I probably shouldn't be commenting on this topic as I've never had a lesson, much less been to a lesson barn. But, where I come from grooming is a huge part of the care of a horse, which in turn is part of learning to ride. Grooming is a tremendous bonding moment, a lesson in anatomy and a lesson in self discipline. I've come home from rides in the desert that I had actually gotten lost and could seriously have lost a horse, my dog and myself. BUT, when I did find my way back, my first order of business was to make my animals comfortable and see to their needs. That included, cooling them off, watch how much they drank, etc. Finally I could go in and cool myself off.

What is the point of taking lessons if not to learn the whole enchilada?

IMO you could talk with your manager and explain your concerns. Find out where you stand and what your boundaries are. Perhaps just voicing your concern might be enough to see that the manager takes it more seriously.

Or perhaps not. Life is full of jobs where we have to learn to "suck it up" and ignore bad behavior.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

When I was running riding schools the lessons were mainly group lessons/rides and as there were four lessons a day the horses were often required from one lesson to the next so they were already tacked. 

Those that wanted to learn more spent the day at the stables. The end of each session morning and afternoon, the riders untacked. 

We had a big boarding school ride with us. The girls were driven to the stables and only had 75 minutes from being collected to being returned so, if they had to catch, and many of the fields were a good mile away and they were on steep hills, by the time the first ride had caught the ponies and got to the stables, they would be late for their next lesson!
During the summer it was mainly tourists and they never had a clue so better to do it for them.

As for caring for the animals we, that wanted to learn all we could, were always taught to see to them first.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

I would say something about a metal curry on a face, the horse could move and get a metal curry into the eye . which then would be abuse. 
I would have stated , oh thats only to get off mud, use this brush. Thank you.
ANd then go tell the owner or instructor . Even better, go get the metal curry and hide it. or put it up High so it cannot be reached by the kids.


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

The timing in that situation actually makes sense. Thanks for clearing up that confusion for me.


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## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

It is an option at my barn to have your lesson horse groomed and tacked up for you, but all of the parents always request that their kids (or rather teenagers) be required to get their lesson horses ready since they plan on buying a horse for them in the future, or they want them to get better at caring for their own horses. And I asked my trainer about the grooming clinic, and she agreed to do it sometime next week, so hopefully the lesson kids will have a bit more know-how from now on. It'll also be a good refresher course for me.


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

Good job Horsealot. A step in the right direction.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

The clinic would be a great idea - 
When I worked in riding schools supervising dozens of inexperienced people while they groomed etc would have been a logistical nightmare - just not enough staff to do it


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## MouseZ (Aug 16, 2011)

Grooming, tacking up and down is a big part of my lessons at the stable I ride at. I haven't been taught how to catch a horse yet but maybe that will come in time 

I don't mind the work, I think it's important to not just "show up and ride." Shows you a fraction of what owning a horse entails. Without it, especially for younger people, it easily turns into "HORSES ARE FUN I WANT ONE NOW." Then you get people really not suitable for horse ownership neglecting their mounts or learning the hard way the time commitment they can be.


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## DocsPocoSanBar (Jul 22, 2014)

At all the barns I know, and have ridden/taken lessons at - grooming at tacking up was your own responsibility. On my very first lesson I was taught how to catch, groom & tack up. Of course it took me a few times with some help from the other barn girls.. Then we would head into the arena and our instructor would check our groom job and tack. If grooming wasn't up to par we were sent back out and she of course would tell us how to fix our tack if it was done incorrectly. IMO I think that is a huge part of learning how to ride. I am not even sure if I know a place around here that tacks up for their students, and they just show up and ride...

Anyways, I definitely would talk to your barn manager/trainer about these other girls. I know myself I wouldn't feel comfortable talking to them - unless it was imperative to the horses safety.


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Personally, if I were to go take lessons, I'd expect a full hour of instructed riding. I might show up 10 minutes early to brush and tack, but I'm not paying to be supervised while I brush and tack up a horse. I learned that 8-9 years ago and I'm definitely not paying to be supervised while I do it, and I sure don't need instructed. If I go take a lesson, I'd rather the horse be ready for me to just jump on and have my lesson. I still need time to go to the barn and do my own horse and take her out for a ride. I groom and tack too often to be bothered with it while I'm paying someone to instruct me while riding a new discipline or such.

I also use a metal curry on my mare's face..She likes to cake her face in mud. It'd take me all day to get it off with a soft brush. Granted, if she didn't have mud caked on I'd just use a normal brush...
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BarrelracingArabian (Mar 31, 2010)

ive never been to a barn where you weren't expected to atleast assist in the catching/grooming and tacking. That was all included in our lessons at my old barn plus the kids loved helping anyways and its a very important thing to know. Why take lessons if you aren't going to be taught the basics of how to groom/tack and untack.

ETA- of course if you are just brushing up on skills that is different however you alwas got your full half hour/hour of riding either way


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## Paintedponies1992 (Nov 17, 2013)

I would never want to take lessons at a barn where I wasn't required to catch, groom and tack up my own horse. My first lesson I had to not only catch the horse, groom and tack up, but afterwards I had to clean out her stall before putting her away. And believe it or not, I liked doing those things. It also prepared me for when I got my first horse.


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## MaximasMommy (Sep 21, 2013)

Ummm I kind of feel dumb asking, but since you were talking about faces. I rub my horse's face gently with his cactus cloth to kind of curry off the shedding fur and I'll lightly brush it with his finishing brush too. Is that right? I also have this rubber glove thing with soft nubs on it that my instructor said was good for faces and legs, but the cactus cloth seems to work better than just about anything in my grooming box.


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## MouseZ (Aug 16, 2011)

Iseul said:


> Personally, if I were to go take lessons, I'd expect a full hour of instructed riding. I might show up 10 minutes early to brush and tack, but I'm not paying to be supervised while I brush and tack up a horse. I learned that 8-9 years ago and I'm definitely not paying to be supervised while I do it, and I sure don't need instructed. If I go take a lesson, I'd rather the horse be ready for me to just jump on and have my lesson. I still need time to go to the barn and do my own horse and take her out for a ride. I groom and tack too often to be bothered with it while I'm paying someone to instruct me while riding a new discipline or such.
> 
> I also use a metal curry on my mare's face..She likes to cake her face in mud. It'd take me all day to get it off with a soft brush. Granted, if she didn't have mud caked on I'd just use a normal brush...
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


I show up a half hour early to groom and tack before my lesson. If I show up late that's my own fault and it eats into my lesson time. I don't mind though, I am very much into learning all aspects. 

I'm starting new, not brushing up old skills though so I can see where you want your full hour.


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## NBEventer (Sep 15, 2012)

Foxhunter said:


> If someone, adult or child, books a lesson then that is what they get. I would never expect them to catch, groom or tack up their mount.
> If they turn up early and want to learn then I will show them.
> 
> I would not expect to have to do the work if I was paying for a lesson - especially if it cut short the time I was expecting to have in the lesson.


It is interesting to see someone say this(I haven't finished reading the thread but wanted to chime in on this)

I have worked at/managed barns all across Canada that have lesson programs, and even the most posh stables the students were required to groom and tack up their assigned lesson horses. It was considered part of the lesson. You arrive half an hour before your lesson to groom and tack up, ride in your hour lesson then after you un-tack and groom and put the horse away. 

A few of the barns even required lesson students to do chores before and/or after lessons like feeding supper, filling water buckets, bringing in horses etc...


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## Aesthetic (Aug 7, 2012)

Often at a barrel race I see close friends who have horses get injured. Well I never run in the series to get anything, I just go to get my horses worked and refreshed!

Anyways... I let close friends practice with me and my mare if they'd like to use her! I am VERY picky on who I let run her.

Now I am no lesson place, but if you're going to use my horse, ride, compete what ever it is, I expect you to groom and prepare her.

If someone didn't properly groom her, I would be FURIOUS. Especially metal curry to the face?! There's a reason face brushes are so soft...their faces are SENSITIVE!!!


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## Saranda (Apr 14, 2011)

As I'm an adult, I would have politely spoken directly to the kids, explaining how important is correct grooming in hope that they would correct the problem, and then I would tell their instructor about it. I feel that horsepeople should be less conflict-avoiding when it comes to horse welfare, but avoiding jumping to conclusions is important as well, of course.

At my first lesson barn, I always got my horse ready and tacked up for me. The most I had to do was to tighten the girth. I had to ask to become a working student to get grooming lessons and to start grooming and tacking up horses daily. I don't think it's the best practice, as I've seen plenty of horse owners who have jumped into horse ownership straight from their lesson barns, and, although they have more or less good riding skills, they know close to nothing about horse care and grooming.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

I'm wondering if its one of those differences between the US, Canada & some European countries?
Foxhunters riding school sounds typical of most UK riding schools where you can have a minimum of 10 people in a each group lesson and we typically had 2 group lessons running side by side plus a small group of beginners and some private one on one lessons - there could be more than that per group if it was a hack. The horses are already in the stables/stalls, fed, groomed and tacked up in when the clients arrive. We used to do 2 x 1 hour sessions in the morning when the horses would be handed straight over to the next group of riders between rides, the horses would then get untacked and a break with hay at lunch time and then do either 2 or 3 x 1 hour sessions in the afternoon.
The only people who did any handling were the staff or the work in return for rides kids.
So saying I've had lessons at two places here and was never expected to groom or tack up. At the one place we were asked if we would untack the horses which we did - but when I'm paying $45 to $50 for a half hour private lesson I don't expect to work as well!!!


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## MouseZ (Aug 16, 2011)

jaydee said:


> I'm wondering if its one of those differences between the US, Canada & some European countries?
> Foxhunters riding school sounds typical of most UK riding schools where you can have a minimum of 10 people in a each group lesson and we typically had 2 group lessons running side by side plus a small group of beginners and some private one on one lessons - there could be more than that per group if it was a hack. The horses are already in the stables/stalls, fed, groomed and tacked up in when the clients arrive. We used to do 2 x 1 hour sessions in the morning when the horses would be handed straight over to the next group of riders between rides, the horses would then get untacked and a break with hay at lunch time and then do either 2 or 3 x 1 hour sessions in the afternoon.
> The only people who did any handling were the staff or the work in return for rides kids.
> So saying I've had lessons at two places here and was never expected to groom or tack up. At the one place we were asked if we would untack the horses which we did - but when I'm paying $45 to $50 for a half hour private lesson I don't expect to work as well!!!


Maybe it is a cultural thing, I never thought about that being a possibilty. I pay $25 for a lesson and when I arrive before grooming and tacking I always ask the BO/trainer if she needs any help with anything (last time I went she was chopping wood hehe). 

For me it's about becoming part of the team and community, not just showing up riding and leaving. I'm from the city and green as they come, also from my career background I have a mentality of "proving" myself. Parents also always raised me to help regardless of situation, especially if the person is older than me, it's expected (I'm half Lebanese, half Italian so elder respect is up there lol!).


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## Paintedponies1992 (Nov 17, 2013)

> Maybe it is a cultural thing, I never thought about that being a possibilty. I pay $25 for a lesson and when I arrive before grooming and tacking I always ask the BO/trainer if she needs any help with anything (last time I went she was chopping wood hehe).
> 
> For me it's about becoming part of the team and community, not just showing up riding and leaving. I'm from the city and green as they come, also from my career background I have a mentality of "proving" myself. Parents also always raised me to help regardless of situation, especially if the person is older than me, it's expected (I'm half Lebanese, half Italian so elder respect is up there lol!).


I did the same thing when I started to ride, I always asked if she needed any horses brought in or if she wanted me to brush one of the horses on stall rest to give it a little TLC. And even now where I board I always do stuff for the owner, like clean/oil tack, help move the fields around, supervise their granddaughter while she rides and other things even helped collect and stack square bales last summer.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

It sounds as if how much you pay also factors into it - the more you pay the less inclined you are to want to help out with chores
Age and experience too I'm sure. I sometimes have lessons in the winter when my own horses get rested because I don't have an indoor and riding outside in snow and ice has no appeal for me these days so I go to a local place if I feel I should try to keep riding fit but I have no need to be told how to groom, blanket or muck out and don't have the time either with my own to get back too to do all that stuff with with


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## MinervaELS (Mar 4, 2014)

jaydee said:


> I'm wondering if its one of those differences between the US, Canada & some European countries?
> Foxhunters riding school sounds typical of most UK riding schools where you can have a minimum of 10 people in a each group lesson and we typically had 2 group lessons running side by side plus a small group of beginners and some private one on one lessons - there could be more than that per group if it was a hack. The horses are already in the stables/stalls, fed, groomed and tacked up in when the clients arrive. We used to do 2 x 1 hour sessions in the morning when the horses would be handed straight over to the next group of riders between rides, the horses would then get untacked and a break with hay at lunch time and then do either 2 or 3 x 1 hour sessions in the afternoon.
> The only people who did any handling were the staff or the work in return for rides kids.
> So saying I've had lessons at two places here and was never expected to groom or tack up. At the one place we were asked if we would untack the horses which we did - but when I'm paying $45 to $50 for a half hour private lesson I don't expect to work as well!!!


Definitely. In the US grooming and tacking up are required pretty much everywhere. Usually they will specify whether you need to arrive early or whether you can come at your appointed time and the lesson will start whenever you get on the horse. 

That said, I have never seen what you are describing in the US; large barns that churn out lessons and have an entire staff that does nothing but care for the horses. I think there are facilities like this in the Eastern US but in California I have never come across a place like that. Then again, I've never come across group lessons here either. Here group lessons for kids are called camps and the kids are also expected to help muck, turn out, and clean tack in addition to grooming and tacking. Often they are also fed lunch. Everything else is private, and I've never heard of an adult in a group lesson.

It's interesting how much things vary depending in where you go!


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

Horsealot said:


> I have started to notice that none of the lesson kids know the names of basic grooming tools, nor how to use them properly, while they have been told countless times by my instructor.


How are lessons done at the place you work? You did say, here, they had been told by the instructor. Is that it, just told? Obviously something more is very much needed. A grooming clinic would be a great start.
Many people need something to be demonstrated (at least).
How can the instructor expect a student do care for a horse unless they have been instructed on how? The girl at the beginning of this post seemed to have been expected to know, to get the lesson horse herself. I shouldn't have left that part out.


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## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

They have been shown and told how to groom and handle the horses many, many times, but when they do it they seem to forget everything. I think that they might be ignoring my instructor as they feel that grooming isn't fun or important. Sometimes, one of the lesson kids will ask me to help them with something (for example, picking out the hooves, lifting a saddle onto the horse's back, or bridling) but instead of asking how they are to do it they tell me to do it for them. I believe that it may just be a case of laziness on their part. They do know how to do what is asked of them, they just seem to not want to.


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## Elsa (Jun 20, 2014)

jaydee said:


> I'm wondering if its one of those differences between the US, Canada & some European countries?


I think it is less that and more the level of riding and discipline the barn is servicing, location, age ranges you are marketing toward, also the amount of staff on hand and the barns facilities. It's more common to see with show barns and places that cater to clients of a higher socioeconomic status but is not limited to that. I volunteered at a Theraputic Riding center that did not allow people to tack or groom (dozens of volunteers that had to have something to do). 

I do think one person sort of nailed it with the idea that it is more popular on the East Coast. But it is less the location and more the proximity to areas of interest for higher levels of competition and wealthy population hotspots (ie, NYC&NJ, DC&VA). New England, central east coast, and Florida are littered with posh high end Hunter Jumper show barns because of their proximity to high end competitions, Kentucky has the Gaited horse barns and tons of Eventing oriented barns, the Carolinas are an Eventing hot spot. And I think that is the link she was looking for with that comment, barns that cater toward higher end clients, whether that means wealthy horse owners or those that ride at a higher level, are more likely to have the financial ability to afford the number of employees it takes to offer this service because their clients generally spend more on the services they offer.


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

Have you shared all of this with the instructor? You might start out saying that you are fine with doing, the "helping", you just want him/her to be aware. Say it in the same tone you would ask which stalls need mucking (as an example). Information, pure and simple. It does sound like you have been there more than long enough for the instructor to know you aren't complaining about the extra work. 
I am disappointed in the laziness of many people these days. Too lazy to trim cats claws or get them proper scratching posts, to clean litter boxes, too lazy to train their dogs, to properly groom their horses, to make certain tack fits properly, etc.
It's just a good thing I'm not the instructor. I may not be able to make them do more during actual lesson time, but I would find a way to reduce privileges.


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## NBEventer (Sep 15, 2012)

I know the local top level eventing coach I sometimes would take lessons with on her horses, I was paying $60 for a private and still expected to tack up myself. Another coach here charges $55 for her group lessons and expects students to do all the barn chores, tack up and groom themselves and even do weekend barn chores. And there is a reason her business is failing. She also charges a crazy amount of money for summer camps and the camp kids are to do all the barn work including mucking the barn, paddocks and arenas. And do extra cleaning around the barn, stuff her regular staff doesn't even do lol.


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## Elsa (Jun 20, 2014)

Horsealot said:


> It is an option at my barn to have your lesson horse groomed and tacked up for you, but all of the parents always request that their kids (or rather teenagers) be required to get their lesson horses ready since they plan on buying a horse for them in the future, or they want them to get better at caring for their own horses. And I asked my trainer about the grooming clinic, and she agreed to do it sometime next week, so hopefully the lesson kids will have a bit more know-how from now on. It'll also be a good refresher course for me.



This sounds lots of non-communication with the parents, children, and barn staff. The parents want it done but the children/teens don't do it and the instructor doesn't seem to know what is going on. Also sounds like a lot of children/teens are not being supervised enough for people to notice they are not doing what they are supposed to. The instructor needs to decide what way she wants it, either the children are required to do it and don't ride until it is done or they don't do it and she makes other arrangements. All the grooming clinics in the world won't make them follow through with doing it if it is not required and they are not supervised enough for anyone to notice.


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

Elsa said:


> I think it is less that and more the level of riding and discipline the barn is servicing, location, age ranges you are marketing toward, also the amount of staff on hand and the barns facilities. It's more common to see with show barns and places that cater to clients of a higher socioeconomic status but is not limited to that. I volunteered at a Theraputic Riding center that did not allow people to tack or groom (dozens of volunteers that had to have something to do).


You make a very good point, in general. But I see no connection with a Therapeutic Riding center, considering that many of the "students" don't have the physical ability. Due to the disabilities, it could also be an insurance liability. That's not apples and oranges, it's apples and bananas.


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## danicelia24 (Jul 16, 2013)

When I was in college and had lessons(also did work study at the barns) we didn't have to catch our horses(school horses were stalled during the day) but we did have to groom and tack them up. We were given enough time to do so. And after we were required to untack(and clean the bridles) and groom/cool-down. If you were in the last lessons of the day you also had to turn out your horse unless otherwise instructed.


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## WildAtHeart (Jul 17, 2013)

One thing is for sure...you don't want to be the groom that bosses everyone around. I would say it is good to offer genuine, gentle advice as long as you balance it with other friendliness, such as just saying "hi" or mentioning something you saw a rider doing well and complimenting them.

Also be careful with the way you word things. "You can't do that, it is wrong.". Does not make people want to listen to you. Something like "maybe it would be better to try _______, I've heard _____ can hurt the horse." might get a better response
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Elsa (Jun 20, 2014)

KsKatt said:


> You make a very good point, in general. But I see no connection with a Therapeutic Riding center, considering that many of the "students" don't have the physical ability. Due to the disabilities, it could also be an insurance liability. That's not apples and oranges, it's apples and bananas.


This one didn't cater only to those with disabilities though. The one I mentioned they also did programs through local schools to allow for children from low income families to take lessons at no cost and had a regular lesson program. I probably should have made that clearer that my point was that it was a non-typical example of barns that chose to not offer horse care as part of the lesson and one that chose to do so for other reasons other than having lazy lesson students.


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## HagonNag (Jul 17, 2010)

I never realized what great lessons I got when I first started riding. For the first three weeks, we never got on a horse. We got lectures about horse psychology, we learned how to catch and lead a horse, how to groom and pick out hooves and how to be safe around horses. We had homework in horse anatomy so that we had the correct vocabulary. THEN we started riding. All along, we got lessons in tacking up, cleaning tack and barn routine and horse health. If we had a one hour riding lesson....then we got a half hour OFF the horse in addition. We groomed and tacked up the horse we rode. I really owe that instructor.


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## Incitatus32 (Jan 5, 2013)

jaydee said:


> It sounds as if how much you pay also factors into it - the more you pay the less inclined you are to want to help out with chores


I don't know about that though. Occasionally I will pay about $98 to take a dressage lesson from a very experienced (and posh) barn. They do make their lesson goers catch the horse, groom and tack up but that does not cut into the actual lesson. After I'm done there I always make sure that there are no other chores to be done before I leave. Might be just how I was raised though. My instructor would untack the horse if there was a back to back lesson and make the next lesson goer tack it back up. :lol:


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

^This. I've paid everything from $35 to $70 an hour for a lesson, and it was always expected that I catch, adequately groom, and correctly tack up the horse--save for my couple of months of riding.


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## KigerQueen (Jun 16, 2013)

I when to a high school that had 5 horses on campus. We had to learn the parts of the horse, saddle and bridle (english AND western), colors, basic health. For the first cuple weeks we learnt how to tie, lead and tack the horses. grooming was required of coarse. we where also broken into two group (class was 2 days a week). the first group would get to rid for the 2 1/2 hours, the rest cleaned the stalls. AND we had the fun of LIFTING the wheel barrel into the dumpster to empty it. We learnt team work either we liked it or not lol!

I gave up on correcting people a long time ago. If they are new to horses i try to help, but if they wont listen i cut my losses. I have seen enough idiots, and thanks to them i have a new motto i live by: "Not my circus, Not my monkeys". 

Talk to your instructor but dont expect much. It ill take a horse getting hurt for a major change to take place. I hope it wont but in my experience with people like that its how it ends up.


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## HagonNag (Jul 17, 2010)

KigerQueen said:


> .
> I gave up on correcting people a long time ago. If they are new to horses i try to help, but if they wont listen i cut my losses. I have seen enough idiots, and thanks to them i have a new motto i live by: "Not my circus, Not my monkeys".
> 
> That saying prevents a lot of worry, stress, ulcers and high blood pressure. These days it's about all you can do to run "your" circus. You do what you can....and then let someone else be the ringmaster.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

All these people catching horses, tacking up, grooming etc - very nice for those that want to do it and have the time to do it but unless someone has spent the time showing them all the correct methods and supervising them for a while are surely going to be a risk either to themselves or to the horse even (the metal curry comb on the face springs to mind) 
What are the insurance liability implications if someone gets hurt or do they have to sign a waiver?


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## MouseZ (Aug 16, 2011)

jaydee said:


> All these people catching horses, tacking up, grooming etc - very nice for those that want to do it and have the time to do it but unless someone has spent the time showing them all the correct methods and supervising them for a while are surely going to be a risk either to themselves or to the horse even (the metal curry comb on the face springs to mind)
> What are the insurance liability implications if someone gets hurt or do they have to sign a waiver?


If you're being taught properly (under partial supervision for me at least, I've only had three lessons so I'm in the group of people "most likely to screw up) and have the common sense to ask questions when you don't know then there is low chance of injury. I groom my calm lesson horse before riding, the trainer is always close at hand for help for questions, and I've never felt unsafe. And maybe it's the mind set, I go into a lesson wanting to learn everything (positive and negative) about horsemanship, in my head, getting injured is a probability I'm willing to risk. Accidents happen with large animals and I would never file a lawsuit against the BO/Trainer for a stepped on foot or a kick.

But again, my stable sounds completely different to yours. Mine is very hands on and she or the other more experienced girls (only four of us total) are all within 10 feet of each other during tacking and grooming. Its a much smaller operation. She has over 200 horses but we only use the same four or five of them.


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## Britt (Apr 15, 2008)

I think that as long as the horse doesn't have any dirt or anything where the saddle/pad/bridle goes, it's ok to not groom them before a ride. I couldn't tell you how many times I personally have just pulled my horses in from the pasture, brushed my hands over them, saddled them and gone...

If I were paying for a lesson in RIDING I wouldn't want to spend time grooming the horse, personally... unless I were paying fr a lesson in GROOMING.


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

Jaydee--All of the facilities that I have ridden at (particularly the nicer, more expensive ones) required a waiver be signed the moment you stepped foot on the property. 

At the places where I have ridden, there would be a sort of "evaluation" where the trainer showed the student how to do everything, or evaluated the student's skill level (because everyone comes in as an expert, obviously xD). If the student could adequately exhibit all of the skills, they were expected to do so afterwards. If not, there would be someone there to help them learn.


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## SEAmom (Jan 8, 2011)

jaydee said:


> All these people catching horses, tacking up, grooming etc - very nice for those that want to do it and have the time to do it but unless someone has spent the time showing them all the correct methods and supervising them for a while are surely going to be a risk either to themselves or to the horse even (the metal curry comb on the face springs to mind)
> What are the insurance liability implications if someone gets hurt or do they have to sign a waiver?


I imagine it's the same liability as actually getting on and riding said horse. The facility's insurance policy should cover when someone steps on the property. It also probably depends on individual state laws. I've never had to sign a waiver for my daughter, but their insurance covers if anything were to happen to a lesson rider (they've filed a claim or two in the past).
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

All of the places here where I had lessons on horses that belonged to them or were under their care insisted on a waiver being signed


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## kkwb (Aug 3, 2012)

I work as a groom/ working student and I have been leasing the same horse for 2 years but can not afford to buy her
well i was bringing in a horse from the pastures to put in a stall and after i did that my instructor told me to get a different horse from its stall and let a lesson kid groom and tack up! so i lead the cute little gelding: buddy to the lesson kid and the kid just started to tack-up!?! i was like WHAT???? i kept away from the kid but when the horse started nipping the kid, i realized it was because of the saddle hurting the horse's back 
i instantly pull the kid away from the horse and while i was taking the saddle off and bushing it down i gave a 10 minute lesson/lecture on why you need to groom a horse before and after a lesson no matter what. once the bridle was on i gave the reins to the kid and she stormed off as if it wasn't my place to do that!

so i told the manager what i did and if that was OK. she said yes, you couldn't have done better! and she said that she would overlook the process of the one kid untacking and grooming after the lesson and she would also teach the kid about the grooming tools

so it is ok if you tell somebody how to do the right thing, because if you watched the kid tacking up with out grooming and later the horse has sores! you would feel less guilty about the horse and it is a good thing to make sure other people know how to groom too!


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## NBEventer (Sep 15, 2012)

The lesson programs I manage all students are taught the proper tacking up, grooming etc.. in beginner lessons so I would schedule my beginners for privates at first where they were on the lunge line but we spent the beginning of the lesson teaching grooming and tacking up, then ride for 20 minutes or so on the lunge line. Once the student is comfortable and safely grooming and tacking up they would do it on their own. Once they were comfortable doing rising trot no hands on the lunge line then with reins I would take them off the lunge line, once they could steer and trot on their own I would put them into a group lesson, so usually a 6 month or so process. 

The beginner and advance beginner group lessons I always check each students tack before they mount making sure it is safely and correctly done and their girth is tight. Heck even my intermediate and sometimes more advance students I still check their tack before their lesson starts.

Always always always have them sign liability waivers and have correct insurance covering everything. 

Any student under 9(sometimes 10 depending how mature they are) years old no matter how well they ride was always supervised in their tacking up.


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## Horsealot (Apr 29, 2012)

Yes, all of the lesson kids must have a release of liability signed by their parents before they can handle or ride the horses. The horse that was not groomed before she was saddled had dirt and fragments of weeds on her back from rolling in the pasture, so she needed to be groomed. (I checked her later after the girl had turned her out to find her still unbrushed with mud and squashed stickers on her back). The pony that was being groomed on the face with the metal curry had no reason to be, since my trainer does not allow anything to be used on the horse's face except for a soft bush. She was not given permission to groom the pony anyway, and she was ignoring the fact that my trainer had personally told her to turn the pony out. As you can guess, she was not given the okay to be a working student. I've given up on asking the lesson kids to stop doing something/not do something since they don't listen anyway and I have no right to. The youngest lesson kid is eleven, but most of them ate thirteen-fourteen years old, and it is clearly specified that the lessons include grooming, tacking up, and occasionally catching/turning out unless they request otherwise. No one does barn chores (such as mucking out, sweeping, moving hay...) except for the working students (including me) and the BO (who is also my trainer).


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## horseNpony (Sep 27, 2013)

I havent read many the other posts so sorry if i repeat something thats been said. At my riding school all students are expected to show up at least 10 mins early to groom and tack up their horse. Our horses are already brought in, many reasons as to why but its just easier. Usually when i ride i have to go down, check which horse I'm riding, get its tack, take off rugs, groom, tack up, untack, maybe groom again and put rugs back on. Before riding every horse has to be groomed! Even if that means just running over a few times with a brush. Usually that means where the saddle and girth sit, as well as their bum and legs if they wear boots. If we have more time we have to pick out their hooves, and give them a better groom with various brushes. After riding on hot days we have to sponge them or even wash them, on cold days, put their rugs back on.
We dont usually have a supervisor when we tack up, we kinda just show up, get ready and be down at the arena in time for our lesson, but we have a stable hand whos around if we need a hand. The beginner students have a few lessons were they are taught to tack up and groom first, but usually everyone at my stable knows what to do. All the kids are taught to brush, even the youngest (6-7) years old know to brush their ponies before and after. 
I think all horses should be brushed before a ride, even just a quick one. If they were out in a paddock, then they need their hooves picked aswell.


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## kkwb (Aug 3, 2012)

well and if I am helping with a lesson I always check the student's horse's tack
I also remind kids about grooming and tacking


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

I have worked on a yard caring for 11 school horses and ponies at a weekend/summer holidays.

I started at 0700, putting hay in the fields (couldn't the night before..deer) and refilling any water buckets.

I then got to turn out for two hours, muck out, bring ponies in and groom/tack them up. Apparently it was health and safety reasons as to why the children were not allowed to do it.

A PRIME example... mummy and daddy then bought girly the pony she wanted from the school.

Had NO idea. Screamed when he would shake a fly off, too scared to pick feet out and didn't know which way a saddle went.

My next yard I taught/groomed for a while. I'd be happy to get a hardbrush and get caked mud off, but the students had to groom and tack up. It was MY responsibility to make sure the tack was on right, the feet were picked out, and the horse was clean before they go in to the school and mounted.

Even students who had their own horses and rode the dressage horses.


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## Cinder (Feb 20, 2011)

I live in NY, and I've never seen a barn where you're not expected to groom and tack up your horse (and sometimes catch). At the end of the lesson, if your horse isn't being used again, you must cool him/her down and untack. 

However, this is always done by coming early. It's never part of the lesson. I wouldn't want to pay for a lesson that was half grooming. 

What some of you are describing is odd to me, for example:


> ...A few of the barns even required lesson students to do chores before and/or after lessons like feeding supper, filling water buckets, bringing in horses etc...


That sounds like horse _camp_ to me, where often the whole premise is that you're paying to be in the barn the whole day. In my opinion, stuff like that is appropriate for camp, but not where lessons are concerned. If I'm paying to take lessons, there's no way I'm going to run around and do chores.


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## ManeEquinessence (Feb 11, 2014)

If you want to ride, then absolutely the student should be expected to be involved in everything that goes into it, including grooming, tacking, cooling down, and untacking. It's called a "lesson" for a reason. To have that done for you does not teach you about proper protocol from before the lesson to after. I've seen people just throw a horse in a stall, sopping wet with sweat, as well as not groom prior to riding, leading to sores. Horses aren't equipment and require and deserve the care that they provide the rider. I may be personifying them a bit, but my horses take care of me on saddle, it's my duty to take care of them off saddle.

And always make extra time before and after the lesson if you want your money's worth with riding.


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## budley95 (Aug 15, 2014)

Could you maybe get a few of the pony club grooming tools posters and stick them up around the barn? Or maybe sticky label what each brush is and then have lists of what each brush should be used for? They aren't going to learn unless they're told but it may be better for them to take a more active role in learning - or maybe do quizzes with pictures of brushes - they have to write down which each brush is and where /what it should be used for and whoever gets the most right gets a prize of some sort - maybe give them a week to do it so they can research and give a decent prize - like a small grooming kit! Or sweets... sweets are always good!


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## Gossip (Sep 26, 2011)

jaydee said:


> I'm not sure what you mean by 'lesson kid' but I have never worked or ridden anywhere where people that paid to have lessons were expected or in most cases allowed to groom the horses - that was a job done by the people who worked there either working students or general staff.
> That's something you'd need to discuss with the Barn Manager
> The metal curry comb thing - that's something I would have spoken up about there and then - not something you want around a horses face & eyes especially
> The other 'holes' you're seeing - why not mention it to the manager and suggest a few training classes and a demonstration, perhaps with the barn giving out their own certificates on completion
> ...


You've never been to a barn where students have had to tack up their own horses? At most barns students are always taught yo be responsible and groom and tack up their own horse. It's the responsible thing to do.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

^Many facilities do offer to tack up privately owned horses for a fee xD


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## Samstead (Dec 13, 2011)

Gossip said:


> You've never been to a barn where students have had to tack up their own horses? At most barns students are always taught yo be responsible and groom and tack up their own horse. It's the responsible thing to do.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


around here if you can't groom a horse, you learn and if you won't groom a horse, you don't lesson. To me letting lesson kids get away with not grooming a horse is coddling them. Grooming teaches responsibility and that there is more to being a equestrian than just riding and in my opinion helps horse and rider bond. It can be time to get to know one another.


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

As an ex riding school owner I always had ponies ready by staff for clients to ride. We'd never get lessons done if we relied on the riders to get their ponies ready. Instead we ran holiday program's with a test after the second one. If you passed then you got a certificate.

As to how to deal with what's happening - talk to your boss. Unfortunately it seems to be the trend these days that WP's do as little as possible. We were all terrified of our boss when I was a WP, if we heard the back door catch click we grabbed anything we could and looked busy. We were in real trouble if our horse had more than one dropping in its stable, if there was too much clean straw in our wheel barrow when mucking out she tipped it over and told us to muck it out again. Yet she was actually the loveliest lady out and her WP's sought after world wide. 

Keep up your standards, you'll go far.


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## Maryland Rider (Jul 2, 2013)




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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

Maryland Rider said:


> View attachment 505754


Might want to check both for Cushings!:rofl:


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## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

I'm just contributing to the general hilarity with some old favourites:


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## horseNpony (Sep 27, 2013)

Maryland Rider said:


> View attachment 505754


Just want to say, this was me a few days ago. The horse i ride sheds so much that the floor was white from her hair, I was wearing navy joddies, big mistake! 

Imo, if a rider is supposed to tack up the horse, they should groom beforehand aswell. I have made a habit of arriving over 30 minutes early recently so I can groom my lesson horse extra well


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

xD Shedding is simultaneously the worst and best thing ever


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

I dread this time of year! I inhale, eat and come home covered in hair. One year I did invest in a good old Jute rug - put it under the main cover and it ate the hair. 

They are a really good cover to put under all the synthetic ones as they polish the coat and also trap the hair they are moulting out.

Unfortunately for me - madam is a yob and wrecks all her covers so she is now naked, I just can't afford to keep replacing her covers


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Gossip said:


> You've never been to a barn where students have had to tack up their own horses? At most barns students are always taught yo be responsible and groom and tack up their own horse. It's the responsible thing to do.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


From the general discussion on this it seems to me that this practice is more common in the US than it is in the UK - and I'm British where we tend to organize our lessons and hacks differently and having 20 people milling around grooming and tacking up simply wouldn't work. Most UK riding schools have separate sessions where people can learn to do these things under supervision
From my own personal viewpoint - if I pay for a riding lesson then that's what I expect to get - I have no time or inclination to groom the horse - that's something someone gets paid to do (its what I was paid to do when I worked in riding schools in the UK).


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## Change (Jul 19, 2014)

SueC said:


>


I have actually done this!!!

But back to the topic: Even on the trail and sleeping on the ground in a sleeping bag, my horse got at least a quick brush-down where the saddle fits, where the head-stall sits, and a foot check. Now, I'll also admit that at home, sometimes, when I wanted to get in a ride after work before cooking dinner, that same quick-grooming might occur. 

The difference here is that I was taught to do a proper grooming, and I learned to do it well. I also learned - by owning horses - that a little dirt where the sun can shine won't hurt them. 

Would I allow that (or even admit it) if I were a lesson-barn owner? Nope.


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## ButtInTheDirt (Jan 16, 2011)

I think some of this might be aimed towards CHILDREN rather than ADULTS. Honestly as an adult if I was paying for a lesson and I had to run around doing puddly tasks for my trainer before and after my lesson I would feel a little used. Aka, this is not what I'm paying for. But as a child? You had better hope that kid is out there at least grooming their horses and understanding what horse riding is really all about: The HORSE. I spend the majority of my natural born life as a slave to my horses, so if I go to a lesson, I want a lesson. People offended that they, as adults, would be faced with cleaning stalls, feeding, etc. are a bit mislead. But I don't think it is far fetched that a child should learn the basics of taking care of a horse. I learned what brushes to use where, in what direction, how to saddle, bridle, etc. so long as it was safe for me to do so. My former trainer's daughter can't even pick her horse's hooves without tearing his legs off because she never had to. Now she is expected to know how, but they always set her on the horse and said go. 

But all things considered, I usually take lessons on my own horses. I love brushing my horses, and do them a complete once-over before I even think about saddling. But that is what I was always taught to do, and I think I am a better person for it.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Corazon Lock (Dec 26, 2011)

I have been at stables where you have to tack up your own horse and then ones where you don't. Personally, I think the tacking up and grooming should be done by the student. The horse world is all-encompassing, not just riding. People need to understand that before they purchase a horse.

Plus, I grew up reading the Saddle Club. And who doesn't love the Saddle Club?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

I think having your horse (whether it's owned by you or the school) tacked up for you is always an option, it just costs more. Maybe the price is built into the cost of the lesson in the UK /shrug. In the US, generally, the price you pay for the lesson is for the teaching time--you come early to tack up the horse yourself.


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## PaintedHeart (May 24, 2011)

I've paid between $35 - $65 for a lesson, and I've always been expected to catch, groom, and tack up my horse beforehand. Generally I arrive around a half hour early, which allows me plenty of time to do all of the above thoroughly and still have a couple of minutes to warm up my horse before the actual lesson starts. We're paying for a set amount of the instructor's time, and if we end up having to spend the first however many minutes of our lesson tacking up and warming up our horse, that's our problem. It's just expected around here.

Edit: Personally, I like it. Grooming is calming for me, and it gives me extra time around the horses.


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

It's really interesting reading the replies on this thread and all the different ideas people have. Something that hasn't been mentioned is the size of the riding schools, whether the riders have private, one on one lessons, and how many lessons the school runs during the day.

I once leased a commercial riding school. We had around 300 riders coming through the school each week, on Saturday alone we taught for 5 hours. Each teaching hour had 3 group lessons of 6 riders and usually 6 individual beginner lunge lessons. So at each hour we would have 24 novice riders - can you imagine the chaos that would cause. It would be downright dangerous to have the riders getting their own pony ready.

Some people only want to ride. For those of us that are passionate or obsessed with horses that sounds ridiculous but many people just want to enjoy riding. A riding school is just that; a place where you learn to ride! 

Many of my staff were super keen children who wanted to 'help'. I used to dread the "please may I come and help" request. Helpers need supervision and need to be productive. I had a waiting list and to be eligible to be on that list they had to attend sufficient 'Pony Care' days and be proficient in Catching, putting on a head collar, tying a quick release knot, show they could pick up and pick out feet, groom the pony properly, tack up correctly and put a cover on correctly. 

I employed an older rider to be yard supervisor, there was a timetable on the wall with a list of helpers and the ponies they were responsible for during the day. They understood that even if they delegated a job to another helper they were still responsible for the pony being ready on time. The tasks they had were to ensure their pony had a full bucket of water within reach at all times. To pick up any dung immediately it was done. To receive the pony from the rider, check the girth had been loosened sufficiently, and tie the pony up. If the pony wasn't to be used again for a couple of hours to untack, brush over and cover. They fed their ponies at lunchtime and at the end of the day brushed them over and turned them out. They also cleaned their allotted ponies tack as well.

We did have a system that made bringing in and turning out easy. Ponies were called to the gate and because they were always fed when brought in they all arrived at the gate to a call. They were then let in in twos or threes and they would head for their yard or tie up where a helper would be there ready to shut a gate or clip on a rope. Saved us hours of time when you had 32 of them to get ready. 

The helpers final and not so enjoyed job was to muck out the paddocks. It didn't actually take too much time if they got on with the task. Their reward was a free ride at the end of EVERY day they helped.

Many of these kids have gone on to become top level management or professionals. One's a vet, another a forensic scientist, managers of studs, McD, Saddlery stores. Two have gone on to pass their Pony Club A & H certificate with Honours.

As you can imagine I am very proud of them all and many have kept in touch over the years.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Tnavas - Your system in the UK was much the same as where I worked and at every Riding School in the UK I've ever ridden at - from what small experience I've had of riding lessons here in the US the schedule seems very different and even at what would be a busy time of the week in the UK here there are only a few people in comparison having lessons at any one time - though I'm sure it differs from place to place
Re. Costs
This is a copy of current charges for different lessons that one well managed Riding School has in place though a friend of mine was paying a lot more for private dressage lessons on horses trained to Prix St George level. She would have been insulted if asked to catch up the horse, groom it and tack it up!!!


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

Jaydee - its interesting to see that prices haven't gone up much in the 28 years or so I have lived in New Zealand. 
I was paying £25 for a private hour when I was training for my BHS Stage IV. 

The info I gave above is for the riding school I leased in New Zealand - Over the 9 years I ran it I built up the clientele by 300% - we went from 18 horses and ponies to 32 in just over a year. How - by employing quality instructors. I also had a no cancel policy - regardless of the weather we never cancelled the lessons, the previous owner would cancel if it was raining/snowing/foggy and we had lost many clients when there was a run of wet weekends. Not good business! We gave the riders a choice - ride and get wet or do pony care in the barn - often up the haystack! They generally chose to ride. IF riders cancelled 48 hours in advance they were not charged a cancellation fee - if they cancelled the night before it cost $5 on top of the next lesson and if they didn't turn up they paid the full missed lesson fee before they could have the next lesson. As you can imagine they only ever messed me around once. 

The English centre when I was training were also very organised.


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## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

Change said:


> I have actually done this!!!


What, let your mother vacuum your pony for you? ;-)

(I'm sorry, couldn't resist! :rofl


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

SueC said:


> What, let your mother vacuum your pony for you? ;-)
> 
> (I'm sorry, couldn't resist! :rofl


In my early riding days I knew a couple of kids who did take the vacuum cleaner to their pony's.


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## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

Yes, I've seen that too, and horses were not impressed, and it doesn't properly exercise human arm muscles, so then humans have to go spend money on the gym unless they chop wood etc. ;-) (or ice biscuits at warp speed, haa haa :rofl ...I was just insinuating that Change got her _mother_ to vacuum her _pony_ (as per cartoon), even though what she probably meant is that she _personally_ vacuumed a _horse_ once. I like to exploit ambiguities in language for comedic potential whenever possible. Laughter strengthens the immune system! ;-)


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

I haven't read every post but thought I'd send you my two cents.
If someone is using a metal curry around the face of their horse, I think I'd ask them why not use another brush. Regarding body brushing before tacking up, I believe that the barn is asking for an accident. Turnout isn't always cleaned up. I think my old herd would tolerate no brushing with dried sweat marks--NEVER have I not at least brushed out the coat under the saddle--but if you tack up and there is a burr or another weed left underneath, even the best horse is gonna act up.
Personally my favorite all around brush is a small rubber curry. You can put it into your pocket and it's easy to clean. Unless you are cleaning matted mud from the legs, I've been able to curry an entire horse with this. My favorite brush for the face is a pebbled glove bc I can gently remove anything from their face without an injury. AND, my horses love it.
If you are careful, a metal curry can be very helpful, but it needs to be used sparingly, and never around the head.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Sorry - off track
But I regularly use a Shop Vac on mine!!!


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## Khainon (Feb 24, 2013)

SueC said:


> I'm just contributing to the general hilarity with some old favourites:


i used to have the old little toys from these comics..me and my mom thought they were highly amusing XD


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## Khainon (Feb 24, 2013)

i have to groom and saddle my own horse..and i did back then when i was taking lessons for 12 years...it was part of our lessons...if you couldnt groom and tack up on your own,then you couldnt ride...i personally thought saddles were a pain back then which is why i showed up to lessons on my mare bareback every day...my teacher gave up soon and i learned how to jump bareback and do dressage bareback...yeah..i was an over achiever rofl


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## nikelodeon79 (Mar 3, 2008)

At my barn the kids are expected to groom, tack and untack their own horses/school horses. 

The adults can ask one of the kids that works there to groom, tack and untack, but they are expected to pay the kids.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Khainon (Feb 24, 2013)

nikelodeon79 said:


> At my barn the kids are expected to groom, tack and untack their own horses/school horses.
> 
> The adults can ask one of the kids that works there to groom, tack and untack, but they are expected to pay the kids.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


i used to get payed to muck peoples stalls out when i lived in ohio..i didnt ask for money though..nope..i asked to ride everyones hores! and i did! lol i was 10 and riding every horse i could get my hands on..including horses my mother was terrified of lol..i was the only one that could handle those horses i guess..never understood it..as they behaved perfectly for me..even the 17hh draft cross i used to ride that bit kicked and bucked its normal rider off..he was gentle and worked well with me on his back lol


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## Change (Jul 19, 2014)

SueC said:


> Yes, I've seen that too, and horses were not impressed, and it doesn't properly exercise human arm muscles, so then humans have to go spend money on the gym unless they chop wood etc. ;-) (or ice biscuits at warp speed, haa haa :rofl ...I was just insinuating that Change got her _mother_ to vacuum her _pony_ (as per cartoon), even though what she probably meant is that she _personally_ vacuumed a _horse_ once. I like to exploit ambiguities in language for comedic potential whenever possible. Laughter strengthens the immune system! ;-)


Actually, yes. I did let my mom vacuum my horse once. I had one of those horses that could have been a German Shepherd Dog - she blew her coat in on swell foop, and mom got tired of us kids tracking shed hair into the house. She threatened, I accepted, and the horse decided he liked it.

Rather than doing it a second time, she bought us a shopvac for the barn.


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## KsKatt (Jun 2, 2014)

OK, I can't stand it. What is that thing, with the three circles? Post 95, picture 3.:think:


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