# Your thoughts on some of my Barns practices



## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

While I would not have been pleased at all with the way that the girl was leading the horse, it is possible that the BO/BM might just have been advising you about the situation and still plan to talk to her about it. 

I don't really think it is a big deal that lesson horses are out with boarders, I don't really see what difference that makes other than maybe gate safety if horses are coming and going a lot. 

As far as the halter, that sucks, but at least it was still there. I am not a fan of people using my stuff without my permission, but it happens probably a lot more than any of us. 

I think you have a right to be upset at the girl who was not leading her horse correctly, but I wouldn't sweat the other stuff.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Hi Alex, yes they are going to talk to the student about safety. Its the way they handled the situation. They seemed irritated and annoyed by me telling them what happened. It seems like my BO is only concerned about poop removal then peoples concerns which is very disturbing.

I'm just wondering how other boarders barns are about lesson horses. I have seen some pretty bad conduct on behalf of students in regards to putting a horse back into a pasture. And I do not like my halter being used. But that only happened once that I can tell.


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## ShannonSevenfold (Oct 11, 2008)

I'm just commenting on your last question regarding lessons horses being turned out with privately-owned horses. Yes, this is common practice, at least in my area. My barn has several pastures with 2 or 3 horses per pasture and a barn I used to board at had only 2 pastures - 1 for mares, 1 for geldings. These are only 2 examples of barns, but regardless, every barn around me turns out lesson horses with private horses. I think if everyone just follows the "don't talk to or approach a horse that is not yours" rule, it's a pretty alright system. I know I've never heard of any problems with it. Just my 2 cents.


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## Silvera (Apr 27, 2010)

As far as I've ever known lesson horses are turned out wherever they fit the herd the best. If that happens to be with boarders horses then it is. It's all about herd dynamics. If you are concerned about your halter being used leave it with your tack and not out by the field, or leave a bad halter out that doesn't matter if you have to leave a halter out.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

Different people do things differently. My horses follow behind me on a loose lead. As long as they don't get in front or lag behind, I let them be. If they stop, I check if they need to poop or if there is an issue, if not, I just walk on. I would probably drive you mad! My horses know how to walk up beside me if they need to or if we are at a show - I see no need to micro manage them when I don't have to!


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

I think the practice with leading was completely unacceptable on her part, and with a direspectful BO and BM like that, I would take pleasure in moving out asap. The pasture thing wouldn't bother me, though. Unless a horse in with others is extremely dangerous to someone, I would have no problem with it.

If you don't like the practices, you don't have to board there. It comes down to if the pros of this place outweigh the cons. Maybe they have the best indoor arena with shows every weekend and are 5 minutes away, or maybe they just all-around don't meet your needs.


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## starlinestables (Nov 24, 2008)

I would be irritated if a student let a horse kick or near kick myself or my horse and you did the right thing by addressing the situation with the BM. 

Mixing lesson and boarder horses is common practice. I use whatever halter is available as all the halters are stored in the same place unless they put them in their tack trunks.


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

For the first thing. That would make me so mad you wouldn't wanna be within 10 feet of me when that person did that. That would make me blow so you had the right to be mad and that person must have been dropped when she was a baby because you'd think it would be pretty obvious not to let your horse be behind you because you have absolutely NO control over it whatsoever. And the horse stopping and her just letting the horse stop? nu uh. 

The lesson thing... Well where I ride the horsesare all in seperate paddocks except for 2 of the paddocks have 2 horses in it. The horses aren't turned out to pasture in the winter they stay in their paddocks but when they are turned out they are put together usually. most of the horses belong to the owner of the barn, but there are still lots of other owners too. anyways so there's 2 pastures and at most there's 8 horses in one and either none in the other or 3 or so in the other. She seperates the mares and the geldings/stallions (we don't have any stallions though).

As for the halter thing, I don't really like people using my stuff either usually. People use my leadrope but that's just because I leave it with the other ones and we all kinda share so I don't really mind. If someone used my saddle without asking I'd be SO mad. Cheyenne's halter is her owner's so I don't mind if someone else uses it. My bridle... well I would mind I guess. Someone's used it before but they had just put it on for a couple seconds because they were taking a picture of a saddle on the horse and they didn't have a matching bridle and mine matched. My grooming supplies I keep in my locker so that doesn't get touched. Most of my stuff is in my locker except for my bridles and leads and stuff. oh and my helmet is out and I'd get pretty mad if someone used that without asking.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

> That would make me blow so you had the right to be mad and that person must have been dropped when she was a baby because you'd think it would be pretty obvious not to let your horse be behind you because you have absolutely *NO control over it whatsoever*. And the horse stopping and her just letting the horse stop? nu uh.


Gee, thanks :]

Perhaps you need to train your horses a bit better - I have full control over my horse no matter where I choose to lead it from. I can lead with them in front, beside, or behind me. 

And, shock horror, my horses sometimes stop when i'm leading too! I like to be *considerate* of my horse and work *with* my horse - What if they have an itch they need to scratch? What if there is something spooking them that they need to look at for a second to be confident?


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## VelvetsAB (Aug 11, 2010)

I also lead my horse on a long lead. I would rather not have him jump all over me if he was to spook. Also not a fan of having my heels clipped because the lead is so short. Its personal space!

The lesson barn I ride at also turns out private and lesson horses together. Its all about who gets along together. There are a few horses that go by themselves in small paddocks because they don't get along with anyone, but otherwise its whoever goes together.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## MaggiStar (Mar 19, 2010)

god you would hate me i rarely lead my horses they all follow me witout holding on dont even tie them up just make them stand!

every yard i know turns everyone out together


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## Tennessee (Dec 7, 2008)

I don't usually lead my horses because they follow me the majority of the time. If they do stray off I pull them right back over. Most of the time I'll throw the lead rope over their neck just in case. As far the girl with her horse, she can't help it that the horse spooked. Accidents happen. I think you overreacted. Plus, I would not want someone who is not my trainer/instructor telling me what to do with my horse. 

I don't board, but I work at a boarding barn and there are lesson horses with private boarders. However, most of the boarders that have 2+ horses boarded there have a private pasture.


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

wild_spot said:


> Gee, thanks :]
> 
> Perhaps you need to train your horses a bit better - I have full control over my horse no matter where I choose to lead it from. I can lead with them in front, beside, or behind me.
> 
> And, shock horror, my horses sometimes stop when i'm leading too! I like to be *considerate* of my horse and work *with* my horse - What if they have an itch they need to scratch? What if there is something spooking them that they need to look at for a second to be confident?


I'm sorry I didn't mean all horses, just people should be careful. I guess it's just that Cheyenne's been kinda crazy lately and I have to be carefull because she's been trying to drag me all over because the weather hasn't been good so my mom won't take me to excersize her (she's not my horse and btw I don't have a horse) so she has a LOT of energy. (please don't tell me that I should teach her to behave because me and her owner have been working on it HARD.)
if your horse stops yeah sure you can let it stop to scratch or whatever (cheyenne doesn't really do that much either because she waits until we stop moving usually. I'm not sure why she doesn't do it, but she never has while I've been leasing her.) but you have to keep an eye on it.

OMG!!! I just read what I said over and realized how rude that was and what got your attention!! Sooo sorry!!!! I'm going to change that right now because that was extremely rude of me and now I feel really ashamed of myself and I wanna cry (but I'm going to avoid it because my parents are here and they'll ask what's wrong ). I'm SOOO sorry!! I'm not really that mean I was just looking for things to say I guess. okay now I'm making up excuses so I'm just going to stop talking.


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

^^darn it won't let me change it. Now I feel REALLY bad. Well for the first part here's what I now corrected it to:
For the first thing. That would make me pretty mad I have to say. I personally wouldn't let my horse go that far behind me in the first place because you don't have as much control over your horse as you would if he/she was right beside you. And when the horse stopped did she check what the matter was? If it's stopping for a normal horse reason then sure whatever he/she can poop but you should make sure he/she isn't just stopping to lollygag or if there's a problem then you should try to figure out what the problem is and find out how to solve it. Such as Cheyenne sometimes stops at the barn door because she's scared to go in alone so I have to show her that it's okay and turn on some lights and stuff. That's just my oppinion on that.


Please forgive me for what I said earlier I realize how rude it was.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

It's ok, all good 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## ridergirl23 (Sep 17, 2009)

Honestly, if thats the first accident thats happened like that, i would definitely be rattled and probably a bit upset, but when people and horses mix, accidents are going to happen, no way around it.
I dont really know the details, but when a 1000 pound *young* animal decides its stopping.... theres only so much you can do. Honestly i bet that kid was scared s***less when that happened, wouldnt you be? She probably learned her lesson just by that better then anyone telling her why thats bad. I doubt she will ever do anything like that again, people who are new to horses need to learn things like that. Dont get me wrong, im not saying its acceptable, but things happen.

tehehe i think (like wild_spot said) i would drive you guys crazy! my horse is always on a long lead rope. My pet peeve is when people hold their horses right under their chins. But i think it really just depends onhow the horse is trained.


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

I lead my horse on a long lead rope too. I even do this on the walk along 2 roads from the pasture to the barn, however when I hear a car, I shorten the lead rope as it approaches and passes. I would do the same if I were passing a dog walker or another horse or anything else. 
To me that shortening of the lead rope is a command, pay attention to me now.


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## HowClever (Feb 16, 2010)

Yep, my horse's are generally all lead on a long lead too. As long as they aren't putting tension in the rope or getting in front of me I'm all good.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

On the lesson horses/boarder horse question...at our barn the horses are turned out in pairs. The BO spends a lot of time trying to find good partnerships. Sometimes it's her horses with boarders, sometimes it's boarders with boarders. It's more important that the turn out pairs are going to be okay together.


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## Shasta1981 (Nov 12, 2010)

Cher I would be irritated that this girl let her horse stop right behind my horse. If her horse had kicked your horse in the leg and broken it, you could have had a horrible day! I wouldn't have blamed the kid either, she may not know any better. I think I would have done pretty much the same thing. Probably would have told the girl why that's dangerous and can't happen again (I'm guessing she was pretty rattled too!). But the trainers should know that they aren't getting through to their students on safety issues. Perhaps the BO took it personally as a reflection of how she is managing her barn which is why she was irritated? Sounds like you did all of the right things but it got emotional. If they are going to talk to the girl then hopefully they understand. If there are other safety precautions consistently not being taken then I say leave. Its not worth risking your safety or your horse's safety. 

We also turn out lesson horses and boarders horses together depending on personality and gender. I'm one of two boarders though so can't really speak to owning a horse at a large barn like that!o


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Is there a lesson barn that halters and leads are not used by the lesson kids on the lesson horses?

I do not know of one.

There is always one lesson kid who grabs the first halter they see. 

Just feel lucky your halter made it back to your area and only looked messed with.


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

I'm going to be honest I think your being a snob.. The girl leading the pony can't control the horse kicking out and maybe she is inexperienced but that doesn't give you the right to yell at her. You could have used it as a teaching time, instead of putting her down. I doubt she ment for that to happen. 
You knew she was coming through u should have been out of her way. And If I thought that the horse/pony was young and might kick I would have made sure me and my horse were out of the way. Maybe they should rethink the tack up are to make it safer. 

Whats the big deal which horses your horse is in the field with, Is your horse better because its privately owned?!?!?!.
Thats like saying well my $40000 horse cant be in the same field with the other boarders $500 horse. WTF really?!? Yeah safety should be an issue with the kids taking lessons, so maybe an adult should go with them to catch the horse/pony they are riding. 
And if your that worried about the halter, if he's kept in the field all the time and your the only one who gets him out keep your halter with your tack.. BUt it is just a halter..


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## Shasta1981 (Nov 12, 2010)

Amschrader, I have to disagree with you here. Safety is everyone's responsibility, not just one person or the other. If the girl was not taught properly or can not handle a horse then she should have a trainer helping her at all times. No one can control a horse kicking out, but you should have complete control over when they stop and go when you are leading them.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Shasta, I do not think Amschrader was making it OK that the horse kicked out.

I agree with her, really. Does anyone really have complete control over their horse at all times? 

Yelling at the beginner lesson kid gets you no where. 
Bad things happen, use them as a teaching moment.


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

Well she did say that the horse was young. Have you ever worked with a young horse. Sometimes they are hard to control. Maybe the girl didnt have time to react to him stopping. Maybe she should have given the girl a little more room to walk through. I'm just saying maybe she over reacted. If he kicked at her while she was int he field with him would she blame the BO for that to? just kind of ridiculous. 

She shouldn't have been close enough to the back of the horse where he could have kicked her its only common sense especially with a young horse.


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## Shasta1981 (Nov 12, 2010)

Yes, I deal with young, green horses all the time. It can be very scary and if this girl is a beginner maybe the trainers shouldn't have her working with him, right? Or at least helping her with him? If you read the original post, Cher prefaced with the information that she had moved her horse as far over and out of the way as she could, given the poor layout of her barn. As I understood it, the frustration came from A) the crappy and unsafe layout and B) the fact that someone who is incapable of safely handling a spirited horse is being left to fend for themselves or, lets be honest, perhaps was just too lazy (?). I'm sure we've all seen it before.


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

Like I said before she couldn't control the horse deciding to kick.. Horse have minds of their own. Because he decided to stop and kick doesn't mean that she is incapable of handling him. It could have happen to anyone. I typically check to see why my horse stopped before I make him move on, he might of had to pee or poop or scratch. How was she supposed to know he was going to kick

Maybe shes a horse communicator lol


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## Shasta1981 (Nov 12, 2010)

Haha! If she is then I need to borrow her sometime! 

I see your point. Hard to give an opinion when we didn't actually see what happened. I think that what I'm picturing is diffirerent from what you might be picturing.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Actually it is incorrect to lead a horse dragging behind you. You can not see their body language. And it is very dangerous especially at a barn with people walking around and about 40 other horses. If you are on your own land, do as you please but if you are going to walk by others tacking up or people working, etc, you need to keep a watchful eye on your horse. 

I am not being a "snob" as someone stated regarding lesson horses. If you read what my concern was its about the safety of young kids, usually girls in their lower teens, going into paddocks with a group of other horses to fetch the lesson horse. But if I must address this yes my own horse is worth a lot of money and actually the barn he came from they were not allowed to be turned out together in case another horse injured someones horse. It is very common practice at show barns. Our horse is no longer a show horse so that is NOT my concern. So don't get your panties in a knot. That is not my reasoning. It SAFETY only! 

As for the BO and BM they have approached me and had a very good chat about the young girls mistake. It has been addressed and they are now aware this young 3 year old pony explodes. They are taking precautions. I'm happy how they have addressed it after they gave it some thought. They were overly defensive about it but they have apologized for their actions that day.


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## HowClever (Feb 16, 2010)

Pretty sure no one said anything about dragging the horse behind you.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

The way I read the OP is that her horse was there, and then her at his side. There is barely enough room for another horse to squeeze by is how she put it. With her horse there, and her there, how is the poor lesson student supposed to lead her horse properly at the shoulder?

I can totally see how someone would think this is the only way to get through there.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

amschrader87 said:


> Like I said before she couldn't control the horse deciding to kick.. Horse have minds of their own. Because he decided to stop and kick doesn't mean that she is incapable of handling him. It could have happen to anyone. I typically check to see why my horse stopped before I make him move on, he might of had to pee or poop or scratch. How was she supposed to know he was going to kick
> 
> Maybe shes a horse communicator lol


Actually what she did was stand frozen with fright. She had no tools how to react with this horse. She was terrified. This was her second lesson. All she did was say sorry over and over. And it wasn't just a kick. You obviously are being defensive for a reason. DUH!! horses spook but to full on hind end kick at a human, horse or whatever it was doing with people standing there is dangerous. I'm sure if this happened to you, you would have said something!!! Bottom line young girl with young inexperienced horse...dangerous mix...MY opinion!


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

Still you should have just taken up with the BM and BO and not exploded at the poor girl. You yelling at her probably only scared her more, shes there to learn not be put down for her mistakes. Which everyone is human and makes mistakes. 

If I knew a young horse was going to be walking through a tight space between me and my horse, I would have unhooked my horse moved him out of the way and let her through. That would have prevented any accidents. I realize thats not ideal to have to move your horse but being as he's a young horse and shes a inexperienced rider it probably would have been a good idea. 

And next time why not try giving the girl advice about how to handle the horse/pony in a nice teaching kind of way. Because I'm sure your probably made her feel like a piece of crap..


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Alwaysbehind said:


> The way I read the OP is that her horse was there, and then her at his side. There is barely enough room for another horse to squeeze by is how she put it. With her horse there, and her there, how is the poor lesson student supposed to lead her horse properly at the shoulder?
> 
> I can totally see how someone would think this is the only way to get through there.


You don't have to squeeze through. There are 4 posts, two on either side of a approx. 5 foot path. If horses are tacked on both sides for safety reasons owners have their horses move sideways out of courtesy. You don't have to do it BUT we all do it incase of a incident. With my horse sideways she has a good 8 feet. You have plenty of room to walk by properly. 

I would like to add that the BO has stated that she usually has a rule up on how to lead a horse. She's going to put it up again after this incident.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Glad your barn owner is doing something.

I was just going on what you posted.



cher40 said:


> The area was poorly thought out and if more than one horse is tied on on opposite sides you can barely squeeze through safely.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

amschrader87 said:


> Still you should have just taken up with the BM and BO and not exploded at the poor girl. You yelling at her probably only scared her more, shes there to learn not be put down for her mistakes. Which everyone is human and makes mistakes.
> 
> If I knew a young horse was going to be walking through a tight space between me and my horse, I would have unhooked my horse moved him out of the way and let her through. That would have prevented any accidents. I realize thats not ideal to have to move your horse but being as he's a young horse and shes a inexperienced rider it probably would have been a good idea.
> 
> And next time why not try giving the girl advice about how to handle the horse/pony in a nice teaching kind of way. Because I'm sure your probably made her feel like a piece of crap..


You must have missed what I just wrote about the space for the path. Its not a two foot path or anything. I'm not going to explain myself further. Why??? Because any of you would have been ****ed. She is a new student working with a green horse....for reasons I have no idea. It is a horse owned n=by the BO and BM. The bM has been training it and I'm sure they are trying to put miles on it. I think it frightened them that this horse did this. The BO originally thought the girl was of age but found out otherwise. There are a lot of issues going on here. I'm happy how the outcome is. I did tell the girl I thinks he needs to have some ground lessons. She had no tools what soever to handle the situation. BTW everyone at the barn was very ****ed by this incident. I'll say it again...young girl, young horse...bad mix for a lesson horse. Even the BO is rethinking it.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Alwaysbehind said:


> Glad your barn owner is doing something.
> 
> I was just going on what you posted.


Thanks...poor choice of words for myself. We have all stated to the BO we think its unsafe. There have been some additional tacking posts added away from the path. Which I will use from now on.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

cher40 said:


> You must have missed what I just wrote about the space for the path. Its not a two foot path or anything. I'm not going to explain myself further. Why??? Because any of you would have been ****ed. She is a new student working with a green horse....for reasons I have no idea. It is a horse owned n=by the BO and BM. The bM has been training it and I'm sure they are trying to put miles on it. I think it frightened them that this horse did this. The BO originally thought the girl was of age but found out otherwise. There are a lot of issues going on here. I'm happy how the outcome is. I did tell the girl I thinks he needs to have some ground lessons. She had no tools what soever to handle the situation. BTW everyone at the barn was very ****ed by this incident. I'll say it again...young girl, young horse...bad mix for a lesson horse. Even the BO is rethinking it.


You did not mention the path in your first post. You made it sound like it was just a bad situation no matter what. You have gone to describe how it is not that bad, etc.

I am glad that the BO has now handled it to your liking.


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

cher40 said:


> Thanks...poor choice of words for myself. We have all stated to the BO we think its unsafe. There have been some additional tacking posts added away from the path. Which I will use from now on.


What has changed from your original visit when you chose this facility to move your horse to?

It's very frustrating to see folks voicing concerns on areas of a barn that were there when they toured and moved in. You do not go into any relationship planning to change it!


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Okay thank you for your comments and opinions. When I wrote this I still had adrenaline coursing through my veins. The BO was very aloof and rude the day of the incident so I was mad. Her being the owner of the horse, I'm sure she was shocked by it. And I'm sure she realized that the horse may not be ready to be a lesson horse. I'm happy that she has approached me with actions that will be taken. Her BM has a bit of a chip on her shoulder, so I'm told by everyone, and she is the trainer of the horse so I'm sure their was some ego issues in play here.She has been told to make sure rules are followed by all her students. I have learned a lesson and I will be even more vigilant than I already am especially with students leading horses.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

mls said:


> What has changed from your original visit when you chose this facility to move your horse to?
> 
> It's very frustrating to see folks voicing concerns on areas of a barn that were there when they toured and moved in. You do not go into any relationship planning to change it!


Its kind of hard to judge an area when no horses are tacked up. Even the inside arena was poorly built. I'm not an inside boarder but they all complain because with a horse tacked up their butts touch the wall. 

ummm not sure what you mean by changing it. Its the rules...she said so herself. And btw I'm only there short term...moving onto my own land...thank goodness.


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

I'm not disagreeing that the horse and the rider were probably a bad match. but still not reason to be ****ed at the girl. yes at the situation and at the BM and BO for putting that rider with that young horse. BUt at least they are trying to amend the situation. 

I wouldnt not have been ****ed I realize people make mistakes and horse do things that we cannot control sometimes, Its the risk we take when we work with horses.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

amschrader87 said:


> I'm not disagreeing that the horse and the rider were probably a bad match. but still not reason to be ****ed at the girl. yes at the situation and at the BM and BO for putting that rider with that young horse. BUt at least they are trying to amend the situation.
> 
> I wouldnt not have been ****ed I realize people make mistakes and horse do things that we cannot control sometimes, Its the risk we take when we work with horses.


Okay imagine you just had two hooves a foot from your face. And not your own horse that you are working with but some kid walking a horse that lets the horse stop and say hello like a puppy. I was just telling her to move on because my horse does not know that horse at all. I was actually worried for HER safety from my horse. Because like you said horses spook or they can act out. Do you think you could have controlled your voice level?? She just stood there in fright. What should I have done hugged her? If she wants to ride horses she needs to know how to handle them and discipline them as well.


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## Delfina (Feb 12, 2010)

cher40 said:


> Do you think you could have controlled your voice level?? She just stood there in fright. What should I have done hugged her? If she wants to ride horses she needs to know how to handle them and discipline them as well.


Yes, I would have controlled my voice level. You have a horse that just spooked and someone who is standing there in fright. Yelling could spook the horse again (and he may not miss this time), especially since his handler isn't able to provide him with any reassurance because she's frightened.

I had a lesson horse who when I was taking his bridle off and putting his halter on, shoved me aside and took off running down the barn aisle. I'm 100% certain the trainer who has just come out of the tackroom wasn't happy to see a horse nearly plow her over. She didn't yell at me though, just stopped the horse, brought him on back and showed me how to prevent that from occurring in the future. Which was far more helpful than yelling ever could have been.


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## Shasta1981 (Nov 12, 2010)

Some people need agressive actions and above-average voice levels during a crisis situation simply because they do not understand the gravity of what is taking place.

I've seen moms scream at their kids before because he/she moved into a dangerous situation (lets say started running away from them and heading towards the street). In the moment, there is screaming involved just to get the kid's attention coupled with your own moment of panic because you think something is going to happen to them. I'm not sure how this situation is much different? That's what it sounds like to me. Cher I suppose if you feel badly for yelling you can talk to her the next time you see her and just let her know you were scared for her safety. I can totally see why it happened though.


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## cher40 (Nov 19, 2010)

Delfina said:


> Yes, I would have controlled my voice level. You have a horse that just spooked and someone who is standing there in fright. Yelling could spook the horse again (and he may not miss this time), especially since his handler isn't able to provide him with any reassurance because she's frightened.
> 
> I had a lesson horse who when I was taking his bridle off and putting his halter on, shoved me aside and took off running down the barn aisle. I'm 100% certain the trainer who has just come out of the tackroom wasn't happy to see a horse nearly plow her over. She didn't yell at me though, just stopped the horse, brought him on back and showed me how to prevent that from occurring in the future. Which was far more helpful than yelling ever could have been.


Well good for her! I hope you never have to have hooves in your face. I screamed initially in fear. And to let you know I what I once witnessed in the arena where a woman got bucked off by her horse and her foot caught in the stirup. Other riders were yelling, my coach was yelling...you can not control how you would react with a situation. A horse running at you is a different situation. I have dealt with that many, many times. 

1. This girl caused this situation. She stopped to let her horse sniff my horses ***...DANGER!!
2. She is new, new to the horse, new to riding, new to the barn, new to the rules.
3. I'm done discussion this! I will not come back to this thread.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

cher40 said:


> 3. I'm done discussion this! I will not come back to this thread.


Sorry people having a different opinion causes you to get upset and leave.


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## DubyaS6 (Aug 30, 2010)

Soooo glad I don't board at a lesson barn anymore!

Both problems = solved!!!


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

DubyaS6 said:


> Soooo glad I don't board at a lesson barn anymore!


Totally agree with you.

I did finally figure out a way to make my halter and lead rope not walk away near as often.
I used a lead rope with a bull snap and kept it clipped to my halter when it was hanging on my door.
Most lesson kids hay bull snaps.


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## Katesrider011 (Oct 29, 2010)

DubyaS6 said:


> Soooo glad I don't board at a lesson barn anymore!
> 
> Both problems = solved!!!


I've been reading through this thread, and it's made me glad I keep my horse at my house, so I completely agree!


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

I'm happy with where Cheyenne is. It's not really a buisness or anything, it's someone's house. There are only about 10 horses there. It's not buisy at all usually. The owner does give lessons but she's always there when the kid is having a lesson and she never does double lessons except like twice. One was with me and another girl. It was going to be my first time cantering and the girl needed a lot of encouragement to do stuff so she wanted to let the girl see that I could canter and if I could canter than she could trot. It acually worked very well!


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

> Okay imagine you just had two hooves a foot from your face. And not your own horse that you are working with but some kid walking a horse that lets the horse stop and say hello like a puppy. I was just telling her to move on because my horse does not know that horse at all. I was actually worried for HER safety from my horse. Because like you said horses spook or they can act out. Do you think you could have controlled your voice level?? She just stood there in fright. What should I have done hugged her? If she wants to ride horses she needs to know how to handle them and discipline them as well.


Actually - I was at a show about a month or more ago. I had hopped off my horse and was leading him to my float (Trailer). I walked past a girl on a horse at a resonable distance - Her horse had a freak out, and spun close to me and kicked out, getting me on the back of my calf. It could have easily gotten my horse and broken a leg. I didn't yell, I didn't scream, I just mumbled 'I'm fine' and limped off. The girl on the horse was stressed enough at what had happened. I couldn't ride properly that show and I still have a lump on my calf over a month later.

Amazing what a bit of kindness and empathy can do.


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## Tennessee (Dec 7, 2008)

wild_spot said:


> Amazing what a bit of kindness and empathy can do.


Exactly.  Agreed with this.


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## mystikal222 (May 26, 2009)

Just as any time your around your horse can be used for training,so can time spent around less knowledgable riders.Just as screaming at a horse that is driving you nutts is less effective than consistent correction,ppl too need to be firmly but calmly corrected,otherwise they think your the "crazy lady" and blow off anything you say.Same goes with how you went at the BM and BO.If you were angry and snappish,I can see why they would automaticaly get defensive whether you were right or wrong.But if you handle yourself calmly and properly state your concerns and are still blown off,you know its them being foolish. I work at the stable where I board and we put whatever horses will get along together and encourage students AND boarders to have us assist when pulling a horse from a pen,as it can go bad for anyone with any horse.Hope this helps


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

wild_spot said:


> Actually - I was at a show about a month or more ago. I had hopped off my horse and was leading him to my float (Trailer). I walked past a girl on a horse at a resonable distance - Her horse had a freak out, and spun close to me and kicked out, getting me on the back of my calf. It could have easily gotten my horse and broken a leg. I didn't yell, I didn't scream, I just mumbled 'I'm fine' and limped off. The girl on the horse was stressed enough at what had happened. I couldn't ride properly that show and I still have a lump on my calf over a month later.
> 
> Amazing what a bit of kindness and empathy can do.


 you're lucky you have that much self control. I can't do that. If I get mad I'm fuming. Sometimes I'll let it out sometimes I'll keep it inside of me. If it's my best friend for some reason I'll get grumpy, but I won't yell. Not sure why. I'm a christian and I pray about that all the time. Hopefully eventually I'll be able to stop all that nonsense.


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## Cheyennes mom (Aug 6, 2010)

Although I've had people yelling at me at a show before. It was annoying as i didn't do anything wrong. Neither did Cheyenne. That was the stupid part. I think someone was angry about something and wanted someone to blame. I'm not sure. she claimed that I was 'racing her' in our canter. I was just passing her (from a safe distance mind you) because Cheyenne has a fast canter and her horse has a very slow canter. It's not againsed the rules AND everyone passes at one time or another it was either I passed her or I had Cheyenne's nose up her horse's butt and probably would've wrecked the show for both of us. Then later on she yelled at me for no apparent reason. We were in the arena and she was behind me and she started yelling my number and I'm just thinking "What??" because I was on the rail I wasn't going slow i wasn't doing anything againsed the rules, she just started yelling at me. She didn't say why she was yelling, she just kept saying "Number 46! 46!!!" I just ignored her. Eventually she passed me and glared at me as she was passing. Not sure why. I was left wondering what I did and later on Cheyenne started driving me crazy with all the whinnying she was doing and so I started to cry and her angry voice just started echoing through my mind. I was just a little girl at her first show who was not having a good time.
lol I'm not sure how this fits into anything. lol it just crossed my mind lol probably yelling and shows. that's probably where it came from


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## erinstartover (Mar 16, 2011)

I believe your actions were completely inappropriate. She might not have been knowledgeable... but didn't we all start there? I personally started at a lesson barn when I was 7 years old, and definitely had some bad experiences with barn snobs. Eleven years later, I'm boarding my own horse at the same lesson barn, because I love the atmosphere of being able to help people learn. I go out of my way to be helpful to the kids learning our sport, and I think you should have done the same.

And before anyone replies with something about hooves in your face, yes, I understand it was scary, I've been there too. Thats no excuse.


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## amschrader87 (Oct 30, 2010)

I think this is all and exaggeration and the OP is being a complete snob. This is why I am glad I don't board at a lesson barn, because for some reason theres is a large percentage of Horse back riders where I live that have big poles up their butts and think they are better than everyone else. And don't stop to think hey I was once young and inexperienced and probably did some stupid stuff. 
Yes You should correct and teach but not yell and scare them and the horse even more. 
Noone is to blame for a horse kicking out it's kind of an uncontrolable thing. Yeah you should discipline after the behavior but if a horse has it in his mind to kick theres really no stopping it.


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## mystikal222 (May 26, 2009)

My favorite kind of boarders are the snobs who think there HORSE can do no wrong.My trainer was handwalking one of her horses in the arena when this snoty womens horse that was being lunged went reeling back at Becca and tried to kick her horse.Becca calmly told the lady that she needs to keep a little better control of her mare and not let her get away with that kind of behavoir (the women glared at BECCA when it happened and never said a word to her mare). The lady claimed that Beccas horse had been giving her mare funny looks and argued that it was not a problem with HER horse.Becca then said (and I soooo wish I had been there to see it) "I dont care if my horse freaken WINKED at your mare,that is still not acceptable".:rofl:


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