02/05/2019
I wish this was mandatory reading before every lesson/ride!!! I'd merely replace "turnout and lunge" with "meaningful groundwork". Great write up!!
Recipe for Not Getting Hurt with Horses:
1. Avoid sugary feed, no grain unless they're a high performance horse that truly needs the energy. You can keep all the weight you need on a horse with hay and hay pellets (soaked if the teeth are bad).
2. Learn to read body language. If your usually trustworthy horse won't stand in the cross-ties today, take that as a sign you may need to turn out or longe before the ride.
3. Pay attention to tack fit. Even a super quiet horse is gonna buck eventually if your saddle is sitting on his withers. Check that you can put your hand in between the pommel and his back *while you are on him.* The saddles sink down with weight. You can't tell from the ground. And teeth need to be checked at least annually, if not more often. A broken tooth or a sharp hook is another way to have a normally quiet horse go hi-ho Silver on you.
4. Turnout is good. Turnout with friends is better. Turnout in areas big enough that the horse can really rock & roll is necessary. Sun pens in Los Angeles are not turnout. 40 foot round pens are not turnout. (Especially for stallions, please stop doing this and then assuming your stallion is dangerous and ill behaved. Poor thing is freaking stir crazy.)
5. Make yourself do the hard things, like riding without stirrups. You know why? Because when things go south, literally the first thing that frequently happens is you will lose your stirrups. Learn to ride without them before it's the difference between staying on and a bad wreck. And please stop letting your kids jump when they can't even post without stirrups. It is extremely unsafe and it gives me migraines when I have to watch some loose-seated kid almost die over crossrails at shows not to mention catching their poor pony in the face over every jump.
6. Don't assume that how a horse is on the ground is a good predictor of how he is under saddle. I've had horses that were squirrely as heck on the ground and as bombproof as something with a heartbeat can be under saddle, and the reverse. Again, there is no shame in hiring a pro to test drive horses for you - even your own horse when he's been sitting for a while or whatever.
7. Weather affects horses. Bear it in mind. It's super cold in the Midwest and a lot of your horses have had some time off. Those first rides back should always be preceded by turnout in an arena with good footing so they can run and buck to their heart's content! Yes, even if they are normally quiet. I used to have to get on the 30 year old lesson horses and school them when it was this cold in WI. They would be lunatics!
8. Horses are herd animals. Don't expect them not to try at least to follow the herd. If you do not feel comfortable galloping, don't go trail riding with people who do, because even a lazy horse is probably gonna have a Seabiscuit fantasy if everybody else takes off ahead of him. (If you find the horse that doesn't and it's not because he's too crippled to run - BUY THAT HORSE. I've had 2 of them, lifetime.)
9. Horses are easily frightened, claustrophobic prey animals. The absolute worst thing you can do when a horse is scared/anxious is clutch up on your reins. THE WORST. Grabbing them by the mouth is how people get flipped over on. You have two choices when a horse has excess energy or is freaked out. He is either gonna express that energy in a vertical or horizontal direction. Horizontal is a LOT easier to ride and a LOT less likely to land you in the hospital. Getting comfortable at moderate speed will help you avoid accidents because it will help you get rid of that tendency to clutch up on the reins when you're nervous.
10. Getting older? Coming back from an injury? Having issues with fear and anxiety? Horse being a dork? There is no shame in riding in the arena or even a good sized round pen. There is no shame in your trainer having you on a longe line. Stop worrying about what every busybody with no life at the barn thinks and do what is right and safe for you.
Is there a way to 100% avoid an accident? Nope. But all of the above will REALLY reduce the odds!
If you liked this post and can afford to, please send our ponies some hay $$$ :)
Pic credit to Leo Deveney, who did a photoshoot at PPR a few years ago. This is Cohiba, who is still looking for a sponsor!
