09/11/2023
“But this horse was listed as beginner safe!”
“But my trainer rode him bridleless!”
“But she’s won many championships!”
I'm sure you’ve heard stories about horses that were sold to someone as “beginner safe” and then, within a few months, started offloading their riders regularly, became hard to handle, stopped doing things they used to do peacefully, etc., or about the finished push-button show horse, whom once bought and brought home, could now qualify for the NFR.
Frequently the new owner posts to complain that the previous owner or trainer must have drugged the horse or used special tack or calming supplements.
Doubtful, very, very doubtful.
The most likely of scenarios: read on..
1. New Owner changes the horse’s entire lifestyle. He was living in a pasture in Wyoming, and now he’s living in a box stall in Los Angeles. He goes from eating unlimited quantities of grass and plentiful hay to the typical boarding barn’s 2 or 3 flakes a day. Then, when he starts to lose weight, New Owner compensates for the lack of hay by adding more and more grain. Doesn’t really matter what kind – oats, corn, sweet feed, even senior feed can not only add in unneeded energy but cause ulcers and other health issues.
2. Old Owner had horse on a serious exercise regimen. The horse got ridden most days, hard enough to work up a sweat. As a result, anyone could hop on him with a lead rope and pony four more without issue. New Owner doesn’t really want to pay for a groom or exercise rider and thinks he can just ride the horse himself, but he misses Wednesday because it’s cold out and Thursday because he has to work late, and Sunday because the Super Bowl is on. And so on… Because the horse is boarded, the horse stands in a 12 x 12 box getting progressively more irritated, bored and frustrated.
3. New Owner comes out to ride. The horse doesn’t want to pick up his foot, so after a struggle, New Owner decides that hoof does not really need to be picked. The horse starts to get pushy to lead, because he’s been in the stall for 2 days and he’s eager to move. New Owner permits the pushiness; the horse stops leading nicely and starts circling around New Owner or dragging him around like a kite. New Owner goes to tack up the horse and cranks up the girth tight all at once, something Old Owner, who was more experienced, knew better than to do. Horse flies backwards and breaks the cross ties. Now New Owner starts to become fearful of the horse. New Owner goes to get him out of the stall and the horse swings his butt to New Owner and threatens him. New Owner gives up and leaves and the horse sits in the stall yet another day.
4. When New Owner finally does manage to get the horse out for a ride, New Owner doesn’t understand why the horse has become pushy and resistant. New Owner doesn’t start by turning the horse out or longeing; he just hops right on. Maybe he pokes the horse in the side good and hard with his toe as he mounts, or kicks him in the butt accidentally with his right leg, either of which can lead to a wreck before the ride has even begun. If he gets on successfully, the horse is a whooooole lot more horse under saddle than he was when he tried him out, due to the confinement and diet changes. New Owner doesn’t call Old Owner yet. Nor does New Owner consult with a competent trainer in his discipline. New Owner allows himself to get advice from everyone he doesn’t have to pay, including the boarding barn’s official busybody who likes to give everybody unsolicited training advice, a couple of Natural Horsemanship followers who think all of these issues can be solved by playing games and, of course, everybody on his Facebook. The end result is that New Owner buys a $150 bit and $300 worth of training videos.
5. But none of that helps. In fact, the $150 bit leads to a new behavior – rearing! Now New Owner is good and scared but not willing to quit just yet. He is going to ride that horse. The horse, on his part, can sense New Owner’s fear, which of course scares him. Horses are not capable of perceiving that they are what’s scaring you. Horses feel your fear and perceive that perhaps there is a mountain lion nearby which you have seen and they have not – so it might be a good idea to freak out and/or run like hell to get away from it. The behavior gets worse and worse until New Owner, quite predictably, gets dumped.
6. New Owner, from his hospital bed, writes vitriolic posts all over Facebook about the sleazy folks or bad trainer who sold him or sent him back a horse that was not beginner safe and lied about it and probably drugged it. Old Owner fights back, pointing out that his 6 year old kid showed the horse and was fine. Everybody else makes popcorn and watches the drama unfold. Meanwhile, the poor horse gets sent to slaughter by New Owner’s angry spouse.
How to avoid all this:
First off ask questions, take notes and pictures! I sell and send home every horse with an exit list. It states the horses current food, stabling situation, daily routine, tack used, habits, strengths and weaknesses. No horse is perfect, but if you in advance that Fluffy doesn’t like aerosol fly spray, you’ll be able to adjust to that. If your seller or trainer doesn’t provide this, make your own, ask questions, take pics of the bits the used, video their warm up procedure, etc.
And the basics, here goes:
1. The vast majority of calories should come from forage (hay) not grain or supplements. Horses are grazers the more often you can feed them the better.
2. Get your horse out! How would you like to be locked in your room for 24 hours? It’s just not fair. If you can’t get the barn you’re at to turn your horse out, you need to make arrangements for someone else to. Yes, you may have to pay for that. Horses cost money, lots of it. Not comfortable with that, buy a goldfish and name it horsey instead.
3. Most horses especially beginner horses should be “tuned up” by a competent, experienced rider or trainer at least twice a year.
4. A bigger bit in novice hands solves nothing and creates a variety of dangerous behaviors. Adding training aids, tie downs, head setters, spurs, especially on a horse that went completely fine without them before you brought it home, is a huge indicator that the rider needs lessons, not the horse.
5. Learn the difference between abuse and discipline. None of us wants to be the person beating his horse – but that doesn’t mean discipline is always wrong. If your horse’s ground manners are melting down and he does not do things he used to do (like picking up feet, getting into the horse trailer, bridling) or has started doing things he didn’t used to do (like kicking at you, biting, trying to smush you against the wall in the stall), please get help from a competent trainer. It may be that your body language is all wrong, but it also may be that you’ve established yourself as, well, a doormat and need to learn when it is appropriate to re-establish yourself as the boss. This involves a lot of timing, correct body language and feel – none of which you can learn from your friends on Facebook or a training video. You need an actual trainer or other very experienced horseperson to work with you.
6. Check your tack. Is your saddle fitting correctly? Bit the right width? Cinch pinching?
7. Call the vet and make sure the horse is not simply trying to tell you he has a pain issue. They will simply resort to things like biting you when you tighten the girth or bucking when asked to canter in a desperate attempt to convey the message. Is it a back or chiropractor issue? Ulcers? Arthritis?
8. If you’ve changed a lot about the horse’s lifestyle, try to change it back and see if that fixes the problem. Some horses never adapt from pasture life to 24/7 stall life in a busy show barn. At the same time, some show horses are miserable turned out in a pasture 24/7. Know you’re horse and the lifestyle you can offer. Then ask yourself if they are compatible.
9. Don’t keep a horse you are terrified of. If the behaviors are truly scary or you’re hitting the dirt regularly – the horse is just not for you. That’s ok. Learn your lesson and move on before one of us permanently damaged mentally or physically.
10. Remember, the horses paperwork may transfer 100% on the spot to you, but it’s respect, confidence and trust won’t, that takes time and effort and patience. And often times years of hard work and time spent together.
*my thoughts, edited and tweaked off several variations of a post I saw, with no original author listed.
