AIBU - Horse riders pick up poo?

[kaz2810]

First time asking on here so here it goes!

I'm bloody fuming, we live in a fairly large town but are lucky enough to live by a lovely canal. First 1/4 mile or so is a concrete path wide enough for 2 people to walk side by side. I'm walking along this afternoon and in the distance there are some horses & a women with a buggy feeding ducks. One of the horses poo's and as normal keeps going leaving a steaming pile all over the path meaning that anyone with a pram, wheelchair etc cannot get past unless they lift over or roll straight through it. ( bushes one side & water the other side of path) this is a daily occurance and I'm totally fed up of dodging it. Surely when on a concrete pathway the riders could show some consideration to others?

@Beerwench you know they say the fastest way to become a millionaire?

Start off as a billionaire and buy horses!! 😂😂

After reading this whole thread (and being rather amused occasionally) I’ve actually come to the conclusion that horsepoo on wheelchair accessible paths, especially in towns, really is rather unacceptable. And obviously also on the pavement (which horses shouldn’t be on anyway!).

But I do think that the people talking about their prams etc are a bit precious. Especially if it’s a bridleway...

Lifting a pram or maneuvering it around some horse shit is definitely easier and safer than dismounting, the associated lack of control (especially when a horse is easily spooked) etc...

And some people really are twats in regards to horses, btw.

'Strap on poo bags can work with carriage horses, not with ridden horses.'

Why?

Poo bags on carriage horses are attached to what they are pulling and therefore are not flapping around between their hind legs scaring them.

You cannot do this with riding horses as they will spook at having something moving around their hind legs which they will see as a threat (to them could be a wolf) and possibly lash out or charge in a random direction which is dangerous for everyone involved or near by.

*Poo bags on carriage horses are attached to what they are pulling and therefore are not flapping around between their hind legs scaring them.

You cannot do this with riding horses as they will spook at having something moving around their hind legs which they will see as a threat (to them could be a wolf) and possibly lash out or charge in a random direction which is dangerous for everyone involved or near by.*

Well said. Although this is something which can be included in training when breaking a horse in, not all horses will accept this and therefore will limit the number of horses who can then be ridden outside of a riding school.

What they said, but also on a long ride you’re going to run the risk of chafing at the straps and along the edge of the bag

I like riding bomb proof horses (am too old to fall off) and cannot imagine i’d Feel very safe on a horse with s flapping bag at its arse, however much it’s been broken in with one. And if i’m not safe on the back of the thing then those around me aren’t safe either.

There are also reviews that they cause sores.

Also they can change the way a horse stands/holds its back.

And for non-equestrians - how a horse holds its back when being ridden is extremely important.

Another comment re saddles and bridles - they are very carefully fitted and adjusted to avoid any discomfort. That's why there are so many types of saddles and bridles and professional fitters

I can't envisage a poo bag being sophisticated enough to work with different shaped horses, change with their muscle condition etc etc

But if I'm wrong it's a great dragon's den idea!

Even on a bombproof horse that couldn't care less it's going to get in the way at anything more lively than a trot.

It isn't any use to bleat on about training them to accept it, lots of people want horses who are sensitive enough to respond to the slightest, imperceptible movement from the rider. And that just doesn't match up with teaching them to ignore a bag of shit banging around.

valerrie as many of us have said it's not ok to leave it on pavements. But no law will prevent arseholes from being arseholes. Pretty sure you don't need me to tell you that it hasn't prevented anyone blocking pavements or dropped curbs with their cars.

Maybe it would be better finding out why the horses are on the pavement in the first place? It could be that it is a particularly dangerous area because cars speed up when they see horses and drive really close to them, so they have to go in the pavement to stop themselves being killed.

And then they are scared and crap themselves.

No one's answered my question, why don't riders use the strap on poo bags when on public paths, can't be any worse than bridles and saddles?

I've answered you, twice. You're just ignoring posts that you don't like

I have significant concerns about the effects they would have on the musculoskeletal system of a ridden horse. They are also not appropriate for use at speed, and most horses will work at a variety of speeds depending on the terrain. They are not remotely comparable to conventional tack.

Because they are completely impractical and a jeffing stupid idea.

Yes janey, some google images of mainly carriage horses and police horses at walk. What has that got to do with the numerous explanations of why it wouldn't be practical for normal riding activities?

Janey when people go out for a hack they ride at a variety of speeds. I expect to walk, trot, canter and gallop on a hack (walk and trot on lanes, canter, gallop on the moors). Not sure how that would
Work with a poo bag.

Firstly, you're not paying attention - I never mentioned any training issues - my horses are trained to deal with far worse. However, I am concerned about the effects on their bodies of strapping a weight to hang down between the back legs. Since you're not horsey, you won't be aware of how much damage that could do to a horse - but it's significant.

Secondly, yes, those are attached to ridden horses - they're attached to western saddles which are not common in the UK. Western saddles have different attachment points to clip things onto, and they distribute the forces onto the horse differently. They would not easily attach to English tack, and would affect the horse very differently if they were. I would also be very surprised if the horses wearing them are expected to move out of a walk, as a hacking horse in the UK does.

No, but we aren't talking about at speed. We are talking about when riding on paths/tow paths that are predominantly used by pedestrians

But as we have established, the horse does not appear at the tow path by magic, nor to riders routinely drive their horses out to tow paths in trailers / boxes. The horse gets to the tow path by the miracle of movement - possibly in walk or trot on a road, or canter where the ground permits it. Thus the horse may trot and canter to the tow path, and home after.

We may have to walk in certain places so we can get to somewhere we can trot, canter, gallop

Put let's take your pic.

See where I have highlighted, these are already rubbing the fur as seen for yourself. Plus this is on the of least tension in this movement, on the other side the leg is further out so will be even tighter.

Also to me it looks like the horses bum is slightly tucked under.

The horse looks poorly developed, possibly rather young, with a questionably fitting saddle too - which suggests to me that these are not necessarily at the pinnacle of equestrian welfare...

Ok. Can someone show me evidence of the number of times that horseshit has caused a serious hazard to anyone?