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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

STOP FEEDING HORSES THAT ARE NOT YOURS

956 replies

Pineapplechickenpizza · 18/04/2022 21:25

Unbelievable that this is still a problem after all the hype on social media and the news but unfortunately it is.

Why do people think it’s acceptable to feed an animal that isn’t there’s? I don’t care if it’s an apple or carrot or just a few blades of grass. They’re not your horses- DONT FEED THEM ANYTHING.

If you feed horses in fields that are not yours, honestly, why do you do it?? Do you realise how your ignorance could make someones horse unwell?

Dreading summer holidays when more people are out for walks and think it’s acceptable to feed the horses in the fieldsSad

OP posts:
SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 19/04/2022 10:13

Don't make assumptions @BettyBag I do not own, never have owned, an equine of any type.

I am a member of the general public who has educated herself Grin

NecklessMumster · 19/04/2022 10:13

I remember horses in a field next to a caravan site we were staying in when our kids were little. Took ds then 3 to go and see them early one morning as he'd woken up before everyone else. We stared at the horse, horse stared back then slowly turned round and farted in our faces, seemed deliberate and hilarious. Maybe he was cross we didn't have a treat.

GooglyEyeballs · 19/04/2022 10:13

I would have thought most people would know not to feed someone else's horse. I didn't know about grass being dangerous for them though so I've learnt something!
OP have you considered putting a hedge around your field to make it harder for people to reach the horse or throw things in? It's be expensive but probably cheaper than the vet bills! I don't think there is a 100% way to stop people without a full on security team but a hedge might help?

BettyBag · 19/04/2022 10:14

@Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious

If they are impossible to keep safe they shouldn't be owned as pets at all.

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 19/04/2022 10:14

it’s worth remembering that you catch more flies with honey…

How, in this specific case? How?

SweatyPie · 19/04/2022 10:14

[quote AProperStinging]@Soubriquet

I paid for my dogs. I pay for their food, toys and vet treatment.I still don’t want you giving my dogs any sort of food whether they can eat it or not. They are not there for the public happiness. They are here for mine.You want a dog to entertain you? Buy one.

I don't want anything to do with dogs or horses, and think that life would be much better for everyone else if not for dog owners, but that's beside the point.

I think you missed my point, which was that poster framed the entire thing as "don't feed my horse because I paid for it and you didn't" rather than "don't feed my horse because it is bad for the horse."

It's very telling.[/quote]

I agree. I totally get not doing it because it's bad for the animal but 'it's my animal, don't touch it, don't acknowledge it at all', is a bit much.

When the neighbourhood cats come up and touch my legs I guess I should be knocking on doors to find the owner because I didn't pay for it, I can't interact with it.

Original poster
Pineapplechickenpizza · 19/04/2022 10:14

[quote BettyBag]@Pineapplechickenpizza

Yep that's exactly what I am saying. If you can't look after your pet properly you shouldn't own it.[/quote]
Not letting horses into the field is not looking after it properly.

And even with all the measures and fencing and cameras, we still have to deal with people like yourself who, as you said yourself, will continue to feed them anyway.

I remember seeing a pony get laminitis as a child and it was horrific. It’s one of the most excruciating things for a horse and can often be prevented, except for the people like yourself who feel they have the right to feed them anyway.

OP posts:
BettyBag · 19/04/2022 10:14

@SamphirethePogoingStickerist

Don't make assumptions *@BettyBag* I do not own, never have owned, an equine of any type.

I am a member of the general public who has educated herself Grin

One down, millions more to go.
SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 19/04/2022 10:15

[quote BettyBag]@Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious

If they are impossible to keep safe they shouldn't be owned as pets at all.[/quote]
But it is possible. It's just that some people don't think, make it someone elses issue and refuse to think, and then blame anyone and everyone else for the consequences of not having thought.

If the animal does not belong to YOU don't fucking feed it!

Easy!

MissMaple82 · 19/04/2022 10:15

Put signs up politely saying don't feed and explain why. Not everyone realises, and not everyone has social media!

BettyBag · 19/04/2022 10:15

@Pineapplechickenpizza

And even with all those steps you can't keep it safe. So sell it to somebody who can and buy a dog.

Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious · 19/04/2022 10:16

[quote BettyBag]@Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious

If they are impossible to keep safe they shouldn't be owned as pets at all.[/quote]
But why can't people like you, simply leave them alone?

SoftSheen · 19/04/2022 10:16

SamphirethePogoingStickerist Do you claim empty fields as your own for the day, the afternoon, for your country excursions too? Leave gates open? Let your kids, dogs chase sheep? No? So it's just horses you don't care about then? OK!

No-one has suggested that any of these things are OK. More hyperbole...

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 19/04/2022 10:17

Ah. @SweatyPie another distraction, whataboutery at its daftest. A cat wandering round versus a horse in a field.

No, I can't see any difference either!!!

LegMeChicken · 19/04/2022 10:17

@MadameHeisenberg

You’re spectacularly missing the point.

No, you are. It’s already been pointed out numerous times that better education of the general public would be helpful but it won’t eliminate the determined idiots, so it’s therefore down to horse owners themselves to protect their animals from this specific risk.

You can scream ‘don’t touch my property’ until you’re blue in the face, but some people will still ignore you regardless, so you therefore need to find another solution. You. The horse is your property.

Also, with regard to educating the majority of people who are simply not paying attention to the fact the horse has an owner/feeding it can make it sick, it’s worth remembering that you catch more flies with honey…

Exactly. You can prevent break-ins etc, but people still do it. Although they can be jailed. People also park illegally, run red lights and Do a whole host of other things that could cost them their own LIVES. Yet they still do it.

So what’s the solution?

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 19/04/2022 10:18

@SoftSheen

SamphirethePogoingStickerist Do you claim empty fields as your own for the day, the afternoon, for your country excursions too? Leave gates open? Let your kids, dogs chase sheep? No? So it's just horses you don't care about then? OK!

No-one has suggested that any of these things are OK. More hyperbole...

Yes! That was the point of that post as a whole. But hey, if chopping it up and only using bits of it make a different point! That's fine too!
SoftSheen · 19/04/2022 10:19

Pineapplechickenpizza I remember seeing a pony get laminitis as a child and it was horrific

Laminitis is horrific, but most often caused by overfeeding/underworking, not by someone saying hello over a fence.

LegMeChicken · 19/04/2022 10:19

*try to prevent

Kathers92 · 19/04/2022 10:20

I have three all retired due to injury or rescues, I have had problems with peoples dogs coming into the field and trying to attack the horses, then the owners get upset when the dog gets kicked. Also with a ligament injury and arthritis its not very helpful for them to be running around trying to escape the dog. A few weeks ago I had a situation where a dog attacked one of my dogs while I was in the field with my toddler. I was attempting to pry the dogs teeth out of my dogs neck while the owner was standing there doing sod all about her dog attacking my animals on private land.

I was told to put up a sign saying horses have ringworm to stop people trying to feed, not tried it personally but I can imagine it would be successful.

I personally don't have an issue with people wanting to stroke them but feeding non suitable foods is the reason I now have the fields double fenced and spikey hedges growing all round.

MissMaple82 · 19/04/2022 10:20

@Giraffesandbottoms

Ffs you shouldn’t be sharing a moment WITH SOMEONE ELSE’S PET. Honestly wtf
I have a cat and a dog and welcome others to share a moment with my pets!
BettyBag · 19/04/2022 10:21

@Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious

Obviously I would from now on because I wouldn't want to make an animal ill.

I guess now it's solved. Oh wait. I am just one of countless people who would behave like that without knowing its an issue. Indeed if I hadn't seen the thread I would still do it.

You can't dictate other people's behaviour therefor you are unable to keep your animal safe. You shouldn't own it. Simple as that.

AllOfUsAreDead · 19/04/2022 10:22

This thread makes me so glad my horse is nowhere near idiots who think they can feed him whatever they want.

Wonder how happy they'd be if we showed their 'darlings' pictures of dead horses that they had helped kill by over feeding them. Hmm May find it dramatic, but you are killing them by doing that and you should know that. Kid might be traumatised, but least they won't do it again.

Original poster
Pineapplechickenpizza · 19/04/2022 10:23

@SweatyPie

Honestly, it’s not being dramatic. I don’t mind people petting my horse because he’s friendly and just wants cuddles! But when horses are in a herd in the field their behaviours can change and fights can break out especially when jealous of another horse getting attention (and the herd thinks they are being fed). Fights among horses mean a lot of kicking and it can be very serious. A broken leg for a horse is a death sentence (not financially motivated, but because of how debilitating and excruciating a break is for a horse).

I would HATE for someone who was innocently petting horses to witness it, it really is horrible. And i would be absolutely devastated if someone was leaning over the fence and accidentally got kicked by a flying hoof during a fight. The force from a kick would be fatal and not many people recover from that sort of injury.

Obviously these types of things don’t happen often, and thankfully I’ve never been present during a herd fight, but from a safety point of view I prefer people avoid horses in fields purely because even though the risk of this happening is very small, it’s such a serious situation that I’d rather that tiny chance was avoided all together. That’s why it’s not the same as the neighbourhood cat- a kick in the head from that wouldn’t kill you, unlike a horse.

If someone wanted to pet my horse when he’s out hacking or out of the field I’d have no problem with thatSmile the only problem there would be he would follow you and would be heartbroken when you stopped petting himGrin

OP posts:
MadameHeisenberg · 19/04/2022 10:23

@SamphirethePogoingStickerist

It’s relevant here because if you want to persuade people to do something/not to do something, then asking them politely is far more likely to get you your desired outcome, than screaming at them with contempt. I would have thought this was fairly obvious.

LegMeChicken · 19/04/2022 10:23

@AllOfUsAreDead

This thread makes me so glad my horse is nowhere near idiots who think they can feed him whatever they want.

Wonder how happy they'd be if we showed their 'darlings' pictures of dead horses that they had helped kill by over feeding them. Hmm May find it dramatic, but you are killing them by doing that and you should know that. Kid might be traumatised, but least they won't do it again.

Then do it! Put up a huge billboard with photos of dead horses, put them up everywhere, make sure it’s in people’s faces. It might just work!
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