STOP FEEDING HORSES THAT ARE NOT YOURS

[Pineapplechickenpizza]

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 fields

@ArcheryAnnie

Some of us are actively asking for advice on what to do when approached by a horse, and are being ignored.

It depends the situation. Generally, I would just ignore it or admire behind a fence from a distance. Unless there’s signs saying it’s ok to pet them or you know the owner, I would err on the side of caution and leave it alone. If in the field and you’re walking past it always walk around it with plenty of space so that you’re never directly behind it’s hind- always give them plenty of space and don’t walk past behind their bum as they can kick out if spooked. Hope that helps a bit

Thanks. What do you do if it walks towards you - especially if you have a dog (on a lead) with you?

@lameasahorse agreed it's really sad, I love animals far more than people

@AllThingsServeTheBeam that behaviour is caused by people feeding them in the field. If people don’t feed them they won’t associate people with food and will not be so annoying to walkers.
I don’t even treat my own horse in the field. He doesn’t get treats fed by hand, any treating is done in his bowl or on the floor.

@AllThingsServeTheBeam

Fair enough, but that’s a drip feed and would have been helpful when you asked me the question in the first place

So surely you just keep walking past it at the pace you are able to and ignore it. It’s not a reason to stand and pet it. And standing and petting and giving attention will encourage the horse to approach and nudge even more. After all, you said in your initial comment that if a horse is at a fence then you will pet it. That’s unreasonable and irresponsible when you don’t know or own it.

Agree. No one can tel if the horses/ponies are on a limited diet.

I don't understand why anyone would feed an animal that wasn't theirs. If it's not yours and you haven't got permission from the owner, then you have no clue as to what is sage to feed it, so you don't.

And did I seriously read on this thread that someone can't afford a horse if they can't afford the vet fees to deal with the idiots who feed it wrong food and cause injury???

@AllOfUsAreDead

If you can't keep your pet safe you are irresponsible and shouldn't own it. One of the things you have to keep it safe from is other humans. I wouldn't leave a dog unattended in a publicly accessible area as I am a responsible human. Many horse owners in this thread seem to think that this doesn't apply to them.

Not you obviously, you are an responsible owner who is able to keep their horse safe. I have no idea why you would encourage the ones who don't.

How do you expect them to do otherwise?

Say I've got a horse in a field with a footpath running alongside it, that many people go past every day. I put signs up all along the fence, very clear big signs saying don't feed the horses, they are on a diet, feeding them could kill them. I also use electric fencing on the outside, and put another fence further back from the footpath also electrified so people can't reach them. The gate is padlocked and also not accessible by the horses as the fence stops them. Don't forget the signs all the way along explaining the fences are electrified. Don't want a lawsuit on that.

And yet people still throw food to them, or climb the fences to get in the field, potentially getting an electric shock at the same time.

Other than standing by the field all day and shooting trespassers, what more do you expect from people? Livery yards are being shut down more and more and fields are getting built on for more bloody housing. There are many places getting taken away from us to keep our horses.

People should be able to read a sign and follow it. I know, I am expecting too much really, why should an adult be able to read and understand a simple instruction? Maybe we need fences beside roads and railways now to stop these people from wandering across them. Oh I know, we should give every adult a 'guide', someone to hold their hand all day and explain simple concepts to them, remind them to breathe, that sort of thing.

Then you don't have the means to responsibly keep a fucking horse and shouldn't own one.

This isn't rocket science, if I got a dog knowing that I had to leave it without supervision in publicly accessible area.... well I wouldn't have a dog would I? Because I am not a twat that thinks I am entitled to own a living being for my own pleasure regardless of my circumstances.

The thing is @Pineapplechickenpizza, you can't always ignore a horse in a field.

I ride and the riding school I use turn their horses out into a field that adjoins a caravan site and it has a public right of way through the middle of it. People use the path daily to get to the beach, to the road and to other fields for walks etc.

All the riding school horses are well socialised with people and the moment you enter, the horses notice and will approach, nudge and follow you in the hopes of a treat or a scratch.

Ignoring them makes no difference as they just follow you - if you walk away, they follow you lol. They're very friendly and clearly love people.

So it's not always a case of people "needing to be told" - it's practically impossible to ignore a massive horse that's determined to get your attention

@lameasahorse

Only I didn't, I was responding to your comment about horses reaching outside their field for grass and saying that my horse does this and why. My horse would be desperately trying to reach that grass too, and that hooves + water + grass = mud, and not everyone realises that in wet weather mud is pretty unavoidable in fields with horses.

Because you understand the difference between a muddy gateway and an otherwise well kept horse, and an unsuitable environment with not enough forage and poor land management, doesn't mean everyone on this thread or in RL does and I've experienced that first hand with visits from the RSPCA and members of the public concerned that he's starving and mistreated because there's mud in the field and the grass is short, and then refusing to accept the explanation given as to why. They have made an assumption on lack of knowledge, but then don't like it when that knowledge is presented to them in whatever form.

I'm not defending poor treatment of horses, rather explaining the valid reasons behind preventing the horse getting to the grass it's so desperately trying to reach.

I'd rather people did report concerns, or speak to the owner about it, than just take it upon themselves to feed a horse in a field. But, the people who have the concerns also need to accept the explanation given, getting confirmation if they need to from a vet/organisation that what is being explained is true if they don't have the knowledge, not just carry on feeding it because they've decided they don't believe what's been explained on no more than their own thoughts and no actual knowledge - and then berating or being abusive to horse owners (though actually I'm not one) for sharing that knowledge.

That's the real crux of the problem imo, lack of knowledge leading to assumptions that are wrong and people insisting that horse owners are expecting everyone to understand their and entitled when they either explain, or just ask people to not do it.

I'd also second that reporting any concerns to an equine specific welfare organisation is probably a better option than the RSPCA - one officer I had had never heard of laminitis and couldn't make the connection between too much grass and a condition of the feet. 🤷🏼‍♀️

@Pineapplechickenpizza

You are entitled. Massively so. You understand that you can't keep your horse safe. You've repeated and acknowledged horror stories about the awful things that happen to horses given some grass. You readily admit that people will continue to engage in that behaviour that puts your horse at risk and that you don't have the means to prevent it... yet you still think you're entitled to own a horse.

Just a note about fields with footpaths: horses need a certain amount of space (the recommendation is 1.5 acres per horse). Fencing off a footpath would often turn a usable paddock into two too-small fields. Also, the person owning the horse is not always the person owning the field, and the landowner may not agree to fencing bisecting their field.

Then you don't have the means to responsibly keep a fucking horse and shouldn't own one.

This isn't rocket science, if I got a dog knowing that I had to leave it without supervision in publicly accessible area.... well I wouldn't have a dog would I? Because I am not a twat that thinks I am entitled to own a living being for my own pleasure regardless of my circumstances.

Unless you are going to stay awake forever and constantly monitor your dog, how do you know it won't ever escape, or be stolen etc and end up being fed something that it shouldn't? So then by your logic, you'd also be a bad owner because you weren't constantly watching it.

The difference between dogs and horses as well is they aren't actually the same animal, or have the same behaviours. It is normal for a horse to be left in a field, they like it. It's not normal for a dog, so they don't like it. Don't know if you knew this.

The simple thing from this is don't feed animals that aren't yours. Would you go into a field with cows, feed them and try to get onto one to go for a ride? Nope. Treat horses the same as cows.

[quote BettyBag]@Pineapplechickenpizza

You are entitled. Massively so. You understand that you can't keep your horse safe. You've repeated and acknowledged horror stories about the awful things that happen to horses given some grass. You readily admit that people will continue to engage in that behaviour that puts your horse at risk and that you don't have the means to prevent it... yet you still think you're entitled to own a horse.[/quote]
Aw it must be so sad to be sitting on the Internet trolling on such a lovely day especially when you know absolutely nothing about horses!

I never said I don’t have the means to prevent it I responded to all the unhelpful suggestions about electric fencing and double fencing and cctv and signs and stated that they don’t work. Thankfully, my horse is going to be in a field, away from people like you who should frankly be nowhere near them. It was only a few pages ago you said you will feed them anyway because if they come up to you at the fence then you’ll feed them.

I feel so sorry for the hundreds of people who are not lucky enough to have a field away from posters like this one who are determined to make horses unsafe in their own fields.

[quote lameasahorse]@Maverickess there still is danger as I am sure you know if the mud gets too deep, even if it is a small part of the field. Farmers do what they can to reduce muddy gateways. There is lots of advice out there.[/quote]
I remember reading about an accident where a horse twisted and broke a leg after getting stuck in deep mud. I don’t remember the details of it but it was absolutely awful

[quote BettyBag]@Pineapplechickenpizza

You are entitled. Massively so. You understand that you can't keep your horse safe. You've repeated and acknowledged horror stories about the awful things that happen to horses given some grass. You readily admit that people will continue to engage in that behaviour that puts your horse at risk and that you don't have the means to prevent it... yet you still think you're entitled to own a horse.[/quote]
Where do you expect people to keep their horses? In their front room? All they are asking is that people don't feed them.

Where do you expect people to keep their horses? In their front room? All they are asking is that people don't feed them.

To be fair, some posters on here are asking a lot more than that.

If you're going to keep an animal that is, to a large extent, independent as it lives "out" and alone most of the time, you sort of have to accept that sometimes that animal is going to choose things you don't like - which will include interaction with passers by.

And did I seriously read on this thread that someone can't afford a horse if they can't afford the vet fees to deal with the idiots who feed it wrong food and cause injury???

Christ Almighty. This is absolutely obvious to anyone who isn’t an irresponsible moron of a pet owner. Yes.

If you can’t afford void periods, you can’t afford to be a landlord. If you can’t afford road tax, you can’t afford to be a car owner. And if you can’t afford medical treatment for your horse when it gets sick (irrespective of how or why it got sick), then you can’t afford to have a horse.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

Where do you expect people to keep their horses? In their front room? All they are asking is that people don't feed them.

To be fair, some posters on here are asking a lot more than that.

If you're going to keep an animal that is, to a large extent, independent as it lives "out" and alone most of the time, you sort of have to accept that sometimes that animal is going to choose things you don't like - which will include interaction with passers by.

Those passers by don't have to feed the horses, though. That's not the horse's choice, that's a human choice.

And will those same passers by also accept the consequences of being kicked, knocked over, bit, etc. in the event the interaction goes wrong?

Asking people not to feed other peoples' pets is a health issue.
Asking people not to touch other peoples' pets is a safety issue.

@AllOfUsAreDead

Then you don't have the means to responsibly keep a fucking horse and shouldn't own one.

This isn't rocket science, if I got a dog knowing that I had to leave it without supervision in publicly accessible area.... well I wouldn't have a dog would I? Because I am not a twat that thinks I am entitled to own a living being for my own pleasure regardless of my circumstances.

Unless you are going to stay awake forever and constantly monitor your dog, how do you know it won't ever escape, or be stolen etc and end up being fed something that it shouldn't? So then by your logic, you'd also be a bad owner because you weren't constantly watching it.

The difference between dogs and horses as well is they aren't actually the same animal, or have the same behaviours. It is normal for a horse to be left in a field, they like it. It's not normal for a dog, so they don't like it. Don't know if you knew this.

The simple thing from this is don't feed animals that aren't yours. Would you go into a field with cows, feed them and try to get onto one to go for a ride? Nope. Treat horses the same as cows.

It's different because you want to own a horse. A horse isn't a cow, it's a pet. You don't need it, you want it. You want it even if you can't look after it. Tough, be responsible.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

Where do you expect people to keep their horses? In their front room? All they are asking is that people don't feed them.

To be fair, some posters on here are asking a lot more than that.

If you're going to keep an animal that is, to a large extent, independent as it lives "out" and alone most of the time, you sort of have to accept that sometimes that animal is going to choose things you don't like - which will include interaction with passers by.

^^Exactly this. Same applies to free-ranging cats.

Those passers by don't have to feed the horses, though. That's not the horse's choice, that's a human choice.

Absolutely. I wasn't talking about feeding them, though.

And will those same passers by also accept the consequences of being kicked, knocked over, bit, etc. in the event the interaction goes wrong?

Well, personally speaking, yes. If I choose to interact with an animal of any kind, I'm accepting any risk involved. That kind of goes without saying, doesn't it?

Asking people not to feed other peoples' pets is a health issue.

I absolutely agree.

Asking people not to touch other peoples' pets is a safety issue.

Again, I agree, but you can't stop an animal that lives "out" independently (like a horse, a cow, a sheep) from soliciting attention from people, can you? Posters on here have said that they walk through fields where it's pretty much impossible to ignore the animals as they're so determined to get some attention.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

Those passers by don't have to feed the horses, though. That's not the horse's choice, that's a human choice.

Absolutely. I wasn't talking about feeding them, though.

And will those same passers by also accept the consequences of being kicked, knocked over, bit, etc. in the event the interaction goes wrong?

Well, personally speaking, yes. If I choose to interact with an animal of any kind, I'm accepting any risk involved. That kind of goes without saying, doesn't it?

Asking people not to feed other peoples' pets is a health issue.

I absolutely agree.

Asking people not to touch other peoples' pets is a safety issue.

Again, I agree, but you can't stop an animal that lives "out" independently (like a horse, a cow, a sheep) from soliciting attention from people, can you? Posters on here have said that they walk through fields where it's pretty much impossible to ignore the animals as they're so determined to get some attention.

I can't stop a horse from being curious about someone, no. I can explain to the humans why these interactions by passers by aren't always a terrific idea.

You might accept the risk, and that's terrific. Others won't be so happy when their darling child is barged over by a gang of shetlands mugging them for treats!