To think I shouldn’t have to stop my run to walk past a horse?

[Famousperson2023]

This has happened twice now. Out for a run and the horse riders have asked me to stop running while I go past their horse!!

I’ll put this in context- daughter rides, I used to ride. When passing a horse or pony I’ll go wide and slow, or stop and wait at a passing place on narrow roads (often while the riders amble up at a slow walk deep in conversation with their fellow riders, 3 abreast….and without a hint of thank you). When I’m out with our dog I’ll make sure she is on the lead while we pass. but being asked to stop and walk???

I had a hose rider deliberately kick my car recently. He and the woman leading the horse were utter arseholes. Most are pleasant and sensible though!

Absolutely - well said

It’s hardly an imposition to slow down whilst passing large animals. I wouldn’t jog close to a cow… rhino… bear… hippo… any large animal. Especially not one with a human clinging onto the top of it.

If the horse rider could kick your car then you were too close!

And they also leave shit everywhere.

Not sure how they can deal with this, but it is so annoying. Where I live there are loads of horse riders walking down our street, on their way to the fields. Their horses crap all over the street and then it gets in my tyres and into my path. If I let my dog do its sausage size poop in the street and left it, I would get fined or shouted at.

Horses should wear a bag round their arse to catch the bucket full of poo.

Ha! I knew someone would say that. I was stationary.

No people don't have to oblige - but it would be pretty selfish and unpleasant of them not to.

😂

@Takethehintandfuckoff Takethehintandfuckoff 👏🏻

The risk is created by the horse. As people have said, horses are unpredictable. If you choose to ride a horse, you are always at some risk. If it's not a child or a runner, it might be a bird suddenly flying out or a car backfiring.

There is no risk without the presence of the horse so it is for the person in charge of the hazard to make sure it doesn't cause harm and to safeguard people passing by. The responsibility isn't an equal one.

If you're happy to be kicked in the head for the sake of pettiness, go for it.

The horse thinks that the runner is a potentially dangerous animal.

Do you always disregard safety advice if it impinges upon your principles?

Part of the safeguarding responsibility of a rider is to signal to others that there is or might be an unforeseen issue, a bit like if your car breaks down on the brow of a hill or bend and putting out hazard signs/hi viz.

This may be in the form of asking people to slow down and follow the highway code, which if adhered to, often prevents an issue from escalating and allows the rider time to get things under control.

You can train a horse as much as you like, but at the end of the day they are still animals and can behave dangerously and unpredictably. They're not robots.

It's also worth pointing out that the main way to get a horse accustomed to traffic, runners etc. is to take them out on the roads so that they can encounter those things and learn that they're not scary.

I ride and help care for a friends' horse and have seen horses randomly spook at things they've walked past for years with no issue. Pain, bad weather or just a bad day can all cause a change in temperament.

But they are safeguarding people - by asking them to stop or slow down.

But even if the horse rider stops the horse might still be freaked out by the person running and bolt or kick the runner. Which I understand is not the runner’s responsibility or fault.

And you can argue till the cows come home about well don’t take your horse out unless it’s bomb proof. But they’re animals not robots.

If you can do something which costs you nothing to help someone else I don’t see why you wouldn’t

Yes @margotrose and however much training and desensitisation you have done to prepare a young horse, there is always the "first" time out alone.

Horse poo is irritating but, like the faeces of any vegetarian animal, is much less inherently offensive than dog poo.

if you have a dog out in public it is your responsibility to make sure it doesn't bite people or worry sheep etc etc so if you are out with a horse it is the same, footpaths are for pedestrians roads are for horses bikes and cars. when a pedestrian crosses or goes on a road they need to watch for cars before crossing a car bike or horse crossing a footpath needs to be aware that pedestrains have the right of wayyou can't turn into your driveway if there is a person on it qually if you are turning into a road people crossing said road have priority.
cyclists should not be on pavements but if they are they need to slow down and wait for walkers if you are running on a pavement you need to go round walkers prams elderly people with walking sticks
on the road horses need to be treated like cyclists but horses have to give way to pedestrians on footpath,
however if a pedestrian is on a bridleway this is a known shared space so they need to be horse aware, a bridlepath is not the same as a roadside footpath

If I needed to get somewhere in such a hurry that a few seconds' delay might be critical, I wouldn't go on foot.

This is really worth sharing. It should also be a rule for pedestrians when sharing pavements and the like - the one that can cause the greatest harm in the event of a collisions stops and stands aside if needed!

You should read all my posts before making stupid remarks like this.

I also teach my DC to check cars are actually stopping before we cross pedestrian crossings. We shouldn't have to but some people are either arseholes or oblivious to their surroundings.

Why don’t you cross over to the other side when you see them? Whilst majority of house riders seem to be realistic around expectations and navigating being out on the open road you do get a few that can be very entitled as if riding is a mandatory task and not done of their own free will.

There’s a lady near me who likes to get off her horse, stand in the part when turn into the college car park with the horse to chat to whoever for long periods of time and then motion to people on the road to reduce their speed even though she’s nowhere near the horse and she’s causing the issue.

A safeguarding strategy shouldn't rely on on the cooperation of complete strangers. Either the horse is safe for people to pass or it isn't.

It's impossible to get a horse used to traffic or people without actually taking it out around traffic and people.

It's also perfectly possible for the horse to be safe to pass at walking speed but not running speed, just like most are safe to be passed by cars at 10mph but not at 30mph.

Should no horses be on the roads at all because traffic is expected (and required) to slow down for them?

I'm really not sure why you find this so difficult to grasp

But as people have tried to explain:

A horse can still spook from standing, so even if the rider stops, there's no guarantee the horse won't bolt.

You have much more control over a horse while you're on it's back than you do standing next to it.