2 year old keeps asking to go horse riding

[happygilmore]

Before I get told off, I know she probably has no idea what it actually involves!

However she has been asking constantly to go horse riding (after feeding/patting horse at farm, and seeing people riding) for a couple of weeks now.

At what age will riding schools allow little ones to have a short ride? What age is best anyway? I'm not at all convinced she's old enough (in fact I'm sure she's probably not) but wondered when she could try a short ride.

I'm not a horsewoman at all, used to go riding as a child but haven't in many years. Thanks.

DD started lessons just after she turned 4. The stables do a preschool class, and they have to be 3 to go on a lead rein ride. But DS turned 2 at the weekend and was able to go on their "ride to santa". He loves horses and has to watch DD riding.

He won't be having lessons until about 4.

DD started riding early and had an elderly Section A Pony for her 2nd birthday (loan from Godmother). She was competing from 3 1/2 and has never had any problems. Best to check with local riding schools as, for insurance reasons, they usually don't start before 4yo. However they may know people who will let you have a short walk on their ponies. Always remember that she'll need a helmet though.. I am membership secretary of our local Pony Club and we have lots of children becoming members when they are 3 and we start jumping on the lead rein when they are 4.

Quite astonishing how late children ride on the continent and if children couldn't hack on the roads until they were 14 (like Belgium) I don't know how we'd get around. DD has been hacking on the roads since she was 5!

I'm in France, our local RCs do lessons from 4yo and offer short lead rein hacks from 2yo. My DD is 3.5yo and just went for her first little walk hack and loved it.

It is bad for their hips if they are being stretched. Most small ponies have very broad backs and it's ok occasionally for a short time, but not for more than that. Children's necks also cannot support the head in trot/canter until they are four.

That said, my 2 year old loves 'his' pony and rides a couple of times a week, for 2-3 minutes at a time. No saddle though and she's taller, so narrow enough without a saddle that his hips aren't being stretched.

Riding does use your back, inner thigh and hips in a different way to pretty much all other activities, and it's not great for children to do a lot under the age of 4-5 or so. If you have a very small pony e.g. a mini-shetland or a fallabella or a very narrow sec A, it's not so bad though, but most riding schools won't have very small ponies available unless they cater to very young children.

A lot of riding schools do have 4/5 as the lower age limit for insurance reasons, but some will still cater specifically for younger children or allow them to have a little go on the lead rein.