Working on a yard whilst pregnant

[Gracie92]

Just found out I'm pregnant very early days (4 weeks) so far, but I have also just started a new job on a yard.

It was a big change for me to do anyway and to get the balls to actually ride other horses other just my own. I've been fine about having to hack these horses out, but since finding out I'm now pregnant I'm getting worried/anxious every day I'm in as to whether I'm going to be put down to exercise them or not.
I'm not a bad rider but just completely out of practice to riding anything else. There all big, fit eventers! 😬
I'm fairly fit and I literally don't stop all day, but I'm knackered when I get home! I do also have a tendency to just keep going and burn myself out..
Obviously I need to try and stop doing that now!

Am I just worrying over lots of silly little things?!!

It’s your personal decision but I would tell your employers. A good employer will sit you down and do a risk assessment, deciding whether you ride, if so which horses and also how to limit things like heavy lifting.
I know it would be normal to not tell employers till later but remember the risk of miscarriage is greatest early on.

Oh and congratulations!!

Firstly, congratulations on your pregnancy! I am a qualified pre/post natal fitness instructor as well as having two horses of my own so can give you my two-pennies worth if that helps. If you are doing the kind of manual work and exercise that you do normally then you are fine to continue for as long as you feel comfortable. Many people find that they feel tired during the first trimester however. The key here is not to start doing things that your body is not used to, or over exerting yourself so I would definitely speak to your employer so that they can make accommodations for you if you need them.

There is no evidence to suggest that moderate exercise contributes to miscarriage, and keeping active whilst you are pregnant is good for lots of reasons. As your pregnancy progresses you will need to think about how you perform tasks such as lifting and how much you want to ride.

Good luck x x

I would not do it. The risk is obviously a kick or a fall. Each to her own and this is always down to individual opinion, but the baby is only in there 9 months. I stopped riding for both my pregnancies. I did a final event the weekend before finding out I was pregnant. I love looking at the photos from that day - little did I know I’d a bun in the oven ☺️ Congratulations!

Damage to baby can be irreversible, but there will always be horses to ride. It’s up to you to decide. Our opinions are meaningless really!

This is a tough one, but with a lot of yard hands being women they must be fairly used to dealing with this?

It also depends if others are able to pick up your riding duties while you do their stable duties. That could work. It’s a hard physical job (have not been a yard hand for years!) and I imagine might mean taking mat leave sooner than you would a desk job.

For me, I wouldn’t take the risk of riding. But you know the horses better than we do, riding the school master type is different to the up and coming 5 year old.

I'd ride till the baby comes, it gets more difficult then :-D
Joking aside, if you are a confident rider and do this day in and day out I'd keep it up. It will help your mental health and fitness. Pick your chores if you can.
I had an unlucky XC fall when 3months pregnant and the baby was fine (my hand got broken though so that made riding even harder).
Bottom line is - be guided by your gut because it's the only thing that matters.

I rode my own but wouldn’t ride other people’s. Your employer should do a risk assessment but obvs you need to tell them for that and may not want to.
First trimester is exhausting, it will get worse! But the physical jobs should be fine (I mucked out to full term just needed smaller barrows). But riding wise I wouldn’t personally ride horses I didn’t know inside out. I rode my old mare to about 20 weeks when I had a bleed but she is very safe and we were mainly pottering. Although I did have a final gallop about 16 weeks.
You know how horses pick up on things, if you are anxious odds are they’ll react (badly).