Bareback riding - how many times a week is ok for the horse?

[XelaM]

Hi lovely Mumsnetters,

I have question about bareback riding. My daughter loves to ride bareback and I see many kids at the yard riding their ponies bareback daily/almost daily, but one of the instructors told us it's not great for a pony's back. What is a safe (for the pony) amount of time to ride bareback? Should it be restricted to once a week?

I would look to the pony’s reaction eg ears back if uncomfortable as it can depend on how bony a bottom is too and how well they ride- if Pony looks happy I wouldn’t worry too much and it’s very good for a child’s seat/ balance as DD was taught to ride bareback (she was very light and the little pony was never bothered at all)

Yes if they are light weight teens and well balanced it's not bad for the pony's back at all, in fact arguably it can be better for their back as they're not carrying the weight of the saddle as well as the rider. It's popular with the teens on our yard too but for the most part they seem to do it to mooch around in walk at the end of a session to cool off take selfies and don't do lots of trot (understandable as it's not very comfortable!) or canter without the saddle which would potentially be where bouncing on the spine and getting unbalanced and slipping too far back onto where the horse's kidneys are (ouch!) would happen, so as far as I know no-one is trying to restrict how often they do it. Like PP said I'd tell your DD to watch out for signs of discomfort, stop if she's ever worried about pony, and also get ready to wash lots of hairy leggings/jods as this time of year (and spring) is the worst for moulting

Thank you guys! Pony doesn't appear to be in any discomfort at all and always waits patiently for my daughter to get on her bareback. She normally doesn't try to do too much on her bareback except walk and a bit of trop/canter, but actually she would love to do more bareback canter because apparently our pony is very comfortable to ride without a saddle. The teens at the yard do a lot of bareback canter and even jumping

trot*

What do you think abs bareback pads? Should I get one? Is that better for the horse?

I think if it’s working without the pad don’t change anything personally, don’t sit too far back as the loins are vulnerable but expect you know that. If pony seems happy and you are keeping an eye on that it sounds good. I know some young girls who did most things bareback and argued it was easier than tacking up! They are both good riders

As far as I know the pads just make it more comfortable for the rider, I don't think they help the horse much - they do help with the hairy jods situation a bit though! A lot of the teens here seem to sit just on a thick saddle pad to ride 'bareback' so that could be a cheaper option for the same effect! I'd certainly get her instructors advice if she wants to start fast work or jumping bareback teens, eh? whatever you do don't let her watch the bareback showjumping classes that get posted on Facebook/insta or she'll for sure get alarming ideas!