The demise of good horsemanship

[twistyizzy]

Thought about posting this on AIBU but couldnt face the backlash of "first world problem" comments 😊
So yet another livery has arrived on the yard: unhorsey parents + teenager who has ridden for 2 years at a riding school and has been bought their first horse. Priority given to have Le Mieux match match over a properly fitted saddle/tack, child isn't having lessons on new horse and is struggling so they have just shoved a Waterford in its mouth.
This is just becoming all too common: people asking for veterinary advice on Facebook instead of calling the vet, horses underworked but having tonnes of feed pumped into them, fashion over good quality well fitting tack etc. It just seems that common sense horsemanship has practically disappeared along with much of the knowledge about horse care etc.
People not even knowing how to take TPR to monitor their horse's health, correct feeding for work bring done, how to treat minor ailments and when to call the vet etc.
All just highly frustrating and as a result I honestly believe that the welfare of many horses is compromised.

On my previous yard it’s gone to almost exclusively full livery in the last 10-15 years. It was about 60:40 DIY/assisted and full.

Theres an Arab youngster purchased for a young girl so they can grow up together, she comes for an hour on a Sunday to bond with said pony. Because they recognise bonding is important. Staff catch said pony for bonding session and then turn it back on.

Some adults too who have purchased “show ponies” and do FA with them and seem
to wonder why they don’t look like the add.

I started as a non horsey parent and my three children all went on to event and showjump to a high level. I could never have done it without the Pony Club and incredible instructors. I listened to every word at PC and just read and learned as much as I could and tried to learn from the more knowledgable mums. Even we got to Novice / Intermediate level they all had lessons at the minimum once a week and attended every PC session they could.

I also learned to call a vet out if in any doubt whatsoever, something that more often than not proved to be absolutely the right decision. Yes it was expensive but horses are an expensive hobby and I would rather have the vet out than the best new kit or a smart lorry.

I was the non horsey parent totally out of my depth and had to learn quickly. The difference being I wanted to learn and DD was very resilient. I figured if you want it to work it's time and / or money. Normally both. And not just on weekends!

Many kids do want the insta reels now and not the reality. And they want their new horse to do it all, immediately. The one thing that annoys me is parents wanting a confidence giver whilst doing v little to think about what the horse needs, and what will give the horse confidence.

Tbf dd is qualified through PC to teach low level and there's a limit on what she can say to parents about their child's riding. If she was overly critical she'd fail the rest of her training.

Conversely I also know an adult who’s been riding near on 60 years and who is still a crap horsewoman. She seems to have so little understanding of body language and horses behaviour. Every animal she owns has issues and needs some sort of veterinary/behavioural intervention. All the horses she’s owned have been school masters, been there done that and come to her and she’ll swear they were all drugged previously.

She won’t admit she’s just shit scared of them all and work on her confidence. She can’t accept horses spook, or even look because they’re horses. She has to medicate or send them off for training. So frustrating!

I've been riding for 30 years on and off, and am still at the same fantastic riding school loaning one of their ponies (who is definitely not a riding school pony!! But she makes me ride better than I ever have before )
I was taught to ride properly from the age of nine and I'm pretty confident at being able to get on and adapt my style to most horses but I'd still think long and hard before buying my own, and would never go for a youngster or anything needing significant re-schooling. I'd also definitely budget for lessons.

@Hippyhippybake IME vets will happily talk to you over the phone and avoid a call out if they don’t think it’s necessary. I’m always happy to call if I’m unsure as generally they won’t come if they don’t think it’s worth their time.

The thing is, a lot of yards are moving to full. There is more margin for profit. You can ensure the horses on your yard are well cared for. Owners are around less, using the facilities less and causing fewer ‘drama’ issues. So it’s a win win for the yard owners.

DIY yards do seem to attract a lot of drama and arguments and people ‘helping each other out’ but not properly. There are a few round here are I wouldn’t entertain them. I know I’d get upset and not be able to bite my tounge at some of the things I’d see.
Horses/ponies left stood in unfed and no hay until noon on weekends after a week of 7am feeds, poor little elderly ponies being yanked about but too big novice kids. Clipped out under rugged horses and vice Versa. Lame ponies. Badly fitting tack. The list goes on. That said there are also some really super experienced people on these yards and lovely novices who are keen to learn and love their horses

Definitely
I've come back from a long hack (20km or so) and been desperate for a drink/toilet but always untacked and sorted horse first
Horse first, me second

I send my vets photos via WhatsApp first. My horses are normally very happy and chilled and make it very clear when they are unhappy or poorly.

Oh we've had 1 of those, she got pregnant and horse was completely abandoned eg feet not trimmed/horse not checked/left without water or hay/not mucked out etc. She could have put him for loan for 12 months instead but no and the horse isn't an easy keeper. I just don't get it 🤷‍♀️ my horses have always come first, before my own needs.

My vet is very good at avoiding visits if he can, phone calls and pictures on WhatsApp as the poster above.
But I think that's partly down to having a good working relationship in the first place, and knows that I'm experienced enough to recognise problems and deal with most things myself, and can follow his instructions.

I am a non horsey mum & whenever I read these threads I realise how lucky we’ve been to find a riding school that’s basically from the 70s!

@DistrictCommissioner brilliant that you've found a really good riding school, that's definitely the most important thing you can do. I can imagine it 😄

That's what mine is like! Dickish livery behaviour gets nipped in the bud pretty quickly and if they don't like it they are politely shown the gate 😂
We always have a waiting list because our reputation is so good (and our hacking is amazing...)

People have been bleating about the decline of horsemanship for as long as I have had horses (and that is a very long time...) So I don't know when the halcyon days of good horsemanship were meant to be - certainly not in the 70s because people exactly like the OP were lamenting the declining standards and how useless younger riders were then.

This is so true.

And if you watch Badminton from the 80s the riding is much better now (with a couple of notable exceptions)

Maybe it is just general rose tinted glasses but when i was young with ponies ie 35+ years ago everyone was DIY, horses lived out so a more natural lifestyle with hardly any obese horses etc. It just feels like there was a higher standard of care and riding ie everyone continued having lessons after they bought a horse and we resolved issues through correct riding rather than shoving more tack on the horse.
Maybe things were just simpler rather than better.
However I am pleased vet medicine and science has moved on so much from then.

I don’t think what goes on at the top level is indicative of what happens for most horses Tbf.
As a general rule I think the standard of horsemanship and welfare is a bit crap. For example it’s so normal in the U.K. to have horses that simply don’t get turned out from October- March, go to any riding school and you’ll probably see a tired, bored pony being booted in the ribs and smacked with a crop to go into trot when it’s already done four hours work that day, people with a horse that is screaming out it’s in pain… so they whack draw reins on it so it can’t go up, or just decree that it’s marish and ignore it.
I’ve (not for yonks) dressage judged in the past and have never gone a full day without having to pull someone up for a lame horse. Which concerns me that people don’t notice or can’t tell and their yard friends are too scared to tell them

We are weirdly accepting of pretty shit standards of care.

I think these days there is greater awareness of things like kissing spins, ulcers, horses aren’t naughty for no reason etc. However there is a lack of basic awareness. Do people know how to check for lami ( super important this year) do you know what feeding straights vs mixes mean, do you know the action of what your bit does etc

This is exactly what I mean. From being a teenager I was taught to take TPR every week so I could monitor horse's health. A lot of the other things you mention a lot of people have zero idea. This is why I strongly believe that there should be owner's certificates you have to pass before buying/loaning a horse that covers basics.

The lack of turnout and respect for allowing horses to just be horses is a real bugbear of mine.

I am wiling to admit I haven't been near a riding school for years and the competitions we go to are of a high standard so I don't see much terrible horsemanship.

I totally agree with you about turnout, it's a real bugbear of mine.

I’d also hazard a guess that 95% of riders at badminton did not start out at a riding school, or if they did they weren’t there long. They’ve likely had their own ponies from day dot with highly experienced talented coaches, not been in a group lesson with 7 other riders once a fortnight on a slightly lame and very fed up con and suddenly by 25 are zipping round Badminton.
The way children on their own ponies are taught is very different I think.

Where I live it is so rare for turnout during winter, clay soil. I am extremely lucky that my livery yard has very good sized pens, they aren’t on grass but at least they are out.