Can stables weigh my daughter rather than accept my word?

[TheQuaintLemonDuck]

Are stables entitled to weigh my daughter rather than just take my word for it?

I’ve been around horses for over 50 years and people do lie about their Weight.

@WheretheFishesareFrightening - "... Weight is a data point, in itself it has no judgement at all. If you're suggesting your daughter doesn't get weighed in a normal process then you're attributing something negative to the scales (she may already have absorbed this though, of course)..."

This.

Somebody's weight in kg or stones is just a number on an arbitrary scale. It doesn't on its own say whether the person is "overweight" or not

If they are overweight (or underweight) their physical appearance will likely be as much of a giveaway as their weight

I've never understood this sort of thinking. They have eyes. They will be able to see if she's overweight or significantly heavier than the weight you're claiming to be.

Of course they can check, and they absolutely should, to be on the safe side for the horses, particularly with novice or inexperienced riders. It would be ‘kinder’ (for want of a better word!) to weigh everyone as a matter of course probably so no one feels singled out, I suppose.

This has to be a reverse…of course the stables should weigh the kids if the rider is borderline for the horse. It should be done privately and discreetly but it still needs doing!

To be honest, her weight probably has changed as she will have grown over the last 6 months. You’re actually lying by admission as you don’t know her current weight! I’m also guessing she’s a slightly heavier child. I’d also guess she’s probably too big for the pony she rode last year!

Our riding club weighs all the kids every term.

They absolutely should be weighing riders. You might have got her weight wrong, you might have lied so she can ride a particular pony.

The horses’ welfare comes before a human’s feelings every single time.

I have seen some riding schools cover the numbers with colours. Each horse is categorised into a colour so if you’re on say, pink, then you can have a horse from the pink selection. I like this as it moves it away from what you weigh and puts the focus on the horse.

Yes, there were 2 threads on it as the thread filled up last year!

Horses deserve to be protected from riders that are too heavy from them.

I would expect a stables to weigh any child that looks the top end of the parents stated weight/parents unsure of weight.
My son rides and I haven’t a clue what he weighs now, when i had to put a weight for him I asked them to weigh him….
he’s so skinny that they’ve never weighed him again so he must look whatever the weight needs to be for the horse they give him to ride.
If they wanted to weigh him again to check that he was an ok weight for the horse he was meant to ride, then he’d just be weighed.
I don’t have any scales in the house so would rather they didn’t rely on my guesstimates…
There is obviously a bigger issue here than being weighed for riding, you must be concerned that she’s heavier than the weight you’ve stated or you think they will judge her weight.
They really don’t do it to be unkind, they just want to not put a heavier child on a small pony when a bigger one would be more suitable.

You must not get out much ... I see parents lie all the time about their children's behaviour, their abilities, their accomplishments, what they've said, etc ... lying about weight would be no different. These people don't care about others, including animals.

Would you think it acceptable to just 'tell' an anaesthetist the weight of your daughter pre-surgery?

All riding schools have weight limits, and your daughter is practically an adult size at 17, so they do need to check her weight.

Where I ride I was originally weighed (as an adult) with all my gear on and was slightly horrified that by the time I've got full clothing, helmet, boots and body protector on I was 11 stone. So weighing at the stables is actually important as obviously a horse has to carry to just the riders weight but all the 'gear' too, vs weighing at home.

I was happy to do it as I respect the welfare of the horses they provide for me to enjoy my riding, and they did it quietly in a corner!

😂
Good one.

I am so sick of seeing poor overloaded ponies with far too heavy kids on them stretching their necks out and trying to compensate for the massive child on their back. Stables should get every child on the scales before they get on a pony, no exceptions. Your child's hurt feelings do not outweigh animal safety.

@Deathby
Fully agree, also the clearly overweight adults on poor horses , so irresponsible and cruel.

I was thinking exactly the same thing - that mum had posted twice about that issue.

And, yes, for the wellbeing of their horses, they should be able to weight your child. You have a right to say no and they have a right to refuse your daughter onto one of their horses.

Ugh..
Two last posters. Fully agree.

Parents lie

Parents dont know weight and guess

Home scales are not working properly so parent gives wrong weight in error.

Outdoor clothing/helmet/boots will add quite a bit compared to weighing in pyjamas.

Some parents believe their kids weight 6 months ago will be the same.

Of course the stables should weigh the child if they are not sure of weight.

Also maybe someone else wants that horse or that horse is better suited for someone else in group. Let your dd know she may not get same horse. You can ask but make dd aware she may not get horse she had before.

You didn’t see the thread you created? taking the piss a bit now.

where do you see this??

no the thread from last year!

Welfare of animals trumps your daughters hurty feelings.

How many DDs do you have? How old is the pony riding daughter?

Why don’t you weigh her today and see if it’s the same weight as six months ago? Does she weigh the same as you put on the form?