Yikes - riding in a field with loose horses

[Hels]

Yesterday I went into the field where the geldings are turned out to do some schooling. All the farm rides are taken through this field so they are used to mares and geldings being ridden through it and people coming in to jump the jumps in a section that has been cordoned off. I've been in before and occasionally a horse will get a bit close and start showing some signs of agression towards my mare. Usually I'll shout at them and wander away to another part of the field.

This time a particularly aggressive pony was really chasing my mare, spinning round and trying to kick her. I panicked and we attempted to gallop away but Zebedee chased, oevertook, and attempted to corner us in. I ended up baling off my pony as we careered towards the jumps (did not want to get tangled up) and the whole herd was by now joining in. Poor Carrie was chased all over the place for about ten minutes by stampeding horses with various geldings attempting to bite her tail, and me yelling at them all! Eventually they left her alone, blowing hard, at the gate. I feel really guilty for throwing myself off, but with Carrie having to dodge and a herd of geldings on the chase, I am not sure I would have been able to stay on and may have risked being trampled on!

If I kept my cool, kept to a walk (and the odd dodge) and stayed on maybe the other horses would have reacted differently.

What do you think?

[Maria]

Hi Hels

I'm glad that you and Carrie are OK. I have to say that from a safety angle I wouldn't advise that anyone rode in a field of loose horses full stop, especiallly if they're riding on their own. Fortunately you and Carrie appear to have escaped serious injury but you were very lucky and it could have been a lot worse.

If that is the only schooling area available to you perhaps you could do your flat work in the area which has been cordoned off for jumps.

I am surprised that farm rides are taken this route. Is the school registered with the BHS or the ABRS?

Maria

[Fraggle (C)]

It doesn't sound safe to have to exercise your mare in a field full of geldings.

Is there anywhere else you can go?

I sometimes have a slight problem with Sam as the menage is next to a field where one mare grazes and she can provide quite a distraction on her own!

Can you ask for an area to be cornered off for you?


:)

[Hels]

I don't think brave's the word - probably stupid. I use the outdoor arena if there are no lessons going on but there is also another area I can use with no horses on it. I didn't realise we were allowed to use it until recently so I think I will just go there in future. I'm still interested though in what people think about handling that sort of a situation in case I come across it again!

[virtuallyhorses]

When I was trialling my horse, my riding area was one of the owners paddocks where a few young racehorses were kept. Occasionally they come over and 'play' a bit close but generally Imp would warn them off, or they'd get my boot in their nosey faces. We frequently had a nice line of horses following our schooling, which must have looked funny to passers-by but we never had any 'trouble', even when cantering.

Mind you it sounds like these babies had better manners than those ponies - so much for TB's being tear-aways ;)

[LittleBeth]

A few weeks ago my favorite horse, Gemma, had to be put down because her owner was riding her in a paddock with a loose horse who was being a bit playful. When he kicked out he got Gemma in the knee.

It made me so angry because our friend had warned her owner many times of this danger.

It really sucked because I hadn't seen gemma in almost a month as I havn't been on the best terms with her owner lately.

[galadriel]

If you're in a situation where you have to ride around other horses, you may just want to carry a long dressage whip. If horses try to pester your mount, shoo them off (if you can). If you're worried about any of the horses in particular, or you know that as a group they can be agressive, ...I'd find somewhere else to ride!

I have known several geldings that I would not ride around, period. I had some jumps set up in the field where one of them was turned out. To use those jumps, I either waited until he was inside for the night or shooed the geldings into the "chute" by their pasture till I was done.

When I rode in high school, the only area we had to ride was the pasture around the barn. However, it was just one pasture; all the horses were turned out together and knew each other (there were never more than 4-5 at a time, too). I actually never had any problems--but then, I was never riding a "strange" horse through a field of horses who might want to get to know it.

My most tense moment was when I was riding in one corner of the pasture, and on the other side about 3 of them suddenly got the wind in their tails, or something, and started playing: galloping around the pasture. They went around me *twice*! Once on the way to the corner, and then again after turning around and heading back. The little guy I was on just stood. there; I was so proud :) --but had he been a little less calm or more spooky, he might have just taken off with them.

[Peace]

LittleBeth: I'm so sorry to hear about Gemma. It's always hard to lose a horse, but especially so when you know it could have been prevented.

Personally, you couldn't pay me enough money to ride Quanah in the pasture with his herd! I spend lots of time watching them interact, since I'm relatively new to horses and I'm trying to learn more about their social structure. My horse is young (3 and a half years), so there's lots of interactions to watch!

Constant games of "my head's higher than yours." Quanah, being short, loses this one a lot, so he's added his own variation: "I may be short but I can throw my weight into you and spin you around like a top.":) And he seems to believe herdmates are perfectly acceptable chew toys, although he's starting to get told off for this behavior!

Naturally, they are well-mannered enough not to play these games too close to a human on foot (although it pays to keep an eye on them!). But I don't know if they would show the same respect to a person on a horse. I sure don't want to be the one to find out! :eek:

[ridehorses]

we sometimes ride in a large field where the boarders are turned out, because there is a course of jumps at one end. our whole lesson goes out though (about 8 people) and so there are as much of us as there are loose horses. they acted up probably because you were alone. i think you were rather brave, and i dont think there was much else you could do!:D but, as others have said...maybe you should stick to the cordoned off area's

[VickiN]

You did the most sensible thing, "If in dout bail out" luckily you were in a confined area though.

We have a problem as in the only hacking areas are either a over a motoway bridge and as most of you know the soundest most bombproof horses still have problems doing this (unfortunatley I speak from experience) or a long a rather busy road which feels like it never ends and along this never-ending road is a rather unfriendly Shire which is in this field by himself because he doesn't get on with horses! comes flying at the fence whenever you go by so you are stuck between the flying shire and the flying traffic, which are completely oblivious to your very existance.

So as a relative novice with a new horse (Sinbad 15.3 TBx cob) at the "getting to know you" stage, I'll stick to the school until the tailer arrives.

[$@R@H]

:o:oBit embrassed to say that we sometimes ride in a paddock with mares and foals in it. We never get any trouble from the mares or a foals. And our horses are used to the foals being around so it dosen't bother them