Practice Ride a Practice in Frustration

[Imzadi83]

and I'm far more fed up with the humans rather than the horses.

Again, my first practice ride and no one is there to greet me, check me in, tell me what to do. I finally found the person whom I was told to see by chance, they had no name tag nor nothing indicating them as staff. Was told what horse do I usually ride. Was nervous of my first practice ride so asked for my girl Stumpy. I was asked what horse I normally ride, I could've just pointed and said 'that one' for all it seemed to matter to them. They were nice and tacked her up for me. I could see in her eyes she did not want to work. And I'm sure I know why.

They do summer camp there. And according to what I've read every child gets a riding lesson each day. Well there are less than twenty horses and two school busses full of kids! Geez the horses must work constantly! Everyone you talk to there says the horses are all mean and tired during summer camp. If my horses were as miserable as these were I wouldn't be doing a summer camp. But I guess the money is more important to them.

I'm told to warm her up and do ground work for 30min & jumping for 30min just like in a regular lesson. I'm thinking 'yeah right I've never jumped and I'm not gonna start now, I'll just be happy to get her moving'. I could take her to any arena I wanted and I went inside where for the majority of the time I was alone. Now my mother was with me, I'm an adult, and ppl were within screaming distance but still....?

Stumpy was a good girl and I mounted uncharastically smoothly. I was nervous because three kids from the camp had followed my mother to the gate and were watching me. Not only that but it bugged me they were unsupervised. I mean what if my mother or me had been some psycho child molester? It only takes a minunet to snatch a kid or get injured. Sorry, that just bugs me.

I walked Stumpy around till they left cause I knew it was gonna be a fight to get her to trot. As soon as I asked her ears went back and it was 'nah huh, no way, I'll let you kick me to death fore I trot anymore today' I feel bad for kicking her what little I did. She was getting really angry and stomping her one foot on the ground. I could feel her picking that leg up and had to be careful no other horses got within kicking distance.

I also begged and pleaded with her to no avail, she wouldn't trot and I wasn't about to make her, I was already feeling a little sick just kicking her as I was. A little girl came in with a horse; walked, trotted, and cantered like it was easy as pie and went out to jump :( Ok I know everyone learns at their own pace and it was a diffrent horse, and I haven't been riding that long, but ouch. The little girl's mother was nice and went to get a riding crop for me. But apperantly ppl have been stealing them so the YO doesn't keep them anymore so unless you find one on the ground you're out of luck. Maybe it's me but that seems unprofessional to me, like how they don't have paper towels in the bathroom either.

So yeah, we never trotted. I did practice some weight/seat aid to turn that I read in Enlightened Equatition and Stumpy did respond well to that. I felt so bad for her. I mean if I was in her position I wouldn't be half as nice and I'd be dog food by now.

I got off (no one came to tell me my time was up either) and put her back in her stall. I stood there petting her and I swear not five minuntes later here came a little girl pulling her saddle off the rack, ready to tack her up again. I could have cried for poor Stumpy. I will not ride her again this next class. She deserves a vacation. It makes me so angry. I would love to have the money to run a riding school and I would never work my horses like that. I'll finsh out this quarter then find another school.

[Thistle]

Awww poor Stumpy, I bet she was grateful to you for not making her work too hard. I've not heard of practice rides before, do you just hire the horse for an hour?

[Imzadi83]

It seems like it. It frustrates me when you're new in a place and there is no one to direct you to do, I mean how are you supposed to know how they run things? Everyplace is different. *sigh*

Though it would probably be more approiate to say you hire "a" horse cause it seems to be to be first come first serve. Even if you lease a horse you aren't guaranteed to get that horse which is why I would never lease there. I mean what's the point?

[Grinyer224]

my riding school is very small/ not well known. They are generally a livery yard but do some lessons since another local school closed down, i think they have 2 school horses (others livery). i've never seen any1 else there for lessons but my horse always seems to be tired, she is always fightin me when i tighten the reins (sensitive mouth) and goes to sleep once her tack is off. I feel guilty for making her extra tired (i'm a beginner so she won't get very tired) - but she is a bit chubby so i think/hope she is just lazy.

soz bout rant

[ina.click]

It's same in my RS.

There are over 50 horses there and only about 4 for learning to ride on them, plus 3 ponies.
One pony got sold, Lava got lame, and another mare has some issues with the saddle - > will throw herself on the ground if saddled or something alike

That leaves only Fatima and Sara, a pony for the begginers and ...most of people are beginners.

I don't really like it either that they are overworked. I don't like the fact that 3 mares share a space that even my dog would feel clustered in. I dont like it that they never have any free time just work work work work.

There are so many things that I don't like there. Out of 20 people working at a RS I think merely 2 or 3 really like horses, the rest just regard it as a business. Yeh of course, the horses are better than they gypsy's horses, who look like walking skeletons, but why do we always have to compare to the worst cases...

And yes, I feel like crap riding an overworked and sad horse too.