# Scariest thing you have heard a person say that owns horses



## JadeWisc (16 May 2011)

I have heard/seen some scary things by horse owners.   Today I heard a dandy 

Someone I know had a foal born last night.  When I asked the sex they said .. "Well we don't see any balls so it must be a girl" 

I also remember a lady who had some nice fencing.  One sagging rusty strand of barbed wire about 2 feet  of the ground.  When I asked her how on Earth this kept her herd of ten in she said " My horses are trained well"


I heard a few months later that they were all running down the highway


so let's hear yours   Sometimes you don't know if you should  laugh or cry


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## LouS (16 May 2011)

Horse colicing and clearly quite distressed, horse has been like this all sweated up for 30 mins, I assumed vet was on way, quote owner after asking me to come over 'should I call the vet?', and also whilst waiting for vet 'I hope she can still go out tomorrow night.' Sometimes I just want to bang my head against the wall, or bang someone's head against the wall.

There's actually loads I could go on and on, but its more the things I see that are scary, than the things that are said, mainly because I try not to converse with these people in case I hit them.


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## V1NN (16 May 2011)

This lassie who was extremely novice (although thought she was a great dressage rider) she was riding her horse and she said i'll show you him doing a turn on the forehand and with that she dragged the horses nose round to her knee and forced it to walk in a tiny circle round and round. I was like wtf!?! one of those jaw drop moments and i had to walk away. 

This same girl was going to breed from her mare and she'd only keep it if it was a colt as she wanted a stallion!? She also told me her horse was so highly strung it needed sedating for the farrier and even then they had to do 2 feet at a time to get it done quick.......yeah really.


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## miss_bird (16 May 2011)

I have given up with sharing yards as i really cannot be doing with listening to the above type of crap.
Shocking what some people will come out with and really mean it


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## PonyIAmNotFood (16 May 2011)

Not the scariest but still dodgy, 'a saddles a saddle, if it doesn't touch the withers its fine, if it does stick a pad under it'. *Cringe*


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## c2b (16 May 2011)

Young girl bought her first horse. It was known to have had laminitis in the past and she knew she had to be careful how she managed it.
My jaw dropped to the floor one day when she informed me that if they get laminitis you have to turn them out onto really long green grass!! I kid you not. 
Some clever cow on the yard had told her to do that!!
Same person who gave out loads of incorrect advice about all manner of subjects. I can only assume she thought it funny.....


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## Snowysadude (16 May 2011)

Im not turning my horse out overnight as I dont want him getting fat..... Not scary no? Horse is currently very underweight and was bought a couple of weeks ago!! 

Ill ride him through the lameness he might be sounder at the end after a jump to loosen up (horse was very lame and only 6 so shouldnt be stiff!)......

Oh I have heard plenty, people leaving there horses with no food all night because they are fat, thinking because they read somewhere to do something that it would be a miracle cure for their horse etc...


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## K27 (16 May 2011)

" He doesn't really need to eat much at all as he thrives on happiness" - that one was from a lady who clearly must have had a very low feed bill each month! Lol!


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## LouS (16 May 2011)

Oh another one, really obese old mare, turned out straight onto really lush spring fields from bald winter paddocks, no muzzle, no restriction. Me being absolutely appalled asked what on earth. Quote owner: 'if she's in she'll only be getting fat off hay, so she might as well be out'. Errr don't feed it too much hay then?! I have no idea how its still alive. It also has really severe respiratory problems and is on a straw bed with unsoaked hay.

I have a headache.


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## timefort (16 May 2011)

Probably:

"She's just a baby" from the owner of a (7 year old) horse who on getting bored of being led would spin and kick out, invariably taking out a rib or two from whoever was unfortunate enough to be leading.


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## silvertinsel (16 May 2011)

LOL those are crackers! ^^ 

'I dont like side reins, I want my horse to naturally bring its head down' - said the rider who was seasawing her horse's mouth for half an hour in the school. 
'have you seen how much A feeds their horse? They'll kill it!' - said the one who soon came out of the tackroom with a 1/2 water bucket sized dinner for the horse that needed NO food whatsoever!
'I'm learning parelli' - said the girl who put her parelli halter on, and the 9ft rope, and a saddle, and a bridle over the top of the halter, and then SIDE REINS! lol that one was a cracker!
'my horse is being suspiciously whizzy. I'm only feeding it mix, sugar beet and chaff.' 
"why do u ride out with a whip youre horse is very forward going!" 'Because he is naughty.'

There are LOADS of them worse than that that I have heard though, I love ear wigging at shows, thats where you get the corkers!


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## Flicker (16 May 2011)

'What's a vetting?' - from someone who is constantly being bucked off by the schoolmaster she bought from the local riding school.


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## c2b (16 May 2011)

After a vet had told this person her horse was "morbidly obese" she told me, "Of course these vets are so used to seeing thoroughbreds they don't know cobs are supposed to look like this".
Even my non horsey OH who can barely tell the pointy eating end from the blunt poo-ing end can tell the difference. 

When the farrier told her to be careful as her horse had a huge fat crest she got cross and informed him it was muscle not fat. I keep trying that one about my spare tyre round my middle but no one believes me either!


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## caitlineloise (16 May 2011)

Not horse owners, but.. Non horsey parent's in a tack shop getting ready to buy a lunge whip for their daughter to take to the riding school, to ride with, would of been interesting to see.. 
"He said the long ones"

Maybe I shouldn't of pointed them in the direction of the schooling whips


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## Wagtail (16 May 2011)

"We have a big garden so thought we'd buy *insert daughter's name* a pony."


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## Wagtail (16 May 2011)

"Yes, I know he'd love a friend but our relationship would be spoiled if I got another horse."


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## Wagtail (16 May 2011)

Said to me by a very experienced yard owner and dressage rider when my horse was napping. "Give her a really good thrashing".


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## JadeWisc (16 May 2011)

Wagtail said:



			"Yes, I know he'd love a friend but our relationship would be spoiled if I got another horse."
		
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I have heard this one too


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## corbleu (16 May 2011)

Lol and I thought it was just at our yard! One girl (absolutely lovely but could do with helpful pointers - and yes I have tried  ) came back from a local show and informed me and other half that "my mate took her horse to show and it trashed every single fence so I'm going to take mine to next one whether it's ready or not - I mean it's all about having a fun day out isn't it?!" (other half commented on way home "I always thought you had fun because you knew your horse would at least attempt a jump!")


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## dressagelove (16 May 2011)

not that scary but funny, 

this guy who was on our yard, bless him, he meant well but was clueless about horses said, 'how big is this horse? he looks about 15.3hh, or maybe even 15.4hh,' oh how we laughed!


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## rossiroo (16 May 2011)

Heard at showjumping     " my horse jumps too high and fast, thats why we have poles down"     and the clasic      "The ### horse took the wrong course" thease were at affiliated shows !    Also in warm up after crashing into people " Don't they realise that I cann't stop after the jump!!"  I also shan't say where one girl though that the wormer syringe went!!!


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## fatpiggy (16 May 2011)

Hey Hayley, given your location I think this was the same chap who was on our yard for 12 months. Claimed his horse was 16.5hh or something.  I have to agree with you about him being clueless but no he didn't mean well at all - in the year or more he was with us his horse saw the farrier precisely twice so you can imagine what state its hooves were in and how it kept the shoes on is a mystery.  He had it fully clipped (despite the fact it hadn't been ridden at all in 6 months, then left it out one night naked in November in pouring rain and a gale, then left it in a medium weight in July when he went away for the weekend (without telling anyone).  He told me he was going to ride it around Summerfield (again hadn't been ridden in nearly 9 months by this time) - it took me a while to realise he meant Somerford Park.  He used to read about something on the internet then spout off all knowledgeably but unfortunately for him we could all tell it was just blarney and he actually knew sweet FA about horses.


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## ElphabaFae (16 May 2011)

At quite a well known RS. "Hit it until it moves"

Should point out that I didn't and left a short time after!


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## carousel8703 (16 May 2011)

Have heard the height mistake loads of times. 
Been asked for a baboon bit instead of a bradoon. 
Unfortunatly got called out with vet to a horse with a horribly broken leg and the owner asked what we were going to do about it!!! 
Know people who have a mare and a 2 year old that they bred from the mare and now cant control either. An accident waiting to happen!!! They said this week that they are putting the mare in foal again!!!


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## peanut (16 May 2011)

On showing my surprise that someone was giving their horse a huge meal of hard feed by their horse box after a 15 mile xc ride in over 26 degree searing heat:  "we always feed after a hack".


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## Ahrena (16 May 2011)

Mine was a couple of weeks ago, someone turned 3 horses out in the paddock next to mine. Its a section used at my yard as a hospital paddock, mine was in a small one on her own as she goes on/off lame with advanced navicular and it was her first day out for a couple of days..

They were in there because apparantly they had ragwort posioning..No joke, that field they put them in has more ragwort than grass, I spent 3 hours pulling it yesterday and hardly got anywhere! Apparantly she picked it all >.<


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## Hanno Verian (16 May 2011)

From a horsey magazine a few years ago in the advice letters section:

"I know I'm only a novice where horses are concerned but I'm planning to back my four year old soon, can anyone give me some advice?"

Same magazine in feature about towing and travelling horses:

"Motorway service areas offer an ideal place to offload your horses, let them stretch and have some grass!"


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## Elf On A Shelf (16 May 2011)

The best one I have heard in a while - Oh I have entered him for a show in a few weeks time to do the lead rein and first ridden. Not so unusual? Not if it was their own pony! She had entered mine and told me to have it cleaned and ready for her at the show!


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## Amaranta (16 May 2011)

'My horse is allergic to protein'

Err yes luv and he would be dead if he was


'My 3yo keeps bucking me off, should I give him a calmer - no he does not get turned out as the other horses don't like him'

*head desk*


'I got a 2yo, I thought we could learn together'

This from a complete novice!


There was also the dressage rider who refused to give her horses a haynet after competition 'In case they colicked'

I have loads more of these little gems too


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## Mithras (16 May 2011)

A farrier once told me that my horse's shoes were lasting only 4 1/2 weeks between shoeing that I was "over-hacking her".

I hacked twice a week maximum for an hour, she went 7 weeks between shoeing when I moved away from the area (notorious for poor quality of farriers) and she had great feet!  It was just that he liked to make more money from re-shoeing every 4 1/2 weeks by doing a poor job in the first place.


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## Miss L Toe (16 May 2011)

Said by a BHS trained person .. no he does not get fed (a wintered out TB) as he does not earn his keep, .......  from then on I took her advice and only fed my boy on the days I rode him, this worked well until I came back after a long weekend n Duabai to find he had expired, .... horses!


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## binkymerlin (16 May 2011)

MrsD123 said:



			Said by a BHS trained person .. no he does not get fed (a wintered out TB) as he does not earn his keep, .......  from then on I took her advice and only fed my boy on the days I rode him, this worked well until I came back after a long weekend n Duabai to find he had expired, .... horses!
		
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My one is 'if you keep training my youngster he is going to like you better than us' 

yawn!

a pony with cronic lami   'ride her thru it she will be fine and come sound'

lol some crackers on here


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## Javabb94 (16 May 2011)

so what feed is he on? - "he gets a bucketfull of carrots every day"

does he get hay in the winter?(this was when there was 2 ft of snow) - "no he will have to rummage through the snow to get to the grass"

"i dont believe breeds from other countries should be allowed in Britain, they should stay in their own countries" - says the girl who has a cob - doesnt she realise that most cobs have a bit of everything in and that welsh's are descended from arabs

all by the same person :/


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## lexiedhb (16 May 2011)

I think the girl on here who was feeding her horse acorns was a pretty good one.

"she is a good kids pony", "um no she is not- she has just stood straight up with your daughter" "well she wouldnt do it with me" "hence she is NOT a good kids pony"


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## badgerdog (16 May 2011)

When suggesting to a pony breeder friend that maybe it would be better if she didn't have a barbed wire fence after one of her youngsters was badly injured on it, she replied - 

'Well it was his fault, he shouldn't have tried to jump out'!


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## ElphabaFae (16 May 2011)

"I know what I am doing" from a lady at the RS who was trying to get her daughter on the pony because she didn't have the patience to wait for me to help her  Lucky I got there before the daughter stepped on the stirrup because I could fit my hand sideways between the girth and the pony  

"The pony is tired now, so I'm going to get off" From a RS cilent who was only on there 2nd lesson and after 20 minutes of walking decided her pony was tired. So halted it in the middle of the school, dismounted and handed it back to the instructor. This one is what happened in a friends lesson.


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## Spotsrock (16 May 2011)

Went to veiw a hatrack of a tb mare been in same home 10+ years. Asked when her teeth were last done to be told she had never needed it as she was a good doer and had no problems chewing her food! Poor horse was in agony, I bought it and had it fixed. Lovely little mare.


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## ThePinkPony (16 May 2011)

as said to me as i was pulling up ragwort in a paddock...

''Oh do leave that, its ever so pretty and the horses will love a bit of variety'' 

but its ragwort...

''is it?? i thought ragwort was white''...

no, thats cow parsley, this is ragwort... you do realise its deadly to horses...

''oh, well in that case could you do the feilds H***** and l***** are in too please''...

And same woman, ''dont pick H**** feet out today, he has a terrible limp and i dont want you making it worse'' 

(had a quick look, the poor thing had a bit of flint wedged in his foot, so i picked it out)

''see (5 minutes later) he's absolutely sound now, just putting it on for us werent you..''

she had owned horses ''for more years than youve had hot dinners my dear''...


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## *hic* (16 May 2011)

Recently told this by a novice owner: My mini was absolutely hopping lame when I led him so I put him in the cart to give him some exercise but he was even worse after a few miles. So I put him on box rest and gave him some bute. The farrier says he's really fat and has laminators (really!) but I don't like seeing his sad little face looking over the door so I give him plenty of feeds.

Then we also have my next door neighbour whose very elderly lami-prone mare is always given first pick of the fresh grass every year and every year can be seen standing rocked back on her heels. Guess who has been advising the novice owner with the mini.


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## happyhack (16 May 2011)

I don't know why XX keeps going lame....
After horse had been on box rest for months after a broken leg, turned straight out in a field and then cantered around the school when vet advised just to walk........

I cant belive how muscled XX still is after 2 months box rest.....
Says the owner whilst WOBBLING horses neck....

^^ all the same owner

Well XX is not lame so thats one good thing
Says the groom who has just mixed the bute into horses feed that was kicked in the field a couple of days prior, has massive swelling and a gaping wound......

Scary stuff!


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## E_Lister (16 May 2011)

I was asked to look after an absolute barrel of a shetland who I am always amazed doesn't have lami. 

They had her in a lush, green, grass to the knees field with no muzzle and no way to restrict it. 

After explaining all my concerns, I asked if I could strip graze her in order to try restrict grass intake... no! I asked if I could put a muzzle on her... no!

I asked why. "I don't want her to get hungry, and she always looks sad if I exercise her.  Anyway, I like her to hold a little weight!!"

Needless to say I was excercising her every single day (sometimes twice) and worrying constantly. I was incredibly relieved when they FINALLY started to listen and put her in a lami paddock, unfortunately soon after that they decided they didn't need me to help anymore


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## glitterbug (16 May 2011)

On arriving at the yard, one owner says " Jim is so very lame I think he has broken a bone in his foot, I have lunged him for 20 minutes on the concrete but he is no better"  
Thankfully it was pus in the foot and nothing more


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## JustKickOn (16 May 2011)

XX has laminitis, so she's on box rest, but she gets lots of apples, carrots and a big feed, so she shan't go hungry.
Poor mare got so bad she nearly had to be PTS


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## piggyinablanket (16 May 2011)

"I dont want to ride another horse as 'X' (retired horse) will see me and would be upset." 

I kid you not.


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## indie999 (16 May 2011)

Laminitic overweight shetland(you know the big barrel type about to explode) vet told them to keep it on on strict diet stabled as it couldnt walk and had POLOs on a string so that the pony wouldnt get bored!! When challenged ie that contains sugar apparently, we didnt know what we were talking about as she belonged to the pony club!

urghhhhhhhhhhhh!


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## Cedars (16 May 2011)

I did a cracker the other day. Wasn't concentrating at the saddlery when a man asked me if my youngster was a mare. I said, no, she's a skewbald. 

In my defence he was driving me nuts and I wasn't concentrating because I was reading shampoo bottles!!! 

Heard the height one before.


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## Jesstickle (16 May 2011)

'My horse has broken it's leg, you can see the bone sticking out' said whilst pointing at said horse's elbow!


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## MurphysMinder (16 May 2011)

From a woman with a grossly overweight welsh type pony, "she has got to this age (around 9) without laminitis so she will never get it now".  She also told everyone my daughter was cruel and starving our 2 as they were kept in during the day to try and keep their weight down.


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## Luci07 (16 May 2011)

The saddest and was devasting for the poor friend who this happened to..

YO calling me trying to get hold of said friend urgently - we were all trying to get hold of her - she was in a new job and was ignoring us thinking it was just us trying to say happy birthday.

YO had to tell her that her horse had broken his leg in his field..

Friend - thats awful - how long will he be off for?

Think that is possibly going to be the worst birthday she ever had, had to be told when in a brand new job, and was completely floored.  Horse had been mine I had sold to her and they had formed a very good partnership so very upsetting for all.


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## tillytime (16 May 2011)

First lesson in years at a local RS. Saddle slipped as I got on so instructor informed:  "It always does that, I'll try and tighten it but it doesn't actually fit the horse, so you'll just have to put your weight into the opposite stirrup if it moves!!!" 

Could not believe it ... NEVER WENT BACK!


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## ThePinkPony (16 May 2011)

tillytime said:



			First lesson in years at a local RS. Saddle slipped as I got on so instructor informed:  "It always does that, I'll try and tighten it but it doesn't actually fit the horse, so you'll just have to put your weight into the opposite stirrup if it moves!!!" 

Could not believe it ... NEVER WENT BACK!
		
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^^ lol i think i know her!

had the same experience.. ''the problem is theres no point having separate tack for riding school horses, and if you have loose tack it teaches you to balance better...''


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## HorseGirl18 (16 May 2011)

buying a horse at the moment..

we picked him up for a 2 week trial and i said, "im not sure though if he will jump the height" as when i first tried him we only jumped small because he was slipping and it wasnt fair on him.
the owner turned round and said, "just hit him with a scaffold pole a few times as he goes over the fence, he'll soon jump high enough then."


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## Morgan123 (16 May 2011)

how about - in the middle of winter, freezing cold -4 in daytime, with automatic troughs frozen over so liveries all asking farmer to fill up the troughs, he says 'I'm not going to bother filling them up by very much, there's no point as they'll just freeze again'.


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## Louby (16 May 2011)

Waiting for assistance in a well known horse shop a few years ago, a lovely doting husband wanted to buy a saddle to fit a cob as a xmas present for his wife.  Assistant said what size do you want, husband said, hmmmm dont know, its about this big and raises arm.  Assistant then sells him a brand new saddle, she does say, if it doesnt fit you can bring it back but I was gobsmacked.  Off he went happy as larry


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## SusieT (16 May 2011)

'Said to me by a very experienced yard owner and dressage rider when my horse was napping. "Give her a really good thrashing"'
I don't understand this one-it is certainly one solution and often v. successful, not exactly a 'scarily unkowledgeable' thing? Possibly something you don't agree with but then maybe your horse wouldn't be napping (of course I don't know the full story I suppose)


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## silvertinsel (16 May 2011)

Lol I know I've already posted, but I saw someone else on here write about something stupid they said or did and I felt able to announce that yes I can be one of those people that embarresses themselves without thinking!
Went to a show yesterday and was feeling a little nervy so left nag with dad and OH and I went off to get number and pay for class. I was filling in the entry form and it said 'height' and thought that was a strange thing to have to write down, but didnt think too much about it and wrote '5ft5'. Got to the desk and the woman laughed and scribbled it out. I later found out she wanted the horse's height, she must have thought I was a complete numpty!


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## silvertinsel (16 May 2011)

SusieT said:



			'Said to me by a very experienced yard owner and dressage rider when my horse was napping. "Give her a really good thrashing"'
I don't understand this one-it is certainly one solution and often v. successful, not exactly a 'scarily unkowledgeable' thing? Possibly something you don't agree with but then maybe your horse wouldn't be napping (of course I don't know the full story I suppose)
		
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I dont understand either? Are you saying you would beat a horse if it was napping? Lol whatttttt?


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## mymare (16 May 2011)

On having a horse signed over to the sanctuary where I used to work, owner hands mare to me "she was always lame on that leg so I just used to give her a good kick on the other "shin" so it evened it up before I rode her".

Worst and most frightening thing I ever heard was from a vet who had been treating a lawyer's horse.  Lawyer was complete novice.  Couldn't understand why the syringe-full of wormer didn't come with a needle on the end, so he cut a hole in the horse's neck with a Stanley knife...


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## PuzzlePatch (16 May 2011)

mymare said:



			On having a horse signed over to the sanctuary where I used to work, owner hands mare to me "she was always lame on that leg so I just used to give her a good kick on the other "shin" so it evened it up before I rode her".

Worst and most frightening thing I ever heard was from a vet who had been treating a lawyer's horse.  Lawyer was complete novice.  Couldn't understand why the syringe-full of wormer didn't come with a needle on the end, so he cut a hole in the horse's neck with a Stanley knife...
		
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That is horrific...even a complete novice should have some common sense.


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## Brambridge04 (16 May 2011)

How about this (bit long)

Very young girl, unhorsey parents, totally over horsed with a safe cob.

"He is so ploddy, so ive been feeding him a high sugar diet"

2 weeks later pony is in a waterford gag because "i cant do anything as i have no brakes"


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## baymareb (16 May 2011)

A girl at my barn offered me some helpful advice - my TB mare was just coming off stall rest and was rather hot on the lead - "Put her in a bit and when she misbehaves, just *yank* on it really hard!

Girl who keeps her horse in the pasture - "When he doesn't come to me right off, I don't feed him so he'll learn that he gets rewarded when he's caught."

Woman whose gelding needed a sheath cleaning so badly that he was permanently dropped with nasty, scabby, crusty gunk all over his stuff, swollen sheath, and the poor thing could barely pee - "Oh, he's always been like that. He's fine."


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## HudsonsDad (16 May 2011)

Wagtail said:



			Said to me by a very experienced yard owner and dressage rider when my horse was napping. "Give her a really good thrashing".
		
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Had that advice!


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## Amaranta (16 May 2011)

silvertinsel said:



			I dont understand either? Are you saying you would beat a horse if it was napping? Lol whatttttt?
		
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If a horse is napping there is absolutely nothing wrong in giving a quick sharp smack with a stick - what would you do if a horse misbehaves?


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## Horseback Rider (16 May 2011)

Years ago after I had lost my horse of a lifetime to colic, I went in to work and another lady who had just brought a horse said " So sorry I heard you lost her " Yes I replied " So what happened she asked ?" Colic I replied " Oh she said and what is that then ?"


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## Lydz13 (16 May 2011)

"If you're going to ride your horse xcountry, you'll ruin her for dressage because she'll have no breaks, it screws them in the head, even if you do it only once..."

Well meaning work colleague today.....

Please explain the concept of a 3 day event to me?


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## Jane_Lou (16 May 2011)

The people whose mare has broken down for the 2nd time due to poor foot and front leg confirmation that are putting her in foal as she "is so sweet" , a real headdesk


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## Paint Me Proud (16 May 2011)

A livery at the yard, who has been riding another novice liveries just hap-hazardly backed rising 4 year old cob, came up to me and asked "Have you got any spurs?" when i asked why she replied "because [cob] is ignoring the whip now and i need something to give him a good jab with to wake him up" 
Thankfully cob owner was persuaded my YM to have lessons with the regular RI and her cob is now doing so much better under saddle and owner is thrilled


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## Montyforever (16 May 2011)

Grossly overweight welsh a (i mean bad, she was as wide as she was tall!!) -

"No no, my grass doesnt contain laminitus, never had a horse in 15 years on this grass get laminitus"

Prev horses had all been arabs/arab x's - needless to say while i was looking after them i exercised welsh a - lots! Then she started feeding her senior mix .. because she "would drop weight" if i carried on lunging her so much  Luckily pony was on loan and was taken back not long after i quit!


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## ElphabaFae (16 May 2011)

Going back to what I said earlier about being told to hit the pony until it moves. It would nap but if you used your whip it would buck for England. So she made me dismount and hand her pony, she then held onto the reins and smacked him 3 times hard over the quarters and handed him back to me and told me to teach him a lesson if he napped again! She was the YM as well 

Mind you this was the same yard that techinque to stop on the RS horses from rearing was to hit it until it went forward and they didn't have it's back or anything checked out first and they apparently years ago was they loaded one of their horses with a tractor by pushing it up the ramp :shocked: 

This is a well known RS btw!


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## unicornleather (16 May 2011)

rossiroo said:



			Heard at showjumping     " my horse jumps too high and fast, thats why we have poles down"     and the clasic      "The ### horse took the wrong course" thease were at affiliated shows !    Also in warm up after crashing into people " Don't they realise that I cann't stop after the jump!!"  I also shan't say where one girl though that the wormer syringe went!!!
		
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LOL, Oz


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## SophieLouBee (17 May 2011)

Me: So is she for you then? (4yo 'part-broken tb mare)
Anon: No, she's for my 15 yo daughter, she has had a pony on loan who was such a naughty pony before, but he's retired and she has outgrown him anyway.
Me: (after a moment of silence) Is she having lessons atm?
Anon: She can ride, I mean, he was very naughty, but no, she is riding her friends pony occasionally.
Me: Maybe as she has never ridden a bigger horse, she should get some lessons (anything to get the girl having proper lessons first), and when I have done the initial backing and made sure she is ok (I highly doubt this) I would like to be here to give her some lessons and pointers on riding a young horse (god help us)
Anon: Yes that would be good, she will be fine with just you here, with me she is awful and refuses to do anything (daughter not horse). She won't lead her out of the field because she plays up, she doesn't have a lot to do with her yet.
Me: (laughs uncomfortably) 

What is going on inside my head: Lemme get this right, you have bought a 4yo unbroken tb for a young girls FIRST HORSE, when she has never ridden anything but ponies, she IS SCARED OF LEADING this horse, who ok is a bit farty, but not bad, and she HASN'T HAD LESSONS IN YEARS. Brilliant!

What's a bet this horse was cheap?!


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## somethingorother (17 May 2011)

'I've been around horses since before you were born, go away, i will do it' -- parent girthing up a cold backed pony when i worked at a riding school years ago. He reared up, nearly fell over and ended up sat on the bonnet of her car. And her child had her chaps on the wrong legs. Pony was fine btw. 

'pull the reins and kick really hard at the same time'-- same riding school. (needless to say i've never seen so many chronic rearers in one place as there were there.)


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## Crazy Friesian (17 May 2011)

Amaranta said:



			If a horse is napping there is absolutely nothing wrong in giving a quick sharp smack with a stick - what would you do if a horse misbehaves?  

Click to expand...

OMG!!!!!!  Ahh PLENTY!!!  Smacking it wouldn't necessarily be high on my list!!!!!!


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## ferrador (17 May 2011)

working with several clients a day , one of the regular things we hear is " you are right ,i agree with with you 100% but its different for me and my horse "
chris


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## EstherYoung (17 May 2011)

Some of these are reminding me why I have as little to do with livery yards as possible....

Although:



			On showing my surprise that someone was giving their horse a huge meal of hard feed by their horse box after a 15 mile xc ride in over 26 degree searing heat: "we always feed after a hack".
		
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Maybe it's my endurance side coming out but I'd probably feed in that situation too. Albeit a damp one that was either soaked or contained beet. It's drummed into us - keep the gut moving. In that respect eating is as important as drinking, and if the feed is damp it will help to rehydrate them too. When I first upped the distance with my lad, the thing that really clicked with keeping him hydrated was realising that if he ate, he would drink.

Half a bag of dry high energy mix with no access to water, yes, daft idea. But a regular sized feed, damped down, ideally containing something fibrous, and with free access to water, that's a good idea.


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## teddyt (17 May 2011)

I find instructors recommending a stronger bit/gadget/spurs/whipping scary when actually the horse is just scared/uneducated/physically incapable of doing what has been asked. Its bad enough when an owner jumps for a quick fix but when instructors are teaching people too its no wonder people have problems.

Whatever happened to horsemanship, patience and understanding? Rome wasnt built in a day.

Along those lines i find it sad when people expect their new horse to behave the same in its new home as its old home. If i had a pound for every time i heard 'Ive had my horse a month and its napping/im having trouble/its a nightmare...Why?'


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## unicornleather (17 May 2011)

teddyt said:



			I find instructors recommending a stronger bit/gadget/spurs/whipping scary when actually the horse is just scared/uneducated/physically incapable of doing what has been asked. Its bad enough when an owner jumps for a quick fix but when instructors are teaching people too its no wonder people have problems.

Whatever happened to horsemanship, patience and understanding? Rome wasnt built in a day.

Along those lines i find it sad when people expect their new horse to behave the same in its new home as its old home. If i had a pound for every time i heard 'Ive had my horse a month and its napping/im having trouble/its a nightmare...Why?'
		
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I SO agree with you!
Oz


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## Miss L Toe (17 May 2011)

The young instructor has come from a different background to those who had to learn to ride on lots of different horses, they do all the book learning, but it is not corrected, they are just given a pass if they answer most questions correctly (was looking through one where salt was given as an energy food) I asked one to look at my boys wolf tooth (a tiny eruption just in front of the canine), "gosh yes, its huge, and he's got one on the other side too!"
Their senior instructor (an experienced instructor and international rider) was telling them that when they ride a clients horse, they have to make a show of it, not for me, if i want 
someone to school my pony, I am watching the horse not the rider, in fact all the best riders just seem to be part and parcel to their horse.


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## claireandnadia (17 May 2011)

Used to be a tb mare on my yard who was all ribs, owner told me one day she didn't believe in over feeding.


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## Kat (17 May 2011)

Groom about horse with comic waiting for the vet "awww look she's lying down bless...." 

Not being funny but my mum who is sooooo unhorsey knows you don't let a horse with colic lie down!


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## Miss L Toe (17 May 2011)

QUOTE "Whatever happened to horsemanship, patience and understanding? Rome wasnt built in a day."

We live in a modern world where the sound-bite and quick fix is the order of the day, I have been asked to sort out horses which have become difficult, I go back to basics, eg long reining to identify the problem : ok no mouth, not listening to commands, otherwise a quiet sort for an ex (failed) racehorse, but it is expected to start where the girl's last pony ended, so she is puting up the jumps, jump jump jump, hit pole, smack, smack, jump jump.
Oh and by the way we treat it like a native pony (when it has never been in a field since it was a foal), no feed in summer, little enough in winter, no grooming to speak of, no rain sheet etc etc. RSCPA came to call, suddenly it was getting fed, a rain-sheet, a bigger field etc etc, teenage child get tired of all this extra work and it is sold on.


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## unbalanced (17 May 2011)

At a large riding school when the pony isn't going into canter:
"Get angry with it!" - because anger is an emotion that has a place on a horse.
"Smack that pony!"

They used to have an instructor (this would be going back a few years now) that referred to short whips as "beaters", insisted that small children carried their "beater" and could be seen shouting "beat that pony!"

YO says that you should work a laminitic in order to get them to sweat the toxins out.


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## PonyIAmNotFood (17 May 2011)

Thought of another, not exactly something said but a kid and parent were about 2 mins late for kids lesson, come legging it into the arena after being told which horse they are on, parent manically screaming 'hurry up!!!!' to kid (pony was going to explode in about 3 seconds if child wasn't on by then don't you know). Then parent proceeds to shove helper out of the way, shouted 'I can do it' at her and lifts kid about 3ft in the air and SWINGS him sideways at poor pony who understandable spins and runs. Kid and parent end up on floor. This happened in the space of about 10 seconds, me and RI were gob smacked, I dont think we could have reacted fast enough if we had realised what was going on in time. Im not sure they came again after the telling off and self inflicted public humiliation lol.


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## Amaranta (17 May 2011)

CrazyFriesian said:



			OMG!!!!!!  Ahh PLENTY!!!  Smacking it wouldn't necessarily be high on my list!!!!!!  

Click to expand...

Ok little scenario here your horse naps on the road (naps NOT spooks) into the path of a car.  Would you:

a)  Say there there darling and hit the car anyway?

or

b) Give it a short sharp reminder and you both live to tell the tale?


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## bexcy-bee (17 May 2011)

From an 'observer':

'Why do you bother to school your horse? Just stick in in draw reins and it does it for you faster'

I had the classics when I brought current pony from old novice owner:

me: Has he ever been shod?
her: whats that?
me: Has he ever been clipped?
her: What, you mean shaved?
me: Is he good with other horses?
her: Yes, he currently lives with a shetland and a 17ft horse

upon getting him on trial:
me: The vet says he has a typically licey coat, has he ever had lice?
her: Whats that?

head desk moment!

Once we brought him though, after finding out he hadn't ever had shoes on, we got him shod, and I told her he was very good and stood still with the farrier. Her response was oh yes, he was always very good to stand around when you pick his feet up and brush him...

bexcy-bee x


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## cptrayes (17 May 2011)

Scariest thing I have heard is in this thread from several people:

that there is never a time or a place to hit a napping horse.

What complete and dangerous nonsense.


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## Spudlet (17 May 2011)

One said to a friend of mine - 'Now he (a young, unbacked, fairly unhandled pony at a new yard) might try and jump out of the stable, so when he puts his head over the door give him a good whack on the nose so he doesn't try it.'

Oy vey

I am happy to say she did NOT whack him, and that he stays in his stable and is also happy to be caught, led and handled - even by strangers - due to her patient training...


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## Amaranta (17 May 2011)

cptrayes said:



			Scariest thing I have heard is in this thread from several people:

that there is never a time or a place to hit a napping horse.

What complete and dangerous nonsense.
		
Click to expand...

Thank God!  Not just me that thinks this then 

I think they have probably never sat on a napping horse in their lives, actually sometimes I wonder if they have ever sat on a horse at all!


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## overtherainbow (17 May 2011)

have heard many things over the years in a big livery yard but the thing that stands out most was having moved to have the horses at home, i went with my mum to the sales to have a look and came home with an unbroken 2 year old pony for me to break in. our neighbours who knew nothing at all saw this and decided it would be a great way to pick up a first pony for their daughter- they returned with a pony with a history of lami, crippled in its stifle that had a horrendous looking back that wont take a saddle, with the idea it could just live in the garden...


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## jenbleep (17 May 2011)

'School her in a 3 ring gag it's much easier then a snaffle and will make her lighter in front'

Hmm yes not sure that will work for dressage, thanks for the tip!


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## Seahorse (17 May 2011)

A 'back person' who claimed to be a chiropractor thought the cervical bones in a horses neck went along the top of their necks just under the mane!!!

Needless to say she came nowhere near my horse..


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## Lydz13 (17 May 2011)

Amaranta said:



			Ok little scenario here your horse naps on the road (naps NOT spooks) into the path of a car.  Would you:

a)  Say there there darling and hit the car anyway?

or

b) Give it a short sharp reminder and you both live to tell the tale?
		
Click to expand...

I suppose it depends on your definition of napping, I have heard so many different scenarios. 

My mare reverses, fast. I have to hit her!! How on earth else would we be able to contine safely? Yes she naps due to lack of experience hacking on own, but we're not talking about beating the animal, just a short, sharp back up to my leg, "That's naughty!" 

I would rather she got a little smack than put me, and herself in danger.

She is learning to listen to Mum!


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## misst (17 May 2011)

An "experienced" friend recently said to me that her old fell pony looked "a bit lami" yesterday. "she is the size of an elephant at the moment". Friend was staying with me for the weekend and the YO was looking after her.  
I said "aren't you worried?  I assume she is in till the vet comes then".

"no I have put her in a small area with not much grass - anyway the ground is good and hard"

Me "how big is the area?"

Friend "about the size of two arenas"

Me "what makes you think she is lami?"

Friend "she's got that stance with all her weight on her back legs. She looks a bit stiff".

Me "you don't think you should get the vet and keep her in?"

Friend "No the yard owner will call me if she goes down"

I left the conversation there as I was lost for words.


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## Maddie2412 (17 May 2011)

woman on our yard is psycho her cob got mud fever she insisted on scrubbing his legs every day they bled and bled and EVERY DAY we told her not to and showed her the problems she was causing of course we are only lowly helpers of course she knows better!!

same woman came onto yard was empty just her and she was trotting up and trying to look behind her as she went i said "oh no is he sore here let me help i can trot him up for you" she goes"thank you but i think i know how to trot up my own horse!" looooooooool no its so u can see you idiot!!!


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## burge (17 May 2011)

I was once at a yard where 4 new liveries arrived (2 mothers with their respective daughters).  The 4 horses were all very different and had all been purchased from the riding school where they had learnt to ride.  They were all ridden in pelhams and WAIT FOR IT with draw reins through the bottom ring of the bit and nothing at all on the top ring. AAAAAAAGGGHHHH.  All the other liveries were mortified as it became apparant that they were all very novicey.  Well me being me I had to ask!  Their reason for doing it was that that was the way all the horses at the riding school were ridden and although they knew it was wrong were unsure of how to go about changing it.  I advised them to get some reins on the bits and to leave the draw reins where they were but with a knot tied in them so they would only use them if they felt the need.  Within a couple of weeks they were all happy without and horses were regularly ridden and hacked out.  They were saints weren't they.  It could have all been very different.  Think that is the worst horror story I have come across.


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## JadeyyBabeyy (17 May 2011)

they dont own a horse but they said horses eat cows and buffalos :O


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## Lydz13 (17 May 2011)

That seems quite common, my non horsey friend asked me what kind of meat my mare eats??


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## Buzzby84 (17 May 2011)

Amaranta said:



			Thank God!  Not just me that thinks this then 

I think they have probably never sat on a napping horse in their lives, actually sometimes I wonder if they have ever sat on a horse at all!
		
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I 100% Agree, I cannot stand people that are against giving a horse a smack when its being naughty! and napping is the one thing the requires a smack the second it starts.


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## MerrySherryRider (17 May 2011)

Novice rider; ' I've got a budget of £800, I'm going to the  sales to get something.

Same person...do you like my new horse ? I got this saddle off ebay, looks okay, doesn't it ?

Next day, same person, after being air lifted to hospital... 'Well, I thought I'd take him on the back fields (the one next to a main road with open gates) for a canter, only my balance isn't that great and he suddenly took off...'


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## JenniferS (17 May 2011)

"Bambi is 13.7hh, it's very rare to get a horse of that height" 

"Bambi is a better pony because he goes in a gag with roundings" 

"Don't muck that stable out, mix the dung in with the shavings, it keeps their legs warm at night"

"I know a lot of people just feed dry sugarbeet pellets..." 

"Just put the jumping saddle on her, I don't want any more said about it"

'jumping saddle' being a large 17.5" 
'her' being a 12.2hh pony

Later on..

"The only reason she was bucking and rearing was because you didn't ride her properly" !!!!!!!!!

Thank goodness I'm away from there!


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## lexibell (17 May 2011)

Farrier told me about a previous client, who was meant to be a RS instructor. He put a full set on her TB, asked her if she wanted to rebook for 6 weeks time and she said no, not necessary. He thought fine, and went on his way - 6 months later he got a phone call to say one of the shoes had come off and could be come back out to fix it or give her a refund!!! 

on previous yard my mare coliced one afternoon in the field. One of the other liveries was poopicking in the same field as mare, when she got back to the yard an hour or 2 later she told YO about my horse who was sitting up like a dog, kicking her tummy and violently rolling - I think her words where along the lines of 'what a silly mare, she does look funny when she plays' YO realised mare wasnt playing and called me straight away. Unfortunatly we lost the mare  I have never been able to forgive the womens ignorance


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## Burnttoast (17 May 2011)

Some of these beggar belief (the stanley knife??? *shudders*). Mine's minor in comparison but it still made me spit.

Fat horse on good grass, not working (even though could have), companion to much fitter working horse but no effort made to restrict intake by e.g. muzzling (he wouldn't like it...) had a lami scare, both fronts abcessed... Response to query about weight loss and grazing restrictions was "I'm not prepared to make any more compromises in his lifestyle. If he gets laminitis I'll have him put to sleep". Which might have been a mercy, though I can't think of a bigger compromise to his lifestyle than being DEAD!!!


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## Dizzle (17 May 2011)

KristmasKatt said:



			Groom about horse with comic waiting for the vet "awww look she's lying down bless...." 

Not being funny but my mum who is sooooo unhorsey knows you don't let a horse with colic lie down!
		
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Actually that's not strictly true. My friend's horse colicked last year (360 twist of the large intestine) and the vet had no issue with him lying down, we were advised to keep him walking until the vet came, vet arrived and she said to let him go down as clearly the drugs that she was giving him weren't working so what ever was damaged inside had already been done, horse was much less stressed being allowed to lie on the floor with the odd roll than to be made to keep walking. I'm of the thinking that the theory around this has changed and that the rolling is a symptom of the colic and not a cause (they roll to try and relieve the pain, like a footballer that's been kicked in the shin).


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## Dizzle (17 May 2011)

In my local tackshop, I over heard the person behind the counter saying that their horse had really good feet, she only needed to be shod every 11 weeks...bet they looked fab after 11 weeks...


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## Dizzle (17 May 2011)

JenniferS said:



			"I know a lot of people just feed dry sugarbeet pellets..."
		
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Now that is true, I was told that quite a few racehorse trainers feed dry sugarbeet (handful at a time) in the belief that it will absorb excess stomach acid in ulcer prone horses. I believe it's also common in America to feed it dry.


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## Leeds_Girl85 (17 May 2011)

Dizzle said:



			In my local tackshop, I over heard the person behind the counter saying that their horse had really good feet, she only needed to be shod every 11 weeks...bet they looked fab after 11 weeks... 

Click to expand...

OMG and same to the other story of horse with shoes on for 6mth


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## Kelly Marks (17 May 2011)

"Horses shouldn't have haynets when they travel as they should be concentrating on standing up" - wouldn't you love to ride with THAT driver?!


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## Frankieblue (17 May 2011)

After hacking my horse out one day I turned him out without his rug on (this was beginning of February, after all snow had melted, fields were soaked but was quite warm and he is a heavyweight cob who hadn't been clipped since November) On bringing him back in a couple of hours later was told by another livery "I can't believe you have done that, now you will have to brush him"!!! 
You should have seen the look on my boys face, he was soooooo proud of himself, he had had a great day.


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## Shilasdair (17 May 2011)

KristmasKatt said:



			Groom about horse with comic waiting for the vet "awww look she's lying down bless...." 

Not being funny but my mum who is sooooo unhorsey knows you don't let a horse with colic lie down!
		
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Why not?
If mine have colic and want to lie down, fine.
S


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## Shilasdair (17 May 2011)

IHK said:



			"Horses shouldn't have haynets when they travel as they should be concentrating on standing up" - wouldn't you love to ride with THAT driver?!
		
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Well, I know a large university vet hospital that recommends you don't travel with a haynet as it causes choke.
Some of these 'stupid comments' aren't stupid, just a difference of practice.
S


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## annaellie (17 May 2011)

I think the thought of colic management has changed these days, my mare was very colicy to start with I was advised by vet keep moving her don't let her roll or lie down but after her colic op I was told as long as she wasn't thrashing around likely to get hurt or cast leave her. My vet said what do you want to do when you have stomach pains lie down and curl up or go for a 5 mile walk think about it that way


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## Spotsrock (17 May 2011)

similar when we suspected colic in my (now 31) 24 y/o mare we were told by the vet to let her lie down as she will not have the strength to fight it if we walk her constantly. He did say to try and keep her calm and not let her roll if possible though.


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## miss_bird (17 May 2011)

cptrayes said:



			Scariest thing I have heard is in this thread from several people:

that there is never a time or a place to hit a napping horse.

What complete and dangerous nonsense.
		
Click to expand...




Amaranta said:



			Thank God!  Not just me that thinks this then 

I think they have probably never sat on a napping horse in their lives, actually sometimes I wonder if they have ever sat on a horse at all!
		
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I totally agree dont normally ride with a whip if schooling in the menage but always out on a hack, sometimes that back end will swing out and a quick sharp smack will bring it back in line before a vehicle takes the hind quarters out


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## Trish C (17 May 2011)

When I was on the horse-hunt, I got a phonecall from a woman with a horse to sell. I asked her if it was snaffle-mouthed, she said "oh god no, not at all," but in a very positive tone of voice. So I asked her what she rode it in, "a bridle and saddle." I explained that I meant what type of bit, "oh, a normal one... the plain one that most people have".  Erm, right.


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## blackcob (17 May 2011)

Re: colic, my vet's advice was that if they were rolling violently and leaving themselves at risk of injury or becoming cast then keep them walking to prevent it. If the horse wants to lie down quietly, let them be. Most sensible, I thought.


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## landyandy (17 May 2011)

where i work, we have a guy who knows everything,
well he said that he and his wife had a horse some years ago,i think they had it for a couple of years,.
so out of curiosity i asked how much it cost him in them days to have it shod.
his reply was, oh it came with shoes on ::::
mind boggles


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## Serenity087 (17 May 2011)

I have one particular woman who is a gem of insightful comments!

Everything I did whilst I mare was pregnant and then when she foaled was wrong.  Apparently I shouldn't have mucked her out, just built up a nice deep bed.  The fact Dorey scraped down to concrete during some pretty violent contractions just proves she was right (I dont think 2ft of rotting bedding would have stopped it!) and my foal is a violent demon creature.

Despite the fact her mare was pretty badly injured during foaling, tried to kill the foal, hated the foal every day until it was weaned and the foal then grew up to be an ACTUAL devil horse who tried to kill me one day!
Despite ALL this, when devil foal died last summer, owner announced she was putting the totally unfit mother back in foal again to replace devil foal..

She also has a friend with an albino.... ?

She doesn't believe in removing wet bedding - ever.

Devil foal was an idiot because she couldn't physically chew, despite being a walking hat rack!

Her old eventer was "fine" with a dodgey home made bandage and months and months of box rest, without a vet in sight.  As soon as he went sound, she would take him on sponsered rides, hammer him, and then have to put him straight back on box rest...

She saw nothing wrong with taking a rottie and one of her horses into Dorey's stable when foal was only a day old...

Devil foal's totally unfit foal hating mother was jealous of Dorey having a baby...? (even though the behaviour that proved it was normal - Devil foal's mother being Devil Mare!)

Devil Mare attacked a group of horses in the field and ended up kicking Devil Foal.
"You stupid bitch, how could you attack your own daughter? Well, no more turnout for you!"

Her grandkids ponies, suddenly at risk of laminitus where they hadn't been before, needed to use Dorey's maternity paddock for a couple of hours in the evening but were fine grazing 5 or 6 grassy acres with the others for the rest of the day???

Oh, and the biscuit imo... "Dorey loves me".
Yeah, Dorey loved her THAT much that she kept her legs firmly crossed until she'd left the yard and then went into labour!

I quite like doing everything wrong though, at least my horses are ridable and can be handled by anyone!


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## Hanno Verian (17 May 2011)

Slightly off beam.....but here goes:

25 yr old girl on being told that Carl Hester was gay.....wistful expression "Are you sure...no you're kidding right...you'll be telling me that Spencer is too"


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## Bosworth (17 May 2011)

An old livery of mine had a horse which we found in the field dragging his hind leg, he was on three legs with the other just trailing. it looked like a stifle injury. We got him in, it took forever and once he was in we phoned her to tell her. Her response, oh its just his arthritis, turn him out to walk it off. I refused and insisted he stayed in and told her to call a vet. She left him in for 2 days, then i was away for the weekend, so she turned him out. 20 mins later one of my liveries found him on 3 legs trailing the same leg so brought him in, again it took ages. They called the owner who said, just turn him out, he needs te walk it off, he was sound in the box, so it is just his arthritis. They refused. I got home to discover she had put him in the very small sick paddock by the stables. He was dragging the leg behind him. I brought him in and called the emergency vet. Horse had serious damage to his stifle, never in work again. She had never called her vet out to see him. Who is so stupid they think that a trailing useless leg is going to be 'walked off.


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## Karran (17 May 2011)

Carl Hester's gay?? That one bypassed me. I always planned to upgrade the OH for him!


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## JustMe22 (17 May 2011)

'I don't like washing my horse because she's waterproof'....riiiiiiight....


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## Amaranta (17 May 2011)

JustMe22 said:



			'I don't like washing my horse because she's waterproof'....riiiiiiight....
		
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Actually there is an element of truth in that, natural coat oils do keep the horse more waterproof.  Washing a horse removes all the natural oils.


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## sazzle44 (17 May 2011)

Most of our yard don't have their horses shod untill one falls off. They get very annoyed if they don't stay on for a couple of months at least 
And of course, anything over 14hh can't possibly get laminitis. Nono, his kneck is that size because it's all top line...from being 'parrellied' twice a week?  hmm....
I had one lady telling me how she couldn't understand how I kept the weight off my 13"2 cob even though he was on the same grass as her 16"2. Perhaps something to do with the fact he's in during the day, has the right amount of feed for his size and is worked 6 days a week, often twice a day. Her horse was out 24/7, walked out (either ridden or in hand..) three times a week for 40mins, parellied once a week, and given two enormous feeds a day...and then wondered why it was crippled with laminitis.
They regularly do things like put their horses bit on upside down/back to front and find this hilarious! They ALL ride in pelhams  
It just amazes me what people will do or find acceptable...


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## sakura (17 May 2011)

this has made me so glad to be on my yard!

though I did used to know one girl who was convinced her horse had such good feet, it only needed shoeing every 12 weeks or so and then most of the time "he looked at them but left the (same) shoes on"

... the mind boggles


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## Quadro (17 May 2011)

I have just started given a lady lessons, she told me she has endless experiance and she gives other people lessons, and is supposedly high up in endurance.
He horse was cantering round and i told her it was on the wrong leg, she replied "whats wrong with his legs?"
She also told me her friends horse has "spangles"!!!
When she was giving one of her "lessons" she called me to ask what a flash was !!
Q


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## TicTac (17 May 2011)

A lady at the stud where I work has just bought a 4 year old unbacked mare. She wants to do a little bit of dressage and showing but she hasn't really got time to ride she just wants her as a pet. She has bought some pig oil to rub into the horses coat as she had heard that it makes them nice and shiny!! And so on...........


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## StrawberryFish (17 May 2011)

Re colic, when my old boy was dying of colic (don't know at the time that he would die obviously) the vet said to let him roll (we were out in a paddock in front of the stables walking him) as horses don't get twisted guys when they roll so why should now be any different. I was so happy she said that because he was in suchagony that we couldn't keep him up and the YO and my mum were cracking lunge whips ag him while we waited for the vet sphere didn't roll. I have never been so distressed in all my life (nor the poor horse  ) trying to drag a horse in pure agony round and round while two women screamed and him and cracked whips. Made me feel sick to my stomach


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## StrawberryFish (17 May 2011)

Please excuse this STUPID phone and it's random autocorrect function


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## JadeWisc (17 May 2011)

By the way    It turns out that the ball-less foal is indeed a filly so there may be hope yet


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## spotty_pony (17 May 2011)

From an Eventer who competed at Badminton this year, 'I didn't realise that pony I sold you was a stallion! I just assumed it was a gelding!!'


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## Buzzby84 (17 May 2011)

TheSlingLady said:



			Re colic, when my old boy was dying of colic (don't know at the time that he would die obviously) the vet said to let him roll (we were out in a paddock in front of the stables walking him) as horses don't get twisted guys when they roll so why should now be any different. I was so happy she said that because he was in suchagony that we couldn't keep him up and the YO and my mum were cracking lunge whips ag him while we waited for the vet sphere didn't roll. I have never been so distressed in all my life (nor the poor horse  ) trying to drag a horse in pure agony round and round while two women screamed and him and cracked whips. Made me feel sick to my stomach 

Click to expand...

That is utter RUBBISH no wonder the horse died if it was allowed to roll, the people trying to keep him up where doing the right thing and this vet of yours should be struck off!! We had a 18.2hh hunter on my yard as a kid that got coilc, being so big we could NOT keep him up and as such he twisted his gut and had to be put to sleep. I have also known a pony twist her gut having a hooly in the field, 

I do hope you have learnt your lesson from this experience.


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## turkana (17 May 2011)

When my old mare had colic she lay down, I rang the vet 3 times while I was waiting for the emergency vet to arrive to check that I didn't need to get her up. I knew I didn't have to get her up but I was panicing.
But according to the yard expert this was wrong, she obviously knows more about colic than a vet who lectures at the Royal Veterinary Collage on colic & operates on colic cases as well!
Thank God it wasn't her that found her, the thought that some know all would drag my dying & in pain mare around makes me feel sick. 
That must have been so distressing for you SlingLady but at least the vet was able to advise you.
I can't believe that people are still forcing these poor colicing horses to walk around when they are in so much pain.


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## StrawberryFish (17 May 2011)

turkana said:



			When my old mare had colic she lay down, I rang the vet 3 times while I was waiting for the emergency vet to arrive to check that I didn't need to get her up. I knew I didn't have to get her up but I was panicing.
But according to the yard expert this was wrong, she obviously knows more about colic than a vet who lectures at the Royal Veterinary Collage on colic & operates on colic cases as well!
Thank God it wasn't her that found her, the thought that some know all would drag my dying & in pain mare around makes me feel sick. 
That must have been so distressing for you SlingLady but at least the vet was able to advise you.
I can't believe that people are still forcing these poor colicing horses to walk around when they are in so much pain.
		
Click to expand...

Even though it was over 7 years ago it still makes me feel sick thinking about it, and yes, thank goodness for that vet, I am still so grateful for her, she was the most kind and generous lady who just 'got' my bond with my boy and she was in tears after she put him to sleep after a 3 day ordeal trying to make him better *cry* amazing lady


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## Alexart (17 May 2011)

I know one lady who was trying to get her not quite 3yr old absolute skin and bone filly in foal, thank god it didn't take - can't think why!! - she was happily posting pics every where of it and when asked why she was trying to breed from it now - "I know how to breed horses because I breed dogs" - **bashes head against wall***
We also had the white tracksuit family turn up looking to buy a welsh sec B 3yr old gelding we had at the time, when asked what they wanted it for - "something that would like to play football with their son" - I kid you not!! and the child in question was terrified of horses, needless to say I politely escorted them to the gate!!

A lady we know decided on a whim to buy 4 totally wild welsh ponies that had never been near people let alone anything else, she had no idea that horses needed to be wormed etc and had googled how to look after them - it took one of them 3 days to die with colic as she thought it was just getting up and down because it was tired and was shedding it's winter coat, not that the worms pouring out its butt were of any consequence!!  Another got laminitis so badly, as they were on 6 acres of cattle pasture, it had to be put down - she sold the remaining 2 to the meat man.  
3yrs later she decided on a whim to buy a shetland and a welsh pony - just for her children to play with and so she could say she had horses to her friends, even though her kids had never been near a horse in their lives!  She asked me not long after she got them how to stop the ponies chewing the inside of their kennel!! - she was keeping them on wood shavings all night with no feed/hay - she thought you could keep them like her dogs!!!!!!!!!!
Scary or what!!!!! - people should have to pass an exam to own animals!!!!!!


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## Blaise (17 May 2011)

"No, there's noting you can do. If they're going to get laminitis then they're going to get it"

"I wouldn't bother vaccinating them for flu or tetanus to be honest, mine has never been done and she's never got either, and they're not that bad if they do anyway"

Both said by a qualified (human) nurse to a very novice & easily led owner of a very overweight haflinger! I couldn't believe my ears when she said tetanus 'wasn't that bad'!! 

Also heard owner of above haffy say she purposely fed her loads and let her out on the spring grass without a muzzle as "she's too fiery for me to ride when she's thinner. She's slower when she's fat and i can control her then"

I'm so glad i'm not on that yard anymore!!


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## harmonica (17 May 2011)

oh, this thread is so entertaining (and frightening) that i had to sign up to HHO just so i could share!  i used to be at a yard with a girl who bought a horse on a whim - £3k and she couldn't catch it, pick it's feet out or get on it, and passport was on the dodgy side...  she came out with many many jewels, the best one was when my horse had an abcess and she asked the vet if it was in the foot or the hoof...  this girl also wanted to train as a barefoot trimmer and offered to do my horse for free so she could practise!  i politely told her i would stick with my regular farrier...

Lx


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## Foaling Around (18 May 2011)

ShowJumping Superstars said:



			From an Eventer who competed at Badminton this year, 'I didn't realise that pony I sold you was a stallion! I just assumed it was a gelding!!' 

Click to expand...

HAHA!! This is hilarious..... I would so do this


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## jeeve (19 May 2011)

At a pony club committee meeting one of the dads said "if you see some one's child having a problem with their pony, you should just grab it and get it going or whack it to make it go. More parents should step in to make sure the kids ponies dont get away with anything".

I straight away said, that I did not want any one else with no knowledge about my kid or pony touching either. My kids would be annoyed that some one jumped in and grabbed or whacked their pony, and the ponies could at sudden uncalled for behaviour by rogue parent, rear, kick or take off.

He also added that all the kids should get a trophy at the end of the year. This pony club had the most number of closed comps you could get in a year, and no one went without a ribbon ever.


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## Damnation (19 May 2011)

When I worked on a livery yard:
Me: Your horse is going to get laminitus, hes overweight with a massive lumpy cresty neck.
Owner: But hes a cob, hes supposed to have that..
Horse came VERY close to laminitus...
Me: You shouldn't have let the pony winter fat, because now he has to be starved and its not fair, correct management could have avoided this!
Owner's dad: Oh it doesn't matter the muzzle will cure it..
Me: NO! The pony now has to be dieted to within an inch of his life, ridden ALOT (he was 17) and muzzled all because you cba monitoring his weight properly..
Owner's dad: The Muzzle always cures it..

ARGH  It annoys me when people put their horses health at risk like that >:[

ETA: I am not against muzzling. But in this instance, correct management of the pony's weight over the winter would have been adequate to sort this situation out. Pony was being fed half bucket fuls of competition mix twice a day  He was a Welsh D..


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## Damnation (19 May 2011)

The same girl as above.
Owner: Dad says I am not allowed to do XC anymore because my pony is 17.
Me: If he is fit then why not? He doesn't have arthuritis or anything..
Owner: It doesn't matter I won't miss XC that much, we are going hunting instead..

Not allowed to do a 10min XC course. But is allowed to do a full days hunting.. logic?


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## Ginger Bear (19 May 2011)

My horse has a scar on the corner of his mouth & the PO told me to always ride his in a straight bar pelham because it's softer on his scar!! I swiftly changed his bit as soon as I got him home.. had the dentist out yesterday & he showed me the extent of the scarring inside his mouth..omg, he reckons someone has stuck a lead rope with a metal clip in his mouth, I told him about the pelham & he said thank goodness I swapped his bit as a hard, strong bit could easily rip such scar tissue!!


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## Hippona (19 May 2011)

When I was on livery......I was told that my horse must be tired- he had been seen yawning in the field and after all, its such a long day for him when you put him out so early ( 6.30am)

After all.....when you bring them in , they just lie down and go to sleep all night, don't they


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## FizzyFanta (19 May 2011)

My Gelding is such a good looker I may offer him up as a stud!!!!!!

Q-Do you think my new Cob will take my weight as i would like it as a mother and daughter share?

A-No!!!!! your cob is a 10h Dartmore Hill pony that your daughter will out grow in a year or 2!


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## pip6 (19 May 2011)

Would like to point out as an advanced level affiliated endurance rider I do know about canter leads.............

One guy at a yard with a small arab that was never sat on apart from the odd occasion (by his tall fat male owner), claimed he did long distance riding. Apparently he rode from Reading to High Wycombe & back in a couple of hours. Amazing, takes very nearly that long in a car!


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## jaspejoo (19 May 2011)

We had a cracker the other day...a couple at our yard think they know it all and bought a 6yr old failed TB national hunt horse for showjumping...they throw it in at the deep end and have it jumping fences before they have even got it working properly with its neck and back...literally runs around with its nose hitting the roof...she announces to me after a week of having him...well he's too strong so im putting him in a three ring dutch gaga with double reins on the bottom loop...tried to help them but no no avail.
a couple of months later i get a report from their first show jumping competition....
me - "how did it go"
couple - "he was really good...although he had 4 poles down and one refusal in the one stride double because he is such a baby he jumps so far to the right that he jumped out of a one stride double"

i was in shock for days...


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## jenz87 (19 May 2011)

quite a few over the years, but a new one this week.
A livery on my yard comes over, proud as punch " ive bought some farrier equipment"...
me - oh....but why...?
Livery: well i dont like my farrier, so ive decided to shoe my horses myself.
me....... ..... ..... ... what like....do their feet?!!!......
Livery: yeah i can buy some shoes, and im good with wood, so i figured id be fine.
Me: erm...you know thats illegal??! 
livery: is it? ah well as i said im sure ill be good at it.


???!?!?!?!?!?


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## Groom42 (19 May 2011)

An owner, ringing a vet who had attended his severely colicking OAP twice in one day, 
"He's feeling much better, he's been having a jolly good roll ........."
I should add that the vet had suggested on the _first _ visit that the poor old thing was in serious distress and should be put down, but the owner flatly refused to countenance it - the same on the second visit.  Vet decided the third visit would be the last.


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## mini-eventer (19 May 2011)

ha ha these are funny....


Someone came for a lesson yesterday, not ridden for 20yrs & very wobbly in trot.

Here husband wanted to buy her a 15hh steady school master. She wanted one "That nobody has ever sat on before"!!!!

She is now the proud owner of a 17hh unbroken 3 year old.... :s


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## fidgeuk (19 May 2011)

At a vet seminar earlier this year listening to Jenny Loriston-Clark, the guest speaker discuss her life with horses - a sort of brief biography.  Funniest thing i heard all night was when she described how Dutch Gold wouldn't get off the lorry after he had been shipped over from abroad so she hit him on the arse with a shovel... aparently he shot off the truck without a problem!!!  hahaha i nearly choked on my lemonade


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## howengold (19 May 2011)

Someone on my farm recently said she was taking her coloured county showing next month, she apparently is an expert at showing, another resident said "Oh are you a member of CHAPS?"  the other woman looked perplexed then asked "whats chaps?"......dear god...

Same know it all said I have soaked enough sugar beet for the two weeks I am away (height of summer and nowhere cool so even stuff we were soaking overnight was fermenting) I pointed out it probably wasn't a good idea and showed her mine from the night before nicely frmented and wiffy, oh thats ok she always has it that way...errr, the horse has already got livery damage so I guess it won't make that much difference????

Same woman was talking about why my 36 year old had been placed above her in a VHS class, apparent her combintaion was all wrong ......I didn't see any combinations but I saw bad copnformation....


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