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I’ve chosen my girl on many occasions as well. I don’t look at it as missed opportunities, but as repaying all the good that she’s brought into my life.
This is the hardest time, when they’re starting to fade away, and they do need you more than ever before. When she does pass, you’ll be happy with the choices you made and have no regrets for not having been there for her.
Don’t be discouraged, there will be other occasions I’m sure! 😉
Thanks, littleironhorse. You’re right. She’s been with me in some tough times. She was diagnosed with heart failure the same year my mother passed from a sudden heart attack. That was 6 years ago now and she’s still hanging in there. I need to be there for her now. She’s gotten a little worse this year, but she still has a bit of “get up and go”, especially around dinner time. Lol
I have had and still have several canine fur babies. And each one of them has spent their entire lives by my side no matter where I go or what I am doing. So I also agree that you did whats right and being there for her when she is at this stage in her life is what any caring person would do.
Having said that, I also worked for a few vets over the years. If you ever do have to go out of town and just absolutely can not take them with you, some vet clinics will do boarding. Especially with an older animal that needs medications on a schedule. It might be something to discuss with your vet in case of an emergency at least.Looking for:
"COSMIC SHIFT DRAGONS and KI-RINS" and the "OCTOPUS TANUKI TEST PAINT #1"My Vet is part of a group of Vets at a Pet Hospital which also does boarding and with my past two Fur Babies, when they were Senior and having issues I changed to boarding exclusively with my Vet when I needed to for those same reasons that Storm Dancer mentioned – Invaluable for peace of mind!
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Kickstarter 'Rainbow Tiger' Bantam Dragon*~*~*~* Ela_Hara: The DragonKeeper *~*~*~*
*** Come visit me on deviantArt at http://ela-hara.deviantart.comI’m sad, but in a way relieved, to report my venture in learning how to ride horses has ended. Several factors went into my choice to quit riding horses, but the main reason I quit came after watching the documentary on youtube called, Path of a Horse. It follows the journey of a woman who used to be an equestrian trainer and competitor. Basically, she discovered how much physical and emotional pain she had put her horses through over the years and how she lacked a true spititual connection with her horses. I’m not the crying type, yet after watching this documentary I was in tears and realized how ignorant I was about horses. I recently started riding and have never owned a horse. I wasn’t feeling any joy from riding horses as I had imagined. Ever since a little girl I’ve loved horses and had thought of them in a spiritual, magical way. When I was riding the lesson horse I kept feeling the impression of being on a broken spirit. Maybe it sounds silly to some. “Horses are just animals. They don’t have spirits.” I’m not passing judgment on those who do ride and always will. For me, personally, I can’t bring myself to do it anymore having seen the science behind the damage tack and the rider’s weight (for extended periods of time) does to the horse. I have too much admiration for the horse. I initially started riding because I will likey never be able to own my own horse and I desperately wanted to be around them. Maybe it was a selfish desire. “Pull on the reigns, kick him when he doesn’t respond, show that horse who’s boss or you’ll get hurt, you’re not hurting him, toughen up!” I can’t do that. If being weak is choosing not harm an animal, than call me weak.
You are not being weak to refuse to cause pain to an animal. It takes strength to stand up to your convictions.
I have always felt very strong spiritual connections with my animals. They do all have a soul and they do understand what people say and do. They can and will communicate with you. I always knew when my critters were in pain or happy. I would go out to ride one horse and get out to him and somehow could tell he was having a bad day and so I would end up on another horse.
To me it was obvious but I also know that not everyone “reads” or can read what a horse or any other animal is trying to say.
My horses all would come running to me across acres of land if I went out and called their names. I never needed grain or anything else to bribe them to come to me. If I was having a bad day, when my stud horse Hammer was alive I would go out and stand in his pasture, he would leave the mares to come and stand with his head on my shoulder and he would stand there with me until I left the pasture.
I had one mare that had a very bad experience giving birth with her first foal and I almost lost her and the colt. In the end I did lose the colt. But after that any time that mare was ready to have her baby she would come to the house and make noise until I would come out to her. She would then lay at my feet and have her baby. It always meant the world to me the trust I had between my horses and myself. It saved my life a few times out on mountainous back trails when I was working on ranches.I am so sorry you weren’t feeling any joy in learning to ride. Part of that I still feel was the trainer you went with. Her lack of patience with you I have no doubt the horses picked up on. Nothing good can come of a situation like that.
I’ve never seen the documentary you’ve mentioned but I have spent years personally knowing saddle makers watching and learning how to properly fit a saddle. And I know that each and every horse is built differently and has different needs when it comes to how the tack fits. I have also first hand seen the damage that can be caused by poor fitting tack. Its not something I would ever let happen to any animal of mine.If you happen to have a horse rescue center near you, maybe you can find some of the spiritually there that you weren’t able to find learning to ride. Go there and volunteer to help just take care of the horses. Be sure its a place where you can see that the owner does have a connection to the animals. The best way I know to get the connection you are hoping for is to show unconditional love. To watch the animal and how it reacts to what you are doing. And always remember animals have bad days too. They aren’t just machines that are “on” when we expect them to be so.
I wish for you to someday have that connection you were looking for. It is magical when animals trust you. To many of us forget that.Looking for:
"COSMIC SHIFT DRAGONS and KI-RINS" and the "OCTOPUS TANUKI TEST PAINT #1"There’s definitely nothing wrong with not wanting to ride anymore for those reason, and certainly no one should think you weak for not wanting to cause any paint or discomfort to an animal!
All animals have different personalities, and I’ve ridden horses who seemed to enjoy the exercise(then again, how can we really know?), and then there were those who couldn’t wait for it to be done, like a day at a job. I think it can really depend on how well you know the horse and what it’s willing to do that makes the difference. I’ve ridden horses who needed barely any prompting to go where I wanted them to go and some who just put their hoof down and said ‘nope.’. I would hope all trainers would be smart enough to know their horses and know which ones have had enough of a day at work or not, unfortunately that isn’t always the case.
I agree with Stormdancer,if you can find a rescue or something where you can just help care for the horses, even if it’s just mucking out the stalls and spend some time with them, that’d probably be a nice experience for you!
*Formerly meowmix101
Not currently open for PYO commissions.Thank you StormDancer and Landipan.
I’m glad to hear you have such a strong connection with your horses, StormDancer. It seems horses can be just as much of a friend to humans as a dog or cat if given a chance. You’re proof of such. I hope you’ll have many, many happy years with them.
It takes a lot more effort to build a relationship so I assume that’s why a lot of horse owners fail or maybe they don’t care. A horse is a luxury item to some.
You’re right about the trainer too. The only way to catch the lesson horses was tricking them with treats and if they saw that halter they would run. Poor guys. That was the first disappointing clue. Second clue, when trying to put the bridle on, one of the lesson horses pressed her head against the stall wall trying to avoid it. Third clue, trainer getting frustrated and giving up when I made mistakes. Maybe some people like that kind of training abrasiveness (insert any sportsball coach)? It doesn’t work for me. Fourth clue, “show the horse who’s boss” handling (kicking and pulling), treating horses like low creatures that must obey or else risk painful punishment. I had enough. The documentary helped make my decision to quit final and I feel such a relief, yet sad because the situation of those horses will never change and I won’t be able to see them anymore.
If I had to apply human emotion to the horses I’d say they were depressed when called to work, but were told to put on a smile or else.
This trainer makes a lot of money being in the horse business. They don’t seem to have a connection to any of the horses. Buy, sell, and trade like one would a car. It’s sad. I could no longer contribute to that. Seems that kind of horse training/dealing is just how it is and how it has been done for centuries so why change? Perhaps they don’t see anything wrong with it. I cannot pass judgment on them, only myself.
Sadly, there are no horse rescues anywhere near me or other stables that hire. Maybe an opportunity will surface someday.
It’s too bad you don’t live in a more rural area, out here around where I live people pretty much give horses away.
I’m sure you already have, but perhaps you could look into buying/adopting a mini horse(they’re cheaper!) and if you don’t have a big enough backyard(like around an acre or two) you could board it at a barn? You could get the horse care experience with just a tinier horse?
Personally, I’ve always wanted a mini donkey, they’re my favorite and they’re so loving.
*Formerly meowmix101
Not currently open for PYO commissions.No reason to feel bad for stopping riding. I’m really good with animals though my experience with horses is limited (mostly when I was in college… the horses ADORED the trainer. We had students of every level – I was beginner – so some horses were reserved for some students based on experience). I’ve run into animals every so often that I just have no connection to at all. It’s an odd feeling, but yeah, it’s like there is no conversation. Could just be you don’t ‘click’ with an animal for whatever reason (just like people). Sometimes it’s like the animal’s spirit just is absent (seen that once or twice…. it’s very odd). There should be a ‘conversation’ of sorts. Maybe you can take a vacation someday (I know you have an elderly fur baby, unless you can take her with you) to a place where you could go to a rescue or sanctuary as part of said vacation and spend some time. I’m not sure where you are located (I live near two race tracks – flat and harness) as well as edge of rural, so lots of stuff in my area including sanctuaries). It may just be the way the personality of the horses you rode or the way they are broken in could ‘break’ the spirit of the horses in a way. That can happen too. Just a thought. I’d give it another try, but in a different environment. The results might be very different.
@Dragoneer_88 I’d say you made the right decisions in all those instances! I really respect the reason behind why learning to ride was your dream. It was clearly about that connection with the horse and not about power or glamor. The world of riding is full of all types. I was going to suggest looking for a stable or rescue where you could volunteer time but it seems you had the same thought and that there are no opportunities around you at the moment. I think that’s definitely the way to go though. Hopefully you’ll find a place, or a person with some pet horses, who will welcome you to spend some time around the stables! You may well be able to have a more profound experience mucking stalls or grooming horses than you would riding ones who aren’t familiar with you at first. There are still some very good lesson stables around too, but it can be so hard to find places with the right mindset. Maybe look into some trail riding type scenario? 🙂 I know you’ll get to realize your dream yet, one way or another!
Forgot to reply on this topic. About a mini horse, I’m currently an apartment dweller. The only place to board horses in my area is with the trainer I had. The horses boarded with them looked awefully sad and bored being stuck in a stall all day. One of them would nicker at me every time I walked by as if to say, let me out of here. I could see it in his eyes.
So, I live in a small city surrounded by nothing but cattle/horse ranches, so I find it odd there aren’t more resources as suggested available. The next closest city is about 1 1/2 away so essentially, I live in a city in the middle of nowhere!
Trail riding is not really ideal. You’re not really riding a horse, you’re getting taken for a ride. I’m assuming “trail riding” is in reference to horses that walk the same path everyday and you can’t tell them to do anything else because they won’t listen, not because they’re stubborn but because that’s how they were trained. I feel really bad for those horses because they often have inexperenced riders, like me, riding and it puts a lot of strain on their back.
I’d love to be a horse guardian some day. I will keep trying to find that path. For now, I’m glad I put the lesson thing behind me. Thanks everyone for the support, suggestions, and info.
Here’s the youtube documentary I referenced earlier if anyone is interested. Even if you don’t agree with the documentary, there’s still some interesting info in my opinion.
Trail riding has many forms and can cover a lot of territory. Definition from Wikipedia [because it is the simplest source]: Trail riding is riding outdoors on trails, bridle paths, and forest roads, but not on roads regularly used by motorised traffic. A trail ride can be of any length, including a long distance, multi-day trip.
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