Can I ride your horse?

[INoMrEd]

[QUOTE=saje;6233673]
I haven’t been asked in a while, but my favorite response was to put on a big smile and say, as though laughing at myself and my irrationality:

“That’s one of the few things I’m really selfish about, I don’t let anyone ride him, not even my husband!” (Never mind that my husband has zero interest in riding…) If they still look as though they might press the point I’ll add “Come to think of it, I think I’d rather share my husband than my horse! Hee hee hee…” and turn to leave or change the subject.[/QUOTE]

^ This is great! Where’s the LIKE button?

I have been asked this numerous times. I lie and tell people my horse is a high strung Thoroughbred. Yes Louie is Thoroughbred but not really high strung. I also tell them that he is a show horse not the average rent string variety.

[nightsong]

Telling people your horse(s) is/are crazy, lame, still puts the decision in the asker’s hands. NOT where it belongs. Your decision. That’s why these people are ASKING YOU for your PERMISSION. Don’t give it.

And when they say, “CAN I?”, ask, “CAN you?” “CAN” means “physically able.” Most CAN not give a reasonable answer, especially if you ask them questions like “what signals do you give for a downward transition?”

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=nightsong;6234461]
Telling people your horse(s) is/are crazy, lame, still puts the decision in the asker’s hands. NOT where it belongs. Your decision. That’s why these people are ASKING YOU for your PERMISSION. Don’t give it.

And when they say, “CAN I?”, ask, “CAN you?” “CAN” means “physically able.” Most CAN not give a reasonable answer, especially if you ask them questions like “what signals do you give for a downward transition?”[/QUOTE]

I agree, many don’t realize riding requires a skill you best acquire over time by learning with an instructor and trained school horse.
Why? Those rental strings rides have set a situation where someone can get on a horse for the first time and use them for getting around in a trail ride in a more or less safe manner.
That is the kind of “riding” most that don’t know any better are thinking about.

Hard to explain to them that there is more to riding than those trail riding special situations and that your horses are not suitable for that, for several reasons, mostly that they are your own, private horses, not rental horses.

Someone mentioned co-workers were told asking to ride your horse is like demanding you let them drive your vehicle.
Following that thought, you could answer no, go rent a car.
The same with horses, go rent one.

Now, on that “what signals do you give for a downward transition?”, should that not be “what aids do you use for a downward transition?”

[bluebuckets]

The only person I have had this problem with is my mother. She did used to ride, and was a very good rider. Only thing is, she rode quarter horses, western, in trail classes and out around her ranch. That is far, far, far, different than getting on my hot, unpredictable, jumper mare in my antares saddle. I had to keep saying no, because I didn’t want her to get hurt (horsey had a mean trick of flipping over backwards when things didn’t go her way) and I didn’t want horsey hurt (if mom falls off and horse goes galloping all over hell, there could be some injuries as the property has a canal going by it). It was hard, and things were a little strained for a while, but it was the right thing to do.

Now, though, I am going away for a few days in May and will have to BEG to get anyone on my mare. She gained herself quite the reputation for being a hellion, and even though she is more agreeable now, noone wants to throw a leg over. It doesn’t help that she still needs an experienced rider, and they are all busy riding the fun, big jumper horses.

sigh The one person who wants to ride my horse absolutely can’t, and I need my horse ridden and no one suitable wants to ride her.

[MoonWitch]

Can I borrow your kid/husband/wife/boyfriend/girlfriend/boat/truck/motorcycle/tractor/house etc. for the day?

[nightsong]

@Bluey;6234509

Now, on that “what signals do you give for a downward transition?”, should that not be “what aids do you use for a downward transition?”

Of course. But if you ask the person who wants to ride your horse(s) that, they’d have NO idea what you’re talking about!!! If you ask them “what signals” they would give, it at least (hopefully) gives them the idea that you HAVE to give the horse some kind of communication re. what you want them to do; it doesn’t just “happen.”

[saje]

You know they’d just say “pull on the reins and yell whoa” and consider it proof that they know how to ride, right?

[nightsong]

When that has happened, I’d say my horse was a show horse and he wasn’t trained to “those signals.” When they’d reply, “you just gotta show 'em who’s boss,” my reluctance to say “no” would somehow disappear.