Hey guys
So I’m currently stuck on what to do with my horse situation.
Currently I lease a horse and I talked to my coach today and she said she currently can’t be ridden/ridden as much due to her weight she is to skinny to be ridden. Her old leaser used to only ride her max 2-3 rides a week and now she gets ridden a lot more even when she was my coach’s show horse she’s ridden more now. She is a thoroughbred so she is on the skinnier side anyways. We are putting her on a second feed and supplements to help gain weight back.
She is getting older this year she will be turning 19 and especially with her weight she can’t be ridden as much her other leaser rides her usually 3-4x a week and I rode 4x a week so what’s the point of leasing her if I’ll only be able to ride her 2x a week.
I’ve only been leasing her for a couple months but I’m unsure of how to move on with this.
There are really not any other horses for lease should I ask my coach to bring in a horse that I will lease
A new horse just came a few days ago it’s a boarders horse but they are looking for a leaser for it but it’s a greener horse only 5-6 years old and learning to jump
Or should I move barns to a boarding/leasing only barn where they will probably have more options for me
A lot of this depends on your goals and other information. What is your riding level? What are you interested in doing? Describe your ideal lease horse and/or situation?
Current lease mare- Based on what you’ve said here I’m a bit concerned about the horse care. If your lease mare is so skinny that she can’t be ridden, that’s a problem. It sounds like this mare has had multiple leasers for multiple months; has she just been loosing weight all this time or was it sudden? I (generally) don’t buy into the “TBs are just skinny and too hard to keep weight on” line because every time I’ve personally experienced that, they just weren’t giving the horse enough food. Age is also a bit iffy for me as I know many horses that age that still work 5-6 days a week with multiple riders. Still, that is the age I would expect owners to start tampering the work back if the horse is obviously not as game as they used to be. If I was interested in riding 4-5x weekly I would not continue leasing a mare 2x a week so that someone else can ride 3-4x; I’d find new lease.
Leasing the new horse- Do you want to ride a green bean? Do you want to jump? If so, how often do you want to? Does the boarder want someone full leasing or part leasing? Is it comparable to what you’re paying for now?
Moving barns- You can always look around to see what horses are available for lease in your area, not just at whatever barn you’re at. There is probably a Facebook group for your area. Some leases would require the horse be ridden at it’s current location while others would allow you to board it elsewhere. If you don’t want the added hassle of being fully in charge of the horse, I’d look for one that has the horse stay where it currently is. It doesn’t sound like you particularly enjoy the atmosphere of your current barn.
Ok, I’m not going to follow the ins and outs here.
But a few guidelines.
You lease a horse precisely so that if it develops long term soundness or health issues or isnt a good fit,you can walk away. In this case the trainer is pulling the mare out of the lease program for health reasons so that decision has been made for you.
When your lease options at one barn evaporate, then yes you may need to find another program. How much do you like your current barn, trainer and program? You are I believe a junior advanced beginner or intermediate so a good lesson program is important.
So your ride has evaporated because of health issues.This happens a lot with older lease horses, it’s not unexpected. Logically now you look at other options at your barn first. Between you, your trainer, and your parents you should be able to figure out if a horse is suitable and if you can afford the lease. I am going to assume money is a bit tight or you’d have your own horse.
As far as feeling “not recognized” as the “real lesser” or whatever, get over that competitive entitled whiny mindset now. You don’t own a lease or lesson horse. If you want to own a horse, buy one and pay all the expenses. Otherwise just be grateful you can rent a slice of one.
I say this because I’ve watched the most ridiculous little tussles of competition and bitchiness and hurt feelings with actual adult women in their 20s getting possessive about horses they lease, wanting to replace the owners, very catty about other leasers. Let alone in juniors. And here on COTH I’ve seen furious juniors complaining that Susie posted on FB that Dusty was her horse but he’s just a lesson horse. Etc.
Let go of your ego. Pay for what you or your parents can afford.
This is an unusually high workload for a half-lease situation. It has nothing to do with her age or weight, but if both of you are riding 4x a week that means the horse is either getting worked twice at least twice a week or is worked twice once a week but with no day off. That’s really not fair to the horse or to either leaser. How often is the mare being jumped? You should have a lease contract that spells out how much you’re paying and how often you get to ride; if your trainer wants to modify the schedule then you absolutely need to formally change the contract, in writing, and make sure your lease fee is reduced to compensate.
That said, judging from your post history this barn doesn’t sound like a great place for you to learn. You posted before about ending a lease on a horse that most of the posters here agreed was unsuitable for a beginner, and when you add this horse’s care issues it just doesn’t seem like a very good program. If there’s another barn available to you I would definitely move and look for a suitable horse to half lease.
I think it’d be helpful for you to shift your mindset on this. Some horses are super cuddly and personable, but some just aren’t. It doesn’t reflect on you as a horseperson, and it doesn’t mean you won’t learn a ton from riding and handling horses of all personality types. Realistically it’s also hard to build a relationship with a horse you only see a few times a week, especially in what sounds like a pretty busy lesson barn where these horses are used to seeing a ton of different people with varied experience levels, and are often overworked to boot (as seems to be the case here). It sounds like this mare has been working really hard for you in the time you’ve leased her, to the point where it’s affecting her weight/health, so even if she’s not outwardly affectionate you definitely owe her some serious gratitude. If this is the bay you were riding in the videos you posted about your jumping position, that horse looked like an absolute saint. She doesn’t care who her “main” leaser is, she just wants to be taken care of and treated with respect.
This is a really bad idea, do not let anyone talk you into leasing this horse. You need a safe, steady, been-there-done-that horse to learn on right now. This match would be unfair to both you and the horse. Best case scenario, you and the horse both pick up bad habits in your training that will take a long time to undo later, but more likely this situation would end with you getting hurt and losing confidence in your riding.
A half lease at my barn includes 4 rides a week- 2 lessons and 2 practice rides so she would usually be jumped 4 times a week but every few weeks we will have a flat lesson. I agree it is a lot especially if the horse has 2 leasers like she does now but I don’t want to be spending tons of money to not be able to ride as much as the lease entails.
I think if she only had 1 leaser it would be a lot better for her but I would not have a horse.
I would love to full lease however there are no horses available since they are all already half leased or full time school horses
TBs are only skinny if they aren’t cared for properly. Like any horse. No excuse for having one thin for a long period of time other than poor management
A horse working that hard on only one feed a day, I’m not surprised it is skinny. Move to a new barn because, from your commentary, this one doesn’t inspire much confidence in it’s management or horsemanship.
I picked up on that too. This poor horse that’s being ridden every day or twice a day and jumped in lessons 4x per week is only getting fed once a day.
Well to be fair I took this as her grain ration. I would hope to high heaven that the horses are getting multiple hay feedings across 24 hours. It’s not uncommon to only do grain feed ration once a day.
Honestly this just sounds like a bad program all around, I would get out of there ASAP. Your trainer is not looking out for her horse’s welfare or your education as a rider. I’d bet that weight loss is not this mare’s only issue, she’s also probably pretty sore at minimum if not legitimately unsound. This is unfair for the horse, but it’s also not fair to her riders since neither of you are really getting your money’s worth out of leasing a tired and sore horse. It could also explain why you didn’t experience much personality from her - she’s exhausted and uncomfortable, and in her mind you’re just the person who shows up to make her work when all she really wants is rest.
I’m not sure if you’ve gotten to experience other programs much in your riding career, so just so you know for the future this leasing set-up is really, really unusual and if you come across something similar going forward I would run in the opposite direction. A typical half lease includes 3 rides per week with only one jump school per week (so if the horse has two leasers it’s jumped twice a week). The only times I’ve seen a partial lease have 4 rides a week is when the other leaser specifically only rides once or twice. I would definitely not be ok with a horse I was leasing being used in multiple lessons on the same day, or even routinely being ridden multiple times on the same day. On top of wanting what’s best for the horse, I’m paying to have full use of the horse on those days and I want them rested and ready to work for my sessions. The horse should also get at least one day off per week, and you generally want to avoid jumping on back-to-back days (although this one is a bit more flexible when we’re talking about small jumps). If you listen to high-level riders and trainers talk about their schedules you’ll hear a similar pattern; most of them only jump once or twice a week, rarely at max height, and they incorporate deliberate days for rest and light work so their horses can recover effectively. Horses are athletes, not machines, and most of the rules that apply to human fitness apply to horses as well.
I think it would be a good idea for you to look at other options, but from what you’ve posted about your riding you are still learning and should probably be in a place where you can continue to receive guidance.
You seem to focus a lot on leasing. I understand wanting to have that feeling of a horse that is yours, but at this point in your riding career I also don’t think it’s necessary. A barn with a good string of horses available for lessons and practice rides may suit you fine, would allow you to learn from riding different types of horses and would leave more options if a particular horse is temporarily unavailable to ride or not suitable for you.
