This girl is very lucky to have someone like you who not only is willing to lend your horse but instruct her in proper care and show turn out. Other than braiding there is no reason a horse should be turned out differently for jumpers than for hunters. One concern I would have is why the girl’s trainer has not stipulated this already? Has the trainer been more than a ring side presence and is the trainer instructing students how and when to bathe, blanket, etc? If the student doesn’t know when to do these things does she also not know how to properly cool out your horse? The student’s gap in knowledge re. bathing is perhaps of most concern. I would have a talk with the student and the trainer and impress upon them that your horse needs proper care; it’s not a Breyer model.
[QUOTE=Treasmare2;8067335]
You are generous with your nice horse and they owe it to take care of business without you having to […] teach them. […] That horseman/horsewomanship is missing in today’s teaching. We are producing riders not horse people. [/QUOTE]
And how, exactly, do people learn to be horse people and not just riders if no one is responsible for teaching them? They have to learn SOMEHOW, and the OP hasn’t mentioned any sort of trainer involvement yet.
It also sounds like they TRIED–the kid knew a bath was needed, and if the tack wasn’t cleaned yet… maybe it would have been cleaned while the horse was drying. It sounds like there was some awareness of things that needed to happen, it just wasn’t happening on the schedule the OP wanted to see.
OP, a harsh wake up call is sometimes a necessary thing. Hopefully next time it goes smoother and the kid understands the need to check in/plan more proactively.
It is not the job of a nice horse person letting people use her horse to also teach. It sounds like she does do this to a certain point but it is not her job. It is the role of their coach or trainer which lead to my other point. Programs of teaching are deficient in this area. We are losing so much. The kids that get to use this horse seem to get the opportunity for some additional learning. All the more reason for them to get on this and make it their business to pull their weight and learn. The horse owner must feel fatigued to be waiting and waiting for the kid and then for there to be an expectation that she teach them? If something went wrong and someone got hurt she could even be in hot water if she is not a "trainer’ or “coach” or "insured’. She would be helping them out of kindness and interest only which is as she is doing with her horse. Having kids ride your horse does it no favors so the owner is hugely generous.
Yeah… well, I guess I have been luckier than you have in the types of people I have been (and still am) surrounded by, Treasmare2. I know my own personal growth and knowledge would have been stunted had the people surrounding me as a kid thought like you do.
OP is very generous, without a doubt. And I’m glad she DOES seem to be willing to help this kid out, who apparently doesn’t have a trainer stepping up in to that role. The kid actually has a chance of learning to be a horse person thanks to the OP. Hopefully the kid takes advantage of it.
Im the OP and yes we do have a trainer. But our horses live at home. We have a community equestrian center and our trainer comes there for lessons. Students ride in. So he doesnt see the “behind the scenes” activities of maintaining the horses, and their barns etc.
We are part of pony club so yes the pc system speaks volumes about prepping for shows and rallies.
However - some “get it” and some just dont. I have had issues in the past with this and other riders who think they can just show up 20 minutes before we load to go to the show or rally and figure they can clean their horse and tack and whatever else when they get there…and no that doesnt work so well.
So I have been coaching and encouraging our riders to do a better job or getting ready for the competition. Most are thankful for the coaching - but some take it for granted and dont pay attention.
And it is those (the rider I referenced above is included )that just dont get it.
Thats why I pulled her out and said - maybe next time you will be prepared to participate. But you have not demonstrated that you are ready this time. So my horse that you were going to ride, is staying home.
bummer
Why would you clip the poor horse’s whiskers? 
[QUOTE=Treasmare2;8067377]
It is not the job of a nice horse person letting people use her horse to also teach. It sounds like she does do this to a certain point but it is not her job. It is the role of their coach or trainer which lead to my other point. Programs of teaching are deficient in this area. We are losing so much. The kids that get to use this horse seem to get the opportunity for some additional learning. All the more reason for them to get on this and make it their business to pull their weight and learn. The horse owner must feel fatigued to be waiting and waiting for the kid and then for there to be an expectation that she teach them? If something went wrong and someone got hurt she could even be in hot water if she is not a "trainer’ or “coach” or "insured’. She would be helping them out of kindness and interest only which is as she is doing with her horse. Having kids ride your horse does it no favors so the owner is hugely generous.[/QUOTE]
Your POV makes no sense to me.
If I have my horse in the mix, I’m certainly not going to refuse to teach kids how to take care of it because I’m not a pro or “not insured.” Heck, if a kid got hurt and I were sued, I can’t imagine that a successful defense would look like “Your honor, I did lend the horse but I didn’t teach the kids to handle it safely because I don’t have professional liability insurance.”
In short, if you want something different from someone, just ask for it. Don’t complain because they didn’t guess to give that to you, no matter how much you have already done for them. If kids continue to refuse to work hard enough to earn the ride, then fire 'em. But make the cause and effect clear and let them choose their outcome.
[QUOTE=Linda;8067065]
While its clearly still winter in many parts of the country, its in the low 70s here during the day.[/QUOTE]
:lol:
Low 70s during the day = clearly still winter.
Sorry, I had to giggle at this thought. Low 70s would be dreamy and certainly not still winter.
I think for the jumpers at a schooling show in the early spring not bathing is fine, but the horse should be trimmed, muzzle clipped, outside of ears traced, mane neatly pulled and curried within an inch of its life. I would wash white legs. You will look better than 99% of the other competitors (even hunters!) if you do this.
That said, it’s your horse and your rules. If no bath = no show definitely make that clear to the rider(s) and stick to your guns.
OP - good for you on saying no to the show…as well as for taking responsibility for teaching this rider. Honestly, it should be the instructor’s responsibility (riding and/or PC instructors)…but if they aren’t going to do it, someone has to.
I’ve been in the situation before of not being able to present my horse in the way I wanted and therefore opted not to go to a show. He’s a paint with lots of leg white, was unclipped and lived in a muddy pasture. I had zero time to clean him up so I didn’t go. I’ve also been able to present a “looks like he’s been bathed but hasn’t in four months” horse (dark bay with some white) when necessary.
[QUOTE=BeeHoney;8066782]
I would have been annoyed, too. But, at local level schooling shows in the jumpers many horses are a little bit shaggy and not perfectly bathed. [/QUOTE]
So? Who cares if it’s local level schooling show? You should still come prepared. I kind of hate this attitude.
Low 70s during the day = clearly still winter.
Sorry, I had to giggle at this thought. Low 70s would be dreamy and certainly not still winter.[/QUOTE]
She did say a bath during the day was just fine, but it does still get cold and quickly as the sun goes down. OP’s location can get QUITE cold in the evenings and bathing a full coated horse in the evening is not a good idea.
:rolleyes: It’s what we do in the U.S. and I’ve never heard of a horse suffering because of it…despite what some people would have us believe.
[QUOTE=RugBug;8068531]
So? Who cares if it’s local level schooling show? You should still come prepared. I kind of hate this attitude. [/QUOTE]
FWIW, I don’t bathe my horse(s) before every single show even in the summer. It depends on a lot of factors: what division we’re doing, how recently the horse has been bathed, and yes, what kind of show it is.
In the summer their coats are already smooth and shiny and they’re getting at least rinsed off on a regular basis so unless their manes are gross or dandruffy I may just wash the legs and tail. If you’re showing every weekend it’s a lot on the horse’s coat to do a full bath every time. Again, depends on what kind of soap/shampoo you use, etc. but all mine have always looked as though they had been bathed.
This doesn’t apply to grays, obviously. :lol:
french fry: I don’t care if you give them a bath or not…they just need to look like they’ve been given a bath. 
I was edited my post when you were posting. You can see that sentiment it what I added.
(BTW - I’ve been meaning to ask…are you french fry the eq horse or another french fry?)
OP, I think you need to be very clear about expectations next time. If you have a certain time at which you need the bath/tack prep to be done the day before because (and very reasonably) you keep your horse at home and don’t want to be supervising late at night, then make sure you convey this. Lots of time I find that others might think “the day before” can mean “OK if I show up late that night as long as it is done before midnight, it is still technically the day before.” especially with the younger generation. While I might view it as “I want everything ready by feeding time so that I can put the barn to bed and get a normal night’s sleep.”
It is really important to make expectations very clear. If you want the horse bathed, tack cleaned and trailer loaded by 6 pm, say so with a precise time – then if she needs to come out Thursday to clean the tack to get it done because she has piano lessons or something, she can plan for that. or she can tell you she has piano and you can decide if it’s OK that it isn’t done until 7 pm, and everybody feels good about everything because you all know what is going on. Communication!
I bet she just wasn’t thinking it would be too cold to do the bath later. Kids/parents often don’t think of things like that on their own, we have to teach them. Next time I would just text her that you need her there by 5 to start the bath because it will be too cold to do it later if it looks like she’s going to be late. I think it might have been a little harsh to cancel the show when you didn’t warn her about the bath/timing – just think, is this something a non horse person would really know? because a lot of time we read intent where it is really just ignorance. And I don’t punish horses or kids for ignorance. I don’t blame you at all, it’s a life lesson but maybe next time just step back and ask yourself whether the kid ought to know or not and whether you conveyed your expectations well enough, you have a better sense of this than we do.
Or, “I put my horses first and bathing a full coated horse when it’s late and cold is a ridiculous idea?” As they say, common sense is the least common thing there is.
well, it’s true! I think lots of people have no common sense at all. My DH, bless him, is one of them so I see the effects of this daily. He means so well, but OMG. it would never dawn on him that bathing a horse at night is less optimal than during the day. Never. You just have to tell people with no common sense what you want them to do – save them from themselves!
Op, I commend you. It seems kids are growing up with less and less responsibility and accountability. I like your attitude. You explained to them the reason the show was not happening and set the expectation for next time.
It’s called teaching kids “grit”.
Remember, it wasn’t just the bath. If the tack was clean, and everything else was organized, I would hope the OP would have explained to the rider why it wasn’t ok to bathe in the cooler evening.
But I’m still stuck on this Pony Club kid putting away dirty tack, never mind dirty tack that doesn’t belong to her!
Is the child riding old enough to drive? If not, I feel bad for them as it may be that Mom was the one holding them up. You said you ‘chased Mom several times’- what does that mean? Did Mom give you a reason as to why they couldn’t be there before 6?
Did you make it clear to the parents that the horse must be bathed before the day before the show? ie. was you chasing the mom that day the first she knew of it?
I’ve never seen it where a child’s parent picks the classes for child to ride in when there is a trainer involved. I don’t think either of my parents have EVER looked at a prize list, and I showed all through lower/middle/high school. My parents could not tell you that a horse must have it’s muzzle clipped before showing, nor would they know that bathing a horse with a full winter coat (they wouldn’t know what that is either) needs hours to dry, and doing it at 6pm isn’t ok. They were at every show, 95% of which I did self-care, but they just are not horse people, and don’t ‘get it’- maybe Mom is the same way?
I think it’s really nice what you’re doing for the kids, but I think clearer communication will save both you and the riders and families a lot of trouble- especially because the trainer is not around to do these things.
Hopefully this was a wake up call for kid and her parents!
[QUOTE=Pembroke;8068114]
Why would you clip the poor horse’s whiskers? :([/QUOTE]
It’s an American thing.
Not sure why the OP went ahead and did it, though.
OP, thanks for making your nice horse available to young riders. Remember, they are YOUNG, and will make mistakes.
Making mistakes, being corrected and allowed to have another chance are all part of the learning and maturing process. Some parents just will never ‘get it.’
It will probably save a lot of angst if you write up a little ‘brochure’ (it can include a liability release) about your horse, your expectations, and a handy checklist as well as what hours/temperatures you think should be considered when preparing for a show.
Kids and parents do have quite a lot of demands on their schedules these days…try not to lower the boom on a kid who was trying hard, but couldn’t pull it off.
Thanks for the comments. Just to add a few thoughts…this rider has shown this horse of mine several times at the local shows and done well. She knows the drill and in the past, showed up around noon, did a light ride, cleaned her tack, bathed the horse, put a light blanket on him, loaded the trailer etc etc.
I think what is happening now, is “teen age years”. She is distracted by school activities, friends and (gasp) has her first boyfriend. I think “all of the above” are getting in the way of her being focused on her job of getting herself and her horse ready for the show.
I spoke to the mom several times during that day to figure out “what” was going on and when she was coming over, but never got a full answer. The mom said she was involved in a marching band thing at school and just let her day get away from her.
These school activities have come up before, but in the past, she has made it work. Maybe its the “new” boyfriend? I don’t know - but at this point, “whatever” caused her to not get her act together was HER issue - and at the end, it caused her to not get to go to the show. Life happens. Hopefully she will learn from this.
