Whatever his past, he stood and waited for the rider after she fell off, and he was obviously surprised by her hitting him in the head repeatedly. He didn’t behave like a horse who dumps people intentionally or is accustomed to abuse.
It’s a shame.
38 Likes
I saw the horse advertised as a jumper.
I have to say, I know that people are only human. I have hope that this lady can stop, and really reflect on what led to her behave in that manner, and to change it going forward.
2 Likes
When a horse ignores a known aid then a louder version is acceptable correction. For example a horse that knows leg means forward to the jump and then has a stop an immediate correction with the whip to reinforce the leg is appropriate. What’s not appropriate is it being used as punishment - used inappropriately (hitting the head), too many times, too harsh, etc. Additionally if the aid is one the horse is still learning the correct response to then a “correction” of any kind isn’t really appropriate, it should just be repeating the aid again and rewarding when you get the right response.
I won’t pretend I’m perfect and have never overcorrected or lost my temper with a horse, but I know I’ve been in the wrong when I did - and I’ve never hit a face for a correction.
Preventing or correcting dangerous behavior (truly dangerous- not a soft stop like in the video in this thread) like rearing, striking, etc, that puts humans in danger gets more latitude but should also come from a place of calm and be about safety and correction not anger and punishment.
12 Likes
To add on to this, there is 0% chance that that horse associated being whipped in the face with stopping at the jump. There was no possible learning opportunity for the horse. He might associate the punishment it with someone falling off, I’m no equine behaviorist, but likely the only thing that the horse took away from the event is that the person is an a** and can’t be trusted.
18 Likes
Agreed. I just didn’t think that the market had come to the point that people who ride like this were professional horse trainers. I’m talking about the eq and the fall, not to mention the decision to beat the horse around the head in the show ring.
7 Likes
Such sleuthing! It could be that the horse was really on his way out of a jumping career and that Slik is the kind of small-time pro that has to buy a “horse with a hole in it” because that’s what her kind of client can afford. So she has them buy the horse that can do the job…if they can keep him sound. I get it. And it’s hard being a low-level pro trying to get a horse to the ring using just spit and duct tape.
But! I didn’t see the horse contributing a whole lot of badness to the debacle. And I was commenting on the eq way before the rider rolled off. The rest of it is just unbelievable to me.
5 Likes
Plus the fact he did not stop at a jump but appears to be reacting to a distraction out side and below the level of the ring. He momentarily checks, looks down and left with radar ears, riders position is top heavy and she rolls right off over the right shoulder with the entire event looking like a slow motion replay.
Have seen plenty of dirty stoppers, this is not one of them. Also have an embarrassing video of myself taking a very similar fall (Murphy ring KHP) minor spook at something down the steep hill on the long side . Only difference is I did not beat the horse because I could not sit a simple mini spook.
24 Likes
Why do owners stick with incompetent “trainers” ?
Ridiculous to stay with a mean and incompetent “professional.”
7 Likes
I’ve seen a lot of that recently as the market has shifted to the warmblood. The emphasis has been on “high end horse trading” not necessarily having the skills and ability to bring a long a young horse or retrain one with issues.
5 Likes
Because they believe the trainers lies. Because they do not get exposed to what competent training/instruction looks like. Because they’d do not take any time to observe and research before picking one. Because they are driven by cheap, not safe and effective. Susie wants to ride and they cannot afford a decent trainer and horse whether rented by the ride, leased or purchased, they cannot afford it.
17 Likes
It’s a really small horse community here, the name of the horse sounded familiar (was marketed here for a while) and a quick fb search of its USEF number pulled everything up. Plus I’ve heard some questionable things from that barn so was curious - I shared just because I think it shows context that this horse has had seemingly known problems jumping.
An eventer on the west coast was just suspended for similar behavior, so hopefully USEF follows suit in this case.
10 Likes
I would add to this that sometimes they prioritize the fancy facilities with the fancy price tag and think it must be the best.
It’s hard to tell in this business who knows their stuff and who doesn’t. Sure, you can look at ribbons and placings, but that doesn’t tell you whether someone had easy horses and bought their way in (or had a parent do so) or not.
And if your eye is educated enough to tell a good ride from a bad, you’re probably a horseperson yourself. Most aren’t, so they rely on cues that work for other businesses.
In other words - it’s really tough for parents. I can’t blame them.
12 Likes
Because they either “don’t know or don’t care”. Either way, sucks for the horse.
2 Likes
He’s a gray. Gray horses get melanomas, including in their eyes. Melanomas in the eye can cause what seems to be irrational spooking. Trust me, I know this first hand. I have an otherwise sound gray gelding standing in my pasture who fits this profile perfectly. I quit riding him when his spooking became unpredictable and being on his back ceased to be fun at all. I did not, however, beat him around the head for being not fun to ride or show.
I wonder if anyone has taken this poor guy to an equine ophthalmologist? Or even considered it might be a health issue at all.
(Scarier still, they can also get melanomas on the brain.)
18 Likes
Will there come a time you will need to consider euthanizing due to vision? So very sad for your horse.
1 Like
Here’s our whole saga with a current picture close to the end of the discussion. Thanks to Oncept, his ocular melanoma is stable and he lives a pampered pasture pet life. He does have the occasional odd spook when being led but for the most part he is safe when being handled on the ground. He did do a stint as a pony horse after I retired him. My former trainer used him to pony a very very bad horse in for training and he was fine. I just prefer to ride my newer horse who is calm and generally predictable. Love the old boy though and feel like I owe him an easy retirement.
10 Likes
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8YY2FUS/
Apparently this horse has a record of refusals. Shocked that the trainer would allow a child to show this horse.
5 Likes
I’ll also add, because the trainer makes them feel special. I’ve seen a few really incompetent trainers keep some clients with deep pockets off of pandering and personality.
9 Likes
How much clearer does the horse have to be that he is done - for whatever reason?
7 Likes
