At my prior board stable, we had a version of the ideal “Making Pegasus” buyer. A lady who had never been around horses, but who had a huge budget and an imagination untethered to reality.
On impulse she bought a half-broke, poorly-mannered, 5 yo crossbred pinto gelding (at least he was a gelding) because she knew it was meant to be. The BO, an excellent rider / trainer / instructor who can be a bit untethered herself at times, agreed to have this new owner and the horse come in on a training plan.
The new owner had no outdoor clothing, not to mention riding clothing. She would arrive at the barn, unannounced, once or twice a week in what I’d describe in casual work clothes. And casual around-town shoes, often not fully enclosed. Instead of working with the BO/trainer, who didn’t have her on the schedule that day, she spent the time excitedly explaining to the rest of us that horses can count to 100. And what mystical realms that revealed about the thoughts of horses. While her own horse fidgeted idly in the crossties, because she never really learned anything about grooming, etc.
I think there was some magic carpet vibe at work. You know, you get on the horse and think about where you want to go, and the horse goes there. At the speed at which you are comfortable.
The lady had the idea that she would ride this horse who was barely backed, with very little experience under saddle. The BO thought he was quiet enough … but honestly I didn’t think the best judgment was at play. But, it didn’t matter, this lady was not physically strong enough to put a foot in the stirrup and lift herself into the saddle.
The few times she tried this, she would struggle with her foot in a stirrup for a few minutes, trying to lift her other leg up, never even close to it going over the saddle. She was just totally unathletic and had never exercised. She was very obviously insecure about her balance and the height of the mounting block off the ground – and the height of the horse (maybe 15.3h). After a few minutes and tries, she would decide that the horse was not ready that day, they just didn’t have the right flow between them but this could be remedied, and she would work on meditating about it at home before she came back again.
She never got on the horse. That was really for the best.
After nearly a year of this, the BO finally convinced her to send the horse back to the seller / dealer / horse trainer, who is actually a fairly good guy who has been around forever. The idea was that he would “train” the horse and then they would restart with the owner. But what he really did was communicate a sudden revelation that the horse had connected with a different person, and there was really a mind-meld there, if the owner would be willing to let him go on with his journey, and she with hers, in a different direction. By then she had lost interest and agreed, with shared relief all around.
Anyway. “Making Pegasus” sounds like a similar vibe, to me. Situations like this, I worry a lot about the future of the horses with ignorant owners who don’t know how to get the help they need.