Opinions on Green Lesson Horses

[akhunterrider]

The horse I’m currently riding was being leased in-barn, but after being caught mistreating the horse on more than one occasion, the lease was terminated and she was kicked out of the barn.

My trainer started using him for lessons since she was just getting back into giving more lessons and he was used for a variety of riders. After his trial as a lesson horse, it was decided that he just wasn’t going to work out. He’s broke, but hasn’t done a lot of work very consistently throughout the years, so he just wasn’t broke enough or a simple enough ride to use consistently as a lesson horse. I started riding him in October and at the time one other adult was taking a weekly lesson on him. Around the 1st of the year, he wasn’t used for lessons for a couple weeks, but due to a lack of lesson horses, he started being used again. Now the other adult is leasing another horse in the barn, so the horse I ride is no longer used for lessons at all. Other than by me.

I hadn’t jumped in about 6 years before I started riding this horse, so I was definitely rusty, but nothing he did was ever anything I couldn’t handle. It was just a bit longer process to get things correct due to fitness.

I’ve ridden several other green lesson horses over the years and I’ve never had an issue. But none of them are what I would call “problem” horses, they just needed more miles.

In your case, it sounds like that horse needs more training rides before he’s going to be comfortable with other people riding him. If he ever is. If I were your trainer, I’d limit the rides by others on that horse and also limit who is riding him to riders who can handle him. If you’re not comfortable riding the horse (and I wouldn’t be), I think you need to tell her that.

[Farosh]

I would say that my green horses aren’t really lesson horses but they do make appearances in lessons here and there for appropriate riders. It’s good for them to learn to deal with different riders and for riders to learn not to take all the things lesson horses do for granted. But really you just have to be mindful as a trainer and not push anyone out of their potential skill level.

For ex one ottb I have who makes appearances is extremely safe but can be a little sulky the first 5-10 minutes of a ride. Not so sulky that people who know how to push can’t get her to go, but enough that they really need to use their leg. Plus again she is really really safe, I’m 100% certain she’s not going to care if you lose your stirrups. Great for w/t/c beginners to practice pushing and get their leg stronger and her lateral movement is good if you get her forward. I’ve never had anyone come remotely close to falling off of her, everyone loves her, and really the worst thing she’s done is try to eat the grass beside the ring lol. However jumping she’s much more forward, little bit green still, and jumps like an extra foot over everything. So great for anyone to flat, but very rarely do I let people jump her, and if I do it’s over like a single cross rail that I’m 100% sure she’s not going to care if the rider messes up.

I don’t think using green horses as full time lesson horses is smart or beneficial for anyone, but there’s appropriate times and places for it definitely. And I think it makes riders feel good that they can have good rides on horses that aren’t 100% made, I like seeing the confidence boost.

The OP’s trainer sounds a little malicious to me. I want to challenge people but not in an unsafe way. Idk I like to mix it up for riders. Sometimes have them ride horses that are really easy for them and play to the rider’s strengths and give them confidence, I think it’s okay to sometimes just want to do something easy that makes you feel good about yourself. Then also have them ride a horse that’s challenging. But when I say challenging I just mean that like the rider who rides the hotter horses well needs to practice with a lazy one, someone who has a weak sitting trot practice with a bouncy horse, or something like that lol not like hey you tend to lose your stirrups so I’ll give you a horse that takes off when you lose your stirrups lol that’s just absurd imo and doesn’t benefit anyone.