All the Creatures

If you love horses then you know that you either want to ride or you already do. Unlike other types of pets you have, a horse requires something extra from its owner, that the owner be in shape. The owner not only has to be in shape for riding but also for handling the horse on the ground. Reflexes have to be good when the horse spooks at something and either tries to knock you down while spinning on the lead line or just you picking the horse’s hooves out and the horse pulls its foot away from you. Yes, the horse owner can get hurt, not because of carelessness but because of the size of the animal they are handling.

When riding a horse a whole new world opens up to the owner, such as how to get on the horse without pulling the horse down on top of you while awkwardly hoisting yourself into the saddle. I cannot tell you how many times I have witnessed that. If only the owners would take as much time exercising themselves as they did their horses they would not have the problem like the horse moving away from them while they are trying to get in the saddle.

At one point in my life I was a professional horseback riding instructor and all of the people who took lessons from me were in good physical shape. I made it a point to evaluate a new student before they got near one of my lesson horses. I would flat out tell them that learning to ride a horse is different than just being a passenger on a guided tour on a dead broke, follow the horse in front, trail horse. They, the rider, had to be in shape. If that meant to go home and do ab workouts, crunches and go on a diet, then so be it. I rarely had a client not come back.

If you want to ride but you think you are just a tad out of shape, try this test: stand on your left leg and bend your right leg so that you can hold your right foot in you right hand. Stand like that for at least 30 seconds. Now switch. If you had trouble keeping your balance then you need to practice balance exercises. Balance and center of gravity is a huge part of horseback riding - you must have that even before you get in the saddle.

Always keep in mind that horseback riding is considered the top most dangerous sport in the world (according to insurance companies), so you had better be in shape for it.

All the Creatures

I have always loved watching show jumping on TV. When the Olympics shows up every 4 years I try to get my fill of what ever the TV station is broadcasting on the equestrian sports. Did you know that of all the sports there are in the Olympics, the ones that involve horses are the only sports that allow men and women to compete against one another? The horse is the great equalizer.

Of course every few years I hear rumors that the networks may cut back on showing the equestrian events and yet other rumors that some channels will cover almost all of it. I wonder where tv stands on the next Olympics or will they step aside for streaming live video via the internet?

All the Creatures

Damn, now I have seen first hand 2 handicapped riding places that should not be in business. The first one I found out about was almost 10 years ago. I think because of the economy it might have gone out of business, since I cannot find out anything about it since 2006. The recent one was brought to my attention because they were begging for advise on a public message board. Both of them are similar and let me explain why.

They both had a “board of directors” and none of those on the “board” have any medical backgrounds what so ever. The legitimate horseback riding therapy programs will have at least one therapist, a doctor and someone certified by the national handicapped riding group. Neither one of those programs are. Yet they continue to get students in their programs. The one that closed down was known to have put handicapped kids on the backs of untrained horses, untrained in the sense of not use to the needs of the handicapped. Those horses were use to having their riders handle them and not known for being claim and gentle horses. I was called by them in 2004 to see if I could place a mare that they had which had turned aggressive towards everyone. It was no doubt that the horse was not suited to that program but they continued to use her until she revolted. Had the person who was running the program been more knowledgeable in the acquisition of the horses maybe she would not have taken in every horse offered to her. Her only qualification for the role was that she was able to fundraise and always wanted a horse. Her program was always based in someones extra 2 acres behind a private home because all of the public riding stables would have nothing to do with her. Unfortunately that fact was only known to the horse community in the area and the handicapped people were unaware of it.

My recent discovery was of another program where the person running it calls her self a Dr with a PhD at the end of her name. I met that “Dr” years ago when she wanted to take riding lessons from me. Her PhD is not medical nor is she a therapist of any kind, no her PhD is in literature. To me, putting that PhD on her credentials for a handicapped riding program is miss leading to her students. Did I say miss leading? Heck I meant to say fraudulent. By the way she now is the riding instructor for the program. I turned her down when she came to me for riding lessons because she was 67 years old, overweight and walked with 2 walking canes. She must now be in her mid to late 70’s and running a program with lame horses.

If you are looking for a legitimate handicapped riding program then here is my advice: CHECK THEM OUT. Make sure there are licensed professional medical people involved in the program. There are many that are headed by real medical doctors and are affiliated with hospitals. Some of the well known ones are located on university campuses. Don’t all victim to those programs that are run by people that just love to help people and horses. If riding therapy is done incorrectly then the handicapped person will have damage done to them, either mentally or physically. Stay away from the rip off artists. I only wish that more people who were damaged by those rip off programs would let the general public know about it or sue the program. I personally would like to see those programs become licensed under medical treatment. It would put those underhanded places out of business and the legitimate ones would then receive medical insurance payments because they are now a REAL therapy.

All the Creatures