> I am sorry you feel that way. That is too bad you > feel like that. There are plenty of nice horses out > there. Why get hurt. I still own him don't I?
Lorraine - you have to understand where several of us are coming from on this list - we have dealt with horses that have been passed from one bad situation to another because their owners would not take the time to correct whatever the problem was and just "dumped" their horse on to the next unsuspecting person. Of course, there are situations where the rider/horse combination are just not working and the horse would be better off somewhere else but you don't "dump" them - you try to find the best situation for them possible with full disclosure as to why they didn't work for you. I guess your choice of words just wasn't a good one for me. I think that anyone (and I'm not aiming this at you necessarily) that finds they are constantly not a match with the horses in their life either aren't doing a good job of picking the right horse for themselves a or they need to learn more about riding and training. I have ridden a bolting horse more than once and I know it is a very frightening experience. I have come back from very bad riding falls and had to work my way out of the fear. But my first question after each episode was what did I do wrong? - How could I have avoided that happening? - Where are the holes in our training? What does this horse need that I'm not giving it? Are my expectations of this horse wrong? And for pete's sake - don't feel bad about getting off of your horse any time you don't feel secure. What are you trying to prove by staying on? If there are people around you making fun or questioning you when you get off, then you are riding with the wrong people. There are many a time when bad accidents could be avoided if people would just listen to their instincts and dismount. -- Laree in NC changing out of her crusader outfit and back into her mild manner Clark Kent outfit. Doppa & Mura Simon, Sadie and Sam (the "S" gang) "Yet when all the books have been read and reread, it boils down to the horse, his human companion, and what goes on between them." - William Farley
