The situation: Romeo has become my "lesson horse" for the little girl that is taking basic beginner lessons from me. She is learning how to walk & trot, Romeo is learning to be patient with her fear. If she gets scared and leans forward, he'll slow down to a walk, or halt. Most times he slams on the brakes & halts. I didn't teach him that, he came to me with that little gift.
I've learned now by watching him do it twice that if I'm on him, and I tense up, he'll take off. Romeo is a good gauge for me and how tight my legs & seat are. Yesterday, I rode him English, and laughed pretty hard that when I started talking to him (thus breathing & consciously relaxing), he finally dropped his head, bent at the poll, and became the cutest little hunter pony in the world. Sunday, I rode him before the child arrived. He was a NUT! No brakes, just a gas pedal. Kid came, I warned her she may not trot because "Romeo was having a speedie day." She got on, and he turned into a saint. First time she trotted, he did get a little speedie, but she started breathing, and relaxing, and so did he. He didn't go half as fast with her as he did with me.... not even once.
Neighbor lady is terrified to ride, and while the horse she has is quiet now, her hubby's doing some wild-riding on him that I'm afraid may teach him bad habits. Do I offer up Romeo once in a while for her? How many scared tense riders can one horse tolerate before they become goofy themselves? Does it depend on the horse? I know Chewie can't handle any scared tense riders - me on my bad days is more than he can handle. That's why nobody else rides him. His big TB strides scare everybody I know... except me, and that's just 'cuz we've been together so long, I trust him...
Your thoughts?
What's the limit of scared riders for one horse?
Want to join? Register here. Already signed up? Click here to login!