School horses

[Anonymous]

DD likes riding but we don’t have our own horse. Barn gives her a school horse, which is cute but very lazy and requires enormous effort to get going. The trainer said this is how it should be, so she learns to become an active and engaged rider. At the other barn, they have her a very good horse (privately owned but they let the school use it), and DD can do 10x better on this horse. Which approach is the right one? I do t know anything about riding, obviously.

[Anonymous]

My DD has ridden for years, since 3rd grade. It's typical to start them off on a gentle horse so that they get the basics down, and then progressively move the riders to more advanced horses as their skills improve.

Are you saying your DD is in between what the two different barns are offering her? I would talk to her instructor to get a better idea of where she's at.

[Anonymous]

How old is your dd? What kind of riding is it? Is there only one schooling horse at the first place? What are the safety protocols like? There is a lot more info needed in order to tell you which is best. (Long time equestrian mom here).

[Anonymous]

What skills is your daughter working on right now? (That’s easier than asking for a level, because everyone has a different idea of what an “advanced beginner” is — is it being able to trot and steer at the same time? Or not being able to jump anything over 3’?)

I ask because school ponies are notorious for their excellent energy conservation and rider evaluation skills. The same horse that a newish rider can barely get to trot along the rail without cutting in, is the one that more experienced seat and hands can package and turn into a balanced, responsive Novice eventer.

If your daughter can only ride one type of horse (one who hasn’t learned to tune out background noise and only respond when aids ask the question correctly), that tells me she needs more time on the harder horses, not the push-button ones.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the instructor. You really learn to actually ride the horse, as opposed to the horse giving you a ride. Also, the rider's leg development is vastly better than riding a "push-button" horse. You can always dial back your seat/leg more on a horse that is responsive, but if all you know is easy, good luck when you have to ride a horse that needs a strong rider.

[Anonymous]

Another who agrees with the instructor. It will be a harder road but she will be a more skilled rider in the end.

[Anonymous]

She’s 12, and is actually riding on both horses - at both barns. She vastly prefers the responsive horse but it may be good for her and help her riding to also ride on the lazy horse. But she hates it. She’s currently doing cross jumps, small circles in canter, etc. I do t know about levels, if there’s a link where I could look this up, I’d be very grateful. She’s been riding for 2 years about 2x per week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She’s 12, and is actually riding on both horses - at both barns. She vastly prefers the responsive horse but it may be good for her and help her riding to also ride on the lazy horse. But she hates it. She’s currently doing cross jumps, small circles in canter, etc. I do t know about levels, if there’s a link where I could look this up, I’d be very grateful. She’s been riding for 2 years about 2x per week.

9:07 again. Good on your daughter for sticking with it. And good for her instructor for not giving her an easy way out. It sounds like your daughter is in a good place, long-term.

Three thoughts:
1. Being more conscious of her body position and her seat is going to help. It sounds like she has the basics down, but keeping her shoulders stacked over her hips, and making sure she’s using her seat to encourage and allow the energy to flow forward will help horse and rider get in better sync.

2. Develop the habit of ask-tell-demand. (Rather like how we talk to our children.) A soft aid first, followed immediately by a stronger one if there’s no response. And if she’s still ignored, then she needs to get after that lazy beast — hard!

3. Related to #2, and with her instructor’s permission, she should carry a crop. Again, always ask softly first to give the horse a chance to offer the correct answer. But now the demand stage comes with spank! Then once the horse is moving forward as asked, come back and try again, starting softly once more. (So it goes “Trot please. Hey, I said trot! TROT! NOW!!! Ok, walk. Now trot again, please…”) I guarantee that by the second or third cycle, that pony will be moving off her leg with newfound motivation and purpose.

Your daughter is discovering the hard part about horses. They are not machines; it’s more like trying to do pairs figure skating with a partner who doesn’t speak your language, has a different reward and priority system, and isn’t too sure about the intentions of that terrifying plastic bag in the corner of the rink. But the magic is that you’re constantly improving and adding to your bag of tricks. And every ride teaches you something you can apply to the next one. She will ultimately be a better rider for working through her challenges with this horse. If she needs proof, have her ask her instructor to jump around on him for 5 minutes while she watches. It will likely be eye-opening.

[Anonymous]

My daughter has been riding for one year. When she started, she could barely move those sleepy ponies. It was so much work for her and I felt frustrated on her behalf. Fast forward to now and those same sleepy ponies are entirely different animals in how they respond to her. You really can seem tremendous improvement.

She has also ridden the non sleepy horses and while they move faster, she feels less in control even if it is an enjoyable experience.

So my two cents is to stick with it.