The Green Horseman

I follow a lot of equestrians. I enjoy learning their methods and reading what the have to say most times.

Not too long ago I saw a post from a world-class equestrian who has competed in the Olympics and done many different things for and within the equine industry. This person is highly regarded and respoected.

The post was off-putting. It described a person riding at the farm who had discovered their horse had a loose shoe. The person asked this social influencer how to get in contact with the farrier and didn’t know how to pull a loose shoe.

Following setting the scene was a belligerent rant about being a “whimpering infant” and learning how to do basic tasks. The influencer publicly shamed this person (not named at least) for being a bad horseman and did so in the most insulting way possible. Finally, influencer mentioned that this behavior is entitlement for not doing these menial tasks.

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I was dumbstruck. I admired this person but lost a load of respect for them instantly. Obviously, they know a lot and still have plenty of wisdom to bestow on the world…but this post was so off-putting. It bothered me so much that here I am writing about it.

When we’ve been in the industry for years and years we often forget about some of the years when things weren’t as second nature. A horse snorting or shaking a bug off barely registers in my mind as I don’t need to respond to it. The same horse’s action terrifies my family member who probably only visits once per year. They don’t know that this is normal. They don’t know that it’s ok. 

The non horse person sees a horse rolling in the field thinking it’s funny…the horse person watches for a minute and verifies that it is indeed a roll and not colic.

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You don’t scold a person for not knowing how to pull a shoe unless they have blatantly shown some sense of entitlement. Not knowing how to pull a shoe does not automatically make someone an entitled brat. 

I didn’t know how to pull a shoe until I owned a horse with shoes. He pulled it half off and was stepping on his quarter clip. I knew it was emergent and I looked it up. I didn’t have the tools but I had something similar that could do the job and I got it done. The next day I got the tools.

I didn’t know. I didn’t realize I needed to know until I needed to know. Not because I’m entitled. Because it was a genuine oversight. All the horses I’ve ridden through the years were barefoot. I grew up with a single parent home and was lucky to ride, but I was not close enough to go there on my own. I couldn’t simply go when the farrier was there to watch. As an adult I couldn’t simply leave work to watch someone getting their shod horses done. No trainer ever suggested it, offered it, or even mentioned it was a good skill. 

I guess I could have read articles, watched videos, etc. We can ALWAYS do more…but that is besides my point.

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This influencer’s post could have been a wonderful article about the importance of learning this skill and how he helped teach the skill to the person behind him in the learning process. Instead, the world got a rant about entitled lazy people and bad horsemen.

It costs NOTHING to be nice. In a boarding situation you will find people with 50+ years of experience and people with 50 days of experience. You may be the most experienced or you may be the least. Remember that when someone in the barn is less experienced than you…. or might even be missing a skill that you have…helping fill the divide of knowledge goes a long way. 

Experience comes in many forms. I could learn a lot from a western rancher, a person who drives, miniature horse owners, breeders, trainers. I can teach a lot to a new horse owner. In turn I can help the person behind me in the process and pay it forward. I’ve even helped some with more overall experience than me but less in-depth knowledge about a specific situation. 

Be humble. Be nice. Be kind.
Give others the benefit of the doubt. Help when you can. 
Don’t assume everyone else is inferior entitled slouches.