Since posting the recent comments to the side bar, I think that the readership has gone up on this little PITA blog. Yep, it is a PITA to those nasty horse trainers that should not even be around horses, much less getting paid to train them. Now I would like to say a few words to those horse owners that are weekend riders or seem to think that having a horse at a boarding stable is the answer to their prayers.
If you own a horse YOU should be the one that is doing most of the training. You know your horse better than anyone. Of course that means daily attention to that horse and not just a quick ride on the weekends. This is where those horse trainers are taking people on that rip off train. They offer a quick fix to an on going problem - the neglected horse. A horse cannot stay in a stall 24/7 or even a paddock and expect to be an angel when taken out even for a quick walk on a lead line. They are a big animal that in the wild roam for miles in one day. The horse needs to get an adequate amount of exercise DAILY not just when the owner has the time or feel like it. That will take more than an hour at the barn each day so plan on at least 2 hours per day per horse. If you don't have the time then do the horse a favor and become an ex-horse owner. Most new horse owners underestimate the amount of time needed to properly take care of a horse each day and I am not talking about mucking out the stalls or feeding, I am talking about handling, ground work, free exercise, grooming, manners and if time allows - riding or driving. That does not include daily medical attention should the horse become sick or injured.
Neglect on the part of a horse owner is what is making those horse trainers on TV millions of dollars. Instead of buying one of their videos or going to one of their seminars, spend that time with your horse.
