A recent comment on the horse trainers post listed under Colorado prompted me to write this post. That comment dealt with the issue of sexual abuse of teenagers by male horse trainers. The number one thing a parent should NEVER do is leave their kids with a stranger and yes someone hired to train your horse or give your child riding lessons is a stranger. They are not friends but people offering a service for pay. These are not people you choose to hang out with on your days off, they are professionals, you are paying for them to do a service. You would not leave your toddler alone with the plumber while you went shopping so why drop your kids off at the horse trainer?
If the trainer goes out of their way to get you to leave the child with them while you go on a quick errand - THAT IS A RED FLAG. Also ask to see if the trainer has had a background check done on themselves since they teach children. Most states require sports coaches to have passed a background check and last time I looked, horseback riding is a sport.
To be safe run a background check on the horse trainer yourself. You don't want to find out that the horse trainer has a list of thefts or sex abuse in their past. After all they might also want to steal your horse too.
Lastly if you do find out that your child was a victim (like the comment under the Colorado posts) PRESS CHARGES! For heaven sakes don't let the scum bag continue to do this to others.
