In hushed moments, we know that is our sacred promise to horses. We buy their hay. I was sternly corrected for these words, so I’ll double down and be more clear. Call “buying hay” the tip of the financial and emotional iceberg, call it an abbreviation for the ways we alter our lives for horses, for the love and commitment that we offer freely. It’s the base level, the easy task, cheaper than the list of pros we hire for their care, but it stands in front of the rest… if you ask horses. We’re romantic; horses are pragmatic. Hay.
Here’s my problem. I’m a trainer who has lived long enough to have seen some horrible things. What I haven’t seen, people have told me about in minute detail. My mind is haunted by descriptions of horrible things. People hire me to resolve issues that result from these horrible things. On a good day, it’s my job to see all the horrible possibilities and put a smile on my face and do my job. I feel anxious for you and your horse. And I’m selfish. I can only take so much and a helmet cuts the chances of serious brain injury in half, math even I can understand. Those are great odds. Put your horse first; wear the helmet.
I require helmets at my clinics and I’ve written about them extensively, but lately, I was asked to write about vests, too. Yay. I love them as much as horses love hay. Please, consider a safety vest or an air vest.
Okay, say you truly are the exception to the rule. Your horse doesn’t eat. Of course, serious riders wear safety gear but you’re tough. You don’t care, it’s about tradition. You are opposed to change (although you have managed to adapt to a cell phone.) Besides, you don’t do what the pros do, maybe you “only” trail ride. No jumping and really, your horse is old and seriously lazy. He is as bombproof as a horse can be.
The problem is that we have it mixed up. Humans are the ones who aren’t bombproof.
This is a quote from Anna Blake’s blog post titled, Helmet Safety and the Ability to Buy Hay. For more from Anna, I recommend her book, Relaxed & Forward: Relationship Advice from Your Horse.
We all know that riding horses increases our risk of a fall and traumatic brain injury. Why not wear a helmet to make it more likely that we can continue to buy the hay that our horses treasure? Why not wear a vest to make it more likely that our horsemanship path will continue in the years ahead?
Here's a link to the Harvard Health publication, A Guide to Cognitive Fitness.
And this is a link to Descript, the audio and video editing software that I use and recommend.
And a link to the Second Half Horsemanship website.
In hushed moments, we know that is our sacred promise to horses. We buy their hay. I was sternly corrected for these words, so I’ll double down and be more clear. Call “buying hay” the tip of the financial and emotional iceberg, call it an abbreviation for the ways we alter our lives for horses, for the love and commitment that we offer freely. It’s the base level, the easy task, cheaper than the list of pros we hire for their care, but it stands in front of the rest… if you ask horses. We’re romantic; horses are pragmatic. Hay.
Here’s my problem. I’m a trainer who has lived long enough to have seen some horrible things. What I haven’t seen, people have told me about in minute detail. My mind is haunted by descriptions of horrible things. People hire me to resolve issues that result from these horrible things. On a good day, it’s my job to see all the horrible possibilities and put a smile on my face and do my job. I feel anxious for you and your horse. And I’m selfish. I can only take so much and a helmet cuts the chances of serious brain injury in half, math even I can understand. Those are great odds. Put your horse first; wear the helmet.
I require helmets at my clinics and I’ve written about them extensively, but lately, I was asked to write about vests, too. Yay. I love them as much as horses love hay. Please, consider a safety vest or an air vest.
Okay, say you truly are the exception to the rule. Your horse doesn’t eat. Of course, serious riders wear safety gear but you’re tough. You don’t care, it’s about tradition. You are opposed to change (although you have managed to adapt to a cell phone.) Besides, you don’t do what the pros do, maybe you “only” trail ride. No jumping and really, your horse is old and seriously lazy. He is as bombproof as a horse can be.
The problem is that we have it mixed up. Humans are the ones who aren’t bombproof.
This is a quote from Anna Blake’s blog post titled, Helmet Safety and the Ability to Buy Hay. For more from Anna, I recommend her book, Relaxed & Forward: Relationship Advice from Your Horse.
We all know that riding horses increases our risk of a fall and traumatic brain injury. Why not wear a helmet to make it more likely that we can continue to buy the hay that our horses treasure? Why not wear a vest to make it more likely that our horsemanship path will continue in the years ahead?
Here's a link to the Harvard Health publication, A Guide to Cognitive Fitness.
And this is a link to Descript, the audio and video editing software that I use and recommend.
And a link to the Second Half Horsemanship website.