I just had to publish this – from Pauline who is commenting on an earlier post, “Horses know more than you think”.
It had me nodding wisely, so I couldn’t resist:
“I could write a book on this! Like the horse that loves to gallop on the beach but suddenly won’t go down to the beach. Further inspection reveals a problem with the girth which is about to break.
Like the horse who loved to run but who wouldn’t do more than a trot. When forced into a canter a buckle broke on his bridle. No, I personally don’t ride with tack in poor condition, but there have been times when I have ridden beach horses where the tack wasn’t in good condition.
Or the horse who developed a sore under the girth miles from home… I rode him home without a girth, even cantering at times, and he behaved immaculately…
Horses just take care of you if you have gained their trust.
Pauline”
Amen! Please do post below if you’ve had an experience like this. We’d love to hear.
Best
Al
Hello Pauline.
I must agree with you.
My Egyptian Arabian stallion had just such a talent. We went out riding one day and I use to let him gallop on an open gravel road. We however haven’t been there in months so on this particularly day we went and he galloped and I let him go faster and faster untill he went flat out. Unfortunately there was a tree whose branch grow very low. My stallion was 15.1h high so there was no way for us to pass through. I thought I would fall but the next moment I saw something and I coundn’t believe what I was seeing: my stallion ran and bent in a way that both of us could pass through without getting hurt and continue galloping off. That day I learned new respect for my horse and his senses. They are truely amazing.
Yes Indeed, I was out riding my horse Tom and we took a cross country jump badly, we both went down.
I was knocked out.
When I finally came round He was grazing patiently by my side.
I was concussed and couldn’t remember the way home even though I had ridden that area for years.
He stood stock still as I remounted and he took me back to the yard – we just walked and I held on to the buckle of the reins because as I said I had no idea what direction to go in.
I had the honour of knowing him from the age of 3 until 23, I miss him every day.
Fenella
Many years ago I took a friend riding, putting him on my very first horse which was a stout quarter horse mare. She was safe and dependable but he called her “stubborn.” I rode my barrel horse and off we went trotting down the ditchbank. All of a sudden his horse stopped and would not continue no matter how much prodding he did. My friend was becoming very frustrated and impatient with her, when finally she took a deep breath and the billet on her cinch broke! I looked at him and said “now, where would you be if she had listed to you?” He had to admit she was pretty smart. If, for whatever reason, you fell off of her she would stand next to you and patiently wait for you to collect yourself and get up. She died at the age of 36 but we had 29 wonderful years together and I often wish I had her back!
I was riding my mare Shadow & I had never went to the beach with her before, while we were in the river up to her chest for the first time, my friends horse Fire that was beside us reared up & my friend fell off. The current was strong that day & her horse ran out of the water & my friend was going down the current. My horse let her grab hold of her mane & we dragged her out of the river slowly. Me & my friend were amazed. I love my girl !
Yes Yes!!! Years ago my American Saddle Bred horse Dolly would not go above a walk which made no sense because we were riding in a meadow, no traffic, just nice soft grass! We were tuned into each other but her more than me, I was like, 17 or 18 and not real horse savy, just loved them down to my toes! :0)
Well, I’m starting to get a little frustrated of course and she knew it so the next thing she did was broke into a slight trot, humped her back up, stopped abruptly, put her nose on the ground, and it rolled me right out of my English saddle, and down her neck to the ground!
I’m setting on my butt thinking Dolly had lost her horse sense while she is sniffing me and blowing at me! I realized she was making sure I wasn’t hurt which got me to thinking she was hurt somewhere! Alarmed, I got up and checked her all over and couldn’t find anything right up to the point of mounting up at the saddle slide under her belly! I had forgotten to tighten up the cinch because I had mounted from a stump and had no need of the stirrups to mount.
I always felt safe with my beautiful Dolly and that day proved I had the most wonderful partner in the world!
When I was in my early teens I used to barrel race, pole bend etc. Between each event I would loosen the cinch. In my excitement I forgot to tighten it and never realized it until after the race. That saddle never slipped a bit… he managed to stay underneath both of us!
Years ago when I myself was a child. I took my chesnut welsh mare Ruby who stood at 12.2hh for a hack on a forest track. Ruby took a stubborn turn and went into thee trees which were at the roads edge. Under no circumstance was she coming out of those trees. Then a rally car came zooming pass. Whether she had heard the noise or spotted the sun on the wind screen. That pony was looking after me. I love her god bless her wee soul.
good lesson
My husbands mare is the most wonderful horse we have ever owned and I think may have saved his life!!!
One day he was out riding the trails and had a diabetic sugar attack. The group got further and further ahead, no one noticed. He was lightheaded and semi concious. She brought him back to the trailer. He was hanging over the horn of the saddle like a drunk cowboy from an old western. He could have easily been dumped off. Later he said that at one point he thought he was going to fall and she actually side stepped quickly which tossed him the other way back into the saddle.
She is 20 yrs old and semi retired to to arthritis but she will always have a home with us!!! She is also an amazing teacher for our young grandchildren who are just learning to ride.
😀 When i was 9 years old I was riding my pony bareback down the lane from my parents house.
Dolly was always a very willing pony but this day
she stubbornly refused to move a step forward or back.
When I looked down below us, an adder (viper) snake
had passed between her legs and gone to the other side of the lane. I have always been terrified of snakes, she must have known, bless her.
About forty years after my incident on Dolly, I was outwith the North Shrops Hunt, thoroughly enjoying my day, loads of jumping and galloping. One of the other riders came across and said, “Do
you know that your girth is hanging down, broken under your mount’s belly. I had no idea this had
happened, but had not been unsafe as my Andy never put a foot wrong, he always looked after me for nearly thirty years! If only he was still here?
Winter riding, bareback. Just enough snow to camoflage the 10 foot by 12 foot sheet of ice that lay across part of the trail deep in the Forest. My Arabian mare slipped on the ice, went down onto her front knees. Thinking that jumping off of her may hurt her or me, I sat as still and balanced as I could, and waited to see what she would do. It was as if I could feel the “wheels of thought” working in her brain while I waited. She very slowly stood up, and, unhurt, carefully walked off the sheet of ice. We rode about another hour, avoiding ice for the rest of the ride. She is going to be 19 in 2013, and is such a great horse, did 250 mile in 10 days last year, and is gentle enough to carry a young child !
I absolutley loved reading these amazing stories. a bond between some horses and riders are beautiful:)
I think its safe to say that a majority of us have some sort of experience like this, especially when there is a tight bond with the horse. @ yrs ago we took on a rescue horse that was a captured wild australian brumby. This poor little girl had been rounded up in a pen drag on to a truck and then sold on to us. We took her on just to save her from the doggers. My daughter, who was 8 at the time bonded with her instantly, bearing in mind this a horse that had never dealt with humans before. One day one of our other horses who was pregant at the time kicked out at a cranky mare on the neighbouring propert and got her leg cut on the fence, the little brumby was watching this and walked over to try to get the neighbours horse to move away from our injured horse, instantly the little brumby ran over and cut in front of my daughter, she would not let her proceed to the fence line at all. We figured it was her way of trying to keep my child safe, and from that day on the brumby has always raced to be by her side.
i got lost once out trail riding and new where i was but not how to go anywhere from there. i let my reins slack and urged my horse on and she just took me right on home… they truly are AMAZING!!!! 😯 😮
My 9 year old mare has always self loaded, rope over the neck straight up on the float, she has never refused to go on. Recently I could not get her on the float, tried for an hour. I was starting to get frustrated so my 17 year old daughter put her hand on my arm and said “It’s ok mum, I’ll ride her home for you”. The ride home was pleasant for both of them. When I got home I stood looking at the float perplexed and then I noticed on the rear wheel on the side I was trying to load her on 3 of the nuts/studs that hold the wheel on were missing/sheared off!
Growing up on a midwest farm in Minnesota, the dairy cows had a large hillside forested pasture. After milking Dad went out to find a cow that didn’t come in with the herd. She was due to calf soon. Dad took the tractor to find her but couldn’t. So I got on my sway back pony bareback to look. I went to the woods and with slack reins, let the pony take his lead. Which everyway he wanted to go was fine with me. In no time he took me straight to the cow and new born calf hiding in the woods.I reported back and of course Dad went out to get then before night set in. 🙂
After my accident (caused by a stroke we found out subsequently) I lay on the ground for we think, some 45 minutes and my mare stayed right by my side, quietly grazing, fully tacked up with all her mates some ten minutes away!
Then after a few years recovering, I rode my grey gelding and he accepted completely that I was always steering him in, what I thought was straight ahead, until I finally got special glasses and we now know the same straightness again. Clever equines! 🙂
I have a horse that we purchased as a foal. he and i had major issues while he was growing up as he was as hardheaded as i was. now when he thinks he is going to be left behind he jumps over the wooden gate of the stall and will run up to the horse trailer and stand there with the expression of “you are not leaving me behind!!”
he gets me home even when im lost we are the best of buddies now!!
😉 Great stories and memories.