horse riding - Forum - Virtual Popstar

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National star

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
I think there are for more concerning things in horse care than companionship riding. Most people who own or care for horses for that purpose are incredibly invested in their horses health and emotional well being. Regular interaction with the horse allows them to keep track on their horses health in ways a lot of people who just let a horse walk in the pasturewith little interaction might do.
they are also a domesticated animal and thrive with mental stimulation from training and interaction just like a cat or dog, they are herd animals and crave social interaction, from horses which is mandatory but regular contact and bonding with a horse is a good thing.
if one truly is concerned about the well being on horses I would foremost concern myself with racing and breeding as it exploits them through capitalism. Also breaking wild horses that have not been raised to be ridden. That’s not to say it’s not important to look into the health implications of general riding, just that in terms of horse health just the act of riding wouldn’t be the main issue, just like not giving them the right diet is likely way more dangerous to them than riding them.

what do you think about people needing to correct a horses behaviour if they dont want to jump/run etc? I guess my main gripe with horse riding is how people exploit it for money where horses train or are being ridden for hours on end. Especially because there are studies that show that horses backs are being deformed because of equipment and riding etc. I agree that simply owning a horse and riding it sometimes can be stimulating for domesticated horses. I guess it depends how OFTEN and what type of training. That is also why i asked about regular horse riding because any sport that uses animals in some sort of way for competitions is animal cruelty to me

Elisia
International star

Elisia wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
I think there are for more concerning things in horse care than companionship riding. Most people who own or care for horses for that purpose are incredibly invested in their horses health and emotional well being. Regular interaction with the horse allows them to keep track on their horses health in ways a lot of people who just let a horse walk in the pasturewith little interaction might do.
they are also a domesticated animal and thrive with mental stimulation from training and interaction just like a cat or dog, they are herd animals and crave social interaction, from horses which is mandatory but regular contact and bonding with a horse is a good thing.
if one truly is concerned about the well being on horses I would foremost concern myself with racing and breeding as it exploits them through capitalism. Also breaking wild horses that have not been raised to be ridden. That’s not to say it’s not important to look into the health implications of general riding, just that in terms of horse health just the act of riding wouldn’t be the main issue, just like not giving them the right diet is likely way more dangerous to them than riding them.

what do you think about people needing to correct a horses behaviour if they dont want to jump/run etc? I guess my main gripe with horse riding is how people exploit it for money where horses train or are being ridden for hours on end. Especially because there are studies that show that horses backs are being deformed because of equipment and riding etc. I agree that simply owning a horse and riding it sometimes can be stimulating for domesticated horses. I guess it depends how OFTEN and what type of training. That is also why i asked about regular horse riding because any sport that uses animals in some sort of way for competitions is animal cruelty to me

horses like dogs also like to run and perform sometimes! there are horse actors too! but the ones who are pushed to constantly race/train can be cruelty. the easiest way to tell is how the horse and owner interact. when the rider is the owner, they are usually in good hands tho

Private
Youtube star

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
I think there are for more concerning things in horse care than companionship riding. Most people who own or care for horses for that purpose are incredibly invested in their horses health and emotional well being. Regular interaction with the horse allows them to keep track on their horses health in ways a lot of people who just let a horse walk in the pasturewith little interaction might do.
they are also a domesticated animal and thrive with mental stimulation from training and interaction just like a cat or dog, they are herd animals and crave social interaction, from horses which is mandatory but regular contact and bonding with a horse is a good thing.
if one truly is concerned about the well being on horses I would foremost concern myself with racing and breeding as it exploits them through capitalism. Also breaking wild horses that have not been raised to be ridden. That’s not to say it’s not important to look into the health implications of general riding, just that in terms of horse health just the act of riding wouldn’t be the main issue, just like not giving them the right diet is likely way more dangerous to them than riding them.

what do you think about people needing to correct a horses behaviour if they dont want to jump/run etc? I guess my main gripe with horse riding is how people exploit it for money where horses train or are being ridden for hours on end. Especially because there are studies that show that horses backs are being deformed because of equipment and riding etc. I agree that simply owning a horse and riding it sometimes can be stimulating for domesticated horses. I guess it depends how OFTEN and what type of training. That is also why i asked about regular horse riding because any sport that uses animals in some sort of way for competitions is animal cruelty to me

honestly i am not well versed enough in the actual training of horses to speak much on treaining them to do something the individual horse doesnt enjoy doing . My gut instinct is to say that a dog doesnt necesarily want to train either, they do it for the reward, which the horse would also do if training it in a humane way. but there is definitely more arguments for it benifiting a dog than a horse, simply because theyre different animals.

either way its why i initially said it comes down to if the horse is adequately cared for. If the current sciences says the horse can be ridden once a day for one hour or something like that without it impacting the health, then sticking to that would be adequate car of the horse.
certain case riding scenarios is definitely hard liune abuse, like birthday party kid riding, and big citty horse carriage tourist type things. Horse back riding schools im personally torn on, and would really depend on the individual stable, as well as regulations in the country.

from a veterinary med perspective my impression so far is that horses do not come in from injuries tied specidically to riding them. Commonly its leg issues (which might be from riding, but also often just from standing boxed up or being silly,, theyre very fragile creatures), and various digestive issues or parasites. Anecdotal but the horses that were at the clinic i was observing at last semester were there for sinus issues and a potentially cancerous lump, ill likely have a broader perspective once ive done the horse part of my internship next year though

Fujiwara
International star

fujiwara wrote:
i agree with dcs comments
i like horses. i wanted to own a horse when i was younger, as ride my own horse from time to time. but i never did live in an appropriate place for a horse. and im too heavy now to ride one

Private
Popstar

Melody wrote:
some stables i've been to definitely care more about money than the horses... unfortunately they are also often the only places where you can actually ride horses without owning one yourself. there aren't that many options either (in my country anyway) so you typically either have to support a questionable stable or travel far to find a stable that possibly treats their horses better

horse riding itself i think is fine - if the horse likes it. not all horses are meant to be ridden. i think you should know your horse before getting on its back, but stables from my experience rarely let you bond like that outside the moment you dress your horse... which itself is an invasive operation imo especially if the horse has never even seen you before

if i was rich af i'd get myself a horse, but i think i'd soon run into the problem of where to keep it since being herd animals, i couldn't just keep it alone at a pasture. stables often offer rentable spaces for private horses so they get to hang out with other horses, but there are many risks involved since these are the same stables that treat their own horses bad. horses that are treated bad often pick up bad habits which includes them bullying each other... so they could also bully my horse and cause it more bad than good

tldr horse riding and keeping is another thing ruined by greed of humanity sigh

Private
International star

bexxi wrote:

Hauru wrote:

bexxi wrote:
uhhh i dont think so
what would be the reasons it could be considered unethical? im willing to hear the facts

I wouldnt necessarily argue it is abuse or anything but how do you know a horse likes to be ridden? Bcs behaviour like not following or willing to jump/run has to be "corrected". They are flight animals the way i see it i would say horse riding is purely for human pleasure what does the horse gain from being ridden?

well it gains the human taking care of its very needs i suppose. safety and secure food, someone who massages u with a brush and braids ur mane. also brings u carrots
i feel like horses can def be very happy in capitivy, like my moms horse really enjoyed when i came over and expected to be fed some carrots ocourse. but horses can def misbehave, like my moms horse would never lift her foot for me to clean it out, she would lean with her full weight on it when i tried to do it haha. but with my mom she was willing to lift it herself, and my mom didnt like ... beat her into submission. she just respected my mom and knew lil baby bexxi cant do anything if i just dont play along.

Private
National star

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
I think there are for more concerning things in horse care than companionship riding. Most people who own or care for horses for that purpose are incredibly invested in their horses health and emotional well being. Regular interaction with the horse allows them to keep track on their horses health in ways a lot of people who just let a horse walk in the pasturewith little interaction might do.
they are also a domesticated animal and thrive with mental stimulation from training and interaction just like a cat or dog, they are herd animals and crave social interaction, from horses which is mandatory but regular contact and bonding with a horse is a good thing.
if one truly is concerned about the well being on horses I would foremost concern myself with racing and breeding as it exploits them through capitalism. Also breaking wild horses that have not been raised to be ridden. That’s not to say it’s not important to look into the health implications of general riding, just that in terms of horse health just the act of riding wouldn’t be the main issue, just like not giving them the right diet is likely way more dangerous to them than riding them.

what do you think about people needing to correct a horses behaviour if they dont want to jump/run etc? I guess my main gripe with horse riding is how people exploit it for money where horses train or are being ridden for hours on end. Especially because there are studies that show that horses backs are being deformed because of equipment and riding etc. I agree that simply owning a horse and riding it sometimes can be stimulating for domesticated horses. I guess it depends how OFTEN and what type of training. That is also why i asked about regular horse riding because any sport that uses animals in some sort of way for competitions is animal cruelty to me

honestly i am not well versed enough in the actual training of horses to speak much on treaining them to do something the individual horse doesnt enjoy doing . My gut instinct is to say that a dog doesnt necesarily want to train either, they do it for the reward, which the horse would also do if training it in a humane way. but there is definitely more arguments for it benifiting a dog than a horse, simply because theyre different animals.

either way its why i initially said it comes down to if the horse is adequately cared for. If the current sciences says the horse can be ridden once a day for one hour or something like that without it impacting the health, then sticking to that would be adequate car of the horse.
certain case riding scenarios is definitely hard liune abuse, like birthday party kid riding, and big citty horse carriage tourist type things. Horse back riding schools im personally torn on, and would really depend on the individual stable, as well as regulations in the country.

from a veterinary med perspective my impression so far is that horses do not come in from injuries tied specidically to riding them. Commonly its leg issues (which might be from riding, but also often just from standing boxed up or being silly,, theyre very fragile creatures), and various digestive issues or parasites. Anecdotal but the horses that were at the clinic i was observing at last semester were there for sinus issues and a potentially cancerous lump, ill likely have a broader perspective once ive done the horse part of my internship next year though

i agree but i guess but im still somewhat on the opinion that horse riding is less benificial for horses than it is for humans. There is other ways to stimulate a horse than riding and it can cause more issues than it does good for the horse. I dont judge people who ride or want to ride its just a discussion i was interested in

Private
International star

bexxi wrote:

fujiwara wrote:
i agree with dcs comments
i like horses. i wanted to own a horse when i was younger, as ride my own horse from time to time. but i never did live in an appropriate place for a horse. and im too heavy now to ride one

you could probably still ride some breeds like e.g. island ponies. they are strong as fuck ... even tho they are small.

Private
National star

Hauru wrote:

bexxi wrote:

Hauru wrote:

bexxi wrote:
uhhh i dont think so
what would be the reasons it could be considered unethical? im willing to hear the facts

I wouldnt necessarily argue it is abuse or anything but how do you know a horse likes to be ridden? Bcs behaviour like not following or willing to jump/run has to be "corrected". They are flight animals the way i see it i would say horse riding is purely for human pleasure what does the horse gain from being ridden?

well it gains the human taking care of its very needs i suppose. safety and secure food, someone who massages u with a brush and braids ur mane. also brings u carrots
i feel like horses can def be very happy in capitivy, like my moms horse really enjoyed when i came over and expected to be fed some carrots ocourse. but horses can def misbehave, like my moms horse would never lift her foot for me to clean it out, she would lean with her full weight on it when i tried to do it haha. but with my mom she was willing to lift it herself, and my mom didnt like ... beat her into submission. she just respected my mom and knew lil baby bexxi cant do anything if i just dont play along.

keeping a horse and riding it are different things to me personally

Private
Youtube star

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:
what do you think about people needing to correct a horses behaviour if they dont want to jump/run etc? I guess my main gripe with horse riding is how people exploit it for money where horses train or are being ridden for hours on end. Especially because there are studies that show that horses backs are being deformed because of equipment and riding etc. I agree that simply owning a horse and riding it sometimes can be stimulating for domesticated horses. I guess it depends how OFTEN and what type of training. That is also why i asked about regular horse riding because any sport that uses animals in some sort of way for competitions is animal cruelty to me

honestly i am not well versed enough in the actual training of horses to speak much on treaining them to do something the individual horse doesnt enjoy doing . My gut instinct is to say that a dog doesnt necesarily want to train either, they do it for the reward, which the horse would also do if training it in a humane way. but there is definitely more arguments for it benifiting a dog than a horse, simply because theyre different animals.

either way its why i initially said it comes down to if the horse is adequately cared for. If the current sciences says the horse can be ridden once a day for one hour or something like that without it impacting the health, then sticking to that would be adequate car of the horse.
certain case riding scenarios is definitely hard liune abuse, like birthday party kid riding, and big citty horse carriage tourist type things. Horse back riding schools im personally torn on, and would really depend on the individual stable, as well as regulations in the country.

from a veterinary med perspective my impression so far is that horses do not come in from injuries tied specidically to riding them. Commonly its leg issues (which might be from riding, but also often just from standing boxed up or being silly,, theyre very fragile creatures), and various digestive issues or parasites. Anecdotal but the horses that were at the clinic i was observing at last semester were there for sinus issues and a potentially cancerous lump, ill likely have a broader perspective once ive done the horse part of my internship next year though

i agree but i guess but im still somewhat on the opinion that horse riding is less benificial for horses than it is for humans. There is other ways to stimulate a horse than riding and it can cause more issues than it does good for the horse. I dont judge people who ride or want to ride its just a discussion i was interested in

idk if i would measure animal welfare in who benefits the most from the relatioship, but yeah this has at least made me interesting in knowing more about the topic. if u have the studies about the affect onb their backs i would love links to them to read

Private
Youtube star

devilcake wrote:
also are you talkiung as someone with a lot of horse experience or is it just based on reading

(this is not an attempt to discredit, its just interesting to me to see how people with experience with an animal reasons about it compared to those without it)

Private
National star

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
honestly i am not well versed enough in the actual training of horses to speak much on treaining them to do something the individual horse doesnt enjoy doing . My gut instinct is to say that a dog doesnt necesarily want to train either, they do it for the reward, which the horse would also do if training it in a humane way. but there is definitely more arguments for it benifiting a dog than a horse, simply because theyre different animals.

either way its why i initially said it comes down to if the horse is adequately cared for. If the current sciences says the horse can be ridden once a day for one hour or something like that without it impacting the health, then sticking to that would be adequate car of the horse.
certain case riding scenarios is definitely hard liune abuse, like birthday party kid riding, and big citty horse carriage tourist type things. Horse back riding schools im personally torn on, and would really depend on the individual stable, as well as regulations in the country.

from a veterinary med perspective my impression so far is that horses do not come in from injuries tied specidically to riding them. Commonly its leg issues (which might be from riding, but also often just from standing boxed up or being silly,, theyre very fragile creatures), and various digestive issues or parasites. Anecdotal but the horses that were at the clinic i was observing at last semester were there for sinus issues and a potentially cancerous lump, ill likely have a broader perspective once ive done the horse part of my internship next year though

i agree but i guess but im still somewhat on the opinion that horse riding is less benificial for horses than it is for humans. There is other ways to stimulate a horse than riding and it can cause more issues than it does good for the horse. I dont judge people who ride or want to ride its just a discussion i was interested in

idk if i would measure animal welfare in who benefits the most from the relatioship, but yeah this has at least made me interesting in knowing more about the topic. if u have the studies about the affect onb their backs i would love links to them to read

there are multiple sources that you can read and come to the conclusion about the influence of riding, equipment and also the age of the horse that can influence its back and cause deformity. I actually watched a short video on it a while back if i find it i will link it here but a few links on different studies and papers talk about this topic or explain why its ALSO important to look out for the age of the horse or if they already have genes that make them more likely to have swayback or kissing spine that can be made worse with riding. Inexperienced riders can also make a horses back worse if they dont know how to sway with the motion of the horse. A spine of a horse also most of the time only fully develops at like 5-6 years old. Some even up to 8. These are probably also papers that could be interesting to you because of your major https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2023.0644
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2023.1224605/full
https://www.wehorse.com/en/articles/kissing-spine-in-
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1090023314004444?via%3Dihub
popped splints also happen a lot in riding or jumping https://www.newenglandequine.com/Articles/Splints.pdf
this is a more biased source but it talks about a few keywords that also hint on "deformities" that can be caused through riding https://veganfta.com/blog/2024/07/31/horses-deformities-caused-by-riding/

i actually read some a while back but i couldnt find the exact ones i was reading

Private
National star

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
also are you talkiung as someone with a lot of horse experience or is it just based on reading

(this is not an attempt to discredit, its just interesting to me to see how people with experience with an animal reasons about it compared to those without it)

no direct experience i grew up with a love for horses and did visit my friends horse stable but was never allowed to ride them personally bcs it was too expensive (which it still is). Growing up I always thought about picking up riding for myself but the older i got the more i thought about the ethics of riding horses. I guess the interest about these topics just came naturally to me because i just like discussing it not because i particulary stand for the cause. Im not passionate about it i was just interested in other peoples opinion so it could potentially change with good arguments but i did see a few equestrian videos on my tiktok fyp where some riders were being critized for being too forceful with their horse when it shows signs of not wanting to be ridden (thats how the question came to me)

Private
Youtube star

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:
i agree but i guess but im still somewhat on the opinion that horse riding is less benificial for horses than it is for humans. There is other ways to stimulate a horse than riding and it can cause more issues than it does good for the horse. I dont judge people who ride or want to ride its just a discussion i was interested in

idk if i would measure animal welfare in who benefits the most from the relatioship, but yeah this has at least made me interesting in knowing more about the topic. if u have the studies about the affect onb their backs i would love links to them to read

there are multiple sources that you can read and come to the conclusion about the influence of riding, equipment and also the age of the horse that can influence its back and cause deformity. I actually watched a short video on it a while back if i find it i will link it here but a few links on different studies and papers talk about this topic or explain why its ALSO important to look out for the age of the horse or if they already have genes that make them more likely to have swayback or kissing spine that can be made worse with riding. Inexperienced riders can also make a horses back worse if they dont know how to sway with the motion of the horse. A spine of a horse also most of the time only fully develops at like 5-6 years old. Some even up to 8. These are probably also papers that could be interesting to you because of your major https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2023.0644
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2023.1224605/full
https://www.wehorse.com/en/articles/kissing-spine-in-
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1090023314004444?via%3Dihub
popped splints also happen a lot in riding or jumping https://www.newenglandequine.com/Articles/Splints.pdf
this is a more biased source but it talks about a few keywords that also hint on "deformities" that can be caused through riding https://veganfta.com/blog/2024/07/31/horses-deformities-caused-by-riding/

i actually read some a while back but i couldnt find the exact ones i was reading

thanku thanku i tried looking for some sources myself but ended up with more philosophical than medical ones, imma save and read later

Private
Youtube star

devilcake wrote:

Hauru wrote:

devilcake wrote:
also are you talkiung as someone with a lot of horse experience or is it just based on reading

(this is not an attempt to discredit, its just interesting to me to see how people with experience with an animal reasons about it compared to those without it)

no direct experience i grew up with a love for horses and did visit my friends horse stable but was never allowed to ride them personally bcs it was too expensive (which it still is). Growing up I always thought about picking up riding for myself but the older i got the more i thought about the ethics of riding horses. I guess the interest about these topics just came naturally to me because i just like discussing it not because i particulary stand for the cause. Im not passionate about it i was just interested in other peoples opinion so it could potentially change with good arguments but i did see a few equestrian videos on my tiktok fyp where some riders were being critized for being too forceful with their horse when it shows signs of not wanting to be ridden (thats how the question came to me)

nodnod

its like i know i have an inherent bias from having done horseback riding when i was younger, but definitey not as big of one as someone who has done it their whole life, but on the flip side not having it means you likely have less nuance to look at a topic like this, so its always inchresting to know the perspective people are coming from