Country pleasure class gone wrong

[Seashells]

Beautiful horses, drivers worst fears during a county pleasure driving class...



Good reminder: Driving is fun, yet serious.

 

[minimomNC]

They profiled this video on Animal Planet. Seems the horse was stung by some kind of insect, driver was very experienced but things happen. No one was seriously injured but the lady in the cart that had to be carried to the center ring, had to be carried because she has limited use of her legs and can't walk very well. Both drivers went on to drive again with no problems. No horses were hurt either.

 

[wildoak]

I've watched this over and over lol....sort of a morbid fascination! You can't watch and you can't look away. It definitely brings home the risk potential, and makes me glad I drive much smaller horses!

Jan

 

[HGFarm]

OMG, that is truly a NIGHTMARE!!!!! I am so happy that no one, including horses, was seriously or fatally injured!!!! I thought it would never end!!!!

Minis can still inflict serious or fatal injuries, depending on the situation, so drivers- always just pay attention and be alert!!

 

[WhiteTailsMinis]

wow, I couldn't even finish watching even though I knew no humans or horses were injured (although I bet quite sore for sure!).

I just keep thinking if I was in that ring I would have immediately gotten my horse and myself out of there! Everyone involved was extremely lucky!

 

[Jill]

I've seen that video before and watching it leaves me just choking back tears. There are so many miniature horse owners who do not take driving training seriously and have no idea how "just a mini" can get just as out of hand as that full size horse. Anyone who thinks they're strong enough to hold back a mini in that kind of a panic has just never been in the position to try and do so.

 

[Eohippus]

Omg. I'm in shock after watching that video. My heart was pounding and I wanted to cry. I couldn't imagine being in either position: having a horse freak out (be it the initial horse or the second) or just being in that arena. I had to watch it a few times (knowing every one was alright made it bearable!) just to see everything that actually happens. I then though what would I have done? First as some one else in the arena: After the cart flips I think I would get out of my cart for sure and start to unhitch my horse for safety, it would also allow me to move my horse quicker and easier. If my horse has been one of the two that got loose I have no idea. Just try to catch them any way I could, I guess.

I know you only have a few milliseconds to react sometimes. What would you do if your horse had been one of the two that had freaked out and gotten loose? What about had you been in the arena also showing?

Do any shows have procedures for worst case senrios like that? Sort of like a fire evacuation plan for misbehaving horses?

It really shows you how dangerous driving can be. Sometimes more so than riding.

 

[Jill]

It really shows you how dangerous driving can be. Sometimes more so than riding.

I agree with you. In so many ways, driving is more dangerous than riding. When riding, you have your entire body and your voice to "talk" to your horse. With driving, just your hands and your voice really. For example, how do you deal with a run away horse you're on? MUCH easier than one you're behind, that is for sure.

 

[Bess Kelly]

WOW!

I don't think anyone was spared inclusion in that...maybe one horse they got unhooked right at the beginning.

That was a real fiasco! Shocking that no on was injured.

 

[Minimor]

First off, getting any of the horses out of the arena & out of the way of the runaway(s) is not that easy. You cannot take the risk of having that runaway horse getting out of the arena to run amok through the barns or parking lot--and you don't have very much time to get the gate open, horses out & the gate closed before that horse comes flying around that end of the arena again. Evacuating the ring isn't a realistic plan.

I agree with Jill about how there are so many Mini owners who do not realize the possible dangers of driving their horses. It's easy to assume that because Minis are small they are easy to handle and a wreck like this wouldn't happen to them. Truth is, when a Mini gets spooked and decides to run like that, he can cause a major wreck too.

Tip--do not ever try to stop a runaway horse by getting in front of it. Stay well away if the horse is still attached to the cart, because a shaft tip can do major damage if a person gets hit by one. If the horse is free of the cart it may be a little easier. With a big horse if you do manage to get hold of a rein there's a good chance you won't be able to hold on--not if the horse is running full out when you grab hold. With a Mini--there is a chance. I've done it--not with a harness horse but one I was longlining--he spooked & took off & I had to let him go. He was racing through the neighbor's yard, then around the end of the trees, back along the tree line, down the boulevard & headed for the yard again. I waited for him to come past on his next pass, reached out & got hold of a rein, fairly close to the bit (no use grabbing it further back, behind the surcingle--you have to get it near the bit, ahead of the surcingle, so that you can pull him around)--and managed to hang onto him & stop him. He was just a little 33" guy, but it still took a good bit of strength to hang onto him & stop him.

In the ring, with other horses and carts, be careful about trying to catch the horse that is running--if you miss you may deflect him into the other horses--it may be better to just try and keep him on the rail, and let him run down a bit. Even that may not work--if he's determined to come off the rail & head for the other horses, you may not be able to change his mind.

I know that it wasn't the problem in this instance, but it concerns me that a number of Mini drivers will take a very green horse into the show ring. It truly isn't a good thing to decide just days before a show to get a horse hitched up for the first time, drive him a couple of times & then take him into the ring. That really is an accident waiting to happen, and it's a fairly common thing in Minis--again, I think because they are small and people tend to think that "small" means "safe"--you can manhandle them into doing what you want, so you can get by without a lot of training. A lot of times you get away with it, but some day somewhere someone won't get away with it.

 

[SHANA]

This or something similar can happen to any size horse even minis. I was in a similar situation with my mini mar, Cherokee Stables Ohso Dandy, just this past weekend. She bolted as she was scared of the Zipper at a fair I was showing at. There was no way I could stop her. She ended up running into the fence which stopped her long enough so that people on the rail grabbed her. She got her back leg over the shaft which she smashed so we had to unhitch her slowly. Everyone was alright, and all Dandy had was some minor scrapes on her back legs. I did stay in the wagon though(4 wheel wagon). I was glad no one was hurt.