09/10/2026
Horse people are so insufferable sometimes 😅
In the week since my move, the comments have been a mixed bag of genuinely supportive and kind remarks and people coming up with all sorts of things for me to worry about with my horses.
I already have OCD. Something I can promise everyone is that I do not need any additional help with worrying.
Especially in a year, where I suddenly lost a parent, one of my worst fears. My OCD has worsened this year and it has been something that I’m working on.
Which is ultimately why I made the video about bears because part of addressing my own OCD is recognizing the likelihood of certain things happening.
Could a bear attack happen? Yes.
Is it likely to? No.
I think that we all need to recognize the fact that certain risks are always going to be present, but being aware of which ones are the most likely and what we can do to reduce the risk is important.
I’ve also been met with comments, worrying about my horses, having access to forest. Worrying about sticks on the ground or fallen trees or tree stumps.
These worries exist in an area where the horses have built lots of paths around and are learning how to be more surefooted around the foliage that comes with being in a forest.
Removing down trees and every stick out of the field would cause other risks, such as more flooding and slippery footing when it does rain.
It would also remove the natural obstacles that come with this sort of lifestyle.
It hits the point where we need to ask ourselves, what lengths are we willing to go to to keep horses safe?
Because, a lot of people would feel that my horses are safer in a completely flat dry lot with footing that has been entirely manufactured by people.
And, maybe they would be.
But I’ve had them in that sort of situation and they’ve gotten injured anyways.
All while being a whole lot less happy.
I think there is something to be said about the level of anxiety that so many horse people face when they witness horses living in situations that are objectively closer to the way the horses are supposed to be living.
Horses weren’t built to only walk across perfectly flat ground and perfectly manicure arenas without any obstacles.
Perhaps, a lot of the increase in injuries that we are seeing is because of how much we have bubble wrapped horses and disallowed them to be like horses.
Of course, horses who never walk across any alternative ground are going to be more likely to fall down and trip over obstacles when they arrive.
Of course, horses who have been kept confined are going to be less able to navigate obstacles at speed when they are finally afforded the opportunity to really pick up the pace in their turnout area.
But, is that risk the fault of the turnout area or is it the fault of people constantly maintaining horses in areas that do not allow them to exist to their full potential?
There are so many horses in this world that don’t get to move fast faster than a trot unless they are being ridden because their turnout area doesn’t allow them to do so.
There are so many horses who never step over any obstacles unless a person is there piloting them.
At some point, we need to acknowledge what we have built for horses, and how much human influence has created problems that we then used to bubble wrap them more.
My Mustangs are by far the most functional, intelligent and well adapted horses I own.
They self trim very well and do not require as many maintenance trims as my other horses.
They navigate the natural environment better and get less minor cuts and abrasions because they are more careful.
They are braver and more thoughtful about how they navigate the environment around them.
I think they are even built to sustain less injury because they are smaller and lighter.
So, I think they serve as a pretty direct example to me as how human intervention often creates behavioural patterns and genetic traits that don’t necessarily serve horses as well for being horses.
Anyways, at the end of the day, with my platform, I want to normalize a more horse-centric approach.
I want to shed light on all of the normalized risks that Horse people undertake.
Because, year after year, I see Horses getting tendon injuries and severe injuries in the name of chasing competition goals.
Yet, if you tell people to stop riding their horses as hard to prep for competition, people are furious.
I see Horses colic or become cast after a lifetime in a small area and people largely do not bat an eye.
Risk is something that is not considered when it ultimately benefits the person’s idea of what is safer for the Horse.
Or when it benefits the goals that the person wants to use the Horse for.
But, as soon as a horse runs the risk of sustaining an injury of their own accord simply enjoying their life, suddenly it’s something that needs to be microanalyzed.
And, that is something, that as an industry we need to reflect upon.
If it is not cause for concern for people to put horses in situations in the name of riding and competition that could cause them severe injuries then people should be willing to put at least the same “risk” into providing a species appropriate lifestyle for horses.
Because, ultimately, if risk of injury is acceptable in the name of riding, but not in the name of the horse getting to enjoy life outside of riding, that says a lot about the choices of the people.
If I went out out of my way to constantly remind people of the risks associated with things like hauling horses to competitions, training for upper level riding, stalling excessively etc it would p**s people off.
It already does when I do it on my page, but imagine if I started going onto other people’s pages to ask them if they were worried about getting in a car accident with how often they haul their horses to shows?
Or their horse colicking at a show due to being stabled.
Or their horse severing a tendon due to the demands of competition.
I could go on, because there’s many risks associated with the things that people like to do with horses for competition and more.
The point being, talking about risk is only acceptable if it is directing at risks that people want to look into.
As soon as you talk about the risks of the competition industry and the prolific use of horses by humans, people become uncomfortable.
And, suddenly it doesn’t just become a discussion about safety. It feels like an attack.
Thank you for coming to my Ted talk and I will remain frustrated about people coming to me with every potential concern that could possibly exist with the intent, it seems, of talking me out of my own life. 🤦♀️ 
