Not My Dream
Posted 01-25-2008 at 09:03 PM by Timber_blaze
So, I've loved horses for as long as I can remember. I watched Black Stallion until it broke, I've read the entire Saddle Club series, every Marguerite Henry book, and Black Beauty about once a year. Every horse-crazy girl's dream is to have a horse of her very own, right?
Yet as much as I love Jake, I've discovered that I don't want to be a horse owner. A good horse owner is willing to sacrifice time and money to work with the horse every day, to groom and check for health every day. They keep track of farrier visits, and vet schedules, and even when they can't ride, they will just spend time with their horse.
I take care of Jake--his feet are healthy, he's up to date on vaccinations and I worked with him all summer to get his weight up to a healthy level--but he is not my passion. I only ride once a week (if that) and I live far enough away from the barn that it is impractical to go out just for a quick half-hour to groom and check him out. I've come to realize that horses are a much-loved hobby to me, and I would be better served with weekly riding lessons than owning my own horse.
I feel like it would be better for both Jake and I to sell him to someone who would be more dedicated to his needs, but this also makes me feel like a failure. What kind of horse-lover doesn't want their own horse?
Yet as much as I love Jake, I've discovered that I don't want to be a horse owner. A good horse owner is willing to sacrifice time and money to work with the horse every day, to groom and check for health every day. They keep track of farrier visits, and vet schedules, and even when they can't ride, they will just spend time with their horse.
I take care of Jake--his feet are healthy, he's up to date on vaccinations and I worked with him all summer to get his weight up to a healthy level--but he is not my passion. I only ride once a week (if that) and I live far enough away from the barn that it is impractical to go out just for a quick half-hour to groom and check him out. I've come to realize that horses are a much-loved hobby to me, and I would be better served with weekly riding lessons than owning my own horse.
I feel like it would be better for both Jake and I to sell him to someone who would be more dedicated to his needs, but this also makes me feel like a failure. What kind of horse-lover doesn't want their own horse?
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Comments
 |  Re: Not My DreamSometimes I feel as if I am neglecting my horses too. It takes some times over 1/2 hour just to get there....it's cold as **** out side I'm tired from work all week and I have other things to get done on the weekend. I can only go on the weekends. I work long hours and it's too dark and cold after work to ride. I go anyway, because I receive such a comfort being with them. Watching them graze, running my hands across their mane, working with them brings me satisfaction when we reach that bonding moment. Just being there and watching them with the other horses and them just being a horse. If only for 15 minutes of that and I feel removed from the city, work, stresses, sadness, it all melts away and then I bury my face in the warm neck of one my horses. That's why I still have them. Maybe it's a little selfish, but their happy. they get food regularly, mine are in about 5 acres with about 6 other horses. So pretty much they get to be horses all week and I get 1 day a week of my therapy. |
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