Children and Horses

We get our Number One Grandson, who is 5, for 2 to 3 weeks in the summer. The great thing about grandchildren is you've already been there so you can just savor the experience. Hell, all the mistakes you were ever going to make you've already made with your children.

My first experience with a horse was when I was 11 or 12. I was shown how to saddle it, and then mount it and away we go. There was a girl who I had a crush on involved which explains some of my complete lack of sense. Fortunately for me it went well enough and my relationship with the horse has been with me since. 

I get asked sometimes when you can introduce children to horses. I use a couple of guidelines to determine if the child is ready. First, the child has to be obedient to your instruction, without hesitation, and show a certain amount of patience. The very first thing to teach the child is that they may never enter the area with the horses unless you are there and give the OK. I attach a couple of loops of paracord to my belt and have the child hold onto one or the other when we move around the horses. The child must be able to stand still for 5 to 10 minutes at a stretch. 5 to 6 years old seems to be about the lower limit that I am comfortable with.

The first rule of children and horses, your body must always be between the horse and the child. Always give the child a safe space to move to if the horse should be overly affectionate or curious. In fact, my wife takes the rather Spartan Wife's approach to the matter, "I will grieve over your broken dead body as long as not a hair on that child's head is touched."

Here's a photo of my grandson interacting with the horses. Note that I am between the horses and my grandson and that he could immediately move behind the upside-down feed trough I'm sitting on if he should need to. If he gets afraid or the horses press the issue he can move quickly to safety.

His First Lessons in The Way of The Horse

First let's talk about the horse. The most famous last words I hear most are "that horse is bomb-proof." Let me see, how exactly did your bomb-proof horse get on top of that large rock and what are you going to do now? There is no such thing, it's just that your horse hasn't experienced the thing that might make it go off yet. I just found something new that makes my horses nervous, and I've had these two for 15 years. Kites, yes a kite. That thing is flapping in the wind 75 feet in the air, and it's "holy crap it's going to get me!" Even though I have trained my horses to not spook with flags, flapping tarps, coats in the wind, what have you this was new, and they didn't like it.

So, you have to know your horse. If you are going to introduce children to horses and horsemanship you must do it with the most unflappable, friendly horse you have. If the horse has ever tried to nip, has a head tossing issue, or is any way head shy use a different one. No crowding allowed either. I allow my horses into my space at my command, this is acceptable. The horse has to be immediately obedient when you give it its "back" command and must take a step back. The horse also has to be obedient to moving at the touch of your hand.

Now let's talk about the child. Never press the child. Like a new horse you must let the child set the pace. Acknowledge their fears, tell them it's completely normal and move ahead only when they feel good about it. I pick a spot and let the horse move to us and then let the child touch the horse. I do this several times until the child feels comfortable around the horse. You might also show the child how to move the horse with his hand, it boosts the child's self-confidence.

I Don't Know, He's Really Big.

Once you've come this far, you should have a very happy child who is in awe of his own ability to be around the horse. Stop! You've had a good day call it done.