The schooling anf trail ride horses, we all at one time started our horsemanship careers riding one or the other. From that first exciting ride through all of the frustrations of the many lessons they gave us their all and then we moved on.
These seasoned calm and experienced animals take on so much, they take the inexperienced and crooked rider, the nervous rider that is heavy in hand and pulls too hard on the rein, the excited rider that squeezes and kicks a little too hard and in stride they perform time and tome again. Studies have shown us that horses not only see and feel all of our emotions but they react to them. They absorb our fear, our anger, our excitement and yet take that emotion and stoically continue on.
As we go through and grow out of the lesson horses, get bored of the trail rides and move on to our chiosen sports we leave behind those beautiful souls to teach the next generation.
I look at these horses with a reverence that is often reserved for the champion jumer, the national level team horses and the top of the line equine athletes. I see all that they are absorbing for us and would gladly give back to them everything they have given to us. I want to give them a chance to relieve all of their emotional stress in a relaxing massage, release those sore back muscles from balancing the inexperienced rider, relieve the pain in their neck and poll from the hard and excited hands on the rein.
Many if not all of us owe one of these starting horses many many thanks for us being where we are today in our equine careers. So remember to thank a schooling horse, that old gentle soul that gave us their all.