Money, and How it Affects the Horse World. (guest blog)
Alright everyone. This is a guest blog from our dear friend, Sonnet.
I really appreciate the fact she took the time to write a guest blog, and I highly encourage everyone else to write one as well! you can email them to: desertrae07@aol.com
Money, and How it Affects the Horse World.
A guest blog, written by: Sonnet (FHOTD)
A guest blog, written by: Sonnet (FHOTD)
It has to be said that having a horse is not a cheap love affair. We all know this, we all accept this, and we love it in our individual ways. To have a horse is NOT a right, it is a privilege. So when you have this privilege, you don’t treat it as a deserved right. I look at the comments from people from Horsetopia, and I get so angry and frustrated by their ignorance, and their blinkered view on horse care and the horse world in general. They make comments such as “not every one can afford a top horse" or “not everyone is made of money”. These are the two main statements I am going to address in this entry and then hopefully someone from the dreaded Horsetopia will read it and realize the errors in their ways….I do so love living in a fantasy world! Firstly no, not everyone can afford top horses. In fact I dare to say 90% of the horse world can’t afford to buy a top horse. I will say though that 90% of the horse world can create a top horse with hard work, education, and skill. I take exception because I have spent time, dedicated myself to her betterment, and increased her skill level, which in turn has increased her value as a horse. This is what has made her into a top horse. My answer to the Horsetopia standard response is : get off your lazy ass educate yourself fully on horse care, maintenance, training, grooming, feeding etc. and then maybe, just maybe, you will produce a mediocre horse. Rather then being jealous or spiteful towards others and the hard work they put into their horses, concern yourselves with your own nags and the work they need.
The second point that I would like to address is... I am not made of money. I have never been made of money. As a responsible horse owner, I make sacrifices on a daily bases to enjoy the privilege of owning and riding my horse. To make the assumption that all people who have nice horses, or make snarky comments on fuglies, have money is moronic and grasping at pathetic straws. You have horses because you have a love for them. You do not have horses because you simply have money. So to own a horse does not automatically mean a person has money. It means that person has made the decision to sacrifice other aspects of their lives to enjoy the aspect of owning and riding their horse.
My basic gripe with horsetopia is the butterflies and sunshine rays out of their asses, way of going about things. Rather then living in fear of offending someone with non biased and straight forward opinions, why not be honest and truthful. Rather then assuming a top horse can only be bought if you have money, find a diamond in the rough and make it a top horse. This of course means you would need to educate yourself on all aspects of horsemanship. Go start educating your selves.
posted by Outting The Asshats of Horsetopia @ 9:03 PM
12 Comments:
I LOVED this blog. I currently work 2 jobs and donate plasma so my horse recieves the best care. He was "free" but now he has a permanent place with me but whenever we go places I get offers to buy him. When I say he was free to me and never for sale. people don't get that.
I am not a trainer and I picked my horse because he had SERIOUS issues and as my first training project my thought was, get one that is already broken that way if I fail a perfectly good horse would not be ruined.
I asked for lots of help and got tons of advice and then took what worked for us and turned a very sour OTTB into a WONDERFUL pleasure mount that can do everything, even roping.
Was it easy no, was it cheap no, was it worth it. . . YES. I am actually in the process of finding another OTTB to do it all again.
again LOVED the blog. I have seen it to be very true.
LOVE it! Saved to my favorites! I just don't have the patience to read Horsetopia...not enough butterflies soaring out my ass!
Karen V
Fugly Fan
http://helpingjoy.blogspot.com/
I was likewise inspired to start my own _HOTD blogs:
http://skinnyhotd.blogspot.com/
http://obesehotd.blogspot.com/
Wish me luck? :D
Good post!
I have an extra stash of money strictly for emergency horse stuff. You never know when something will go wrong... maybe their will be a sudden mass hay shortage or I acquire a greenie who needs professional training. I think all people should have backup money in case of an emergency.. but people seem to think its ok to jump in unprepared.
I do not look on horsetopia... but I read fhotd and heard enough about it to know what its like :)
Sadly abundent in SoCal are the asshats that have money, thus own a horse, but choose not to learn, invest time, training or effort of any kind and eventually ruin that top horse they could afford to buy.
A friend of mine always told me about the beautiful quarter horse he owned for five years until she died in foaling. I invited him to come riding one afternoon and let him groom my gelding while I got the tack ready. When I came back I asked if he'd cleaned his hooves. The rich "I owned a horse" friend looked at me and said "why?".
After some discussion, it came out that he didn't know what a curry comb was, had never picked a hoof, had no idea who his farrier was or his vet, had no idea what had caused his horses death except it died during foaling and could only tell me that his horse ate hay.
He finally said "oh, my stable did those kinds of thing for me". Wow! I want to stable at that barn! I feel it necessary check daily to make sure the stable hands gave him enough feed.
Money can buy a horse... but it can't make you any less of a moron.
mac: very well said wish i had written that as well in my post ( i am sonnet) i will fully admit my barn handles everything in regards to my girl her worming is cheduled with them the farrier etc HOWEVR she is my horse i see her almost every day i vheck her over and know how to look after her !
i am in a state of shock about your story ! holy mother of mercy !! thanks for posting that !
Great post, Sonnet. Totally agree.
Out of curiousity, who exactly from Horsetopia is being mean and spiteful?
i will be honest and say i have not specifically written down names of people being mean or spiteful but i will say on multiple occasions comments have been made here and upon other boards and blogs that were both mean and spiteful.
this is a blog and therefore means the people that right can have their own opinions of others and situations. in the same light people are allowed to disagree or dispute that is the joy of free speach and debating topics.
is there anything you disagree with that has been written in this entry ? i am curious ?
Ok, I can't help myself..this is going to be off topic but I cannot find your email address. I would like to see you start a blog regarding "Common Sense and the Horse World."
I'm hoping that you can take a look at these pictures and tell me what you see is wrong with them..all from the same "respectable" establishment:
http://www.equinenow.com/horse-ad-46514
http://www.equinenow.com/horse-ad-45493
http://www.equinenow.com/horse-ad-45489
http://www.equinenow.com/horse-ad-45481
http://www.equinenow.com/horse-ad-45500
So please..can we get a blog for the simple use of "common sense" when it comes to horses?
I absolutely agree with parts of your statement. I hurt when I see folks with horses who are clearly not being well cared for, whether it's through ignorance or through spite.
Where I take issue is the general FHOTD attitude towards those who are merely ignorant.
I have been there before myself. However, I have learned (and not just from the internet) about what to do and what not to do.
There's a world of difference between someone who doesn't take care of their horse because they are ignorant as to proper care and someone who just doesn't give a shit. I can fully agree on calling out the folks who intentionally starve or neglect their horses. But for the "I didn't know any better crowd," tact is going to get you a lot farther.
Do you guys really celebrate when you "out" someone and they liquidate those horses at an auction? What did you prove other than you made someone from another forum that you used to/wanted to belong to so upset that they fed some more Japanese or Europeans?
I don't think that you, or the FHOTD crowd generally, makes that distinction.
If someone who clearly doesn't know what they're doing posts on a site like Horsetopia of their barbed wire paradise, then some folks will try to address it. It's a moderated forum, so responses that tear the OP a new asshole are going to be deleted or edited. If you sign up for a forum like that and don't like the rules, what on earth do you expect to happen when you ignore them?
That not everyone can afford a top horse is an understatement. What I don't think that you realize is that not everyone wants a top horse. Some people are content to have a horse that they can just hop on for the weekend or to have for their kids or grandkids.
I would have to agree that horses need a "continuing education" in that some, if not used, will have vices and then a very novice rider/owner will fear the horse, and probably nothing good will happen to that horse.
Perhaps "top horse" is a relative term? I had a scraggly little TWH mare that was my best friend growing up. She played unicorn, dressage pony, cow pony and jumping pony for me. There was nothing remarkable about her pedigree and she was very cow hocked. But she was a top horse for me. I would say that if the horse is properly performing the desired function for the rider/owner, then it's a top horse. If a racing TB wins a big stakes race, then it's a top horse.
Plenty of folks on Horsetopia have made sacrifices in their financial lives for their horses. Plenty also haven't. It happens everywhere. There are also plenty of responsible over there, and in other forums. It seems to me that the philosophy there is that you'll have more luck using tact than just giving someone an asshat label. That's why I don't post or do much observing at FHOTD, other than it's the "I can't stop watching the train wreck carnage" affect.
As far as the "jealous and spiteful" part, I have to say that I just really don't see it. If anything, it seems to me that there are a whole lot of people over on FHOTD who are, for whatever reasons, very pissed, jealous and spiteful about being kicked off Horsetopia (and just about every other horse forum) and enjoy an unmoderated environment. I just don't get the depth of hatred and discontent for Horsetopia.
I have to agree with soooooo many of these comments!
The moderators, and many posters on HT are just a huge group of self centered MORONS who think they know EVERYTHING about horse care, training, politics, etc.
And, even more sadly, they believe that they are ALWAYS right.
They ONLY want to listen to similar, like minded people, and permanently keep their minds CLOSED to anything other than their extreme narrow minded version of reality.
Talk about living in a bubble!
how sad for them, LOL!
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