Now that I have your reeling and backing away from this idea with heels dug in, let me tell you about some of the considerable joys that can come from your child’s companionship with the right horse. This is the factor in your decision-making that you should let your heart dictate.
1. Watching your child develop confidence in him or herself.
And this is something your child can and should develop during riding lessons before owning a horse. You don’t have to purchase a horse to reap this benefit for your child. Because riding and handling horses is so very much a psychological exchange, your child has a significant advantage over you. Just as no one has told the horse that it is larger than the human, no one has (or should) tell your child that there’s any reason he or she can’t ride and control a horse. As your child gains stability in the saddle and confidence in handling the horse on the ground, you’ll be amazed how easily they control their horse. That can-do attitude, vital to successful riding and horse handling, will grow with them into other aspects of their life.
As your child approaches and experiences adolescence riding can be a fantastic haven, a single area of their life where they feel 100% in control and in charge. I can’t tell you how valuable this very aspect of riding was for me through the difficult years of puberty. And as a parent who agonizes over your child’s happiness, you may find a haven in their horseback riding as well, a precious hour or two out of each week when you know they are feeling in control and their self-esteem is kicked into high gear.
2. Watching your child gain problem-solving skills.
Again, your child doesn’t have to own a horse to reap this benefit. Weekly lessons are sufficient. Horseback riding lessons are a unique learning opportunity in that problem-solving is built into nearly every moment you spend with a horse. Your child is learning so many things and in most cases, with for instance, math, soccer, trumpet or skateboarding, your child is being told or figuring out a certain set of steps, rules, directions or movements the get to the desired outcome. If your child is precise in learning and following those steps, rules, etc, their outcome will be positive. In horseback riding, your child is forced to contend with an x-factor not present in any of the other activities, a second mind with a will of its own. And they can’t simply overcome that second mind by arguing verbally. They must learn to read and respond to their horse. They must learn to tweak the commands their giving the animal depending on it’s mood that particular day. They must learn how different horses respond differently to directions, how what works with one horse on one day my hold no sway with the same horse on a different day or a different horse on the same day. They learn versatility, empathy, positive-thought-framing and a slew of other tricks that they can again tuck up their sleeve for use later in life. You’ll want to be there to watch them learn and triumph.
3. Watching your child gain responsibility.
And this is where actually buying a horse for you child cannot be equaled by riding lessons. If your riding stable is worth its salt the instructor will teach your child more than just getting on, riding and getting off. They’ll teach the child to groom the horse, tack it up, un-tack it and cool it out and give them as much of an idea as possible of what it takes to care for a horse, but your child won’t really know until they own their own horse which brings me back to where I started and the greatest factor that should weigh into your decision making above all others when deciding whether or not to buy your child a horse…
Tune in over the next few days for the 5th and final installment of the So Your Child Wants a Horse original article. Until then, Happy Trails!
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