Time is More Valuable Than Money

Earlier I overheard a few girls dicussing their lessons at a riding school when the topic of cost came up. The conversation revolved around the fact that riding is an expensive hobby and you must be rich to own your own horse.
 
It struck me then how ignorant some people are. Riding doesn't have to be expensive, and neither does being an owner. I know that livery can be expensive and things begin to add up when you think about feed, hay, shoes, alternative therapies, lessons and entry fees if you compete. But owning a horse doesn't have to cost the earth. And in my experience, it is more successful to spend time with your horse and put the hours of training in, rather than throw money at a problem.
 
I think we all know people who will buy a horse, perhaps cheaply, realise it is 'uncontrollable' or 'ill mannered' and will get rid of it sharpish before dolling out more cash on a more appropriate replacement. Instead, it would have been more rewarding and certainly less expensive to put the effort in to train. I think that, in this way, talented horses are often wasted because their owners simply can't be bothered to put in the hours.

When I first had Pepsi, she was a typical stubborn mare - she did what she wanted, when she felt like it. I was told she'd never jump. But I was determined to prove everyone wrong - she would jump simple home-made poles at home but was eliminated at the first fence at every show we went to. The first time we made it over that first fence (we were eliminated at the second) I came out of the ring grinning - we were making progress. Everyone thought I was mental - we'd still been eliminated. But bit by bit, we finally managed to get around a whole course. Then she decided she didn't like fillers, so we worked on that. After I'd had her for 4 years, the pony who would never jump won a BRC National Championship showjumping competition. Pulling away in our battered old single Rice trailer, I felt a sense of achievement that couldn't come from anything other than years of hard work and training, whatever the weather, against all odds.

If you want to get anywhere with your horse, you should be prepared to put the time in to build a bond and learn to trust each other.
Money can't buy that kind of bond.