riding injuries?

[MustangLover]

What's the worse you've ever been hurt around a horse?
My most recent one was getting thrown off my horse montana and landing on my shoulder..but I've had worse, like getting thrown in the barn, painful but didnt get hurt..having a horse rear up on me, she reared up competely straight and all i did was lean forward and hope that she doesnt fall back...

[Donna Campbell smith]

I have been very fortunate. In over 30 years I've had just two horse related accidents that sent me to the hospital. One, I was longeing a horse and he kicked me, hitting my hand that was holding the longe whip and broke my hand.

The other, I was pouring bleach out of the bottle onto a horse's foot that had thrush. He jerked his foot and the bleach splashed into my eye. My dr said it was the worse chemical eye burn he'd ever seen, but all healed fine. Was not a pleasant experience, though.

I fell off once and cracked my tail bone. Didn't go to the doctor. And I have a little dent in my skull from another fall. Didn't go to the dr for that one either.

[Teg]

Sounds like you have learned a few lessons the hard way Montana Blue ! Glad you are well and hope you are having no nasty after-effects.
You had a lucky escape too Donna Campbell-Smith. Thank-Goodness it wasn't worse. I imagine you might be still feeling one or 2 of those injuries in the back and head ? Hope not.

I started riding in 1961. My favourite competition was the Cross-Country Events.(Hunter Trials) I have done showjumping, showing and hunting 2 and 3 times a week .Have had many falls but have only been hospitalised once in that time for horse related injuries. (Broke my leg parachuting once ! lol)........
but that's another story ! lol...


Some years ago, a horse fell on me. Fortunately I was wearing a hard-hat, or would not be here to tell the tale. I had various injuries associated with a horse landing in ones lap ! lol ... but the worse was the skull fracture. I was in a coma for a few weeks and on a life-support system as I could not breathe unaided. Very long story, which I shall not bore you with (unless you ask, am happy to answer any questions).... My rehabillitation has taken a few years, but am back in the saddle and enjoying life much as ever. :)
So , although I am unable to do all I used to , I consider myself a very blessed, fortunate person indeed. :)

One thing I have learned... is that anything could happen tomorrow, I might win the lottery, or I might be hit down by a bus... the main thing is, to live and enjoy every moment as it comes....make the most of whatever situation I find myself in...

Oh dear...looks like I have rambled a bit ....
Bet you wish you hadn't asked now Montana Blue !! :)
Teg x

[Suzanne]

Yeah, I've been lucky that in 30+ years of riding I've never suffered a serious injury. Well, I had a concussion back in 1979, but was not hospitalized although I did have a head series - that showed nothing. ;o) I do wear a helmet now...

[MustangLover]

I'd have to say that one of the worst that have ever happened was when I was riding montana, and I was using the families english saddle...I had montana moving at a canter, and he stubbled...he tried to catch his balance but instead went down...I was thrown from the saddle, and landed directly on my cell phone (which I'm surpised that it didnt break)..Montana flipped and of course he layed there for alittle bit, but then he got up..Rayne came and investaged, bcuz I was still laying on the ground...But I have to say I walked around with pain in my leg for almost a week from where i landed on my cell phone...To this day I dont ride with my phone anymore..unless I'm going on a long trail ride..Of course I made sure montana was fine, and he was...

I've got to say, that this isn't a riding accident, but it does include a horse..I never like talking 'bout this bcuz it just grosses me out...But when i was younger, like 9 years old..I was saddling up my sister's arabian/quarter horse, and he always hated having the girth tightened...so therefore he would suck in his gut and kind of like lean back...well one time he did that, He pulled up his head and somehow i was pushed into a 2 by 4...I had some of my bottom teeth go through my chin...and lost 3 top teeth...4 bottom ones...I have a scar on my chin where my teeth went through...I dont know all the details, unlike my mom...but this is all true...and like i said I dont like talking about it at all...

[Donald Redux]

Hmmm...kind of weird considering the horses I've worked with. I had an attraction to dangerous horses. Used to buy them off the rodeo circuit because no one who drew them any more would ride them out the chute.

Bad actors. Would bite, aim to kick, strike, fall and roll.

And though they did try some of these things I always survived with the little damage to show for their effort.

Yet, a nice gentle mare I was working in a small round pen, too small it turns out, lost impulsion, went 'nappy' as we called it, and went up and over backward with me. Right into a fence, hurting my back.

I'd had horses rear with me before, and even go over, but I always had room to step off. But the small size of the area caused me to come into the fence before I could clear the horse and saddle.

My near misses were far more spectacular than the very few times I was injured.

This one would have killed me if he could.

I had purchased a few horses from a major ranch (one of the world's biggest), that ran TBs on open range letting them breed wild. I think I had gotten four or five to gentle for some of my students that wanted horses of their own.

When they arrived in the truck from the dock I took them off one at a time and stalled each separately. One was so frightened and dangerous, charging me if I tried to get in the truck, that I had them back the truck to a stall so that I could drop the ramp close in, and have helpers hold fence panels on each side and I herded him out and into the stall.

The others were, though totally green, and ages from 5 to 8, little angels. He was 5, and determined to fight.

Big and strong, of course.

I watched him on and off for a few hours that day knowing that sooner or later I had to go in there.

I considered calling my vet, who also did zoo work, and had a tranquilizer gun. Dangerous for the horse.

I considered getting a few of my ranch hand friends, local cowboys, to come rope him and take him to my deep wood chip training arena. Still too dangerous.

I remembered something I'd seen when I was a teen on my uncles ranch. There was a horse like that that had all the vaqueros buffaloed. They'd go into the remuda and rope out their horses for work, and as the group thinned down he'd come charging out at them jaws snapping like a damned crocodile. He hadn't been ridden for months, in fact not at all that year, and he'd been hell to catch and ride before.

This old timer waited one day until everyone was gone, except me, who hung around being a pest mostly, and with that being the only horse in the corral he went in and when the horse charged, he hit him in the face ... with a bucket of cold water.

Last time the horse charged anyone. He stood there with cold water dripping off his face, neck, and shoulders, obviously tranquil. The old boy put a halter on and put him back to work that day.

As I looked at this green range bred TB gelding backup up in the corner of his stall I figured the worst the could happen would be that he would kill me. But then I had a reputation with bad horses and you know how young men and their reputations go together.

So I got my most trusted and strongest stable hand to stand at the door (this was a blackout stall. Only the upper half of the double door let in any light. He was instructed to let me out if I yelled for him to. But not the horse, of course.

I went in with a charged water hose with a trigger nozzle on it.

As I had pondered what to do it went through my mind that one of my student's dad was a psychiatrist and he and I had discussed tranquilizers, and behavior, etc. and the technique of cold water baths wrapped in sheets used for excitable mental patients. He had described to me how the body reacted to the shock of cold water, etc.

That horse came at me four or five times, and right at the middle of the stall he stopped each time. Because I blasted him with the cold water.

Now consider, the shock effect was probably being reduced each time, and I knew I did NOT have an infinite number of chances with him, so, in accordance with the "soaking," routine used in the hospitals I decided to simply wet him down and keep him cool while I moved in and began gentling work using my hands and the halter and lead I'd brought along.

That red gelding turned into one of the best little kids horses I'd worked with. The best of the lot we bought in fact.

All without hurting him and an easy course of gentling after this stall and cold water incident.

Do I recommend it?

Naw. I probably was doing other things that I wasn't fully aware of that communicated sometime to the horse that helped, and I never recommend going into a stall, or even a paddock with a horse that green and frightened.

I like what they do now with mustangs, using a barrier, and poles with soft touch pieces on the end, and the click and treat method. Much safer for all concerned, including the horse.

That trick I pulled could have gone very bad.

[Becky (ridendurance)]

Interesting post Donald. Some old the old ways are worth learning from and I like the fact that you think we can still do better. What a truly fascinating life you've had so far and I am so glad you are sharing some of it with us.