Mary Allen
A horse needs a lot of time, love, and also money. Now it can happen, however, that as a horse owner one can no longer or does not want to do all of this to a sufficient extent. For example, because you want more life outside of the barn again, because you are expecting a child because you are more involved in your job or your financial situation has changed. At this point, horse riding can be interesting.
What is Riding Participation Anyway?
With riding participation, the owner of a horse shares the right of use for his animal with a second and possibly a third rider. The rider involved receives permission (and the obligation) to ride and care for the horse like his own on agreed days. The horse owner receives a reasonable fee from the rider involved for the proportional maintenance costs. Usually, this riding participation is regulated by contract.
Ideally, this agreement provides added value for all parties involved. The owner is relieved financially and in terms of time. The rider involved not only has a horse to ride but can get used to a horse and develop a relationship with it, almost as if it were their own. And the horse gets the attention and movement it deserves.
What Must Be Taken Into Account When Participating in the Riding?
It is very important that both the owner and the rider involved are clear about what they actually want from this community before entering into riding participation.
The owner of the horse has to decide what can be done with his horse: What about the care? Is it allowed to go on horseback rides and participate in tournaments? Do you also want children to participate in the riding? Should or may the rider involved take part in the riding lessons?
The rider involved, on the other hand, has to know which of these questions he would like to have answered with “yes”. He should think about how many days a week he would like at least with the horse and whether he can reliably spend this time.
In order to clarify whether you are on the same wavelength, detailed discussions should be held between the owner and rider. Both parties should agree on two to three days in which they are in the stable – only then is the relationship between the new rider and the horse guaranteed.
Reliability is the Key
Both riders and owners must be able to rely on the fact that the agreed times and rules are adhered to. This also means that the money is regularly received by the owner and that the rider involved reliably looks after the horse on the agreed days.
Important! When riding a horse, the owner always has the last word on everything that concerns the horse. It is therefore very important that the owner and the rider are involved in understanding each other and that they can get along with a critical word.
Advantages of Riding Participation for Horse Owners
As already mentioned, participation in riding is primarily intended as a relief for the horse owner. With a second rider, the owner ensures that his horse is regularly ridden and cared for. Financial support is also an important aspect for many-after all, a horse is very expensive.
In exceptional cases, riding participation also offers the owner the opportunity to cope with problematic habits that the horse has developed together. Here, especially experienced riders who are familiar with horse training are usually in demand. Less experienced riders shouldn’t be discouraged by this, because this is more of a special case.
Advantages of Riding Participation for Participating Riders
Often it is riding school students who are interested in participating in riding. Instead of constantly having another horse set aside, they prefer to ride the same horse over and over again, develop a partnership with it and maybe even compete in tournaments.
It’s also a great option for any rider considering buying their own horse. In the riding participation, they can try out whether they can handle the responsibility that comes with having their own horse. Sometimes there is even the possibility to buy the horse after a while if the relationship has developed positively.
Cost of Riding Participation
Basically, the costs are of course a matter of agreement. Mostly they depend on how often the rider is in the stable and with the horse – the more often this is the case, the more expensive the participation in riding. There are also gradations according to the experience of the rider – if the rider already has a lot of experience with horses and maybe even with their training, he will usually pay a lower amount than a less experienced rider, as both owner and horse benefit from this knowledge.
Tip! Riding participation usually costs the participating rider between $70 and $250 per month. Since the running costs of a horse amount to around $200 to $500 a month, that’s a fair share of them.
Find the Right Riding Participation
Anyone looking for riding participation will find that it is not always that easy. The best thing to do is to ask in your own stable first – the riding instructors can easily assess which horse would suit whom. Otherwise, you usually find out about offers through word-of-mouth propaganda or from horse magazines. Online offers, for example via eBay classifieds, can also be helpful.
Is There an Alternative to Horse Riding?
As an alternative to riding participation, two riders can join forces to form an owner association for a horse. In addition to the right of use, this also provides the real right to the horse. In addition, riders can always rent horses, as is the case, for example, in the riding school, and on vacation.