13/05/2026
I’ve realised my horse ownership style is probably best described as:
✨ affectionate neglect ✨
Which sounds deeply concerning until you actually see the horses.
Then you realise it mostly means:
🐴 ad-lib hay
🐴 muddy friends
🐴 freedom to move
🐴 standing in the rain by choice despite having three shelters available
🐴 scratches in weird itchy places
🐴 me wandering into the field saying “hello gorgeous goblin”
🐴 low-pressure expectations
🐴 no obsession with constant productivity
And honestly?
I think horses quite like being allowed to just… exist.
The equestrian world can sometimes make you feel like if you are not:
• riding five times a week
• drilling transitions
• filming every session
• buying seventeen supplements
• attending clinics every weekend
• producing an athlete worthy of the Olympics
…then you are somehow failing your horse.
Meanwhile your horse is stood there covered in mud, half asleep, emotionally fulfilled by a hedge.
A lot of horses do not need:
✨ optimisation
✨ side quests
✨ vision boards
✨ Pilates
They need:
🌿 safety
🌿 food
🌿 movement
🌿 companionship
🌿 consistency
🌿 appropriate care
🌿 nervous systems around them that are not permanently vibrating at 900mph
And before somebody panics:
Obviously neglect is real.
This is not that.
Your horse still needs:
📋 healthcare
📋 hoof care
📋 welfare checks
📋 appropriate feeding
📋 enrichment
📋 handling
📋 observation
But I do think some horse owners carry enormous guilt for not constantly “doing”.
Sometimes your horse genuinely prefers:
🐴 a peaceful field
🐴 a slow groom
🐴 a wander together
🐴 a scratch under the mane
🐴 being allowed to behave like an actual horse
Over another intense session with a human chasing productivity because Instagram convinced us every horse needs a career path.
Anyway.
If anyone needs me, I’ll be in the field lovingly ignoring my horses while they ignore me back. 🌿
