Dumb shit I used to believe about horses...

Spin off of the last post...

Here's what should be an amusing, if scary, topic. Think back to when you were a teenager or young adult. What did you believe about horses and horse care that you now know is wrong, wrong, wrong?

I have mentioned before that I did NOT learn to ride at the most reputable barn. Actually, it was a shithole and the instructors were all clueless teens. Several of the horses were unconscionably skinny. Many were lame or had heaves so badly they coughed with every stride. My mom was clueless, so was I. I grew up at that barn, and so when I was a teenager I believed things like:

1) Horses only need to be wormed every six months if they're living in a stall. They only get worms from living outside and eating off the ground!

2) Old horses are skinny 'cause they're old. *sigh*

3) Only old horses need their teeth floated. (I had never heard of wolf teeth...had no clue!)

4) Good lord, I used to put hunt saddles on WAY too far forward. I have pictures now that I look at and cringe. 'Course, that was how they taught me to do it, based upon the argument that "they will slip back as you ride." *eye roll*

5) If a mare went lame, you should definitely breed her! Never mind why she went lame, you could breed her and make money! (Fortunately by the time I actually owned a mare, I had learned this was not correct. Fate determined that my first couple of horses were geldings, thus preventing me from doing anything stupid, hallelujah!)

6) If they're acting up, you're probably feeding them too much. Cut 'em down to two flakes of hay a day and they'll straighten up and fly right!

Oh, and I believed Arabians were always going to be worth a million zillion dollars. I was going to grow up and breed Arabians and have a farm JUST like the ones I saw in Scottsdale when we went to watch in 1984. Ha, ha, ha...

All right, what did YOU believe (especially things you were specifically taught by someone else who was older and should have known better!) that now makes you just cringe?