vent. "dont go near that horse, you dont know what hes like"

The other day my mom,dad,and a family friend and her 4 year old daughter came to meet Cody (my horse). My parents friend just seemed tense the entire time and I don't know why(tho lately she seems to tense up anytime i'm around.... I don't know why. Or I could be imagining it. Who knows). First she wouldnt let her daughter walk up to cody because "she doesnt know what he's like". Okay with just some random horse I can understand that. But it insulted me!!! I was the one who invited them to come meet them. ME. The horses OWNER. If he wasn't safe for children to be around I would have told her right away, and sugested she not bring her daughter. Or the least she could have done it "angie, is it safe for her to pet him" or something!! Instead when her daughter went to pet Cody, she snaps" stay away from him I don't know what he's like". It really insulted me! Like he's a well mannored horse, he doesnt bite or kick, he stans still in cross ties and he's extremly friendly, loves people ( espeshally when they have treats haha) which she knows because I told her this before I even asked if they wanted to come meet him. It wasn't just me who got the negative vibe off her either. My dad picked up on it too, throughout the intire time she was there.

In the end Cody proved he's nothing to be afraid of. I has him free in the arena and my mom and the 4 year old went in and he was fine. He stood still to be pet when they walked away he followed like a puppy (proof my weeks of join up has done something.).

Am I just over reacting?

Maybe the mother of the child has a fear of horses. Not everyone is comfortable around horses. They are large animals and can make some people uneasy and tense.

nope. She grew up on a farm, around horses. Her brother still owenes horses including a pony for her daughter

I definitely think you are over-reacting, no offense but there is really NO need ot be getting upset or even insulted about this.

Has this family friend ever been around horses before? It SOUNDS fun to go see a horse but often people are intimidated when they get there and realize it's a 1000lb lliving, moving animal. It definitely doesn't seem like they were out to insult you or your horse, it sounds like she was nervous which made her even more nervous about her small child going near the 1000lb animal. I can totally understand that. What kind of parent would she be in her mind if she, herself was scared and let her daughter go near him and get hurt? The truth is she DOESN'T know that horse or how he behaves (regardless of what you say) and needed to be on the cautious side for her daughters sake. Not a big deal, at all. It's being a responsible parent IMO, at least she didn't let her child run around your horse and aggitate him.

I don't think you should feel insulted. Yes, she was more uptight than she needed to be, but like what kmd said, at least she didn't let her kid go nuts around the barn. That would have been much worse. I boarded with a woman who set her kids loose and paid no attention to where they were once they got in the barn, and let me tell you, it was a nightmare. Her 4-year-old son would run up and try to climb around my horse, crawl between his legs, run behind him, screeching all the way. I yelled at him, and he completely ignored me. And the daughter was a little beast of a child. She beat on her pony and the barn cats, and screamed her head off if she didn't get her way. And the mother would never discipline them.

Lesson learned. If someone is going to be one of the two extremes, it's better to be overprotective than completely thoughtless. Especially when huge, strong animals are involved.

Don't be insulted. I have taught my son NEVER to trust anyones horses. He knows my horses and how to behave with them and any other horse he treats as a potential threat. It's the way you should teach children (in my opinion). They need to have a healthy respect and even some fear of a beast that large.

Just like everyone else said-you are overreacting. I actually think it's very smart that the parents are teaching their little girl to be careful around horses.

It's the same with dogs. I've taught my son to never pet a strange dog without the owners approval....

I'd be offended too to be honest. Like you said, if it wasn't safe, you'd ask her not to bring her daughter. Never mind, at least he proved he's a lovely horse, and you don't have to invite her over ever again if you don't want. Some people are just ridiculously controlling of their kids, it's like an obsession where they want to wrap them in cotton wool... let them climb trees and scuff their knees for goodness sake, it'll do them good, not harm! (okay, my rant over now too )

I can see both sides of this. However, considering her expierence around horses and the fact that she knows you personally, I say you have a bit of a right to be insulted. Not unforgiving-grudge-holding hurt, but insulted. I completely understand how she would be cautious with her daughter and that horses are unpredictable animals, but if she was really that nervous she could've insisted she didn't want to bring her daughter or just plain stayed home.