I was helping to shoe a horse of a friend of mine the other day and it got a wee bit upset. That darned thing kicked my friend in the stomach and he's down for the count. It didn't hurt him badly but he is laid up for a bit with bruises and having the breath knocked out of him. It wasn't a normally easily upset horse so I don't know what upset it. My friend had turned around to get a piece of equipment and it let him have it. I hate that he got hurt, but I'm glad it wasn't me too.
Don't Underestimate The Power Of A Horse
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AlwaysOutdoors
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We have a friend that is a Blacksmith and he can attest to how horsed are. It has made a good living for him but I think he says that he really hates horses!
ppine
Forester
AlphaMale,
I am sorry to hear your story. I broke my femur in 2007 in the saddle after running into a mountain lion.
Horses are prey animals with a lot of flight instinct. They are timebombs waiting to go off (Lee Roser, Mammoth Lakes Pack Outfit). People who work with livestock get hurt all the time. It is part of working with large animals that are afraid of everything.
I am sorry to hear your story. I broke my femur in 2007 in the saddle after running into a mountain lion.
Horses are prey animals with a lot of flight instinct. They are timebombs waiting to go off (Lee Roser, Mammoth Lakes Pack Outfit). People who work with livestock get hurt all the time. It is part of working with large animals that are afraid of everything.
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wvbreamfisherman
Active Member
Funny that no one has mentioned cows. Those nasty critters can kick forward backwards and sideways. I used to milk cows on my uncle's farm, and got kicked numerous times. The b**tards liked to kick over the milk bucket too!
Never suffered any injury beyond some nasty bruises, but I can imagine a cow getting a full-bore rear kick at you could do some serious damage- not least because the split hoof.
Never suffered any injury beyond some nasty bruises, but I can imagine a cow getting a full-bore rear kick at you could do some serious damage- not least because the split hoof.
MountainMan22
New Member
Well just look at how they can run and you'll get an idea of the power they have in those bodies. They look like nothing but muscle. I wouldn't advise anyone to walk behind them and maybe even in front of them if you want to be really careful. You don't want to be in their way if they get spooked.
Been there done that, I milked cows all my life. In the old days we hobbled them to keep the kicking down. Later, some guy invented a device that hooked in the flank and over the back bone. That stopped the kicking. Any first calf heifer than made it 3 months and still wanted to kick me went for a ride to town.
oldsarge
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Last November, my brother-in-law was walking his horse back to the stable. Upon entering, his horse spooked another horse to the right of him. His horse turned further to the right to avoid being kicked by the spooked horse. This put my brother-in-law right in front of the horse doing the kicking. He took both rear legs to the chest and face. Lifted him over ten feet in the air where he landed on his head. End result...broken jaw in three places, three broken ribs & numerous cracked, A large goose egg on his head and several cuts to the face and head. He is still dealing with some brain damage in the form of dizziness and memory loss.
That is terrible Sarge, I sure feel for the guy. When we used to have the big elk hunting pack trips, all these strange horses would be thrown together. We all took 3 horses each because of the distance we packed in. I learned real quick never to trust another mans horse and not to trust my own too far in that environment. Most of the horses would get along okay but it was inevitable that at least one knot head would be in the mix. Throw in an occasional wolf or bear scent and we had some nervous horses.
ppine
Forester
If you can get through the first hour with a new unknown packstring you're doing good. Figuring out the order to tie them in is really important. Timebombs waiting to go off. Kickers become tail mules and horses.
Mules rarely miss what they are aiming at. Sometimes they'll send a warning shot with a hind leg and touch a person's clothing without hitting them.
Sack em out, expose them to everything you can think of. Lead other critters when you ride. Rub em down with animal fur. Don't drop your guard. The truth will come with 10,000 miles in the saddle.
Mules rarely miss what they are aiming at. Sometimes they'll send a warning shot with a hind leg and touch a person's clothing without hitting them.
Sack em out, expose them to everything you can think of. Lead other critters when you ride. Rub em down with animal fur. Don't drop your guard. The truth will come with 10,000 miles in the saddle.
Cottontail
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I think it's very easy for folks to underestimate how strong hoofed animals can be. There was a story that was floating around on the internet a few years back about this guy who tried to rope a deer, and it beat the tar out of him.
Pathfinder1
Well-Known Member
Hi...
I've seen that happen many times myself. Fortunately, I was only an onlooker at my neighbor's dairy farm. That was when such farming was still done with horses.
I always enjoyed exploring their barn, too.
OldSole
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Ouch! Been there, done that with the milk cows and the mules. We used to farm when I was a kid and teenager and I've milked my share of old heathens that just wanted to kick the living daylights out of me. Mules-the same since we plowed with mules all of the time. The horses were just riding horses and I never had any trouble with them, but then I didn't shoe or trim their hooves. Cows are truly evil sometimes.