Parenting

On the Fugly blog there was a post on parenting in regards to animal cruelty and kindness. I can't imagine what it would be like to witness animal cruelty in my own home as a child. It must be terrifying and those children must carry those scars into their adult life. I think that parents that are abusive and ignorant about the animals in their care are probably the same to any children in their care. It makes me sad just to think about it.

I was incredibly fortunate to grow up in a house with two amazing parents that were always kind to animals. My mom loves animals. She is easily won over by anything furry and pathetic looking. She recently got her first dog. He's the one in the picture above. She loves him to death. And she was so cute when she was looking for a dog to buy. She wanted to be a good owner from day one so she researched different breeds and visited kennels and called vets and dog trainers. He has almost consistently been in obedience school since she brought him home. Not becasue he's bad but because she loves teaching him new tricks and he loves showing off.

My father is one of those people that all animals love. Vicious gaurd dogs at constructiion sites bound over with tails wagging to meet him. Pretentious house cats who ignor the majority of silly humans invading their castels end up purring on his lap without shame. My horse nickers at him. He doesn't even do that for me! My Dad has that trsuting, gentle nature that draws both humans and animals alike in. And he respects them as well. He treats all animals fairly and affectionatly and I have never once seen an animal not respond to that.

I'm so glad I have these role models in my life. Neither of my partents are at all into horses but I think the background for love and respect towards animals they gave me has made it so theat I am comforatble in the horses world. Training horses requires such fairness and respect to build trust and responsivness. I don't think those things can be taught. I think what makes me a good rider is I am always asking how does my horse think? And how does my horse feel? And why is he thinking and feeling that way? With that mindset you can work through any problem all the while being compassionate to your horse.