You only have to look at any old photo of a street in your town (wherever you are) around 100 years ago, and you'll see the telltale pile on the road. Who used to clear it all up?
I can only add (for general entertainment) the German expression for same: Pferdeäpfeln (horse-apples). Who says the Germans don't have a sense of humour?
Oz (as was)
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Would be interesting to know what sort of car the average horse rider drives. Nissan? Skoda? Wartburg? Or might it be a BMW or Mercedes, or perhaps some other road greedy device such as a 4wd 4 seater juggernaught.
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The best use for a horse is to provide catmeat!
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This is a very good topic to discuss. I personally find horses to be a right pain in the backside- especially if they have a rider that doesnt wave when traffic slows down!
A few years ago, I used to ride a moped (im not proud). Anyway, I remember on one Saturday morning, I was riding to work when i came across a horse in the middle of the road. I did the right thing and slowed right down to about 5mph. I then proceeded to overtake and I stuck right over in the other lane so I wouldnt frighten the horse. Anyway, being a moped, the faster you go, the louder it is. So when I went to speed up it got louder, consiquently making the horse frightened. As i proceeded to overtake, the horse went MENTAL!! and started turning round in circles in the middle of the road. To prevent further distress, I rode on as quickly as possible.
I personally think horses shouldnt be on the roads. Being animals, they have minds of their own and therefore can be unpredictable. However, many others will disagree with this agruement im sure, so how about a compromise? Maybe it would be a good idea for each horse to take a 'riding test' to measure their ability on the roads instead of any old black beauty being allowed out. It would have to be conducted through an independent governing body and a licence would be issued at the end.
Also, with regard to horse shhhhh...poo, I think there should be rules for horse riders in the same way as there are for dog owners. OK, i can appreciate a dog is much easier to control and does not produce as much waste as a horse (usually), however, horse dung can be dangerous on the roads (as demonstrated by the stunt motorcyclist in the first post).
Any other thoughts?
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I think horse riders have a right to use the roads, just as car, bike, lorry etc users do. It makes me angry when I see people driving dangerously fast near horses. Only a week ago I saw someone overtake a horse and rider at ~50+ mph. What are they supposed to do when a bridleway stops at a road with no pavement?
I'm not sure how riders can clean up poo given that they look forwards. Maybe a special poo-cam could be fitted so that the rider always has a clear view of the horse's bottom?
BTW fresh horse poo is a bit strong and does need composting first. However it does make a good mulch for shrubs. It'll suppress weeds - no light - and rots down to feed the plants.
PLEASE STOP HERE IF YOU ARE EATING OR ARE A BIT SENSITIVE
Regarding dog and horse poo. (What a savoury thread this is.) Horse's poo is for the most part just digested grass/hay/straw and I have no problem handling the stuff with ungloved hands. I suspect the bacteria are not harmful, but would not advise anyone to eat it (hohum). Dogs on the other hand eat meat, which I believe results in a much more complex and harmful bacterial fauna in their poo. (Rotten meat is much more dangerous than a rotten vegetable.) They can also have numerous parasites that we can catch. And of course the smell is foul. There's a good reason why lots of mycologists - fungus scientists - have studied micro-fungi on horse poo, but few have got stuck in (so to speak) to micro-fungi on dog poo.
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I forgot to say that I think that the rider who skidded on horse poo was going too fast for the road. Otherwise he would have had time to see the hazard and steer away from it, or perhaps brake if the whole road was submerged in 6" of the stuff (as the result of a horse poo transporter losing its load). So really it was his own stupidity, and the fact that he was not hurt but damaged his bike is a good lesson for him.
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Leif wrote:
\"Regarding dog and horse poo. (What a savoury thread this is.) Horse\'s poo is for the most part just digested grass/hay/straw and I have no problem handling the stuff with ungloved hands. I suspect the bacteria are not harmful, but would not advise anyone to eat it (hohum). Dogs on the other hand eat meat, which I believe results in a much more complex and harmful bacterial fauna in their poo. (Rotten meat is much more dangerous than a rotten vegetable.) They can also have numerous parasites that we can catch. And of course the smell is foul. There\'s a good reason why lots of mycologists - fungus scientists - have studied micro-fungi on horse poo, but few have got stuck in (so to speak) to micro-fungi on dog poo. \"
Thanks for the scientific analysis of horse dung Leif! Very interesting stuff, especially if you are into compost. However, i dont think the rider who ran into it was that bothered about the type of bacteria in it - at the end of the day its still poo! It makes a mess, it is slippery - especially when wet, and therefore can be fairly dangerous i would of thought.
I can appreciate what you were saying about horse riders being entitled to use the roads. Although i can see your point, I think the likelyhood is most people who ride horses are not travelling on them - they are just out for a leisurely stroll. Maybe it would be a good idea to issue times when horses are not allowed on the roads - i.e. rush hour.
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snip
Rant deleted as likely to start arguments.
DD, BR Moderator.
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I think horse riders have a right to use the roads, just as car, bike, lorry etc users do. It makes me angry when I see people driving dangerously fast near horses.
We are now in the 21st century, and horses don't mix with heavy vehicular traffic. Do you think we should still have that man walking in front with a red flag?
I have seen far too many near misses between horses and buses. And as I have previously posted, there have been three fatal accidents involving horses near where I live. Indeed, one happened when the rider was on a very wide grass verge on the dual carriageway. The horse was spooked by the noise of traffic and charged into the road. Both horse and rider were killed by a heavy goods vehicle.
Although I live in a rural area, there are main roads close by which continue to be used by young female riders. The majority appear to be novices with little thought about the dangers of traffic.
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"I'm not sure how riders can clean up poo given that they look forwards. Maybe a special poo-cam could be fitted so that the rider always has a clear view of the horse's bottom?"
Horse drawn carriages giving tourists rides around cities/parks etc generally have a strategic 'poo bag' attached to the horses back ends that catches any escaping manure!
As for horses being ridden on the roads...I agree with whoever said that there should be some sort of test to make sure a horse is 'roadworthy'. Unfortunately, the roads where you are most likely to come across a horse and rider are the ones that involve blind bends and narrow lanes...not good on a 'spooky' horse.
On busier roads a seperate fenced off track running alongside would make it safer all round. When building a bypass near where I live they did this as well as building a tunnel under the road for the use of horses, riders and farmers moving their herds (I guess the council had a rush of blood to the head and actually decided on a plan that was both sensible and useful....that doesn't happen often!) ;o)
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Carrick: quite a few riders are too young to drive. But of those who can, it can only be sensible to have another view on life, whether usually behind a 3-pointed star or not. Like motorcyclinging, horse riding makes you aware of your surroundings. Now, what was your hidden message?
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Perhaps they should modify the horse road sign to have a the tail raised....nuff said
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A couple of years back I wanted a few bagfuls of the well rotted horse product for the garden and went with Mrs H to the local stable where a large apparently solid steaming pile of the stuff was just waiting to be bagged up - help yourself free of charge.
Wellies and gloves on I climbed onto the pile of poo to get over the back to the well rotted rather than the fresh straw at the front - I'm 16 stone so you've guessed - I sank up to groin level and trying to extricate myself lost one of the wellies.Well I really didn't want it back.
My how I laughed!!!
Not.
That said Mrs H was curled up.
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helicopter,
Welliesorter will be along any minute!
Matt35.
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Any other vehicle (or whatever) needs to be insured, taxed and have a licensed driver. Why should horses be different?
Mattster
Boycott shoddy build and reliability.
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Any other vehicle (or whatever) needs to be insured, taxed and have a licensed driver. Why should horses be different?
I don't need the above to ride my bicycle, nor to walk down the highway if I chose. Same for horse-drawn carriages (I think!). Horses were on the road long before cars, so they should be treated with respect {like the elderly :-)}.
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