Re: Toddlers

[Sue Brown <sbrown@wamedes.com>]

><< I can tell 
>you all with absolute certainty, that if ANY three year old child in an 
>endurance ride, had such an accident, and was airlifted to ANY regional 
>trauma center, that Someone on the medical team would question the 
>circumstances. Medical people are not necessarily fond of any creatures on 
>earth, and many dislike livestock. (imagine that) If the Medical staff 
>member (Doctor, Nurse, Psychologist, of Social Worker) SUSPECTED that it was 
>an innappropriate or potentially dangerous situation that the kid had been 
>put in, they would be mandated by law to report their suspicions to Child 
>Protective services, who are mandated by law to investigate. >>
>
>This is what I mean by government intervention into the lives of people.
>
>Barbara
>
IMO it goes deeper than that.  It is a product of the paranoia felt by
those in management/instructor roles when it involves horses.  This has
been brought around by some very real happenings in our litigious society
-- the high cost of medical care, insurance companies, lawyers, the current
high scrutiny of horse related accidents, the ultra-high awareness by
agencies and people regarding child abuse or neglect, and the inability of
the very young child to protect themselves or make rational judgements
regarding life choices.  There is also an increased awareness of the
long-term effects of early stress or trauma to children in athletic
endeavors of too high an impact to their growing bodies.  

Someone mentioned swimming earlier in this discussion -- and the fact that
people are encouraged to give their children lessons for safety reasons.
The reasoning behind this message is that toddlers are terribly out of
proportion in their body development and have head that are of normal size
while their bodies are of toddler size.  This results in child drownings to
be the highest at this age -- their head, the size and weight of a bowling
ball, becomes a deadly weight attached to a body that isn't large enough to
create a natural buoyancy and counteract the gravitational pull to the
bottom of the pool.  Some lessons in paddling to get to the edge of the
pool if they fall in may save their life.

When it comes to a toddler riding, the same anatomical problem still
exists.  I have seen a horse shake and small kid come off without even a
remote chance of staying on because of the disproportion in their body --
and this was at a walk in an arena being led by their parent (no
side-walker.)  There isn't enough leg length (toddlers are very out of
proportion here) to counteract the effects of the head weight.  When they
get to grade school age (around 7 or 8), they have a bit more leg and lower
body to counteract the heavy head.  This does not even begin to address
their mental capacities at that age or the invisible long term effects of
prolonged stressors to their bones, etc.  I don't think a lot of people are
even aware of this -- but those who *are* aware can't put our heads in the
sand and pretend ignorance.

We make a very big deal about not stressing the bodies (and minds) of young
horses by starting them too early in some kind of athletic endeavor.  We
are aware of the long term consequences because of incidences as a result
of this problem.  Yes, there are a lot of horses started at age 2 or 3 that
don't have any anatomical problems later on...but we strive to educate the
owners and protect the horses anyway because of the problems we *do* see.
We think it important enough to protect these young bodies from the
ignorance or ego of their owners by passing a rule that limits their
involvement at a young age in a sport that is highly stressful physically.
At this point, we *hope* that people use their common sense when it comes
to the very young children, make good choices according the all factors
considered, and that luck holds out with the ones who are placed in
potentially compromising situations.

There are a lot of different facets here and, altho we have yet to find a
way to legislate common sense, we are stuck in a society that is frequently
sorely lacking and those in the medical and horse related professions are
increasingly aware of the consequences.  When something happens, the
insurance companies and the legal system are right there to "take care" of
these consequences.

Sue (R.N.) 


-------
Sue Brown
Tyee Farm
ARICP Certified Riding Instructor
Recreational Riding and Dressage
Marysville, Wa. 
sbrown@wamedes.com